Games Radar recently did a feature on the 10 worst game intros of all time. A PSP title had the dubious honor of being in the list. That game is Pocket Racers, and it came in at number 8. I watched the opening for myself, and besides looking terrible, it doesn't seem to make a bit of sense. Some cult leader uses soul power to shrink cars. Or does he fuse car owner's souls into the cars, to give them mini-power? I honestly can't figure it out in any way. Do any of our readers own Pocket Racers? Also, post your theory as to what the heck is going on in the game's opening.

See the opening video for yourself.

I've complained from time to time about the selection of downloadable PSone games for PSP in the US, but right now the UK has it much worse. At launch of the PS3, there are zero PSone games on the PlayStation Store for download to PSP. Sony hasn't made any statement as to when they'll show up, but the US had to wait a little while for this feature. Still, since the UK launch was much later than in Japan and the US, one would think Sony would have titles lined up for day one. In any case, let's hope for the sake of UK PS3 owners that the wait isn't too long.

[Via Games Radar]

If you weren't able to quite tell from the demo whether you liked Puzzle Quest or not, maybe the reviews of others will help you. Other than these reviews, we'll have a review of Puzzle Quest up soon. But enough of that for now, what did the critics say?

• Gamespot (8.5/10) "The parts may seem commonplace, but Puzzle Quest's blend of RPG and puzzle-game convention makes for something refreshingly unique and dangerously addictive."
• Games Radar (7.0/10) "The PSP version loads a bit more slowly but looks better, and the DS version features lighting-fast loads but tosses in slightly sluggish, clunky touch-controls."
• PlayStation Official Magazine UK (5.0/10) "It's gently hypnotic stuff, but fight a dozen super-intelligent skeletons and you'll soon be yearning for the simple pleasures of Lumines." (Mar 2007)

[Via Metacritic]

Rockstar's upcoming PSP port of The Warriors has a pretty nice bonus: the side-scrolling Armies of the Night, a bonus "minigame" of sorts which has you brawling in classic beat-em-up form. But wait ... wasn't this game included in the original PS2 and Xbox release? You're right! But we PSP gamers are the impatient type, and we no longer have to beat the game to get access to this treasured game: it's available right from the get-go.

Previews of the PSP build have all been pretty glowing so far. Games Radar notes that the PSP version of the game holds up quite nicely, with some great graphics and (sigh of relief) good load times. With a budget price of only $20, this is one port that PSP fans might want to pay attention to.

Smackdown is out today. I was originally going to do a Metareview for this game, but I decided: why not focus on the one crucial flaw of last year's game? The load times. As you may remember, WWE SmackDown! 2006 got smacked down by the gaming community by having quite possibly the worst load times of any game in recent memory. Is this year's iteration of the popular wrestling franchise any better? Let's find out:

• Gamespot (79/100) - "Load times are still a big issue, as well, though not quite as humongous an issue as they were last year. Prematch load times are still long and annoying, especially when you have entrances set to on; menu transitions, especially in season mode, take longer than they ought to; and creating a wrestler can still be a time-consuming process, thanks to the loading. Again, Yuke's did improve this aspect somewhat this year, but load times continue to get in the way of the game."
• Games Radar (80/100) - "The developers remembered this, too; they made a focused effort to drastically reduce loading. And it worked: the loads aren't lightning quick, but they are far faster, now measuring in double-digit seconds instead of minutes."
• GameZone (85/100) - "On to the bad news, the game suffers from heavy lag that just doesn't pertain to the Ad Hoc multiplayer mode but throughout the single-player mode as well. This, of course, is a major annoyance that often leads to missed punches or choke slams. Secondly, the long load times are back, although - on a lighter note -they're not as frequent as the first game."

The critics say the load times have improved, but are they tolerable yet? I'm placing an open challenge to all readers: if you own this game, please make a similar video, for PSP Fanboy fame, and maybe even a little swag, or something.

This franchise has come a long way since it was released on the 3DO back in the mid-90s. I remember how frustrated I got having to slow down to a near stop just to successfully navigate a curve. But now, the Need for Speed franchise is one of the best around, and it seems Need for Speed Carbon: Own the City continues the franchises forward progression.

PGNx Media (87/100) - It's one of the rare times where you should purchase both the console versions and the PSP version since both offer different yet extremely compelling racing.

Games Radar (80/100) - We're definitely keen on the PSP version, serving up some solid racing fun that'll get your heart pumping and your fingers moving. Just be sure to get by with a little help from your friends.

IGN (70/100) - Own the City simply feels like more of the same. Sure, there's an open city and wingmen that'll take out your opponents during a race, but neither of these are huge, game-changing additions.

I haven't had the chance to play the game yet, but from these reviews, it seems like a pretty decent game. Hopefully, EA continues the Need for Speed franchise on the PSP.

