Imagination Technologies and Sony Teaming Up for PSP2??!

While it's still in the rumor mill, many regard this to be actual news. And a good one too.

Britain-based Imagination Technologies has signed an agreement with an undisclosed company that many are saying is Sony. Reports say Sony will make use of Imagination's PowerVR SGX graphics processor for the PSP successor.

More powerful graphics for the next PSP. Is that what it really needs? I say good games, and innovation should be their focus. They should've learned that by now.

[source]

Professor Layton: The First Movie

It is bound to happen, as with many lovable games and characters throughout gaming history. Professor Layton (of the Professor Layton DS games) will get a feature anime film that will hopefully be out in early 2010.

Professor Layton: The First Movie will follow the usual adventures of Professor Layton and his assistant Luke, as they solve mystery after mystery. The film will be produced by Japanese studio TOHO and the new story will come directly from Level 5 president Akihiro Hino.

Level 5 is getting quite busy, and beloved for that matter. Their upcoming collaboration with Studio Ghibli, Ninokuni: The Another World, is a sure hit.

[source]

Win a New Super Mario Bros. DS Lite Bundle

The boys over dsfanboy is conducting yet another generous contest, this time in line with Thanksgiving celebrations.

Up for grabs are Chronicles of Narnia: Prince Caspian, N+, and The Sims 2: Apartment Pets. Now if you think that these games are not worth the 2 seconds to join the contest, maybe the New Super Mario Bros. DS Lite Bundle will change your mind.

Yea, just days after the release of the limited edition DS, these guys are giving one away. Cheeky bastards. Head here to join the fun.

Nintendo DSi Crystal Chronicles Edition Coming Soon

Nintendo DS limited-editions are just piling up! Square Enix, for the nth time, will be releasing a limited-edition DSi to support the Jan. 29th release of Final Fantasy Crystal Chronicles: Echoes of Time.

The bundle comes with Echoes of Time and a "Crystal Chronicles Edition" Nintendo DSi. The DSi will be white with Echoes of Time logo plus the cat mascot featured on the boxart. To top it off, a bonus Crystal Chronicles CD featuring 4 tracks will be shipped with pre-orders.

Pre-Order Echoes of Time.

Syberia DS Trailer

If you missed playing Syberia on your PC years ago, now's your chance. Syberia is now available for the Nintendo DS. This is one adventure game you wouldn't want to miss!

Here's Syberia's trailer to see what you'll be in for.

2 New Limited-Edition DS Coming this Holiday

The Nintendo DS Lite has quite a handful of limited-eds under its belt. This coming holidays, add two more to the list.

The Mario Red DS is, well, red. With an "M" on the front cover, just like Mario's "M" on his cap. Clever. A copy of New Super Mario Bros comes with the package. I wouldn't mind adding this one on my DS wishlist.

The second limited-edition DS is Ice Blue that comes with a carrying case and a copy of Brain Age: Train Your Brain in Minutes a Day. This is alright as well but couldn't they bundle it with a much cooler game?

Both limited-edition will set you back $149.99.

[via destructoid]

Patapon 2 Japanese Commercial Makes Me Wanna Jump Over Fences and Sheeps Too

It's Patapon fever over at Japan right now (not really, just assuming), as Patapon 2 nears its Nov 27 release date. To add fuel to the fire (just a metaphor.. or is it simile?), this cutesy commercial complete with cute little kids was recently released.



Pat-Pata-Patapon!

Get Mario to Beg for Your Gifts This Holiday

If you doubt Mario's ability to persuade people to buy stuff, then look up every game that he's been in and add up total sales... Done? Now imagine Mario pitching your wishlist to your mom, dad, uncle, or whoever you're expecting a gift from this coming holiday season. A definite WIN!!
Nintendo is offering two ways to send your DS wishlist, first by creating said wishlist via a flash interface on this site. After picking games and DS color, a recording using Mario's voice will be sent to your loved one's phone or email.

