Stay tuned for more Resistance 3 news here on the PlayStation.Blog.

Hello Internet, meet John Rochard. John, this is the internet. John is an astro miner, a regular Joe drilling for Turbinium (don’t ask) in deep space. Unfortunately he’s about to have the worst day of his career, and as luck would have it, we’ve made a platformer about it. Expect gravity puzzles, low-g combat and dubious one-liners. Today, I thought I’d share some history of how we came to build the game we did.

The thing is – it’s strange to think that just over a year ago John was a generic human character on screen. His hastily built model had a slightly twisted neck that made him look like a space Quasimodo. Oh, and he had a laser gun. I think the only interesting thing about him was that he moved in total zero-G by using recoil. We figured it’s the name of the company, so it must make for an awesome mechanic, right?

Turns out it’s tedious. Like, seriously tedious. At that point we were getting pretty frustrated. There was an expo coming up and we wanted to show something unique to publishers, but it couldn’t be what we had. We realized our recoil movement was unique, but mostly because it was so unbelievably annoying to play. We tried various other unique mechanics, until we decided that maybe by combining some existing but uncommon mechanics we’d find something for our rubbernecked protagonist to do.

We had already decided to make a platformer that is three-dimensional graphics-wise, but two-dimensional gameplay-wise. We ended up giving John a G-Lifter, which is our version of a gravity gun. While that was already fun by itself, the core gameplay only came together when we decided that the player should be able to control local gravity. In low-G mode, awesome jumps are possible and heavy objects can be thrown great distances. After all, astro miners need to move those heavy rocks somehow, don’t they?

After these key elements were nailed, the rest of the game came together fast. Because John is not a space marine (there are enough of those around already), we wanted him to use his mining tools as much as possible. We put a small force bubble around the objects you pick up, and that made a perfect shield. Since we had both human enemies on the ground and turrets in ceilings, the ricochets from enemy fire ended up causing friendly fire. We wasted no time making that appropriately fatal.

John still had his gun, or the Rock Blaster, as we call it (miners have to… blast, don’t they?), but with that came the concern that the combat would be too generic. Fortunately, that’s when we started playtesting it with outside folks who hadn’t met us and didn’t feel the pressure to say good things to the developers hovering behind their shoulders, chewing their fingernails anxiously with worried expressions. And that’s when we realized people were actually picking crates up and using those to kill the enemies – not because it’s more efficient, but because it’s a lot of fun.

So we concentrated on the G-Lifter. We still had a huge list of untested brainstormed ideas, vague concepts of gameplay mechanics that we had to decide whether to prototype or scrap. In the end, we ended up writing over a hundred Post-Its with ideas and posting them on our huge whitetable (a whiteboard that serves as a table so we can draw ideas really fast). We drew a diagram of dependencies, which told us how the various game mechanics were connected to other game mechanics. Then we threw out everything that didn’t need the G-Lifter. Problem solved.

With the core game mechanics down, we started designing the levels, and it wasn’t until then that we really started finding the best ideas. But seeing as how my plane to GDC leaves in a few hours, I’ll go into that a bit later…

NOW IS THE TIME FOR ALL GOOD MEN TO COME TO THE AID OF THEIR (MOD)NATION!
If you are interested in submitting your mod, kart or track for consideration as “Creation of the Week”, be sure to visit us on the official ModNation Community site and who knows?, you might see your hard work on the PlayStation ModNation Monday blog post or in-game on the Hot Lap section of the Modspot. REMEMBER… ask not what ModNation can do for you, but what can you do for ModNation!

(I wonder if President Obama would be the first president to play MNR? I’ll bet ya he’d be all over it. I’ll send him an email and find out! No really, I will.)

NEXT WEEK: FREE DLC – Progressive Props Pack
Our friends at Progressive Insurance gave us a free Mod and a free Kart. Guess what’s next? That’s right!, we will be giving you the FREE Progressive Props Pack which includes

Scene Props:

• Office Building
• House
• Billboard
• Semi Truck
• Jump Through Hoop
• Inflatable Overpass
• Ramp
• Balloon 1 & 2
• Hot Air Balloon 1 & 2
• Blimp 1 & 2

Dynamic Prop:

• Ramp 2

Track Props:

• Ad Board
• Box 1, 2 & 3

NEXT WEEK: Hot Laps 24/7
Starting next week we will be adding “celebrity’s choice” tracks to Hot Lap. Now tracks on Saturdays and Sundays will be hand chosen by members of the MNR family at large. These will include choices from modnationonline.com, modnationracershq.com, PS Nation Podcast, the ModNation development team, as well as many of the Elite track designers from the MNR community. This ought to be fun!

