One of the first games I fell deep into back in my PlayStation days was Metal Gear Solid. I hadn’t played the Metal Gear title for the SNES, but I still found myself being sucked into the game’s immersing storyline. The game originally debuted back in 1998, and it kept me on my toes for quite a long time. There were just so many different twists and ways to go about objectives, which made it a truly engaging game. This is why it’s no surprise that gamers who have gotten to play the game all scream for a remake.

Hideo Kojima, the game’s creator, finally took some time to elaborate on his feelings toward creating a remake of this iconic title. When speaking to the Official Playstation Magazine, this is what he had to say about remembering the game that started his PlayStation career:

“It was a very pure experience. I was just making the game I wanted to make. Looking back, there’s not anything in particular I want to go back and fix. If you change anything, you change the game – and I want to avoid that. If you bring the gameplay up to modern standards, then you lose a bit of the original game. It was a game made for a certain era – not just the story, but the controls and everything about it reflect that era in which the game was made.

There are a lot of people wanting remakes of the original, and as producer I want to answer those calls. But as a creator I’m not very interested in going back. If we were to do it, it would have to be a total remake – the only thing that would be the same would be the story. If it happened at some point I would stay as a producer, but would have to hand off most of the actual creating.”

If you remember, Kojima had an interview a while back with the magazine where he spoke about the coming of a Metal Gear Solid 5. He made mention then that he wouldn’t have a large role in the game like with the first, and here he details that a bit more. While I am fond of an HD remake of the original Metal Gear Solid, I am really attached to the game in its old ways. I mean, a newer version would certainly look cool, but I don’t think it would be the same.

If you weren’t excited enough over the Duke Nukem Forever DLC that arrived the other day, then take a look at all of the holiday deals PSN has going on. You can stuff stockings with digital cheer!

Through this promotional ordeal, you can get your mitts on some pretty spiffy game bundles and all sorts of goodies from the top of the PSN performers for a discounted price. The full list of deals is available on the PlayStation Blog, but the video below will give you a snippet of what’s there.

For those of you PlayStation Plus subscribers out there, Marvel pinball is available to play for free. Not to mention a KOF XIII that you can download. The closer it gets to the holidays, the more deals seem to pop up, so keep your eyes peeled.

If you’re a fan of zombies and video game mashups then you’re in luck. ForgeHub user Cryptic Sin took his love for Resident Evil and merged it with his passion for Halo. The result? A fully recreated Forge version of the Spencer Mansion from the original Resident Evil game.

It took Sin almost a year to complete this magnificent creation, using the Forge world in Halo: Reach to bring his creation to life. It was no easy task, however, considering he could only use the building blocks offered to him in the futuristic world. The recreation is almost perfect, using the mansion from the Gamecube remake of the first Resident Evil game.

You can see a full walkthrough of the map in the video below. Not only is there a brand new map, but Cryptic Sin also took it upon himself to make special game modes specifically for his creative map. You can find links to these game modes on the Youtube channel for the video. After seeing this new map, what do you think?

Back in 2009, Amazon decided to start selling PSN codes directly. For whatever reason they may have, they came to the decision that this was not a great idea, and have since yanked that ability. Only a blank page exists there now. Amazon told PSNStores:

“We have no announcements regarding this change in selection, however we can confirm that Amazon Digital Video Game Downloads is not currently offering Playstation Network online game codes and points cards.”

Neither Sony or Amazon have really given us much information as to why, and it may not even be permanent, but no one really knows at this point. Oh well, guess we’ll just have to buy our PSN point cards and game codes from somewhere else.

A lot of us gamers out there love the occasional racing game. Whether it be Gran Turismo or Need For Speed, the love for the rubber on the asphalt is all the same. Sure, we enjoy sitting back on the couch with a controller, or possibly playing with a racing wheel, but what if we could actually own the racing experience? That’s what the team at Playseat has had in mind since they formed.

For those of you who don’t know, Playseat is a company that specializes in chairs – video gaming chairs to be exact. What you see pictured above is the Evolution Alacantara Racing Chair, which is compatible with all racing titles for the PS2, PS3, Wii, PC, and Xbox 360. All that’s required is for players to put together their favorite racing wheel and pedal set on the chair, and then it’s all a green light from there.

The racing seats offered by Playseat are completely foldable for easy storing, come in a variety of colors, and range from $350 to $475. For something that is this easily compatible with tons of different technologies, the price is set pretty well. Now while these racing chairs are cool, don’t get it in your mind that they are the only type offerd by the company. Playseat also specializes in flight chairs, and even office chairs that are fully customizable. Take some time to check out Playseat’s Official Website for more information on their products, and pick one up for yourself.

