While PlayStation LifeStyle was busy playing PlayStation All-Stars Battle Royale last week, that same press preview event also featured LittleBigPlanet Karting, which was officially announced a few months ago. Now that the game has had some more time to polish, how is it shaping up? Is it little more than ModNation Racers X LittleBigPlanet, or has the team at United Front Games done enough to make this feel like a true extension of the LittleBigPlanet universe? Find out in our hands-on preview.

Before I get started, let me just say that I have been a huge LittleBigPlanet fan since I first witnessed the game in motion. I’ll never forget when I first saw that GDC demo of the first game. I made it my goal to get in the beta as soon as humanly possible, where I then crafted a little skatepark level in about 10 hours of fooling around in the Create mode. From then on, I was constantly amazed at just how creative the community became. So you’d think I went into this preview session a bit biased towards loving an LBP Karting game. You wouldn’t be faulted for thinking that, however, nothing could be further from the truth. I went into this demo with pretty doubtful expectations. Since LittleBigPlanet is very near to this gamer’s heart, seeing the beloved franchise in another developer’s hands is always cause for concern. Plus, how well could LBP work in a karting-only environment? This got me thinking, surely there must be 3D Kart levels in LittleBigPlanet 2 that would satiate my need for Sackboy-flavored speed.

Then I Googled “LittleBigPlanet 2 kart levels,” and I was sorely disappointed. Sure, there are some cute levels, but they are all sidescrolling. Although doing a pseudo-3D level in LBP 2 is possible, it is hardly easy to do, and there is no level that I have found that accurately replicates all the nuances that go into a  decent kart game – no powerups, no weapons, and of course the way that LBP 2 handles players falling behind in a race (it kills you after you’re offscreen for too long) just wouldn’t work here.

Ok. So we’ve established that LBP 2 cannot really be used to make a full-fledged kart simulator. The more I thought about it, the more it made sense to hand over the license to the glory of Sackboy to United Front Games. After all, ModNation Racers was a thoroughly enjoyable, customizable kart racer, load times aside. But would this be a simple character swap of placing Sackboy into ModNation Racers? After playing quite a few races and battles, I can safely say that this is a karting game within the LittleBigPlanet universe. The interface is not reminiscent of ModNation Racers whatsoever. You still have a Popit menu, including customizing your Sackperson with new textures, stickers, etc. The same thing also now applies to your cart. You can choose the materials your car is made of, which wouldn’t feel out of place in LBP 2 – cardboard, soda cans, paper clips, and more. You can also decide how your car actually moves, whether that’s regular tires, a hovercraft, a zeppelin, or something else entirely. United Front Games got the whole feel of the LittleBigPlanet world intact. Speaking of which, for those who may not know, Stephen Fry had earlier been confirmed as the narrator for LBP Karting, which was a big relief. We didn’t see how the game handled splitscreen, but I have faith that UFG is more than capable of delivering a smooth experience based on their track record (pun sort-of intended).

So now we’ve come to the most important question – how does the game play? This is where you are reminded that the game is being developed by UFG. It feels basically like ModNation Racers while you drive. The cars are fast, the turning is a little floaty, and the drifting is really easy to keep going. The grappling hook from LBP 2 makes an appearance here – you latch onto the familiar spongy material, and if you time it right you can get to a higher platform of a level, which is usually a shortcut. It adds separate vertical pathways, and is a creative way to incorporate a familiar tool from the previous game.

Taking a cue from Mario Kart, there is a battle mode in LBP Karting. Rather than having a certain set of lives from the start, it’s a race to the top of the scoreboard as you rack up KOs. In the demo’s case, it was first to 10 wins. The AI was really easy, but I was assured that this can be tweaked. All weapons from the race mode are here, picked up by running through what appeared to be the Paintinator. Notable weapons included explosive box mines and bomb lobbers that looked like they were pulled straight from LBP 2. In this battle mode, it’s one hit KOs for everyone, but aside from a lock-on missile the ammo doesn’t tend to be too accurate, so you have to time your shots. Although you’re using some explosive weapons, there’s no real carnage here – you simply vanish with a puff of smoke when you get hit. It’s a mildly entertaining mode, and it’ll be interesting to see what kinds of levels people come up with for this mode.