“TOP TRACKS” ARE NOW THE TOP TRACKS!

Let the ModNation celebrations begin! On your next visit to the Modspot take another look at the Top Tracks billboard. What?… no “Tiku Tik Mountain”, no “Unlimited Drift” or “Famous Flying Camel”? They are gone from Top Tracks but not forgotten, now gems in the ModNation crown.

Now each week we will choose a “Spotlight Track of the Week” (see below) which is the best-of-the best of the past weeks’ creation submissions. This “Spotlight Track of the Week” will be added to “Top Tracks” billboard for your racing enjoyment. Each week a new track will rotate in and one track will rotate out. This will give each of the winning tracks’ creators some much deserved exposure and possibly a lot more xp!

CREATIONS OF THE WEEK:

SPOTLIGHT TRACK OF THE WEEK

A Jurassic Nation by prob_alex

prob_alex says: “There are various alternate routes. but I won’t tell u the quickest… I’ll let you find out for yourselves!”

Smbradley (MNR community member) says: “Been looking forward to this since I saw the first pic of the T-Rex. That Pterodactyl looks absolutely brilliant. Awesome wooden bridge as well.”

Funkee_Monkee4 (MNR community member) says: “One of the best tracks I’ve played! This and a Whale’s Tale are some of your best offerings yet! I found the part with the terradactyl my favorite section”.

Mark’s Review: This is prob_alex’s third “Track of the Week” selection. Congratulations!
I knew right from the start as my heart was pounding in fearful anticipation that this track was going to be something special. Even after multiple laps I still feared a creature jumping out of the brush to take a bite out of my kart. Did it happen?, No. Was I still concerned?, Yes. I loved the fact that prob_alex made me drive through brush to collect item pods, not knowing what creature (if any) was in there. That’s good track design! I enjoy tracks that not only offer a great racing experience or great racing lines, but those that take me someplace I’ve never been OR always wanted to go. As far as dinosaur lands are concerned I’ll stick to this track and maybe a fairly popular series of Jurassic period movies that I hear are pretty good.

Honorable Mention: Valentine by BongSoldier.
What a great idea for a Valentines track. Diving through a heart shaped ring of red roses… awesome! (I tried to re-edit the track and give it to my wife as a Valentines gift but she didn’t like that). #nightonthecouch

Tracks of the Week

Monday: A Jurassic Nation by prob_alex
Tuesday: Eastern Escapade by moshbag
Wednesday: Valentine by Bongsoldier
Thursday: The Widows Lair by Sherris
Friday: Vera Valley by maverick—07–

PS3 MOD AND KART OF THE WEEK
Mod Name: Ka-Boom
Creator: villain29

Kart Name: Ka-Boom Kart
Creator: villain29

villain29: “He’s the mod that just loves to be blown up! He has a fast kart but an even faster fuse”
Mark: I love it! I think you might have a comic book character in the making! Write us his story. We’d love to see it. btw… the suspenders was a nice touch. Made me laugh out loud!

RECENT DLC Lovebug Mod and Swan Kart

Love is still in the air around the office with the recent Lovebug Mod and Kart release. We received lots of comments on the Lovebug mod. What did you think??

The Lovebug and Swan Kart are on sale this week on the PSN for only $.99 each or as $1.75 pack.

PSP “Spotlight” Creations:
Track: Deadly Rac3 by dlvb33000
Mod: Uncle Sam by battelingvinod
Kart: Royal by battelingvinod

I hope you like some of the new features we are adding to the ModNation Racers community. Stay tuned, more to come!

Peace.
Mark

btw…Look for me out on the raceway (PSN ID ModnationSD). I’ll be the kart with the license plate you’ll be reading! Kidding, kidding, kidding (or am I?)

Put that new 3D television to use! Sports Illustrated’s Swimsuit 2011: The 3-D Experience is now available to rent or own. Also, catch five new 2D features on location with some of the hottest models in the world.

Our Deal of the Week brings you the best political films since President’s Day is just around the corner, including The Siege, All the King’s Men and Jimmy Stewart’s classic Mr. Smith Goes to Washington. Also, Toyota Highlander brings you a free movie to rent, starting this week with The Da Vinci Code and continuing the next three weeks with Big Daddy, Stranger than Fiction and Ghost Rider!

New movies and fresh TV episodes hit the store each week. Here’s a taste of what’s new this week…

Just in TV
US Store: Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Issue on Location, Frisky Dingo: Season 2, Being Human (UK): Season 3, America: The Story of Us: Season 1, John from Cincinnati, Lucky Louie, Tell Me You Love Me, and more.

