Cloud Monday - Daxter - Part 2 - Trophies And Rewind Make This Great Game Easier To Recommend

This week's Cloud Monday video is part 2 of playing the PSP version of Daxter on PS4 via the PlayStation Plus Cloud Streaming Service to my Japanese launch model PlayStation 4.

It quickly became clear in Part 1, https://youtu.be/8O1Ue63OQ7Q, that the PlayStation Portable game #Daxter holds up today just like it did back in 2006. After that part and this, i can comfortably say that this is one of the best PS1/PS2/PSP games emulated on PS4 and PS5. Daxter was already well designed for a portable system, and things like great checkpoints, immediate respawns, and manual saves carry over into streaming this game from PlayStation Plus Cloud Streaming Service.

It's not perfect, there are some issues due to it's age and original platform it was developed for. there were times when i felt i was moving the camera and doing button presses faster than the emulated game could keep up with. this meant i was walking of ledges and not hitting enemies as i thought. this wasn't a huge issue, but something i noticed. something else is that it felt hard to walk in a straight line with Daxter. whilst out and about it wasn't a big issue but many levels have narrow ledges and platforms and more than once i ended up walking off and falling. thankfully, the emulated software has a rewind feature so i was able to quickly get back and try again.

Cloud Monday - Daxter - What Made It Great On PSP Makes It Great To Stream From The Cloud

This week's Cloud Monday video is part 1 of playing the PSP version of Daxter on PS4 via the PlayStation Plus Cloud Streaming Service to my Japanese launch model PlayStation 4.

Daxter originally came out on PlayStation Portable back in 2006 and it's a game i have played and finished. but it's been such a long time, i was excited to play it again. I've been looking at the new PS1, PS2, and PSP games that have been added to PS4 and PS5 via emulation, trying to find one that still holds up and isn't a novelty or a nostalgia recommendation. Daxter maybe the first one of these games that i've played that i would recommend as a game that still holds up. 

Daxter is smartly designed for the PSP. it's level's aren't too sprawling that they take ages to complete. there's a decent amount of platforming and things to do, but it can take 15-25 minutes to complete it. this may sound like that there'd be a lot of loss progress if there's a disconnection from the cloud streaming service. Daxter also has a great check point system and auto save system which helps alleviate those worries. The service does give us a 20 second warning first and Daxter seems to let us save anywhere in the game and it saves quickly.

These features are similar to what the emulated games can do. via the Options button you can chose to save or load at any point in the game. what the emulation software adds is the ability to rewind. but this isn't as big of deal as in other games because the game checkpoint frequently and is very fast to put us back in to the game.

Other benefits are that the game looks great. it was already a great looking PSP game, but it still holds up well in 1080p on PS4. our character, Daxter, is quite big on screen, as is other characters and things like text boxes and enemies, which mean if there are issues with stream tearing or macro blocking it's still fairly easy to work out what's happening and continue playing like nothing's wrong.

Today's gameplay was a little rough with my connection. i imagine it was a bandwidth issue more than anything. i would say that the camera does take a little getting used to. the emulation software has done a great job of mapping the controls to the right analogue stick and i found them responsive. but maybe they're a bit too responsive for the game itself. it was made with different controls in mind and sometimes i found myself fighting the game. this meant that there were moments where i failed to land a jump as i couldn't work out the 3D space well. But with the rewind feature, i wasn't too concerned. it's just a little frustrating quirk of the game.

Cloud Monday - Resistance: Retribution - Part 2 - The Streaming Experience Is Better Than The Game

This week's Cloud Monday video is part 2 of playing the PS4 version of the PSP game Resistance: Retribution  via the PlayStation Plus Cloud Streaming Service to my Japanese launch model PlayStation 4.

I have this game on #PlayStationPortable but it's been a very long time since i last played it. Playing Part 1, https://youtu.be/jEs97ouESk8, felt nostalgic but it was a different experience for me as i played it on the PSP rather than on TV using the Dual Shock 3 on PSP option. The only way to make that work well was to adjust the controller speed and overall it felt more difficult and intense than you would've expected for the start of the game.

Knowing that, i did think that part 2 was easier. not just that i had adjusted the controls to make it easier to play, but also it felt like the level design got a little easier. Still, it continued to be an intense experience with game design that made me wonder if this was a PS2 game that got switched to the PS3 because of how much of a console experience it felt like not just in levels design but also with how infrequent the auto save is and how long some sequences are.

Streaming it tho continued to be a great experience. If this was just the PSP game, i wouldn't recommend it. but because it's been ported to the PS4 and got manual saves and rewinds, it's something i can recommend. in this video there was a moment where the stream quality dipped and i got the connection warning but i didn't panic as i could use the manual save and quickly did so. 

