Stay on top of all our E3 2013 coverage here.

LOS ANGELES — Scott Rohde and the rest of the team at Sony’s PlayStation business are riding high in the wake of a successful press briefing in a duel with Microsoft at the Electronic Entertainment Expo. The Japanese company struck two blows against Microsoft when it undercut its rival’s new home console price by $100, pricing the Sony PlayStation 4 at $399 compared to Microsoft’s $499. And Sony drew cheers when it said it would allow consumers to purchase used games with fees.

The dust is settling on those announcements, and Sony’s position isn’t so far apart from Microsoft’s. But it’s clear that Sony out-marketed Microsoft, targeting gamers, consumer rights issues, and indie game developers with its message.

At various times over the last decade, Sony has been called arrogant, clueless, and brilliant. On Monday night, it was riding so high that it had to refrain from declaring victory in a console war that hadn’t yet started. To talk about the reaction to the press conference, we caught up with Scott Rohde, PlayStation software product development head for Sony Worldwide Studios America.

Here’s an edited transcript of our interview.

GamesBeat: It seems like sometimes there’s an advantage in going second with a press briefing at E3, but you guys probably had a game plan for a while.

Scott Rohde: Absolutely. Everything that you saw [Monday] night had been in place for a long time. It’s not reactionary. It’s just a matter of forming our plan and executing on it.

GamesBeat: Some have pointed out a couple of things that clarify what Sony announced. They noted that Sony exec Jack Tretton said Tuesday that game publishers are still able to make their own decisions about whether to charge fees for used games. Others pointed out that Sony now has a subscription fee in place if you want to play multiplayer on PS4. On top of these, I think they pointed out that the PS4 lacks a camera, so it’s natural to price your console lower than the competition. Can you speak to these points?

Rohde: Let me comment on the last one. The strategy to not include the camera in the box is more about offering consumers that choice. Sure, they can buy it, pay the $59, but that was a conscious decision to give value to the consumer. We wanted to bring the machine in at $399. That was our goal. Those other topics, as you might imagine, over the course of the day they’ve been kind of beaten to death. But I will say that the policies that we’ve laid out very clearly at the show are very fair policies.

GamesBeat: The hardware had a couple of hiccups when it was running. The frame rate slowed down during Assassin’s Creed IV: Black Flag. I think I noticed similar issues with Watch Dogs and Destiny as well. Was there a common problem that would explain the issues? Some speculated that there was a hardware problem.

Rohde: We haven’t talked about that at all, but—it could be any number of things, quite frankly. All I know is that sitting in the rehearsals all weekend, it never happened. It’s software in development that is running through a very complicated video streaming setup in that room, with all sorts of different possible explanations. But it’s not anything that we’ll worry about.

GamesBeat: Microsoft has brought up again the idea of cloud processing. I haven’t heard much about that on the Sony side. Do you think about that in the same way as Microsoft has?

Rohde: We’re not talking about the type of cloud processing that they’re talking about. We’re concentrating on what cloud servers can mean to us regarding Gaikai and getting our content on all sorts of different devices over time. That’s our goal. It’s going to start in early 2014.

GamesBeat: It sounds like the point of view may just be different on some things. Microsoft has the three operating systems and the cloud processing. It seems to want to be able to instantly switch between things.

Rohde: It’s just a matter of strategy there. We’re very confident in the power of the PlayStation 4 as a box. We could look into that type of technology, but again, Gaikai is a big part of our company. That sort of thing is certainly something that we could explore, but it’s not something that’s in our plans right now.

GamesBeat: Were there any particularly interesting reactions you guys heard, whether to the whole presentation or those two big points where you drew cheers?

Rohde: It’s fascinating. You’ve been to so many of these shows, just like I’ve been. Those are some of the biggest cheers I’ve ever heard at an E3, when Kaz [Sony CEO Kazuo Hirai] started out with the policy. And of course, the price at the end was just a big exclamation point.

We’re very proud that, after a long three or four years of work, we can get PlayStation 4 out the door. It’s a powerful machine at a great price. We’re proud of the engineering team that pulled it together. They made it possible to announce it at a price point that’s $100 cheaper than the competition. That cheer just kind of said it all at the end.

GamesBeat: I think you might get a bigger cheer if you show up with The Last Guardian one of these days.

Rohde: [Laughs] That’s been a running joke all day long. It wouldn’t be an E3 if I wasn’t fielding questions about that. All I can say is that it’s still alive. That’s all I’m going to say.

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GamesBeat 2013 is our fifth annual conference on disruption in the video game market. You'll get 360-degree perspectives from top gaming executives, developers, and analysts on what’s to come in the industry. Our theme this year is “The Battle Royal.” Check out full event details here, and grab your early-bird tickets here!

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Read all of our PlayStation 4 coverage here.

As the curtain closed on Sony’s revelation of the PlayStation 4, I was pretty excited. After all, Sony hasn’t revealed this much about the future of games since 2005 and 2006. But some of that reality distortion field is wearing off, and I’ve decided to take a step back and rate the overall goods that Sony delivered against expectations.

I was annoyed that Sony didn’t say more. The Japanese company revealed a fall launch, but not a launch date. It didn’t show the box, talk about the price, or say if it had functioning hardware. Given the history of console-first revelations, that’s typical. After all, it doesn’t want to give too many answers to its rivals Microsoft and Nintendo, which will maneuver based on what they learn about Sony’s strategy. And it doesn’t want to overpromise and underdeliver.

Still, I come away unsure about whether Sony “gets it” and really understands how to make itself relevant in game world that is full of business and technology disruptions. Sony answered this in part, but not in full.

