The Official PlayStation Magazine has revealed some new exciting details for the upcoming PlayStation 3 exclusive MotorStorm 2 from Evolution Studios. These include new settings, vehicles, and drive intelligence feature. The full details are in the full article.

It's been a while since Team ICO's Shadow of the Colossus gave Sony PlayStation 2 owners a unique experience brought about by topnotch game design and spectacular art, which was the spiritual sequel to another stand out title called ICO. We're among those who are patiently waiting for either of these two to get a sequel, but some fans took a step forward and squeezed out info from the UK Official PlayStation Magazine. There hasn't been any confirmation (concrete or otherwise), but it does seem like Team ICO is working on a sequel.

Fan group Team ICO Gamers sent out a query to OPM UK about any info pertaining to Team ICO's activities, and received an interesting reply. Here it is, verbatim:

We asked Sony boss Kaz Hirai what was going on with Team ICO a couple of months back. As he was pleading ignorance, one of the other execs present blurted out. "I'm pretty sure they're doing the sequel." Our fearless reporter immediately asked. "What, the sequel to ICO or Shadow of the Colossus?" Then the room filled with knockout gas...

Not much, eh? We did hear about Team ICO developing a new title for the PS3, but there were no details about the mysterious project. When they talk about a sequel, we can only guess that the game will be set in the same world as ICO and Shadow of the Colossus. Whether we'll be seeing the horned kid or the wanderer, we're hoping to learn more about the world Team ICO has always kept under tight wraps.

The Official Playstation Magazine was so damn lucky to be one of the first to play Killzone 2. Aside from the BBC who were also there in the demo room of the Guerilla Games labs, OPM was more than ecstatic to be able to tell the world of how their playthrough of the third level went. Sparc from the PS3Forums was able to scan (ok, fine, photograph) some pages from OPM's magazine. Click the thumbs to enlarge the pics. Here's part of the OPM author's impressions:

One of the best things about Killzone 2 is death. Thanks to a mix of ragdoll physics and traditional animation, you really feel like the Helghast are giving it 100% when they die. [...] much of the scenery is destructible. Pull the trigger and the world around you crumbles, shatters and splinters. [...] I follow my AI-controlled comrades into a nearby building complex. Once inside it's the audio that impresses. Guerilla uses a technique called ambient occlusion. [...] behind concrete walls the noise of battle from outside becomes thick and muffled, while your own shots echo through the corridors.

While the preview of it is all good, an interview with producer Steven Ter Heide and managing director Hermen Hulstwas included towards the end. They talk about a lot of things but what caught our interest was some hint of future plans on multiplayer features. The best part comes at the last page when Heide said "...there's a lot of interesting things we're going to be able to do. But we can't talk about it yet. Home is also very interesting. There's a lot of opportunity there, and it's all part of our multiplayer strategy."

It's a bit disappointing when Sony announced that PlayTV is not going to be released in North America. We all know that the company is quite known for reversing previous statements to keep consumers on their toes but as of this writing, the broadcast service is still exclusive for Europe.

Anyway, the Official PlayStation Magazine or OPM recently did a rough estimate for PlayTV's pricing. According to the publication, all of the components (Freeview receiver, PVR, and Sling Box) will cost between 60 GBP (US$ 121.21) to 100 GBP (US$ 201.97) when purchased separately.

The good news here is that OPM is saying PlayTV might be priced for just 70 GBP or roughly around US$ 141.37. This is really a neat price considering all the features that the service has. Just to remind you, PlayTV is actually a twin-channel DVB-T tuner accessory that comes with a digital video recorder software.

It allows users to record TV programs on the PS3's hard drive which is quite similar to the service TiVo provides. More excitingly, PlayTV also has the capability to connect with the PlayStation Portable via Wi-Fi for portable entertainment. According to a previous announcement, PlayTV should become available by early 2008.

One of the most anticipated FPS titles this year is Haze (PS3, Xbox 360, PC), but Free Radical has more in store for fans of new and old. The latest IP is sure to attract a wider audience, but loyal followers of TimeSplitters also have something to be happy about. After OPM UK revealed that a new TimeSplitters is in the works, Free Radical's Rob Yescombe confirmed that they're working hard on the fourth installation in the series.

"In the past TimeSplitters has been very satirical at the expense of movies, this time it will be satirical at the expense of video games," Yescombe told Kotaku. What crazy ideas they're planning with this promise, we do not know.

The game is still in very early stages of development, so no confirmations on which platform it will come out yet. All Yescombe could say was they're "unsigned at the moment." As long as the monkeys and hilarious weapons are back, we're all good.

  

Long-time players and fans of the critically-acclaimed Soul Calibur series remain faithful to it strictly for two reasons: the first is its deep yet accessible weapon-based fighting mechanics that always seem to get more and more complex and fun with each iteration, and the second being its impressive balance. Unfortunately, things may have changed in the fourth coming of the legendary beat-em-up - namely, the existence of a one-hit kill system.

Yes, you read that right - one hit kills. Ichigeki Hissatsu. Get it to stick, and you win the round without breaking a sweat. You may remember this system being revolutionized in Guilty Gear, what with its crazy-looking special attacks and even crazier-looking instant-kill moves.

While it made sense for Guilty Gear - the series itself wasn't all that balanced to begin with - armchair pugilists who train daily in the school of Soul Calibur may find themselves displeased with the ability to instantly destroy their opponent.