As the day concluded, I left the demo impressed with just how well UFG got the feel of LBP down pat. The game was fun, but not that ear-to-ear grin I got when I first laid eyes on LittleBigPlanet. Some of that may be because I am now used to seeing Sackboy, or maybe I’m just not that big of a fan of kart games. None of the levels really stood out and impressed me. Granted, I only saw three levels, and mastered them rather quickly, but unlike LittleBigPlanet you can only create one kind of level – a karting level. How far can you stretch that concept? Is a karting game starring Sackboy really necessary? Time and sales will dictate that, but in the meantime I remain cautiously optimistic about LittleBigPlanet Karting.

© Paulmichael Contreras for PlayStation LifeStyle, 2012. | Permalink | 5 comments | Add to del.icio.us

While ad-hoc mode will still be supported, and players can use the Vita’s innovative Near feature to share a game, online matches and the popular ModSpot feature are a no go. The following is a transcript from a live chat session between fans and the development team. Bolded names represent a dev speaking.

Comment From Zyketor:
“The PSP version had 6 player Infrastructure Online multiplayer, but according to the official box for MNR: RT, it only supports ad-hoc, no online multiplayer (racing, not sharing). Can you please give us a for sure answer as to if Road Trip has online via infrastructure racing, not just sharing?”

Vernon:
Hey Zyketor, we are supporting Ad-Hoc however not infrasructure as in Head to Head. With all of the other online features though, Ghost Laps, Regional Leaderboards with times beat notifcations, etc. We went with more of an Asynchronous online feature set that is really robust! We’ll share more about all of these online features as we get closer to launch! “

Comment From Xuphor:
“Will Modnation Racers: Road Trip support a ModSpot ala the PS3 version for a lobby, or will it be lobby-less like the PSP version?”

MVdor: “We wanted to keep ModSpot unique for the PS3, but with Near, you’ll be able to interact with PS Vita owners around you and share your unlocked items via the PS Vita’s ‘gifting’ feature. “

The PS3 and PSP games are still among the most fun racing games on their respective systems. Can Road Trip achieve similar greatness without online play? Does this affect your purchase plans? Drop a comment.

[Source]

© Knifefight for PlayStation LifeStyle, 2012. | Permalink | 3 comments | Add to del.icio.us

ModNation Racers burst onto the kart racing genre mid 2010, combining the racing antics of Mario Kart with the creative freedom of LittleBigPlanet. The game also saw a PSP port, but that version felt a bit limited. Enter ModNation Racers (Working Title) on the Vita. With aims of perfectly replicating the console version of the game on the go, can developer SCE San Diego deliver? We went hands-on with the game during E3 and have our preview ready for you below.

The demo shown to us at E3 had been in development for around 14 months – one of the lengthier times we overheard at the show for a Vita game. One big feature in this version of ModNation Racers is that upon launch you will be granted access to all the tracks and vehicles available for the PS3 version of the game. Assuming it will have the same sorting functionality, then you will already have thousands of great tracks to play once you are done with the single player (as well as thousands of crap material to sift through, I’m sure). It should be noted that this functionality is one-way only at the time of writing – content created on the Vita version is not shareable to the PS3 version.

Racing is pretty standard fare here, and anyone familiar with the console ModNation Racers will feel right at home here. Use R for gas, left analog stick for turning, right stick for in-air rotation, face buttons for boost/jump/drift/weapon. Speaking of weapons, beyond the typical ones available from previous entries, there are now elemental attacks – fire, ice and earth. It is unclear how these are incorporated yet, but one example we did see was a powerup being “leveled” up to the point where the player transformed into a massive snowball, destroying anyone who got in his way. Hopefully these elements will react with each other in expected ways, where each is effective against an opposing element and weak to another.