But some questions are being answered as I write. Sony didn’t say, for instance, if the PS4 would play used games — considered a sacred right of fair use by many gamers. But Sony’s game studio chief Shuhei Yoshida told Eurogamer that players would indeed be able to. By the Electronic Entertainment Expo (E3), Sony should address all of our lingering doubts.

I was intrigued to notice that Sony is continuing a tradition of learning from Westerners. It didn’t learn all that much from former chief executive officer Howard Stringer, the first Brit to run Sony. But Andrew House, the head of the company, came out on stage instead of current CEO Kaz Hirai.

The lead system architect was Mark Cerny, who has tremendous respect among game developers (and is fluent in Japanese). I hear from a good source that Cerny was able to get good feedback from the West and translate that to the Japanese system engineers, and most of the user interface for the new machine was created in the West as well.

Dave Perry, the CEO of Gaikai (the cloud-gaming startup which Sony bought for $380 million), talked about Sony’s broader network strategy.

This fresh crew of leaders shows that Sony is listening to the markets that matter, as the U.S. and Europe are critical to the success of any console. In the past, Sony’s thinking seemed to be too insular and too focused on Japanese styles of doing business. Fair or not, I associate that with being unable to learn from startups — not open enough — and failing to listen closely to the desires of game developers.

Perry’s technology has brought some much-needed flexibility to Sony’s console business. Cloud gaming is potentially disruptive as it allows a publisher to run a game in an Internet-connected cloud and stream it from the data center to any client. Sony can use it for backward compatibility, allowing you to play older PlayStation, PS2, and PS3 games on the PS4.

It remains to be seen how much full game streaming will be enabled by the Gaikai technology. You can certainly use the game streaming to play demos, and it’s good that Sony fully embraced game downloading by enabling you to do it in the background, while you’re doing other things like playing games, said analyst Atul Bagga.

And the streaming technology from Gaikai also allows you to play PS4 games on a handheld PlayStation Vita and perhaps other devices as well. I really like this aspect of the technology, which House said puts the gamer at the center of the ecosystem, rather than the living room console. It embraces the reality of mobile devices being used in concert with a console.

The cloud gaming technology can get rid of the need to put backward-compatibility hardware in the console, lowering its costs. Ultimately, no one cares about backward compatibility except at the very beginning of a console sales cycle. So enabling it with as little cost as possible is an absolutely necessary ingredient of a modern game console that Microsoft has to match.

The cloud solution also allows Sony to break with the mistakes of its past. The Cell processor from IBM, Toshiba, and Sony was never popular with developers, who hated its complexity. Intel’s own chips were too expensive, but the accelerated processing units (APUs) from Advanced Micro Devices fit the bill. The eight x86 64-bit cores are both powerful and inexpensive. They can be put on the same chip as a graphics processing unit, reducing the cost and complexity of the console. And they bring the economic efficiency of the PC and its volume cost reductions to Sony while offloading considerable engineering tasks.

PC gamemakers will embrace this solution as they already know how to program PC games using the same technology. This is a big step toward simplification of the game development process, and that could help lower costs, rather than constantly increase them. The move toward the PC will get more developers on Sony’s side. After coming in third place with the PlayStation 3, Sony needs to convince developers that they will profit by sticking with Sony. And it needs to reveal games that are better on the console than they will be on the PC.

Sony showed off a bunch of cool-looking games from a number of third-party developers. But many of them are not that exciting when you consider whether they will be exclusives. Ubisoft’s Watch Dogs, Bungie’s Destiny, Quantic Dream’s Beyond: Two Souls, Capcom’s Deep Down, and Square Enix’s Final Fantasy game will likely also appear on the next Microsoft console. Those games certainly show off the kind of outstanding entertainment that will define the next generation. Quantic Dream’s rendering of a human face looked extremely realistic.

But Sony didn’t show off the “only on PlayStation 4″ titles. Bungie’s game, for instance, will also debut on the PlayStation 3 at the same time as it appears on the PS4.

But I can’t fault Sony too much here. It did show off some cool Sony-owned content. Sony’s Killzone: Shadow Fall looked stellar, but it is one more installment in an aging franchise. The Killzone demo certainly looked like it was running live, in real-time, on prototype hardware. That’s a good sign, and it is welcome, considering that it’s easy to play tricks by faking game play by using animated movies in place of real-time live gaming. I may have been fooled, but it certainly looked nice. I hear that the prototype hardware is plentiful and developers are using the machines to create their games.

The Drive Club from Evolution Studios is a unique take on social racing. Knack could have a place in the comic-combat genre. And Media Molecule seems to have a weird gesture-based sculpture game in the works. I was impressed that some of these developers said they had been working for years on PS 4 titles, or at least were working on their concepts for a long time.

But many fans were flabbergasted that there was still no mention of Sony’s The Last Guardian, a title that has been missing in action for years. Square Enix made a major fumble, too, when it showed an old trailer and still didn’t describe the game that the video revealed. The company obnoxiously told the crowd to wait until E3.

I wondered why Electronic Arts wasn’t there in a big way as the company is still a major player in the industry. But EA probably didn’t have a brand new intellectual property that was ready to unveil yet. Still, the absence of the big player will set some conspiracy theories in motion. I have no doubt that Sony has enough backers, but it should show more of them.

I was also disturbed that Sony said little about its own response to two major disruptions in the games business. Sony didn’t say what operating system the PS4 runs, but I hear it isn’t Android. It’s another custom-made Sony operating system, designed to run games fast.

Is it a mistake? Sony might have embraced the open nature of operating systems like Android and the innovation that comes from mobile devices such as smartphones and tablets. An open OS is upgradeable and flexible to change with the times.

