PlayStation Plus March content!

With March fast approaching, the next batch of Plus content has just been announced for the EU territories,

In summary
Leaving PS Plus in March:
6th March: Sleeping Dogs
6th March: Vanquish
6th March: LIMBO
13th March: Wipeout 2048
20th March: Lumines Electronic Symphony

Entering PS Plus in March:
6th March: Mass Effect 3
6th March: Dead or Alive 5
6th March: Joe Danger 2
13th March: Metal Gear Solid HD Collection
20th March: Puddle

Out of the above games I have only owned Mass Effect 3, so March is a good month for me, the Metal Gear Solid HD collection is for the Vita so I will have something new to play whilst I am on my break at work so I cant wait.

The following are videos of Mass Effect 3 and Dead or Alive 5,

I will do a review for Dead or Alive 5 if I decide to download it as fighters aren't really my genre of games, after dabbling in games such as Mortal Kombat and Soul Callibur I can see that I dont have the knack or skill required and instead just submit to button mashing the control in a hope I pull of a really cool move, and instead just end up doing the same kick or punch over and over until the opponents health gets fully depleted.

My next blog post I will try to detail all that I can find out on the next Sony console, The PlayStation 4.

as ever thanks for reading please feel free to comment or follow my blog.

Need for Speed Most Wanted review

I got bored after work and decided to buy the newest Need for Speed game, it was developed by Criterion who also made the Burnout serious of games, which I love, and published by EA.

Starting the game you get a slight intro same as you did on Burnout Paradise, in the intro it shows you parts of the city and also tells you the background story of what it is you are aiming for, to be the Most Wanted.

After the intro you get thrown in to your first race and get to test out your skills while aiming to come in first, as with Need for Speed Hot Pursuit, Autolog makes a return and everything you do from a near miss to a high speed through a speed camera is recorded in your own personal profile that gets instantly uploaded to the online leader boards and pops up on the screen with a local friends scores leader board to compare who is the better at whatever it was you were doing.

Easy drive also makes a return from the Burnout Paradise game, which makes the games menu system that much easier to navigate even whilst driving, just tap the D-pad right button to bring up the menu that then let's you see what races you have available, retry previous races you have completed to get a higher score or place higher if you didn't come in 1st the first time you raced.

The cars in the game are fully liscenced cars ranging from Ford Focus to Pegani Zonda, with many different classes and levels of cars available, to get the cars you must find them at Jackspots dotted around the city which then unlock specific races for that car to unlock mods for that car.

Whilst racing the AI can get aggressive towards you if you insist on trading paint with them, so much so to the point that they will try and take you down no matter what, I also noticed in the 1v1 most wanted races that the "Rubber Band" effect is in place with cars who have recently crashed manage to speed up tremendously to catch up with you within seconds however flip it and you crash, it takes a lot longer for you to catch up, this in itself makes the races against the AI not as exciting shall I say since if they mess up they are right back there behind you and if you mess up you have quite a bit of catching up to do.

On the multiplayer though is where things do get exciting again as its every man for himself, unless you play team racing, if your opponents crash online there is no instant catch up and they will pay for their mistakes, as will you if you slip up. Online has the Easy Drive menu also and the lobby is the city itself, fully open for you to explore with your friends while waiting for the host to set up a race.

Overall this game is exactly like Burnout Paradise just with different modes and fully liscenced cars, and I LOVE Burnout Paradise, only downside is the rubber and effect on single player otherwise the game is flawless 9 out of 10 from me! EA as usual as well have done a great job on the soundtrack to the game as with most other EA titles that have excellent soundtracks.

PlayStation store sale

Also this week there is a new sale on the PlayStation store with many great titles including Darksiders, which I have bought, and also the newly released Dishonoured.

The following list is copied and pasted from the official PlayStation EU Blog,

Batman: Arkham Asylum (ends 27/02/13)

Was €19.99/£15.99/AU$24.95; now €9.99/£7.99/AU$14.45

Additional 10% Discount for Plus Subscribers

Batman: Arkham City (ends 27/02/13)

Was €29.99/£19.99/AU$39.95; now €11.99/£9.69/AU$17.95

Additional 10% Discount for Plus Subscribers

Darksiders (permanent drop)

Was €14.99/£10.99/AU$17.95; now €3.99/£3.19/AU$5.85

Darksiders 2 (permanent drop)

Was €39.99/£29.99/AU$49.95; now €9.99/£9.99/AU$14.95

de Blob 2 (permanent drop)

Was €24.99/£19.99/AU$36.95; now €6.19/£4.99/AU$9.15

Not available in Bulgaria, Hungary, Qatar

Dishonored (ends 27/02/13)

