Playstation Network Wrap-Up for July 6th, 2010

Late, late, LATE update this week, but that’s what happens when you referee roller hockey in 100F heat. Oh well, to quote Carlin, let’s do a fucking show, huh?

There are two downloadable releases for the PS3, and neither one is a big deal. The biggest name is Family Feud. This is like any other Ludia release; it captures the personality of the show reasonably well, but will leave most nostalgics wanting more. If anything, the show itself is done in by the fact that Richard Dawson is too old to do the show while doing a contestant’s daughter (fun story: he actually married the daughter of a contestant. Remember that when you see old episodes, and he’s doing everything but finger-banging someone right in front of their parents), but if you just like the game and want to play it with friends, this is worth the $10 cost.

Secondly, we have Monkey Island Special Edition 2: Lechuck’s Revenge. I’m not going to pretend I’m very knowledgeable about this series; I’ve never been an adventure fan, and couldn’t tell you the first thing about any of these games, with or without the demo that this comes with. Ashe Collins is reviewing this, and I’m going to leave it to him. I’m the last person that should be telling anyone on whether or not to buy Monkey Island.

Other than the Monkey Island demo, there’s one more, for Death Track: Resurrection. I did not have high expectations going in, and sure enough, those expectations weren’t met. Controlling your car is a nightmare; even just a small shift to one direction sent me careening nose-first into the wall. Furthermore, there’s no real way that I can see to defend yourself from weapons; you know you got waxed when you blow up. I can’t justify buying this game for even the most desperate arcade racing fan, though anyone interested should know that the game IS on sale this week for half off. Unfortunately, $8 is still too much for a heavily flawed game.

The PSP is where the lion’s share of the news is. The big release of the whole week is the downloadable version of Persona 3 Portable. I’m about to offend a large part of my inner circle, but here goes… unless the female protagonist offers the greatest JRPG gameplay in the history of the medium, this is not a $40 game. I’m growing a little tired of Atlus shoving this game down our collective throats; first, we had the original Persona 3, and most people – not named Alex Lucard or Mark B. – can agree that was a good game. P3 retailed for $40 on day of release. Then, they came out with Persona 3: FES, which added some extra content for $30. That was OK. Now, we’re getting the third version of this game, with only a few additions (though I hear that the female protagonist is a new experience for old-time fans), and they’re charging another $40 for it, not just for the UMD version, but the PSN version as well. Are you serious, guys? Unless HUMONGOUS changes have been made to this game, this is $110 combined for a game that is inferior to Persona 4 in almost every fashion. That doesn’t make it a bad game by any stretch – it isn’t – but I’m in the camp that says this price has to come down a spell.

Then again, I’m agape at the feedback this is getting. Persona 3 PSP has a 94 rating on Metacritic, with a bunch of 100s. Some of them are from bad sites who only have scores to be on Metacritic in the first place, but some people who’s JRPG opinions I value, like Destructoid’s Dale North, are all over it. Even my friend – RPGFan writer Elizabeth Maas – bought a PSP specifically for this game. Just saying the things I have about it are going to make me a social pariah (more than usual) for the next couple weeks. At the very least, I recommend getting the UMD version, and seeing if you can get Junpei’s hat in the deal as well. $40 for a years-old port is way too much if you’re just downloading it, but at least anyone that agrees with me can wait for the inevitable Persona 3 PSP FES for less.

LATE EDIT: I’m being told by said friends that they added a lot of changes to P3’s battle system, essentially putting in the good parts of P4’s system. I’ll be honest: this is issue #1 I had with Persona 3. It still doesn’t address others I personally have – I prefer P4’s story, pacing and all – and still don’t think this is a $40 game, but at least the #1 problem that Persona 3 had – an extremely unfriendly battle system – was addressed, so good on Atlus for that.

There are two more releases which I’m going to shunt into one paragraph. The latest overpriced movie license is Despicable Me. Needless to say, unless this is another Arkham Asylum and we just don’t know it yet, $30 is too much money. Finally, there’s Chameleon Legacy for $5, which I… cannot find *any* information about online. At all. Even Sony’s official description is lacking, to the point where I had to ask “wait, is this a misplaced minis game?”. There’s so little information about this, I’m actually going to drop the $5 and get a review out about it, because that’s how we roll here at Diehard GameFAN.

