MLB 12 The Show: Day 3 – PlayStation Move Controls and PlayStation Vita

This year the team has decided to make The Show completely playable by using only the Move controllers, and what they have come up with is surprisingly well done. Check out this video of Lead Designer Eddy Cramm explaining how these controls work.

Honestly, the controls work very well, and the fact that this series has always been about “choice” this is a perfect opportunity to play The Show with your kids. While you may have your controls set to Pulse Pitching, Analog Zone Hitting, and Classic Fielding, the simplified Move controls can be set for the other player. The Move controls are quite intuitive and are very easy to pick-up and play with. There’s a bit of a hesitation in the hitting at first, but once you get used to the timing, it works very well.

PlayStation Vita:
When they say the the Vita version is feature-identical to the PS3 version, they’re not kidding. The only exclusions from the PlayStation Vita version of MLB 12 The Show are Diamond Dynasty (full details coming in February) and that some of the Presentation elements like the lengthier cutscenes etc have been removed or cut-down. The removal of these Presentation elements was a decision they made in the interest of timeliness on a handheld. They believe that on a portable system, the player isn’t interested in playing a full game that lasts 3 hours because every player movement, hold-up at the plate, and pitcher scratching himself, and to me, that decision makes total sense.

The game itself looks virtually identical to the PS3 version, but “only” at 30FPS instead of 60. During development, any change to the PS3 version was automatically included in the Vita build. So when we saw that the strikeout K’s in Miller Park weren’t correct, the changes to correct them were in both versions the next day, which was pretty sweet to see. All of the control options from the PS3 version (barring the Move controls of course) are present in the Vita game, and even with the smaller buttons and sticks, all work very well on the handheld. Honestly, I’m surprised at how well the game plays, and I was quickly hooked.

The touchscreen is used in interesting ways if you so choose. The back touchpad can be used for picking runners off as the pitcher, and can be used for throwing the ball as a fielder. The front touchscreen can also be used in ways such as choosing which pitch to use and to aim where you’d like that pitch to go. Again, you can play the game exactly s you would on the PS3 if you choose to do so.

In terms of transferring your Franchise or Road to the Show between the Vita and PS3, the process is incredibly simple, and as we’ve said before, this “cloud save” does NOT require PlayStation Plus and is available to anyone that owns the game. The “cloud” in this case is on the MLB 12 The Show servers, and not on the main PSN environment. We couldn’t verify if you can transfer any save files via the PSN PS+ cloud, but I will try to find out as soon as they activate Vita PSN services here in the US. Multiplayer is available both online and in Ad-Hoc mode. We didn’t get to try any multiplayer though, so I can’t really speak to it.

I’m definitely getting both versions this year, as the opportunity to take my Road to the Show actualy ON the road is too good to pass-up. The Vita version is quite impressive, especially how close it s to the PS3 game. This will make trips out f town a lot easier from now on.

As 2011 comes to an end that can only mean one thing, The Golden Minecart Awards!

Get ready to vote for all your favorites in some new, and hopefully refreshingly unique, categories. The polls will be posted at the end of the year, and you’ll have a few days to pick the winners.

PS Nation staff (podcast hosts and website writers) will nominate our six favorite games in each category and will then ask the community to pick the winners. Voting will be hosted on this website.

One slight problem if you can call it that. There were too many great games released in 2011, and we can’t figure out which last one to nominate. Please help by choosing your favorite. Highest vote will be nominated in the sixth and final spot for PS3 game of the year.

We’ve narrowed it down to our five favorites and those five have already been nominated. The nominees for Golden Minecart 2011: PS3 Game of the Year:

Batman Arkham City
The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim
Uncharted 3
Killzone 3
inFAMOUS 2
[your choice]

Last spot is yours to decide. You can vote once per day and the nomination will end 12/30/2011.

EDIT: The winner is Portal 2 with 24% of the vote. Thanks for voting and be sure to follow up with a vote (or one per day) in the Golden Minecarts.

