142w ago - DrinkBox Studios CTO & Designer Chris Harvey has detailed About a Blob co-op play and PSN exclusivity today, as follows:

If you don't already know, in Tales from Space: About a Blob you take on the role of a tiny space blob that lands on Earth.

What's special about this particular creature is that he can eat anything smaller than him, which in turn allows him to grow. As the blob grows he can eat larger and larger objects. The player's goal is to find their way through all the levels and eventually eat the world.

We recently came back from the Penny Arcade Expo (PAX) where lots of people got a chance to play the game for the first time. The feedback was great, and we were extremely happy to see friends and couples have so much fun playing together in co-op.

In Tales from Space: About a Blob, two players can play simultaneously and interact by climbing or jumping off one another. Although the goal is for the blobs to work together, players can choose to attack or push each other around if they want, and can compete to see which player is better at destroying the world.

Around the office, people usually ping-pong back and forth between working together to solve puzzles, then messing each other up near obstacles or enemies.

Many people asked...

176w ago - Speaking with Japanese weekly Famitsu, Sega stated they would consider developing Shenmue III exclusively for one platform, if a platform holder was willing to help fund a third title in the cult-hit series.

Sega knows that fans want to see a new title emerge, but are apparently mindful of the fact that previous games didn't sell well - that said, they seem keen to get a new game made anyway.

To quote: "In a recent issue of the 360 dedicated Famitsu the game was discussed and the sum of it was this:

None of the previous games sold really well for the investment made, and SEGA is in doubt as to if it will resurrect the series. However, SEGA assured the fans that if there is some opportunity to revisit the series, they would love to do it.

SEGA also mentioned the chance of one of the three hardware makers financing the game's (Shenmue III) production in exchange for an exclusivity deal."

221w ago - Remember that biased and irrational media blowup concerning the PSN bandwidth fee? Yeah, well, who thinks publishers won't want to put their games on the PSN now?

As reported by GamesIndustry.biz, Sony will match the development budget of a self-published video game if that title remains exclusive to the PlayStation Network.

The first game to take advantage of the deal is the recently released Burn Zombie Burn!, and Sony says they're "looking for a great many more titles," so pay attention, self-publishers! Chris Eden, Sony development relations manager, says they're ready to put their money where their mouth is:

"It's all very well for us as platform holders to say 'put all your money into PlayStation Network, it's a fantastic idea', but are we prepared to put or money where our mouth is? The answer is yes. We're looking for a number of great games, and in return for exclusivity we'll match your development budget with guaranteed royalties."

This deal is called the "Pub Fund" and just to be clear, Sony is not purchasing exclusive rights for the games in question (a practice Microsoft...

222w ago - Media Molecule, creators of the AIAA-pwning LittleBigPlanet, haven't really caught a lot of flack from critics since their highly texturized platformer hit store shelves.

However, many have questioned why the game wasn't released on multiple platforms, bolstering the ranks of the LBP community and fattening the wallets of the game's creators.

In a recent interview with Gamasutra, Media Molecule co-founder Alex Evans explained he doesn't regret making LBP a Sony-exclusive title.

According to Evans, Sony put a lot of their eggs in the LBP basket, effectively putting the tiny developer "up on a pedestal," providing them with the "nurturing" they needed to succeed.

As far as expanding the user base, Evans says he's holding out hope for a PS3 price drop. Aren't we all, pal.

229w ago - Eurogamer (linked above) recently sat down with David Reeves, president of Sony Computer Entertainment Europe, to discuss his views on the PS3, PSP and where they both stand.

With regards to exclusive games, Reeves toed the company line, stating that "you can't live on exclusivity forever; in the end, you've got to be master of your own destiny."

To quote: By investing in third-party partnerships -- and first-party acquisitions like Guerrilla Games -- Sony removes the need to rely on publishers for exclusive content. "We don't have to go to Capcom or Take-Two and ask for an exclusive. And I don't think we could afford it anyway. In the cold light of day, I would do exactly as those publishers have done and go multi-platform."

When asked about any unannounced PS3 titles for later in the year, he indicated that "there are a couple." Look for those to be announced soon, possibly in "the next four to six weeks."

Reeves goes on to discuss the PSP, saying that the system's need for "better and more original games" has not yet been met, but that "the line-up for PSP in 2009 is two or three times stronger than it was last year."

It sounds promising, especially considering the number of great Japanese games that are in development for the system. Hopefully we'll...