Creating on the Vita is all about the touchscreen and rear touchpad, and it works for the most part. You use the front touch screen to first draw an overall path for your track. It seems that your tracks cannot go for too long before you run out of track. But the overhead view of the map is rather deceptive – it is a much larger area than it appears, so you can create gigantic turns without even realizing it. Once you are happy with the layout, you are given the option to auto-populate the track and put in a more traditional creation camera. Here is where you can use the rear touch pad to create mountains and valleys on the landscape. Pull the ground low enough and it fills with water, creating a lake. While the effect is cool, the game’s engine seemed to struggle as I used more of my fingers to craft the area – you can apparently use up to ten fingers at once, which is an impressive amount of tracking. But if the sluggishness of the creation mode is not improved by launch, it may be a glaring issue.

In the end, it looks like SCE San Diego is gearing up to deliver an even more faithful translation of the ModNation Racers experience on the go than their PSP port, which was no slouch either. Cross-play functionality is also included, though it was not shown here. This seems to be the killer feature that a lot of Vita games are going to tout. With other features coming to the game such as using the Vita’s cameras to create textures and the GPS to earn “ModMiles” by visiting real locations, ModNation Racers on the Vita is shaping up to be a must-have portable entry for fans of the genre.

© Paulmichael Contreras for PlayStation LifeStyle, 2011. | Permalink | No comments | Add to del.icio.us

The annual E3 Press Conference is easily the biggest gaming news event of the year, but not everyone is able to follow the video streams and news coverage live and attempting to catch up afterwards can be overwhelming. Fortunately, PlayStation LifeStyle is here to compile and list the news for the folks at home, which we’ll update as the show continues.

Microsoft:

• MW3 DLC coming exclusively to 360 for a limited time. Read More >>
• Halo 4 teased
• Halo: Combat Evolved being remastered in HD
• Kinect coming to Mass Effect 3, Ghost Recon, EA Sports titles and the next Fable.
• New, new Xbox Experience to have full Kinect support
• Bing with voice search coming, but won’t be able to search the internet
• YouTube and UFC coming to 360
• Kinect Fun Labs announced, coming from Buzz! dev Relentless Studios
• Dance Central 2, Kinect Sports Season 2 announced
• Crytek’s Codename: Kingdoms renamed Ryse

Rating: C+ With the 360′s core line-up rather weak in the run up to E3, we were hoping that a slew of new games would be announced. Unfortunately, Microsoft’s selection was rather weak, with gamers only given a fleeting glance at Halo 4. Kinect remained the centrepiece of the show, with announcements clearly aimed at casual gamers.

EA:

• Mass Effect 3 demoed
• Sports games with Kinect shown
• Battlefield 3 release date, beta announced Read More >>
• Insomniac Games’ multiplatform title, “Overstrike“, revealed Read More >>
• Need for Speed: The Run to feature on-foot chases
• EA Sports Football Club revealed – a live service that allows users to connect and compete with one another
• Star Wars: Old Republic teased

Rating: C Insomniac’s new game made the show worth watching, although lack of real gameplay made it rather disappointing. The rest of the conference was rather bland and repeated what was already known.

Ubisoft:

• Rayman Origins revealed as 2D family game
• Tom Clancy’s Ghost Recon Online to be a free game
• Far Cry 3 announced, returning to the jungle Read More >>
• Gearbox Software developing Brothers in Arms: Furious Four Read More >>
• The Adventures of Tintin: The Game announced as movie tie-in
• ManiaPlanet, a brand dedicated to allowing customization options to PC games revealed.
• Trackmania, a racing game, Shootmania, an FPS, and Questmania, an RPG.
• Raving Rabids coming to Kinect
• Just Dance 3 coming to PS3, 360 and Wii Read More >>
• Assassin’s Creed: Revelations gameplay footage shown Read More >>

Rating: B+ Ubisoft started strongly, with Far Cry, Brothers in Arms and Ghost Recon all looking very good. From there it went downhill, with cheesy jokes and casual games dragging on. Luckily it ended with a bang, with Ubisoft showing Assassin’s Creed.

