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Sony announces PlayStation 4 sales of 6 million and counting
The PlayStation 4's arrival in Japan helped it to go beyond the 6 million mark for total sales worldwide, Sony announced today, with 370,000 consoles sold in the country since launch on February 22. The company chose the day of the PS2's 14th birthday to disclose the new milestone for its youngest system, with the figures as ever estimated by Sony itself as of March 2, and based on figures sold to consumers rather than retailers. Sony chucked a few more numbers into this morning's announcement, including that it's sold more than 13.7 million PS4 games since the console first launched in the West back in November 2013. Also, the PS4 is available in 57 countries across the globe, more than 3.6 million broadcasts have been streamed on the system, and the DualShock 4's Share button has been used to capture content more than 100 million times.
TowerFall, SteamWorld Dig headline PSN's Spring Fever event
A slate of high-profile indie releases will hit the PlayStation Network during Sony's Spring Fever event this month, bringing games like Luftrausers and Towerfall to the PlayStation family of consoles. The promotion kicks off with tomorrow's launch of an upgraded PlayStation 4 version of Ronimo Games' 2D MOBA Awesomenauts Assemble, and the PS3 debut of Wales Interactive's sci-fi adventure game Master Reboot. Ouya-ported multiplayer combat game TowerFall Ascension (PS4) and Strange Loop's puzzle-platformer Vessel (PS3) continue the promotion on March 11, while Image and Form's mining-themed adventure game SteamWorld Dig (PS4, PS Vita) and Vlambeer's aerial dogfighting sim Luftrausers (PS3, PS Vita) follow on March 18. The event wraps up on March 25 with the release of Polytron's Fez for the PlayStation 4, PS3, and PS Vita. All featured games are available at a launch-week discount for PlayStation Plus subscribers. Sony additionally revealed that Tomb Raider and Dead Nation: Apocalypse Edition will launch tomorrow as the month's first free PlayStation Plus games. [Image: Sony]
Amazing Spider-Man 2 swings into action April 29, pre-order for extra costumes
Developer Beenox and publisher Activison have revealed a release date for movie tie-in The Amazing Spider-Man 2: April 29. Would-be wallcrawlers in the UK will receive the game on May 2, the same day that The Amazing Spider-Man 2 hits theaters. Those who pre-order the game from either UK retailer GAME or GameStop will receive a code for the Web Threads Suit Pack DLC. Included in the Pack are Spider-Man's red and gold Iron Spider Suit, the Cosmic Spider-Man Suit he wore while possessed by the Power Cosmic, the Spider-Man Noir costume from the pulp-homage comic of the same name, and of course, the Black Suit that would eventually go on to spawn Spider-Man's nemesis Venom. The Amazing Spider-Man 2 is slated for release on Xbox 360, Xbox One, PC, Wii U, 3DS, PlayStation 3 and PlayStation 4. [Image: Activision]
Get Even aims to give the new generation a reality check
Think back on the calm, golden plains of Journey, and remember the joy of seeing players garbed in red cloaks, happily exploring the beautiful world around you. Now, imagine those players as Agent Smiths, some of them controlled by AI, some controlled by players - and no real way to tell who's who. Oh, and the Smiths aren't popping into your game to accompany you on a mesmeric journey of discovery. They want to shoot you dead, Mr. Anderson, very dead. I'm not sure that's how Get Even clicked into the mind of The Farm 51's Wojciech Pazdur, but it aligns the inspirations he's trying to marry in the PS4, Xbox One, and PC first-person shooter, all under the umbrella of "what is real?" The plot - which Pazdur wants to keep mysterious - explores modern themes of different realities and memory, but the play takes this blurring of the lines one stage further: The enemies you face in Get Even aren't just AI - they could be human - but in theory there's no real way of knowing. Did you just shoot an Agent Smith, or another person plugged into the Matrix?
