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When we launched PlayStation Blogcast just a few months ago, we promised that we’d deliver big PlayStation personalities. And there may be no bigger personality than David Jaffe, the outspoken co-director for next week’s PS3 revival of Twisted Metal. Jaffe is a fixture in the often-tumultuous world of videogame development, playing a key role in 1995’s Twisted Metal as well as serving as director of God of War and creative director for God of War II. In our lengthy discussion, Jaffe sounds off on a host of topics: his development plans after Twisted Metal, the game’s 90s-licious soundtrack, incorporating fan requests, finding the game’s unique visual identity…and why he loves Oprah and Doctor Phil (seriously).

As always, we reveal next week’s PSN game lineup, answer a slew of user questions, and share a user tip (actually, two tips). This week also sees us discussing our favorite PSone games, sharing our favored strategies for Twisted Metal combat, and providing some details on PS Vita memory cards and game storage. Not a bad show, even with Nick Suttner out on a travel assignment…but as always, we insist on hearing your thoughts and feedback!

How’s our driving? We want your feedback, comments, questions, and suggestions, so leave ‘em in the comments below!

Action Items

• PS Vita First Edition Bundle
• Twisted Metal University
• Zen Pinball: Epic Quest table
• Lumines: Electronic Symphony for PS Vita

The Cast

Zen’s Epic Quest

It is the sworn duty of every knight to seek out evil, defeat it, and take its stuff. One such knight is Max, whose enthusiasm for combat is surpassed only by his love of rare and valuable loot. Join Max as he battles hordes of evil (or just evil-looking) monsters, rescues a wealthy princess, and accumulates the loot and XP that make good deeds worth doing. If Max suffers a defeat, never fear! He will return in the next game with all of his hard-won loot and experience levels intact.

As you complete missions and table objectives, Max earns loot, which is essential for defeating monsters and impressing n00bs. Put together a set of “epic” gear and become the envy of all your frenemies! Supposedly, it helps you fight better, too. And if a game ends, experience and loot carry over to the next game. Yes, you read that correctly, your experience and loot carry over from game to game, just like an RPG!

Writing a deeper story that continues to play out as you spend time with the table was essential in the creation of this table. It really makes the game more enjoyable and increases the incentive to continue playing. We also wrote a lot of Monty Python-type humor into the story, so expect some laughs!

Max the Knight & Loot

Players will be required to defeat a monster during the Encounter mode in Epic Quest. When the player defeats this formidable foe, they will receive loot in the form of weapons or armor. Swords, axes, shields, spells and more will be won in order to help Max develop into a true (not to mention well-dressed) champion. As loot is won, Max will actually use items and they will be visibly applied to his image. Loot is classified into three categories:

• Yellow – common items
• Blue – better items
• Purple – epic items (!)

The possibility of finding an Epic item increases with each level of Max the Knight, so the higher level you are the more likely you are to find more valuable loot. Because you get to keep loot game after game, Max will appear in the same gear he ended with when a new game starts.

From Lesser Knight to Epic Hero

It took some time to perfect the XP formula for Epic Quest, but the result for the player is a new set of challenges and rewards outside of just keeping the ball in play. You will earn XP for completing missions and hitting specific shots on the table. XP is represented on a large red bar below the flippers at the front of the table. After filling the XP bar, Max will level up!

Max begins as a Minor Knight with hopes and dreams of someday becoming an Epic Hero. As Max levels up, he becomes more and more powerful…er, capable! As a more “capable” knight, Max will be able to inflict more damage on monsters and enemies, which means he will be able to discover more valuable loot including epic items, and multi ball jackpot values will increase. Whether he reaches is goal of being an Epic Hero or not is up to you!

Epic Quest will release next Tuesday on PSN as DLC for Zen Pinball, and we hope you enjoy the table and the new direction we have taken. As always, THANKS SO MUCH for your support, and we appreciate your feedback and encourage you to send us questions or comments on the Zen Facebook, Twitter or forums. Oh, and do not forget to pick up Twisted Metal!!! This is one of my all-time favorite games and you can be sure I will be playing it day one!

PS Vita will begin making its way into gamers’ hands in just a few short days! Day one Vita owners will have many, many games to choose from, with 25 titles announced for launch on February 22nd. Actually, make that 26 — Ninja Gaiden Sigma Plus is now a confirmed launch title as well.