Canada Store: Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Issue on Location, How I Met Your Mother: Season 4, Doctor Who: Season 3, My Name is Earl: Season 4, Prison Break: Season 4, Burn Notice: Season 2, The Gates: Season 1, John From Cincinnati, Lucky Louie, Tell Me You Love Me, The X-Files: Season 4, and more.

New Release Movies
US Store: Unstoppable, Waiting for Superman, You Will Meet a Tall Dark Stranger, Death of a President, Stag Night, Coming to America, Drumline, Fast Food Nation, National Lampoon’s Dirty Movie, and more.

Canada Store: Unstoppable, Waiting for Superman, You Will Meet a Tall Dark Stranger, National Lampoon’s Dirty Movie, Stag Night, Pearl Harbor, The Sixth Sense, Flubber, Invincible, Mulan, Mary Poppins, Lilo & Stitch, Meet the Robinsons, Saw III, Crank, Employee of the Month, The US vs. John Lennon, and more.

Top TV Downloads

US:

1. Smallville | Season 10 – Beacon
2. Supernatural | Season 6 – Unforgiven
3. Young Justice | Season 1 – Infiltrator
4. Archer | Season 2 – Blood Test
5. Family Guy | Season 9 – Friends of Peter G
6. Jersey Shore | Season Back to the Shore – Cabs are Here!
7. The Vampire Diaries | Season 2 – Crying Wolf
8. Smallville | Season 10 – Collateral
9. Fringe | Season 3 – Immortality
10. Justified | Season 2 – The Moonshine War

Canada:

1. STAR WARS: THE CLONE WARS | Season 3 – Altar of Mortis
2. The Walking Dead | Season 1 – Days Gone Bye
3. Planet Earth | Season 1 – From Pole to Pole
4. The Walking Dead | Season 1 – Vatos
5. The Walking Dead | Season 1 – TS-19
6. The Walking Dead | Season 1 – Wildfire
7. The Walking Dead | Season 1 – Guts
8. The Family Guy | Season 8 – Road to Multi-verse
9. The Walking Dead | Season 1 – Tell It To The Frogs
10. Ancient Aliens | Season 1 – The Evidence

Top Movie Downloads

US:

1. Paranormal Activity 2
2. Life As We Know It
3. Unstoppable
4. RED
5. My Soul To Take
6. It’s Kind of a Funny Story
7. The Social Network
8. I Spit On Your Grave (unrated)
9. You Again
10. Let Me In

Canada:

1. Life As We Know It
2. Paranormal Activity 2
3. Unstoppable
4. RED
5. The Social Network
6. You Again
7. Monsters
8. Let Me In
9. Middle Men
10. Conviction

Fans of 2009’s PS3-exclusive RPG Demon’s Souls are sure to have questions about Dark Souls, which is being produced under the watchful eye of Demon’s Souls director Hidetaka Miyazaki. Though the game was formally revealed just days ago, I had a rare opportunity to speak directly with Miyazaki about his plans for Dark Souls. We discussed the game’s soul-crushing difficulty (it’s going to get harder, not easier), his favorite new feature (a new form of “emotional communication” via Beacon Fires), and the games he’s most excited to play in 2011 (hint: UNCHARTED 3).

Sid Shuman: Would you describe Dark Souls as a sequel to Demon’s Souls, or a spiritual successor? Does Dark Souls reside in the same universe as Demon’s Souls?

Hidetaka Miyazaki, director, Dark Souls: Dark Souls is not a sequel to Demon’s Souls by any means. However, it’s created by the same producers and director and so the ideologies, concepts, and themes have carried over and are similar. It’s a totally new game with similar concepts.

SS: Demon’s Souls is infamous for its difficulty. Will Dark Souls be as difficult?

HM: Yes, Demon’s Souls was known for its incredible difficulty [laughter]. With Dark Souls, there is no intention to decrease the difficulty at all. Actually, we intend to increase the difficulty of the game. (Sid: !!!) But not simply by making the game more difficult, but by giving players the freedom to strategize freely and conquer that difficulty, and to be rewarded accordingly.

This is an analogy we often use: We are trying to create a game that is spicy. And we want to make it as spicy as possible. But it’s edible and tastes good and leaves you wanting more.

SS: How do you keep a difficult game from becoming punishing, and drive the player to quit in frustration?

