Monster Hunter Freedom Unite Demo

Mark June on your calendars ghouls and gals, Monster Hunter Freedom Unite for the PSP is coming! The demo of the hit Japanese game will arrive on the PlayStation Store and will feature a couple of missions to play through. You start as a higher level character as well, to fully experience Monster Hunter and why the Japanese are crazy for it. The Freedom Unite demo can be played alone or with pals using Ad-Hoc multiplayer.

 

As mentioned, the Monster Hunter franchise is a cash machine in Japan, but can't seem to find its footing in the US. Here's to hoping Capcom can finally pull it off!

Awesome Defined: Lego Rock Band

If regular Rock Band games are not to your liking, then hear out Lego Rock Band. As the name implies, it's Rock Band with rocking Lego characters. It's set to be released for the PS3, 360, Wii and DS this year's holiday season.

Lego Rock Band is aimed at a more younger audience and will allow customization of minifigure avatars, manager, and roadies. Here's a partial song list:

• Blur - Song 2
• Carl Douglas - Kung Fu Fighting
• Europe - The Final Countdown
• Good Charlotte - Boys and Girls
• Pink - So What

Pokemons Invade Children's Hospitals

Much like those-specially-darn-cute-dogs that make rounds in US hospitals, the Pokemon mobile X-ray machine pictured below is designed to put a smile on sick children's faces.

Shimadzu, a Japanese company, came up with this awesome idea. The machine comes in Pokemon Diamond or Pearl theme, complete with Pokeball wheels. What's more awesome is that the thing actually works as an X-ray machine.

Pokemons never fails to brigthen my day whenever I see one, and I'm 20+ years old. Imagine what it can do to kids, and Japanese kids at that :)

[source]

Play God with Konami's Ant Nation

Konami is on a roll these past few weeks, and the Nintendo DS is in their sights as well. They are set to release WireWay, a platform/action game, and Ant Nation, a game where you decide the fate of an entire ant farm.

Ant Nation is a strategy game where you train ants to help them endure harsh weathers and marauding invaders. How can you train ants, you ask? By using various objects of torture such as hammers, fire, water and many more.

Sounds a ton of awesome. I've played a similar game years ago on the PC, I just can't remember the title of the game :(

New Manga Brawler Coming to the PSP

Remember that awesome game for the Nintendo DS, Jump Ultimate Stars? Well, something similar is coming to the PSP in the form of Sunday x Magazine: Taisen Action. It's a brawler with characters coming from two different manga's, Weekly Shonen Sunday and Weekly Shonen Magazine.

Manga fans who happen to be PSP gamers are in for a treat on this one. Imagine Aoi Nogami versus Kyo. Or maybe Kenichi Shirahama against Ikki Minami. Here's a list of characters to look forward to:

• Hayate Ayasaki from Hayate the Combat Butler
• Ueki Kosuke from The Law of Ueki
• Inuyasha from Inuyasha
• Shiho Sannomiya from Absolutely Lovely Children
• Yoshimori Sumimura from Kekkaishi
• Takizawa Noboru from Blazing Transfer Student
• Kaoru Akashi from Absolutely Lovely Children
• Aoi Nogami from Absolutely Lovely Children
• Ippo Makunouchi from Hajime no Ippo
• Kyo from Samurai Deeper Kyo
• Shinichi Mechazawa from Cromartie High School
• Natsu Dragonil from Fairy Tail
• Ban Mido from GetBackers
• Kenichi Shirahama from Kenichi: The Mightiest Disciple
• Kotaro Shindo from Kotaro Makaritoru
• Negi Springfield from Negima!: Magister Negi Magi
• Ikki Minami from Air Gear
• Ryo Takatsuki from Project Arms
• R from Kyukyoku Choujin R

Mario & Luigi RPG 3!!! New Videos

As you can tell from the three exclamation points on its title, Mario & Luigi RPG 3!!! is full of awesome. It will be released in Japan this coming February 11.

Mario & Luigi RPG 3!!! makes use of the Nintendo DS in every possible way. There's the stylus for stroking, the mic for blowing, and there are even parts where you turn your DS book-style. Also, players will be able to play as Bowser, because he swallowed Mario & Luigi and that's what really happens when one swallows little people.

Here are the new trailer and ad spots for Mario & Luigi RPG 3!!!

Echoes of Time Release Date

The exact and official release date of Final Fantasy Crystal Chronicles: Echoes of Time for the DS has been recently announced by Square Enix. Mark March 24th on your calendar, as both the DS and Wii version of the game ships out on this day.

FFCC: Echoes of Time features an innovative multiplayer gaming experience where Wii and DS users can play side by side.

[source]

Sony Denies IGN's PSP2 Rumors... With a Bitch Slap!

IGN hit some nerves when it posted a PSP2 rumor, saying it will have touchscreen, bluetooth, GPS, and hardrive. MCV got a hold of "a source close to Sony" and here's what they said:

Clearly, being a quiet time of year, many, what we thought to be credible websites, are making up stories about PSP2, and how it allows you to teleport across the globe, travel through time, and will be powered by the horns of baby rhinoceroses. Hopefully, you can sense a mild tone of sarcasm, which should hopefully indicate how ‘on the money’ IGN are. Needless to say, we don't comment on rumour or speculation, but this is nonsense.

I am still asking myself: Is this an official Sony statement? If not, then YSOSRYS, "source close to Sony"?

DS and PSP Fanboy No More

As you may have noticed, I missed posting yesterday. Blame it to my broken internets. Anyway, I know I have a lot of catching up to do that's why I logged in early and checked my Google Reader. Imagine my surprise when I checked and saw that my feeds for DSFanboy and PSPFanboy were transformed!