There’s a PSP demo out, for Patapon 3. Unfortunately, it’s a multiplayer demo, which means I haven’t yet been able to sample it because my internet is wired and my PSP isn’t. However, just the introductory stage reminded me of how much I love Patapon, and it will be interesting to see how Sony integrates WiFi play into the mix.

That’s it for the notables of this week. A reminder that Alex Lucard has a write-up about the second week of Playstation Plus over here, which is starting to confirm some fears I had about the service: the first week was the blinding light, and we’re starting to see a lot less good stuff in even the second week it’s been up, including one game that received a bigger price drop than the previous week, something that’s surely going to annoy some people. With that said, while I’m critical of it – moreso than last week – at least it’s not LIVE Gold. Nothing can be worse than LIVE Gold. Until next time, this is Christopher Bowen, who’s going to go back to playing Persona 4 again. By the way, it’s better than Persona 3 and goes for about $20 nowadays.

The full Playstation Network update is under the cut.


PlayStation Plus

Qore Episode 26 (July Single episode Free to PlayStation Plus subscribers)
File Size: 1.74 GB

Field Runners (Free to PlayStation Plus Subscribers)
File size: 29 MB

MAG Raven Character Avatar (Free to PlayStation Plus Subscribers)
File size: 106 KB

MAG SVER Character Avatar (Free to PlayStation Plus Subscribers)
File size: 109 KB

MAG Valor Character Avatar (Free to PlayStation Plus Subscribers)
File size: 112 KB

King Zumo Theme (Free to PlayStation Plus Subscribers)
File size: 5.88 MB

Super Stardust HD Sale

Super Stardust HD (PlayStation Plus price $5.00, original price $9.99)
Super Stardust HD Team add-on Pack (PlayStation Plus price $2.50, original price $4.99)
Super Stardust HD Solo add-on Pack (PlayStation Plus price $2.50, original price $4.99)

TikGames/Creat Studios PlayStation Plus Sale
Hamsterball (PlayStation Plus price $3.99, original price $9.99)

Updates

Hamsterball – Sale (now $4.99, original price $9.99)

Death Track: Resurrection – Sale (now $7.99, original price $14.99)
Worms – Sale (now $7.99, original price $12.99)
Hamster Ball Unleashed – Sale (now $4.99, original price $9.99)
Breakquest – Minis – Sale (now $2.99, original price $3.99)
Normaltanks – Minis – Permanent Price Change (now $2.99, original price $4.99)

Qore

Qore Episode 26: July 2010 ($2.99)
Episode 26 of Qore: Presented by the PlayStation Network takes viewers back to the Helghan homeworld in Killzone 3, previews Majin and the Forsaken Kingdom, chats with the creator of the PlayStation Move controller and explores Osaka, Japan.
File size: 1.74 GB

Qore Annual Subscription: July 2010 ($24.99)
Qore: Presented by the PlayStation Network is a monthly interactive video production covering the world of PlayStation. Qore provides its audience with exclusive behind-the-scenes access to developers and their games, from both the SCE Worldwide Studios and the third-party community, where the audience member can freely navigate through the content.
File size: 1.74 GB

Downloadable Games

Monkey Island Special Edition 2: Lechuck’s Revenge ($9.99)
More Pirates! More Adventure! More Monkeys! Relive the second hilarious swashbuckling misadventure of the wannabe pirate Guybrush Threepwood in signature special edition detail. Overcome the wrath of the evil zombie pirate LeChuck with all new direct-character controls, an interactive object highlight system, behind the scenes art viewer and creator commentary featuring the original developers of Monkey Island 2: LeChuck’s Revenge!
ESRB Rated E10+
File size: 1.14 GB

