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PSN Tuesday: Burnout Paradise, PS Move Ape Escape
The PSN update is mostly about fast cars and deep discounts this week. Burnout Paradise is a mere $8 now, with many of its DLC packs slashed to $2. Not to be outdone, Need for Speed: Hot Pursuit packs have also been reduced by almost half. Meanwhile, some Capcom PSP games, including Power Stone Collection and Ultimate Ghosts N' Goblins, are a scant $5. Race on past the break for this week's update details. Choose your platform to view the corresponding release list: (Note: Continue past the break to view both release lists.)
PlayStation Move Ape Escape nets summer release in North America
Japan's (mostly) on-rails Ape Escape entry for PlayStation Move, Ape Escape Fury! Fury! is getting a North American release on PSN this summer, according to a post on the PlayStation blog. In a stroke of marketing apathy, it'll be hitting here under the woefully unimaginative title PlayStation Move Ape Escape. We actually previewed the Japanese version last fall -- it's essentially a collection of 15 levels and some minigames in which players snatch up space monkeys by waving the Move controller. In other words: It's not a PS3 remake of the original Ape Escape, which would have been really cool.%Gallery-118853%
Ape Escape Move preview: Monkey madness
Ape Escape's first foray onto the PS3 is a PlayStation Move game. Ape Escape Fury! Fury! arrives in Japan on December 9, and, like much of the Move launch lineup, it will be budget priced. Perhaps that's a good thing, because I can hardly see Fury! Fury! being fun for too long. Unlike other entries in the Ape Escape series, the Move title is an on-rails shooter and uses the motion controller to act as both a pointer and virtual net. As you automatically move down a path, you'll collect various monkey power-ups by shooting them. Along the way, you'll also equip a variety of tools, such as a paper fan, to move obstacles out of the way. Eventually, at the end of the path, you'll come to an arena filled with monkeys. Here, you'll attempt to capture the "apes" using the Move as a net.
Ape Escape for PS3 listed by GameStop, likely a Move game
Siliconera spotted a GameStop listing for a brand new Ape Escape title coming to the PS3 on November 1 of this year. While Sony actually has two Ape Escape (known in Japan as Saru Getchu) titles on tap, Ape Escape 4 is farther away from release than Ape Escape Fury! Fury!, so this listing probably refers to the latter. Fury! Fury! is a Move-enabled title that has the player trying to catch monkeys from a first person perspective, while controlling all of the series' gadgets using the Move controller. The series has been sliding a bit lately with spin-off sequels, but maybe this game will be able to innovate with the Move controller the same way it did with the dual analog sticks back in the day.
Ape Escape joins Japan's 2010 PlayStation Move launch library
We haven't seen much (or anything) of Ape Escape's first foray onto PS3 since it was announced at Tokyo Game Show last year. However, a new announcement video (after the break) showcases the first few seconds of footage of the Move-exclusive game. Furi Furi! Sarugetchu, as it will be called in Japan, joins a relatively small line-up of games launching this year for the PlayStation motion controller in Japan. In fact, only six games are planned for release on the hardware's October 21 launch date: EyePet (SCEJ, ¥3,980) Sports Champion (SCEJ, ¥3,980) Beat Sketch (SCEJ, ¥2,980) Fure! Fure! Bowling (aka High Velocity Bowling, SCEJ, ¥1,900) Machi Suberi (aka Kung Fu Rider, SCEJ, ¥3,980) Big 3 Gun Shooting (Namco Bandai, ¥6,279)
Ape Escape shorts now airing on Nicktoons
You may have noticed this already while catching up with your Rocko's Modern Life, but two-minute shorts based on Ape Escape have begun airing on the Nicktoons Network. The clips (a trailer for which we've placed after the break) come from Frederator, the house behind Nick's Fairly Odd Parents.It's puzzling, because there hasn't been a new, real Ape Escape game in North America in four years (no, we're not counting Ape Quest), but we're not going to complain too much because, hey, more apes on TV.
LittleBigPlanet getting WipEout, Ape Escape costumes
The bad news: According to a PlayStation Europe community manager, LittleBigPlanet's DLC hiatus will continue until next week, just slightly beyond January 22's promise of "big surprises."The good news: As of January 26th, fans of Media Molecule's make-your-own-platformer will receive numerous downloadable goodies. January 26th -- Chinese New Year costumes (free, available for 10 days only) January 29th -- Groundhog Day costume (available one week only), God of War mini pack, Kratos costume February 5th -- Valentines Day mini pack (available for 2 weeks only) February 12th -- Ape Escape costume, Toro costume February 19th -- WipEout costume kit That's right, a WipEout costume kit. Haven't you always wanted your sack person to resemble a cuddly little HOVER VEHICLE THAT SHOOTS MISSILES OUT OF ITS NOSE? The neutral news: Release dates and prices have yet to be confirmed for the North American PSN. We'll keep you informed. [Via PS3 Fanboy]
PSN Thursday: The calm before the E3 storm
This week's PSN update brings the Rainbow Six Vegas 2 update, Ape Escape Academy for PSP and several new demos and videos. Next week's E3 week update should be a big one with Elefunk joining PSN's excellent selection of downloadable games, along with several videos -- and hopefully some demos -- from the show. Over at PS3 Fanboy they have this week's European PSN update, which adds the Escher-edly perspective twisting echochrome to the service.
American PSN updates for March 6th
As promised, flOw headlines this week's update. Check out our review, and then point your internet browser to store.playstation.com on your PC to start downloading this great content.PSP Software: flOw ($7.99) Ape Escape: On the Loose ($14.99) Game Videos: God of War: Chains of Olympus Ape Escape: On the Loose Wallpapers: Warriors Orochi Enjoy!
