Latest Features
Feature Justified: Why You Need Yakuza 3 In Your PS3 Collection
We've been playing Yakuza 3 this weekend and have fallen in love
We're in head-over-heels admiration for Sony's risky Japanophile experiment. But why's it so good? Well ahead of our review (check back mid-week for that), we wanted to justify the reasons why you should rush out to your local game store and pick up this under-rated gem right now...
I've been searching the archives: Bioshock? No way
Goldeneye? The bungie jump was cool. Shenmue? "Fuku-san!". No matter how deep I dive, I can't find an opening as strong as God Of War III's. A sixty-minute period in which everything that makes the God Of War franchise a success is crammed, turned on its head, and amplified to 11. As of...
First Impressions Just Cause 2 on Playstation 3 Demo
At first we were a little disappointed with Just Cause 2
It's a game we've been following closely here at PushSquare, namely because the original was somewhat of a flawed gem. Getting hands-on time with the recently released demo is the first time we've had a chance to play Just Cause 2 here at PushSquare towers, and honestly it didn't leave the...
Over the past months I've had the privilege of playing two extremely unique games
Heavy Rain and Silent Hill: Shattered Memories are both arguably flawed titles if you pick them apart. But let them stand on their own merits and they're inspiring. I don't want to do other games a disservice in my appraisal, I have plenty of love for more formal...
Feature Realistically, What Could Be The "Surprise Sony Sequel"?
Geoff Keighley's promo video for this week's GameTrailers TV threw a surprise for most Playstation fans
During a show-reel of Playstation 3 games, Keighley announced that this week's episode of GTTV would see the unveiling of a "surprise Sony sequel". But what could that game be? Obvious choices would boil down to Killzone 3 or Resistance...
Feature Multiplayer Cross-Over Is A Bit Of A Nightmare - "Twiggy" The Push Square Opinionator
It seems to me that every video game has multiplayer these days
More or less. And even when it's debateable whether a game should have multiplayer (Bioshock 2 springs to mind), the resulting component tends to be rather impressive. But that causes its own sub-set of problems, particularly for someone like myself who has to play through multiple...
First Impressions Yakuza 3 on Playstation 3
It took about, ooh, five minutes
We were excited. We've wanted to play Yakuza 3 for a long, long time and finally we got to go hands-on. It took about five minutes and then it dawned on us. "Dude, we're playing Yakuza 3." SEGA's hesitation to release Yakuza 3 in the West rings loud in much of the game's design. This is Japanese, and it...
Feature I Love Games Set In The Wild-West - "Twiggy" The Push Square Opinionator
Growing up, I've never had any interest in movies set in the wild-west
Sure, I can remember cold winter afternoons, sitting next to the fire with my Grandmother, watching some tired old tosh set about Pawnee Bill; but I've never once considered the genre a favourite. Which is strange, because anytime I think of wild-west games, I think of them with...
First Impressions Sonic & SEGA All-Stars Racing on PS3
It's just typical isn't it?
You wait four or so years for a great Mario Kart clone on your platform of choice and then two come along at once. Modnation Racers looks to have all the makings of a great kart racer, and then some; though we are concerned with the some of the performance issues that were apparent in the beta. Sonic & SEGA All-Stars...
Feature First-Time Fantasy: "Twiggy" Plays Final Fantasy VII For The First-Time - 6
Twiggys playing through Final Fantasy VII for the first-time ever
Join him as he catalogues his progress but beware, if youre still planning on playing through Final Fantasy VII for yourself, there are spoilers ahead.</em> "Mouth to mouth!?" I exclaim. "She's just a girl." Ahh, Final Fantasy VII's repressed...
I know Sony won't pay for exclusives and I think that's admirable
After all, would I prefer Grand Theft Auto IV DLC exclusivity for 12 months, or a whole new Wipeout game? The $50million Microsoft paid for that GTA DLC is probably in a similar ball-park to what would be spent on a mid-large PSN release (perhaps less) and thus, absolutely I'd take...
Feature First-Time Fantasy: "Twiggy" Plays Final Fantasy VII For The First-Time - 5
Twiggys playing through Final Fantasy VII for the first-time ever
Join him as he catalogues his progress but beware, if youre still planning on playing through Final Fantasy VII for yourself, there are spoilers ahead.</em> If I didn't know any better at this stage, I'd say Sephiroth likes reading books. He's in the basement of the...
