One of our readers, Eric, has been unable to find the downloadable expansions for Wipeout Pure -- they seemingly disappeared off the face of the internet. Don't worry Eric, we got your back. Because we love our readers, we've uploaded all the tracks that were released post-launch. These levels add a significant amount of gameplay to the already-amazing launch title.

1. Download the ZIP file.
2. Extract the contents of the zip file (there should be many folders that start with UCUS).
3. Connect your PSP via USB.
4. Browse the Memory Stick. Save folders in PSP/SAVEDATA.

Enjoy!

YourPSP's official PSP Store is Europe's premiere destination for PSP downloads. It's provided us with a great number of downloadable demos and other goodies. However, it looks to be getting an overhaul. What new upgrades might the site be receiving? Full downloadable games, if this page from the UK PlayStation site is to be believed.

To the right of the page, links to downloadable demos of Loco Roco, Killzone and Ridge Racer 2 can be found. But more interesting are the descriptions for Wipeout: Pure and Go! Sudoku: "Download full game now."

Sony has promised that the PLAYSTATION Store would one day find its way to PSP. As they've shown with the PS3, full downloadable games are a crucial part of Sony's strategy. Could Europe be the first region to receive downloadable retail games? If so, how will it work? When will it expand to other countries? Was the web version of the PLAYSTATION Store the beginning of something bigger? Stay tuned for more.

[Via Gamespot]

There are plenty of new PSPs in gamer's houses since the holidays and I figured some new PSP owners may not be up to speed on what great games the system has to offer. With that in mind, every day this week we'll feature a new genre and list the top 5 games (according to metareviews), so no matter what you're into, you'll have some idea of what games you should own. Day 2 kicks off with a very competitive genre on PSP: Racing.

Top 5 Racing games on PSP

1. (tie) Ridge Racer/WipEout Pure
2. Burnout Legends
3. TOCA Race Driver 2
4. Outrun 2006: Coast 2 Coast
5. Twisted Metal: Head-On

I'm not a giant racing fan, so I only own Burnout Legends and Twisted Metal: Head-On (I dig the carnage factor). I did enjoy them both quite a bit though. But what I think doesn't really matter. What do you think about these 5 games? What racing games aren't on this list that you think every PSP owner should have?

If you missed it, you can check out our previous top 5 game lists:

Action

[Data Via Metacritic]

Who doesn't like free stuff? Sony's getting the big picture: we like free content downloads. As reported by develop, SCE Worldwide Studios VP Michael Denny states, "All games, whether they are launched on disc or electronically, need to create a community and have active community websites and extra content."

One of PSP's launch titles, Wipeout Pure, featured tons of downloadable content after release. In fact, the various packs released over the months following release doubled the amount of content available in the game. It was free for the consumer, and undoubtedly boosted sales. "Downloadable content helped keep the game on the shelf and encouraged people to not trade the game in," explains development director Clemens Wangerin. The game also delivered more than 800,000 downloads and became the first PSP title to reach Platinum status.

While speaking about Wipeout, it looks like Sony accidentally revealed that sequels were being made for both the PSP and PS3 platforms. If you haven't figured it out, the next iterations of Wipeout will also deliver even more downloadable content. Hopefully, it will still retain the nice price that Pure set: free.

[Via Joystiq]

See also:
Killzone Liberation online beta coming soon

Wipeout: Pure is one of my favorite games on the PSP. The great graphics, music and gameplay were fantastic, but the incredible amount of downloadable content is what made it one of the best games on the handheld. For months after the game's launch, we were presented with tons of new tracks and ships, essentially doubling the length of the game for free, making it one of the greatest values on the system (especially at Greatest Hits price). While the team has gone quiet since the last update, it appears that Sony is officially announcing the end of downloads... in Japan, at least.

It's a little sad to know that there will most likely never be downloads again for Wipeout: Pure, but hopefully that means that the team is working on what I really want now: a sequel.

[Via PSP-Vault]