Access Glasgow will be taking place over the weekend of the 18th of Feb and applications are still open!

The event will be kicking off on Friday evening, which will play host to our 18+ session. We will then have 4 more sessions that will take place over the course of the weekend, including intimate developers’ sessions with Media Molecule and Open Emotion. We’ll also be hosting the FIFA Interactive World Cup tournament, where we will be taking the winners from each session through to the UK FIWC Final! What’s more, if you’ve recently got yourself a copy of GT5, get practicing, as we will be hosting a GT5 Time Trial competition, where you could be in with the chance of winning a pair of tickets to the UEFA Champions League Final taking place at Wembley in May 2011.

And if that isn’t enough, we’ll also have playable code for Infamous 2 Playstation Beta and SOCOM 4.

For more information and to register for tickets, please visit the PlayStation Access Facebook page by clicking through to www.facebook.com/playstationaccess.

Hope to see you there!

Killzone 3 features eight diverse multiplayer levels, including MP03 Bilgarsk Boulevard and the MP05 Frozen Dam map that comes with the Multiplayer Open Beta. For more details on Killzone 3′s multiplayer maps, check out the full briefing at Killzone.com.

We’ll unveil more details on the Killzone 3 Multiplayer Open Beta soon (along with some surprises), so stay tuned.

This Beta will offer you exclusive early access to the MP05 ‘Frozen Dam’ multiplayer level from Killzone 3, including all three online multiplayer modes – Guerrilla Warfare, Warzone and Operations – as well as the offline multiplayer mode, Botzone. A sprawling asymmetrical map set in an old dam facility, the playing field in MP05 has been carefully tailored to fit each of the multiplayer modes.

These are the four multiplayer modes included with the Open Beta:

Guerrilla Warfare (16 players)
Guerrilla Warfare is a standalone multiplayer mode similar to classic Team Deathmatch: You and your teammates must try to kill as many of the opposing team as you can before the timer runs out. In this mode, only the downstream monitor houses and repair bay are accessible, giving the map a very frantic pace.

Warzone (24 players)
If you’ve played Killzone 2, you may already be familiar with Warzone. It’s a round-based multiplayer campaign that consists of five randomly ordered mini-missions. In this mode the power house and penstocks directly under the dam are accessible as well, so there’s more room to come up with different strategies and approaches to your goal.

Operations (16 players)
Operations is a new multiplayer campaign which aims to deliver a more cinematic, story-based gameplay experience, similar to that of Killzone 3′s single-player mode. It consists of a sequence of linear mini-missions, in which the ISA must try to secure the docks and destroy the dam, while the Helghast must try to protect the dam facility.

Botzone (one player and up to 15 bots)
Botzone is an offline multiplayer mode ideal for those looking to get to grips with the controls, the weapons or the map layout before going up against live players. Each of the aforementioned multiplayer modes can be played offline, against CPU-controlled opponents.

For details of all the maps in Killzone 3 see our feature on Killzone.com.

Over the next couple of weeks keep your eyes on the PlayStation Blog and Killzone.com for more information.

Have a good weekend.

LITTLEBIGPLANET 2 STORY MODE DEMO

Let’s start with the great news that there will be a LittleBigPlanet 2 PSN demo coming your way next month. This demo will let everyone out there get a taste of LittleBigPlanet 2′s new Story Mode levels, and some of the new gameplay types that LBP 2 will give you the power to create for yourself. Experience the swinging good fun of the Grapple Hook, rescue some helplessly adorable Sackbots, and see the chaotic multiplayer fun that blows up when competitive scoring mode and some Creatinators armed with rockets are combined.

LittleBigPlanet 2 Story Mode demo will be published on PlayStation Store on 22 December.

SACKBOY’S PREHISTORIC MOVES

Next up is something a little different… a brand new spin-off PSN title that gives a taste of the fun that can happen when Sackboy gets his hands on the PlayStation Move motion controller.

Sackboy’s Prehistoric Moves contains a brand new 10 level theme – a dinosaur dominated land where the Evil Big Rex is king. You are on a mission to take on challenges engineered by Terrance Dactyl – and you’re going to need help. So put on your bear skins and grab up to four mates to navigate the tricky terrain of tropical jungle and erupting volcanoes – the player with the PlayStation Move controller leads the way, flicking switches and triggering platforms to help the others, using DualShock Controllers, through each level. Leap between Dino heads, use the Move controller to blast aside crates of bubbles, ride dinosaurs through prehistoric cities and take to the heights of the prehistoric tree canopy – then team up to defeat Big Rex, all while collecting Trophies along the way.