Sony:

• Sony Apologizes For PSN Outage Read More >>
• CinemaNow’s Instant Streaming Access Heading To PlayStation Network Read More >>
• Chloe and Elena Returning to Uncharted Read More >>
• New God of War Collection Announced Read More >>
• Uncharted 3 E3 Gameplay Footage Read More >>
• Resistance 3 Sharp Shooter Bundle Announced Read More >>
• Brand New PS3 Television and Glasses Announced Read More >>
• Medieval Moves: Deadmund’s Quest Announced Read More >>
• Sly Cooper 4 Unveiled At Sony’s E3 Conference Read More >>
• Move Support for Bioshock Infinite Confirmed Read More >>
• Ken Levine Teases Vita Bioshock Title Read More >>
• Dust 514 Announced to Be First PSN Exclusive Cross-Platform MMO Read More >>
• Everybody Dance and Start the Party 2 Moving Its Way to PS3 Read More >>
• NGP Officially Named Read More >>
• Star Trek PlayStation Move Announced with Exclusive Treats Read More >>
• PlayStation Vita is AT&T Exclusive Read More >>
• Mt. Fuji Stage to be Exclusive to PS3 Version of SSX Read More >>
• PS Vita Priced, To 3G or Not to 3G Read More >>
• Idol Minds Announce Ruin, A Cross Compatible “Social Action RPG” With Cloud Saves Read More >>
• PS Vita Set to Release This Year, Christmas Sorted Read More >>
• 80 Titles in Development for Vita Read More >>
• New Modnation Racers Announced For Vita Read More >>
• LittleBigPlanet Finds New Life on PlayStation Vita Read More >>
• Street Fighter x Tekken on The PS Vita Shown on Video, inFamous’ Cole To Join in Read More >>

Rating: B The most announcements of any conference, Sony’s was jam-packed with reveals. However, other than the surprisingly low price of the PS Vita, none rivalled the megaton announcements of the years before. No Agent, Twisted Metal or Last Guardian was disappointing.

Nintendo:

• Zelda: Link’s Awakening is now available for 3DS on the Virtual Console
• Ocarina of Time 3D will launch next week
• Zelda: 4 Swords Adventure will be a free download in September
• Zelda: Skyward Sword will launch this holiday for the Wii, limited edition Gold Wii Remote will accompany this launch.
• Later this year a 25th Zelda Anniversary Symphony Concert will tour around the word.
• Mario Kart 3DS, Star Fox 3DS, Super Mario 3D, Kid Icarus Uprising, Luigi’s Mansion 2 announced
• eShop finally available for the 3DS
• Pokedex 3D out now for free
• Wii U blowout Read More >>

Rating: A- Announcing a new console meant that Nintendo were pretty much guaranteed to have the best show. Add in a spattering of top 3DS titles and a strong list of third party support for the Wii U, and the conference was a hit. But with graphics failing to beat the PS3, a terrible name and an odd control interface, the show was far from perfect.

© Sebastian Moss for PlayStation LifeStyle, 2011. | Permalink | 33 comments | Add to del.icio.us

After successfully launching on both the PS3 and the PSP, Modnation Racers will soon be coming to the recently named PlayStation Vita. But it won’t be a port at all.

San Diego Studios showed off the new version of Modnation on stage. Race, Create, Share was their mantra the first time, but it’s been taken to a new level now. The Vita’s version of the crazy kart racer will be much more intuitive than the already accesible PS3 version. Utilizing the touch interface, you just have to draw a racetrack and it will be there. Mere seconds and you’ll have a new track.

As part of the promise of cross-platform compatibility with the PlayStation Vita and the PS3, all of the 2 million PS3 tracks will be available on Day 1 as DLC. Stay tuned to PlayStation LifeStyle for the rest of E3 for your PlayStation Vita needs.

© Corey Schwanz for PlayStation LifeStyle, 2011. | Permalink | 4 comments | Add to del.icio.us

Bioware/Electronics Arts walked away from the second annual Canadian Videogame Awards in Vancouver last night with four awards for Mass Effect 2 including the shows highest honor, Game of the Year. Ubisoft Montreal’s Assassin’s Creed Brotherhood was the only other multi-award winner taking the top spots in the categories of Best Audio and Best Visual Arts.