The second option is an E-card, which you can compose here. Same mechanic, same goodies.

Now get to those sites and send em like craaaazy!!

Happy 4th Bday, Nintendo DS!!

Last November 21 marked the fourth year of the Nintendo DS in US soil. Who would've thought that this handheld console made for "casual" gamers will last this long and will make a huge impact in the way games are played today? Not me for sure.

Anyway, speaking of birthdays, have gone through all of the DS' launch titles yet? To be honest, I'm still not done with Super Mario 64 DS. And I still can't get enough of Feel the Magic: XY/XX.

Crisis Core Bags Best Handheld of the Year

On the recently concluded MTV Germany's 2008 Game Awards, Crisis Core: Final Fantasy VII for the PSP was awarded as the best handheld game of the year, or more suitably, "The Whole World in Your Pocket" Award. The prequel to the PlayStation hit, Final Fantasy VII, edged against tough competition such as The Legend of Zelda: Phantom of the Hourglass, Guitar Hero: On Tour, and the much adored Patapon.

There is much to be said about Crisis Core and Square Enix really did a fantastic job. Big ups and keep them games coming!

PSP 3000 Hacked: Lite Blue Tool

Speaking of pirates, after the long wait, a solution to downgrade your PSP 3000 is now available - meet Datel's Lite Blue Tool.

The Lite Blue Tool is a battery peripheral that when used, it will boot your PSP into service mode, where you can then downgrade to a cracked firmware of your choice.

Priced at $29.99, the Lite Blue will surely find a special spot on PSP "homebrewers" hearts.

[source]

Chrono Trigger DS Anti-Piracy Measures Cracked by Pirates

Square Enix is becoming popular (and innovative) in its attempts to block pirates from playing their awesome games. Final Fantasy Crystal Chronicles: Ring of Fates for the Nintendo DS had one, but was quickly checked by pirates.

When ROMs of the latest Chrono Trigger DS appeared on websites a couple of days ago, pirates were greeted yet again by another set of copyright protection. But as with other anti-piracy measures before it, it was beaten just hours after release.

Guitar Hero and Rock Band for the PSP??

Seeing that the number two use for the PSP is music, John Koller of Sony expressed his interest in developing music/rhythm games for the Playstation Portable. This may also be brought about by the popularity of Guitar Hero: On Tour, Rhythm Tengoku Gold, and Elite Beat Agents on their rival, the Nintendo DS.

With the PSP's ability to store music at a whim, I wonder why it's taking them so long to develop a solid rhythm/music game. Come to think of it, the traditional controls of the PSP won't do and they would have to come up with a peripheral for sure. Now how are they gonna do that?

Cooking Mama: Mama Kills Animals Flash Game

I'm all for animal rights and what-not, but I'm not always a fan of PETA and it's views. Their latest project is to protest Cooking Mama's excessive use of dishes made from dead animals.

To drive their point home, PETA has released a flash game based on Cooking Mama, Mama Kills Animals. To be fair, PETA did a good job of mimicking Mama. I enjoyed plucking the feathers and gutting the crap out of that dead turkey.

Here's Cooking Mama: Mama Kills Animals flash game. Be warned, blood and gore ahead!

Play LocoRoco 2 Flash Game

Who wouldn't want more LocoRoco?? I can't wait for the sequel of this cutesy game. But just like any other, all I can do is wait.

Europe is about to get their hands on LocoRoco 2 this coming November 21. To get fans' blood curdling, they've released a LocoRoco 2 flash game for everyone to enjoy. But hurry though. The game will be down November 21, the day the game launch. So get tilting!

Blood of Bahamut Debut Trailer

Blood of Bahamut, the latest Nintendo DS game from Square Enix, is no doubt a Final Fantasy spin-off. Not only that, it resembles one of my all-time favorite game - Shadow of the Colossus!

The game's heroes lives in a city on a back of a giant. That previous sentence alone shows how awesome this game would be. The graphics is another DS-limit-pusher, featuring 2d on 3d background.

