Official word from Sony PR is that the inner hardware of PSPgo units remains the same as the past two hardware revisions, apart from the obvious inclusion of a built-in 16GB flash storage device. But sometimes, as we’ve learned in the past, official word is not the end-all be-all. According to a recently published FCC filing, the PSPgo sports a CPU clocking in at 480MHz, a near 42 percent increase over the original clock speed of 333MHz. When was the last time an FCC spec sheet pulled a ruse on us? That’s a tough one.

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This week’s PlayStation Store update is dominated by a trio of downloadable UMD legacy titles for the PSP, namely Capcom Classics Collection Remixed, Mind Quiz, and Tom Clancy’s Splinter Cell Essentials.

Over on the PS3 front is The Punisher: No Mercy, an exclusive PSN effort inspired by the legendary comic book series. In search of add-on content? A free limited edition Sacktue of Liberty costume for LittleBigPlanet went live today, just in time for July 4 festivities. As a bonus, it is completely free. Qore episode 14 also awaits, providing an inside look at Assassin’s Creed 2.

See the full listing of content past the break.

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After this year’s cutting-edge aerial fighter Tom Clancy’s HAWX, publisher Ubisoft is taking to the skies yet again in Heroes Over Europe, a sequel to the dogfight-laden World War II flight combat sim Heroes of the Pacific.

In development at Transmission Games, the title is played out across faithful recreations of real-world locations, including London, Berlin, and the French Alps. Four online modes supporting up to 16 players are promised as well, in addition to a unique Ace Kill gameplay mechanic that encourages close combat action.

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Those longing for a blast from the past in portable form are in luck, Capcom announced today that it will begin releasing several of its UMD-based titles and PSOne classics on PSN throughout the coming months.

The very first of these titles is due out tomorrow, Capcom Classics Collection: Remixed. It is a collection of coin-op and arcade ports, twenty in all. Notable titles included are Bionic Commando, Street Fighter, and Magic Sword.

Additionally, Capcom has provided a comprehensive list detailing what to expect over the next few weeks. After an onslaught of requests from fans, survival horror classics Resident Evil 2 and Resident Evil 3: Nemesis have been confirmed for a PSN release at long last.

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If a report from Taiwan-based finance site UDN is to be believed, the much-rumored PS3 Slim model has entered the production phase and units will be ready to ship by July at the earliest.

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It’s no secret that the lack of PS2 emulation on newer PS3 units is a bit of a put-off to prospective purchasers. Especially when considering that majority of would-be PS3 owners are those that own a large library of PS2 titles. Granted, not being able to play those games isn’t a deal breaker for most, but it certainly makes laying down $400 on new hardware a tougher decision.

However, it looks like Sony may be bringing to PS2 emulation to non-backwards compatible PS3 units after all, if a recently unearthed patent is any indication. The patent references a software-based technology that would allow the PS3’s Cell CPU to translate or emulate code written specifically for the PS2’s Emotion Engine chip.

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A playable demo of Capcom’s alien infested mech-shooter Lost Planet 2 is due for a public release “soon,” according to producer Jun Takeuchi. The exec reportedly made the comment on Midnight Live 360, a Famitsu-sponsored event.

It’s worth pointing out that Takeuchi’s exact words were “soon, I guess” in reference to the demo, which doesn’t exactly instill us with optimism. Regardless, whether that “soon” bit was in reference to a worldwide or Japan-only release, we aren’t fully sure yet. Apart from Final Fantasy XIII, demos exclusive to a specific region are becoming increasingly uncommon nowadays, so we’re hoping for the former.

Lost Planet 2 is scheduled for a 2010 release on Xbox 360, PS3, and PC.

This week’s round of XBLA releases invite gamers to get their multiplayer on in Worms 2 Armageddon and King of Fighters ‘98.

Both are priced at 800 MS points, with Worms 2 featuring a wealth of upgrades over the original, including additional play modes and four-person multiplayer via Live or local. On the other hand, King of Fighters is a straight port offering upscaled visuals and one-on-one online multiplayer.

Fancy scheduling a good old-fashioned LAN party for the launch of StarCraft II? Sorry pal, but it’s not going to happen, at least not in the traditional sense, as the much-anticipated sequel will only support multiplayer skirmishes over Battle.net. Which of course requires an active internet connection, taking the local aspect out of the equation. Game designer Rob Pardo briefly explains:

We don’t have any plans to support LAN. We will not support it. The only multiplayer available will be on Battle.net.

It’s not a huge issue by any means, but is sure to agitate those wanting to engage in latency-free gaming, seeing as Blizzard is mandating that all network data must be passed through the Battle.net servers.

Why remove the LAN component? Our guess: oftentimes the LAN feature in games is abused by nefarious pirates to allow for connectivity across private or unofficial servers. By solely restricting access of the online component to Battle.net, Blizzard has much tighter control over what is and isn’t allowed on the infrastructure side of things.

StarCraft II Developers Talk [IncGamers]

Unreal Tournament developer Epic Games is expanding its reach to Korea, as the company announced today that it has opened a location based in Seoul.

“We deeply value our customers, and we are committed to providing Korean game developers with outstanding technology and tools,” said Park. “The opening of Epic Games Korea signifies Epic’s desire to collaborate more closely with the Korean game development community, as we view our licensees’ successes as our own.”

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