Feature First-Time Fantasy: "Twiggy" Plays Final Fantasy VII For The First-Time - 4
Twiggys playing through Final Fantasy VII for the first-time ever
Join him as he catalogues his progress but beware, if youre still planning on playing through Final Fantasy VII for yourself, there are spoilers ahead.</em> Final Fantasy VII just became road-rash. I'm riding on the back of a huge motorcycle, wielding my elongated...
Feature First-Time Fantasy: "Twiggy" Plays Final Fantasy VII For The First Time - 3
Twiggys playing through Final Fantasy VII for the first-time ever
Join him as he catalogues his progress but beware, if youre still planning on playing through Final Fantasy VII for yourself, there are spoilers ahead.</em> If the blaring "battle music" is anything to go by, I'd say we're in a panic. The Don's told us that...
This week news broke that there is redundant PS3 code in the PC version of Mass Effect 2
Naturally this brought up a whole host of rumours that Bioware had a PS3 version of the game running somewhere, and it was only a matter of time before one of the year's highest rated games hit Sony's machine. Bioware were quick to dispell the myths, reiterating...
Feature The Most Notable: Playstation Characters So Far This Generation
Making Roots
There have been a number of stand-out Playstation characters who define this generation of Playstation content, but we've hand-picked the cream of the crop Those who have made the list represent exceptional character design, and go some way to defining the Playstation 3's line-up thus far. Nathan Drake (Uncharted): Perhaps the most...
Feature First-Time Fantasy: "Twiggy" Plays Final Fantasy VII For The First Time - 2
Twiggys playing through Final Fantasy VII for the first-time ever
Join him as he catalogues his progress but beware, if youre still planning on playing through Final Fantasy VII for yourself, there are spoilers ahead.</em> I'm starting to realise why everyone loves Final Fantasy VII so. When I left you last time, I'd been hanging with...
Feature Playstation 3 Dynamic Themes Round-Up
Firmware 3
0 brought the ability to render 3D animations behind the XMB and since then there have been a trickle of Dynamic Themes to choose from. In this round-up, we'll be taking a look at some of the Dynamic Themes available for the PS3, and scoring them based on their interactivity, gneeral look and usability. Heavy Rain: Probably the best...
Feature First-Time Fantasy: "Twiggy" Plays Final Fantasy VII For The First-Time - 1
Twiggy's playing through Final Fantasy VII for the first-time ever
Join him as he catalogues his progress but beware, if you're still planning on playing through Final Fantasy VII for yourself, there are spoilers ahead.</em> Apparently Square want me to know two key things about the cast of Final Fantasy VII: they like nothing more than riding...
In 2004 I fell in love
My XBOX Live subscription had been running for about 6 months and I'd had many enjoyable sessions on Project Gotham Racing 2. But Live never truly demonstrated its potential until later that year. Halo 2 released. Prior to Halo 2, my only real exposure to online shooters on a console had come via Quake III Arena on the...
First Impressions Modnation Racers on Playstation 3 Beta
Picture the scene: we're bombing it through a barren environment
It's one of the higher-rated tracks, crafted by the hands of a budding race-course designer. We're dressed as Kratos from the God Of War franchise, driving in the Ghostbusters car. Both are works of art in there own right, rated five stars by the community. The Joker's just in front of...
Feature The Most Notable: SEGA Dreamcast Games We Want To See On The Playstation Store
Ever since SEGA leaked the minutes of a behind-doors meeting with Sony, we've been awaiting the announcement of Dreamcast games for sale on the Playstation Store
We have a host of favourites from the Dreamcast era, but below we've listed those games that would actually pull us away from fresh PS3 releases. Do you agree/disagree? Let us know. Shenmue...
Feature Army Of Two: The 40th Day on Playstation 3 Multiplayer Impressions
There are some pretty neat ideas in Army Of Two: The 40th Day's multiplayer campaign
Firstly, through the magic of the Internet, you'll be able to create your own Army Of Two flavoured mask via armyoftwo.com and take your personal creation online. It's a gimmicky idea, but it helps give your character personality and thus is worthy of mention...
Feature Vancouver 2010 on Playstation 3 Multiplayer Impressions
Mimicking Vancouver 2010's simplistic single-player campaign; taking the Winter Olympics online is a simple case of match-making or lobby hunting
Hosts can setup a varying number of stacked events (all 14 from the main game) for up to four online players to compete in. Medals are attributed according to success, but sadly are only stored by the...
Feature Push Square's Sammy Hits 2,000 Trophies: At Last!