Ape Escape heads into RPG territory
What won't Sony's simian sidekicks do for attention? The Ape Escape franchise is expanding to new territory, yet again -- this time, the monkeys are starring in an RPG in their next PSP outing. Cleverly titled The Record of Piposaru War (a parody of Ryo Mizuno's classic, we assume), the monkeys must seal three demons that were accidentally unleashed upon the world.Looking at screens released by Famitsu, it appears that there will be a healthy amount of mini-games present in the game, as well. The Ape Escape games have been slow-coming to the States, so don't expect this to be translated any time soon.[Via PSPHyper]
Ape Quest gets ESRB rating
A new PSP game can be seen on the ESRB website, as discovered by Siliconera. The title, Ape Quest, most likely refers to Saru Saru Big Mission (demo available here). In the game, you're able to control the rascally monkeys by landing a robotic hat atop their heads. Each monkey has different abilities you can exploit to get through the levels.
Ape Escape: Saru Saru Big Mission downloadable demo
As promised, the Japanese demo for Ape Escape: Saru Saru Big Mission is finally out. This platformer has you ... well, we haven't figured out how to play it quite yet! (Can you tell us?) It can be downloaded via PlayStation Spot, PLAYSTATION Store, or from us:1. Download the demo zip file.2. Extract the contents of the zip file.3. Connect your PSP to your computer using a USB cable. 4. Go to the PSP/GAME folder.5. Copy NPJG90004 folder into the GAME directory. Check out our new demos site:demos.pspfanboy.com %Gallery-4385%
Ape Escape takes over the World Hobby Fair
There's a new Ape Escape game rolling into town (if you happen to live in Japan). In order to promote the new title, Sony sent its crazy simians to take over the World Hobby Fair, where attendees could try out the new game, and other PlayStation titles, like Boku no Natsuyasumi (My Summer Vacation).To check out all the pictures, check out Famitsu's coverage.
Demo for Ape Escape spin-off, headed for Japanese gamers only
Introducing another shining example of Sony shafting non-Japanese gamers, Sony is releasing a demo of Sarugetchu: SaruSaru Daisakusen (a take off their popular Ape Escape franchise) at the World Hobby Fair on June 23rd. This same demo will also be available for download on the PlayStation 3, through the Japanese PlayStation Store, and later on June 29th, through means of an 8MB downloadable demo off their website. The full game is set for a July 26th release and as with most Japanese-originating releases, there is no official word on a North American translation or confirmed release at all. How many more Ape Escape fans do we have with us here that are hoping this title makes its way to other territories?
Ape Escape returns to its platforming roots, sort of
Enough with the mini-game collections, and the kart racing games. The next Ape Escape game for PSP is finally taking the series back to its roots ... sort of. New screenshots from Famitsu reveal new platforming antics for the upcoming game. However, unlike the original, you're not trying to catch these monkeys--you're playing as them! We recommend that you look at the pictures and try to understand the game by yourself. As you can see, machine translations of Japanese websites never work well.[Via Jeux-France]
Yet another Ape Escape is heading our way
Japan really loves Ape Escape. Sony's simian friends have stared in a PS1 remake, a terrible party game, and a mediocre racing game--all on PSP. Looks like these monkeys aren't done yet, though. Sony's Japanese website reveals yet another addition to the Ape Escape franchise. Our incredibly limited knowledge of Nihongo reveals that this will be a single-player action game. Maybe Steve's wish for a "proper" Ape Escape title will be fulfilled? We'll be certain to find out more soon.[Thanks, Thien!]
Deal of the Day: Ape Escape Racer only $15
You've played the demo: now you can buy this import racer for cheap at Play-Asia. While we didn't think too highly of the game (too slow for our tastes), there aren't really any other monkey-themed kart-style racers on our system. So, if you have the itch for a Mario Kart-styled game, at least it won't cost you a pretty penny.Honestly, we recommend picking up Bleach: Heat the Soul 2 instead. As a CAG forum user pointed out, it's only $25. The Bleach games don't differ too much from each other, so you won't feel like you're missing out too much compared to Heat the Soul 4.
Where is our proper new Ape Escape game?
PSP Fanboy reader Michael sent us the opening for Ape Escape Racer and while it looks to have the playfulness that embodies the series, it got me thinking. Why is it that the PSP has yet to receive a proper new Ape Escape game. Just like Nintendo home consoles don't get proper Pokemon games, the PSP has yet to get a proper new Ape Escape game. It's not that we haven't gotten plenty of Ape Escape games, just the opposite. Between a port of the original Ape Escape, the mini-game Ape Escape Academy 1 & 2 and Ape Escape Racer, the PSP has been home to many a simian adventure. Where is my new Ape Escape platformer though? I realize the system doesn't have the ability to do the series trademark dual-stick gameplay, but adjustments can easily be made. Am I the only one looking for a new monkey tale?[ Thanks Michael ]
New UMD demo fails to excite
Usually, we get excited about new demos hitting our system. However, there's absolutely no reason to cheer for this one: Ape Escape Academy. For those of you that have played the downloadable demo, you'll know how uninspired and boring the game might be. Sure, the UMD demo most likely features more levels, but I certainly don't want to play that banana catching game ever again.I'd feel bad for the sucker that ends up buying this for the $7 eBay asking price, but maybe if they read a little bit more PSP Fanboy, they wouldn't fall for this![Via PlayStation]
Ape Escape Academy 2 downloadable demo
Yet another Ape Escape demo. This one lets you catch bananas, against the CPU or a friend.1. Download the demo ZIP file.2. Extract the contents of the ZIP file.3. Connect your PSP to your computer using a USB cable.4. Go to the PSP/GAME folder.5. Copy UCES00302 folder into the GAME directory. Check out our new demos site:demos.pspfanboy.com