Last week at the Sony 2011 Holiday Media Showcase in New York City, I was able to meet with Brian Upton, Senior Designer for Sony’s upcoming Move based title, Sorcery. A lot has changed since the E3 reveal back in 2010 and the game is really shaping up to be a model for how to make a motion control title.

You’ll play as a seventeen year old sorcerer’s apprentice with a know-it-all attitude. As the game starts, you’ve been an apprentice for about three months and the magical cat companion that follows you around dares you to enter The Land of the Dead. Of course you do, and of course, you accidentally unleash a nasty evil on the world. It’s then up to you and your companion to set things right.

You’ll travel across the world together but you and your companion cat aren’t all buddy buddy from the start. Early on, she’s pretty antagonistic towards you and quite sarcastic. As you move through the game however, she’ll give you hints and advice and eventually you’ll form a mutual respect for each other and a stronger bond. It’s a nice touch that should add more to the narrative and keep it from being a mindless action game.

Two different levels were on display showing off different areas of the game. Essentially a third person action-adventure, the disc based game will have three difficulty levels and roughly six hours of gameplay. While that may seem a bit short at first glance, remember that this is a Move only title and you probably don’t want to be swinging your arms around in combat for 20-30 hours. Controls require a combination of a Move controller and a Nav or DualShock 3 for movement. Because it’s Move only, the developers have worked to change up gameplay often enough so you won’t get tired. The game gets broken up into action scenes, narrative scenes and puzzles much like any good action title, but obviously more critical here to keep the player from getting fatigued.

When designing the game, the developers looked at action titles as their basis for the core gameplay, and it shows. Many motion based titles nowadays tend to be on rails which severely limits the gameplay, ahem, Star Wars Kinect, but the developers wanted Sorcery to play like a standard action game and from what I’ve seen, they succeeded.

What you’ll see on screen is a fantasy world that borrows from a number of different styles and cultures creating it’s own look along the way. There’s a health bar on the left with a Heroic Strike meter above it and Manna on the right. The Heroic Strike meter will charge as you cast spells while fighting and when it’s unleashed it can have a devastating effect on nearby enemies. Refilling your health is actually a fun and clever use of the motion controls. You’ll need to pull out a potion and shake it up, then drink it making all the movements intuitively with the Move controller. I had a huge smile on my face while playing the game and this part just made me laugh.

Combat tends to be just as intuitive. You can fire basic bolts along with using wind, fire and ice and everything has an alt fire mode, as in any good action game. To fire off a simple bolt, you’ll hold your wand straight up and flick your wrist forward, you can also hold it to either side and swing it across you body to curve shots around obstacles. This comes in handy as the enemy AI is good at hiding behind things and firing at you. If you point down and sweep your arm across your body, you can lay down a barrier with your elemental spells like a wall of fire. Firing bolts through the fire turns them into fire bolts causing greater damage, the same with ice. Wind can be used to create a mini maelstrom to throw enemies around. You’ve also got a shield and can use a shield bash to push enemies back if you get surrounded.

All in all, you have seven base spells with eight combos and the combos become essential to progress in later levels. It all works really well and it feels great when playing. I can see this being the inspiration for a proper Harry Potter action game somewhere down the line.

Littered around the levels are chests where you can find treasure, gold or alchemy ingredients. You’ll use those ingredients in a light RPG-like alchemy system. You’ll have the ability to research up to 56 different potions which will determine your upgrades throughout the game. For example, drinking all the fire potions will make your fire spells more powerful. There are about a dozen upgrade opportunities during the game and you’ll need to decide what you want to focus on as only about a quarter of the full upgrade tree can be explored in a single game. The nice thing is that you have the option to keep all your upgrades for subsequent playthroughs.

