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From the makers Of pane the most realistic motorcycles

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this game are trademarks and/or copyrighted materials of their respective.

iners. All rights reserved. Any depiction or recreation of real world locations, entities, businesses or organizations is not intended to be or imply trademark of Sony Computer Entertainment America Inc. e.

Blood

Language Suggestive Themes Violence

OFFICIAL PLAYSTATION:

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THE GREAT ONES ALWAYS LOOK FOR

AN EDGE

he great ballplayers always seem to have the inside edge—and now so does

Major League Baseball? 2K6. Our revolutionary Inside Edge" feature authentically ecreates the one-on-one pitcher-batter showdown with unprecedented realism by orporating three years of actual MLB" scouting reports and analysis into every j س‎

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SILT 15 LETTERS

Soon, we'll have enough to make a letter jacket!

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20 TILL KINGDOM COME Changing things up mid-development.

24 J-TOWN Selling videogames, Hard Gay-style.

30 THE BIG PICTURE That game might end up costing you $80-plus.

34 THE OPM INTERVIEW Sony bigwig Phil Harrison on the PlayStation 3.

Б2 PS3 GALLERY

This next generation sure does look pretty. Which is why we're letting you take a close-up look at 12 more PS3 games.

ЕБ FINAL FANTASY XI

Hands-on time proves it could be the best yet.

à НЕ ШЕНІ

PS2

Hitman: Blood Money Armored Core: Last Raven State of Emergency 2 Winback 2: Project Poseidon

Rogue Trooper

Atelier Iris 2: The Azoth of Destiny Dance Factory

Samurai Champloo: Sidetracked Ace Combat Zero: The Belkan War Tourist Trophy

2006 FIFA World Cup

Outrun 2006: Coast 2 Coast

100 Monster Hunter Freedom 101 Gradius Collection 102 Dragon Ball Z: Shin Budokai 102 SpongeBob SquarePants: The Yellow Avenger 102 Worms: Open Warfare 103 James Bond 007: From Russia With Love 105 OutRun 2006: Coast 2 Coast

uw cep gps

X

108 STRESS RELIEF

Need to let off steam? Play these games now.

ПО GETTING DOWN Marc Ecko talks about Getting Up.

113 CREAM OF THE CROP The highest-rated games in OPM history.

113 PS1-DERLAND Take your PS1 games on the road.

114 IN MY DAY

Does violence lead to violence?

BSS

Alone in the Dark

2 Brothers in Arms: Hell's Highway Coded Arms: Assault Fatal Inertia Full Auto 2: Battlelines Marvel: Ultimate Alliance Medal of Honor: Airborne Mercenaries: World in Flames

O Sonic the Hedgehog Stranglehold Ridge Racer 7 Tony Hawk: Next Generation Unreal Tournament 2007 Virtua Tennis 3

PS2 2006 FIFA World Cup Ace Combat Zero: The Belkan War Armored Core: Last Raven Atelier Iris 2: The Azoth of Destiny Dance Factory Final Fantasy ХИ Hitman: Blood Money Marc Ecko's Getting Up: Contents Under Pressure Outrun 2006: Coast 2 Coast

Rogue Trooper Samurai Champloo: Sidetracked State of Emergency 2 Tourist Trophy

? Winback 2: Project Poseidon

PSP

Dragon Ball Z: Shin Budokai Gradius Collection James Bond 007: From Russia With Love Monster Hunter Freedom Outrun 2006: Coast 2 Coast SpongeBob SquarePants: The Yellow Avenger

2 Worms: Open Warfare

CONTENTS ОМО

Demo Disc Producers Gary Barth, Cori Lucas, Manuel Sousa, Chris Tan Marketing Team

Steve Williams, Eric Lempel, Jesse Caid Executive Producer

Andrew House 0A Sample what this game Find out what you missed Sam Bradley, Edward Toomy Check out the demo of has to offer as the Hous- ^ the first time around as (Bocount Соот