A few days ago, PlayStation announced the release date for Ratchet &Clank: All 4 One, and showed the official box art. They still may be on the crap list for all of their mess-ups here lately, but at least they’re going to put out another Ratchet & Clank.

This release is undoubtedly just precursor steps for E3 and trying to get people wanting to talk to them again. But! At least the game looks like it will be fun, and you can turn things into sheep. If sheep aren’t your style, you can always get a T-Rex morph weapon mod to take a more prehistoric route to things. There’s also going to be a pre order weapon that is a Kerchu-engineered flamethrower.

It appears that Mr. Zurkon will also be appearing with some good ole-fashioned taunting with his comedy-insult logic processor. Honestly I am most excited about turning everything I see into sheep. They look like they couldn’t care less that they exist, and look so cute and fluffy.

It looks like our rumor from the other day was correct. Yesterday’s big announcement from Sony was indeed to drop the price of the 9-year-old PS2. Starting today you’ll be able to pick up a slim for just $99. Could it all just be an April Fool’s gag by Sony? I guess, but I really can’t think of a more lame joke.

Source

This October the PS2 will be celebrating its 9th birthday, which should make it the oldest console still being produced. For a couple of years now we have been waiting for Sony’s second console to finally break the elusive sub-$100 price point. Sure, you can pick up referb units at GameStop for $60-$70 (depending on which style you pick), but a brand new one will still set you back $129.

If rumors are to be believed, we won’t have to wait until the next holiday season to see a PS2 price drop. An inside source at Kmart said there was evidence in their system that on or around April 5th the console will drop down in price to $99.99. It was said that this was not a sale, but the new price for the console. Now if Sony would just release another PS3 with hardware emulation, we wouldn’t need to buy one of these.

Source

I’ve been rocking out a lot on Rock Band 2 over the last three months, and I image that many of you have been doing the same. Unfortunately if your primary console is a PS2 or a Wii, you’ve been stuck with the original Rock Band or a Guitar Hero title to satisfy your inner rocker. Well the wait is almost over, as Harmonix has finally given us a solid release date for those two consoles.

This Thursday, December 18th, you’ll be able to pick up Rock Band 2 for either the Wii or PS2. Wii owners will finally have the opportunity to download new tracks and store them on an SD card. Sorry PS2 owners, but despite the fact that you installed a hard drive for Final Fantasy XI, you’re still not getting any DLC. The peripherals for the PS2 version have already been for sale, so here’s the breakdown of what will be available on Thursday.

• Special Edition Bundle (Wii) – $189.99
• Standalone Software (Wii) – $49.99
• Standalone Drums (Wii) – $89.99
• Standalone Guitar (Wii) – $69.99
• Standalone Software (PS2) – $49.99

Source

Peak has crafted what I humbly believe is the best guitar controller available. Over the last week I have enjoyed playing with Peak’s Obsidian Starpex Guitar controller for the PS3/PS2. The awesome people at Peak have taken a wooden guitar body and inlaied the electronic components into the guitar. This, much like the Rock Band Ion Drum Kit will set you back a few bucks, but is a worthwhile investment if you’re really into RB/GH and you’re a PS3 owner like myself. Read on for the full review.

This controller easily beats out the game guitars for RB/GH. The strum bar is excellent with very precise response. It feels and functions much like the one from the classic Black/Red SG from the original Guitar Hero. The housing that holds the whammy bar, start button, and select button also make for an excellent hand rest to help with quick strumming. With the wooden body, missing notes because of the guitar neck misregistering is a thing of the past. The lower five fret buttons can even be used in Guitar Hero for a little extra fun. Taking away the fallacies of the standard controllers has brought some new life into these games for me. It’s fun to play when you can precisely control when your Overdrive/Star Power gets triggered and you don’t have to worry about missing that damned orange note…

I tried the Starpex out on all of the past and present games and couldn’t find any issues with its functionality. My only complaint would be the lack of a control pad/PS Button on the guitar, but I believe that would most likely ruin the aesthetic of the controller.

This controller is super fun to play with and I highly recommend to anyone that has the opportunity to pick one of these up, to do so. I picked up my Les Paul and Fender earlier and they just could not compare to the look and feel of this controller. For the PS3/PS2, the Peak Starpex Guitar Controller is definitely my instrument of choice.