Dark Alex Leaves The scene

On it's websites DARK_ALEX announces that:

Bye, scene.

I've decided to cease OE development, and leave PSP scene.
The reasons are various.
One of them is the time it consumes, which i'm losing from other things.
The other is related to my security. I didn't like Sony menaces to PS3 hackers.
I think it is better to leave now rather than end paying the consequences.

EDIT

mathieulh says about the matter to inherit D_A place:

I can but I wont because 1. I am affraid of Sony as well
2. It is absolutely not fun to code alone.

Thus I do not plan at this time to work on any future OE versions.

So this is pretty much the darkest day for any PSP owner there...

The Magic Battery Finnally Have A Face UPDATE

On the french forum board PSPGEN
a user posted some pics taken from the "supposed to be" legendary magic battery
that will be able to ubrick the PSPs restoring all the informations withouth any harm for the console.
Now real or not, we still can't know, surely the pics are eyecandy.

*UPDATE*
It seems that a PSPGEN user got fun on photoshop and made up those images for see the community reaction, well, he almost got us but the rectangle selections signs around the buttons on the image surely coulded be better handled.

The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya

WEBSITE

A webpage for the just announced PSP title on Suzumiya Haruhi, BANDAI tells the game will be converted for the PSP platform, and has planned the sale during 2007. Price is still undecided.

The game will be played trough the various characters of the successful series and making them conversating creating "situations", the company is not worried about the "so called" small market of the sony Handled console, since it's experimenting new systems and the PSP itself is one from their point of view.

Can't wait for more informations and maybe screenies.

Crisis Core New Scans

Seems like S-E is full of news lately,
here it comes some new screens for FF7 CC

FINAL FANTASY DISSIDIA VIDEO RELEASED

Your Powerful PSP Dragon Ball Travel Bag

Yeah some fans cannot have enough, Dragon Ball merchandise always is something people cannot just forgive, c'mon for just 5,040엔 it can be cool!

Suicide Barbie by The Black Lotus

Finnaly the homebrew scene is shaking again like crazy,
this is a cool project from the The Black Lotus and is basically a music video all made on a PSP 3D engine and I surely
suggest you to give it a shot!


Here it is the instructions for run it on you OE PSP
(If you have a plain 1.50 just get the first file one)

1) download these 2 files:
1
2

2) extract them and put the "unofficial_suicide_barbie_fix.zip" two folders in PSP\GAME150 (don't do this if you are in 1.50 and not a OE firmware)

3) rename the "Barbiedemo" folder as "demotest"

4) create a folder named "data" in you root and put "demotest" inside it
(so it wil lbe like this ms0:data/demotest/ )

5) start you psp and enjoy

Here how it will lool like, but I suggest to play it on your PSP,
you surely will understand why.

Fate/Tiger Colosseum - New Screens

If you don't know the very popular erogame Fate/Stay Night
you probably will not be hyped as me for this game, actually FSN is nice series that have even many manga/doujin/games and a anime (not hentai) that is about magic, servants, heroes and stuff, but everything turns out very quickly since the story itself is based on a stable platform that as all the other bleach/naruto&company can be renewed series by series.



This FATE/TIGER COLOSSEUM is being developed by Cavia, non very popular for the title "Bullet Witch" that got bad ratings everywhere, but don't put your hopes down, I'm sure this game will somehow crawl it's way out with the dynamic battles between 4 players in a 3D environement.

Brooktown High - More Likely Craptown High

Published by Konami and developed by Backbone, the guys back Death Jr1&2, this title is a dating hish school life simulator made with the purpose to open a niche market that in Japan is a big bucks deal, dating simulator borned there and this time they should have died too.



While the graphics for the game looks cartoonish (and actually BRATS looking too) the gameplay is various, there are many features as strip poker, button smashing dancing game, question time for exams, and stuff.
There is a overall joke about the sexual intents of your main character, but that was expected since in the occidental social paradigm it's a must to make something based on a sexual theme.

But enough with the talk, I'd like to let you get your own opinion on the game itself, so UI'm posting some videos and the comment of a guy on the BROOKTOWN HIGH Myspace.com profile:




Jason - 20 mag 2007 23.54
wow i get 2 do wat i never got 2 do in high school thats crazy. even 4 a psp.
LINK:

Yeah, whatever....here it is the Official game trailer:



And a funny trailer of the japanese BBS taking over the BROOKTOWN HIGH character looking, that that I agree all the design must be anime/mangaish, but this time they clearly done a better job...I still hope for the next time when they will hire a better artist:

PSP PHONE? Not a rumor anymore!

Recently we had some rumors and tips spreading around about a PSPlite/small (whatever) some official some unofficial, making hard to distinguish the truth.

Wel what we brought you today is something that has a phisical form, a PSP looking like phone, from the Korean company AMYCOLL:




This "PSP edition" phone called "Amycoll PS3" (Joke No.1)had recently appeared in a popular website, PHONEDAILY, looking like the bridge that will parallel walk the market on portable gaming and phones.



The eye-catching red, and silver can't trick us also how the buttons have been placed on the cell phone, appears quite like the PSP (Joke NO.2). However, even looking like that the gaming phone inherited the basis of the most actual tecnologies, with easy-writing SMS/MMS, photography, video, bluetooth, external memory, different bands for call services, built in software for many kind of situations.



