Sony Computer Entertainment Japan’s PlayStation Vita Heaven event in March brought a wealth of announcements for the company’s new portable, including the revelation that Phantasy Star Online 2 was in development. Unearthed by this week’s issue of Famitsu, it’s been revealed that Sony is prepping another Heaven event in June. A specific date wasn’t mentioned, though it’ll likely take place sometime after E3.

Viewers of the last Heaven event enjoyed several game trailers, including that of Persona 4 The Golden. It’ll be interesting to see what Sony has in store for us the second time around. For Japan, it’ll be hard to top the Phantasy Star announcement, but we’ll see.

South Park: The Game, also known as South Park: The Stick of Truth, and referred to by me as “that one South Park game that’s going to come out” has been pushed back until 2013. Originally, the game was potentially slated for launch sometime during the second half of 2012.

As revealed in a recent financial report from THQ, it looks like that won’t be happening anymore, though, and South Park is now set to release during the fourth quarter of fiscal year 2013. In other words, the game will be available sometime in early 2013.

Obsidian, the developer behind South Park, had a number of layoffs in March. Numerous employees who were let go were actually from the South Park team, so it’s possible that the delay could be related to the layoffs.

South Park seems like it could potentially be pretty awesome, so if it takes a delay to ensure that gamers get a great product, there won’t be any complaints from me. Watch out for the game sometime next year.

The Q-Games-developed PixelJunk 4am has landed on the PlayStation Network. The sad news is that this means the awesome PixelJunk sale that kicked off last week is officially over. Did you snag all of the PixelJunk games for cheap? I sure as hell did!

Sad news aside, there’s also some happy news! That happy news is that there’s a new PixelJunk game, which is great. PixelJunk 4am provides an experience unlike previous games in the series, focusing highly on visual and audio elements that utilize the PlayStation Move controller.

If you take a look at the comments section on a PlayStation Blog post by PixelJunk 4am lead designer Rowan Parker, you’ll find a lot of individuals who don’t seem too keen on the game based on their experiences with the beta. As has been explained in that same comments section, the PixelJunk 4am beta didn’t allow gamers to play the game and instead only allowed them to listen to other players’ (press and friends of the devs) performances.

It may take a while for some good content to come from other players now that the game is available on the PlayStation Network, but in the meantime, why not create your own mixes? PixelJunk 4am is available now for $9.99.

The PlayStation 2 is one of the most successful video game consoles of all time. Not only did it sell like crazy, but it had a library that was practically unmatched. That’s not to say that the GameCube and Xbox didn’t have some stellar games, but as far as the sixth generation in video games is concerned, the PlayStation 2 was king.

That’s why it’s strange to see how Sony has fallen from its throne with the PlayStation 3, a platform that former Microsoft Entertainment and Devices Division President Robbie Bach states helped the Xbox 360 manufacturer reach great heights. “Some of the success of Xbox was due to the fact that Sony did some really not so smart things,” Bach told GeekWire. “They mismanaged their 70 percent market share. It’s a long conversation. The transition to PlayStation 3 was really, really bad. And really hard. They mismanaged their partners, they mismanaged their cost structure. They made their next platform so complicated that developers couldn’t develop for it.”

I’m a fan of Sony’s gaming platforms, so it goes without saying that it was a bit distressing to see the PlayStation 3 fail to perform at the same level as its predecessor, which easily qualifies as many gamers’ favorite console. The PlayStation 2 is certainly one of my favorites, and though I game a hell of a lot on my PlayStation 3, I would still say I’ve had far more fond memories with Sony’s previous machine.

Despite some bad failures, though, Sony continues to stay in the console race, capitalizing on its brand name and incredible exclusive IPs. Here’s hoping the company stays in the game, learns from its mistakes, and continues to give gamers content to look forward to, all the while avoiding making the same errors.

Looks like you’ll be hearing more about Silent Hill Book of Memories at this year’s E3, rather than playing it. Konami’s confirmed that Silent Hill Book of Memories has been moved to October, according to a Game Informer report.

Although it was supposed to release next week, the abrupt delay isn’t too surprising, considering the company has been dead silent regarding the title for months.

In particular, Amazon is specifically listing an October 31 release date now, though in all likelihood that’s a placeholder. We first caught wind of the title at Sony’s pre-E3 presentation last year, before the NGP was officially known as the Vita. Since then, the title was revealed as a co-op focused horror title with plenty of action elements and Diablo-style corridors. Needless to say, it hasn’t exactly won over the fanbase.

The Xbox 360 adaption of Minecraft has already proved itself a hit on Xbox Live, selling more than any other title in the first 24 hours of availability. On top of that, it was also profitable in its first hour of release. Now Microsoft has taken the opportunity to gloat some more, announcing that the title has tipped one million in total sales – one week after release.

Additionally, Microsoft PR guru Major Nelson reveals that a whopping 5.2 million hours have been spent in the game, with a total of 2.4 million hours going towards the multiplayer component. To date, 4 million multiplayer sessions have been created. Impressive statistics all around.