So this still comes to down the game itself. like last week, streaming it from the cloud to us is great but is the game itself worth playing. across both parts there have been more technological issues with the game than streaming issues. with the controls being as bad as they are, this basic port makes a bad first impression and i wonder if they could've done more like automatically setting the control options faster. If you're a fan of Resistance, then this is the best way and easiest way to play this game. in that case it's easy to recommend. but i wouldn't recommend this game for people if this is their first Resistance game. I probably wouldn't recommend this to causal shooter fans either. But, personally, i am glad this does exist on PS4 and hope that it'll be further fixed and improved.

Cloud Monday - Resistance: Retribution - Part 1 - Adjust Controller Speeds To Make It More Playable

This week's Cloud Monday video is part1 of playing the PS4 version of the PSP game Resistance: Retribution  via the PlayStation Plus Cloud Streaming Service to my Japanese launch model PlayStation 4.

I have this game on PlayStation Portable but it's been a very long time since i last played it. I don't remember much of it on PSP so i was eager to play it again. But i was also curious if this game, being designed around the portable nature and limited battery life of a handheld, would also share game design qualities that would make it a good game to stream from the cloud. 

It does and it doesn't is the simple answer. As a PSP game, it doesn't work well being streamed from the cloud for many reasons. the cutscenes are very long and numerous, the auto save is very infrequent, and there appear to be no manual saves. these don't work well on a service that can kick you off with just a 20 second warning.

But it does work because it's a PS4 and PS5 game. the upgrades the game has received isn't just to the graphics, but Resistance: Retribution now gets access to a rewind feature and manual saves. I showed numerous times that there was no issue using the rewind feature, and when the connection got rough and the warning appeared i was able to very quickly do a manual save from the PS4 game rather than from in side the PSP game.

So, if it's a game that's a great choice to play in the cloud the question then becomes is it a game worth playing. That's tough because Resistance: Retribution has a few issues. this PS4 and PS5 version has already received a patch and needs a few more as it's rough in places. what stood out the most was how out of sync the audio seemed. whether it was the voices, sound effects, or even the cutscenes, at times it didn't match what was happening on screen. then there are other technical issues like screen tearing. As a PSP game, it has another issue regarding the controls. it was a game that could be controlled via a Dual Shock 3 (PS3 controller) and that's how it's played on PS4 and PS5. but the controls are very slow and heavy and really need to be adjusted much faster. The in-game tutorials haven't been adjusted for this either so there was some real trial and error learning how to control it.

With all this learnt in Part 1, part 2 will be interesting as i can focus more on the streaming experience and hopefully play around some of the quirks of the game and this port. 

Cloud Monday - Super Stardust Portable - Part 2 - A Rougher Stream From PlayStation Plus Premium

Today's Cloud Monday is part 2 of playing Super Stardust Portable on PS4 via the PlayStation Plus Premium Cloud Streaming Service.

I really enjoyed playing Super Stardust Portable on PS4 last week, https://youtu.be/zaOUq0mc6Qc, so i was looking forward to playing it for Part 2 of Cloud Monday. But this week, the streaming experience was much rougher than part 1. Last time, there were issues with macroblocking, but today we seemed to have all the major issues.

it got so rough that the streaming warning appeared for a time! there were stream tears, there were resolution drops, there was macroblocking, and there were times when it felt like it was slowing down and/or stuttering with the controls getting "heavy". there's a chance the latter could also be caused due to the game itself, rather than it being streamed to me. There were a couple of moments when the amount of enemies and particles on screen was really high and this was coupled with streaming/playing issues. 

It's still a fun game to play, but out of the two days i played this game today's issues negatively impacted my enjoyment of it, but it was still mostly playable. if you do have issues, downloading and installing the game is an option, but the point of this series is to see what the streaming experience is like.

Cloud Monday - Super Stardust Portable - Part 1 - A Little Rough At Times But Playable

Today's Cloud Monday is part 1 of playing Super Stardust Portable on PS4 via the PlayStation Plus Premium Cloud Streaming Service.

I have actually played the PSP version more recently than any other version of Super Stardust, so choosing to play the PS4 version of the PSP game was a bit of a guilty pleasure. i really enjoy the series and was always impressed with what they pulled off on PSP. I didn't go into this PS4 version thinking that everything would be fine. Every version of this game is known for particles and those are typically what streaming services can struggle with.