Sackboy’s Prehistoric Moves is completely standalone – it doesn’t require either LBP 1 or LBP 2 to run. What you will need is one PlayStation Move controller and at least one friend with a DualShock Controller – it is a Move Required and multiplayer-only co-op experience.

The game will be included on the LittleBigPlanet 2 disc when it is released in January. But for everyone who’s desperate to have some motion controlled fun with Sackboy before then – and for the new PS3 and Move owners out there who are intrigued to find out who this Sackboy fellow is – Sackboy’s Prehistoric Moves will be released on PlayStation Store on 15 December, priced €5.99.

That’s not all though! A week earlier, on 8th December, all PlayStation Plus subscribers will be able to download Sackboy’s Prehistoric Moves for free! And, as an extra “thank you” to the amazing community, thousands more LittleBigPlanet fans will receive an email to download Sackboy’s Prehistoric Moves for free at the same time. Listen out for more news on this nearer the time.

For all you Move fans, Sackboy’s Prehistoric Moves is great fun – but it only scratches the surface of what’s possible when PlayStation Move and LittleBigPlanet meet, so look out for some exciting further updates to come after the release of LittleBigPlanet 2…

LITTLEBIGPLANET 2 BETA TRIAL

For weeks now, a group of trialists have been exploring the LittleBigPlanet 2 closed beta trial – providing the team at Media Molecule with a huge amount of valuable feedback, whilst also using the new tools to create some frankly stunning new levels that I’m sure many of you have been admiring from afar. There’s no better demonstration of just how powerful LBP 2′s new features are than to look at these creations – and I know many of you would love to play around with the new tools for yourselves.

Whilst everyone works hard to get all aspects of LBP 2 ready to release in January, it’s unfortunately not possible to open up the beta trial to everyone who’d like to be on there – the huge flood of Creators would be overwhelming! But the great news is that we are able to expand the beta trial a little further – so in early December, a new batch of PlayStation Plus subscribers will receive invitations to join the beta trial. Look out for more info to follow, Plus-folk!

So, to summarise all of that awesomeness…

Early December – A new batch of PlayStation Plus subscribers are invited into the LittleBigPlanet 2 beta trial.

8 December – PlayStation Plus subscribers and a big bunch of LBP fans get Sackboy’s Prehistoric Moves for free.

15 December – Sackboy’s Prehistoric Moves goes on-sale for €5.99 on PlayStation Store.

22 December – Everyone get their hands on the LittleBigPlanet 2 demo.

Woo!

COPERNICUS CONSPIRACY

PS3 users are getting a pack of downloadable Assassin’s Creed Brotherhood missions completely free of charge! It’s the least we can do to thank our dedicated Sony supporters for helping us beta test our multiplayer.

SEKRITS AND ROOMERS

So… a few of you may have seen some news articles about a certain infamous game character making an appearance in Assassin’s Creed Brotherhood. You know the one I’m talking about, right? He’s been in those Metal Gear games that are so popular with you kids these days?

I’m not going to say one way or the other whether or not these allegedly “leaked” details are confirmed or not, but I will say that you might want to keep your eyes peeled for some kind of upcoming reveal or teaser or something of that nature.

Just sayin’.

DEVELOPER BLOGS

Have you been keeping up with our Developer Blog series? There are all kinds of places you can check it out at this point, because we not only post it to the Assassin’s Creed Brotherhood Official Site, but we also started posting it on our Facebook Fan Page (in the Notes section).

Seriously though, you had better start reading them now if you haven’t already, because there are already so many posted… and we have even more on the way!

And I think that about covers it for this week’s news…

Not long to wait now, Assassins!

Today we’re revealing the UPLAY Rewards for Assassin’s Creed Brotherhood! Here are some of the rewards you can get, the full list is available on http://www.AssassinsCreed.com!

• Florentine Noble Attire – 20 Units to unlock
• Altair’s Robes- 20 Units to unlock
• Hellequin Multiplayer Character – 40 Units to unlock

For those that are not too familiar with Uplay we strongly suggest you watch the video made by UbiGabe, your Assassin’s Creed Brotherhood ComDev, detailing how to unlock these cool rewards. (You also get to see the Hellequin for the first time! You sure are VIPs ^^)

Last week, we wrapped up the Assassin’s Creed Brotherhood closed beta. For the duration of the beta we received tons of great feedback from the community. Today, we’re happy to share with you a list of some of the improvements you’ll see in the final version of Assassin’s Creed Brotherhood when it ships in November. This list is by no means complete, but it should give you a good idea of what to expect from the multiplayer mode in the full game. Once again, we’d like to give a big “Thank You” to all who participated in the beta and helped make it a success!