Clearly, console gamers were frothing at the mouth for Minecraft. Here’s hoping 4J Studios deliver on their promise to bring the Xbox edition up to parity with its PC brethren, which can look really nice with a few graphical enhancements as shown in the screenshot above.

When Luigi’s Mansion 2 was announced for the 3DS, fans of the first game immediately got stoked at the prospect of a handheld sequel. After all, the first game had a nice following, and while it wasn’t perfect, it delivered an experience that derived from the typical Mario formula and dared to be different. Couple that with the fact that the game was actually good, and it’s no surprise that Luigi’s Mansion 2 quickly became one of the most anticipated 3DS games.

Now the game may be launching on the Wii U, as well. As reported on CVG, a listing on Play.com indicates that Luigi’s Mansion 2 will be available on Nintendo’s upcoming platform. Of course, this could all be an error on the part of Play.com, but it’s certainly interesting to think about, and it wouldn’t be the most farfetched possibility.

Luigi’s Mansion 2 on the 3DS may be a necessary title for Nintendo’s handheld, and it may give gamers sufficient reason to continue supporting the device. If some version of the game lands on the Wii U, though, can we expect the two be similar from a gameplay standpoint? Or will we get two different experiences? Also, could games like Luigi’s Mansion 2 be exactly what the Wii U needs to draw in that Nintendo-loving fan base?

The used game market is easily one of the strongest aspects of video games, and it’s also pretty damn important. Not only do gamers get the chance to save a few bucks on big titles, but used games also allow folks to become familiar with a new series, play a game that may be hard to find new, or just increase their ever-growing backlog (because we’re all guilty of taking advantage of sales despite the fact that we have too much to play as it is).

With talk about the next Xbox and PlayStation consoles revealing that these platforms will supposedly block used games, it should come as no surprise that plenty of gamers and developers are kind of annoyed. After all, much like Twisted Metal co-creator David Jaffe has stated in the past, buying a used game allows gamers to become familiar with a franchise, which means that those gamers are likely to directly support the next entry by purchasing a brand new copy. As for those of us who play games, well, gaming is expensive, so if we can save a few bucks, we will.

Apparently, Sony President and CEO Jack Tretton is against the blocking of used games, reports That VideoGame Blog. In an episode of GameTrailers’ Bonus Round, analyst Michael Pachter said that he had talked to Tretton, who revealed that he felt blocking used games was “anti-consumer.” According to the Sony boss, the used game market is “great for consumers,” and he even went as far as to say that he was “opposed to blocking used games.”

Tretton explained that he was speaking only on his behalf, and that he didn’t represent any other Sony employee’s stance on used games. That said, it’s great to see someone so high up in the company making a bold statement against blocking used games for next-gen consoles. Because seriously, that would be pretty disgusting.

Nintendo’s announced that Pikmin 2 and Mario Power Tennis will join its Nintendo Selects lineup on June 10. The titles are updated versions of the GameCube originals, retrofitted with motion controls. It’s been a long time coming, considering Nintendo released both under the ‘New Play Control’ banner in Japan back in 2009.

While we’re perplexed as to why it’s taken so long, the timing is somewhat fitting for Pikmin 2, considering we’ll likely see a reveal of Pikmin 3 as part of Nintendo’s E3 2012 lineup in June. The Pikmin series received quite a bit of attention during the GameCube era, partly since it was a new IP from Nintendo, which only arrive every eon or so. Beyond that, it was chock full of charming gameplay and visuals from the brain of Mario creator Shigeru Miyamoto.

Both titles ring in at $19.99. Additionally, Nintendo has saw fit to drop the price of two of its top-selling Wii titles, namely Super Smash Bros. Brawl and Donkey Kong Country Returns. You can now pick them up for $29.99 each.

Originally slated for launch in fall 2012, the upcoming Tomb Raider reboot has been pushed back until the first quarter of 2013. News of the delay comes courtesy of the official Tomb Raider forums, where Crystal Dynamics head Darrell Gallagher was quoted to say that the studio is attempting to make not only a great Tomb Raider game, but the best game possible from the team.

“When Crystal Dynamics first set out to reboot the Tomb Raider franchise, there were two goals that we were extremely passionate about,” said Gallagher. “The first was to create a modern Tomb Raider game that would surprise and excite gamers. The second was to make this the best game of our careers, something we would be really proud to be a part of. We truly believe that we have something very special on our hands and we can’t wait to share it with you.”

Gallagher went on to explain that in order to deliver in terms of quality, extra time was necessary to ensure that fans get exactly what they’ve been wanting out of a Tomb Raider game. He also confirmed that the game would be showcased at this year’s E3. Anyone who’s been looking forward to Tomb Raider should definitely be stoked to get some more info and a closer look at the gameplay when the huge trade event takes place next month.

Tomb Raider looks like a promising title and has quickly become a game to watch out for. So if the developers need a few months to make some tweaks and enhancements, more power to them. I’m certain Tomb Raider fans want the best experience possible, and if a delay is what it takes, we really can’t complain. Plus, if Crystal Dynamics was to release the game this fall, it probably wouldn’t be the best marketing strategy with games like Borderlands 2, Call of Duty: Black Ops II, Assassin’s Creed III, and Resident Evil 6 among others launching during that time.