Apparently, all the "Fanboy" sites owned by joystiq are no more. All Nintendo news and bits can be found at http://nintendo.joystiq.com and http://playstation.joystiq.com for the Playstation. Right now my feeds contain a jumble of stuff, including Wii and PS3 news.

The reason I subscribed to DS and PSP Fanboy is because I want handheld gaming news. Nothing more. So this is definitely not according to my liking. What's your opinion about the "Fanboys" moving?

Chinatown Wars: WiFi, Multiplayer & Music Details

Grand Theft Auto: Chinatown Wars is getting better by the minute. Literally. Who would've thought that the little handheld that could can really pack this much punch?

Continuing the tradition of previous GTA games, Chinatown Wars will feature licensed music but without the vocals. No list of tracks are released as of yet.

One thing of note is Chinatown's multiplayer modes. Aside from being able to upload your claim-to-fames online via a leaderboard, you can also share map details. Know where to get some cool gears? Mark it on your map! Know where to catch some cool jumps? Mark it! And share it with your friends.

Grand Theft Auto: Chinatown Wars will be released on March 17, 2009. To get a sure copy, pre-order it at Play-Asia.

Mana Khemia: Student Alliance for the PSP Delayed

Handheld RPG lovers will have to wait to get their hands on Mana Khemia. The PSP game was supposed to be released this January but due to "improvements to increase the final quality of the game," expect it to come out in Spring 2009.

Wheel of Time to be Distributed by EA Partners

In 1999 our cable TV was cut-off. I had nothing to do when I got home after school, and we were too poor to have an Internet connection back then. To pass time (and help me go to sleep), I started reading through my brother's books, the first of which is The Eye of the World. I got hooked after the first few chapters, and I've been following the Wheel of Time series ever since.

Back in November, news surfaced of the Wheel of Time games, which will be released on several platforms including handhelds. Just recently, it was announced that EA Partners will be distributing the games.

In addition, a movie is also being planned based on the Wheel of Time books.

[source]

Final Fantasy Legend 2 Remake for the DS

There's always a market for remakes, especially for classics such as Dragon Quest V, Final Fantasy IV, and Chrono Trigger. With the success of said remakes, Square Enix is bringing Final Fantasy Legend 2 to the DS.

Also known as SaGa 2, Final Fantasy Legend 2 was released in 1990 by Square for the Game Boy. It was voted as the 94th best game of all time in a 2006 poll done by Famitsu. The remake gets a cel-shaded makeover and is looking quite promising.

[source]

LocoRoco 2 Will Be Budget Priced

Imagine a cool game worth $19.99. Imagine LocoRoco 2 worth $19.99. Awesomeness!

Sony just announced that the much awaited sequel, LocoRoco 2 for the PSP will be priced with budget-gamers in mind. At $19.99, this game will sure garner thanks for cash-strapped kids and parents alike.

Also, a LocoRoco 2 hands-on demo will be awarded to those who can't wait. Simply pre-order the game on Amazon or GameStop and you'll be given a voucher to redeem on the PSN weeks before the game's release.

LocoRoco 2 will be available on February 10.

[source]

Datel's Lite Blue Tool "Hacked" by Sony

Datel is being sued by Sony to prevent the release of its Lite Blue Tool, a service mode battery intended to boot a PSP 3000 into service mode.

Last Novemeber, Datel announced its battery peripheral that will enable homebrew games to run on PSP 3000. At that time the PSP 3000 was known to be impregnable, thus the excitement of all. But since the announcement, the Lite Blue was never heard of again and was never released, probably due to Sony's intervention. If you'll check Datel's website, there's no mention of the Lite Blue Tool anywhere, anymore.

This is indeed a sad day for pirates ;(

[source]

"Miyamoto" Phat DS: WANT!!

Ebay proved itself as a worthy friend for us handheld gamers as a Phat DS signed by none other than Shigeru Miyamoto recently surfaced.

The signed DS is being auctioned by Mikael, who won the item at 2005's E3 Convention in Los Angeles. He did what most of us would've done: he packed the DS away and never used it hoping to someday put it up on Ebay. As of this writing, the current bid price is at US $810.00. Join the bidding here.

Shigeru Miyamoto is a legend in the world of gaming. He's responsible for games such as The Legend of Zelda, Super Mario Bros, and Donkey Kong.

Phantasy Star Zero North America Release Date

Phantasy Star Zero is finally given a North American and European release date. Of sorts. A recent press release confirmed the action RPG's arrival on "Winter 2009." It's a bit too early to celebrate, but we'll take that over speculating if Phantasy Star Zero will come to us or not.

To soother are Phantasy Star cravings, here's Phantasy Star Zero's opening sequence. Enjoy.

PSP and PS3 Uber Numbers

On a recent Consumer Electronic Show held in Las Vegas, Sony released a number of numbers they are proud of. They ought to be, as these numbers are HUGE.

• 61.3 million - PSP and PS3's install base
• $1M - Total amount of virtual goods sold thru PlayStaion Home
• 3.4M - PS3s with PlayStaion Home
• $1.3 - Number of LittleBigPlanet sold
• 17M - Unique accounts in the PlayStation Network

[source]

Brigthly Colored PSPs Heading to Taiwan

As part of a new series called Carnival Color, Sony Asia revealed two new (and may I say bright) colors for the PSP-3000. To be released on January 17 in Taiwan, there's no indication that these PSPs will be available in other territories. The two new colors are aptly named Radiant Red and Vibrant Blue. Guess which is which.

[source]

PSP Brite Hacked!

A hack for the almighty PSP Brite has recently been discovered by lan.st member, MaTiAz. The process involves the participation of the 2005 game GripShift. It's available for download along with the new SDK. Unfortunately, there is no kernal access for this one yet. Watch the video below and then head here for the lan.st thread.