Family Feud ($9.99)
“SURVEY SAYS!” Family Feud is fun on your PlayStation 3 system! Just like on TV, the game pits 2 families against each other in a contest to name the most popular answers to survey questions posed to 100 people. The first family to get 300 points wins, and moves on to the Fast Money round for a chance to win $20,000! With a multiplayer mode played on one PS3 or online through PlayStation Network, Family Feud has never been so entertaining!
ESRB Rated E

File size: 251 MB

Game Demos (free)

Death Track: Resurrection Demo
The demo version of Death Track: Resurrection – a new action racing game developed by Gaijin. Players travel to a future in which the world has been plunged into chaos. Traditional sports have been replaced by more aggressive and violent types of entertainment. Powerful cars and spectacular road battles are performed by world-renown and feared drivers compete for glory and huge cash prizes.
ESRB Rated T
File size: 232 MB

Monkey Island Special Edition 2: LeChuck’s Revenge Demo

More Pirates! More Adventure! More Monkeys! Relive the second hilarious swashbuckling misadventure of the wannabe pirate Guybrush Threepwood in signature special edition detail. Overcome the wrath of the evil zombie pirate LeChuck with all new direct-character controls, an interactive object highlight system, behind the scenes art viewer and creator commentary featuring the original developers of Monkey Island 2: LeChuck’s Revenge!
ESRB Rated E10+
File size: 1.14 GB

Add-on Game Content

LittleBigPlanet: Marvel – Iron Man ($1.99)
Tony Stark isn’t the only person with an Iron Man costume, now Sackboy has his own version of the legendary home-made hero costume to use when the need arises! NOTE: to download this costume, you must already own LittleBigPlanet.
File size: 1.04 MB

LittleBigPlanet: Marvel – Thing ($1.99)
Fortunately for Sackboy he doesn’t need to be exposed to dangerous quantities of cosmic radiation to become the Fantastic Four’s lead clobberer Thing, he can simply put on this awesome costume. NOTE: to download this costume, you must already own LittleBigPlanet.
File size: 1.04 MB

LittleBigPlanet: Marvel – Dare Devil ($1.99)
There are plenty of times in LittleBigPlanet when you simply cannot believe your eyes! In the event of this happening, Sackboy need simply dress up as blind superhero Daredevil to overcome this problem. NOTE: to download this costume, you must already own LittleBigPlanet.
File size: 1.04 MB

LittleBigPlanet: Marvel – Doctor Octopus ($1.99)

For those times when Sackboy feels the need to hatch yet another world domination plan and take on the heroic tendencies of any web-slingers out there, the Doctor Octopus costume is just the thing. NOTE: to download this costume, you must already own LittleBigPlanet.
File size: 1.04 MB

LittleBigPlanet: Marvel – Mystique ($1.99)
While Sackboy may be the master of costume changing, rather than shape changing but that isn’t going to stop him dressing up as Mystique. NOTE: to download this costume, you must already own LittleBigPlanet.
File size: 1.04 MB

LittleBigPlanet: Marvel Costume Pack ($5.99)
Look out “True Believers”, your favorite Marvel heroes and villains have landed on LittleBigPlanet! Grab this costume pack and you’ll be ready for action with 5 costumes of your favorite Marvel characters including Iron Man, Thing, Daredevil, Doctor Octopus, and Mystique! NOTE: to download this costume, you must already own LittleBigPlanet.

File size: 1.04 MB

LittleBigPlanet: Marvel Level Kit ($4.99)
Look out “True Believers”, your favorite Marvel heroes and villains have landed on LittleBigPlanet! Grab this level kit to build your own “Marvel”-ous levels! This kit includes 4 new Levels, 1 Background, 3 Music files, 24 CREATE objects, and 156 Stickers! NOTE: To download this Costume Kit, you must already own LittleBigPlanet.
File size: 1.04 MB

ModNation Racers: Sweet Tooth Mod and Kart Bundle ($1.99)
Race as the iconic character Sweet Tooth, from the longest-running PlayStation-exclusive franchise, Twisted Metal. This ModNation Racers Sweet Tooth Mod AND Kart bundle pack will let you race as the dark clown inside of the sinister ice cream truck that’s perfectly suited for car combat. Download this pack today!
File size: 100 KB

Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 Resurgence Package ($14.99) (Also available in French)
More epic new multiplayer content has arrived for Modern Warfare 2! The Resurgence Pack delivers five incredible new multiplayer maps. Take the action to exciting new locations, then battle across legendary landscapes from Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare.
File size: 346 MB

Dragon Age: Origins – Leliana’s Song ($6.99)
Assume the role of Leliana, a young bard involved in a criminal ring that deals in political secrets. Accompanying her mentor Marjolaine on a high-risk mission, Leliana soon finds herself entangled in a game of intrigue that she cannot escape with just her beauty, charm, or stealth. The only way out of this game is to kill or be killed.
File size: 439 MB

Skate 3 – Danny Way’s Hawaiian Dream ($6.99)

Danny Way has been living the dream for years, now you can skate his Hawaiian dream…an enormous skater’s paradise loaded with everything from original street terrain to flowing skateparks and Danny’s signature Mega-madness. Drop in for a Hawaiian blast.
File size: 106 MB

Aliens Vs. Predator Bughunt Map Pack ($6.99)
Welcome to the killing grounds of BG-386. Prove your skills on four new multiplayer maps spanning jungle swamps, dropship crashsites, industrial complexes and ancient temples. Rainstoms batter you, fog hides your predators with only a flash of lightning to show the way through, and a fiery death awaits the unwary.
File size: 416 MB

MotoGP 09/10: GP Class Season 2010 Update (free)
The new 2010 season content update pack gives you the all new GP class bikes and riders for the new season, as well as the world famous Silverstone track not seen in MotoGP since 1986. The content is used in all game modes to extend the game-play.
File size: 777 MB

Trinity Universe – Gift for Everyone Pack ($0.99)
“A heart-warming gift from Mizuki! I gathered some good stuff for you.
You better treasure it! This should blast me into the stratosphere of stardom!
Well, um, can you prepare boxes for everyone?
…Um! This is perfect!”
File size: 100 KB

Trinity Universe – Low Income Prinny Pack (free)
“I got Clear Souls for “ATK,” “DEF,” “INT,” “RES,” “SPD,” “HIT,” “LUK,” and “”HP,”” dood.

Now we’re unstoppable, dood.
…Well, there’s no way we have enough to say that, dood. It’s not our problem if this imbalances your party, dood! “
File size: 100 KB

Trinity Universe – Middle Ability Pack ($1.99)
“Keh, hehehe… Hahahahaha! I’ve entered many dungeons, found many hunting points, and crushed numerous monsters these past few months.
Finally… finally, I found this useful ability! As long as it exists, that violent Valkyrie is a mere wad of gum stuck to the bottom of my boot!”
File size: 100 KB

Trinity Universe – Mid-Level armor Pack ($1.99)

“(Take 32: 2 hours into the recording session.)
I… I will talk about this Mid-level Armor.
This product pack consists of “Byakko’s Kotodama,” “Seiryu’s Kotodama,” “Suzaku’s Kotodama,” and “Genbu’s Kotodama.” Plus, “α Code,” “β Code,” “γ Code,” “Ω Code,” “Dark Space,” “Shine Space,” “Aurora Space,” and “Heartful Space”… They are all hairy…”
File size: 100 KB

Trinity Universe – Miyu’s Managraphic Pack (free)
“I’ll do my best to draw your portrait! P-Please let me try. I promise it’ll be good!”
File size: 100 KB

Trinity Universe – My Secret Savings Pack ($0.99)

“Ugh… I’m tired.
But, I think we’ve collected quite a lot!
5 “Cure Herbs” for fatigued bodies, 5 “Relief Krauts” that’ll heal an entire family, 5 “Life Stones” for emergencies and 5 “Anchors” so your home won’t drift away. Plus, we still have 500,000G left over! I’m so fantastic at budgeting!”
File size: 100 KB

Trinity Universe – Phantom Dungeon Rumors Pack (free)
“What in tarnation is this dungeon? I reckon’ we’ll find some mighty fine treasure.”
File size: 100 KB

Trinity Universe – Technician’s Pack ($1.99)

“Oh! Our weapons got upgraded! They’re probably cool, and fierce, and badass now! Tsubaki, can you buy this for me? What? You will?! All right! Let’s go on another adventure right away!”
File size: 100 KB

Guitar Hero
For all song credits please visit www.guitarhero.com.