But i don't think they were an issue. Macroblocking seemed to be the biggest issue i came across. and much like with the recent Monster Boy and the Cursed Kingdom videos, this games relatively simple art style made it very noticeable when it happened.

i wouldn't say there were any issues with the controls, which is great in a game like this. it was very playable. but the macroblocking and, whilst often very brief, unknown strange happenings did make things a little distracting. it could be that because i'm familiar with the game, i was able to focus more on the game and ignore the minor stuff happening to the stream.

Cloud Monday - Key of Heaven - The First Hour

In today's Cloud Monday, I'm playing Key of Heaven (Also known as Kingdom of Paradise). this was originally released on PlayStation Portable, PSP, and is now available on PS4 and PS5. I'm playing the game on my PS4 via the PlayStation Plus Premium Cloud Streaming service.

In today's video, i play the first hour of the game. Whilst i knew of the game, i didn't really know what to expect. so, i was a little surprised that in the first hour of the game there isn't too much to do. There's a lot of story and exposition. There are some battles and for the most part they are easy. but the final battle in the video was truly difficult.

As for the streaming quality, i don't have anything major to report. i found that the game played quite well. there was a little artifacting/macro blocking in the pause menu, but whilst i was playing the game i had no trouble. i'd go so far as to say that the game itself got in the way more than any cloud streaming stuff.

Natsume Announce Mystic Chronicles Comes To PSP And PS VIta On 16th July For $14.99

Natsume have announced Kemco's PSP game, which is playable on the PS Vita, Mystic Chronicles has a USA release date. the game will be released on the PSN for $14.99 on 16th July. Mystic Chronicles is a retro 16-bit RPG that follows the story of Lux, could his world be turned upside down and have him saving the world? Mystic Chronicles features a Guardian Beast system which has you pairing a godlike beast to each character and then setting their AI.

Screenshots


Press Release

Gaijinworks And Monkey Paw Have Released A Launch Trailer For Class Of Heroes II

Gaijinworks And Monkey Paw have released a launch trailer for Class Of Heroes II. this video introduces several of the characters and shows the world and battle system. Gaijinworks reveal this "Western" release of the game has been slightly changed over the Japanese version, they call this version a little more generous so you'll get more gold and experience meaning the game is less of a grind. there is also a new Game+ that will feature extra hard labyrinths, on top of the over 125 you play through in the main game.

Konami Announce Pro Evolution Soccer 2014, Coming Later This Year To PS3, Xbox 360, PSP And PC

Konami have revealed Pro Evolution Soccer 2014 (PES 2014) and announced it's only coming to PS3, Xbox 360, PSP and PC. Konami have announced that the game will run on the Fox Engine, developed by Kojima Productions, and call the move the most comprehensive advance for the PES range since it's inception. this move has allowed every aspect of PES 2014 to be reworked. the main theme Konami have worked with is fluidity, the constant moving of players and switching positions which represent modern football. 

Konami say there are six central tenets that will make PES 2014 the new benchmark in football simulations, you can read in more detail after the break but basically these are the main points provided by Konami:

• True Ball Tech: For the first time in a football simulation, PES 2014centres everything on the ball: how it moves, and how players use it. First touch and sublime control are what set certain players apart from others. The ability to not only read a pass, but to be one step ahead and to know what is needed to gain yards on an encroaching defender. TrueBall Tech allows the player to trap or knock on a pass using the analogue stick with detailed barycentric physics determining the weight shift of the player and the height and speed of the pass, as to how the player’s body will automatically shape to receive it.

• Motion Animation Stability System (M.A.S.S.): The physical combat between players is a vital part of any match, and the new M.A.S.S. component simulates the bodily contact between multiple players within bespoke animations that segue seamlessly into each other. Rather than a series of preset animations that occur under specific circumstances, M.A.S.S. acts instantly to any situation, with the reaction of a fouled player entirely dependent on the direction and force with which they are tackled. Dependent on factors such as their size and power, players will stumble but instantly recover if clipped, barge others off the ball, and use their stature to block players from possession. Similarly, PES 2014 now has more styles of tackle, as opposed to basic foot in or sliding types.

• Heart: Defining what makes football so engrossing is difficult. It isn’t a technical thing, but more an emotional hook. Matches can be imposing for visiting teams, as home support barracks the opposition, and acts as the infamous ‘twelfth man’ by cheering their side on. PES 2014’s ‘Heart aims to recreate the effects of team support, both on an individual player basis and across the entire team.

• PES ID: PES 2013 set a new bar for realism, with its inclusion of the Player ID system. For the first time, players could instantly recognise a player by their faithfully recreated running and play styles. The way a player ran, moved and spread the ball about would be identical to that of their real-life counterpart, and PES 2013 featured 50 players that utilised the system.

