Echochrome
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American gamers show off their echochrome level creations
Japanese gamers aren't the only ones that can create some devious echochrome creations. Starting this Thursday, the innovative PSN downloadable title will be updated with new puzzles, created by American gamers. Thirty new puzzles, featuring the best from the user community of echochrome, will be downloadable for free once players launch the game. The PlayStation.blog's Flickr has images of all the levels for your viewing pleasure.With so much free user generated content, echochrome really is an incredible value. It's a never-ending mind-bending puzzler.
Sakamoto describes his inspirations for echochrome's music
How does one craft the music for a game like echochrome? It must have been a challenge to create the ambiance necessary for such an abstract puzzle game, but Hideki Sakamoto was up to the challenge. Speaking with Siliconera, the musician noted the need for simplicity to match the game's visual style. echochrome is a game that needs no language, and Sakamoto wanted to convey that through a sound that's universally appealing. "Considering that the visual aspect of the game is strikingly simple, I had it in mind not to let the music overpower the overall design. I wanted to avoid distracting the player by using unusual sound effects or unfamiliar instruments. Classical music seemed to me the best choice because it is universal."One of the challenges of crafting the musical landscape for echochrome was creating a sound that doesn't necessarily move the player in a particular way. "In Echochrome, the important thing was for the player to have such feelings, just for their own sake. There was no sense of striving to manipulate the player's emotions, and that was something of a realization for me as a musician."Please read the entire interview at Siliconera for more. It really is quite fascinating. Samples of the soundtrack can be heard here. The soundtrack is available for import at Play-Asia.
Patapon and echochrome devs to speak at Develop
The teams behind the creative PSP games, Patapon and echochrome, will make an appearance at this year's Develop conference in July. Atsushi Li, director of Pyramid and Junichi Yoshizama, associate producer of SCE Worldwide Studios will discuss the tribal music game Patapon. Jun Fujiki and Tatsuya Suzuki will speak about the mind-bending echochrome. "We are privileged to welcome Ii-san, Yoshizawa-san, Fujiki-san and Suzuki-san to the Develop Conference and are thrilled that we can offer our delegates the opportunity to be inspired by what can only be described as some of the most creative video games designers on the planet," said managing director of Tandem Events, Andy Lane.
First batch of free echochrome levels up tomorrow
The PlayStation Blog announced today that 20 new user-generated levels will be available in echochrome between May 15-21, and those new levels may be replaced with even more content the following week. Despite our mixed feelings on the idea that the puzzles are replaced rather than added to a mega-list, it's still great to see how quick the promise of free extra content for the $10 Escher-iffic puzzler was fulfilled. The additional levels will appear randomly in freeform mode if the difficulty is set to level 2 or 3 and there's also been a Flickr page created to give some recognition to the level designers. Definitely check out the demo for the game if you haven't tried it,
A week of user-created echochrome levels starts tomorrow
If you've been trying to find a new way to melt your brain and think outside of the box, you'll probably get a kick out of the twenty new user-created levels for echochrome due out tomorrow and continuing to get released through next Wednesday. These levels will appear at random in freeform mode when you set the difficulty to two or higher. If your level was selected, assuming you created one for them, your PSN ID will be displayed along with the level. So, get ready for additional challenges created by your peers!
This week's echochrome user levels
Click for high-resolution image. Japan's scary obsession with creating echochrome user levels continues in this week's showcase. Updates are going to come for those with the US version as well, making this $10 digital download a gift that keeps on giving. Check out the latest additions in our gallery below:%Gallery-21474%
Echochrome differences: JPN UMD versus NA PSN
It's interesting to note the differences between echochrome's Japanese UMD release and the North American PSN-only release. The North American downloadable version lacks two of the three play modes found on the original Japanese UMD. The two modes that were cut are "pair" and "other," while "solo" is the only one found in the NA game. Pair requires players to take two pairs of alike-colored figures and make them tag one another, while other makes players hit echoes as done in solo, but while avoiding other moving figurines. Now, there's no reason to complain about the exclusion. The NA version only costs a fourth of the price (10 bucks compared to the Japanese UMD's $38) for one third the content, and you can see from the math that it's not a bad trade off. This makes us wonder, however, if that missing content will be brought over to North America via expansions on the PSN. If the game does well, then why not?And by the way, this ugly box art you see here is from the European UMD version set to come out in June. God, it is ugly. Couldn't emphasize that enough. Gladly, that's one bonus us North Americans have -- not having to see this every time we want to play echochrome.