HM: Good question. We can’t tell you all of our secrets, but there are a few ways we prevent users from drifting away. Number one, the difficulty is not dependent on the skill level of the user. We have not created a game where players who react faster or press buttons faster are better than others. Second, when a player dies, we try to leave a sense of “maybe if I try a different strategy I can succeed.” Things that you lose in death can be outweighed by what you gain by trying again. We try to give players lots of freedom to design their own gameplay style, and we’ve implemented enough content to enable users to continue challenging themselves and continue making progress.

One more aspect is the difficulty based on repetitiveness. We don’t want users to have to constantly carve away health from enemies. We’ve created all characters — including enemies and the player — to have high attack power but low defense. We don’t want users to hack and hack and hack away to defeat an enemy. It’s more strategic. We want users to think, “if I avoid this enemy, maybe I can overcome him.” We don’t want players to be frustrated by doing the same things over and over.

SS: Death was a part of life in Demon’s Souls. But it required that you replay the entire level from scratch with enemies in identical locations. Will Dark Souls force players to restart levels? Will levels be less repetitious to replay?

HM: The main concept has not changed: You try something, die, learn from your mistakes, and eventually overcome those mistakes. In Dark Souls, we’ve added the ability to players to choose their recovery point — essentially respawn points. If you die, you won’t be taken back to the beginning of the level. And as you explore the world, you can carve out your own territory and retry quests you failed. That’s a big difference. It’s an aspect that we want players to use to strategize their approach to the game.

SS: Will Dark Souls have a less intimidating control scheme than Demon’s Souls?

HM: In Demon’s Souls, when you finally get used to the controls, it feels pretty good. So for Dark Souls, the controls and feel won’t change too much. However, we are adding a tutorial so players don’t have to fight to learn how to play. We don’t want to take the players step-by-step, we just want them to get past the first step.

But generally, for Dark Souls, learning commands and controlling your character is probably a little bit easier. But to counter that, we’ve added a lot of aspects that users must learn beyond the controls. The amount of magic, the number of weapons, the types of weapons, the moves attached to the weapons…there is a lot more that players must learn in order to conquer the challenges.

SS: Does that mean we can expect a lot of new weapons with unique functions?

HM: The simple answer is yes. But we’re not just increasing the number of weapons; we want to improve the uniqueness of each weapon. Each weapon will have characteristics that are vastly different from other weapons in the game. As an example, the player starts with a Long Sword. Eventually he might find a Holy Sword, which is far more powerful but is used very differently. Some players will choose to continue using the Long Sword simply because they’re more comfortable with it.

We want to give players many options, even if that means they use the sword that ‘fits best in the hand.’ We want you to become emotionally and physically attached to the weapon you’re using. Perhaps the Long Sword, after you’ve used it for so long and taken such good care of it, is the real Holy Sword. [laughter] The real Holy Sword, though, might be very hard to master despite its power. And some players will say, “This is difficult to use? Leave it to me, I’ll master it!” [laughter]. The mind games and strategizing — that’s the most fun aspect of the game to me.

SS: How will dual-wielding two weapons impact combat? Is dual-wielding a successful strategy, or more of an “expert’s mode”?

HM: Dual wielding is an option, but it’s a very difficult choice for novice players. The default fighting style is holding a shield in one hand, a weapon in the other. And the shield adds a lot of protection, it’s quite effective. If you see another player dual wielding, we want you to think, “Oh my god, this guy is special!” Dual wielding is a way to challenge yourself, but it has a lot of downsides and makes the game much harder. When you’re in trouble, you’ll want to return to your shield and sword.

We want to keep dual wielding special. It’s a very unique strategy that will hopefully give a new experience to the player as well as those watching him.

SS: Like Demon’s Souls, Dark Souls will include online co-op and competitive play. Are you planning any broad changes to the multiplayer?

HM: Yes. Throughout the game, there will be both cooperative and competitive play with other players. Each user will enjoy a unique single-player game; at times, they will cross paths with one another. Depending on the situation, the time, and the players’ goals, those players may cooperate or compete against each other. The multiplayer system we’re creating will envelop the single-player mode. Multiplayer will enhance single-player, make it more unique, compared to other games that emphasize traditional multiplayer co-op or competitive play.

SS: What’s the single addition to Dark Souls that you’re most excited by?

HM: Probably the Beacon Fire. It stands for a lot of things. It serves as a recovery point; when the player’s health is low, the Beacon Fire helps you recover. It serves as a respawn point as well. So it’s powerful from a gameplay perspective. Secondly, the Beacon Fire will be used to share experiences with other players. It’s a place where players can gather together and communicate — not verbally communicate, but emotionally communicate. Third, it’s probably the one place in Dark Souls where users can relax just for an instant. In this cold, dark world, the Beacon Fire is a place of warmth. It’s one of the few locations in the game that is heartwarming. It expresses this dark fantasy world I’m trying to create.

