According to the official Japanese SCEJ site, the current closed PlayStation 3 Home BETA is due to end in a matter of weeks, presumably then opening up the final 1.0 version to a wider public.
Additionally, here’s a list of companies that have signed up as partners for Home, providing content, spaces etc:
- IREM
- Activision
- Acquire
- Atlus
- Walt Disney Japan
- SNK
- EA
- Capcom
- Q Entertainment
- Game Republic
- Genki
- Koei
- Konami
- Spike
- Sega
- D3 Publisher
- Tecmo
- Nippon Ichi Software
- Hudson
- Bandai Namco Games
- Ubisoft
Finally, Home has a major presence at TGS this year, as can be seen by these photographs from the show.
Tecmo have unveiled Quantum Theory for PS3 in the latest issue of Famitsu. The game looks like a third-person shooter, and will hit Japan in 2009 with Fatal Frame creator Keisuke Kikuchi overseeing the project's production.
According to information obtained from Famitsu, players take control of a man named Sid and set off to destroy the Tower of Light.
As players meet up a female named Firene later in the game, elements of teamwork will be present. However, is not yet known if you’ll actually be able to control both characters.
Check out one scan below, with more linked above courtesy of GameKyo!
Back before Square Enix rescinded its friendly Tecmo takeover bid, we first broke the news that RPG maker was baffled. Tecmo rejected its offer in favor of merging with Dynasty Warriors company Koei. Most curious. Square Enix had three questions for Tecmo:
1. Please confirm that the decision on the start of discussions with KOEI toward integration of management is the reason for rejection of the Proposal.
2. If that is the case, please clarify concretely that major terms of integration of management with KOEI (form of the integration, stock prices assumption, integration ratio and so forth) are favorable for TECMO's shareholders than the Proposal.
3. If not, please clarify that TECMO has an alternative plan, which is favorable for TECMO's shareholders than the Proposal.
Tecmo didn't answer these questions until today. We've translated that, after the jump.
Square Enix announced its proposal last week to acquire a controlling stake in Tecmo. While the bid was set to expire later today, Tecmo formally rejected the offer this morning, as they believe a merge with Koei would be more fitting.
From the released statement, translated by Reuters:
Through a merger, we expect we can grow further by respecting both companies’ identities and having an environment in which employees can fully exhibit their skills.
Koei, eh? Makes sense. Tecmo is popular here in the West with titles like Ninja Gaiden and Dead or Alive, while Koei is well-known for its Dynasty Warriors series, which is a huge hit in Japan.
So a merge would give them significant market share in both countries. Given the current state of the company, it’s rather surprising that Tecmo passed up on Square’s offer indeed.
Ryan Payton, self-described game hobo, fresh off working on Metal Gear Solid 4 and a cross-country move from Japan back to Seattle, took some time to sit down with me this weekend to talk development, Japan and life.
Payton's move back from Japan to the U.S. couldn't come at a better time for a game developer, as the focus on game development seems to be shifting from former dev powerhouse Japan to the U.S. Japan may still be the center of the gaming universe when it comes to cold hard cash, but when it comes to development it no longer seems to be, Payton said.
"The Japanese public seems to be disinterested in next-gen and high definition gaming," he said, pointing to the 360 and its apparent uphill battle in Japan as proof of that. "There is a stigma still attached to western technology there."
"There have been a lot of good mainstream games built for the Japanese Xbox 360," he said. "But they only sold a small number of copies. I think t... More »
According to a Reuters report (linked above), Square Enix is planning to purchase Tecmo, owner of the popular Ninja Gaiden and Dead or Alive franchises.
Today, the RPG-focused publisher placed a bid valued at 920 yen per share, for more than half of Tecmo’s shares.
As of writing, Tecmo has yet to respond to the bid, which expires on September 4. If rejected or ignored, Square Enix does not plan to reup the offer, as it is aiming for a friendly transaction.
The move would no doubt broaden Square’s portfolio, which consists largely of RPG centric titles.
Curious what ex-Team Ninja head Tomonobu Itagaki has been up to since leaving Tecmo back in June? Our own James Mielke journeyed all the way to Tokyo to score this exclusive post-Tecmo interview with the father of Ninja Gaiden, and boy is it a doozy.
Always quick with plenty to say that can stir things up, this beefy chat with the admittedly drunk Itagaki is overflowing with gems. For example, Itagaki likens the decline of Japanese game development -- and most other things -- to aerial dogfights:
"For instance, look back to World War II. You had aerial dogfight battles with 600 planes on each side. And then, as we got into, say, the Korean War, it was maybe 50 or 60 per side. And in modern times, with modern jet planes, you only need one or two to fight a battle. So you certainly see a progression like that, but I look at it as someone who likes fighter planes and thinks they're really cool. The fact that fighter planes themselves have dwindled in num... More »
If you’re one of the people experiencing the freezing problem in Ninja Gaiden II since the last title update was released, we have the temporary fix for you! According to a majority of the people having this problem, you can play Ninja Gaiden II without any problems by deleting your hard drive’s cache and playing the game offline. It might take some time for Tecmo and Microsoft to come up with a patch, so this solution might help you.
By deleting your game cache in your hard drive, all of your game updates will be erased, forcing you to download them again the next time you sign into XBOX Live. Here’s how to delete your game cache:
Please be reminded that once you do this, you won’t be able to play the Mission Modes while you’re offline with your game cache being cleared!
- Go to the system blade and Select MEMORY
- Press Y and then press X, X, LB, RB, X, X. A confirmation message will appear asking you if you want to perfor... More »
(2) 