Fez hits PS3, PS4, Vita on March 25
Fez lands with huge, happy grin on PS3, PS4 and Vita on March 25 in the US, Polytron Producer Marie-Christine Bourdua announced via the PlayStation Blog today. Fez hits European Sony systems on March 26. The port comes from a collaboration with Blit Software. "The PS4 version is what we consider to be the best-looking and smoothest Fez experience you can get on a TV set, running at beautiful 1080p (and yes, 60fps too)," Bourdua said. "You wouldn't think that upping the resolution would make a big difference in a game like ours, where the pixels are the size of Gomez's fist ... but it really does look even crisper and blockier – in a good way." The game itself remains unchanged from its original XBLA or PC versions, though the PS4 iteration has a few gimmicks: The DualShock 4's lightbar brings "a little bit of Fez's world into your own home," and judging by a picture that means the bar matches the dominant on-screen color. The newest version of Fez supports a late-game easter egg without the need for red glasses, and it runs on 3DTVs. It supports cross-saves among all three Sony platforms. [Image: Polytron Corporation]
Mass Effect Trilogy for PS4, Xbox One would be so Hanar jelly
"I don't think you're ready for this Hanar jelly." - Beyonce Shepard Dear Bioware, How are you? We are well. We like video games like Mass Effect. Do you like Mass Effect? You should make a trilogy box for PS4 and Xbox One. That would be cool. We saw you talked about it. That's awesome! "We have discussed that internally. If we can put solid plans together we'll share. Great to hear you're keen," said Aaryn Flynn on Twitter. He's the general manager at your studio. Did you know that? We were wondering why it took 82 days to answer, and Stevie T. said it was because you weren't paying attention and we said NO WAY you're just really busy making universes and stuff. Will you write back and let us know about Mass Effect Trilogy for PS4 and Xbox One? You made it for current gen. Just copy and paste the files in the new consoles and turn the graphics up. That would be swell. XOXO, Little Timmy "@Joystiq" Robinson [Image: EA]
Thief yoinks top spot in this week's UK Charts
It's no daylight robbery: Thief is a deserving UK chart leader, especially since we're knee deep in the Q1 downpour of new releases. The Eidos Montreal game fended off plenty of competition to record the second highest sales for a No.1 game this year, and 75 percent of those were on PS4 and Xbox One. The new releases that fell short of the crown jewels include Plants vs. Zombies: Garden Warfare in 4th, Castlevania: Lords of Shadow 2 in 10th, and placing just outside the top ten is PS3 HD-em-up Tales of Symphonia: Chronicles in 13th. Konami may've been hoping to see the second Lords of Shadow place higher, but it's still the second biggest debut for the franchise (in Chart Track history), only topped by the first game.
Killzone: Shadow Fall multiplayer goes free for a week on March 3
Sony Computer Entertainment and Guerrilla Games are planning a party, and everyone's invited, Helghast and Vekta alike. To celebrate the release of Killzone: Shadow Fall's first free map update, the two companies have announced that Shadow Fall multiplayer battles will be free to any and all PS4 owners for a week starting March 3. Those wanting to get in on the fray need neither a PlayStation Plus subscription nor a copy of Shadow Fall, as a free client will be available for download. Those who play the free trial will be able to compete on global leaderboards in Capture and Team Deathmatch, and all clans - including those made up of trial players - are eligible to win the Clan Community Challenge. The details and prizes of said Challenge haven't been revealed yet, but you know how these Helghast are - they don't uncloak until they're good and ready. [Image: Sony]
The Order: 1886 dev video shows knights of the revolving chamber
The Order: 1886 may take place in Victorian-era London, but as developer Ready at Dawn reveals in this behind-the-scenes video, its in-game history traces back to the age of King Arthur. The characters in The Order wield lightning-rifles instead of broadswords, but hey, times change. [Image: Sony]
N++ screens show off effective, proven ninja-killing methods
Indie developer Metanet Software foresees a future filled with dead ninjas and thrown controllers with its latest batch of N++ screens. The minimalist platformer is due to hit the PlayStation 4 this year in what developer Mare Sheppard calls "the final iteration of N." You might want to glue some protective padding to your DualShock 4 beforehand, just in case. [Image: Metanet]