  • “Crazy Little Thing Called Love” – Queen ($1.99)
  • “Killer Queen” – Queen ($1.99)
  • “Somebody To Love” – Queen ($1.99)
  • Queen 2 Track Pack ($5.49) – Downloadable Track Pack featuring “Crazy Little Thing Called Love”, “Killer Queen”, and “Somebody To Love” by Queen. Please Note: Many songs are available both as singles and as part of a Track Pack, so please carefully consider your purchases before downloading.

File size: 29 MB – 51 MB (singles), 108 MB (track pack)

Rock Band
Build your Rock Band library by purchasing these song game tracks. For song credits, visit www.RockBand.com.

  • “Bad Moon Rising” – Creedence Clearwater Revival ($1.99)
  • “Born On The Bayou” – Creedence Clearwater Revival ($1.99)
  • “Down On The Corner” – Creedence Clearwater Revival ($1.99)
  • “Fortunate Son (Original Version)” – Creedence Clearwater Revival ($1.99)
  • “Green River” – Creedence Clearwater Revival ($1.99)
  • “I Heard It Through The Grapevine” – Creedence Clearwater Revival ($1.99)
  • “Lookin’ Out My Back Door” – Creedence Clearwater Revival ($1.99)
  • “Proud Mary” – Creedence Clearwater Revival ($1.99)
  • “Run Through The Jungle” – Creedence Clearwater Revival ($1.99)
  • “Travelin’ Band” – Creedence Clearwater Revival ($1.99)
  • “Up Around The Bend” – Creedence Clearwater Revival ($1.99)
  • “Who’ll Stop The Rain” – Creedence Clearwater Revival ($1.99)
  • Creedence Clearwater Revival Pack 01 ($19.99) – Build your Rock Band library by purchasing this song game track pack: Creedence Clearwater Revival Pack 01. This pack includes “Bad Moon Rising”, “Born On The Bayou”, “Down On The Corner”, “Fortunate Son (Original Version)”, “Green River”, “I Heard It Through The Grapevine”, “Lookin’ Out My Back Door”, “Proud Mary”, “Run Through The Jungle”, “Travelin’ Band”, “Up Around The Bend”, and “Who’ll Stop The Train” by Creedence Clearwater Revival.

Rock Band Network

  • “1348”³ by Umphrey’s McGee ($1.99)
  • “Battles And Brotherhood” by 3 Inches of Blood ($1.99)
  • “Henchmen Ride” by Testament ($1.99)
  • “So Says I” by The Shins ($1.99)
  • “The Funeral” by Band of Horses ($1.99)

File size: 13 MB – 74 MB (singles), 267 MB (track pack)

Avatars

Dark Stalkers Felicia Avatar ($0.49)
File size: 100 KB

Dark Stalkers Morrigan Avatar ($0.49)
File size: 100 KB

Flower Avatars (x4) ($0.49)
File size: 100 KB

Flower Avatar Bundle ($1.49)
File size: 500 KB

Game Videos (free)

Naughty Bear Trailer
File size: 62 MB (SD), 84 MB (HD)

Transformers: War For Cybertron Multiplayer Trailer
File size: 56 MB (HD)

Dragon Age: Origins Leliana’s Song Trailer
File size: 31 MB (HD)

Shank E3: Animatic Trailer

File size: 33 MB (HD)

Skate 3 Maloof Money Cup Trailer
File size: 54 MB (HD)

Star Wars: The Force Unleashed II E3 Trailer
File size: 308 MB (1080)

Pulse 7/6 Edition
File size: 329 MB (HD)

PixelJunk Racers 2nd Lap Trailer
File size: 52 MB (HD), 86 MB (1080)

PixelJunk Shooter 2 Trailer
File size: 45 MB (HD), 75 MB (1080)