Embracing Android would also invite large numbers of indie game developers to make games for the PS 4. Sony did not do a very good job of communicating this goal of getting more indies in its press conference and in a follow-up interview with Gamasutra. It is being too vague. But from what I hear, the console isn’t going to be as magically easy for indies to self-publish games on — at least not as easy as it is on Android. Until we know where Sony stands on this, we won’t know what it really means by being “more open.”

Sony did embrace sharing on platforms such as Twitter and Facebook. It embraced video spectating via services such as Twitch. And it also will host a variety of non-game video services, from Netflix to Vudu. That will help it fulfill the PS4′s role as an entertainment device, beyond a game console. But I saw no evidence that Sony will catch up with Microsoft’s superior Xbox Live service.

Sony also didn’t speak much about free-to-play games. Indeed, other players like Nvidia, PlayJam (GameStick), Ouya, and others are trying to bring those disruptive forces to the TV. If Sony doesn’t do it, then these other players have a chance, and so does Microsoft.

I do think that Sony showed off enough to do a great deal of PR damage to Nintendo, whose Wii U game console isn’t selling as well as it hoped. If Sony comes out with the right games, the right price, and the right launch date, the PlayStation 4 could be a huge threat to Nintendo’s console.

To sum it up, Sony’s revelation raised more questions than it answered. That’s par for the course in the games business, as most major revelations don’t take place until E3 in June. But I wish there were more “wow moments” than questions or disappointments. In that respect, Sony left some major openings for Microsoft to exploit.

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GamesBeat 2013 is our fifth annual conference on disruption in the video game market. You'll get 360-degree perspectives from top gaming executives, developers, and analysts on what’s to come in the industry. Our theme this year is “The Battle Royal.” Check out full event details here, and grab your early-bird tickets here!

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We should probably be excited that we’re getting a new, powerful system with a bunch of pretty looking games, but it’s far more fun to complain. And Sony’s unveiling of the PlayStation 4, a two-hour long display of hardware specs and game trailers, gave us plenty to moan about. Whether it was the absence of an expected title or an underwhelming announcement, the event had its share of disappointments. Below are some of the biggest.

The announcement of a Final Fantasy announcement

As disappointing as: Your best friend telling you he has a big secret but refusing to spit it out until next week.

Why it was disappointing: Square Enix had a weird showing at the event. The Japanese publisher and developer started with a tech demo for a graphics engine that it already unveiled last year. That’s already plenty underwhelming, but it wasn’t as bad as announcing that a new Final Fantasy would be coming to the PS4 without giving us a single picture or even a full title. But Square did promise to tell us all about it … at the Electronic Entertainment Expo in June.

We don’t even know what kind of Final Fantasy game to expect. Will it be the next installment in the main role-playing series, Final Fantasy XV? Or will we finally see Final Fantasy Versus XIII, a game long stuck in the deepest depths of development hell? We have no idea. Guess we’ll just have to wait (waiting is the worst).

Where was The Last Guardian?

As disappointing as: Your fiancée leaving you at the altar, later reconnecting with you, and then leaving you at the altar again.

Why it was disappointing: The Last Guardian is one of the most anticipated PlayStation 3 games. Many consider developer Team Ico’s last two efforts, Ico and Shadow of the Colossus, as some of the best classics released for the PlayStation 2. The Last Guardian looked like an adventure similar in spirit but with improved visuals.

Team Ico announced the game back in 2009, and we still don’t seem any closer to release. Meanwhile, we hear constant rumors of a troubled development. Many were hoping that we would finally hear news during Sony’s recent event, specifically that The Last Guardian was now a PlayStation 4 title. That didn’t happen. Once again, the much-anticipated Sony exclusive was a no-show.

Blizzard’s gigantic announcement … of a port

As disappointing as: Having your dad tell you to hop in the car for a surprise trip, fulling expecting that he’s about to take you to Disneyland. You end up going to see the La Brea tar pits instead.

Why it was disappointing: We’ve long known Blizzard as a company that focuses exclusively on PC gaming, so it was a huge shock to see exec Chris Metzen on stage during Sony’s event. We were beginning to expect something big to happen. Maybe the follow-up to the historically popular massively multiplayer online game, World of Warcraft, would be coming to the PS4. Maybe Blizzard was going to announce an entirely new game, built to take advantage of Sony’s new hardware.

Instead, Metzen announced a port of Diablo III, an action role-playing game that came out for the PC last May. Not that Diablo III is a bad game, but a console version was something we were expecting last year. It’s not like the gothic hack-and-slasher is a technological wonder that’s only possible on next-gen hardware. The fact that Metzen also announced a PlayStation 3 version proves that.

We didn’t see the PlayStation 4 at the PlayStation 4 event

As disappointing as: Dating a girl online who refuses to send you a picture of herself.

Why it was disappointing: We got to see plenty of the new system’s controller, but the actual box that houses all of that delicious hardware was strangely absent. This continues a trend originally started by Nintendo, who also put the emphasis on the Wii U’s new controller without showing the actual system during its unveiling.

But Nintendo may have actually been more justified to make a such a move than Sony. The controller is the Wii U’s biggest selling point, since the hardware isn’t anything special. But Sony is touting the PS4 as a graphical powerhouse with streaming and social features, while the controller, despite a few added gimmicks like a small touchscreen, isn’t all that different from the PS3′s (which was basically the PS2 controller to begin with).

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GamesBeat 2013 is our fifth annual conference on disruption in the video game market. You'll get 360-degree perspectives from top gaming executives, developers, and analysts on what’s to come in the industry. Our theme this year is “The Battle Royal.” Check out full event details here, and grab your early-bird tickets here!

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Sony still isn’t talking specifics about The Last Guardian.