While it’s not an on-rails experience, it’s also not a massive open world like a Just Cause or Grand Theft Auto. The game is fairly linear but there are plenty of side paths and hidden areas which contain a lot of the alchemy elements making exploration essential. Sorcery is making a push to show developers and players what can be done with motion controls. It’s a really good step forward and hopefully will be looked at as a turning point in the development of Move titles. Overall I came away very impressed with the game and I’m really looking forward to getting my hands on the full version when it releases this Spring exclusively for the PS3.

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With the imminent release of EyePet and Friends upon us, we thought we’d give you a little taste of what’s coming. PS Nation spoke with Tom Gillo, Franchise Producer for the EyePet series as we got a live demo from a few of the developers. One of the most requested features, two pets on screen at once has been addressed along with better customization and more. Check it out:

Having already covered Play and Create, EyePet and Friends looks to move into the Share part of the “Play, Create, Share” mantra with the Online Community space. Sort of a Facebook for your pets, there’s an automatic News Feed, video and photo sharing, challenges and more. EyePet and Friends is scheduled to release on November 15 in North America and November 18 in the UK.

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What makes a great game even better? The answer is including a ton of DLC and bundling it with some hardware. When Sackboy first attempted to take on the Negativitron earlier this year fans were treated to a fantastic adventure and a wonderful toolkit to create their own custom levels. Now Media Molecule and SCE are back with LittleBigPlanet 2: Special Edition, including over $35 of downloadable goodies and new functionality.

So what’s new?
- Revised PlayStation Move support – allowing you to play over 6,000 Move games created by the LBP community.
- The Rise of Cakeling – a new adventure consisting of 5 levels, 7 mini-levels, and creative tools for Move-based levels.
- Toy Story Level and Costume Packs – 5 new levels, 2 mini-levels, and costumes themed around your favorite Toy Story characters including Slinky Dog, Hamm, and Rex.
- Additional animal costumes – all the costumes released in the Cats, Dogs, and Even More Animals Costume Packs, a total of 12 costumes in all.

If you want the ultimate LBP2 experience then you can pick up the LittleBigPlanet 2 PlayStation Move Bundle, which includes LBP2: Special Edition, a Move Motion Controller, a Move Navigational Controller, and a PlayStation Eye Camera. This package sets you up with everything you need to play any Move title and let’s you take advantage of all the Move functionality in LBP2.

While the price for the Special Edition and the Move bundle have not been announced officially (though I’d guess that the Special Edition standalone will be at the standard retail price of $59.99) we do know that both products will be in stores November 15th. Just in time for the retail anarchy that is Black Friday. That’s pretty sadistic Sackboy, but you know I can’t stay mad at you.

Title: Child of Eden
Format: Blu-ray
Release Date: 9/27/11
Publisher: Ubisoft
Developer: Q Entertainment
Price: $39.99
ESRB Rating: E10+

There was a time in the lifespan of the Dreamcast and PS2 when word started floating-around about a new music-based game coming from one of the true masters, Tetsuya Mizuguchi. He had turned a lot of heads with Space Channel 5, but Rez was something unique and experimental, in a good way. When Rez hit stores in 2002, I bought it for the Dreamcast initially, and I was blown away. Eventually, I bought it for the PS2 as well, and it remains one of my favorite games, which is surprising since I’m usually not attracted to games that are built around music (I really didn’t get into “Rhythm Games” until Rock Band.)

When I heard that a spiritual successor was in the works, I freaked-out, but then my heart fell to the floor when it was announced for Kinect, and no mention was made of a PS3 version. I couldn’t believe it, and I tried every avenue I could to find out if it was truly coming to the PS3. It got so bad that I actually considered buying a Kinect for it, even though this would probably be the only game I ever used it for. When Q Entertainment finally announced that it was coming to PS3 though, I breathed a sigh of relief. I really don’t believe in Kinect or the tech, and I didn’t want to reinforce Microsoft’s stance because of my needs for this one game. Enough background though, let’s see if it translates well to the PS3.

