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Thomas Was Alone, Unit 13 free on PlayStation Plus this week
Sony expands its Instant Game Collection this week with Thomas Was Alone and Unit 13, which will be released as free downloads for PlayStation Plus subscribers starting tomorrow. Mike Bithell's Thomas Was Alone, available for both the PlayStation 3 and PS Vita, takes a gang of quadrilateral shapes through a series of puzzle-platforming levels bridged by clever narration. The PlayStation Vita-exclusive Unit 13 serves up tactical third-person shooter action, debuting in 2012 as SOCOM series developer Zipper Interactive's swan song. Both games will be released as free downloads for Plus members after the PlayStation Store updates tomorrow evening. Thomas Was Alone is a Cross-Buy release, and Plus subscribers will receive both the PS3 and Vita versions with tomorrow's update. [Image: Mike Bithell]
March's PlayStation Plus freebies are Tomb Raider, Thomas Was Alone, more
PlayStation Plus subscribers have six free games to look forward to across Sony's three current platforms as part of its Instant Game Collection program. PS4 owners signed up to PS Plus will receive arcade shooter Dead Nation: Apocalypse Edition for free this coming month. Three more games will be free on PS3 in March: Tomb Raider, Thomas Was Alone and Lone Survivor: The Director's Cut. Lastly, Vita players will get to add military shooter Unit 13 and beast-slayer Monster Hunter: Freedom Unite to their download queues. Those with copies of Monster Hunter Freedom 2 can transfer their data to Freedom Unite to continue progressing their characters. Penny-pinchers would also be wise to remember the Back to 2013 and Vita anniversary sales Sony is hosting at the moment. The sales offer discounts on games like Hotline Miami, Escape Plan, Flower, Killzone Mercenary, Tales of Xillia, Dragon's Crown, Ni no Kuni and more. [Image: SCEA]
PS Plus in Europe adds Battlefield 3, Saints Row: The Third in July
Battlefield 3 and Saints Row: The Third go marching onto PlayStation Plus in Europe next month, joining the continent's Instant Game Collection along with three others. Yup, marching was the common link we could find between two very different headliners, although we suppose destruction and loud noises would have worked too. The other PS3 game coming to the subscription service next month is Payday: The Heist, while Unit 13 and Ninja Gaiden Sigma Plus are the duo hopping onto Vita. Thankfully, there are no complicated schedules to mull over with July's changeover: all five games are to be added to the service on July 3. As ever, that means five games make their way out, all on July 3 too. Waving their goodbyes are Kingdoms of Amalur: Reckoning, Lord of the Rings: War in the North, The Cave, Rayman Origins, and Coconut Dodge.
3G Vita coming to Canada in October
While US gamers have had seven months to choose between the wi-fi and wi-fi/3G models of the PlayStation Vita, there's been but a single option in Canada. Next month, PlayStation fans up north will finally get a chance to discover that the 3G isn't all that useful, when the 3G Vita launches on October 2.The PlayStation Vita 3G/Wi-Fi Launch Bundle will be released for $299.99 in Canada, and will include vouchers for Gravity Rush and Unit 13. Rogers is providing the 3G service, in two plans: 250 MB for $15 a month, or 5 GB for $35. The 3G service allows you to use the "near" location-based app, browse the web, and connect to social networking apps like Facebook and Flickr when away from a wi-fi signal. It does not allow you to play games online or download games from the PlayStation Store.
Sony confirms Zipper Interactive closure
Today has been a rough one for the games industry. Following massive layoffs at Sega today, Sony has confirmed Zipper Interactive's closure after it was rumored last week.In a statement given to Game Informer, a Sony representative stated the move was the "result of a normal cycle of resource re-alignment within SCE WWS." Though the studio has been shuttered, "Zipper titles MAG, SOCOM 4 and Unit 13 will continue to be supported, including the new Daily Challenges in Unit 13."