At a round-table meeting following Sony’s PlayStation 4 event, Sony Worldwide Studios president Shuhei Yoshida was hesitant to make any new comments regarding the long-delayed game from developer Team Ico.

“I’m not ready to talk about [The Last Guardian] — sorry,” said Yoshida. “We’ve broken promises. We are waiting for the right to time reintroduce The Last Guardian. I’m not going to say anything beyond what [lead designer Fumito Ueda] said.”

Earlier this month, Ueda released the following statement regarding The Last Guardian:

As some of you may have heard, I left Sony Computer Entertainment Japan Studio some time ago to pursue my creative passions. Nevertheless, I continue working on The Last Guardian as a freelance contributor. While it’s been a long time coming, The Last Guardian remains under my creative supervision and is still in development by an incredibly talented team.

The creative director added that the decision on the final release of the game is fully in the hands of Sony Computer Entertainment. In November, Yoshida wouldn’t even promise that the game would debut in 2013.

Team Ico has spent the last seven years working on The Last Guardian. The developer’s last game is Shadow of the Colossus for the PlayStation 2.

Sony doesn’t have a lot of great options when it comes to The Last Guardian. It could hold it back as a PlayStation 4 launch game, but that would drastically shrink its potential audience. It could release it as the PlayStation 3′s swan song, but gamers may not want to play something from the “last gen” while preparing for the PS4.

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GamesBeat 2013 is our fifth annual conference on disruption in the video game market. You'll get 360-degree perspectives from top gaming executives, developers, and analysts on what’s to come in the industry. Our theme this year is “The Battle Royal.” Check out full event details here, and grab your early-bird tickets here!

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Follow our PlayStation 4 coverage

Sony will announce the PlayStation 4 home console tomorrow. If it doesn’t happen, I give my editors permission to beat me senseless with a first-gen PlayStation 3. Chances are they won’t have the pleasure of doing that because all clues point to a new system (though I’m sure they’d welcome the opportunity.)

At this point, Sony has made too much noise over whatever’s going on to reveal anything less than a new console. In fact, it will be a bigger surprise if Sony doesn’t announce a new PlayStation (which goes by the current codename “Orbis.”)

Sony must now unveil the PlayStation 4 while holding over enough information to have something worthwhile to give gamers for the Electronic Entertainment Expo (E3). The expo is an annual games industry trade show held in Los Angeles every June. The biggest names in the business often make their most important announcements during E3. Sony really just wants to get a jump ahead of rival Microsoft.

What we will see

The console

Sony will debut its next-generation console tomorrow. We’ll see what the system itself looks like on that day. If Sony follows its current naming convention, it will name the new system the PlayStation 4.

Information on multiple versions and basic specs for each

If current-generation trends are anything to go by, Sony will release more than one configuration of the PS4. We can expect at least two versions, maybe more. Each model will come with a different hard drive capacity across multiple pricing tiers.

Release window

Having a release window at this event is important. It’s the signal for gamers to start saving their money, and it gives them a something to look forward to. It also puts Microsoft at a slight competitive disadvantage because now Sony has a new console and approximate release month. Sony is probably not ready to provide a specific release date. It’s too early, and the company has to reserve some important details for E3. Sony may also want to hold back a bit and see what Microsoft does.

The controller

According to rumors, the PS4 will have a totally reworked controller. The photo above is allegedly a prototype, and it has reportedly been confirmed as such by multiple sources at various websites. If real, it has a touch panel and a light on the top that appears to give the controller PlayStation Move functionality. Sony will probably detail the controller along with a few early gameplay demos highlighting its new features.

Launch window for first-party games

Gamers want to see games. Sony doesn’t have to turn this into an E3-sized showcase, but it has to give us something. The company wants to display the graphical power of the system and the new controller’s functionality. It also wants fans to see that there is something on the way in terms of software.

Sony announced The Last Guardian in 2009. The game is still in development.

Media Molecule, the maker of LittleBigPlanet, is teasing an unnamed game on its website. Two employees at Motorstorm developer Evolution Studios recently Tweeted something about the event, and game designer Fumito Ueda recently confirmed that The Last Guardian is still in development. The curious timing of these is a fair enough hint that they’re related to the new console.

Online plans and features

Sony will probably give a general overview of online plans and services for the PlayStation 4. Expect talk about the PlayStation Network (PSN) and any added functionality. Regardless, this event is about the PlayStation 4, so don’t expect extensive details about online capabilities.

What we won’t see

Price

I’m counting on Sony saving this for E3. The company wants to keep some of those important details secret until June. It may even use the reaction and overall hype to gauge consumer interest as it decides a price point. I don’t know if that’s a common strategy, but Nintendo did something similar with the 3DS.

Specific release date

Sony will probably keep this for later in the year, too. Again, it will likely be held over for E3. Microsoft may reveal the successor to the Xbox 360 and may pin a release date on the console. Being out in time for the holiday season is a huge advantage for either console maker, and being first to market is always a plus.

Third-party games

Any third-party game announcements will probably be under wraps until later this year. Wednesday will be all about Sony. This will also make some room for those games to grab some attention during E3. Don’t expect third-party games this week. This is just an educated guess based on past press conferences.

The next generation of consoles

Nintendo started a new console generation with the Wii U, but Sony’s PlayStation 4 is arguably our first glimpse into the true power of next-gen technology. It wouldn’t be wise to give Microsoft a head start this generation, so Sony is moving first. Previously, the Xbox 360 had a full year to plant itself in the console space; Sony can’t give its rival that advantage this time around.

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GamesBeat 2013 is our fifth annual conference on disruption in the video game market. You'll get 360-degree perspectives from top gaming executives, developers, and analysts on what’s to come in the industry. Our theme this year is “The Battle Royal.” Check out full event details here, and grab your early-bird tickets here!

