"The Next Gen of consoles have liberated us in other ways. There are wider possibilities to use that processing power and tell a story during the game play."

"We can stream a wider variety of dialogue and animations to progress the story and characterisation rather than breaking the flow of the game play for a cutscene. If games are about immersion, then we are now about to deepen that immersion."

During the same interview, Ellwood went as far as to say that Sony are talking to production houses about a Getaway movie.

Just as long as Uwe Boll isn't lined up to direct it we think it would be a good idea. After all, Hitman didn't actually suck.

So, will we see the next Getaway game in 2008? Unlikely. But with other strong 'sandbox' competition already lined up for this year, 2009 might be a better time to launch the title anyhow.

[via Den of Geek]

The guys and gals at Criterion are set to release an update to Burnout Paradise soon to fix a whole slew of issues, exploits and problems. The update will also tweak some of the gameplay settings to make the exprience even better than it currently is.

Although an official release date for the update hasn't been announced, Criterion promise that it won't be long and that they will be telling us soon about this and their plans for downloadable content (DLC) for the latest in their racing franchise.

Burnout Paradise is already one of the best online games for the PS3, so any updates and DLC to ensure that stays the case is welcome.

Here's a complete list of the PS3 version updates:

The Top 10 problems reported by users have been fixed

And it would appear this is not an isolated issue. I see the same sentiment across the 'net and in the glossy magazines that land on my doorstep.

So here are 5 reasons why GT5: Prologue is actually a full game, and worthy of your twenty-five notes:

1. It has (at least) 50 cars in it.

Admittedly this isn't the hundreds of cars that will potentially be available in GT5 when it launches, but 50 cars is about the same amount as you get in Ridge Racer 7 (40 cars) and Motorstorm (keeps changing!). It's nearly the same amount you'd find in a game such as Project Gotham Racing 3 on the Xbox 360 (80 cars). No one considers those titles mere demos. GT5: Prologue also features 'accomplishments' that unlock new cars in addition to the ones it ships with. The original Japanese version came with 37 cars, and reports suggest that the European version will actually ship with more like 60.

2. It has 16-player online racing.

A first for the Gran Turismo series, you can now take your game online and battle up to 15 friends (or enemies) on track. Forza 2 and PGR 3 on the X360 only offer 12-player and 8-player online respectively. Motorstorm allows 16 players online, and once again no-one would argue that any of those three titles are demos.

3. It has a wealth of online features.

As well as the online racing (which actually includes time-limited downloadable races attached to an online calendar), GT5: Prologue features a mix of other online modes. Real-time weather for dozens of real-world racing tracks, GT-TV downloadable content delivering top car programmes and news to your hard drive, the usual mix of online leaderboards, motosport related news tickers and other online features. GT5: Prologue is also planned to work with Home, allowing players to jump in and out of a GT5 Home Space to create a social element to the racing franchise.

4. It has top-level hardware support.

Not only does GT5: Prologue make the most of the PS3 by running at 60fps in 1080p, it also has it's own branded force-feedback steering wheel from Logitech, as well as support for other older Logitech wheels. GT5: Prologue features 7.1ch surround sound. What demo what bother with such features?

5. There's a PS3 bundle and a soundtrack - and it's available via retail.

I've never heard of a demo that spawned a soundtrack before. GT5: Prologue is blessed with an 18-track CD available in Japan for around £12, and there's a new PS3 bundle arriving at the end of March that will come with the game included on Blu-ray disk. Warhawk is another title that is available as a PS Store download and a Blu-ray, and that is certainly not a demo either.

So enough already. GT5: Prologue is a full-blown, bone fide game.

One extra bonus: if you pre-order your copy of GT5: Prologue from GAME right now you'll save a fiver and get it for a shade under £20, which has got to be the bargain of the year so far. Mine's already in the delivery queue.

Play.com Live is a new event for UK gamers that will take over Wembley Stadium on March 15th and 16th. And as you'd expect, PS3 Attitude will be there to cover the event.

Today, Play.com announced the line-up for the event which includes 'TV babe' Gemma Atkinson and Virgin Radio presenter Iain Lee. The pair (ahem) will be presenting and hosting the event, which also includes a number of music acts.

The fantastic line-up of artists performing includes Elliot Minor, the brilliant We Are Scientists and will be the home of the stars with celebrity appearances by Jamie Cullum, Tara Palmer-Tomkinson and Lee Sharpe.

The event will also have numerous competitions and feature all the latest video games, with exclusive launches and first-looks, plus movie trailers from this year’s biggest films.

All the major video games companies, including Sega, Electronic Arts (EA), Activision, Microsoft, THQ and Ubisoft will be showcasing their hits for 2008.

New releases such as LEGO Indiana Jones, Ghostbusters, Condemed 2, Sega Superstar Tennis, Rock Band, LittleBigPlanet and DeBlob are just a few of the exciting titles that will be there to try out.

Tickets cost just £6 per adult and £3 for children and can be purchased through Play.com. They are available to buy for a morning or afternoon visit to the show on either day or you can buy VIP weekend tickets for £16.

Check back on PS3 Attitude during the 15th and 16th for live updates.

When it does launch here it will be accompanied by some of the additional characters already available in the US, with plans to release up to ten additional ragdolls.

