Sony serves up an eclectic mix of offerings to the PlayStation Network storefront this Thursday, spearheaded by interactive music experience .detuned. Developed by demoscene group .theprodukkt, it fosters creativity by allowing players to create dynamic artwork by means of manipulating various scenes in a highly stylized experience. Other notable mentions are Mushroom Wars, BUZZ! Junior: Monster Rally, and topatoi: The Great Tree Story. more »

If Hideo Kojima’s expectations pan out for Metal Gear Solid: Peace Walker, Sony is going to be very, very pleased. Speaking to Famitsu, he mentions that a certain aspect of the game will make people want to rush out and pick up a PSP, albeit vaguely:

I’m putting everything I want to do on a portable console into this game,” said Kojima. “I haven’t announced this yet, but there’s another feature in here that will surprise people, to the point where they’ll want to go out and buy a PSP right now!

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It appears Konami’s survival horror title Silent Hill: Shattered Memories, a reboot of the first SH entry, will drop outside the Halloween release window.

Numerous retailers are now hinting at a holiday release, with GameStop pegging down a December 8 date. Online outlet GameFly is listing an even further out December 31 date for the PSP and PS2 versions. Oddly enough, according to their site, the Wii version is still on track for November 26. In all likelihood that’s probably an error. If history is any indication, we’d side with GameStop’s dates as they seem to be the most accurate. Take it as pure speculation for now though, as Konami has yet to officially confirm a delay.

With the launch of a App Store-esque “Minis” section on the PlayStation Store, Sony has given smaller, independent developers an incentive to create games for the PSP. Not only are the costs of entry lower, but studios are allowed to set their own pricing. At face value, yes, this is appealing to start-ups, but it’s not that cut and dry – at least in the US.

One cavet to the program is receiving ESRB approval. In the US, getting a rating stamped on your game costs $2500, apparently, and Sony mandates that each title goes through this process. This is in stark contrast to the iPhone and iPod Touch platform, which does not require having to funnel content through a third party organization for screening purposes. In a recent interview with Gamasutra, Fieldrunners dev Sergei Gourski shed light on this particular topic: more »

Sony announced today that the dynamic duo of Jak and Daxter will make their return in The Lost Frontier on November 3 for PSP and PS2.

While creator Naughty Dog has traditionally handled the series, High Impact Games took the helm on this one, best known for Secret Agent Clank and the PS2 port of Ratchet and Clank: Size Matters.

This week’s PlayStation Store update invites gamers to chow down with the release with Capybara Games’ high-anticipated Critter Crunch. Add-on content is aplenty, with DLC for Dirt 2, Fallout 3, and LittleBigPlanet making the rounds this week. On the PSP front, NBA 10 The Inside and NBA Live 10 are now available as digital downloads, along with additional Rock Band tracks and PSOne classic Pandemonium.

Yes, the PSP offerings are lacking in this update, but considering Sony just rolled out over 100 games last week, we can forgive them. Just this once, though. Things better pick up next week.

Full content listing is past the break. more »

Although the ultra portable PSPgo has received mixed reactions in the enthusiast press, it appears that the handheld is becoming a hot item at retail, if early launch sales are any indication. According to SCEA corporate communications director Patrick Seybold, the go has managed to spark interest in the platform as a whole, netting a 300 percent increase in overall sales within a span of three days.

The launch of PSP Go has generated strong consumer interest in the overall PSP platform and the PlayStation Network’s digital content offering.

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Former Bungie staffers Michel Bastien, Damián Isla, and Rob Stokes have announced the formation of Moonshot Games, a new development outfit based in Seattle and Boston. more »

Online retailer Amazon has joined forces with Sony to offer select offerings from the PlayStation Store. Purchase a title through Amazon and you’ll be instantly sent a voucher code with which you can redeem on your platform of choice.

What’s the advantage of going through Amazon rather than using the PS store directly? One word: convenience. Alternatives are always welcome and it’s nice being able perform PSN transactions straight from your browser. We can only hope Amazon will begin to stock up on more titles in the near future. This initiative also opens up the possibility of gifting, as purchased voucher codes can be sent to another party after purchase. more »

Table manners are a thing of the past this week on PSN, as developer Capybara Games announced today that its barf-filled puzzle outing Critter Crunch is hitting the storefront this coming Thursday in all its technicolor glory.

Assuming the role of a hungry yet adorable creature, players are tasked with the appetizing challenge of engulfing as much food as possible and then vomiting it out into other critter’s mouths, Easy enough, right? Just be careful not to overstuff yourself. It’ll carry a budget appealing price of $6.99, slightly less than the going rate for most PSN efforts. Assuming the gameplay is as fun and addictive as it looks, this is certainly one you may want to jump on, if only for the sheer enjoyment of being able to barf in a video game.

A short gameplay trailer is provided above courtesy of Capy.