Four in February: Readers triumph over the Joystiq crew
Put down your buzzers, turn off your engines, sheathe your swords: Four in February has come to a close. The great 4iF challenge brought the Joystiq crew to their knees over the past four weeks. Joystiq Community members, on the other hand, rose to the occasion. Our heroes over on the 4iF Facebook page played through literally hundreds of games, and while not all of them went the distance, they played well. While a few members of the staff managed to dig into their lists, finishing off entries here and there, not one of us managed to complete all four selections. Richard Mitchell, Joystiq Reviews Content Director, toppled two big ones including Silent Hill: Shattered Memories and Risk of Rain on the maddening Monsoon difficulty. Danny Cowan completed Virtual Hydlide on Sega Saturn while 4iF founder Mike Suszek conquered Tearaway and Toukiden: Age of Demons (though Toukiden wasn't on his original list.) Xav de Matos, Jess Conditt, Anthony John Agnello, and others? Couldn't beat nary a one. That's okay, though! In fact, failure is just another form of success in Four in February. The point isn't to beat all four, but to encourage diversity in your game playing palette. We all love video games. That's why we're here. Four in February is an event that reminds us of the vast creative richness waiting in the folds of gaming. It's easy to get caught up in the rush of all that's new. 4iF is a conscious effort to slow down and take in our surroundings, to explore what's out there we may have missed. Just playing the game means you've won, even if you didn't see four sets of credits roll. Still, special honors go to these players. They came, they saw, they kicked four games in the butt. Then "Like" our Facebook page to get in on the next community event, when you can trounce us all over again.
Sony snags fourth-person puzzler Pavilion, sci-fi adventure forma.8
This is what a fourth-person game looks like: In Pavilion, it's an overhead view of a man navigating the twisting stone passages of massive temples, but the player is not in control of the man himself. Players must influence the character's movements by manipulating the environment, at times forcing him to explore certain areas, or nudging him in the right direction to "fulfill the purpose of the world," Henrick Flink, co-founder of Visiontrick Media, writes on the PlayStation Blog. "This method of control has resulted in some interesting reactions," he says. "Some people feel it's just a buzzword, while others are rather intrigued by it. In the end, we're happy to see people giving it a thought and talking about it." Pavilion is minimalist in the sense that it doesn't provide a tutorial or any background information; the story is told directly through the game itself. To this end, Visiontrick is keeping a tight lid on details about Pavilion. The game is due out this year for PS4 and Vita. Another PS4 and Vita game scheduled for 2014 is forma.8, a sci-fi action-adventure from Futuridium developer MixedBag (it's also coming to Wii U, iOS, PC, Mac and Linux, with a Steam Greenlight page live now). Players control an exploration drone that's stranded on an alien planet and charged with one mission, to recover an energy source buried deep within this world before it causes ultimate destruction. There's no verbal communication in forma.8, and it begins with no instructions or context. We're sensing a pattern here. Check out the trailer for forma.8 below, after the galleries. [Images: Visiontrick, MixedBag]
Hinder or help in Dead Nation PS4 streams
The PS4 port of Housemarque's top-down arcade shooter, Dead Nation: Apocalypse Edition, will have an interesting feature called "Broadcast+," where streamers can have viewers directly affect their game through a voting mechanic. During certain sections, democracy will be triggered and viewers on PS4 or through Twitch's web site can aid survivors with things like additional ammo or up the difficulty by spawning more zombies. The full "Road of Devastation" expansion, with its supplemental Arcade and Endless game modes, will be included in Dead Nation: Apocalypse Edition. A "challenge" mechanic will allow players to set scores and dare their friends to surpass them. Dead Nation: Apocalypse Edition sports improved, full 1080p graphics and both local and online co-op. Dead Nation: Apocalypse Edition will be a free download for PS Plus members on March 4 and a $14.99 download for basic PSN users. A PS Vita port of the original game is also in the works at an unnamed third-party studio.