The following is a list of nominees with the category winners in bold and underlined:

Game of the Year

• Assassin’s Creed Brotherhood
• Dead Rising 2
• FIFA 11
• Mass Effect 2
• Tom Clancy’s Splinter Cell: Conviction

Best Console Game

• Assassin’s Creed Brotherhood
• Dead Rising 2
• FIFA 11
• Mass Effect 2
• Tom Clancy’s Splinter Cell: Conviction

Best Game on the Go

• A Space Shooter For 2 Bucks
• Lil’ Pirates
• Osmos for iPad
• Scrabble iPad
• Trainyard

Best Downloadable Game

• A Space Shooter For 2 Bucks
• Dead Rising 2: Case Zero
• DeathSpank
• HOARD
• Shank

Best Audio

• Assassin’s Creed Brotherhood
• Dawn of War II: Chaos Rising
• Mass Effect 2
• Spider-Man: Shattered Dimensions
• Tom Clancy’s Splinter Cell: Conviction

Best Social/Casual Game

• Dex Hamilton’s Bug Quest
• GardenMind
• Mercanaries of War
• Pocket God on Facebook
• Pot Farm

Best Game Design

• Assassin’s Creed Brotherhood
• DeathSpank
• Mass Effect 2
• Tom Clancy’s Splinter Cell: Conviction
• Trainyard

Best Technology

• Assassin’s Creed Brotherhood
• Kinect
• Mass Effect 2
• Scrabble iPad
• Your Shape Fitness Evolved

Best Visual Arts

• Assassin’s Creed Brotherhood
• Mass Effect 2
• Spider-Man: Shattered Dimensions
• Tom Clancy’s Splinter Cell: Conviction
• Tron: Evolution

Best Writing

• Assassin’s Creed Brotherhood
• Dawn of War II: Chaos Rising
• Mass Effect 2
• Prince of Persia – The Forgotten Sands
• Tom Clancy’s Splinter Cell: Conviction

Best Student Game

• Codex
• Ginkgo
• Hootlin
• Womp!

Innovation Award

• Kinect Joy Ride
• ModNation Racers
• Scrabble iPad
• Spider-Man: Shattered Dimensions
• Your Shape Fitness Evolved

Canada is the third largest developer of video games in the world and the Canadian Videogame Awards honor Developers and Publishers making games in the country. This year the ceremony also kicks off the Canadian Games Conference (formerly GDC-Canada) which will run May 19th and 20th, 2011. While nominees are open to public submission the finalists and eventual winners are selected by the CVA Advisory Committee and a representation of industry experts from within the country. The exception to this rule comes in the selection of Game of the Year, which is chosen purely by fan voting.

© Mitchell Sellar for PlayStation LifeStyle, 2011. | Permalink | 14 comments | Add to del.icio.us

Modnation Racers, the PlayStation 3′s own Race, Create, Share title released just 9 months ago already has some fantastic news to share. 

United Front Games’ first venture into the kart-racing genre seems to be a successful one. Not only was the game just recently announced to be one of the PS3′s Greatest Hits (bringing the price to a nice $29.99), as well a full digital release on the PlayStation Store today, but Modnation Racers just had its 2 millionth creation published. 2 million.

The developer revealed:

If you download and race one track a day, everyday, it would take you well over one full millennium to finish, and that’s including leap year days!

And what better way to celebrate this occasion than with a contest? Sponsored by Progressive Insurance, the free Parts Pack will be available tomorrow and will include 13 new items to play around with. If you use any of the parts to create a custom track for the contest, you could be entered to win a PlayStation Move Sports Champions Bundle, or even a Sony Bravia 3DTV. So go get creating!

[Source]

© Corey Schwanz for PlayStation LifeStyle, 2011. | Permalink | 2 comments | Add to del.icio.us

The PS3′s Greatest Hits line-up is a robust offering of the console’s very best titles, value-priced at just $29.99. This offers gamers an affordable way to pick up popular titles they may have missed for cheap, and let’s new PS3 owners get in on the very best of the system’s ever-growing library.