Gameplay:
The game is really designed to be played with the Move controller, but it can easily be played with the Dual Shock 3 as well (Rez was played with a regular controller, and even on the Dreamcast, it worked very well.) The basic principle is to pass-over an enemy with the reticule to “lock-on” to up-to 8 targets, then you hit the trigger/button to fire a spread shot at those targets. Also, you can hold the trigger/button down to fire a gun, which is especially effective against any target that is colored purple. In essence, this is an on-rails shooter, as you never control your direction through the levels. But this game is so much more than that, and if you’ve played Rez before, you’ll have a good understanding of what you’re in for.

Move Controls:
Unlike many games that are Move enabled, where you can simply hold the controller in your hand and move with your wrist, Child of Eden plays more like how a Kinect game would (but now you have buttons, YAY) in that the controller is tracked in relation to its position on the screen. So, if you want to move the reticule to the upper-right of the screen, the Move controller actually needs to be in that position instead of simply pointed there from a central location. Once you figure it out, and get things calibrated correctly, it works wonderfully. While I was playing, I thought about if I’d have actually been playing with Kinect, and it seemed like without buttons, it’d be really jarring. You can find out how it’s played on Kinect for the most part, as the gestures used are still present if you want to try them.

So, in the PS3 version, you merely need to swipe over your intended targets to get a lock, then you hit the trigger to fire your spread. The alternate (Kinect) method is to lock-on to the targets, and then swipe horizontally across the screen to fire, which I tried. It definitely made things noticeably tougher when multiple waves were coming in. To fire the special shot, which is essentially a bomb to wipe out everything on the screen, is merely a press of the Move button. Using the Kinect method, you would raise both hands in the air, which could get sloppy if you were using the 2-hand control scheme. I can see how you may get more “in to” the game using both of your hands, but the 2 available Kinect control methods both seem to have an encumbrance that would get annoying (the alternate control scheme is clap your hands to switch between the tracer gun and the regular fire mode, which would suck on level 3 especially.)

*note*Move calibration can be tricky if you don’t understand the instructions. They ask you to hit the Move button, then point at the camera lens and hold the Move button. At that point, don’t extend you arm straight and instead just point it from whatever position you’ll normally hold the controller. The last step though, is what confused myself and a couple others. It asks you to wave the controller around, then to extend your arm straight out to your side and hit the Move button. But I found that if you don’t extend your arm all the way, that the controls and the tracking work MUCH better. Just take your time and don’t be afraid to do the calibration over until it tracks the way you want.

Standard Controls:
I’ve played Rez for years with a regular controller, and Child of Eden doesn’t disappoint in this area at all. The controls are very straightforward with the Dual Shock 3, as you move the reticule with the left stick , hold X to lock-on, and fire the Tracer with Square. Movement and speed are great, and feel very similar to how Rez played.

Honestly though, if you have to choose, go with the Move controls. You can get around much faster and more accurately, and it just works. You can tell that a lot of time was spent on the motion controls, but it does play very well with the controller as well. The menus adapt to the control schemes as well, and switching between Move and Standard controls is done with a couple of button presses, which is quite impressive.

Visuals:
Indescribably stunning, and in 3D, I don’t have the words. This is a game that seriously begs to be played in 3D, so those out there that have the means, you need to buy this game no matter what. It’s a Tour de force of visual stimuli, with a liberal use of color and animation. It’s a trippy experience overall, and should probably be considered a work of art in even the snootiest of art galleries. The animation is smoother than creamy peanut butter, and the amount of movement guarantees a kinetic frenzy of colors and shapes that will force your mouth agape in amazement.

Even if you’re not playing in 3D, the game is still impressive among any challenger. The framerate is silky-smooth, and because each level has a different theme, you’ll never get bored with what you’re watching (check the gallery below, but to get the best idea, you’ll need to see it in action.) I can’t put into words how great the visuals are in Child of Eden, it’s just… superb in every way.