If you’re being thorough, however, that number is off by a bit… like by 90%. Hundreds of classic PSP titles and minis will also be available to play on PS Vita on day one via the PlayStation Store. Even better, if you’ve already downloaded a compatible PSP title, you can download it directly onto your PS Vita at no extra cost (please note that some limitations do apply).

There are a couple of ways to get these PSP games onto your PS Vita:

• Purchase PSP games from PS Vita’s PlayStation Store and download via WiFi directly to your system. If you’ve already purchased a game via PSN from the list below, you can redownload it from the Download List.

• If you’ve already got one of these games sitting on your PS3 XMB (or have purchased from the PS3’s PlayStation Store), you can connect your PS Vita to the PS3 via the included USB cable, and transfer the game via PS Vita’s on-board Content Manager.

Here are the first 275 PSP titles ready to be downloaded onto PS Vita. Don’t worry if you don’t see your favorite title here now; more PSP titles will be made available for PS Vita play in the coming weeks. We’ll keep this list current and let you know when updates are made.

PSP Titles

PlayStation Minis

Hi everyone! With only a few weeks to go until launch, PlayStation Vita is the hot topic on everyone’s mind here at SCEA. If you’re anything like me, you’re probably counting down the minutes until Vita arrives, anxiously awaiting the availability of what’s sure to be an industry game changer. Today, I’m here to give you your very own first look the PS Vita First Edition Bundle.

Early birds who pre-ordered the First Edition Bundle will their PS Vita 3G/Wi-Fi system on February 15, a FULL WEEK ahead of its official launch on February 22nd! You’ll also get a 4GB PS Vita memory card, a limited-edition PS Vita case, a copy of Little Deviants on PS Vita game card, and a set of AR Play game cards to enable augmented reality play with a host of free downloadable mini games. There’s more: The PS Vita First Edition Bundle also includes an AT&T DataConnect Session Pass, which is good for one free 250MB data session (a $14.99 value) upon purchase of one 250 MB data session, as well as a free PlayStation Network game that you can redeem upon 3G activation on the AT&T mobile broadband network.

Have you pre-ordered a PS Vita First Edition Bundle, or are you holding out for a different model on February 22nd? What games have you pre-ordered and, if you’ve stopped by our Vita Hill social clubs, which would you recommend? Let us know in the comments!

The simulation industry has long been closely associated with game technologies and history seems to be repeating itself: India’s number one simulation development company, Zen Technologies Limited, has decided to venture into game development and digital publishing with Version2Games Limited, a wholly owned subsidiary of Zen Technologies Limited. Our vision is to put India on the console gaming map.

I am thrilled to announce Version2Games’ first title Smash ‘N’ Survive, coming to PlayStation Network for $14.99. The core gameplay of Smash ‘N’ Survive revolves around vehicle combat — it seems we’re in the midst of quite a vehicle-combat revival! But Smash ‘N’ Survive features several innovations such as a physics-based tornado into which you can push your enemies. This tornado is not the only environmental weapon: You’ll find catapults, crushers and other hazards scattered around the maps, and you can use them to annihilate your opponents.

Smash ‘N’ Survive stands out from the rest because it brings melee weapons that are best suited for a vehicle combat. We’re talking brutal plungers, blades, saws and geekier fare like magneto repulsor, flame throwers, and sonic weapons. You won’t find any run-of-the-mill rocket launchers or machineguns here! Smash ‘N’ Survive isn’t mindless fun, either, and you won’t get far without a solid strategy in place. Not all the weapons will inflict direct damage, as some will throw opponents or topple them, leaving them open for your next attack.

The game features 10 maps ranging from small arenas to huge levels and more than 30 selectable concept cars. The campaign mode features 19 missions, each with primary and secondary objectives. On successful completion of the primary objective, you’ll earn a bounty, unlock new cars, new game modes, and new maps and modes for versus mode.

It has been our goal to create a game that we actually wanted to play, and we wanted to include aspects of territory control, survival, bomb planting and team deathmatch in vehicle games so our game is full of these missions which are not too common in vehicle combat games. Most of the missions revolve around these themes but there are some others like derby, checkpoint race, escorting your mate, killing the convoy, chases, and more.