Death Jr. gets a bit more attention than it may deserve, simply because it was the first PSP game ever to be shown. We were wowed by its impressive non-GBA quality graphics, but when we got our hands on the original, we were a little underwhelmed by its gameplay. The sequel was supposed to fix the problems of the original game, but it appears that the critics are still a little negative on this franchise. Maybe they focused too much on the tech? Let's find out:

• IGN (71/100) wants to believe in the franchise, but they end up disappointed: "The game is still sloppy in execution despite its best qualities -- it's time for DJ to grow up and scythe straight. The story again makes little sense, despite some funny sequences, and it feels short with only three bosses and little to revisit stages for on your second play."
• Games Radar (60/100) fails to find any originality in the gameplay: "You know that game where you run around and hit things repeatedly? It's the same one with floating platforms, simple combos and a camera that almost gets it - ringing any bells yet? Oh wait, that's practically every third-person run-and-jump game made in the last eight or nine years, and even though it's a marked improvement over the original, Death Jr. 2: Root of Evil still falls squarely in the "pretty OK" department."
• GamePro (80/100) loves the game, more than GTA: "Death Jr. 2 is definitely a game that works for those of you who just love hacking at things. Levels spawn swarms of enemies with complex AI that keep coming at you unless you attack their regeneration area. The creative randomness of the enemies is delightful. After all, not too many games have llamas, chickens, hamsters, gorillas, possessed trees, gigantic centipedes, and mechanical spiders going for you all at once.."

There's a pretty wide range of opinions on this game so far, but one thing's clear: this game is much better than the original. But does that say much? The game is now available.

It only feels like yesterday when we were making fun of WWE Smackdown (it was, in fact, two days ago). So, maybe, we'll be a little bit nicer this time. A new year means the developers have a chance to get things right. Get rid of the load times. GamesRadar has been nice enough to grab all the wrestler intro videos from the upcoming Smackdown game, and convert it into iPod PSP format. Simply download their files, and dump it into your 2.80 PSP's VIDEO folder.

The new year of Smackdown hits stores November 1st.

I was extremely excited to play Bounty Hounds, but when the demo was released and I finally got my hands on it, I must say I was a bit disappointed. You see, the camera was every bit as bad as previously reported. Unfortunately, most of the reviewers agreed with me, as the game didn't exactly get the kind of reviews many of us thought it would before playing it. However, I'm sure that didn't dissuade many of my fellow fanboys from picking it up, and there's absolutely nothing wrong with it.

• IGN (70/100) - "Bounty Hounds is a classic example of shoddy execution derailing a slew of great ideas. With a better camera and improved controls, it could have been a real contender."
• Got Next (60/100) - "It seems that no matter which way you look at it, Bounty Hounds is the kind of game that did everything right to turn out great except the first thing it was meant to do – create an addictive online interaction with players."
• Games Radar (30/100) - "Nearly every element of Bounty Hounds falls flat. Graphics? Utterly mediocre and heavily fogged (the comic-like cinematics are drawn nicely, though.) Level design? Non-existent: expect a sleep-inducing never-ending sequence of open fog fields and blocky square corridors."

As you can see, the game just didn't seem to deliver, and that's a real shame because it seemed like it was coming together to make a really great game. Hopefully, Namco can go back to the drawing board and fix these problems when and if they release a sequel.

Those nice chaps at Games Radar have just posted some mouth-wateringly new Killzone: Liberation screens that show off the game's multi-player and the single-player squad-command system.

In case you didn't know, Killzone will feature six-player Ad-Hoc multiplayer modes including Deathmatch, Team Deathmatch, Assault and Capture the Flag, in addition to a complete two-player co-op mode.

There is infrastructure support in the works, but it won't be available with the game when it ships on Halloween.

The squad-command system is pretty interesting. "Hit the command button and the fighting slows to a crawl, giving you time to pick out specific targets or positions for your squad without pausing the danger around you, keeping the battles tactical but tense," according to Games Radar.

The people of Games Radar speak about Tokyo Game Show in their latest podcast. They speak a little bit about PSP, and talk about the impressive Metal Gear Solid: Portable Ops and Final Fantasy VII: Crisis Core, and lament about how the PSP might've been more successful if such beautiful, fully developed games were released, or announced, earlier in the PSP's life cycle. They seem to have come to a conclusion that Japanese developers believe that the PSP isn't in the process of failing... it's already failed. They quote a Clover Studios producer (guys behind the awesome Viewtiful Joe and Okami) as saying "Sony's lost this generation. I'll be real interested to see what they'll do with PSP2. I think that's where they have a chance to come off a failure and really succeed."

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How much do YOU love Loco Roco? The game's now available in stores and VH1 is giving away this huge inflatable figure, and other prizes, to fans of the game. All you have to do is send them a picture of LocoRoco in the "real world" (riding the train, in a diner, etc.), and you can use any method you want: PhotoShop, cardboard figures, creating a real LocoRoco from the primordial ooze you have stored in the freezer. See all the contest details.

In other Loco Roco news, GamesRadar has confirmed our fears that a Loco Roco soundtrack CD won't be made any time soon. That didn't stop GamesRadar from hosting a few of the songs on its servers. Check out creatively titled songs like Black Song, Blue Song and even Green Song. Wow.

See also:
Who sings the Loco Roco song?