However, there's no cause for panic yet. In the OPM article where this new feature was revealed to be included in Namco Bandai's Soul Calibur IV, it was stated that it doesn't involve the health gauge - which then throws possibility of another weapon-break system, like in Soul Edge.

This is good news, considering the fact that you still have to wear your opponent's weapon down with successive hits in order for it to actually break, while one-hit kills offer instant victory with a more complicated button press.

While it's certainly great that the Soul Calibur series is evolving, addition of such features could literally make or break its popularity - especially for those of us who want to take it on in a more professional way. Updates as we get them.

We're not kidding on the title. Yes, Free Radical is yet to finish up with Haze. Having to wait for two explosive FPS titles can cause seizures, we know. Still, a poster going by the name Chris1007 over at the Official European PlayStation forums reports that OPM UK revealed a new Timesplitters game in the works for the PS3.

Not much info were given, but Steve Ellis said, "They're 'gearing' up to insert monkeys and guns into all the wrong places." For those not in the know, Timesplitters is home to a huge variety of character skins including ginger bread men and monkeys. Floating ducks and the mythical Bigfoot are there, too, for your choosing.

Looks like the devs will be following the tradition of humor and quirks of this insanely fast paced shooter that never took itself seriously. Here's what Chris1007 said:

Interestingly the logo currently being used by Free Radical, is a spoof of the Gears of War logo with a monkey head. And Free Radical is said to have sent out some concept art of a monkey in a 'very' familiar suit of green battle armour. So expect a lot of in-game potshots at Gears of War, Halo, and other famous gaming franchises.

There you have it. We're hungry for a look at the game like you guys, so we'll be grabbing any chances to take a glimpse and and keep you posted.

Free Radical's Haze (PC, 360, PS3) is shaping up to be one of the most anticipated titles this generation. We already found out that the game is aiming for a very immersive experience by throwing emotions at the players. That said, we're still talking about the developers in Timesplitters fame here. Awesome weapons and cool vehicles are bound to be there, along with other nifty features.

Free Radical promised some eye-candy through parallel processing, and it looks like they'll deliver. OPM got their hands on the game and caught some details. Flames burn on the grass and buildings, action is faster than it was on E3, stages can be so big that just walking around can take more than an hour - Haze is definitely not lacking on the aesthetics side.

Among the vehicles revealed were APCs and buggies, while the remote-controlled grenade took most interest from the weapons department. Whoever played the game for OPM sure got emotions, or rather frustrations while trying to cover civilians.

Finally, scriptwriter Rob Yescombe stated that the game's story is inspired by Metal Gear Solid. The writer admires Hideo Kojima's complex ideas and how he gives people something to think about.

More info as they come, so watch this space.

A couple of days ago, we got a preview of Grand Theft Auto IV (PS3, 360) from The Official PlayStation Magazine (OPM). Today, we get the details from its Microsoft counterpart in publication, The Official Xbox Magazine (OXM). The gta4.net website was able to scrape out the new info from the publication and drafted the list of details that you guys might be dying to know.

We've paraphrased the whole list below:

• GTA IV is now 66% complete.
• Crosshairs pop up when Niko pulls out a gun. This could imply manual aiming in the game.
• When using your mobile phone, the camera will show a zoom-in panel of the mobile phone's interface at the bottom-right corner of your screen - allows you to view your address book for "jobs" and view other contacts.
• Exterior fire escape staircases are accessible; some meetings will happen high up in skyscrapers too - which could lead to you throwing people off the building from that height. Rawr.
• Hand to hand combat will feel "much more natural" and is currently being reworked.
• Camera angles can be changed even while in a car, but this feature is still being experimented on. Rockstar promises to make it more practical and functional though.
• Getting to control boats has been confirmed, steering them is "really nice." Huh?
• Central Park has also been confirmed to be in the game. The fictional name though hasn't been revealed yet.
• Dan Houser confirms that Liberty City in GTA IV is the biggest GTA city they've done so far. He says that details are a big thing.
• Houser also says that they're evolving how the radio works into the game, as well as how police behavior reacts to the things you do.
• The Rockstar developer studio in Scotland has been asking the NYC studio about more specific information on buildings and traffic flow in the Big Apple.
• There's an "Eastern European-sounding" dance station in one of the radio stations.
• Rockstar's "69" humor is back. There's a sign for a "69th Street Diner" and a building called "Twitchins" - that's GTA's version of Brooklyn's Domino's Sugar Factory. Easter eggs!
• "Fun ridiculous" weapons are also in the game because they don't really want to be too "naturalistic".

The GTA franchise has already gathered a strong following through out the years. With Grand Theft Auto IV though, the fan base will be divided between the Xbox 360 and the PlayStation 3 (PS3).

If you have the former and therefore will be playing the video game title on that platform, we suggest you take this next one with a grain of salt. This is part of the interview conducted by the Official PlayStation Magazine (OPM) with Rockstar Creative Vice President Dan Houser:

OPM: On PS3 you've got a guarantee that every machine is going to have a hard-drive and, with Blu-ray, you've got plenty of storage, whereas on Xbox 360 there's no guarantee of a hard-drive and you're working with the DVD format. Does that create limitations?

Houser: Yep.

 

As if realizing what he just uttered, Houser followed up the rather short answer with, "To be honest with you, we haven't solved all those riddles yet. The difficulties aren't limited to working on Microsoft's box. Both have enormous challenges, both have their own particular pleasures and pains."

However, Rockstar is reportedly giving a select group of press people a demo and preview of Grand Theft Auto IV using a 360. We guess we'll all just have to see when the game becomes available on October 16.