Do what it takes to leave ^ this cel-shaded mech ton Astros go againstthe уои sample old-school- Justin Flores

your graf upon the city of action game, which is Chicago White Sox. Will style gameplay with

New Radius while deal- replete with whimsical the White Sox live up to а modern twist in this Programming and interface artwork by

ing with rival gangs and atmosphere and a cool the title of World Champi- ^ month's selection of Lifelike Productions, Ins

avoidipg the police. cartoony vibe. ons? That's up to you. Demo Classics. көнші William Bohan, Ron Midthun, Avery

3D Artists Jason Robinson, Philip Williamson, David Hayes WATCH IT! President Katherine Williams

WELCOME TO Technical Director Tim Edwards

OUR WORLD SPECIAL THANKS

Maimoona Block, Kirsten Costello, Christine DeNezza, Tom a of the E we Gillan, Gerald Martin, Sean Thomas, Jim Williams pride ourselves on is

bringing you the latest DISC PROBLEMS?

and greatest demos the Did you buy a copy of our magazine that did not gaming world has to |] contain a demo DVD? Simply send the receipt іп an lope marked “ОРМ Replacement Disc" to OPM offer, That is f th еп eae F a E E Disc Producer, Ziff Davis Media, 101 2nd Street, San enelits of reading the Francisco, CA 94105, with the name and address of the Official U.S. PlayStation store plus your phone number and address and we'll Magazine, which you send you the disc. Make sure you specify which month are holding right here the corresponding disc belongs to in order to ensure in your hands. you get the right one. This month lets you Hmmm, this month's disc This game promises all Take a lengthy look at I you have а malfunctioning or nonworking demo disc,

3 . " аса қ r call EDS at 1-800-627-6458. They will provide instruc- become a rookie graf seems to have a hidden Still need convincing as the realism and subtlety this thoroughly enjoyable tions to obtain repair or replacement services.

artist in Marc Ecko's demo. And we're not to the brilliance of Blood of real golf right in your role-playing spectacle Sony Computer Entertainment America (SCEA) war- Opus to street culture going to tell you where Money? Here's another living room—except you and sample the compel- rants to the original purchaser of the Official U.S.

or sample the sand- itis—the weight of the look at what it takes to won't have to walk. See ling story found within. PlayStation Magazine that the demo disc included is box-style gameplay of world is on your shoul- be the world's greatest if it delivers by watching Соте on, you know you free from defects in material and workmanship for a

the RPG hit Steambot ders to find it. assassin. this video. want to. period of ninety (90) days from the date of purchase. Chronicles. But that's SCEA agrees for a period of ninety (90) days to either

repair or replace, at its option, the SCEA product. You not all; baseball season must call EDS at 1-800-627-6458 to receive instructions is well under way and WATCH IT! to obtain repair/replacement services. we have included the This warranty shall not be applicable and shall be void demo for MLB 06: The if the defect in the SCEA product has arisen through Showto get you in the abuse, unreasonable use, mistreatment, neglect, or AO. breakage during shipment. THIS WARRANTY IS IN и. LIEU OF ALL OTHER WARRANTIES AND NO OTHER ү REPRESENTATIONS OR CLAIMS OF ANY NATURE re you waiting for? SHALL BE BINDING ON OR OBLIGATE SCEA. ANY Grab the disc and get IMPLIED WARRANTIES APPLICABLE TO THIS to your PlayStation SOFTWARE PRODUCT, INCLUDING WARRANTIES ОҒ 2! Oh, and one last MERCHANTABILITY AND FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR thing...can anyone find the hidden game?

PURPOSE, ARE LIMITED TO THE NINETY (90) DAY PERIOD DESCRIBED ABOVE. IN NO EVENT WILL SCEA BE LIABLE FOR INCIDENTAL OR CONSEQUENTIAL DAMAGES RESULTING FROM POSSESSION, USE, OR MALFUNCTION OF THE SCEA SOFTWARE PRODUCT. Some states do not allow limitations as to how long an Check out this übercool Go behind the scenes It's been 20 years since Both Joe and Logan implied warranty lasts and/or exclusions or limitations of

interactive comic book and sample some of the е original Rampage agree that this is the best Consequential damages, so the above limitations and/or exclusions of liability may not apply to you. This war-

from creator Hideo intense dogfights that became an arcade clas- third-person shooter to тай. give аа legal rights, and yoy als Kojima and producer make up the bulk of the sic. And now there's grace the PSP so far. have other rights that vary from state to state. Noriaki Okamura. These action in this latest Асе another new version— Take an in-depth look for

guys rock. Combat game. check it out right here. yourself.