After the PSP release cellphones manufacturers there have rushed to copy the idea, some imitating appearance, some simply starting from the shape, but this one surely got the top in the list.
but there are some suspect, the phone boxes have the printed brand logo, but a discerning eye can tell it is a fake, and as we have seen in China there are many "pimped bricks".
Amycoll PS3 probably could have one of the best tecnology and capable to be held in a hand, very light, absolutely not be a burden; and Cellphones like that are perfect combos merging common characteristic with strong game functions, and two built in cameras, in accordance with what it's wrote on the phone the main is of two million pixels, while the other camera is 1.3 million pixels, MicroSD memory card slot and USB port.





But the, opening the battery slot (very powerful 1350 mAh lithium battery)we see a "Made in Koera", and this comes the Joke NO.3, how the original phone could be like that? with a typo like that it's unlikely to be manufactured in Korea.





In addition, the phone support is in a Chinese-interface, the phone keyboard also lists the Chinese phonetic alphabet; but come to the Built in simulator of the Amycoll PS3 that should be the biggest selling point.
It contains two games, "Diamond Adventure" and "Jewel Box", Diamond adventure is familiar to us, "Jewels box" too, good for killing time but nothing more.
And then the phone can simulate the Super Nintendo and the GameBoy Color games, and how you will play them has to be in horizontal, looking like the PSP.





Unfortunately, the implementation of simulator is not good as you hope since it's a bit buggy, but don't be ashamed, you still can play a DDR dancing game, that's some customer care!



We will still wait for news about it, but so far it looks like a shamefully products like all the others you can find in the asian black/grey/rainbow markets.

FF DISSIDIA - Battle System&Info

IGN took from famitsu the the informations everyone was waiting for, DISSIA storyline and battle system info, so far we know that the reason moving all the characters to fight will be to conserve (or destroy) the balance between good and evil, tho figures know as the gods COSMOS(order) and CHAOS(disorder) that managed to slightly invade the world causing pain and suffer.
COSMOS then will invoke his 10 HEROES to fight the evil, so that will mean there will be 10 villains too? Tetsuya Nomura said to Famitsu that the development team is currently simply working on getting as many characters as possible into the game, so expect some secret character as well.




Getting to the point most of you waited, the combat system.
Each character use of an individual set of special skills that are displayed through a command list on the bottom-left corner, which changes based on distance from your enemy and other special factors such as you BRAVE METER and stuff.
The battle system also includes evasion and jumping, although the controls are said to be simple enough that even players who aren't into action games will be okay.

Destroying all the objects of the scenery builds up your character's "BRAVE METER", which gives you access to new attacks or basically the most powerful attacks you knew that charcater was using in its game, but we hope for something more too. You also gain an advantage by pounding your opponents, as this causes a special move gauge to build up.



Warrior of Light can transform using a Class Change command. So too can Zidane, making use of a Trance command. Warrior of Light also has an Excalibur command, and when facing off long range, gains access to a "Long Range" attack option.

You'll be able to build up experience through battle, growing stronger as you rise in level. You can also customize your characters with equipment. This should make for some interesting wireless fights against your buddies and we know that virtual infrastructure is not a dream, using the "XLINK KAI" software I already see how people will fight each other all over the world.

AND DON'T FORGET THERE WILL BE CHARACTER CUSTOMIZATION!

Sony Starts War Against Custom Firmwares And Modding

The German modding website 'modcontrol' mailed MAXCONSOLE to let them know that lawyers from Sony Germany have gone on some form of crackdown on webstores which offer any form of console modding service in relation to the PSP and PS2. Products which Sony warn stores to remove include PSP downgrading services (including the installation of custom firmware) as well as PS2 mods.

And this is starting just for Germany, maybe the next step will be the whole Europe? Or even bigger targes? What's back this strategy?
Maybe the great loss of 2 billions that sony suffered had them though on a different path for fight the console gaming piracy? We know that the Downgradings, Custom Firmwares and the Devhooks that are now out let people enjoy mane features on their PSP letting people change their XMB and play Homebrews games.



So Sony, will you lay your fingers on the people who trusted your systems while the whole world was dissing it?

MHP 2nd Nationwide Tornament Updates

During the last conference of Capcom in Japan, the announcement for a nationalwide tournament for the massive selling title "Monster Hunter Portable 2nd" (alias "MH Freedom 2" in NA/EU) got the attention of many medias there.



Well we're near the end of the preliminary challenges! Started the 16 APRIL, the preliminary tournament will have the final rounds 20 MAY in the SAPPORO area.
5 Cities will have their representants for the challenge, and a special commission will examine all the gameplay movies and the ratings and will proclame the superior 3 teams of hunters the 10 of JUNE.

All the application forms should be sended as postacards with 2 names to add in tour invitation, those will be sended to a special recluting office, and the informations about can be obtained here: LINK.

The first preliminay rounds made up 12 hunter teams, everyone challenged in the suppressing of the Tigarex, but just 3 of them will survive the last selection.

So, clean the dust from your weapons and armours and prepae to kick some gigantic ass!
And expect LOTS OF GOODS!