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This week, THQ reported less than stellar numbers and hired a firm to “evaluate strategic alternatives,” Rockstar revealed details about Grand Theft Auto V, and the Wreck It Ralph film crew discusses movie development.

You’ll also find reviews for Halo 4, Paper Mario: Sticker Star, and LittleBigPlanet Karting.

News:

• October NPD: Dishonored charts high while XCOM fails to chart at all
• The good and, yes, the bad from today’s Grand Theft Auto V reveal
• Nexon to publish Dota 2 in Japan and Korea
• Mechs never looked so pretty as AirMech launches open beta on Steam
• Get BioShock for free on GameFly’s just released PC client
• This week in the Nintendo Download: Paper Mario, Epic Mickey, and a Pokédex
• You can live stream Call of Duty: Black Ops II directly to YouTube from your console
• Activision: ‘Spectacular innovation’ will prevent Skylanders from fizzling like Guitar Hero
• What’s in the box? Nintendo Wii U Deluxe Edition and Pro Controller
• The Wii U’s online service is an ‘empathy network’ — what the heck is that?
• PlayStation 3 passes Chinese bureaucratic inspection but ban on consoles remains
• Give Epic Mickey 2 a whirl in Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3 demo
• The Last Guardian developer still has ‘nothing concrete’EA celebrates Battlefield 1942′s 10th anniversary by giving it away for free

MMO news:

• Star Wars: The Old Republic set for free-to-play debut
• First gameplay footage of The Elder Scrolls Online
• World of Warcraft: Mists of Pandaria sees 1 million concurrent players in China
• Jordan Mechner launches Karateka remake on digital gaming platforms
• DeNA invests in its golden goose, taking 20 percent stake in Cygames for $92M
• Obama is the overwhelming favorite in Nexon’s MapleStory online game (exclusive)

Mobile news:

• Yahoo and Japan’s DeNA expand PC social gaming alliance to mobile devices
• Nvidia CEO: Consumers realize a great tablet is better than a cheap PC
• Sword & Sworcery EP finally comes to Android in the latest Humble Bundle
• Angry Birds Star Wars is out now, and it’s kinda cool
• Once focused on 2D mobile games, Machine Zone hires a 3D graphics expert
• Best day to launch your mobile game? Chartboost says it’s Monday through Wednesday
• Kabam launches The Hobbit: Kingdoms of Middle-earth mobile game
• Execution Labs raises $1.4M to incubate indie mobile game studios in Canada
• Budge makes a mobile game out of charitable giving
• New mobile game hopes to trick players into learning an anti-drug lesson
• Mobile games winning the war for your attention
• Apple still hasn’t made Game Center interesting
• Fourth-generation iPad smashes PlayStation Vita in raw graphics power
• Microsoft rolls out new Xbox SmartGlass iOS app
• The hidden truth of enigmatic experimental game Curiosity
• Xbox Surface: Microsoft’s 7-inch gaming tablet is still happening

Earnings:

• Call of Duty publisher Activision Blizzard beats earnings estimates and raises guidance
• Ubisoft posts a six-month loss — but Assassin’s Creed is riding to the rescue
• THQ’s stock crashes 47 percent as it faces cash crunch
• Mobile gaming has its giant: DeNA posts $627M in quarterly revenue
• Desperate for cash, THQ hires firm to ‘evaluate strategic alternatives’ (It’s up for sale)
• THQ reports smaller loss than expected but pushes back South Park, Metro, and Company of Heroes 2

Interviews:

• Is Gree really spending money on user acquisition like there’s no tomorrow? (interview)
• Wreck-It Ralph’s film crew discusses bad guys, cameos, and portals inside toilets (interview)
• Why Ubisoft has eight games coming for the Wii U (interview)
• Silent Hill: Revelations 3D director on respecting the source material, immersion, and secret UFO endings (exclusive)
• Guitar Hero co-creator unveils startup with a plan to mobilize the living room (exclusive interview)
• Tapjoy’s ad network now reaches a billion mobile devices (interview)

Reviews:

• What’s in the box?! Ragnarok Odyssey Mercenary Edition (review)
• What’s in the box?! Halo 4 Limited Edition (review)
• Paper Mario: Sticker Star fails to justify its gimmick (review)
• LittleBigPlanet Karting shows off Sackboy’s serious driving skills (review)

Pieces of flair:

• Halo 4: Infinity Multiplayer Unlock GuideGamesBeat’s massive Street Fighter tournament: The finals

Celebrated Japanese developer Team Ico hasn’t released a game since 2005, when Shadow of the Colossus came out for the PlayStation 2. That’s seven years, and it might take another year or two before it finally ships its next game, The Last Guardian.

The Last Guardian stars a young boy and a giant dog-bird creature that work together to solve puzzles. Fans of Ico and Shadow of the Colossus have anticipated The Last Guardian for years now, with no end of its development in sight.

French website Jeux Video asked Sony Computer Entertainment president Shuhei Yoshida if he could promise that The Last Guardian would ship in 2013. Here is his response (translated by Google):

“No, sorry. I cannot say [it will ship in 2013], because the last time we talked about a date for The Last Guardian, we disappointed many people. I can tell you that the team is working hard on the project, including the engine. It is precisely because the team is working on the technical aspect of the game that we have nothing concrete to show you today. So now I’m waiting for the right time to reintroduce The Last Guardian and speak with confidence of a release date.”

GamesBeat contacted Sony to confirm this information, and we’ll update with its response.