ENGINEERED FOR WAR ы Ж” FIGHTING FOR VENGE ANCE. кш

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Blood

Use of Alcohol Violence

DVD-ROM атак

STAFF

809 | i 3

3

TOM BVeOoN DANA JOE PVEICKI spent а rollicking St. Patrick's Day in Dublin, where OONGEWAAD finally succumbed to

the sweet, sweet siren call of Oblivion, which caused him to cave

and finally pony up the money for an Xbox 360. Suddenly he's begun "working from home" an awful lot. But those two facts couldn't possibly be related...could they?

he drank Guinness and regaled all of Ireland with his tales of bountiful riches in a little place called America. Sure'n Tom's trip to his native land was fun, but the trip he's really looking forward to is the one to Los Angeles for the big E3 festivities, where he'll finally get hands-on time with the PS3. While he waits, he'll continue to play Monster Hunter: Free- dom, secretly obsess over Oblivion, and be awed at this issue's PS3-games feature.

is alarmed by the recent outbreak of parenthood on OPM, especially since the rest of the coworkers on the floor keep speculating who will be next and then glancing her way. She's doing her best to dispel any rumors.

THE OPM FAMILY

THIERRY NGUYEN

is so psyched about Mercenaries 2that he ordered a baby bandolier diaper bag to make him- self look rugged. After donning said bag, he quipped, “If a bandolier is good enough for Chewie, then it's good enough for me and my kid."

GIANCARLO UAANINI

Spent almost an hour listening to Europe's “Final Countdown,” which crosses off item No. 384 on the list of 1,000 things he wants to do before he dies. Next up? Deep sea fishing with the ghost of Ernest Hemingway!

LOGAN PAREZ has discovered new life in his PlayStation Por- table as he’s been play- ing titles such as Syphon Filter: Dark Mirror and Daxter. Now if only

he can figure who the little grey alien is that is communicating with him through the PSP's network options...

f2VAN чик needed something to bolster his art direct-

ing drive when fellow art minion Alejandro took time off for his kid. To this end, Ryan has concocted something he calls "Liquid Rage"—a mix of Vitamin Water, Red Bull, Jolt gum, and a burst of ephedrine.

ALEJANDRO СНАЧЕТТА realized that in all of his classes regarding father- hood, they never said you couldn't eat the baby or instruct him or her in the ways of the vampire. If there was еуег а convincing argument for educational reform, this is it, folks.

Ees TENDED FAMIL

CONTRIBUTORS

Jeremy Parish John Scalzi

Sean DallasKidd GREG SEWART FONTS hails from the same CommunityService, country cold comes from: Unfinished Canada. He worked for by YouWorkForThem 0РМ5 sister mag, Elec- tronic Gaming Monthly, for years before joining, and then leaving, the

GREG FORD is the reviews edi- tor for ОРМ sister magazine, Electronic Gaming Monthly. He also recently discovered that girls do not like eat- ing outside or riding in

JAMES MIELKE shares with the world

his disturbingly extensive knowledge of Japan's bizarro world of pop culture in his debut as the writer of J-Town. We're

OBERT ASHLEY

comes from Texas, where they grow their game reviewers tall and snarky. He also makes music in not one, but two different bands. He's

a-scared. No, really. paddleboats. multifunctional like that. game-design community. ilkman.1UP.com ват ford.1UP.com robertashley.1UP.com stewy.TUP.com