A wonderful addition they’ve made is a mode that’s selectable in the options to play through the levels without the worry of taking any damage, simply so that you can experience the game fully without worrying about the gameplay. Your scores won’t be applied to the online leaderboards, nor will you get any items etc, but it’s an option that I urge everyone to use sometime, just to be able to experience everything in a stress-free session. Overall, this is one of the best games visually that you will ever encounter.

One last bit of info is the unlockables, which include different visual styles and filters that can be applied so that the game can be played with different visual styles. The picture below is using one of the styles, and as you can see, it’s pretty unique. Other unlockables include a picture and video gallery, items to be placed in Lumi’s garden, and some other misc stuff.

Audio:
Tetsuya Mizuguchi has a reputation for integrating an awesome aural design into his creations, and Child of Eden doesn’t disappoint. With music supplied by Genki Rockets (Lumines 2, No More Heroes,) is what can probably be categorized as Trance music, the last piece of the puzzle comes together and fits perfectly with the other components. As in Rez (without the rumble peripheral however) the controller rumbles perfectly with the beats of the music as a further extension of the experience. I never checked if custom soundtracks are available (I doubt it) since the music is completely interwoven with the rest of the gameplay elements. The audio design is fantastic, and coming from some of his other games, it still exceeds my expectations.

Online:
There isn’t any multiplayer or online play available, but Online Leaderboards are available for all modes, and filters allow you to check the full boards or those that only include your friends list.

Conclusion:
I never actually played the 360 version of this game, and I’m glad I waited. As a Rez fan, I couldn’t be happier with Child of Eden, as it’s definitely going to be in that same category of games that I play every couple of months, no matter how old it gets. Tetsuya Mizuguchi has outdone himself again, and even for someone that hasn’t played Rez before, grab this game. It’s incredibly unique, and is as much an experience as it is a game. The game may be a bit short from beginning to end, but it’s not about the finishing, it’s about the experience while you play.

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Title: No More Heroes: Heroes Paradise
Format: Blu-ray Disc
Release Date: August 16, 2011
Publisher: Konami
Developer: Feel Plus / Grasshopper Manufacture
Price: $39.99
ESRB Rating: M

Originally released for the Wii in 2008, the PS3 iteration sports a new subtitle, a few new modes and all the bosses from the original game and the sequel, No More Heroes: Desperate Struggle. Even with the extra content, how will a three year old Wii game work out as a PS3 port?

Gameplay:
On the surface, No More Heroes appears to be your standard third person hack and slash game wrapped in a stylish, funky Japanese wrapper, but there’s actually a lot more going on here for better and worse.

You play as Travis Touchdown, an anime obsessed otaku who’s also got a thing for professional wrestling. As you learn through cut scenes, Travis met a gorgeous girl at a club the other night and she convinced him to kill a man. After doing so, Travis finds himself wrapped up with the United Assassin Association with no way out. You start as the 11th ranked assassin and you’ll have to fight your way to the top.

Things start out great as you’re thrown directly into your first assassination mission. A rather lengthy tutorial gives you a handle on all your moves, which is critical considering the manual tells you absolutely nothing. On the Wii, all control was handled with the Wii Remote and Nunchuck controllers. For the PS3, those controls have been ported to the Move and Nav controllers and it’s for the better. You’ll also have the option of playing with a standard DualShock if you don’t have Move controllers. If you have the option, I’d say stick with the Move… except for certain side missions which I’ll revisit later.

Playing the Wii and PS3 versions of the game back to back really highlights the superiority of the Move controller. I’m not talking about accuracy here. I’m actually talking about a very overlooked difference between the two controllers, button placement. With the Wii Remote, using the + and – buttons along with the 1 and 2 buttons while in the heat of battle can be awkward. I’ve always felt that the Wii Remote was designed for children’s hands, but in a game like this, hitting the trigger and A buttons AND stretching your thumb down to the 1 and 2 buttons while in the middle of a fight is no small feat. However, with the Move controller, the Triangle, Circle, Square and X buttons are all arranged neatly around the Move button right where your thumb is resting. It makes the combat much more enjoyable on the PS3.