Improvements / Fixes:

• Improved Matchmaking
• Improved Voice Chat
• Improved Lock Mechanism
• Improved Stun
• Improved Climbing Control
• Improved Sound
• Improved Kill Cams
• Improved Scoring Display
• Improved End Game Screen
• Improved Rematch

Added Features:

• New Group Lobby System
• Teammate Indicators in Alliance Mode
• Pursuer Proximity Sound
• Gun and Firecrackers Crowd Reaction
• Player Levels in Player List
• Team Score in Menus

Exotic Gameplay Q&A – Marc Alexis Cote, CP Level Design

Q: What is exotic gameplay?
A: What we call exotic gameplay is a sequence in the game that differs significantly from the rest and is usually a unique moment. An example of exotic gameplay that fans of Assassin’s Creed 2 will recall is Leonardo’s Flying Machine.

Q: Why have exotic gameplay in a game like Assassin’s Creed?
A: When you play a game like Assassin’s Creed that has more than 20 hours of content, it is beneficial to have segments where you do something completely different. These moments change the pace of the game and are used to give the player a really intense experience.

Q: What are the different ways a mission can be exotic?
A: Each exotic mission will take you to a different location in Italy and also be different from a visual perspective. The audio mix is also slightly more intense and more present to emphasize that you are doing something different. The exotic missions will therefore provide variety to all your senses.

Q: How did the exotic gameplay segments come to focus on Leonardo’s War Machines?
A: We wanted the exotic gameplay segments to be intense, packed with action and we wanted them to allow the player to feel powerful. Teaming-up with Leonardo’s genius creativity seemed like a perfect match for our intentions. In many ways, Leonardo was almost 4 to 5 centuries ahead of his time. The concept of a Tank seems very obvious to us living in the 21st century, but to actually come up with the idea when nothing comparable exists is nothing short of pure genius. Leonardo was also a popular character in AC2 and we wanted to give him a role of importance.

Q: What are the main challenges of designing and producing exotic gameplay segments?
A: When designing a War Machine for an exotic segment, we always have to keep in mind that it will be in the hands of players for a maximum of 5 to 10 minutes. Our first goal is to have a machine that players can have an instant feel for how it works. The goal here is to have a machine that is intuitive and is fun within the first few seconds of getting in it. We must also walk a fine line so that the player does not feel that he is in a completely different game.

Our Assassin’s Creed Brotherhood Story Trailer is released! Highlighting the conflict between Cesare Borgia and Ezio Auditore da Firenze, this trailer is designed to familiarize you with the most powerful foe Ezio, and possibly any Assassin, has ever faced. Cunning, devious and focused, Cesare Borgia has spent his entire life amassing the awesome power required to bring all of Italy under his reign… all the while ensuring that none could possibly be capable of standing against him.

Only one man could hope to upset Cesare’s carefully orchestrated plans.

I bet you all know who that guy is, hehe.

YouTube Q&A STORM!

My Community Development pals and I have been furiously filming for the last couple of weeks in order to bring you a staggering number of YouTube Q&A videos. Keep your eyes on the Assassin’s Creed YouTube channel for DAILY Q&As!

Even better: the first in this extended series is up today!

I’m excited, in case you couldn’t tell…

A New Challenger Appears!

I know that you have grown to simply adore our weekly multiplayer character reveals on Facebook, and we have a brand new one releasing today! This big bad brute is called The Mercenary and you can check out his fan-exclusive video on our Facebook page.

BETA Has Ended!

Like all good things, our PlayStation 3 exclusive beta has come to an end. Fortunately, you don’t have much longer to wait before being able to play the finished version. Please allow me to thank our dedicated beta testers on behalf of the entire Assassin’s Creed Brotherhood team; your feedback has been invaluable in enabling us to improve our multiplayer experience. Those of you who weren’t in the beta should probably also thank our testers as well – it’s because of their hard work and support that the game that you’ll get on launch day will be of the highest possible quality.

Of course, it’s not like our testers are done, either! We still want to keep the discussion going to ensure that we wring every last detail out of you. So please be sure to pop by our beta forums to participate in the conversations.