=_—————-+-———

Official U.S. PlayStation Magazine (ISSN #1094-8683) is published monthly Бу Ziff Davis Modia Inc., 28 East 28th Street, New York, NY 10016. Periodicals Postage Paid at New York, NY 10016 and additional mailing offices. Ride Along enclosed in all U.S. copies. Single-issue rate: $8.99. Subscription Rates: One Year (12 issues and 12 demo discs) $49.97 U.S., $65.97 all other countries. Ride along enclosed. POSTMASTER: Send address changes to Official U.S, PlayStation Magazine, РО. Box 55362, Boulder, CO 80322-5362. For Subscription Service Inquiries call us at 800-627-6458 U.S. and Canada, or 303-604- 7445 ай other countries. Fax us at 850-683-4094 U.S. and Canada, or 303-604-0518 all other countries, or visit our subscription website at service.playstationmagazine.com. Back Issues: Back issues are $8 ‘each in the US, $10 each elsewhere (subject to availability). Prepayment is required. Make checks payable to Official U.S. PlayStation Magazine. Mail your requests to: Back Issues, Ziff Davis Modia In Box 53131, Boulder, СО 80322-3131. Mailing lists: We sometimes make lists of our customers available to mailers of goods and services that may interest you. If you do not wish to receive their mailings, please write to us at: Official U.S. Playstation Magazine, РО. Box 56362. Boulder, CO 80322-5362. Copyright © 2006 Ziff Davis Media Inc. All Rights Reserved. Official U.S. PlayStation Magazine is а trademark of Ziff Davis Publishing Holdings Inc. Without Ii transmitted, in any form, or by any mei

ing the rights under copyrights reserved herein, no part of this publication may be reproduced, stored іп or introduced into a retrieval system, or

(electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise) without tho prior written notice of Ziff Davis Media Inc. The editors and publishers are not respon- sible for unsolicited materials. For permission to rouse material from our publications or websites, or to use our logo, contact Ziff Davis Media's Rights and Permissions Manager, Olga Gonopolsky, at permis- sions@riffdavis.com. For article reprints and e-prints, contact FosteReprints, 866-879-9144, TM & © for all other products and the characters contained therein are owned by the respective trademark and copyright holders. All materials in this magazine are subject to change and the publisher assumes no responsibility for such changes. The Canadian GST registration number is 14049 6720 RT. Publications Май Agreoment No. 40009221. Return Undeliverable Canadian Addresses to РО Box 503, RPO Wost Beaver Creek, Richmond Hil, ON L48 ane. Printed in the USA.

Managing Editor Dana Jongewaard Senior Editor Joe Rybicki Previews Editor Thierry Nguyen

News Editor Giancarlo Varanini

Art Director Ryan Vulk

Now Dad Alejandro Chavetta

зс Producer Logan Parr

Editorial Contributors Robert Ashley, Robert Coffey, Greg Ford, Nich Maragos, Jeremy Parish, John Scalzi, Greg Sewart, Andrew Vestal

[Сору Оркен тас 2 07 e ree Copy Chief Susie Ochs

Copy Editors Kaitlen Jay Exum, Andrew Fitch [PRODUCTION езге 172 тищ г Senior Production Manager Anne Marie Miguel

Production Manager Monica Brent

President Scott C. McCarthy

President and GM, 1UP Network Ira Becker

Scott McDaniel

I Director John Davison

Vice President of Marketing, Research, and Events Rey Ledda Group Creative Director Simon Cox

[SALES у безем ур 7 с. ырыс nt of Sales Scott McDaniel

дог of Advertising Sales Marci Yamaguchi

GAMING ACCOUNTS—NORTHWEST

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Regional Sales Manager Andrew Reedman

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CONSUMER ACCOUNTS

Senior Director of Consumer Advertising Sales Marc Callison

Account Executive Jessica Reinert AUTOMOTIVE ACCOUNTS—DETROIT Regional Sales Manager Ken Stubblefield Promotions Manager Wendy Donohue

Senior Advertising Coordinator Tipler Ubbelohde Administrative Assistant Lynn Fortunato

Sales Assistant Tiffany Orf

To contact sales and advertising, please call 415-547-8000

Editor-in-Chief Sam Kennedy Senior Manager of Client Services Alex Jakovleski Senior Manager of Ad Operations Adam Carey Audience Development Manager Nopadon Wongpakdee Advertising Campaign Coordinator LeAnne Hsu

Vice Prosident of Marketing, Research, and Events Rey Ledda Research Director May Tong

PR Manager Jason Freidenfelds

Marketing Coordinator Vanessa Alvarado

Marketing Graphic Designer Drew Hathaway

ZIFF DAVIS MEDIA INC.