The press release also states that Elefunk will launch in April whilst echochrome will turn up this May.

Elefunk is a game that requires you to build routes from various materials to stop the herd falling into a pit of oblivion. It looks cute and sounds like a pachyderm version of Lemmings.

If you want to get an early taste of echochrome, don't forget the Japanese PS Store will get a demo this week.

That still means there's a whole bunch of releases Sony are keeping from the PS Store, but this is a good start. And whilst the press release didn't mention anything specific, we do know that Super Puzzle Fighter is now in various European languages, so surely that can't be far behind.

We called this one out when Phil left Sony and now it's come true - Phil Harrison has joined Atari as their new President, looking after group publishing and game development.

Reporting directly to CEO David Gardner, Phil will be tasked with overseeing Atari's studios and help attract new internal and external developers.

Which means that a good percentage of the third-party developers Phil has connected with over the years in his role at SCEWW could well sign up to produce content for Atari over the next few months.

David Gardner recently went on record about Atari's plans for the future:

“We’re rebooting Atari. My vision is to bring the coin-op arcade back home through the web. To me that’s not just re-hashing the old games but it’s re-interpreting them for audiences today.”

Phil is now part of this vision, helping to build Atari's online gaming brand:

"This is the perfect time to join Infogrames and help shape the future of Atari - one of the industry's legendary brands. As the game business moves rapidly online I believe we have an outstanding opportunity to create amazing network game and community experiences for players the world over. I am especially excited to be working on this challenge together with David, one of the most respected leaders and successful executives in our industry."

PS3 Attitude wish Phil the very best in his new role. We look forward to seeing lots of great Atari-branded games appear on the PlayStation Network in the not-too-distant future.

Once again, it's that time of the month where we run down the three titles you really have to seek out in the coming month.

As a quick reminder, the PS3 Attitude Big Three takes in UK and European release dates only and is for titles that will be released in March.

You can keep tabs on the latest release dates by using the PS3 Attitude PlayStation 3 Events Calendar, which you'll also find a shareable/embeddable version in the left sidebar.

So let's get started - what should you spend your money on this month?

1. Army of Two [pre-order] [pre-rent]

The first couple of levels in this buddy-em-up shooter will help you learn about everything at your disposal, and you're going to need it. The gameplay mechanics and commands available are surprisingly complex, but in this case that is a good thing.

In Army of Two you play as one of two mercenaries - Salem or Rios. If you play the game in single-player mode your teammate will be controlled by the PS3. If you command your teammate to be the centre of attention by firing at anything that moves, the enemy are less likely to spot you which allows you to flank round the side and take out the opposition.

But it's the co-operative set pieces that impress the most. Early on in the game you'll get to grab a ripped-off car door and use it as a shield whilst your partner fires over your shoulder. You'll also get involved in tandem parachute/sniping exploits and you'll have to learn how to heal your compatriot when he goes down, even helping stop bloodflow with a tampon.

The multiplayer experience is great fun too. Army of Two could be one of the sleeper hits of the year.

2. Gran Turismo 5: Prologue [pre-order]

The debate about whether this is a full game or a demo of a forthcoming game still rages on. I'll tell you where we stand: GT5: Prologue is a completely full game in it's own right.

Available around 28th March in retail disc, PS Store download and special European PS3 Bundle Pack versions, GT5: Prologue has everything a Gran Turismo fan is looking for and more. Lots of cars (40 to choose from and earn), 10 track configurations from five tracks and some 'firsts' for the GT franchise such as in-car view with full dashboards.

But the most important 'first' - online racing. 16 drivers going head-to-head around some of the most beautifully rendered race tracks you're ever likely to see.

Add to that a whole slew of 'net features such as GT-TV, realtime weather conditions for major tracks around the world and the chat functionality from the My Garage page and you have a full-blown, bone-fide release on your hands. No question about it.

3. Everybody's Golf World Tour [pre-order]

With the usual confusing mix of FPS titles available in March (Blacksite, Soldier of Fortune, Turning Point etc.) it's nice to feature something cuter and cuddlier in the Big Three. The latest Everybody's Golf title (known as Hot Shots Golf elsewhere) arrives on the PS3 this month to a shower of daytime fireworks and giddy cartoon caddies, who are only happiest when they're sprinting after your ball like a Duracell/Energiser bunny on acid.

With a new swing mode that does take a little bit of getting used to, Everybody's Golf is the anti-Tiger - immediately accesible with the emphasis on fun and laughs. But don't be fooled - there's as much of a golf simulator here as you'll find in many an EA game if you want to really get into it.

For those that find the new swing mechanism too far from the immediate 'plug-in-and-play' joy that makes the series truly Everybody's Golf, you can flip back to the familiar 'three-click' system that golf game officianados will have probably first experienced when they played Access' brilliant Leader Board on the C64 back in the 80's.

The online multiplayer is great fun and the lobby looks like a mix of a cut down version of Home mixed and the little Mii avatars from Nintendo's online service. The whole social side of the online experience is almost worth your time and money by itself. And when you do get a game going, everyone plays the hole at the same time - it's just fun to see a whole rain of golf balls flying across the course!

You can check out video trailers for all three titles below. Have a great March!









[Hot Shots/Everybody's Golf trailer via IGN]