Official PSN Games Thread

[Mok]

Red Baron comes out this week. It has 36 missions, 20 airplanes and eight-player online multiplayer.

Red Baron Arcade 'Debut' trailer

[slop101]

Originally Posted by Decker

Is "wipEout HD" a totally orginal game or is it a port of a previous PSP version?

Original, baby!

But I think a couple of the tracks are updates of previously used tracks.

[The Bus]

I've played more than few games of Jeopardy! and haven't seen any questions repeat. If you don't get it, it's due to you being scared of my answering-with-a-question-prowess.

[Decker]

IGN UK's review of wipEout HD is up now. It sounds pretty great, though it apparently is just a port of the PSP titles.

Closing Comments
We haven't even got to the best bit -- all this is yours for a mere £11.99. While WipEout HD is essentially a redressing of the previous PSP games, it's hard to complain when the source material was so good in the first place and the redressing is so assured. As a standalone title, WipEout HD would impress, but as a download title it's nothing short of essential.

IGN UK Ratings for WipEout HD (PS3)
Rating Description
out of 10 click here for ratings guide
9.0 Presentation
WipEout's always had the shiniest of front-ends, and this is no exception.
9.5 Graphics
Simple equation -- take 1080p, times it by 60fps and multiply with some great design and you've got something that's truly spectacular.
9.5 Sound
We've heard the techno soundtrack so many times before, but the whizz and bang of a well laid bomb will never tire, and the sound design is first-rate.
8.5 Gameplay
It's WipEout with few new additions, but it's hard to complain when it's a winning formula to start with.
8.0 Lasting Appeal
Online is threadbare, but additional content down PSN's pipeline will doubtless prolong the shelf life.
9.2
Outstanding OVERALL
(out of 10 / not an average)

[pinata242]

Sackboy is coming to Pain.

[PerryD]

Originally Posted by Mok

Red Baron comes out this week. It has 36 missions, 20 airplanes and eight-player online multiplayer.

Looks like a true next-gen version of Warbirds for the Atari Lynx.

[Decker]

I didn't find either Red Baron or wipEout HD in the store this weekend. Did they get pulled off the site or did their launches get put back?

[UncleGramps]

Sounds like Wipeout HD was always scheduled for this week, not last week. I haven't seen a release date for Red Baron yet.

[Decker]

IGN's wipEout HD review is up. Sounds very hard, but probably still worthwhile.

Closing Comments
WipEout HD is a fantastic experience through and through. Though it's a downloadable title and runs one-third the cost of a full retail disc, it could have been packaged on a Blu-ray disc and sold in stores for full price and we would've been happy to pay for it. The game is immensely polished from start to finish, the controls feel fantastic, and really, it's the best WipEout game we've played in a long, long time. Do not miss this one.

Another Take
from David Clayman
WipEout was the first game I truly geeked out over. I didn’t just play it to death; I obsessed over the developer, the art style, and the soundtrack. In my opinion, this is still the game that best represents the PlayStation brand, and WipEout HD is a fine addition to the series. The best elements of Pure and Pulse on PSP have been streamlined and presented in silky-smooth high definition, plus it has the price-point of downloadable content with the substance of a full retail title. I simply can’t find a reason for any PS3 owner not to purchase this title and dare I say that WipEout HD sets a very good precedent for non-believers to hop on board the Sony train.
IGN Ratings for WipEout HD (PS3)
Rating Description
out of 10 click here for ratings guide
9.0 Presentation
Slick as hell and incredibly stylish all around. The only thing missing is a bad story of some sort, and we're happy about that.
9.0 Graphics
The lighting is fantastic, the ships and tracks look great and it pumps this out at 60fps at 1080p. It would be nice if the ships had moveable parts, but that's a tiny complaint.
9.0 Sound
Great sound effects and a perfect (but recycled) soundtrack.
9.0 Gameplay
The controls are spot-on, the track design is awesome (even if we've seen them before), and the whole combat experience is a lot of fun.
8.5 Lasting Appeal
Plenty of races to get you through the single-player portion, if you can finish it, while the online will keep you going even longer.
9.0
Outstanding OVERALL
(out of 10 / not an average)

This excerpt had me a little concerned, since I've never been any good at these wipeout games:

Make no mistake though - this is not an easy game by any means. The first few grids won't pose too much of a challenge and will let you get through without too much of a fuss, but once you reach about the halfway point through the game, things start getting very tricky. Time Trial and Speed Lap times start getting lower and lower, and you'll have to not only race cleanly but hit every boost marker and find the perfect section to use your own boost (you get one per lap). The competition gets faster and more brutal, making better uses of their weapons and hitting more boost pads.

In short, the game gets tough. You may actually find that you will hit a wall at some point and will be unable to progress unless you're able to take your abilities to the next level (or you get super lucky). The issue here is that the point total that you may need to earn to unlock the next grid is much greater than the number of races in the grid, which means that simply getting bronzes in everything won't be enough (and after a while, even all silvers won't cut the cake). Nabbing golds is pretty easy at the start, but even placing gets really tricky later on, meaning that as the difficulty increases, so do the point requirements for getting to the next level.

[buckee1]

Just checked the PSN store * no Wipeout HD or Red Baron to be found. Is there a certain time of day they update?

[Decker]

Originally Posted by buckee1

Just checked the PSN store * no Wipeout HD or Red Baron to be found. Is there a certain time of day they update?