The Last Guardian is something of a mystery. We’ve known about its existence since 2008. Sony Computer Entertainment started releasing details and trailers for it in 2009, but Team Ico and Sony have not said much since then. What’s concerning is that the team is still working on developing the game’s engine.

It’s been a bumpy development cycle for The Last Guardian. In late 2011, lead designer Fumito Ueda left Sony. The Last Guardian, like Ico and Shadow of the Colossus, are products of the auteur’s mind. Ueda is still reportedly working on the game in a contractual capacity.

If The Last Guardian does not ship before the end of 2013, it’s likely that Sony would have already released the PlayStation 4.

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GamesBeat 2013 is our fifth annual conference on disruption in the video game market. You'll get 360-degree perspectives from top gaming executives, developers, and analysts on what’s to come in the industry. Our theme this year is “The Battle Royal.” Check out full event details here, and grab your early-bird tickets here!

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If you follow VentureBeat but don’t regularly check our GamesBeat site, here’s a list of the best games stories we ran over the last seven days that you may have missed.

This week, Konami cancels a patch for the Xbox 360 version of the Silent Hill HD collection (but totally updates it on PlayStation 3), Zynga’s chief operating officer steps down, and Amazon launches its own online studio and Facebook game.

You’ll also find a review for New Super Mario Bros. 2 and previews for Marvel: War of Heroes, FIFA 13, and PlayStation All-Star Battle Royale.

News

• TheDeanBeat: Kickstarter isn’t indie gamemaker Double Fine’s only funding route
• Blizzard’s authenticators breached in hack
• Calm down: Sony assures us that The Last Guardian is still in development
• Infinity Blade developers hire former Kingdoms of Amalur creators for new studio
• Ouya surpasses its funding goal on Kickstarter by $7.6M
• Konami cancels patch for Xbox 360 edition of Silent Hill HD Collection
• Game developers hate Windows 8, Microsoft responds
• Nancy Drew gamemaker turns to Kickstarter for mobile versions
• Facebook launches real-money gambling game in U.K.
• Wargaming acquires BigWorld middleware firm for $45M (exclusive)
• Amazon launches its own online game studio and first Facebook game
• The golden age returns? Seamus Blackley’s Innovative Leisure mobile game startup raises seed round (exclusive)

Second quarter earnings reports and NPD numbers

• Overall video game sales dive 20 percent in July, 3DS and NCAA Football 13 take top spots
• Nvidia earnings on the rise thanks to the Tegra 3 mobile processor
• Japan’s big console gamemaker, Square Enix, slips into a loss
• THQ losses beat expectations in fiscal first-quarter 2013

Interviews

• Guild Wars 2: Console ports, subscription models, and making sure it works on launch day (interview)
• Now just how many tanks can you fit in a battle map? Find out in the Armored Kill expansion for Battlefield 3 (interview)
• DoubleDown Interactive succeeds by not sucking at social casino games (interview)
• Game designer crosses over from making Halo games to Zynga’s social games — he’s never going back (interview)

Mobile News

• The Walking Dead shambles over to Facebook in new social game
• Activision’s The Blast Furnace resurrects Pitfall! for mobile devices
• Introducing The Blast Furnace, Activision’s first mobile-only development studio

Previews

• PlayStation All-Stars Battle Royale will kick your ass in ways you could never imagine (preview)
• EA shows off smart Wii U GamePad tricks for FIFA 13 and Mass Effect 3 (preview)
• Mass Effect 3: Leviathan boldly goes where no Shepard has gone before (preview)
• Marvel: War of Heroes distills superhero combat into card-based digestible chunks (preview)

Reviews

• New Super Mario Bros. 2 is too obsessed with reliving the good old days (review)

Oh, Zynga….

• Meet Gems With Friends, Zynga’s newest (and familiar-looking) iOS game
• Zynga COO John Schappert steps down
• Zynga sees FarmVille and CityVille user spikes [UPDATE: Maybe not]
• Will Zynga’s ChefVille revive the company’s fortunes?

Pieces of flair

• Decorate your iPhone the retro way with these gaming-themed wallpapers
• The first 5 games you should get for your Nexus 7
• Check out the Ghostbusters, Sonic, and Minecraft references hidden away in these Team Fortress 2 maps (gallery)
• Annoy your friends and impress no one: Cheats for casual games

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GamesBeat 2013 is our fifth annual conference on disruption in the video game market. You'll get 360-degree perspectives from top gaming executives, developers, and analysts on what’s to come in the industry. Our theme this year is “The Battle Royal.” Check out full event details here, and grab your early-bird tickets here!

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PlayStation fans around the country were panicking earlier today when, according to gaming-news site Gematsu, Sony abandoned its U.S. trademark for The Last Guardian, a highly anticipated PlayStation 3 adventure-platformer originally announced in 2009.

The U.S. patent office considers a trademark abandoned when a company does not use it after a certain period of time. Sony originally filed for its trademark on June 2, 2009.

GamesBeat reached out to Sony for comment, specifically to see if The Last Guardian was still in development. Sony Computer Entertainment America’s director of product publicity Ron Eagle responded, “We can confirm that The Last Guardian is still in development, and [Sony] will be publishing the title.”

In other words, the game is still coming, but it might in for a name change.

So there you have it! Everyone can relax. Hopefully we’ll be hearing more about the anticipated followup to critical darlings ICO and Shadow of the Colossus soon.

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GamesBeat 2013 is our fifth annual conference on disruption in the video game market. You'll get 360-degree perspectives from top gaming executives, developers, and analysts on what’s to come in the industry. Our theme this year is “The Battle Royal.” Check out full event details here, and grab your early-bird tickets here!