Here's the Japanese debut trailer of Blood of Bahamut.

Pre-Order Dissidia Limited Edition PSP

Dissidia: Final Fantasy will be released on Japanese soil about a month from now, and gamers are all buzzing about it. Don't blame us, though, the game is really good. Aside from the "dramatic progressive action" game itself, there's also the Dissidia limited edition PSP.

The 20th Anniversary Limited Pack includes the best boxed PSP I've seen - clean and so very much like Final Fantasy. Inside is a white PSP with Cosmos and Chaos embossed. If you're tired of looking at pictures, then PRE-ORDER Dissidia Limited Edition PSP now at Play-Asia!

 

[source]

Handheld Gamers Prefer to Play at Home

A new research done by the NPD Group revealed gaming habits by handheld gamers. Most shocking of all, it turns out that 79% of the research participants says that they use their handheld device more often at their homes.

Here's a brief look at other tidbits from the research:

PSP Gamers

• Most used feature is gameplay.
• Only one third  uses their PSP to watch movies and listen to music.

DS Gamers

• 92% prefers to play by themselves.
• An average DS gamer spends 4.6 / week playing games alone.

Read more about it here.

Handheld Gaming for Divas On-The-Go

One good thing about handheld game consoles is that you can take it anywhere. That is why it's the perfect toy for busy gamers, just like Christina Aguilera & Beyonce Knowles.

On an interview, Christina said that she's a big gamer and loves her Nintendo DS, with Mario Kart DS topping her list of favorites. Beyonce on the other hand expressed her love for gaming by requesting for an Xbox and PSP to keep her company on a private jet.

[source & source]

Pokemon Platinum 4th Best-Selling Game in the World

For the third quarter of 2008, that is. According to numbers by NPD/GfK/Enterbrain, Madden 09 tops the list with just under 3 million sales. Pokemon Platinum for the DS made the fourth spot selling 1.482 million.

Released in Japan on Sept. 13, 2008, Pokemon Platinum is a remake of sorts of Pokemon Diamond and Pearl. It sold 1 million copies in its first two days.

Who else can't wait for the North American version?

[Via kotaku]

Valkyrie Profile & Dragon Quest V for the DS Coming to America

Square-Enix recently announced that two awesome RPGs will be headed to America's shores next year --- Valkyrie Profile: Covenant of the Plume & Dragon Quest V: Hand of the Heavenly Bride. That's two more DS role-playing games to add on a very long and impressive list.

Dragon Quest is slated to be released on Feb 17 while Valkyrie will come out Mar 17, a month later. Better tune-up your RPG skills for these two games.

Valkyrie Profile: Covenant of the Plume Video



Dragon Quest V: Hand of the Heavenly Bride Video

New Ending for Chrono Trigger DS

Hardcore Chrono Trigger fans would sure have a fit when they hear about the rumored new ending for Chrono Trigger DS. According to Famitsu, the remake of Chrono Trigger will have a new ending, a new dungeon, and added character mode. The character mode will feature scenes, music tracks, treasure map, and monster data which I'm sure will be a welcome addition.

Here's a screen cap of the said new ending:

Moon Not Coming Out Until January 2009

Publisher Mastiff and developer Renegade Kid recently confirmed that the release of their upcoming sci-fi thriller title for the Nintendo DS, Moon, will be delayed until January 13, 2009. Mastiff did not give a reason for the hold-up.

Moon garnered much buzz since it was announced largely because it was developed by the same guys who made Dementium: The Ward. The game will pit gamers against aliens they found while exploring - you guessed it - the moon.

Let's build up our anticipation and watch a Moon gameplay video.

Fun with KORG DS-10

I drained my Nintendo DS Lite's batteries when I first got my hand on KORG DS-10. It was hours of fun and I managed to get about 20 seconds of good beats in.