To further expand this value offering, Sony has announced that 5 recent titles will be added to the PS3′s Greatest Hits.

Two of last year’s biggest and highest rated games, 2009′s Game of the Year and two other worthy contenders from 2010 have been added to the PS3′s Greatest Hits library. The following titles have been added:

• God of War III
• Heavy Rain
• Uncharted 2: Among Thieves -  Game of the Year Edition
• ModNation Racers
• UFC: Undisputed 2010

This further helps the PS3 in 2011 by offering the very best software line-up available on any platform. On top of value-pricing on these titles, 2011 will bring much-anticipated titles such as inFamous 2, MLB 11: The Show, Resistance 3, Uncharted 3: Drake’s Deception, Twisted Metal and more!

© Anthony Severino for PlayStation LifeStyle, 2011. | Permalink | 6 comments | Add to del.icio.us

Holiday deals are as plentiful as ever this year, and Best Buy is joining the fray by including $50 gift cards with numerous PlayStation 3 bundles. There’s no doubt that a PlayStation 3 bundle is a great present for friends and family, but with the inclusion of a $50 gift card the option is open to choose another great game, movie, controller, or other accessory to accompany it. Best Buy is currently featuring six varieties of bundles to choose from, but two in particular are especially worthy of purchase.

First up is the Gran Turismo 5 bundle for all the racing fans out there. With over 1000 cars to battle it out with, this should keep anyone busy for a long time to come. It includes the 160GB model PS3, as well as the movie Grown Ups on Blu-ray disc, all for $349. The second noteworthy bundle is also a 160GB model PS3, but instead includes Little Big Planet, ModNation Racers, and Cars. Retailing at $300, this one is a little easier on the wallet, kid friendly, and packs plenty of content with two of Sony’s exclusive play, create, share style games. Either way, this is a great deal. Check it out here at Best Buy, and be sure to click the check box next to the $50 gift card item at the bottom of the page.

Will you be picking on of these up for a lucky family member this year? Let us know in the comments below, and stick with PlayStation LifeStyle for more holiday deals and news!

© BigWoopMagazine for PlayStation LifeStyle, 2010. | Permalink | 5 comments | Add to del.icio.us

Continuing with the support of their play, create, share themed karting game, United Front Games has announced today that they will be releasing a slew of content throughout the coming months.

The content will include more pieces for customizing tracks, karts, parts, and costumes of some our favorite PlayStation characters. On December 21st the first piece of this action will release on PSN and will include a career extension as well as a Far East theme for track creation. Following that in January are Jak & Daxter costumes and karts, as well as Helghast karts and costumes in February.  No details on pricing have been given at this time.

© BigWoopMagazine for PlayStation LifeStyle, 2010. | Permalink | 9 comments | Add to del.icio.us

ModNation Racers has been one of the most customizable experiences in recent years with its fully user-created society featuring custom cars, tracks, and even characters. United Front Games has been supporting the game heavily with additional content, and now the company is looking to offer some special bonuses for free!

Starting on October 26th, the first of two planned part packs is going to be released for ModNation Racers. This special pack includes ramps, props, and several other items to enhance the level editor. The best part? It will be available absolutely free for two-weeks following release. In addition, United Front Games is hosting a double XP week starting on October 26th as well.

For those who have ModNation Racers but haven’t played it in a while, now’s a great chance to hop back into the wonderful world of Mods. A patch was released not too long ago which addressed community concerns, the region-lock was done away with, and the experience is much more developed now that thousands of users have uploaded their fine work. Also, with double XP offered for a whole week, it’d be crazy not to join. Start warming up your engine!

[Source]

© jleack for PlayStation LifeStyle, 2010. | Permalink | 4 comments | Add to del.icio.us

It was easy for gamers to overlook United Front Games ModNation Racers earlier this Summer. Stuck between the releases of Blur, Split/Second, and the multi-platinum selling blockbuster, Red Dead Redemption, ModNation Racers didn’t exactly burn up the sales chart. However, that didn’t stop the game from being one of the BEST Kart racers released the past 5 years. Fantastic news for all of you who might have waited on this overlooked gem, as Sony has issued a price cut for both the PS3 and PSP versions of the game.