Chairman & CEO Robert F. Callahan

Chief Financial Officer Mark Moyer

Executive Vice President & Chief Content Officer Michael J. Miller. Executive Vice President, Licensing & Legal Affairs, General Counsel & Secretary Gregory Barton

Presidents

Scott C. McCarthy (Game Group)

Sloan Seymour (Enterprise Group)

Jason Young (Consumer Tech/Small Business Group)

Senior Vice Presidents

Kenneth Beach (Corporate Sales)

Jim Louderback (Editorial Director, Consumer/Small Business Group) Angelo Mandarano (Sales & Marketing, Internet)

Martha Schwartz (Custom Solutions Group)

Elda Vale (Research/Market Intelligence & Corporate Marketing) Michael Vizard (Editorial Director, Enterprise Group)

Vice Presidents

‘Aiden Colie (CTO, Ziff Davis Internet)

John Davison (Editorial Director, Game Group)

Elaine Ebner (Corporate Sales)

Aaron Goldberg (Market Experts)

Barry Harrigan (Internet)

Kristin Holmes (International Licensing)

Michael Krieger (Market Experts)

Rey Ledda (Marketing, Research, and Events, Game Group) Rick Lehrbaum (Internet)

Carlos Lugo (Production)

Eric Lundquist (Editor-in-Chief, eWEEK)

Chris Maginn (Internet)

Jim McCabe (PC Magazine)

Scott McDaniel (Sales, Game Group)

Paul O'Reilly (Event Marketing Group)

Ellen Pearlman (Editor-in-Chief, CIO Insight)

Beth Repeta (Human Resources)

‘Stephen Sutton (Audience Development, Consumer/Small Business Group) ‘Stephen Veith (Enterprise Group Publishing Director)

Monica Vila (Event Marketing Group)

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IT West Coast Senior Technical Analyst Bill Schmelzer Desktop Administrator Nick Kalister

Contact anyone on this masthead using firstname_lastname@zitfdavis.com

SUBSCRIPTION SERVICE NUMBER

THE SKIES HAVE NO MERCY.

Defend the country of Ustio against an enemy that

is smarter, faster and deadlier than any that have come before. Relive the events fifteen years prior to Ace Combat 5. Welcome to the dogfight of your life-The Belkan War.

FJ-5 OSE-GH: 65833

Battle skilled rival aces with their own individual flying styles.

Mild Language Violence ESRB CONTENT RATING

A PlayStation.e

www.esth.org

ACE COMBAT ZERO™ THE BELRAN WAR & © 2006 NAMCO BANDAI Games Inc. Ace Combat is a registered trademark of NAMCO BANDAI Games Inc. PlayStation" and the “PS” Family logo are registered trademarks of Sony Computer Entertainment

t Software Association. All trademarks and copyrights associated with the manufacturers, aircraft, models, trade names, brands and visual images depicted in this game are the property of their respective owners, and used with such permissions.

3 теит E p | ‚т UN ||

ТЕТ

THE ЧОІСЕ OF THE PEOPLE..Ole WNHATEUEIZ

WE WEREN'T CRAZY FOR

THE KRATOS

Love the magazine. | just thought I'd show some love with a couple of pieces | did: my Kratos drawing and my iPsp ad (that's me holding it). Yeah, that's right: idon't iPod, iPsp.

THERE WAS A PLAYSTATION 2? Why are we so excited for the PlayStation 3? Yes, the graphics are better; yes, the games are going to push the limits; and yes, it will have a profound effect on the future of gam- ing. Oh, and yes, | am looking forward to it.