• Team Play: Via the new game’s innovative Combination Play users can set up a variety of different tactics in key areas of the pitch using three or more players. These players will make very different off-the-ball runs to exploit holes in the defence or midfield, using the flanks, curved runs, or overlapping play to make themselves available. These moves can be preset to key areas of the field, allowing users to exploit defensive weaknesses beforehand. For PES 2014, that number will be greatly expanded, with twice as many stars featuring bespoke animations and AI.

• The Core: PES Productions have undertaken several years of consultation with PES and football fans to reproduce key elements of the series and implement a wide range of additional improvements.

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Konami have confirmed PES 2014 will be the first game in the series to have the Asia Champions League and it will also exclusively retain the use of the UEFA Champions League club competition.

Press Release

MonkeyPaw Games And GAIJINWORKS Announce Class of Heroes II Comes To PSP And PS Vita In The USA On 4th June

MonkeyPaw Games and GAIJINWORKS have announced the PSP, which can also be played on PS Vita, game Class of Heroes II is coming out across the USA on the PSN on 4th June for $24.99. Class of Heroes II features over 140 quests, 100+ dungeon maps, branching storylines and ending and more.

Press Release

NISA Announce They Are Bringing The PSP Game Black Rock Shooter The Game To The West From Tuesday

NISA have announced they are bringing the PSP game by IMAGEEPOCH INC Black Rock Shooter The Game to the West. the game will come out on the PSN next Tuesday, 23rd April, across the USA and the next day across the EU and it should work fine on the PS Vita.

Black Rock Shooter The Game takes place in 2032 on earth. aliens have been attacking the earth for 19 years and now humanity is on the brink. Black Rock Shooter has been created to defeat them once and for all, but by the time she is awakened there are only 12 humans left. as well as a main story there are side quests and mini games.



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Source: USA PlayStation Blog

Natsume Announce They Are Bringing Kemco's PSP Game Mystic Chronicles To The USA This Summer

Natsume have announced they are bringing Mystic Chronicles to the USA. this PSP game from Kemco has only come out in Japan so far but now it will come this summer to the USA. described as a Cult Classic in Japan, Mystic Chronicles features retro style graphics, a turn based battle system and story driven quests. a feature of the game is the Guardian Beast System, where each character can be assigned a mystic beast that has Offensive, Defensive or healing abilities.

The main character is called Lux. he was adopted by a small village and he had begun to train to join the Guardians Guild, but a chance meeting with a young girl sets in motion a series of events that could have Lux even saving the world.

I have found a Japanese promotional video for the game that was used on the Japanese PlayStation Blog. it shows gameplay and appears to have game music playing as well.



Screenshots


Press Release

Aksys Announce They Are Bringing Hakuoki: Warriors of the Shinsengumi On PSP To The USA, Reveal Amazon Pre-Order Bonus

Aksys Games have announced they are bringing Hakuoki: Warriors of the Shinsengumi, a game developed by Idea Factory in Japan, to the USA on PSP. the game is coming out on 19th February and all copies will come with a 16 page full colour guide.

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There is also a Amazon pre-order bonus where you can also get a bandana that features all the 8 playable characters in the game.

About Hakuoki: Warriors of the Shinsengumi
Hakuoki: Warriors of the Shinsengumi blends the beautifully-told visual novel, Hakuoki: Demon of the Fleeting Blossom, into an action-packed adventure game that’s fun for those new to the series or fans from the beginning!  Become stronger and more deadly as one of six legendary samurai, while you battle imperial soldiers, other samurai, and blood-thirsty furies. Hakuoki: Warriors of the Shinsengumi contains two storylines where players can either follow the events of Hakuoki: Demon of the Fleeting Blossom or play in an alternate universe where events unfold very differently.

• Two Major Storylines – Play through Hakuoki: Demon of the Fleeting Blossom with each of six playable characters in “Shinsengumi Memorial,” or change history in “Shinsengumi Chronicle”!
• Shinsengumi Chronicle – Change history as any one of the six main characters in. Play in an alternate universe where you control the fate of the Shinsengumi!
• Shinsengumi Memorial – Step into the shoes of your favorite samurai and play through battles from Hakuoki: Demon of the Fleeting Blossom.  Join in on the action as you battle your way through Kyoto! 
• Skirmish Mode – Replay past battles to add some more kills or level up your character to be more deadly.  Unlock two addition characters in this mode and duke it out on your favorite stages.
• Fury Mode – When a character’s life is spent, he will enter Fury Mode, unleashing a ferocious killing machine, able to tear down anyone that gets in his way.  However, becoming a fury too many times can unlock a particularly bad ending. 