With over 300,000 tracks available to burn rubber on, now is the perfect time to join the ModNation Racing League. For a cool $39.99,  this ticket is ridiculously good deal. Just like the original LittleBigPlanet, this ‘Play. Create. Share.’ is going to keep you busy for a long, long time. For those who might a taste of MNR on the go, the PSP version has been slashed to a oh-so-nice price of $19.99. With over 16,000 tracks created, the PSP version is the perfect counterpart to it’s bigger brother.

If this price cut doesn’t entice you, then make sure you read PlayStation LifeStyle’s Reviews for BOTH versions. Check out the PlayStation 3 Review and the PSP Review.

Are you tempted to join in on the ModNation fun? Let us know in the comments below.

© The Great Thomasio for PlayStation LifeStyle, 2010. | Permalink | 6 comments | Add to del.icio.us

In spite of ModNation Racers’ overall success, some race jocks have harbored some gripes against its multiplayer feature.  It wasn’t that the online racing was lacking in exhilarating thrills and nail-biting gameplay, but rather the restriction to playing with your buddies only in your region.   Now that disappointment can be left in the dust.

The devs over at United Front Games had admitted that the region limitation was a result of how the game handled transferring the large amount of shared data between all the players for an online match.  At the time of the title’s release, the current data transferring would only work well within shorter distances, mainly to preserve the performance of the game.  However, after a few mods to their own ModNation Racer, they’ve finally manage to optimize the transfer protocols to enable worldwide racing!

The latest version of ModNation Racer 1.4 should take care the former restriction, and set you free to race with your pen pals on the other side of the world!

[Source]

© Razor for PlayStation LifeStyle, 2010. | Permalink | 10 comments | Add to del.icio.us

When was the last time you played ModNation Racers? Maybe you’re like me and the loading times have shied you away lately, or maybe you have been too busy catching up on all of the mighty exclusives for the PS3 you’ve been missing. Whatever the case, now is a great time to hop back on now that the big patch is out and United Front Games has announced a Double XP Week.

Starting today, Double XP week is in effect for ModNation Racers. Those who choose to play between now and September 8th will receive double experience for both creations and races. This is a great chance to catch up to your friend Bubba who out-leveled you with his award-winning Mario v9001 mod during the first month of release.

If you still haven’t picked up ModNation Racers or have no idea what it is, check out PlayStation LifeStyle’s ModNation Racers review.

© jleack for PlayStation LifeStyle, 2010. | Permalink | 5 comments | Add to del.icio.us

With an attractive price point of $299, a slimmed-down design, and loaded with a decent-sized hard disk drive, the 120 gigabyte PlayStation 3 SKU is easily an attractive purchase for anyone considering a to dive into the wonderful world of PlayStation 3 gaming. If this is not enough for the consumer on the fence, then the official Sony retail website, SonyStyle, has the perfect deal for the first-time PS3 buyer.

Currently through August 21, buying a 120 GB PlayStation 3 from SonyStyle.com will earn the buyer one free PS3 title. The offer basically gives visitors to the site a list of six critically acclaimed first-party titles to ship with the unit at no extra charge. The choices include MAG, Uncharted 2: Among Thieves, White Knight Chronicles, Motorstorm: Pacific Rift,  Heavy Rain, and last but certainly not least, ModNation Racers. With a solid list of titles such as the six offered towards the deal, it is difficult to recommend just one game to go with the new PS3. Thankfully, however, the variety of titles available is diverse enough to have something for any future owners of the system since there is everything from an RPG to the racers and the online shooter to the game of the year winner.

Still undecided? Be sure to check out our opinion for each titles in our reviews section for a more informed decision. Be sure to stay connected to PlayStation LifeStyle for more news on deals like this and more.

[Source]

© Kishen Patel for PlayStation LifeStyle, 2010. | Permalink | 2 comments | Add to del.icio.us