PS3 Themes

Trinity Universe Custom Theme 09:Flonne ($1.99)
File size: 6.6 MB

Trinity Universe Custom Theme 10: Etna ($1.99)
File size: 6.2 MB

Trinity Universe Custom Theme 11: Prinny ($1.99)
File size: 5.5 MB

Sonic & Sega All-Stars Racing Premium Theme ($2.49)
File size: 10 MB

Azmodeus Dark Angels Premium Theme 4 ($1.49)
File size: 7.6 MB

Wallpapers (free)

Blue Toad Murder Files Wallpaper
File size: 940 KB

PlayStation Store for PSP

Downloadable Games (also available from PS3 Storefront)

Shin Megami Tensei: Persona 3 Portable ($39.99)
Terrible creatures lurk in the dark, preying on those who wander into the hidden hour between one day and the next. As a member of a secret school club, you must wield your inner power””Persona””and protect humanity from impending doom. Will you live to see the light of day?
The award-winning RPG is now in the palm of your hand! Greatly enhanced and featuring a new female protagonist with another perspective on the story, no RPG fan should miss this.
ESRB Rated M
File size: 1.07 GB

Despicable Me ($29.99)
Be Despicable! (It’s fun!) Despicable Me: The Game lets players of all ages experience the thrill of being Gru, one of the world’s greatest supervillains who is planning the biggest heist in history – stealing the moon.

  • Assemble an army of minions
  • Use new gadgets and weapons
  • Master air combat
  • Build an awesome rocket ship
  • Play as Gru or as his nemesis, Vector, in multiplayer air combat (PS2)
  • Based on Universal Pictures’ new 3-D CGI feature, Despicable Me, in theatres July 9, 2010.

ESRB Rated E10+
File size: 324 MB

Chameleon Legacy ($4.99)
Chameleon offers players simple controls that are easy to get into along with competitive play as you attempt to match colors on your playfield. The game features several playable characters along with a bonus character. A variety of different modes and rule sets bring great replay-ability to this addictive game.
ESRB Rated E
File size: 27 MB

Game Demos (also available from PS3 Storefront) (free)

Patapon 3 – Multiplayer Demo
Download the Patapon 3 Multiplayer Demo today and send us your feedback to make the best Patapon game yet! For more information, please visit http://www.pataponpsp.com.

ESRB Rated RP
File size: 110 MB

PSP Minis (also available from PS3 Storefront)

Widget’s Odyssey – Minis ($1.99)
ESRB Rated E
File size: 51 MB

The Mystery Of The Crystal Portal – Minis ($4.99)

ESRB Rated E
File size: 85 MB

5-in-1 Arcade Hits – Minis ($3.99)
ESRB Rated E
File size: 17 MB

4X4 Jam Minis ($6.99)
ESRB Rated E
File size: 51 MB

Add-on Game Content (also available from PS3 Storefront)

LittleBigPlanet PSP – Heroes in Uniform Costume (free)
With this fabulous free Cop costume your Sackboy will really look the part whilst he lays down the law! NOTE: Manual Update required
File size: 1.29 MB

LittleBigPlanet PSP – Heroes in Uniform Pack ($2.99)
Is your Sackboy a bold firefighter, a courageous cop or an intrepid paramedic? This emergency services themed pack is absolutely bursting at the seams with new costumes and stickers for any crisis. NOTE: Manual Update required
File size: 1.43 MB

Game Videos (free)

Pulse 7/6 Edition
File size: 55 MB

PSP Themes (also available from PS3 Storefront)

Azmodeus Dark Angels PSP Theme 13 ($1.49)
File size: 565 KB


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2 responses to “Playstation Network Wrap-Up for July 6th, 2010”

  1. Ashe Collins Avatar
    Ashe Collins

    Actually I’m reviewing the Tales of Monkey Island which is a separate series from the special edition releases. From what I’ve seen though the special edition of Monkey Island 2 looks fantastic.

  2. Christopher Bowen Avatar

    So Monkey Island 2 is different from Tales of Monkey Island, one of which is the sequel to the original Monkey Island, and one of which might be a spinoff, but then Spock has a goatee…

    Now you see why I didn’t even try!

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