Finally, the Versus mode will give you hours of fun. When we invited people to try out the game, many of them spent four or five hours in the Versus mosh pit. I also want to note that Smash ‘N’ Survive offers a 100% family friendly game experience.

We haven’t mentioned all of the coolest things this game has to offer, so watch this space for more. In the meantime, have a look at our launch trailer to see some of the major features of the game.

Here at FuturLab we don’t think it is good enough to churn out cloned games. We wanted to do justice to the nostalgia of early games in the shoot ‘em-up genre, so that people can pick up Velocity and feel right at home, but also feel the excitement of playing something completely new!

After many months prototyping, we knew we had something special with Velocity – the teleporting mechanics had never been done before – so we wanted a big sound to complement the gameplay experience.

We are therefore incredibly excited that Joris de Man, the award winning composer that wrote and produced the music for Killzone 2 & 3, has co-written and co-produced the music for Velocity!

So it sounds incredible and is a genuine, high quality homage to the classic games us older folk remember fondly ;) Check out the trailer below:

Velocity is a portable-friendly shooter that is packed full of innovative ideas, designs, sounds and gameplay – and it’s really addictive!

We wanted to use the minis platform to do something nobody had seen before, so we really hope you enjoy playing on your PSP, PS Vita and PS3!**

Velocity is due for release in March in Europe and the US, and will be FREE to download for PlayStation Plus subscribers!

If you want to find out more about the game, check out the screenshots, or stay in touch with me and the rest of the team, here’s a bunch of useful links:

• Official Velocity Website – Info on the game, and screenshots!
• Velocity on Facebook – Come and ‘Like’ Velocity!
• FuturLab Website/Blog – Stay in touch through our website and blog!
• FuturLab on Facebook – Come and ‘Like’ us too!
• FuturLab on Twitter – Follow us for the latest info

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*Some of you may be wondering what happened to the pilot’s name, as we asked people to name her too. Unfortunately we didn’t receive any suggestions that did it for us, so we named her ourselves: Kai Tana J

**If you like what we’ve done with Velocity, please show your support. There’s a powerful, shiny new handheld on the scene now, and we’d love to give Velocity the HD treatment! With your support we can do it! :)

With a little luck, and a lot of pluck, you’ll catapult yourself to the top of the multiplayer leaderboards this February 14th. Check back soon to learn more killer tricks and tactics for this long-awaited revival.

Feeling competitive? Sign up for a tournament at the social club and play against other members. You can even sign up a bunch of friends and create your own tournament — just ask the club staff for details!

That’s not all — the Vita Hill Social Club team has lined up an impressive roster of special events that will allow you to go hands-on with all-new games like Mortal Kombat and Ultimate Marvel vs Capcom 3. Check out the highlights below and go to Vita-Hill.com to learn more about upcoming events in your city.

Ultimate Marvel vs Capcom 3 Coming to a City Near You!

When: February 11th & February 18th, 6:00 to 9:00pm local time
Where: Vita Hill social clubs in Atlanta, Austin, Boston, Chicago, Los Angeles, Miami, New York City, San Francisco (directions and info)

Capcom and IGN have teamed up with PlayStation to bring you the ultimate portable fight at the Vita Hill “Fight Clubs.” To help celebrate the upcoming launch of Ultimate Marvel vs. Capcom 3 on PS Vita, we’re hosting fight clubs nationwide on the evenings of February 11th and February 18th from 6-9 PM (local times).

Come check out the full Ultimate Marvel vs. Capcom 3 experience on PS Vita complete with stunning console-quality graphics, Touch Mode, Ad-hoc multiplayer, NEAR sharing, replays, and much more. At each and every venue we’ll also have free refreshments, pizza, tournaments (with prizes!), giveaways, and of course the chance for you to get some matches in with your friends.

Reality Fighter Double-Elimination Tournament

When: February 12th, 3:00 to 5:00pm local time
Where: Vita Hill social clubs in Atlanta, Austin, Boston, Chicago, Los Angeles, Miami, New York City, San Francisco (directions and info)
On Sunday, February 12th, from 3:00 to 5:00pm, there will be a Reality Fighter tournament at your local Vita Hill social club! Out of 16 contestants, one winner will get the glory. But prizing will be given out for rally cries, best outfits, and best moves. Be sure to bring your creativity (and some friends) for this fierce fighting-game event!

