MinnaNoGolf
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Minna No Golf 5 PS3 bundle on its way to Japan
The Japanese love their golf. In particular, they love Minna No Golf (you might know it better as Hot Shots Golf). They love it so much, in fact, that to date there have been over 300,000 pre-orders for the latest iteration of the series on the PS3. Seeing this as an opportunity to boost system sales in Japan, Sony have announced plans to release a Minna No Golf 5 bundle pack.Interestingly, the bundle will come in both 20GB and 60GB form, so there's no sign that the 20GB system is being dropped yet as it has elsewhere. The bundle allows a saving of almost 4000 yen when compared to buying the system and the game separately. That works out to about £16 or $32, so nothing special. Still, that coupled with the light and airy box art (as opposed to the "forbidden evil" design that the boxes have now) may allow for a surge in console sales.Japan is an important market for the PlayStation 3 and, as of yet, the decent game offerings have been a bit western for their tastes. With FolksSoul released tomorrow and Minna No Golf 5 next month, we could be seeing the real start of the Japanese PlayStation adoption taking place quite soon.[Via IGN]
Sony uses GPS to target new PSP crowd
Watch out Nintendo, you're not the only one catering to the mom crowd. Sony's GPS-enhanced Minna no Golf series allows golfers to get data on real-world courses in Japan. A new lengthy ad in Japan highlights the PSP's GPS capabilities, and is targeted solely at the adult crowd. Is Sony trying to broaden their appeal? Certainly. However, will someone that picks up a PSP for the sole purpose of GPS pick up any other game on the system? Most likely not. Thankfully, Sony's going to release a handful of different UMDs with different golf courses to explore. That should make their golf-targeted endeavor more than profitable. Check out the ad, after the cut.
Minna no Golf ad highlights GPS functionality
While the rest of the world watches, GPS continues to gain support and popularity in Japan. The latest commercial for Minna no Golf showcases a happy woman playing golf. Then, she uses the GPS device on her PSP to get details on the course she's actually playing on. Yatta! It's interesting to see SCEJ promote the GPS peripheral so strongly in Japan. Certainly, the diminutive device deserves to get all the attention it can get. When will the rest of the world be able to join in? [Update: IGN has revealed more details about the GPS support of Minna no Golf Ba. The game spans two UMDs due to the incredible size of these maps. "The first disk will include sixteen courses from southern Chiba along with one special course. The second disk will include fifteen courses from northern Chiba." Additional volumes are planned to be released later on, featuring even more golf courses throughout Japan.]
Sony reveals partial TGS lineup
The Games Convention is Germany has just begun, but that doesn't mean we can't look towards the next big gaming event: Tokyo Game Show. Sony will have a huge presence there, ready to show off the bleeding edge PlayStation 3 and maturing PlayStation Portable lineup of games. Here's what PSP fans can expect from the show:PSP Boxer's Road 2: The RealMonster Hunter Portable 2Jan Sangoku MusouMetal Gear Solid: Bande Dessinee (Graphic Novel)Metal Gear Solid: Portable OpsJeanne D'ArcSarugetchu Piposaru RacerTenchi No Mon 2 (Kingdom of Paradise 2)Ratchet and Clank PortableAce Combat X: Skies of DeceptionGundam Battle RoyaleTales of World: Radiant Mythology PSP GPS Software Navigation Software (temporary title)Metal Gear Solid: Portable OpsHomestar PortableMinna no Golf (temporary title) I can't wait to see Metal Gear Solid and its newly announced GPS support in action. Jeanne D'Arc, Monster Hunter, Ratchet and Clank, and Tales are all pretty high-profile, and as you should know, Gundam will eat Japan. Go to Siliconera to see PS3's lineup. [Via Siliconera]