Some time in the afternoon.

[Cosmic Bus]

Originally Posted by buckee1

Just checked the PSN store * no Wipeout HD or Red Baron to be found. Is there a certain time of day they update?

Content generally isn't available until around 5pm EST.

[NC-36]

Originally Posted by Cosmic Bus

Content generally isn't available until around 5pm EST.

It's 3:58, and Wipeout HD is 32% downloaded right now

[SonOfAStu]

Started the WipeOutHD download before I left for work, along with a couple of NBA game demos. Looks like Sony is entering the NBA market with their own NBA 09 The Inside.

[RichC2]

Grabbed Wipeout HD last night, the sense of speed isn't quite as amazing as I remember it being but the game is still an absolute blast.

Looks great too, gives no excuses to full price games like Baja that have shit framerates/visuals.

[Cosmic Bus]

Despite the fact that Capcom said there would be a demo for Mega Man, I couldn't find it anywhere on the PSN store last night and ended up just buying the full game even though I said I wouldn't... (this won't be the case with Wipeout; no demo = no $20 sale).

[RichC2]

With Wipeout, most people already know if they're onboard or not. Unless, of course, you've just really never played a Wipeout game before, which simply does not compute.

[Rob V]

^^ I guess I don't compute. I personally don't enjoy futuristic racing games and games w/out a demo aren't getting a penny from me.

[RichC2]

Originally Posted by Rob V

^^ I guess I don't compute. I personally don't enjoy futuristic racing games and games w/out a demo aren't getting a penny from me.

I didn't know there were really that many futuristic racers out there.

F-Zero and Wipeout have been the leaders in the genre for quite some time now (imo), I guess F-Zero is a fair judge to base on disliking futuristic racers...

[SonOfAStu]

I've never played Wipeout in any form, but I'm all about supporting this type of game distribution and it appears to be worth every penny. I was addicted to F-Zero as a kid, so I think I'll be happy. Will find out this afternoon.

The Mega Man demo was on the first or second line of "New Releases" when I was browsing this morning. Downloaded that too. Maybe I'll buy it when I get tired of Bionic Commando.

[Cosmic Bus]

Originally Posted by SonOfAStu

The Mega Man demo was on the first or second line of "New Releases" when I was browsing this morning. Downloaded that too. Maybe I'll buy it when I get tired of Bionic Commando.

Yeah, it's there this morning but was definitely not on last night. Pretty annoying, as I would not have spent the $10 had I been able to play the demo first.

As for Wipeout, I'd only played the original PSX game briefly when it was first released and didn't really like it, but I was interested in seeing how I felt about the game now. Looks like that won't be happening. Honestly, I've been considering unhooking my PS3 from the 'net simply so the temptation to spend money on these games I rarely end up enjoying won't be there.

[Rob V]

I didn't know there were really that many futuristic racers out there.

Wasn't there some stupid Star Wars Phantom Menace racer too?

[pinata242]

Originally Posted by Rob V

Wasn't there some stupid Star Wars Phantom Menace racer too?

Star Wars isn't in the future.

[Michael Corvin]

Originally Posted by Rob V

Wasn't there some stupid Star Wars Phantom Menace racer too?

There was a pod racing game on N64/Dreamcast and it was actually pretty fun.

[Decker]

Great news for High Velocity Bowling fans!

Hello everyone! Team RamRod here, the developers of High Velocity Bowling. Today we break our long silence with an equally long blog post.

To give you some background on the HVB development team, we are a small team who works on several projects. As some of you know, Big Ern has left our neck of the woods (we still miss him). But, the team has since picked up the reins and is now leading a new charge for HVB.

A lot of you have been asking about HVB, and we are here to deliver great news. We are pleased to announce that we putting the finishing touches on a new update for HVB, which will hit the PlayStation Network TOMORROW! Excited? Well, the best part of this is that the new update – all new features included – is FREE! For our brothers and sisters in the north, that means FREE for you, too.

Online_Mike_Setup_1 Online_InGame_Joe_Celebrates_1
HEAD-TO-HEAD ONLINE PLAY! VOICE CHAT COMMUNICATION! WEEKLY ONLINE LEADERBOARDS!

MainMenu_Online

We can hear you now … “Wait, what? Really? I get online play in the update? Will it support my Playstation Friends List?” YES to all of the above. You will now be able to play with your friends online AND be able to chat with them using a PS3 headset or microphone. Feel free to chat and talk smack after comparing your stats and rankings on the online leaderboards that will be updated weekly.
PSN TROPHIES!

HVB_trophies HVB_trophies2

Yup! PSN Trophies – 12 new shiny and purty trophies (7 bronze, 4 silver and 1 gold trophy). The only way to earn these is to play online (fortunately, we added that too, ‘cause we’re awesome!). If you’re worried you don’t have the skills, don’t stress — if you’re persistent enough, you will still be able to earn most, if not all, of these as well. Here’s the list:

BRONZE:

* Score 180 or higher in an online game.
* Achieve an online rating of 1600 or more.
* Knock down a total of 500 pins in online games.
* Get 10 strikes in online games.
* Get 15 spares in online games.
* Win an online game.
* Play 3 online games.

SILVER:

* Score 250 or higher in an online game.
* Knock down a total of 5000 pins in online games.
* Get 25 wins in online games.
* Get 75 strikes in online games.

GOLD:

* Get 150 strikes in online games.

Trophies and Online play! Very nice indeed.