ModNation Racers Fastest Lap Tournament + Custom Track Contest

When: February 19th, 3:00 to 5:00pm local time
Where: Vita Hill social clubs in Atlanta, Austin, Boston, Chicago, Los Angeles, Miami, New York City, San Francisco (directions and info)
Ready to race? From 3:00 to 5:00pm on Sunday, February 12th, be one of the participants in our tournament! Each racer plays through their track once and another racer’s track is chosen at random on a three-lap action race against five AI opponents on the Easy setting with no driver assist. Fastest combined time wins. Only one winner takes it all!

Mortal Kombat Take Over

When: February 24th, 6:00 to 9:00pm local time
Where: Vita Hill social clubs in Atlanta, Austin, Boston, Chicago, Los Angeles, Miami, New York City, San Francisco (directions and info)
On February 24th from 6:00 to 9:00pm, get first hands-on with Mortal Kombat at Vita Hill Social Clubs nationwide and experience the world’s deadliest tournament in the palm of your hand! Mortal Kombat for PS Vita delivers new gameplay features and tons of new content developed exclusively for the revolutionary handheld system. Mortal Kombat features an all-new Challenge Tower II mode with 150 brand-new missions that push PS Vita’s capabilities to the max. No punches pulled! Mortal Kombat Vita brings all of the bone-breaking action from the 2011 console release for on-the-go gaming with all the warriors, including Kratos! Come and get your hands on the future of portable fighting in our special Vita Hill event.

Little Deviants Tournament

When: February 26th, 3:00 to 5:00pm local time
Where: Vita Hill social clubs in Atlanta, Austin, Boston, Chicago, Los Angeles, Miami, New York City, San Francisco (directions and info)
On February 26th from 3:00 to 5:00pm, get deviant with PS Vita! Players will have five minutes to play specific games chosen by our Vita Hill staff. Every two players will have a dedicated staff member to look over your shoulder (no cheating!) to record your score. In five minutes, players have to get their best score on the mini game. Winners move onto the next round to play another mini game until there is only ONE left. So stop by during the week to practice your Little Deviants moves.

Today, Sony Santa Monica Sr. Manager Dave Thach returns with two new augmented reality games, Fireworks and Cliff Diving. Both are part of the Augmented Reality Suite coming exclusively to PS Vita on Feb 22nd on PSN for free. Also, packaged with your PS Vita will be six AR cards which will also work with Reality Fighters, and other great AR experiences.

Fireworks transforms the world around you into a firework display where you’ll literally touch the apex of the firework for multipliers, combos and points. Cliff Diving introduces you to diver Dave, where you’ll have him diving off your coffee table into a virtual body of water.

Before you check out this video, make sure you watch our very first tour with Table Soccer which completes the AR Suite on PS Vita.

Instead of telling you more, I’ll let Dave Thach show you!

I’m psyched to give you a sneak peak at the new Miami Marlins ballpark in South Beach, courtesy of MLB 12 The Show. Have a look at where new acquisitions Jose Reyes, Mark Buehrle, and Heath Bell will be calling home this year…

After winning two World Series in less than 20 years since their inaugural 1993 season, 2012 ushers in a name change and a new ballpark for the Marlins. Before we could add this new ballpark to MLB 12 The Show, we had to gather as much information as possible in order to faithfully recreate every inch of this stadium exactly as it stands in Miami. Project Coordinator Jennifer Kacizak and Environment Artist Anton Napierala each started compiling blueprints, architectural concept models, and other data (thanks to our friends at MLB and the Marlins front office) of the ballpark which allowed us to get the shell or skeleton of the stadium in place. From there, more information was found via reference photos and even live online video streams. From all of this combined reference material, we’re able to bring the Marlins new home to life in MLB 12 The Show. Our goal is always to give our fans the most realistic sports experience possible, and I’m thrilled we were able to continue that proud tradition here. Check out the video to see the stadium in action… it’s as close as it gets to the real thing without dipping your toes in the surf at Miami Beach!

Don’t forget, MLB 12 The Show for PS3 and PS Vita will be hitting store shelves in just a few weeks on March 6th. Be sure to keep an eye on the PlayStation.Blog and TheShowNation.com for more information in the coming days and weeks on this year’s game.

Welcome to The Show!