Echochrome's free updates will add more levels
Kumi Yuasa, associate producer of echochrome, has revealed on the PlayStation Blog that future free updates of the title will add hand-picked user-generated content selected by the developers. The new levels will be available on a "regular basis" by signing in online with the game; however, these levels will only be available until the next group goes up. The PlayStation Blog details how players can create and submit levels for consideration. It's too bad about the time limit on the content, but it all depends on the frequency of the updates. Of course, for some people it'll be too short, while for echochrome addicts aficionados even a weekly update would be too rare. We'll try to give warning about the new content in our PSN Thursday posts. %Gallery-11823%
These echochrome vids inspire you to think
So echochrome is now out and you can pick it up on the PSN for either the PS3 or PSP. If you've already gotten it and been playing it, then you know just how difficult some of the perspective puzzles can be. One of the best ways to troubleshoot is follow by example -- watch and learn. So check out these gameplay clips that might inspire you to try different angles and new perspectives.If you haven't picked it up yet, then watch the vids anyway. You might just find something alluring about faceless avatars and endless walking. Besides, PSP Fanboy is giving away a copy of the game for free, so check that out too.
Win a copy of echochrome!
Now available on the PLAYSTATION Store, this MC Escher-inspired puzzler is downloadable for only $10. Want to try your luck at scoring a copy for free? Here you go. To enter this giveaway, leave a comment with the biggest prime number you can think of. You must be 18 years or older and a resident of the US or Canada (excluding Quebec). Limit 1 entry per person. This entry period ends at 12:00pm ET on Monday, May 5th. We'll randomly select 1 winner at that time. For complete rules, click here. Note: Please make sure you know how to use the PLAYSTATION Network Downloader before entering this contest. You will receive a digital download of the game. Visit store.playstation.com and try downloading one of the many free videos and demos available.%Gallery-4920%
PSN Thursday: Echochrome and Canadian equality
It's time for North America to experience the full perception contorting reality of echochrome with this week's PSN update. For those not sure about putting down $10 for the 56 MC Escher-inspired levels, don't be afraid to try out the demo first. Also, Happy PSN Canadian Equality Day! Today's the day that Canada begins getting charged the same price as the United States for PSN titles. Europe has an update too ... we're sure they aren't happy, but there's an update. Check it out -- or not -- at PS3 Fanboy. This week's North American PSN update can be found after the break. %Gallery-11823%
American PSN Store update for May 1st
Much like Niko, echochrome's faceless protagonist arrives in the Land of the Free this week, ready to make a new life for himself and hopefully find his way out of his various labyrinthine prisons. Of course, he'll need your help to do so. If you're not too busy playing GTA IV, that is. For ten bucks, echochrome is a no-brainer for anyone who likes feeling mentally challenged. Here's the full release list:Playable content echochrome full game ($10) Dark Sector demo (free) Add-on Content Rock Band DLC (listed after the break) Many Karaoke Revolution: AIE songs ($1.50 a piece - Check the PS.Blog for full details) Rock Band and Karaoke Revolution continue their scary reign as King and Queen of DLC (we'll leave you to decide which is which). As for whether this is a clever time to be releasing a highly-anticipated game, when GTA IV came out only two days ago, we'll leave that up to you too. Choice can never be a bad thing, we suppose.
