The indie gem WizOrb from developer Tribute Games is set to land on PS Minis next month. The game, which is currently available for PC, takes the classic Breakout formula and adds some small RPG touches, enhancing the experience and making it much more than your average block-breaking experience.

WizOrb received plenty of praise for its charming retro aesthetic, old school narrative, and intuitive gameplay. Here’s hoping it receives more attention and acclaim now that it’s going to be playable on the PlayStation 3, Vita, and PSP.

If you’re a fan of indie games and have yet to play WizOrb, definitely watch out for it on PS Minis. The game will launch sometime in June for $3.99.

A patent filed by Sony in 2011 has been discovered and made public on NeoGAF. The patent is for in-game advertising. Now, I’m not talking about shameless ads on posters or billboards within a game’s world. No, this patent idea is much sleazier.

Titled Advertisement Scheme for Use with Interactive Content (that’s funny because it would be a damn scheme), the patent indicates that a message would appear onscreen during a gamer’s play session warning that person that an ad would pop up shortly. Gameplay would then be “suspended” and a commercial would run. After the ad, “at least a portion” of the gameplay would be rewound, and the game would continue.

Now, it should be noted that this patent probably won’t lead to anything, and it seems like this was just an idea that was brainstormed and entertained (possibly by drunk people). If it did, though, it would be really disgusting for a couple of reasons. For starters, it would interrupt gamers’ experiences and even ruin gameplay for individuals who are really invested in a game. Also, it would be horrible because we already pay $60 for games, so in-game advertising would mean that publishers are just getting more money and ruining our time with a game in the process.

Again, this probably won’t happen, and it’s a good thing, too. That said, it’s pretty foul to think that the people who make our consoles and games actually think of the possibilities that schemes — yes, schemes — like these could entail for their benefit.

If you’re looking to put that PlayStation Move controller to good use, you might be glad to know that Resident Evil: Chronicles HD Collection will be landing on the PlayStation Network on June 26. The collection includes Resident Evil: The Umbrella Chronicles and Resident Evil: The Darkside Chronicles, which were previously only available on the Wii.

You’ll be able to gun down hordes of undead humans (among other creatures) while aiming with your Move controller. Both games received fairly positive reviews on the Wii, so if you’re a fan of light gun shooters or Resident Evil (or you just really want to bust out that Move controller), you may want to check out Chronicles HD Collection.

The set will be priced at $26.99 when it launches next month. Starting July 17, gamers will be able to buy each title individually for $14.99 each. That means you would have to pay 30 bucks if you planned on buying both at separate times, so it’s obvious that if you want to play both Umbrella Chronicles and Darkside Chronicles, you’re better off just buying the two of them at the same time.

I was originally going to use GIMP to add a PlayStation 3 logo to the image above, but I got lazy. Plus, that’s so cliche! So yeah, here are some pretty clouds for you to look at! You’re welcome!

Now that we’ve gotten through that awkward introductory paragraph, let’s talk Sony! Rumors have surfaced indicating that the PlayStation 3 and Vita manufacturer will announce cloud gaming for its consoles at this year’s E3 in less than two weeks.

According to VG24/7, Sony is in talks with either OnLive or Gaikai to incorporate the service to its platforms. It would certainly be an intriguing idea. We’ll know for sure whether there’s any substance to these rumors come Sony’s E3 press conference on June 4.

During the days of the original PlayStation, a little 2D platformer by the name of Tomba! managed to receive critical acclaim and wowed the gamers who played it. For a long time now, folks all over the internet have stated that they want to see the classic PlayStation title on the PlayStation Network. For those individuals, it’s time to celebrate, because Tomba! is officially headed to Sony’s download platform this summer as part of its PSone Classics line.

Because the original developer, Whoopee Camp, disbanded following the launch of Tomba! 2, Sony will have MonkeyPaw Games bringing the title to the PlayStation Network. “Sony and MonkeyPaw have a good working relationship,” said studio head John Greiner in a statement to Joystiq. “I think they appreciate the titles we’ve brought to the Store. And they value the support we give the games. Hence, Sony is willing to work with us on titles that may not have otherwise been licensed out. Support is key.”

MonkeyPaw has been trying to develop Tomba! for the PlayStation Network for quite some time now, and while the developer would love to eventually port Tomba! 2 to PSone Classics, it needs to take things one step at a time. “Tomba! 2 is a possibility but we need to really sell Tomba! 1 well before we can extend our relationship,” said Greiner. “It’s the first time to work with [Tokuro] Fujiwara-san [the founder of Whoopee Camp] so we’re trying to make a good impression. Good sales have a way of opening doors a bit wider.”