But | feel the need to remind everyone of another game system that has tested the lim- its of imagination and creativity. What is this marvelous device? Odds are you already have it: the PlayStation 2. That little machine has more blockbuster smashes on it-than Peter Jackson's portfolio, and they're still coming. 2006 is the year for PlayStation gamers. We get a reformed Lara Croft, a work of art in Okami, a legendary, yet long-delayed, game in Final Fantasy XII, Metal Gear Solid 3: Sub- sistence, and of course my personal favorite, Kingdom Hearts Il. Wow.

If none of those games impressed you, go for the oldies. Essentially every one of the Jak and Daxter games has been good, same with Ratchet & Clank and Sly Cooper. If you dislike Sony's three mascots, then take a look into the Dark Cloud games, or maybe the cult classic Sphinx and the Cursed Mummy. If you love RPGs, then definitely go for Final Fantasy X and Shadow Hearts. Like classic titles? Then you'd be happy with Midway Arcade Trea- sures, Sonic Mega Collection Plus, and Mega Man Anniversary Collection. Star Wars nut? Star Wars Battlefront Il and Lego Star Wars. Love something violent? God of War, Black, and GTA: San Andreas. Still not happy? Then make your own game with one of the several RPG Makers or Graffiti Kingdom.

My point: Everyone's so excited about what's coming they forget what's already here.

HERE'S JOHNNY!

| really enjoyed seeing John Davison coming back to write for the magazine. | was just flip- ping through the April 2006 [OPM #103] issue, and | noticed his picture on an article talking about his predictions about the PlayStation 3. l've been a regular reader of your magazine, and | still like the new members, but it's nice to see some old friends come back. Thank you for continuing a great magazine.

me OA... ЕТ TO JOE

І read your story entitled "Missed Opportuni- ties" [P.S., ОРМ #104, May 2006], and it struck close to home for me.

My mom was recently diagnosed with an inoperable form of cancer. She probably has about a year to live. Although my mother is still alive today, | think daily about what | could have done better as a son or how І could help make sure she knows she was the best mother a boy could ask for. | know that day is approaching, and your letter really did help me realize there are some really small things that will make a lot of difference. The type of difference that will make sure she knows everything was OK on her final day. I’m not sure | would have ever thought just answering a small request from a long time ago would make any difference today, or even on that day, but your column definitely showed me a bit of that light.

Joe, | don't think you really disrespected your mom. You did what we all can easily do, and that is to take for granted that our parents are there at all. Keeping in touch is simple, but really knowing they are there and really knowing what they have done for us as children and adults is really the hard part. We aren't here forever, and anyone going through what you've gone through or what I’m going through will really understand that truth.

I'm not sure my response to your mom's request is going to be what she wanted, but you both deserve a response. And, hell no, you can't disobey Mom!

Videogames cause violence in those that are predisposed to violent behavior. Those of us on a more even keel play a game and then

16 DAIN 2

006

| ^ الال

walk away. [Antivideogame attorney] Jack Thompson is a perfect example of videogames causing violence. This man turns into a froth- ing, raving lunatic at the mere mention of vid- eogames. He becomes incoherent, wild-eyed, and seems to [regress] into a state similar to that of a juvenile caveman. Jack is predisposed to violent behavior and is therefore more affected by videogames. On an interesting note, he does gain litigation superpowers once in this state. However, he doesn't seem to know how to effectively use them yet. l'm guessing we will be in real danger if he can pull himself out of his perpetual “payback” state.

On a more serious note, we can't deny the mental impact of video games on some people. We've all seen that guy that goes crazy because things aren't going his way, scream- ing at the TV or monitor and generally becom- ing someone you would rather videotape and expose on the Internet than actually play a game with. However, this happens to a very small minority of the gamers in the world, and these people will probably react that way to almost anything not going their way.