Was €59.99/£49.99/AU$89.95; now €23.99/£19.69/AU$38.45

Not available in Czech Republic, Hungary, Poland, Russia, Ukraine

Additional 10% Discount for Plus Subscribers

Red Faction (permanent drop)

Was €9.99/£7.99/AU$14.5; now €2.49/£1.99/AU$3.65

Red Faction Armageddon (permanent drop)

Was €24.99/£19.99/AU$29.95; now €6.19/£4.99/AU$9.15

Not available in Bulgaria, Croatia, Czech Republic, Denmark, Finland, Greece, Hungary, Israel, Italy, Norway, Poland, Qatar, Russia, Saudi Arabia, Slovenia, South Africa, Sweden, Turkey, Ukraine

Red Faction: Guerrilla (permanent drop)

Was €19.99/£15.99/AU$24.95; now €4.99/£3.99/AU$7.35

Not available in Bulgaria, Germany, Hungary, Qatar, Russia, Ukraine

The Sly Trilogy (ends 27/02/13)

Was €19.99/£15.99/AU$24.95; now €9.99/£7.99/AU$14.95

Additional 10% Discount for Plus Subscribers

Twisted Metal (ends 27/02/13)

Was €29.99/£23.99/AU$43.95; now €14.99/£11.99/AU$21.95

Additional 10% Discount for Plus Subscribers

Watchmen: The End Is Nigh (ends 27/02/13)

Was €16.99/£12.99/AU$24.95; now €7.99/£6.49/AU$11.75

Not available in Bulgaria, Croatia, Hungary, India, Qatar, Slovenia, Turkey, Ukraine

Additional 10% Discount for Plus Subscribers

Stuntman Ignition (permanent drop)

Was €9.99/£7.99/AU$14.45; now €2.49/£1.99/AU$3.65

A few as you can see from the list are permenant price drops so you don't have to rush out to buy some PSN Credit to purchase them before they go back up to full price.

Skyrim DLC finally arrives on the PS3

This week sees the first instalment of 3 DLC that is coming for Skyrim, for 1 week only the Dragonborn DLC is also 50% off at £6.49, I have just purchased it along with Darksiders 2 that is also available on offer in the new sales to hit the PS Store this week, more on that sale in the following blog post.

In this DLC you get to,

• Explore beyond Skyrim – Leave the province of Skyrim and travel to the coastal island of Solstheim. Encounter the Dark Elven settlers of Raven Rock and the native Skaal, as you unravel the mystery of a Dragonborn’s return.
• Become the ultimate Dragonborn – Harness the power of the Voice as you face off against the 
• first Dragonborn. Wield new shouts and spells including Dragon Aspect – allowing you to summon the inner power of a dragon to deliver colossal blows and strengthen other shouts.
• New powers – Discover dark powers as you journey into a new Daedric realm. Collect books of forbidden knowledge and choose new paths for your skills and abilities.
• New dungeons, creatures, weapons and more – Suit up in Bonemold and Chitin armors and wield Stalhrim weapons as you navigate through a myriad of dungeons. Battle formidable foes like Ash Spawn, Rieklings, and more.

Next week sees the release of Hearthfire in which players will be able to build their own homes and adopt children if they wish to, more info on that in the blog post next week.

F1 Race Stars review

The newest game along with Sleeping Dogs to hit the paid for PlayStation subscription service is F1 Race Stars, the game itself is a Mario Kart / Modnation type game that uses well know racers from the Formula 1 series, so all the favorites are there such as Lewis Hamilton and Kimi Raikkonen.

The game itself is all about reaching a podium finish whilst using many power ups dotted around the race tracks to help give you the edge, whether they be to help you such as the boost power up or to slow your opponents with a pulse weapon and also ricochet bubbles.

There are courses from all around the world that include cartoon mock ups of things associated with that area, you also dont just travel on tarmac in the game, one level i played also had you traversing down some rapids guiding your car round the bends so not to be slowed down by driving over the grassy bank.

I have not given the multiplayer a go yet but from what I have played the game is great for when friends are over to have a laugh whilst also secretly trying to get the edge over them by using the power ups, you can play 4 player split screen offline too which is always great and much less seen in racing games these days.


There is alot of enjoyment in the game and will be great when I have friends come round to play games for that reason I will give it a 7 out of 10 as it looks great and plays well, next I will give the multiplayer portion a go and hopefully have no issues with that side of the game.

