Sony Computer Entertainment UK managing Director Ray Maguire was at the recently-held ELSPA press conference and he had a few things to say about the now popular Byron Report. The boss commented that the report's recommendations are valid today, but when the time comes that brick-and-mortar retailers take a back seat to online stores, things will be done differently to enforce the rating system. More in the full article up next.

Good news for Sony fans across Europe! If you're thinking of getting a second PlayStation Portable (or first, depending on how new you are to handheld gaming), then you may want to wait for May 4 to come around. According to Games Industry, there'll be a price cut for the PSP, which will retail for £ 129.99 in the UK and 169.99 Euros elsewhere.

In the United Kingdom, some Platinum PSP titles will also be getting a price cut with this new initiative, namely Ridge Racer 2, Tekken, Killzone, LocoRoco, and Moto GP. The titles will get their prices shaved down to a more manageable £ 14.99.

Said Sony Computer Entertainment UK managing director Ray Maguire of the price cut,

PSP is unique and is constantly evolving. It offers the widest palette of mobile entertainment, from gaming to video, music, photos and Internet. But now the exciting possibility of connecting remotely to PlayStation 3 makes PSP more relevant than ever. So what better time to offer a brand new price point, and the launch of five new Platinum titles?

Well, short of cutting the PS3's price, he's probably right.

Lest we get misunderstood, kindly let us state first that we so dig our PlayStation Portable (PSP) unit. Like most of you, we think it's more than a video game device - it's life. With that said, can we say that Sony is kind of annoying at times?

One representative from Sony Computer Entertainment UK (SCE UK) just issued this statement: "There are no immediate changes planned for PSP." Just the other day, we ran a rumor from gaming site Kotaku that the much-talked about PSP2, or whatever they want to call it, is going to be available this year.

And then after that, Managing Director Ray Maguire came out and announced that a smaller and lighter version of the handheld is indeed coming. So what's the real deal here? We say that a new and improved unit is coming. And all this hullabaloo is but a well-thought out marketing strategy.

These talks will not persist if they are not coming from anywhere, right? Besides, history dictates that most consoles get a makeover sometime after they have been launched. Even main competition Nintendo DS was transformed into this thing called DS Lite after some time. But let's not look elsewhere and keep our discussion within Sony's backyard.

The original PlayStation, PSOne, went through a number of modifications during its production run which lasted for 11 years. PS2, as great as it is, was modified, and a slim version came four years after the original version was released.

The PSP community is weighed down with these seemingly mixed and contrasting statements from Sony itself. For once, we hope that the company thinks about its fans and stop keeping them on their toes.

 

Sony's PSP may not have the best reputation in the classroom due to certain events involving the so-called "Playstation Pornable", but despite the reservations of some teachers, Sony today held a "PSP in Education National Launch" day at its 3Rooms brand space in London. Sony is trying to propel the PSP into mainstream education and promote its uses as an educational tool rather than just a games console.

Sony has already tried introducing its products to the education sector starting off with the Eyetoy and PS2 back in 2003. This time, Ray Maguire, Managing Director for Sony Computer Entertainment UK (SCEU) said that the expansion of Wi-Fi and the PSP's ability to connect using wireless internet expanded the PSP's uses in education even more. This wasn't just about how good the PSP is according to a Sony exec either, as Richard Owen from Maplesden Noakes school has tested the use of PSPs in the classroom and praised the console.

According to Owen, pupils responded well to being able to work at their own pace, rewinding audio if necessary so they don't miss anything. Relentless Software also took the opportunity to show off its Key Stage 2-themed version of Buzz! quiz game which has been designed for use in education.

Classroom trials for the Buzz! quiz KS2 game have allegedly gone well too - so does this mean we'll be seeing the PSP go into use in schools? Well, if it does they'll certainly have the backing of homebrew coders. There's already loads of calculators out there to freely download!

No, no... It's "London," not "Langdon." There's a big difference, but when you think about it, in the same sense that Robert Langdon of "The Da Vinci Code" gets involved with secret societies, Gangs of London (just released today!) allows you to actually join one. And you're going to be able to choose one of the gangs, with each one of them having their own skills and backstories.

The basic goal for any gang is to earn a better reputation than the others. You assume the role of a leader, and you must gain more territory and a wider network than the others. Today, we've got a video revolving around the Zakharov Gang. For the Russian mob spearheaded by Vladislav Zakharov, they pass off as a shipping company, but in all actuality, they're doing some racket business in Lambeth and Westminster.

The trailer will hint more of the Zakharov story, so you guys might want to check that out (if you haven't bought the game yet, that is).

Download: [Gangs of London Zakharov trailer]
Buy: [Gangs of London]