Here’s hoping Tomba! does sell well. As someone who never played the original game on account of my lack of a PlayStation, I look forward to getting acquainted with this charming old school classic.

Sony’s announced that yet another bout of PSN maintenance will begin on Thursday. It’ll start at approximately 8:00 am PDT and wrap up by 11:00pm PDT.

During this timeframe, services such as the PlayStation Store will be inaccessible. Related services, such as Account Management and Registration will also be yanked offline.

If you’ve set aside a Thursday gaming night, your plans aren’t entirely foiled. According to PlayStation Digital manager Matthew Harper, you’ll still be able to play online if you connect to PSN within 5 days prior to the start of this maintenance window. Better sign on quick – as there’s less than 24 hours left.

Xbox original Oddworld: Stranger’s Wrath launched to positive reviews when it was re-released with snazzy HD graphics on the PlayStation Network. A Vita port has been in the works, and developer Just Add Water is shooting for a June launch.

During the PlayStation Blogcast, the studio’s CEO Stewart Gilray revealed that work on the project had just started just over a month ago, reports Push Square. Despite that fact, however, Stranger’s Wrath on the Vita is coming along nicely, and the game is expected to hit Sony’s portable late next month. That’s certainly surprising, and it’s great to see development going so smoothly.

“We started work on [the Vita version of Stranger’s Wrath] about five and a half weeks ago,” said Gilray. “The guy who’s doing it had actually never touched a Vita before — he just plugged it in and read the documentation. He probably spent half a week reading the documentation and then the next week he already had the code running. He was surprised how quickly he managed to get things going.”

In addition to Stranger’s Wrath for Vita, Gilray announced that Oddworld: Munch’s Oddysee should see a release on the PlayStation Network soon. The game was originally released as an Xbox exclusive during the console’s launch despite the fact that it was first planned for the PlayStation 2. No exact word on when the game will launch, but it did earn a few favorable reviews and awards at the time of its original release, so the HD remake could be a real treat to watch out for.

One of the perks of buying games on Steam is that you can often buy them prior to their launch and pre-download them onto your PC. After that all you have to do is wait for launch day to come and — Bam! — you’ve got a brand new game ready to play, no annoying download times necessary at launch.

It appears that Sony will begin to adopt this practice, as well, reveals Gamasutra. Gamers will be able to pay for upcoming PlayStation Network titles, and they will have the opportunity to pre-download them to their PlayStation 3 consoles. The first game that will use this functionality is the upcoming PlayStation Move title Sorcery, which will hit the PlayStation Store next week.

Being able to pay for and download a game before it releases, and then having the file unlock at launch is definitely a great practice, and one that should be the norm for consoles. I’m certain plenty of gamers will agree that having access to a game right at launch is great, but the best part of it all is that you don’t have to get super anxious as you wait for the game to download that day.

Famed adventure game developer Telltale Games has reported that The Walking Dead Episode 1: A New Day has officially hit the one million sales mark. That’s awesome news for both Telltale and The Walking Dead, as the game was received quite well by gamers. What that means is that most of those one million sales are made up of satisfied fans who got a great game.

According to Telltale, The Walking Dead is its fastest-selling series. Episode 1 topped sales charts across Xbox Live Arcade, PlayStation Network, and Steam, and because this is just the first of five episodes in the series, we can definitely expect The Walking Dead to continue to rake in revenue for the folks making the games.

Currently, Telltale is planning to release The Walking Dead for iOS platforms this summer. Additionally, Episode 2: Starved for Help is scheduled to land on Xbox Live Arcade, PlayStation Network, PC, and Mac next month. Here’s hoping the next chapter in the series is as great as Episode 1, so the franchise can continue selling well, and so fans of The Walking Dead can keep getting content worth being stoked about.

Ubisoft is celebrating the warm month of May with some impressive deals on a bunch of games. If you managed to blaze through Max Payne 3 and/or are currently disliking Diablo III and you need something to play, you may want to check out Ubisoft’s discounts, which were announced on the PlayStation Blog.

PlayStation Plus members get 50 percent off, while all other PlayStation 3 gamers will be able to snag some titles for 30 percent off. The sale covers a wide variety of games, from smaller downloadable titles such as Scott Pilgrim vs. The World: The Game to digital versions of retail games like Assassin’s Creed: Brotherhood. DLC is also discounted, and HD remakes like Beyond Good & Evil HD are included in Ubisoft’s May sale, as well.

You’ll find the full list of discounted games below, with prices for PlayStation Plus users and standard PlayStation Network folks. Personally, I would recommend Outland to anyone who hasn’t already played it. The game is a beauty to behold, and its strong soundtrack and great platforming/bullet hell gameplay make it a truly special little download. more »