KORG DS-10 is another non-game game for the DS Lite. It was released July 2008 in Japan, October 2008 in Europe, and November 2008 in the US. Basically, it's a KORG MS-10 synthesizer emulator. If you've never handled a KORG before, don't fret. As soon as you know what goes where, you can produce your own beats easily as well. Whether it's good or bad music is up to you.

Here's a couple of KORG DS-10 music I found on YouTube. Envy.



A demo of sorts, lets you watch while the beat is being made.



Snake Man's theme from the Megaman series. Wait until 1 minute in to hear the KORG version.





Do you have any beats you want to share?

Got Your Free Dragonite?

As with many things, I failed to mention last week that Toys “R” Us across the US will be giving away free Dragonites last weekend. Pokemon Diamond and Pearl owners would be getting a Dragonite plus if your lucky, a Pokemon Ranger poster and a $5 off coupon for any Nintendo DS game.

Silly me, I wasn't there. Anyone want to trade?

NEW Dissidia Video Shows More EX Mode

Final Fantasy Dissidia is getting more tastier every new video and image releases. This video shows Squall and Zidane battling it out complete with the much buzzed EX Mode. Japanese PSP fans sure are lucky to get this game this coming holiday season. No word yet of a North America release date :(

Win a Nintendo DSi!

Again, not from me silly. The guys over at kotaku has recently started their DSi contest.

But the problem is, it's not your run-of-the-mill comment contest. you have to work for it to win this DSi. 5 questions, and you have to find the post with the correct answer to proceed. Pretty tough, but would be damn worth it if you ask me. Alright, I'm off to win this!

Free Short Films for PSP, PS3 Owners

Shoot! is a project by SCEE that will allow PSP and PS3 owners to download six short films for free. The shorts are directed by well-established director plus a rookie director.

The films, which will be in High Def, are themed PlayStation: Play, Create, Share, Connect, Discover and Challenge. They will be available free for download on EU's PS Store on November 13.

Here's a quick list of the short films and directors:

1. Bitter - Joel Wilson and Jamie Campbell
2. Citizen Hero - Christophe Perie
3. Prison Food - Uwe Flade
4. Hands - Xavi Jose
5. 8.3 Minutes - Klaus Thymann
6. The Dreaming - Anthony Green

DSi to Feature New WarioWare Games

Wario is always an early favorite when a new Nintendo console comes out. The DSi is not exception. Nintendo will release a set of WarioWare games for the DSi in December that can be downloaded at the future DSiWare store.

WarioWare: Photograph will be just like any other WarioWare games: fun, extra weird, and makes good use of a console's features. I'm going on a limb here and say that this game would focus on the DSi's camera.

DS Lite owners are not be left out, though, as WarioWare: Myself is set for release as well.

DSi Hacked!!

Just when I thought that homebrewers will have a hard time cracking the brand new DSi, I saw this video on YouTube.



Yikes! Good or bad?

Elite Beat Agents 2 Coming Soon?

Elite Beat Agents is one of the reasons I bought a DS Lite. I was like a schoolgirl riding a flying unicorn 10 minutes into the game. That is why I dropped my pants and did three cartwheels when I saw this image over at gonintendo.

That's right. Elite Beat Agents 2 are GO!!!

DSi: Homebrewproof!

As of the moment, that is. Reports are abound that the recently released Nintendo DSi is not accepting slot-1 carts made for homebrew stuff. A member of Hacken.cc did a test with ten homebrew carts and all resulted to failure.

Here's a list of non-DSi-compatible homebrew carts:

1. R4DS
2. EZ Flash V
3. CycloDS
4. G6 DS Real
5. M3 DS Real
6. Supercard DS One
7. iTouch DS
8. FCard
9. NCard
10. M3 DS Simply
11. U2DS

I'm a big fan of the homebrew community, and this is definitely a turn-off for me. I would like to be able to play around with a DSi the same as the DS Lite. Hopefully this is just temporary (I'm sure it is!).