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Recently, I wrote what would happen if the crazy-bad copy writers at Walmart.com described some of 2012′s most anticipated games the same way they mucked up Diablo III’s product description. It should come as no surprise that the Diablo III write-up was not an isolated incident; Walmart didn’t become the biggest retail company in the world by spending a lot of money on things like writers, editors, or research, and the games section of its website is full of comedy gold. To save you some trouble, I’ve mined it (or maybe I’m milking it at this point, but I don’t want to mix my metaphors) and pulled out some truly perplexing summaries.

These pages were current as of May 12.

Mass Effect 3

Choice bit: “In it players continue the adventures of Commander Shepard utilizing extreme character customization which is the hallmark feature of the series.”

Puss in Boots

Choice bit: “With the Puss in Boots Ds Game, you can turn into ‘Puss in Boots’, the legendary hero of the movie form DreamWorks Animation.”

Tomb Raider

Choice bit: “The games present a world in 3D: a series of tombs, and other locations, through which the player must guide Lara.”

The Last Guardian

Choice bit: Granted, nobody knows a whole lot about this game, yet. The writing is actually okay in this one (I’ve seen it other places, so Sony must have sent it to them), but it’s hilarious that they repeat the same two sentences as a bulleted list like they’re game features.

Uncharted 3

Choice bit: “With the explosive adventure and interactive environments, the single-player campaign is played in a unique online multiplayer mode.”

Assassin’s Creed: Revelations

Choice bit: “The PC video game lets you (Ezio) tap into enhanced abilities and weapons like free-running, hook blade combat, bomb crafting and Eagle Sense to eliminate enemies.”

Metroid: Other M

Choice bit: “It also features exciting play options, like pointer and sideways Wii remote controller preference, stunning in-game cinematic and a mix of Metroid action and puzzle-solving game play.”

Sniper Elite V2

Choice bit: “There is only a single opportunity for players to do what so many wish had been done take out the leader of the Third Reich.”

Fallout 3: Game of the Year Edition

Choice bit: “The Fallout 3: Game of the Year Xbox 360 is a well-crafted, role-playing videogame, which doesn’t require players to have played any of the previous Fallout games to enjoy this one.”

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GamesBeat 2013 is our fifth annual conference on disruption in the video game market. You'll get 360-degree perspectives from top gaming executives, developers, and analysts on what’s to come in the industry. Our theme this year is “The Battle Royal.” Check out full event details here, and grab your early-bird tickets here!

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Well, wonder no more.

While newly announced intellectual properties like Naughty Dog’s The Last of Us and Epic Games’ Fortnite don’t make the list because they currently have no release date information, there are still plenty of promising new IPs set to hit store shelves in 2012. Here are ten brand new titles worth keeping an eye on.

Asura’s Wrath
Developer: CyberConnect2
Publisher: Capcom
Platforms: PlayStation 3, Xbox 360
Release Date: Feb. 21, 2012

Asura was once a revered deity before he was betrayed by his fellow gods, banished from the realm of Shinkoku, and stripped of all his powers. Twelve thousand years later, he is awakened by a mysterious voice and, consumed by vengeance, he sets out on a quest for revenge against his betrayers. Asura’s Wrath, Capcom’s latest beat ‘em up, will be told through episodic gameplay similar to a TV drama series, blending Asian mythology with sci-fi.

Capcom says Asura’s Wrath will deliver a fresh take on the action genre by combining intense combat with a seamless player-controlled narrative. Through a mix of range attacks and close quarter action, Asura will face off against numerous unique enemies, including planetary sized bosses, that Capcom says will continually challenge your expectations.

Dishonored
Developer: Arkane Studios
Publisher: Bethesda Softworks
Platforms: PC, PlayStation 3, Xbox 360
Release Date: Q2 2012

Dishonored is an all-new first person action game currently under development at Arkane Studios. It’s the studio’s first project since being acquired by ZeniMax, the owner of Bethesda, in 2010. Overseeing the project are co-directors Raphael Colantonio, former lead designer on Arx Fatalis, and Harvey Smith, former lead designer on Deus Ex.

In Dishonored, you take on the role of Corvo, a legendary bodyguard falsely imprisoned for the murder of the Empress, in an industrialized retro-future game world designed by Half-Life 2 Art Director Viktor Antonov. Using a mix of assassination and stealth, you will have to unravel the conspiracy behind the murder and hunt down those responsible. You will have numerous powers and tools to accomplish your tasks, and Arkane says each encounter will play out based on hundreds of different factors.

I Am Alive
Developer: Darkworks (2008-2010), Ubisoft Shanghai (2010-2011)
Publisher: Ubisoft
Platforms: PlayStation 3 (PSN), Xbox 360 (XBLA)
Release Date: Q1 2012

Publisher Ubisoft says I Am Alive is an action/adventure game engineered to create a convincing post-disaster world in which players are faced with thought-provoking choices. The game follows a man’s journey to find his wife and daughter in his hometown, Haventon, one year after a cataclysmic “Event” wipes out most of the human race. The mystery of the Event is an important part of the experience, the publisher says, and you will have to figure it out for yourself based on what you see and what others tell you.

Stamina and resource management will be key to surviving I Am Alive’s post-apocalyptic world. There are no supernatural threats. Instead, you will have to brave deadly dust clouds and scale enormous buildings to search for supplies while using a unique combat system that requires you to utilize intimidation against your foes.

Journey
Developer: thatgamecompany
Publisher: Sony
Platforms: PlayStation 3 (PSN)
Release Date: Spring 2012

thatgamecompany, the studio behind flOw and Flower, is known for challenging traditional gaming conventions and Journey is their vision of a unique online adventure experience. After awakening in an unknown world, you will walk, glide, and fly through an awe-inspiring, interactive landscape and discover the history of an ancient civilization. The game encourages exploration without violence and seeks to “de-empower” you, making you feel tiny and helpless in a vast world.