PlayStation Store new content

Along with the other two posts about the anniversary sale and the new PS Plus content, there is also new content on offer for everyone else in the PlayStation community, PS3 games

PS3 games

Alien Breed
Price: £6.49/€7.99
PEGI: 12
Availability: All

Bentley’s Hackpack (Trial available)
Price: £1.59/€1.99
PEGI: 7
Availability: All

Call of Duty: Black Ops 2
Price: £59.99/€69.99
PEGI: 18
Availability: All

Dead Space 3 (available 8th February)
Price: £59.99/€69.99
PEGI: 18
Availability: All

Fist Of The North Star: Ken’s Rage 2
Price: £49.99/€59.99
PEGI: 18
Availability: Not available in New Zealand
PS Vita games

Alien Breed
Price: £6.49/€7.99
PEGI: 12
Availability: All

Bentley’s Hackpack
Price: £1.59/€1.99
PEGI: 7
Availability: All

Escape Plan Collection
Price: £15.99/€19.99
PEGI: 12
Availability: All

Wake-Up Club
Price: Free
PEGI: 3
Availability: All
PS Vita demos

Ragnarok Odyssey
Availability: All
PS One games

Crisis Beat
Price: £2.39/€2.99
PEGI: 12
Availability: Not available in Austria, Belgium, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Italy, Luxembourg, Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Russian Federation, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Turkey, Ukraine
PS3 DLC

Dead or Alive 5
Fallen Angels
Innocent Devils
DOATEC Divas – White

Prices: £2.39/€2.99
Availability: All

Dead Space 3
Bot Accelerator Pack (£3.99/€4.99)
Bot Capacity Upgrade (£3.99/€4.99)
Bot Personality Pack (£3.99/€4.99)
Marauder Pack (£3.99/€4.99)
Resource Pack (£3.99/€4.99)
Sharpshooter Pack (£3.99/€4.99)
Tau Volantis Survival Kit (£11.99/€14.99)
Tundra Pack (£3.99/€4.99)
Ultra Resource Pack (£1.59/€1.99)

Availability: All

Fist Of The North Star: Ken’s Rage 2
Jagi – Comic Costume
Kenshiro – Comic Costume
Kenshiro Original Costume
Mamiya – Comic Costume
Raoh – Comic Costume
Rei – Comic Costume
Shin – Comic Costume
Thouzer – Comic Costume
Toki – Comic Costume

Prices: Free
Availability: Not available in Germany, New Zealand

Guardians Of Middle-Earth
Glóin

Prices: £1.59/€1.99
Availability: All

LittleBigPlanet (Cross-Buy)
Chinese New Year Costume (re-release one week)

Prices: Free
Availability: All

Rock Band 3
Charnel’s Ball (£1.19/€1.49)
Death On Two Legs (Dedicated To…) (£1.19/€1.49)
Gemini (£1.19/€1.49)
Go (£1.19/€1.49)
Mannequin (£0.59, €0.75)
Once Bitten Twice Shy (£1.19/€1.49)
So Far Away (£1.19/€1.49)
St. Elmo’s Fire (Man In Motion) (£1.19/€1.49)
The Wicker Man (£1.19/€1.49)

Availability: Not available in Bulgaria, Croatia, Czech Republic, Greece, Hungary, India, Israel, Kuwait, Luxembourg, Poland, Qatar, Russian Federation, Saudi Arabia, Slovenia, South Africa, Turkey, Ukraine, UAE

Rocksmith
Fall Out Boy – America’s Suitehearts
Fall Out Boy – Dance, Dance
Fall Out Boy – I Don’t Care
Fall Out Boy – Sugar, We’re Goin Down
Fall Out Boy – Thnks Fr Th Mmrs

Prices: £2.39/€2.99
Availability: Not available in Turkey

The Pinball Arcade
Custom Ball: Twilight Zone (£1.59/€1.99)
Add-On Pack 8 Pro: Twilight Zone (£6.49/€7.99)
Pro Version Upgrade: Twilight Zone (£3.99/€4.99)
Table Pack 8: Twilight Zone (£3.99/€4.99)

Availability: All
PS Vita DLC

Earth Defense Force 2017
Weapon1: Electronic Paralyzer
Weapon2: Heat Blaster
Weapon3: Reverse Drone
Weapon4: Limit Booster

Prices: £0.40/€0.49
Availability: All

LittleBigPlanet (Cross-Buy)
Chinese New Year Costume (Re-Release 1 Week)

Prices: Free
Availability: All

The Pinball Arcade
Custom Ball: Twilight Zone (£1.59/€1.99)
Add-On Pack 8 Pro: Twilight Zone (£6.49/€7.99)
Pro Version Upgrade: Twilight Zone (£3.99/€4.99)
Table Pack 8: Twilight Zone (£3.99/€4.99)

Availability: All

Wake-Up Club
Themes and Alarms

Prices: £0.21/€0.25
Availability: All
Avatars
The Studio Avatars
Kristian Hammerstad Killzone Avatar Bundle 2
Kristian Hammerstad Killzone Avatar 5
Kristian Hammerstad Killzone Avatar 6
Kristian Hammerstad Killzone Avatar 7
Kristian Hammerstad Killzone Avatar 8

Looking at the list, once again publishers are setting their prices too high to purchase full retail games, especially when they can be had for less from walking down to the local retailer that sells games and also then have the option to trade them in at a later date if you so wish.