SS: How will character creation work? Are there still classes? How can I augment and customize my character?

HM: The basics are quite similar to Demon’s Souls, but you can customize the physical build of your character now in addition to his face. There’s a lot of customization in terms of gameplay styles and parameters. It’s very open, and there are many more options than in Demon’s Souls. You can create any type of character you’d like to create.

SS: What’s your philosophy regarding monsters in Dark Souls? Are you going for really grim, grotesque creatures?

HM: Calling it a “philosophy” is probably overstating it a bit [laughter]. I want to expand the range and variety of all the enemies, whether they’re hideous or beautiful or strong. I don’t lean towards any particular type, but [high-level enemies] will be pretty disgusting. And you might not believe this, but all the monsters I design — from Demon’s Souls to Dark Souls — are “beautiful” to me, no matter how gruesome their appearance.

SS: What games are you looking forward to playing in 2011?

HM: Politically this is sort of a difficult question to answer! [laughter] I’m a big gamer. But to be honest, right now I absolutely love Magic: The Gathering Online. For 2011, I’m really looking forward to UNCHARTED 3 and The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim.

UNCHARTED 2 came out around the same time as Demon’s Souls, so it was a big competitor for us at the time. But UNCHARTED has done so well, and now I’m really excited for UNCHARTED 3. I’m quite interested in Skyrim because the fantasy world is something I really look forward to in games.

It may sound clichéd, but wow, time really flies! It’s hard to believe that it has already been a full year since our massive 256-person PlayStation 3 exclusive shooter, MAG, was released all over the globe. To celebrate our one-year birthday, we’re unveiling a handful of promotions as a thank you to our fans throughout the week.

First up, starting Wednesday, January 26 at 12am Pacific Time, we’re changing all in-game queue and “Happy Hour” bonuses to 256% until Sunday, January 30 at 11:59pm. If you’ve been meaning to level up to grab our various “level 60” trophies, our promotional time period is a great time to go for it!

Speaking of January 26, all day from 10am-5pm Pacific Time, members of the Zipper Interactive QA team (our best players!) will be online and playing MAG throughout the day. If you’ve never participated in our “Play MAG with Zipper” events, they’re great fun and offer you the perfect opportunity to show us your skills.

Our third and final promotion is a special “Faction Neutral” switch for the Domination and Acquisition modes. For the first time ever in MAG “Live,” our two biggest game types will switch from being PMC-specific to being open for defense by any of our three factions. Like our 256% XP bonus, this mode switch will be in operation from January 26 at 12am Pacific to January 30 at 11:59pm.

But this isn’t all we’re doing to wish MAG a happy birthday. We’ll also be posting some additional posts throughout the week, including a breakdown of MAG statistics and numbers on Thursday and a special “Five Things You Never Knew About MAG” article on Friday morning. It should be fun.

As always, everyone here at Zipper Interactive wants you to know how much we appreciate all the support and feedback you have given us over the last year and we hope you’ve enjoyed playing the game as much as we’ve enjoyed making and improving it. Thank you very much!

If you’ve already downloaded the VUDU app, it will be updated automatically with the new functionality – you don’t need to do a thing. If you haven’t downloaded the VUDU app – well, what are you waiting for? When you download the free VUDU app and sign up for a VUDU account, we will credit your account $5.99, which is enough to get you an HDX rental. We hope you’ll give it a try – we think you’ll love it!

We would love to hear what you think, or if you have any questions we’ll be responding below! We also love compliments, so post all of those too :-)

I recently had the pleasure of meeting with Jenova Chen, the creative director of thatgamecompany and designer of flOw and Flower. Chen’s latest project, the upcoming PSN exclusive Journey, may be his most enigmatic project yet. In talking with Chen, I was most interested in learning what drove his unique, minimalistic vision, as well as the challenges in creating a drop-in, drop-out online multiplayer game without the use of industry-standard matchmaking lobbies and voice chat.

Sid Shuman: Journey’s got a certain mystique. Who are you in Journey? Where are you?

Jenova Chen: I want the player to find it out, it’s part of the fun. This is a world where there are no plants, no animals, and not even a single water drop to be found. The only things that are moving are these things, these characters, made out of cloth.

SS: Journey’s a multiplayer game, but there’s no matchmaking or online lobbies. Would you say it redefines multiplayer? Is it a co-op game?