Rumor: Sony shutting down SOCOM dev Zipper Interactive
Sony may be on the verge of closing down its shooter studio, Zipper Interactive. According to Kotaku sources, there's been "chatter for several days" about an impending closure and the possible cancellation of a current project. Sony has not commented on the situation.Those with short memories may recall Zipper Interactive for it PS Vita shooter, Unit 13. But the company's roots go much deeper -- Zipper Interactive was founded in 1995 and spent the remainder of the '90s making Windows games. In 2002, Zipper created a little PS2 game for Sony called SOCOM: US Navy Seals and, after spending the next few years pumping out sequels, it was acquired by the publisher in 2006. The developer completed work on the large-scale multiplayer shooter, MAG, in 2010.
Unit 13 review: Fired up, feels okay
Developer Zipper Interactive cut its teeth on the PlayStation 2 with the SOCOM series, becoming legend to military shooter fans with a trio of outstanding titles. In the following generation, however, Zipper hasn't been as consistent. Initially, my time with Unit 13, the dev's new military shooter for Vita, was nothing short of a love affair, but after only a few hours the game quickly lost steam.Rather than offer a story, Unit 13 presents itself as a set of over 35 missions, which offer a variety of objectives. Some require covert infiltration and some, for instance, must be accomplished within a specific timeframe.In the beginning, Unit 13 does a great job of pushing its leaderboard mentality, where score is king and it's your runs versus the world, but the entire framework feels meaningless. Orders are barked at you, and you execute them, with little in the way of reasoning other than, "These dudes are bad, so kill them before they do their bad dude things."%Gallery-140087%
Unit 13 launch trailer shoots a lot of bad men
If video games have taught us anything, it's that dudes who cover their face are the bad guys.
Unit 13 trailer shows us how to play
Because pushing all of the buttons at once is a horrible strategy.
Vita shooter Unit 13 deploys on March 6
Unit 13, Zipper Interactive's pocket-purposed over-the-shoulder shooter, will be released for the Vita on March 6, 2012. This is in line with Zipper Interactive president Brian Soderberg's original prediction for a "right around Vita launch" release window; seeing as the Vita hits US shores on February 22, we suppose that's close enough to still count. Zipper Interactive is, of course, best known for creating 1998's Top Gun: Hornet's Nest for Windows PC. It's also the studio responsible for 2010's MAG and the SOCOM series, which we're guessing probably factored into Unit 13's development more than any Tom Cruise-based development experience.
Unit 13's debut trailer introduces the usual operatives
When Unit 13 arrives "near" the PlayStation Vita's February 22 launch date, it'll come with a quartet of selectable, familiar operatives. Can you spot the tank?
Unit 13 is a portable shooter from SOCOM dev, 'right around Vita launch'
After the poor reception of SOCOM 4, and some subsequent post-release downsizing, Redmond-based Zipper Interactive is setting its sights a little smaller for its next outing. And by smaller, we mean PlayStation Vita-sized. Unit 13 isn't the thirteenth title in some entirely unknown and impossibly long-running edutainment series; instead, it's the name of Zipper's dual analog-powered portable shooter. "Fast action, on-the-go gameplay was a key goal for the Unit 13 team," Zipper president Brian Soderberg writes on PlayStation Blog. "Missions come in a variety of sizes and difficulty. Some are smaller bite-sized battles; others are longer, more challenging, multi-objective missions that are a good test for any skilled shooter fan." Bite-sized gameplay isn't the only thing Zipper adopted from the world of mobile games; the Vita's WiFi and 3G functionality keep "players up to date on leaderboard positions, new 'Daily Challenge' content, new unlocks, shared High Value Target missions, and challenges from friends as they move past you on the leaderboards." Unit 13 even features co-op with accompanying voice chat, playing into the Vita's console/portable hybrid approach. Perhaps a tad more worrisome: "it's available right around Vita launch," Soderberg says, and this is the first we're hearing of it. We're trying to stay positive here. %Gallery-140087%