Your mother has a valid point in the fact it can influence people in a negative way. How- ever, that point is usually made to overthrow the actual fact that it rarely does. As a matter of fact, some games have been proven to be very therapeutic. If we were to go on the basis that something can affect you, then we would have nothing left in the world to do or even enjoy.

The real kicker is when people say vid- eogames are training people to be killers or terrorists. If that's the case, I’m probably 8 kick-ass surgeon, sword fighter, race-car driver, magician, field commander, spy, and pilot. And that's just to name a few of my vid- eogame-induced talents.

Thanks for the wake-up letter.

THE GREAT PS3 PRICE DEBATE

By the time you read this, Sony will have revealed what the PS3 is going to cost. But those inquisitive stalwarts of the OPM message boards couldn't re answering the question posed by Sonyfan405, “How much would you

allGT4 m getting re right now, so

65 with the funny before Well | have $2.30 on me $400." wait-and-see If they drop Blu-ray (the next nd price it at around $250, Jer buying one.” FinalFantasyRuler88 thinks way back: “Well, when my PS2 was bought, it was about $650 Canadian, and that's about what | think I'll be shelling out again.” To which bargain-hunter Anaris82 quickly fires b; You got rippe: The ever-practical ChickenNext

checks in: “I'm not even buying a PS3. At least not at launch. When the price will at least be reasonable, and by that | mean $250, I'll buy one."

Botkiller patiently agrees: “$300. Which means | probably won't be getting one for a year or two after it comes out. Which is fine, because around the time it drops to that price should hopefully be around the time MGS4 comes out.”

The skeptical ohJTBehaaave needs convincing: "I can see the PS3 being priced between $500 and $600 dollars with this Blu-ray stuff. Without the games, which are never there anyway at launch, I'll be holding off on getting a PS3 if the price is as high as the rumors say it will be. Like Bot said, no reason to cough up the $$$ until games like MGS start to hit shelves. That's when I'll start to think about coughing up the big buck

Its Shameless Self-Pro- motion Month—again— here at OPM, in which we take the opportunity. to remind you that each of the staff has his/her own blog оп ТУР. Неге they are—be sure to

visit them all

DDASS!

LEGEND CORRECTION

On the DVD sleeve in the May 2006 issue (#104), Tomb Raider: Legend was incorrectly identified as developed by Pyro Stu- dios. The correct devel- oper is Crystal Dynamics. OPM regrets the error.

э

scooter 1UP.com

PENNY-ARCADE.COM

I don't know why Kingdom Hearts games маке me do all this teddy bear crap.

Winnie the Pooh

He merges with Jenova, and

Murders Christopher Robin. At the end, he summons

a meteor and tries to destroy The Hundred Acre Wood.

That sounds hard-core. How are you supposed to beat him?

He gets Stuck in the door to Rabbit's

bastard child. 1URcom

It's a site for Sora’s eyes LOL. Actually, like the page intro says, “This is a Club 4 Kingdom Hearts fanatix alike!” We like! soraskingdom-club. Тир. com

Blood

Language Violence

А, ci NE

OLVE MYSTERIES and puzzles that go beyond anything you have seen or read. You must stay one step ahead of an enemy formed by an ominous, covert society that will stop at nothing to protect their 2,000 year old secret. OV add P

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Follow a trail of clues hidden in Da Vinci's A unique blend of stealth, combat, Experience new adventures and solve new puzzles paintings that will ultimately lead to the exploration and puzzle solving. that you won't find in the film or book. final resting place of the Holy Grail.

The Da Vinci Code: ТМ & © 2006 Columbia Pictures Industries, Inc. All rights reserved. 2K, the 2K logo, and Take-Two Interactive Software are all trademarks and/or registerer trademarks of Take-Two Interactive Software, Inc. Developed by The Collective, Underlying Game Code: © 2006 The Collective, Inc. All rights reserved. "PlayStation" and the "PS Family logo are registered trademarks of Sony Computer Entertainment Inc. Microsoft, Xbox and the Xbox logos are either registered trademarks or trademarks of Microsof Corporation in the US. and/or in other countries and are used under license from Microsoft. The ratings icon is a trademark of the Entertainment Software Association. All othe marks and trademarks are the property of their respective owners,