As Travis, you main weapon is the Beam Katana which is sort of a low rent lightsaber. Now, in a game sporting motion controls and a sword as the main weapon, you’d expect a lot of wild swinging and 1 to 1 action but that’s not the case here. To pull off various moves, you’ll be using a combination of the face buttons and the occasional swipe of the controller in the direction given by an on screen prompt. It’s actually a nice way to handle the combat and I had a lot of fun with it. For each enemy you take down, blood pours out of them along with money that flows into your stash. You’ll also see the three drums of a slot machine at the bottom of the screen which can award bonuses. When three of the same symbols appear, you’ll briefly be put into Dark Side mode which can consist of anything from one hit kills to nasty mutilations.

You’ll have to fight your way through room after room of henchmen until you get to your final target and the boss battle begins. Each boss is quite unique with their own style, weapons and weaknesses. Once dispatched however things kinda go downhill.

You’re sent back to the Motel you’re staying at to save the game (by sitting on the toilet naturally), change clothes (which has no effect on gameplay), watch videos and play with your cat. You can also see trading cards and wrestling masks you’ve collected, videos you’ve bought and so on. When you walk out of the Motel, the padding of the game begins.

To face each boss after the first one and climb in the rankings, you need to pay a fee to the Association. To get that fee you’ll need to take odd jobs and some side missions. You ride around the (very) small town of Santa Destroy on your futuristic motorcycle, kicking open dumpsters to find either money or t-shirts, and other hidden items.

The controls are pretty bad and collision detection is even worse. You’ll be able to knock down lights, palm trees and even oak trees, but hit a park bench and you’ll fly off your motorcycle. If you’re moving too slow and you happen to stop next to one of those trees or light poles, your motorcycle will become stuck in the object. All you can do at that point is walk a few blocks away and hit a button which has a friend deliver your motorcycle to wherever you are. When you’re on the cliffs of Santa Destroy, overlooking the ocean, you’ll find that some areas have invisible walls while others will inexplicably let you plummet to your death. The are a few vehicles and pedestrians, but only a few models of each and they really don’t interact with you at all. Cars go from driving to a standstill in an instant if you happen to step in front of them and pedestrians continue moving their feet forward as you push them backwards just by walking into them. Maybe it’s a leftover from the processing power and storage space on the Wii or maybe it’s just lazy programming in the first place, I’m not sure. Unfortunately, it all adds up to a real slowdown in gameplay and it can be boring and downright frustrating at times.

The odd jobs you can take to make money consist of things like picking up trash, cutting the grass, gathering coconuts and more truly riveting mini games…. which is where the DualShock comes in. One of the jobs requires you to use signal flags to signal ships at sea. You’ll see two arrows on the screen point up, down, left and right in a number of combinations. Unlike the other jobs, you’re given no instructions here on how to do this. I was swinging the Move and Nav controllers in each direction as asked, I tried doing it with button presses along with the movements, nothing worked consistently. When I tried again with the DualShock, I used the left and right sticks and was done with no problem. Again, frustrating, more so because you need to do these things to earn enough money to challenge the next ranked fighter on your list.

More businesses open up as the you progress through the game including a place to buy clothes, which have no effect on gameplay and a place to buy new weapons and parts which make your Beam Katana stronger and better. You’ll also be able to buy videos which you can watch back at the Motel, workout at a gym which actually increases you health meter and learn new moves from a washed up Master. You’ll have to lay out cash for all of those except for the Master. For him, you’ll need to find 49 glowing balls scattered around the city (mostly in alleyways). Fortunately, one of the upgrades to your Beam Katana will place all of them on the mini map as a glowing gold dot so it essentially becomes a way to keep you busy for a while as you run around the city gathering things.

That’s really the one big downfall of this game, the balance. The fighting is great and a lot of fun, but you’re stuck playing mini games and wandering a very lifeless sterile city to make money just so you can get back to the fun.