PlayStation Store update

Following on from my earlier post about the PS Vita anniversary sale, today is also the day that new PlayStation Plus content goes live, Sleeping dogs and F1 Race stars are on offer this month, the following is a video for them both,

I have already bought and completed Sleeping Dogs and it is an awesome game, well worth taking your time to play it or even signing up to PS Plus if you're not already a member of it,

As for F1 Race Stars, I haven't had a chance to play it yet so I am quite looking foreward, too me it looks like a Mario Kart / Modnation Racer sort of game so hopefully should be good, I might do a review on it if it is.

Far Cry 3 Completed!

Considering the last post I did was that I had received my copy of Far Cry and I would do a quick review of the game, I haven't been able to tear myself away from it (except to sleep and eat) and now, 3 days later here I am looking for another game to play as I have completed it (including the platinum trophy).

The game starts off as a video showing how you and your friends arrive on an island after your brother receives his pilots license, from there you are captured by pirates and are taken to a hideout, this is where you first meet Vaas, he is the leader of the pirates that captured you, their game is to capture tourists and either ransom them, or sell them off as slaves, as you can tell when you first meet Vaas, he is insane with the way his mind thinks.

After your meeting with Vaas your brother Grant, who is military trained as a member of the United States Army Reserves, manages to shuffle away from his rope ties around his wrists and frees you, you then proceed to escape from where you are being held captive and attempt to rescue your other brother and friends from the pirates.

all the above happens in the first 10 minutes of the game and not wanting to tell too much of the story to spoil it for any of you readers, that is all I will say about the events.

As for the game itself it is an open world much like the second one with excellent graphically rich textures and detail, looking into the distance gets a bit blurry but in your immediate view the game looks stunning, the map is blanked out when you begin as you have to find radio stations, that the pirates have put scramblers on to stop the locals radioing out for supplies, in order to open up the map view, you can still go ahead with the story without ever climbing a radio station however each time you do, you receive a new weapon free of charge in the games many weapons stores.

along with radio stations to climb and uncover there are also enemy outposts to capture in order to liberate the island and make it safer to travel across the roads, each captured outpost also has a gun store inside its hut along with the option to fast travel to it.

The story has many twists in it and it has some great moments in it, but some of the story could have been better with more emphasis on the mindset of your character wanting to become the great warrior of the island, and for that reason I will give the game a 8 out of 10 as there is room for improvement with the story in some parts, but as I first said I couldn't pull myself away.

Thanks for reading, feel free to leave a comment or share it if you like it.

January PS3 Sales

Just a quick post detailing the new additions to the January sales on the PlayStation store as posted by Chris Howe on the official PlayStation blog,

Max Payne 3
Was €39.99/£31.99/$59.95; now €19.99/£15.99/$29.95
Additional 10% discount for Plus members

GTA 4: The Complete Edition (Not available in Kuwait/Qatar/Saudi Arabia/UAE)
Was €34.99/£29.99/$47.95; now €19.99/£15.99/$29.95
Additional 10% discount for Plus members

Red Dead Redemption (Not available in Kuwait/Saudi Arabia/UAE)
Was €29.99/£23.99/$49.95; now €14.99/£11.99/€21.95
Additional 10% discount for Plus members

Red Dead Redemption – Undead Nightmare Collection (Not available in Kuwait/Saudi Arabia/UAE)
Was €19.99/£15.99/$24.95; now €9.99/£7.99/$15.95
Additional 10% discount for Plus members

PlayStation All-Stars Battle Royale – (25th Jan – 28th Jan)
Was €49.99/ £39.99 / $73.95 Now €24.99 / £19.99 / $36.95
Additional 10% off for Plus subscribers

Unfortunately for me I wont be taking advantage of any of these sales as I have all ready got the games but to any who haven't they are pretty good price reductions if you were after the titles.

PS Vita EU release date confirmed

The new hand held games console from sony has finally had its release date unveiled on their official blog.

The console will be available for Europe Africa, Middle East and Australia from the 22nd of February 2012 with rrp's from £229.99 (€249.99) for the basic wifi model and £279.99(€299.99) for the 3G / wifi model.