Eagle Vision, blade in the crowd, everything’s permitted, yadda yadda yadda…
Gabe
PSN ID: UbiGabe

Hey Assassins Creed Brotherhood beta testers! We just wanted to give you all a reminder that a third map is now available. Siena is a smaller map where the action takes place during the Palio horse races. Most of the activity will take place on the ground here. We’d love to hear what you think of it so be sure to let us know by posting your thoughts on the Assassin’s Creed Brotherhood beta forums!

Also, thanks for all the fantastic feedback you’ve given us so far. It has all been very helpful and we’re keeping an eye on the forums every day.

Another week, another MP character reveal!

Over the past few weeks, Assassin’s Creed Brotherhood Facebook fans have been able to get early peaks at our multiplayer characters. This week’s reveal is the Thief, a female character who uses a blade from a pair of scissors to deadly effect. If you want to see this new video all you have to do go to the official Assassin’s Creed Facebook page and click the “Like” button. This will grant you access to a special tab on our Facebook page set up to deliver exclusive content to our most dedicated fans!

So be sure to head over to our Facebook page and become a fan!

Nothing is true, everything is permitted.
Gabe

Step 1: Be(come) a Plus subscriber
With the exception of a handful of key media partners, access to the Killzone 3 Public Beta Trial is exclusive to PlayStation Plus subscribers. If you’re not enjoying the many benefits of Plus membership yet, now’s the time to sign up!

Step 2: Download the theme
On October 13th an exclusive Killzone 3 XMB Theme will hit the Plus section of the PlayStation Store. Only the first 10,000 PlayStation Plus subscribers to download this theme will receive access to the Public Beta Trial.

Step 3: Check your email
If you’re among the first 10,000 to download the Killzone 3 XMB Theme, you will receive an email on October 25th containing the Public Beta Trial promotion code and further instructions. The email will be sent to the address you registered as your PSN Sign-In ID, so make sure you’ve set your notification preferences to accept emails from SCEE.

Those of you who make it into the Public Beta Trial are expected to provide honest gameplay feedback, report bugs and glitches, and help test our network code in real-world scenarios. In short, we’re counting on you to help us improve Killzone 3! In return you’ll get a good taste of the multiplayer mode, including its brand-new ‘Operations’ game type, party system, and jetpack and exoskeleton vehicles.

And if that doesn’t convince you to take a shot at the Public Beta Trial, maybe this new trailer will:

Hello again PlayStation Assassins! It’s Gabe Graziani, your Community Developer on Assassin’s Creed Brotherhood, back this week to announce that the Assassin’s Creed Brotherhood Beta is in full swing! This Beta is exclusive to PlayStation 3 and available to PlayStation Plus members, as well as those who pre-ordered from participating retailers.

If you are playing in the Assassin’s Creed Brotherhood Beta, I invite you to submit your feedback on our forums.

The Brotherhood Diaries

Surely you have seen our series of developer diaries called Assassin’s Creed Brotherhood Diaries. Well, we are planning on releasing another episode this week that you won’t want to miss. Entitled “The Perfect Nemesis,” this new instalment in the Brotherhood Diaries discusses the increasing hostilities between Ezio and Cesare Borgia. Powerful, ruthless and well-defended, Cesare Borgia wields tremendous might as the ersatz ruler of Rome. Cesare may even have swayed some of Ezio’s former allies to his side!

Fear not, dedicated Assassins, because Ezio has some new tricks up his sleeve as well!

You can check out all of the Assassin’s Creed Brotherhood Diaries here.

Multiplayer Character Reveals on Facebook

In case you haven’t seen them yet, be sure to head over to our Assassin’s Creed Facebook page for our fan-exclusive Multiplayer Character Reveals! All you have to do is click that little button called “Like” and you will get access to a special tab on our Facebook page set up to deliver exclusive content to our most dedicated fans!

So be sure to head over to our Facebook page and become a fan!

Developer Blog on Official Assassin’s Creed Website

We’ve been publishing a series of written developer blogs on our Official Assassin’s Creed Websites for a couple of weeks now… so, be sure to stop by and check them out! The initial entries are designed to catch you up on where we are in the story behind Assassin’s Creed Brotherhood, but with that out of the way we are going to start digging into more specific game-related information about ACB.

These blogs are published in the News section of the site, so head on over and look at our latest offerings here.