American PC Store update for May 1st
Happy echochrome day! Seventy-five percent of today's new content is related to the mindbending puzzle game. Sure, that sounds a lot - until you realise there are only four new items available for purchase on the store. Don't forget, echochrome on the PSP is a different game from the PS3 version and is exclusively available in America from the PlayStation Store. Here's the full release list:Playable content echochrome full game ($10) Trailers echochrome trailer (free) Burnout Paradise Wyclef "Fast Car" video (free) Themes and wallpapers Four echochrome wallpaper (free)
More horrifying echochrome levels to fear
Click for high-resolution image. The user-generated levels for echochrome continue to pour in. In preparation of today's American PSN release, we wanted to showcase the latest bunch from Japan. If you've played the demo, you know how daunting this title can be. Imagine how much pain your brain will be in when processing these brain-benders.%Gallery-21474%
echochrome coming back at you tomorrow
The mind-bending echochrome is coming out on PS3 and PSP tomorrow -- just one week after the release of last week's demo. Both versions will cost $9.99 each. The PS3 and PSP version both feature 56 unique levels each, with plans for more downloadable levels in the future. With a level editor included in both versions, this is an incredible value.Stay tuned for our full review.%Gallery-4920%
Rest Eschered, echochrome on American PSN tomorrow
This is not a good week in games for anyone who has finals or works from home. The PlayStation Blog announced this afternoon the full version of echochrome will be available tomorrow from the PlayStation Store, which is just one glorious week after the demo release gave the general populace a taste of the game's MC Escher-inspired addictive madness.The game is available on the PS3 and PSP for $10, and comes with 56 levels on PS3, along with 56 "completely different" levels for PSP. The game will also feature a "Canvas mode," allowing players to create their own levels and share them online. In the parlance of the internets, "Do want now!"%Gallery-11823%
echochrome soundtrack resonates in Japan
Wish you could have the soothing strings of echochrome with you everywhere you go? Looks like the popularity of Sony's intriguing puzzle game has greenlit production of the soundtrack CD. Available on May 21st in Japan, the CD will include 13 tracks from the game, including such hits as "prime #3" and "prime #9973." These hits will undoubtedly open your mind to new kinds of perspective -- please don't listen to them while operating a motor vehicle.The soundtrack CD will retail for the standard price of 2,940??? (~$28.21 US).
User-created echochrome levels are mind-boggling
Click for high-resolution image. While America is getting just a taste of echochrome in America today, our Japanese friends have been able to enjoy this innovative puzzler for quite some time now. With the game's built-in level editor, they've created some truly frighteningly fiendish levels. These devilish creations will be distributed via the PSN in the future.Those who've tried the game know that it can be difficult to think so extraordinarily out of the box. Imagine, then, how difficult these user levels must have been to design!%Gallery-21474%
PSN Thursday: Echoing that the echochrome demo releases today
Happy echochrome demo day! But, for those not in the mood to Escher their minds, there may be a couple other things in this week's PSN update to pique your interest. The PS1 classic R-Types is available for $6 and bundles R-Type with R-Type II for one giant classic shmup experience. The Call of Duty 4 fans can get excited that the Variety Map Pack is finally available. Living room performers should be happy that Karaoke Revolution: AIE added a massive variety of new songs. There's a lot of stuff in this update, so check it all out after the break.Europe has an update too. Want to know what it is? Head on over to PS3 Fanboy.%Gallery-11823%
Echochrome demo puzzles North American PSN tomorrow
The PlayStation Blog twisted our perceptions today with the announcement that an Echochrome demo will be contorting PSN tomorrow. Of course, enterprising individuals have already played the demo via the intertubes, but here's the opportunity for us less tech savvy plebs to get in on (a sample of) the Echochrome fun. Prepare to savor every MC Escher inspired level of the demo for now. There's still no actual date for the full version of Echochrome, but it's apparently due sometime in May.