JC: We’re not really redefining. We make games for PS3 owners, but we also make games for their relatives or children. I don’t think your grandma is going to know what a [multiplayer] “lobby” means. I don’t think most children will understand what [internet] “latency” means. So after we eliminated the lobby concept, we had very few choices — other players have to be able to connect at any time, not just the beginning of the game, and a player has to be able to finish the game by himself he can’t find someone. All these technical issues came in with that one decision to get rid of the online lobby.

A lot of games design co-op for co-op play only. The best game I’ve played this year was Lara Croft and the Guardian of Light. It’s very well designed, like a designer’s jewelry box. But it wouldn’t work for Journey. What if the other player wasn’t there? So we have to come up with other ways to make co-op more meaningful. We wanted something very primal, which forced us to make innovations.

We didn’t try to redefine multiplayer, we just wanted to create a more intuitive experience. If your grandma asked, “what’s Journey?” I’d tell her “Journey is just like hiking. You go to hike a mountain, and there are other hikers you might meet and if you like them you can hike with them.” And that’s it.

SS: What’s the core gameplay goal in Journey? What activities will I be engaging in?

JC: You will be…Journey-ing. Moving from point A to point B. [laughter] The problem is, moving is very boring. In World of Warcraft, you’re always moving…and waiting. So in Journey, we have things to spice up the moving. You can surf the sand dunes, collect cloth to fly over larger distances, cooperate with another player to get faster travel…sometimes you can ride things.

SS: It also looks like you’re collecting cloth patches, which seem to open up bridges or paths to other areas…

JC: Usually, players think about collecting as a “level up” experience. But we wanted to make the player feel small and weak. So initially, we did have a level up experience — if you collected 20 patches, you would jump higher or fly further. But that felt too empowering, which is the opposite of what we wanted. So instead of acquiring power, we made this metaphor for borrowing power. There are patches in the world, and when they hear your call, they come to help you out. Once you use them, they return to where they were. It’s not an ownership situation.

It also has to do with multiplayer. People would say, “I don’t want to play with you, I don’t want you to take my precious resources!” We tried various ways to eliminate that, but in the end, we decided to not give you [permanent] possession of them.

SS: Surfing on waves of sand looks like an interesting way to get around this very dynamic, shifting environment. It’s such a simple pleasure — a bit like Flower, actually.

JC: We had problems with walking. It’s frustrating, but there’s no easy way to make walking fun. So we tried surfing, because as a gameplay mechanic it’s fun — you know, SSX. But you could surf on the slopes but not on the flat surfaces, and most of the game is flat. So we had to come up with a reason why you could surf, so we made the sand have waves.

SS: Does Journey use any buttons?

JC: There are two buttons right now. “Calling” lets you collect patches and communicate with another player, a very primal form of communication. And then there’s a “Fly” button.

SS: I noticed that the camera is controlled by the DualShock 3’s Sixaxis motion sensor, not the analog stick.

JC: I have seen various non-hardcore players try a first-person shooter, and they couldn’t even aim. The two-stick camera system, using them at the same time, is just very difficult. It takes time to train. And every time I see a player struggle with that, he just puts the game down. So I wanted to think about a more intuitive form of camera control. The other problem with a stick camera, particularly in a third-person game, is that people tend to adjust the camera very often and very rapidly. When I watch them play, I get dizzy. And I want people to be able to watch others play Journey.

SS: Why does jumping not require a button press?

JC: We used to have a jump button, but we wanted to simplify the game. When you can jump, during the boring walk [laughs] people would keep jumping. And that’s not what we wanted to see! After we removed the jump button, people said “we want to jump!” So we added an automatic jump, and it’s working pretty well. I do miss pressing the X button sometimes when I’m walking, though!

SS: Are there enemies in Journey?

JC: There is something like an enemy, there is. [laughter] Nature is your enemy. If there is an enemy, you can’t do anything about it. You’re small and weak. You can’t slay the Shadow of the Colossus!

SS: Did an artist inspire the visual style of Journey?

JC: Do you know Chirico? If you see the original Japanese cover art of Ico, it’s an homage to Chirico. At an early stage, that was an inspiration.

SS: Journey is a very different kind of multiplayer game. Is it important for developers to challenge preconceived notions about what makes a multiplayer game?

JC: It’s important because your brain can be stimulated intellectually, emotionally, and socially. When people design online games, they often do lazy work. They bring an existing single-player game — an RPG, an RTS, a fighting game, a shooter — and duct tape on some online technology. They say, “okay, there’s multiple players, now do something cool. Here, play a kid’s game like Capture the Flag.” That’s the level of design. “Why don’t you kill each other until the last guy is left standing.”