 Press Release

USA November PSN Charts, The Walking Dead Episode 5, Call Of Duty: Black Ops Declassified, Grand Theft Auto 3 Number 1

Sony have revealed the USA November PSN Charts. the top downloaded PS3 And PSN game was The Walking Dead: Episode 5 followed by Assassin's Creed III, Sonic Adventure 2 and Okami HD.

Top 20 PS3 And PSN Games 

1. The Walking Dead – Episode 5: No Time Left
2. Assassin’s Creed III
3. Sonic Adventure 2
4. Okami HD
5. PlayStation All-Stars Battle Royale
6. Portal 2
7. The Walking Dead – Episode 4: Around Every Corner
8. Need for Speed Most Wanted
9. TOKYO JUNGLE
10. The Walking Dead – Episode 3: Long Road Ahead
11. The Walking Dead – Episode 1: A New Day
12. NBA 2K13
13. Jet Set Radio
14. Grand Theft Auto IV
15. The Unfinished Swan
16. Counter-Strike: Global Offensive
17. NiGHTS into dreams…
18. Journey
19. The Walking Dead – Episode 2: Starved For Help
20. Magic: The Gathering – Duels of the Planeswalkers 2013

 Top 5 PS3 DLC

1. Call of Duty: Black Ops II – Season Pass
2. WWE ’13 Fan Axxess
3. Borderlands 2 Campaign of Carnage
4. Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3: Collection 4: Final Assault
5. Borderlands 2 – Mechromancer Pack

Top 10 PS Vita Games 

1. Call of Duty: Black Ops Declassified
2. Assassin’s Creed III Liberation
3. Persona4 Golden
4. Ragnarok Odyssey
5. Need for Speed Most Wanted
6. PlayStation All-Stars Battle Royale
7. When Vikings Attack!
8. Sine Mora
9. Plants vs. Zombies
10. LittleBigPlanet

Source: USA Playstation Blog

More Charts

Sony Announce Spyro 1, 2 and 3 Come To The EU PSN Store Next Week, 60hz And PS Vita Compatible

Sony have announced the PS1 games Spyro, Spyro 2 and Spyro 3 are coming to the EU PSN next week. these games are the NTSC (American) English versions of the game but Sony have revealed that one of the reasons for the delay was making the games compatible with PAL 60hz. all 3 games are also compatible with the PS Vita. no specific prices were announced but the blog say the games would be similar to current PS1 Classics.

Source: EU Playstation Store

Sony Announce SingStar Is Coming To The EU, Australia And New Zealand As A Free Download

Sony have announced SingStar is coming to the EU, Australia and New Zealand as a free download that you can access straight from the PS3 XMB. there is no need to put a disc in to play it and you can use the microphone of the Playstation Eye instead of SingStar Microphones. the logo can be found on the XMB after updating to 4.30 and the software is 113MB, they also mentioned some other features:

SingStar on the XMB:

• The SingStar game client is FREE, no disc required!
• Sing with PS Eye
• Compatible with SingStar microphones, official PlayStation Wireless headsets and common USB microphones
• Short demo songs available for download for new SingStore customers
• Easy access PS2 and PS3 disc swap from song carousel
• Use PSP or PS Vita to create playlists with SingStar Remote
• Instantly share your performances with the SingStar community and your friends on Facebook
• Acquire new trophies

Source: EU Playstation Blog

Sony Announce No New Content Is Coming To Digital Comics From End Of October, Downloads End Mid January

Sony have announced the Digital Comics store on the PSP is closing by the end of October (30th). users will still be able to download content they have bought via Transaction Management. however, Sony has announced that from mid-January you wont be able to re-download your comics. you are able to back them up using Media Go on a PC.

Source: EU Playstation Blog

Square Enix Announce Final Fantasy III Comes To The PSP Via The PSN From Tuesday

Square Enix have announced Final Fantasy III comes out on the PSP from 25th September in the USA. the game will be released on the PSN, which means that all main Final Fantasy Games have been released on a Playstation Console.

 Source: USA Playstation Blog

Square Enix Have Released A New Japanese Trailer For Final Fantasy III On The PSP

Square Enix have released a new trailer for the PSP Version of Final Fantasy III. this video is in Japanese but it does show in-game action. cinematics are shown as are in-game features like the ability to change jobs and the ability to choose to play the game with the new soundtrack or it's original. Final Fantasy III comes to the PSP in Japan on 20th September.