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Explore world famous locations such as Тһе An all new videogame adventure. Louvre, Westminster Abbey, and Saint-Sulpice. See the movie, in theaters Мау 19еһ , А

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PREVIEWS AND NENS FROM THE WORLD OF PLAYSTATION

Is. lom was first shown publicly, there seemed to be a consensus on two main points. The first was, "Cool, a hack-n-slash for launch"; the second, “It doesn't look very next-gen.” So how does early input affect a game's development? We visited the Sony Online Entertainment offices to check out the team's prog-

ress on Dark Kingdom. The team was in the middle of getting code ready for E3; the plan was to have a portion of the game playable on the show floor—and supposedly PS3 controllers to play it with, р Ф = [ Р е а a “ although when we visited, that wasn't absolutely certain yet.

Andy Sites, Dark Kingdom's producer, starts giving a tour of the FOURTEEN PLAYSTATION 3 GAMES PREVIEWED—OMG!!! Á game in its current state. A shinier version of the brute is running Б * 2 around in a village onscreen, tackling the skeletons іп his way. “Ini- tially, we wanted to follow the tradition of what UL had, with very blown-out-of-proportion, cartoony characters," Sites explains. "Our first character, the brute, was this big, burly guy with arms longer

40 CALENDAT2 than his legs—he was like 8 feet by 8 feet square.”

Keep ир to date on...everything. The character version he’s referring to is the one that was shown in

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the screenshots that accompanied the exclusive game announcement ен PAUSE 86 ЕКІ іп OPM's April issue (#103). Sites continues, "We got the brute into Not the furry kind, either. Hands-on promise that it’s the the game, and the first thing we realized was that he clashed. So the best FF yet. marketing guys put together a focus test where they went through all

3d OPM INTERVIEW the characters and all the concepts, and they gave us the initial reac-

Phil Harrison speaks. tions of what people thought. Based on that and on our gut instincts, we ended up doing a reset on all three of the characters.” So was the game shown too early? When asked, Sites says, “Showing when we did may have been a little premature consider- ing the early state of the game. However, | feel that the feedback we received will ultimately allow us to make a better game, and in the end, delivering a great game is all that matters.”

The team dropped the new character just the week prior to this visit, so right now they're working on getting him back to his prior action moves in time for the show. Senior creative director Rich Waters explains, "The timing on it is a little unfortunate. When we changed the main character up—visually, it was the right thing to do—but we had him fully functional. Не had all his combos, all his attack moves. And we've got this guy now who looks great, but it's a process of building him back up."

Art director Bill Yeatts adds, “I think more people are expecting more realistic-looking graphics in the next generation. At least for the first pass. Giving people what they expect is really important for a launch title. After all, we don't want to be Fantavision on the PS2, selling 5,000 copies."

The challenge for any PS3 development team at this stage is not knowing exactly what to expect. Since Sony has remained mum on so many aspects of the PS3, other publishers and developers have followed suit. Which means that little else is public that can be used for comparative purposes.

Waters muses, "It's really interesting to think about. We're wonder- ing how other teams are doing that are shooting for launch titles, because right now we don't have anything to directly compare to. It feels like we're doing pretty good, but we'll see."

IMAGINING THE POSSIBILITIES dius

One of the things that the SOE developers are most excited about is the opportunity that the built-in features of the PS3 offer. Sites

says, "Now that broadband capabilities are on board and they've announced [that it will have] a hard drive—those two things are

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typically expensive upgrades that most console players don't want to think about having to purchase."

Yeatts adds, "It will be very interesting to see if follows the trend of Xbox—broadband only or whatever it will be. On the PS2, it was very challenging to have the ISP and set up your modem. I'm interested to see how it goes through this time around for getting online.

“We'll find out, | guess," he laughs.

“At retail, there will only be three characters. Time plays a role in development, and you want to get each character fine-tuned," Sites explains. "It's more than just a visual change, and that's probably