Blacklight: Retribution patch adds new game mode, multiplayer maps
Developer Zombie Studios has issued a patch for the PlayStation 4 incarnation of Blacklight: Retribution that, along with the standard bug fixes and balance tweaks, delivers the new Onslaught game type as well as two decrepit multiplayer maps. Onslaught pits four Blacklight players against endless waves of the infected. Over time these waves of enemies grow progressively more difficult and complicated, forcing players to adapt or be overrun. According to Zombie Studios producer Kael Hammond, "[t]hose who find a way to succeed will be rewarded for their efforts," though it's not mentioned what exactly that reward might be. Today's patch also introduces two new multiplayer maps, "Metro" and "Decay." The former drops players into an abandoned subway station full of tight corridors and narrow passageways, while the latter takes place in a "slum fortress" featuring multiple floors and just as many angles of attack. Best of all, this content is being added to Blacklight: Retribution at no cost to players. More details on the gameplay tweaks introduced by this patch can be found at the PlayStation.blog. [Image: Zombie Studios]
Cel Damage HD coming to PlayStation 4, PS3, Vita in spring
Man, how long has it been since you've thought about Cel Damage? Released as a launch title for the original Xbox in 2001, Cel Damage didn't quite rank in the same league as Halo or Project Gotham, and likely resides in the hazy regions of your brain devoted to remembering games like Mad Dash Racing and Fuzion Frenzy. Toronto-based developer Finish Line Games bets that a number of players have fond memories of trading blows in the classic car-combat game in between Halo matches, announcing that Cel Damage HD is due for release on the PlayStation 4, PS3, and PS Vita. Cel Damage HD brings its cartoonish brand of cel-shaded, Twisted Metal-like vehicular mayhem to Sony's current crop of consoles with 13 levels and six playable characters. Online multiplayer hasn't been confirmed, but is a likely addition. Cel Damage HD will be available as a Cross-Buy release when it hits the PlayStation Network this spring. [Image: Finish Line Games]
Tomb Raider, Brothers head up Europe's PlayStation Plus lineup in March
Sony has revealed next month's additions to its PlayStation Plus Instant Game Collection in Europe, mirroring much of the content set for a free release in North America throughout March. Starting next month, PlayStation Plus subscribers in Europe can pick up a no-cost copy of Dead Nation: Apocalypse Edition, an enhanced PlayStation 4 version of Super Stardust developer Housemarque's top-down zombie shooter. PlayStation 3 owners will receive free downloads of Square Enix's Tomb Raider and Starbreeze's Brothers: A Tale of Two Sons, which hit the PlayStation Plus program in North America last month. March's PlayStation Vita freebies include the brain training app Smart As... and Q Games' tower defense game Pixeljunk Monsters Ultimate HD. Launch dates for featured games have not been announced. [Image: Square Enix]
Joystiq Streams: Running into walls in Thief on PS4 [UPDATE: It's over!]
The Thief series was legendary to console-only players at the beginning of the century. Looking Glass Studios' sneaky adventures were, like Half-Life and Deus Ex, harbingers of a complex and subtle gaming world that was only available on PCs. Thief's mystique has endured in the decade since the series went silent, and even now its blend of Victorian adventure and fear is seductive from the outside. That's why Joystiq Streams is diving into Thief on PlayStation 4 totally blind. Having never played before and with only limited knowledge of what's supposed to be happening, Anthony John Agnello will tackle Thief just as he did Don't Starve and Outlast on PS4. That is to say, fearfully and with extreme hubris. Alexander Sliwinski will be hanging in the chat, feeding your advice, well wishes, and mockery to Anthony as he goes. It's all happening at 4PM EST on the Joystiq Twitch channel. Come and join in the sneakery. [Image: Square-Enix]
Anomaly 2 confirmed for a spring release on PlayStation 4
Inverted-role "tower offense" strategy game Anomaly 2 will make its next-gen console debut this spring on the PlayStation 4, developer 11 Bit Studios announced this week. Gameplay in the Anomaly series reverses the gameplay mechanics common to tower defense games, challenging players to outwit enemy defenses while directing a squad of armed troops. Anomaly 2 will include a multiplayer mode that puts players in opposing roles, with one side employing traditional tower defense tactics against an invading army. Anomaly 2 is also available for Windows, Mac and Linux via Steam. [Image: 11 Bit Studios]
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]
MLB 14: The Show trailer locks onto your player of choice
Are you a diehard Jimmy Rollins fan who couldn't care less about the rest of the Phillies in the dugout? A new "player lock" feature in MLB 14: The Show fuels your fixation by allowing you to exclusively control one individual for the entire game.