If you really wanted to stimulate a social activity, you need to re-think it from the ground up. What is the skill they’re supposed to acquire? Accuracy? Or is it the ability to convince others? If the skill is social, it’ll be very relevant and useful. People still play poker. Why? Because the skill of deception is useful for real life. Look at online games. How many skills are based on social elements? Most games are based on grinding, accuracy, physical dexterity. They are not social games. They’re just old games with online features.

SS: Now, you’re saying this as a Call of Duty player, aren’t you? You like shooters.

JC: Yeah. I like fighting games too.They’re fun. But as I get older, what’s the point in pulling off another infinite combo? What does that do for your life? It’s not useful. People still play chess because strategic thinking is useful. Brain training games, fitness games…these have relevance. People don’t have much time to waste, so they want relevance. Whether it’s emotional relevance, like experiencing joy or sadness, or intellectual relevance, or social relevance.

SS: What other developers do you think are challenging gaming, perhaps in other areas?

JC: Quantic Dream. Team Ico — everything they make is very rich and deep emotionally. I think LittleBigPlanet is also very interesting. It’s not so much emotional as it is a different frontier. I also really appreciate whoever makes the best first-person shooter. Blizzard is always great, they have a lot of craft. We need those things too, because the game industry has to cover all sides. It’s not that I’m against fighting games or shooters — they need to be there, and they need to be good.

SS: Are you looking forward to BioShock Infinite?

JC: I liked BioShock but I didn’t finish it. I think I didn’t appreciate it as much as the fans, but I totally get the philosophies. I will try [Ken Levine’s] new game…it’s relevant. It’s not just about being strong and killing enemies. I appreciate that.

Last week saw the introduction of the PlayStation Move sharp shooter, an upcoming peripheral which transforms the PlayStation Move motion controller into a sleek assault rifle designed for hardcore shooters such as Killzone 3 and SOCOM 4. The sharp shooter’s feature set is extensive, so I went hands-on to learn more about its functionality and (surprisingly easy) setup process. Guerrilla Games Managing Director Hermen Hulst and I field tested the PS3’s new weapon of choice.

Developed with input from the FPS experts at Guerrilla Games and Zipper Interactive, the sharp shooter is a snap to assemble: you secure a navigation controller into the foregrip, then fasten the PlayStation Move motion controller into the “barrel,” which connects to a small digital port on the bottom of the PlayStation Move called the extension connector. In comparison, the PlayStation Move Shooting Attachment is mechanical; the sharp shooter’s use of the extension connector means that buttons can be remapped to other areas of the sharp shooter. For example, the triangle and square buttons on the motion controller have been re-mapped to buttons on the sharp shooter, providing an identical experience for right- and left-handed users as key buttons are duplicated on both sides of the peripheral.

The sharp shooter is customizeable in other ways: a handy firing mode switch will enable game developers to support single-shot and burst-fire settings; the extendable stock enables you to choose to shoot from the hip or from the shoulder; and the Move button (located beneath the trigger) can be “locked” if it’s not needed. Hulst also pointed out that Killzone 3 enables players to customize the PlayStation Move motion controls to suit their play style. “We made sure that the default settings are very accessible, but for more advanced users, we made sure that deadzones and sensitivity settings are customizable.” As an example, Hulst notes that he prefers to make the horizontal deadzone “very small” to enable faster turning of his character.

The darker box you see here is the “Deadzone,” and its size is fully adjustable. Within this area, you can move your crosshair freely. Once you get outside the borders, your character will turn.

Then there are the subtler fit-and-finish details you may not notice immediately. A pump-action mechanism located under the barrel could be used as a reload function, or alternately may serve another secondary function depending on the game designer’s wishes. The RL button located under the gun’s clip can be used to reload. And thanks to the PlayStation Move’s motion capabilities, you can thrust the gun forward to initiate a close combat attack, or tilt the gun onto its side to activate a reload. If you’re sensing an emphasis on total immersion in the experience, you’re on the right track. Combined with Killzone 3’s stereoscopic 3D and first-person perspective, “the sharp shooter literally puts you right in the middle of the action,” Hulst observed. “It’s like getting your cake and eating it too.” That doesn’t mean players using 3D and the sharp shooter will have an advantage in Killzone 3’s multiplayer battlefields — Hulst noted that “the guy with the 2D screen and DualShock 3 can play just as well.”