Visuals:
This game definitely has a lot of style, I’ll give it that. The graphics are much improved from the Wii with HD and anti-aliasing making a huge difference. The character designs for the bosses are fantastic with each sporting a unique look that goes along with their quirky personality. The mindless pedestrians and generic underlings however leave a lot to be desired. The henchmen all tend to look pretty similar with just a few costume changes to match their bosses personality quirks. They will come at you with an ever growing difficulty level of weapons, but for the most part, they’re just the cannon fodder and a warm up to the main act.

As you move from place to place and in and out of buildings, the screen will freeze, go all monochromatic as a guitar chord is played – more style. The whole game is infused with a very Japanese sense of humor and the animation in the cut scenes lends itself to that. At times, it can be a really fun game to play.

Overall it’s a pretty good looking game, but too much pops up along the way, especially around the city, which make it’s roots on the Wii quite apparent. There are only four or five different cars and maybe six different pedestrians, which tends to sap the quirky fun out of the game.

Audio:
Voice acting ranges from unintelligible to really great. Travis’ lines tend to be delivered in a pretty over the top style but a lot of the bosses are really well acted. The people you deal with in the businesses around Santa Destroy are mostly voiced by Japanese people who speak with very thick accents. All the dialogue is subtitled by default so you won’t miss anything if you have trouble understanding some of them.

The music isn’t terribly varied, but it’s stylish like the rest of the game and each riff fits what you’re doing at the time quite nicely. The other sound effects, especially in the fight scenes come through really well and you’ll find that audio cues can be critical in boss fights.

Conclusion:
I had a really hard time coming up with a grade for this one. While the game looks great (for the most part) and the fights are loads of fun, the stuff you have to do to get back to those fights, while interesting at times, tends to really drag the whole game down. Unfortunately, that’s what I’m left with when thinking about this game, I have a blast in the fights, but then they end and I’m left to deal with clunky controls, bad collision detection, and very little variety which just kills it.

It’s worth a rent for sure, because there is a lot of fun to be had here, but I couldn’t really recommend this one for a purchase at full price. Wait until the end of the year sales if you’re really interested.

Grade:

Journey back with me to the Summer of 1978. While most of us were busy reenacting the Death Star trash compactor sequence with our sweet Star Wars collection from Kenner, there was a new phenomenon building on the horizon… one that involved singing and dancing. No I’m not talking about the Star Wars Holiday Special, I’m talking about Grease.

Yes, during that Summer of ’78, Grease was indeed “The Word”. More proof that the Bee Gees and John Travolta go together like peanut butter and chocolate, and that Travolta might just have a career beyond Vinny Barbarino.

Now thirty-three years later, developer Zoe Mode and Publisher 505 games are bringing Grease home in a whole new way… well maybe not new. You know you used to sing along with the multi-platinum soundtrack and dance with your friends, well now you can do it again and this time, you’ll get scored on your performance!

With fifteen songs from the film and five additional classic rock tracks, you’ll use your PlayStation Move controller and a microphone much like SingStar Dance. To really get the party going, the game supports up to 8 players, two teams of two singers and two dancers each.

Prepare to relive your Summer Lovin’ all over again when Grease is released this October 25th in North America and November 4th around the world. In the meantime, check out the screenshots below.

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From the Press Release:

505 GAMES DELIVERS THE ULTIMATE GREASE™ SINGING AND DANCING EXPERIENCE FOR KINECT™ FOR XBOX 360 AND PLAYSTATION®MOVE FOR PLAYSTATION®3 SYSTEM

Relive the Movie’s Legendary Songs and Choreography Re-Imagined for Today’s Generation Featuring Motion-Controlled Technology

Woodland Hills, CA – September 13, 2011 – It’s the one that you want! Global video game publisher 505 Games announced today that this fall they are releasing the ultimate singing and dancing Grease™ experience for both Kinect™ for Xbox 360® and PlayStation®Move for PlayStation®3 computer entertainment system.