See you in the Beta!
Gabe
PSN ID: UbiGabe

For the first time, you’ll be able to take part in Online Battles against your friends in SingStar. When competing in an Online Battle, you’ll send an invite to one of your PSN friends, match songs (you both need to own a song to play it) – pick-up the mic and in true MC style ‘let battle commence’.

When playing, you can view your opponent’s score live, and see them playing via PlayStation Eye.

As this is a new feature for SingStar, the team needs to test out the gameplay with real players, and this is where you come in! We’re running a Closed Beta for our most dedicated SingStar players to come and help us test out new features and upgrades to the game. If you’re already a SingStar player aged over 18 with a PAL Region PSN account, have the game, mics and an online-enabled PS3, we need your help!

If you’re interested in taking part in the Beta, head over to betatest.software.eu.playstation.com/singstar and fill in the online questionnaire. Please note though that places on this Beta are strictly limited – you’ll be asked to participate on certain nights and feedback on the experience in the forums, so please only apply if you’re able to commit to this (and are happy communicating in English). Full details of the SingStar Beta are on the website, so take a look and if you’re happy to join in, we’d love to get your help and feedback on the new game features. SingStar fans – your game needs you!

My name is Marcus “Noken” Johansson and I’m one of the guys working at the DICE Video Crew in Stockholm, Sweden.

We got some really cool stuff to show you from the upcoming Beta map, Arica Harbor, but it isn’t just a new trailer, it’s actually something a little different.

Usually when we create movies there’s a lot of intense action which is always good, but this time we wanted to try something we haven’t done before.

The idea was to find action filled moments and then capture them while the game was paused. This way the viewer can focus more on details and maybe imagine how he or she would play in that specific situation.

After showing a short test version to the team I got the green light to make the trailer. But how do you capture this kind of stuff?

Well, what I like the most about Battlefield: Bad Company 2 is that we can show actual gameplay so instead of staging scenes I’ve been working with material recorded during our daily studio play tests.

After we’re done with our daily tests we can replay the rounds over and over until we find the scenes we’re looking for. This way people can be sure that the game trailer they’re looking at represents the game they will get to play when it’s out.

So I flew around the level with my free cam, looking for some infantry fighting, some tank battles and of course some really cool destruction. After I was done capturing and editing, the sound team added the sound and music to set the mood and tone of the movie.

Render, ship it!

What you see below is the result and I’m really happy with what we created, and I hope you are too.

See you on the battlefield!

Noken

I’m Gordon Van Dyke and I’m the Associate Producer for Battlefield: Battlefield Bad Company 2 here at EA’s DICE studio in Stockholm.

Today we’re excited to announce that our forthcoming multiplayer beta is coming exclusively to PS3, so you’ll have a chance to experience all the action, destruction and vehicular warfare ahead of our full release on the March 2010.

Starting on November 19th the beta will feature the huge ‘Arica Harbour’ map where up to 24 players compete to secure valuable crates in the ‘Rush’ game mode as the action moves across a variety of different locations. From an initial vehicle assault on a military outpost the war winds through streets of a deserted town to an intense final fire-fight in an industrial harbour.

Check out our announcement video. For a preview on the beta itself click here

Getting access to the beta will differ from country to country but here are a few specific ways of getting hold of a key…

• We’ll be holding a special limited giveaway right here on the Playstation Blog
• Pre-ordering the game at participating retailers
• Checking out selected gaming sites such as IGN or Gamespot in North America.

That’s it for now…although if you have any questions then let me know. Be sure to check back here tomorrow when we have a brand new trailer.

//GvD

Enabling 256 players to occupy the same battlefield is no small feat, and Zipper Interactive now needs to test the game’s servers. This is where you come in (cue Uncle Sam poster).

To sign up for the MAG beta, head to eu.playstation.com/competitions and follow the instructions. That’s it – no questions or puzzles, just one big beta free-for-all.

A few things to consider:

• Up to 16,000 Promotional Codes will be distributed via email on a first come, first served basis. They will be sent out in weekly batches, so don’t give up hope if you don’t get yours straight away
• This is a beta, not a demo. This version of the game will contain bugs and other problems; these will be fixed before the game’s release
• The beta will be open for six hours a day, Monday to Friday. These times are 5pm to 8pm and midnight to 3am, GMT (although they may vary)
• Check the terms and conditions at eu.playstation.com/terms before applying to see if your region is included
• You cannot sign up to the beta via the PS3 browser. Sign ups are currently PC (and Mac) only.

I’m looking forward to seeing your foreheads at the centre of my cross hairs.