There were also some updates for Killzone 3, which Hulst confirmed will support two-player split-screen couch co-op for the entire campaign — a feature long requested by Killzone fans. Considering Killzone 2’s buddy assist maneuvers, such as reviving A.I. partners and boosting your buddy up onto ledges, Killzone 3’s co-op support is a natural addition. But don’t think co-op play will make the campaign a cakewalk. “Because the A.I. in Killzone 3 is so autonomous,” Hulst warned, “you never know what to expect. You and your partner will need to keep out-strategizing and outsmarting the Helghast.”

Hulst then gave us a sneak peek at the second-to-last level in Killzone 3 called “The Reckoning.” This goosebump-inducing set piece pits the battered ISA forces against the MAWLR, a 280 foot-tall, arachnoid Helgast mech that tears apart the environment with energy beams and mortars. “When fighting the MAWLR, you’re never safe,” Hulst cautioned. “You can try to hide in bunkers but they’ll be destroyed; you can try to hide behind the nearby transformers but you could get electrocuted.” Your secret weapon comes in the form of Killzone 3’s WASP rocket launcher, which you use to pick off the massive mech’s cooling panels. Don’t expect this to be a cut-and-dried affair: the MAWLR confrontation is a lengthy, multi-layered boss battle, and the battle will rage from ground to the air and back to ultimately bring the Helghast’s war machine to its knees.

Killzone 3 hits the PS3 on February 22nd, 2011, and is fully playable with the PlayStation Move and the sharp shooter at launch, with SOCOM 4 following suit later in 2011. What questions do you have about the sharp shooter’s features and functionality? Let us know in the comments and we’ll dig up answers.

The idea of what games mean in PS Home has also changed. In contrast to the handful of simple mini-games offered at launch, we now see a huge variety of games, including massive full-length games developed by some of the most prominent and innovative indie developers in our industry. The experience of PS Home itself has radically improved over the years as well, with faster load times, zero-wait game access, intuitive navigation, and the addition of features such as group-based voice chat and robust inventory management.

They say a picture is worth a thousand words, so check out the infographic below to see how PlayStation Home has evolved over the last two years into an industry leading social game platform:

Also, as part of our second anniversary celebration, I’d like to discuss some new games for PlayStation Home. These games clearly show PS Home as a platform for the most exciting indie and social games today. Some of these titles are sequels to hugely popular games in Home, demonstrating the business success of our partners. From Novus Prime which launched last week, to Sodium 2 coming next year, I hope you are as excited about these games as I am!

Novus Prime – Now Available

Created by Hellfire Games, Novus Prime brings a multiplayer space shooter to PlayStation Home. Players can band together to protect their space station. Along with the ability to customize ships and embark on space battles of epic proportions, players can also jump out into zero G and defend the space station from parasitic insects. See the game trailer here.

Midway 2 – Now Available

The folks over at Mass Media have seen a great amount of success with the first Midway game released on PlayStation Home in 2010. They’ve been so happy with how their title has preformed that they are back again! Mass Media has expanded their offerings of popular Midway games with Midway 2. Midway 2 brings nine new games plus the timeless classic, Miz Fortune, to the already robust set of games in Midway. Along with the new games comes 100 new game prizes, a new meta-prize for winning all 20 Midway games and a Scramble Puzzle game as the meta-prize for getting 5,000 points. For those of you that were fond of Darla, we’re bringing in Karla – Darla’s sister – in the game “Wet and Wild,” where you can dunk her in the water tank and get a snapshot of her giving you a kiss! Check out the official trailer from Wednesday’s update.

Conspiracy – Available January 2011

There is a mystery afoot! Jet Set Games is getting ready to release its first ever PlayStation Home game and is ready to take players into a secret world filled with covert infiltration and espionage with their new action/puzzle game, Conspiracy. Conspiracy will have players join different factions as they work to steal goods from enemy corporations. As the rival corporations battle it out, they will uncover the mysteries of the ultimate Conspiracy. Be prepared to learn the secrets of the Conspiracy world in early 2011.

Sodium 2 – Available Spring 2011

Veteran PlayStation Home developers, Outso, are back with a sequel to their highly successful PlayStation Home game, Sodium One. Sodium 2 is looking to expand on every area of the original game with heavily customizable jet racers, supersonic speeds and a pounding soundtrack. The future of Sodium is coming soon, so be on look out for Outso’s new game coming in Spring 2011 to a teleporter near you.

These four games just barely scratch the surface of what the future holds for PlayStation Home. We hope you continue to enjoy what we have to offer on our platform as much as we enjoy creating it for you.

See you in PS Home.