Last year, Square Enix dropped a lot of jaws when it was announced that Final Fantasy XIII would also be coming to the Xbox 360. This year they're planning to make another big splash.

Remember the other week when a rumored mysterious screenshot supposedly hinted at a new Square Enix game? Well, we got that screenshot now! And true enough, the guy shown in the picture is most definitely not Sephiroth!

Square Enix sure has a lot on their plate right now - to now hear them come up with yet another new franchise is quite surprising. Nonetheless, it seems that that just might be the case if recent rumors from Japan are to be true. A screenshot has surfaced showing something completely new, something completely mysterious - yet something quite familiar too.

Rumors of a touchscreen-capable PSP 2 have been running rampant for the past few days. There was that survey from Sony asking about new PSP features, and then, the rumor column of UK OPM also listed that games are already being developed for the next-gen handheld.

Are they all true? More like poppycock, says Sony. Representatives of Sony are on crunchtime trying to squash all the speculation.

We can't open the week without some speculation, now can we? Today we hear of the latest batch of rumors from UK's OPM publication. Though this batch of rumors come from the Official PlayStation Magazine, they do touch on some cross-platform franchises. (EA, I'm looking at you!). PSP 2 rumor, check. Rumors of sequels, check. Rumors of spin-offs, check.

Oooh, another censor bar! Future Publishing, the guys handling the Official PlayStation Magazine (OPM), have just announced that they would be removing from their publication the offensive images of a dead goat as seen in footage of a God of War II event in Greece last March. This is in light of the recent apology made by Sony Computer Entertainment Europe (SCEE).

A spokesperson from Future had this to say about the deal struck between Sony and their company and what they are now planning to do:

It was a joint decision to remove the offending pages across the print run. But the copies for subscribers have already been sent out so we can't recall them. The decision was made to remove the pages in 80,000 copies of the magazine being prepared for the newstands.

It's yet to be confirmed if pictures of other mature content (e.g. body-painted promo girls) will also be retracted. We find it interesting though that here in QJ, most of the commenters seem to be focused on the girl and her ample chest rather than the goat itself... We also noticed that as we post more on the said issue, more and more black censor bars appear on the pic. At the rate things are going... Nah, we kid. *wink*

So Sony threw a promo party for the PlayStation 2 (PS2) title God of War II, and the party involved a dead goat. What now? Well, many people were disgusted because of the said stunt including critics and animal rights organizations.

To be quite fair, here's Sony Computer Entertainment Europe (SCEE) Director of Corporate Communications Nick Sharples had to say about the matter. According to Sharples, just to put any doubts away, the event did take place in Athens on March 1.  According to him, around 20 European journalists were in attendance but no one was from the UK. The official then explained that the Official PlayStation Magazine (OPM) article was written by someone who wasn't present at the party and based his article on the invitation alone.

Furthermore, Sharples said that the event is being sensationalized especially with the focus being given to the picture which is unrepresentative of the event. He lamented that they already asked the editors of the magazine to remove the picture because it was quite inappropriate for its wider readership. Nick Sharples then commented about the dead goat,

Following the mainstream popularity of shows such as 'I'm a Celebrity, Get me out of here' a series of challenges were set for the journalists. The 'warm entrails' referred to in the invitation and in the Mail on Sunday article was actually a meat soup, made to a traditional Greek recipe and served to attendees in china bowls direct from the caterers.

Accordingly, the event really did spark some ruckus with some reports mentioning that Sony let attendees to eat the soup direct from the body of the goat.

 

Rockstar Games' gruesome Manhunt series gets another addition, this time following the story of a Dr. Daniel Lamb and his bloody escapades through the help of one psychotic Leo Kasper, who is more than happy to teach Lamb the art of maiming and dismembering not-so-friendly people.

The Official Playstation Magazine was hearty enough to describe some of the kill feats you can pull on unsuspecting vic-err-guards, like thrusting a syringe to an enemy's eye to finish him off, or ripping off his testicles with a pair of pliers. Whoops, there goes Jack Thompson on his way to OPM right now...

No character from the first Manhunt, yes even James Earl Cash, will be making an appearance in Manhunt 2 coming for the Wii and the PSP. The story instead follows that of Dr. Daniel Lamb who works for The Project, a collective behind a top secret drugs-based weapons program. He soon finds himself inside a private asylum, where he soon breaks out from.

With Leo Kasper, Lamb dodges enemies and takes them down with style, in the old Hasty, Violent and Gruesome flavors. He can also use the environment to kill his adversaries, all the while using loud ambient sounds to drown out his victim's screams of agony. Players will have to follow a button combo closely while hidden in shadow to regulate breathing. If an enemy happens to come near, Lamb could get caught for his huffing and puffing.

He can also climb objects and crawl out of harm's way, and use guns to perform stealthy kills.

It's times like these that make game bloggers and journalists like myself cry. Mostly, it's because magazines are the format that brought the love of gaming to the forefront of many gamers' hearts. That is why it saddens me to say that the US version of "Official PlayStation Magazine" will be printing its final issue in January 2007.

According to a statement by Ziff Davis, its American publisher, it seems the magazine doesn't fit the strategic vision of the company. Known by many readers to be the magazine that always has a demo disc of goodies inside, the PlayStation 3's online capabilities have apparently made the idea of demo discs obsolete.

Scott McCarthy, President of the Ziff Davis Game Group, explained the effect of the PS3's online capabilities on the market. "With this next generation of game consoles," he said, "the days of having to bundle a disc with a magazine to distribute games-related content are over. And the disc has clearly been a major driver for consumer interest in premium-priced, platform-specific magazines in the past, when the magazine disc was the only way gamers could get such content."

We're all going to miss the American "Official PlayStation Magazine". Hopefully, it's charm and words might still live on through the PS3, as the Ziff Davis Game Group is going to work with Sony to bring original content specifically for the PS3. Whether that means we'll see a PS3 version of the OPM remains to be seen, but it's a nice thought nevertheless.

As a follow up to our earlier article about The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion being a launch title for the PS3 in November, we're gonna give the news to you straight from the guys at Bethesda Softworks themselves. But first, let's give a game primer for the benefit of those who are not yet familiar with the game, shall we?

Hmm..let's see, where do we start? With the free-form gameplay, stunning graphics, or cutting edge AI? Well anyhoo, no matter which one matters the most to you, Oblivion has them all. And if that isn't enough to peak your interest, perhaps the game's soundtrack and voice actors will; Sean Bean, Terrance Stamp, Lynda Carter, and Patrick Stewart will be lending their voice talents to the game.

Still not interested? Alright, maybe this will: the game is set after the mysterious and untimely death of the Emperor, leaving the throne of Tamriel empty. As the Empire lies in a sea of anarchy, the gates of Oblivion open and demons invade the land, laying to waste to everything in their path and enveloping the empire in utter darkness. Your mission: to be the ray of sunlight in the land and find the lost heir to throne to prevent total destruction of Tamriel plotted by the demons.

Now, if that still doesn't get you going, then we don't know what will. Oh, maybe the news that The Elder Scrolls Travels: Oblivion will be released on the PSP in Spring 2007? Or that come Oct.10, Oblivion's gameplay, graphics, and new content will be previewed in OPM (Official US PlayStation Magazine)? The same magazine, which, by the way, declared that "If any game is worth the price of the PS3, Oblivion is it."

If you still manage to yawn after all this, damn you're a tough one to crack. But for the others who are as excited about this as we are, we promise to keep you posted for more updates.