Grease delivers the movie’s signature choreography and legendary songs combined with today’s motion-sensor technology so fans can dance and sing along to their favorite Grease tunes including iconic anthems like “You’re the One That I Want”, “Greased Lightning” and “Summer Nights.” Grease allows players to sing or dance as a solo act, in a duet or four players can team up to sing and dance together for a sensational musical performance.

Grease key features include:

• SING!: The game features 15 song compositions from the original film and 5 bonus classic rock ‘n’ roll tracks.
• DANCE!: Hours of fun with rock ‘n’ roll routines from the movie, including duet choreography and freestyle sections where players can express their individuality and dance for increased points.
• GAMEPLAY MODES: Game includes Dance Mode and Karaoke Mode with both featuring versus and co-operative play.
• COOPERATIVE GAMEPLAY: Up to eight-players can compete in Party Mode — two teams of four players consisting of 2 dancers and 2 singers at any one time.

Developed by Zoe Mode and published by 505 Games under license from Paramount Digital Entertainment, with officially licensed song compositions and timeless choreography from the movie, Grease provides an interactive social singing and dancing experience where players can turn up their style and release their inner rock ‘n roller.

Grease for Kinect for Xbox 360 and PlayStation Move for PS3™ is rated “T” for Teen by the Entertainment Software Rating Board (ESRB) and will launch in North America on October 25 and worldwide on November 4. For more information about Grease please visit www.greasethegame.com

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About 505 Games
Based in Los Angeles, CA, 505 Games (U.S.) is the North American division of 505 Games, a global videogame publisher. Launched in the U.S. in 2008, 505 Games publishes quality interactive entertainment on all handheld, mobile and console gaming platforms, offering a broad selection of videogame titles in all genres for players of all ages. For more information on 505 Games and its products please visit www.505games.com.

About Zoë Mode
Zoë Mode makes games that are accessible; simple, social, games that are effortlessly fun but don’t take themselves too seriously. Based in Brighton, London and San Francisco, its diverse work force is unified by its attitude to gaming. Zoë Mode believes that games are powerful ways of bringing people together and having fun and that there’s more to life than gaming, but that gaming can make life better; and strongly believes that there is a game for everyone. Zoë Mode is part of Kuju Entertainment Limited.

I, like most gamers of the time, played a ridiculous amount of the original Goldeneye back on the N64, and was quite pleased with last years Goldeneye reimaging on the Wii. Now a remastered version of the Wii title, Goldeneye 007: Reloaded, is headed to PS3. Bypassing many of the limitations of the Wii hardware, Reloaded will feature HD graphics, will run at 60-frames per second, include Move support, and will feature both single and multiplayer extras. In addition to the campaign, new Mi6 Ops Missions challenge players to complete Assault, Elimination, Stealth, and Defense objectives. For those Bond fans jonesing for the multiplayer action of old have no fear, as Reloaded will support four-player split screen in addition to 16-player online matches. No specific release date has been announced, but re-up your license to kill as Goldeneye 007: Reloaded will be headed to your PS3 this fall.

If you pick up the latest issue of Walking Dead on release day, just finished your 17th viewing of Zombieland, and can quote Shaun of the Dead backwards then boy has Sega got a game for you. House of the Dead: Overkill – Extended Cut is a remastered version of the Wii shooter title that was released over two years ago. Instead of fumbling with Wii Remotes PlayStation 3 fans can enjoy this remake with the Move and in 3D. Not content to just offer enhanced visuals and a new control scheme Sega is adding two additional scenarios to the original seven. These new locales are glimpsed in the above trailer. I know fellow PS Nationalist, and resident House of the Dead freak, Joel is waiting with baited breath for this title to drop. He, and other zombie fans, won’t have to wait too long as Overkill –Extended Cut arrives in stores October 25th, just in time for Halloween.