20 days later than the original specified date, I've finally hit my 2,000 trophy target
Ta very much Vancouver 2010, Dark Void and Army Of Two: The 40th Day review duty! Now I have 2,000 trophies, I feel very much the same as I did while I was sitting in the 1,900's - wishing I had the patience to replay older games just to pick-up all those...
Inevitably the Playstation Motion Controller was delayed until Fall this week
No surprises there, we're still reporting on rumoured names here in the PushSquare office, and aside from that very impressive E3 tech-demo, we have nothing at all to go on. But what effect will that delay have on Sony's new hardware? More time will ensure better prepared...
Feature Against All Odds: Uncharted Quality vs. Modern Warfare Quantity - willxcore Discusses
Someone grab that little dude with the funny suit from Braid because I'm about to take you on a trip through time
Rewind the clocks back to November 2006 when Sony released the Playstation 3 upon the world. It was met with feverish anticipation and was considered the second, err, third coming of the great Playstation home console series. All was...
Feature The Most Notable: Overlooked Playstation 3 Games Of Early 2010
Whenever somebody says, "hey, there's a lot of great content coming to the Playstation 3 this year," the titles on many player's lips are Heavy Rain, MAG, Gran Turismo 5 and God Of War III
But there's also a lot of content due on PS3 this year that's been swept under the carpet a little; ignored by the masses. We're here to take a look at some of...
The big news coming out of CES this year was without a doubt 3D technology in the home
Now, I'm not a tech guy, so I don't really want to get bogged down with semantics and core-duo processing, but what I'd like to talk about in today's opinionator is the effect 3D may have on the Playstation 3s hardware. As PushSquare readers will know, Sony have...
Feature Co-Op Is Definitely The Future Of Online Multiplayer - "Twiggy" The Push Square Opinionator
Co-op is the future of online multiplayer
Never in all my years of opinionating have I been more sure of one thing: co-op is the future of online multiplayer. There'll always be a place in video games for the wrought solo escapades of a tight single-player experience, as will there always be the space for competitive multiplayer — but co-op is...
First Impressions MAG on Playstation 3
Patience, endeavour, team-work, intrigue - all words associated with Zipper Interactive's MAG; a wrought 256-player first person shooter stacked with the anticipation of simply delivering its namesake: massive action
It cannot be denied, MAG does exactly what it says on the tin; but only if you're willing to put in the effort it insists for payback...
A happy new year to you from PushSquare
It's 2010, and if you can take a break from riding your hover-boards through neon-futuristic skylines, perhaps you'd like to read our thoughts on the year ahead, and what it means for Sony and, most importantly, the Playstation. With our thinking caps firmly on, here's our list of predictions for the year...
First Impressions Bayonetta on Playstation 3
After the amount of negative press surrounding Bayonetta on the Playstation 3, we went into SEGA's port of Platinum Games' latest brawler expecting the absolute worst
Perhaps this was the agenda of the press all along. By instilling the harshest of negativity into the consumer's mindset, the game can't realistically ever look as bad as they claim...
Feature Quick Impressions: European Playstation Video Delivery Service
Colour us impressed
Very impressed. We'd known the release date for the European Playstation Video Delivery Service (which we'll refer to as the "video store" for convenience) for a while, but we had no idea exactly how much content SCEE would pump into it before launch. We had the titles of just five or six movies when we got told the...
As exciting as the Final Fantasy XIII release date announcement was yesterday, it really only served as a wake-up call for me
The first quarter of next year is absolutely chock-a-block. If I just construct a list of games coming early next year that automatically spring to mind, we're looking at: MAG, Bayonetta, Heavy Rain, Dante's Inferno, Dark...
Feature Modern Warfare 2 on Playstation 3 Multiplayer Impressions
The campaign might be a teensy bit contrived, but there's absolutely no doubt that Modern Warfare 2 is absolutely the best multiplayer game available on Playstation 3 right now
It's the subtle tweaks that make Modern Warfare 2's multiplayer a rip-roaring success. This is not evolution, it's iteration. And it's iteration at its very best. Modern...
Feature Win A Whole Heap Of Tekken 6 Goodies With Push Square.com
To celebrate the European release of Tekken 6 today, we've teamed up with the fine folks over at Namco Bandai to offer you with the chance of winning a whole pile of Tekken 6 related goodies
Tekken 6 is the biggest beat 'em up game to hit the Playstation 3 this year, with a massive roster of fighters and moves to choose from. Tekken 6 is also the...