Journey’s approach to online gaming sounds similar to that of Demon’s Souls or Dark Souls, in that you will occasionally be able to explore your surroundings with fellow travelers who cross your path. By traveling together, you will be able to re-shape the experience in a way that the developer hopes will be authentic, emotional, and memorable. Here’s our interview with Journey co-creator Jenova Chen.

Kingdoms of Amalur: Reckoning
Developer: 38 Studios, Big Huge Games
Publisher: Electronic Arts
Platforms: PC, PlayStation 3, Xbox 360
Release Date: Feb. 7, 2012

38 Studios is the creative enterprise of former MLB pitcher Curt Schilling, who also happens to be an avid gamer. Kingdoms of Amalur: Reckoning is the studio’s first project and it has already generated buzz simply because of the names attached to it. Ken Rolston, former lead designer of classic role-playing games The Elder Scrolls III: Morrowind and The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion is leading the project, while New York Times best-selling fantasy author R.A. Salvatore is creating the lore and game world and Spawn creator Todd McFarlane is in charge of the art direction.

38 Studios says Reckoning will have the open-world exploration, vast narrative, and character customization fans expect from the genre, as well as fast-paced, graphically stimulating action and fluid controls. If God of War and Fable had a baby, it would probably look a lot like Reckoning, and expectations are high for this brand new IP.

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BioShock: Infinite
Developer: Irrational Games
Publisher: 2K Games
Platforms: Xbox 360, PlayStation 3, PC
Release Date: TBA 2012

The original BioShock, developed by 2K Boston (now known as Irrational Games) in 2007, was an instant classic that introduced gamers to the dystopian underwater city of Rapture, an Ayn Randian experiment in Objectivism gone horribly wrong. The 2010 sequel BioShock 2, developed by 2K Marin, had the unenviable task of living up to the high standards set by its predecessor and was met with generally positive reviews. But with creative director Ken Levine and the team at Irrational back behind the wheel, there is a definite buzz surrounding the development of BioShock: Infinite, which trades the dark ocean depths for the blue skies and American Exceptionalism of the early 1900s.

In Infinite, players take on the role of Booker DeWitt, a former Pinkerton agent tasked with rescuing a woman named Elizabeth from the floating, weaponized city of Columbia. Levine says in order to bring Columbia to life, Irrational needed an entirely new game engine, along with brand-new animation and AI systems. It also had to rebuild and expand the arsenal players will use in the game to accommodate indoor and outdoor firefights at 30,000 feet. “The only thing gamers can be certain of is this: the rules of the BioShock universe are about to change,” Levine said.

Mass Effect 3
Developer: BioWare
Publisher: Electronic Arts
Platforms: Xbox 360, PlayStation 3, PC
Release Date: March 6, 2012

An ancient alien race called the Reapers is destroying everything in its path. Earth has been captured. The galaxy is on the verge of total annihilation and Commander Shepard is the only one who can save it. No pressure.

The third and final installment in BioWare’s critically-acclaimed sci-fi trilogy will be the culmination of a journey many gamers began four years ago. As Commander Shepard, players will lead a counter assault against the Reapers, deciding along the way which planets to save and which alliances to form or abandon as they battle the alien threat – and they won’t be doing it alone. For the first time ever, multiplayer is coming to the Mass Effect universe. The game will feature a 4-player cooperative mode that lets players take on the role of elite soldiers sent to protect resources and assets needed in the war effort. It will also feature a new system called Galaxy at War, which will link all Mass Effect games and applications back to the single player campaign and the BioWare Social Network.

Diablo III
Developer: Blizzard Entertainment
Publisher: Blizzard Entertainment
Platforms: PC
Release Date: Q1 2012

There should be a giant asterisk next to this game because, hey, it’s Blizzard. This is the same developer that took 12 years to release a StarCraft sequel…and hasn’t finished it yet. Blizzard is a company infamous for taking its time, so I won’t be surprised if Diablo III’s release date gets pushed back. With the game already in closed beta, however, more delays seem unlikely. It shouldn’t be long now before gamers everywhere are once again dungeon delving for shiny loot and challenging the fiends of the Burning Hells. The Diablo series is the granddaddy of point-and-click action role-playing games and Blizzard says it wants to build on everything it’s learned since the release of Diablo II to create the best experience to date.

Halo 4
Developer: 343 Industries
Publisher: Microsoft
Platforms: Xbox 360
Release Date: Holiday 2012

Master Chief is back!

Although details on the game are scarce, we do know that Halo 4 will supposedly kick off a whole new trilogy for the franchise called the “Reclaimer Trilogy.” It will also be the first game in the series not developed by Bungie. Microsoft Game Studios subsidiary 343 Industries is taking over. According to the official description at Xbox.com, events in the game will take place during the aftermath of Halo 3 and Master Chief will have to “confront his own destiny and face an ancient evil that threatens the fate of the entire universe.”

Borderlands 2
Developer: Gearbox Software
Publisher: 2K Games
Platforms: PC, PlayStation 3, Xbox 360
Release Date: Fiscal 2013 (April 2012 – March 2013)

Gearbox Software’s Borderlands became a breakout hit in 2009, selling several million copies. It was notable for its cel-shaded art style and shoot-and-loot gameplay, as well as its threadbare storyline and dim-witted AI. However, Gearbox says Borderlands 2 will be an epic sequel, and it has an ambitiously crafted story in the works for those who make the return trip to Pandora. The game will also feature all-new characters, skills, environments, enemies, weapons, and equipment. Don’t worry, though, Claptrap and his sexy dance will be back. I know you missed it.

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