First Impressions God Of War III on Playstation 3
Dude, Kratos is really, really angry
Obviously writing about trailers, demos and collector's editions here on PushSquare, we knew a lot about God Of War III. But nothing could prepare us for actually going hands-on with the game. Santa Monica's latest in Sony's biggest pie is brutal. The first thing God Of War III wants you to notice is the detail...
Feature Could Eye Pet Expand The Playstation 3's Audience? - "Twiggy" The Push Square Opinionator
Eye Pet is a massive risk
It's possible we could be playing Eight Days or The Getaway 3 this weekend. Sony pursued Eye Pet - an innovative implementation of augmented reality - instead. Given the platform, and its audience, Eight Days would probably sell better. And that shows just what a risk Eye Pet is. But could it expand the audience? When...
I don't want to get into details about plot
I don't want to spoil things for those of you who haven't played Uncharted yet - although you really should be asking yourselves 'why not?'. I just want to say - right here, right now - for my weekly column, that Uncharted 2: Among Thieves is without doubt the best written video game of all time. I really...
Feature Why Is Everyone So Angry About The PSPgo? - "Twiggy" The Push Square Opinionator
During my time with the PSPgo over the past few week I've come to a conclusion: it's not for everyone
Not exactly the most scientific of reasoning right, but it's useful in trying to depict just why everyone is acting like the PSPgo raped their entire family. It seems like the entire games industry have a bee in their bonnet regarding the system,...
Feature PushSquare's Sammy Barker Goes Hands-On With Beaterator on Playstation Portable
Hi, I'm Sammy Barker
I write for PushSquare.com but I also try to make music in my spare time (check out Sammy's "single" Gin & Tonic here/iTunes). As an experienced amateur music producer - I say experienced because I spend most of my time getting angry that nothing sounds right - I really wanted to give Rockstar's Beaterator a go...
First Impressions SOCOM: Fireteam Bravo 3 on PSP
The SOCOM franchise has been moderately successful in its conversion to the PSP
SOCOM: U.S. Navy SEALs Fireteam Bravo 3 looks set to continue that trend with solid co-operative gameplay and interesting mission set-ups. We recently got our hands on one of Fireteam Bravo 3's single player campaign missions ahead of the game's November launch and these...
First Impressions MotorStorm: Arctic Edge on Playstation Portable
You may not be a MotorStorm fan, but MotorStorm: Arctic Edge should be an exciting title regardless of your tastes; namely because it starts the onslaught of excellent Playstation Portable content
We've never been quite so inundated with PSP content. And that's exciting. Probably the biggest compliment you can pay to MotorStorm: Arctic Edge is that...
First Impressions Beaterator on Playstation Portable
Developed in collaboration with monster pop producer Timbaland
Almost coming out of nowhere, the PSP announcement of Rockstar's Beaterator has been met with mixed response, namely from the elitist whose desire is to criticise the game's figurehead, Timbaland. At the end of the day though, whether you want to rise above elitism or not, it's instantly...
First Impressions MAG on Playstation 3
With Zipper Interactive's ambitious multiplayer first-person shooter leading the line for Sony's 2010 exclusive romp, we take a quick look at the world of MAG and give you an idea of what to expect from the massive online shooter
Dynamic multiplayer. The biggest selling point for MAG is its unique server achitecture that allows 256 players to...
Feature Let's Dance In Anticipation For The Beatles: Rock Band - #1 Here Comes The Sun
Here Comes The Sun
As the launch of the hotly anticipated The Beatles: Rock Band draws ever closer, we count down some of our favourite The Beatles tracks. Hopefully these tunes will get you in the mood for dancing ahead of the game's launch this September 9th today.
Feature Let's Dance In Anticipation For The Beatles: Rock Band - #2 Let It Be
Let It Be
As the launch of the hotly anticipated The Beatles: Rock Band draws ever closer, we count down some of our favourite The Beatles tracks. Hopefully these tunes will get you in the mood for dancing ahead of the game's launch this September 9th.
Feature Let's Dance In Anticipation For The Beatles: Rock Band - #3 Taxman
Taxman
As the launch of the hotly anticipated The Beatles: Rock Band draws ever closer, we count down some of our favourite The Beatles tracks. Hopefully these tunes will get you in the mood for dancing ahead of the game's launch this September 9th.
First Impressions Gran Turismo PSP on Playstation Portable
Gran Turismo PSP will lead the line for the PSP Go early this October, going as far as being bundled with European copies of the PSP Go
We take a quick look at the game's main features ahead of its release next month. A wealth of content. Gran Turismo PSP is set to be a big title, despite its portable nature. The game will cram over 800 cars and 35...
