Latest News And Features

This week on The 5 Inch Floppy, Jeremy Junglist Ray takes us through Metroid Other M - the latest title in the Metroid series, and last week's Wii exclusive release! Along the way we get insight from Yoshio Sakamoto and Yosuke Hayashi as to why they made the decisions they did in game - and of course we get Junglist's insight as well.

Watch the latest episode of The 5 Inch Floppy in your browser by heading to our videos library, or you can head to our files library, copy that floppy and watch it in glorious 720p.

So anyone who's resigned themselves to sub-bronze league multiplayer in StarCraft 2 will already be on top of the game's custom maps - Nexus Wars is great (when it doesn't stalemate). It looks like Blizzard aren't just letting inventive mappers have all the fun though - they've released their first SC2 custom map, titled Burning Tide.

Inspired by the risk/reward gameplay of the singleplayer mission 'Devil's Playground', Burning Tide pits players against each other and a timed tide of lava as they race to gather the set number of resources first. I haven't played yet, but it looks like a map ripe for a Planetary Fortress rushes with hilarious results.

It's available in the custom games list in StarCraft 2 right now - hit it up and tell us what you think!

Konami today announced Silent Hill 8 for the Xbox 360 and PS3. Proving that you can never keep a good evil town down, Silent Hill 8 brings survival horror back to next gen consoles. Following a prison transport accident our protagonist, Murphy Pendleton, finds himself stuck in the town of Silent Hill.

Naturally that's when s**t gets real. From the press release,

Gamers will encounter mind-bending puzzles, as well as horrific creatures and otherworld terrors using everyday objects from wooden chairs to glass bottles to fend off their enemies.

At some point it falls to the government to be responsible for Silent Hill, surely. And surely it's about time they closed all roads in and out of the town. Maybe that can be the plot of Silent Hill 9 - a fencing contractor accidentally takes a wrong turn on the outskirts of a town some say is evil - when he wakes, he's walled in... by evil!

Remember last week when we told you about the Xbox 360 controller with a dynamic dpad? It's here if you missed it. Well it looks like Microsoft Australia/New Zealand has finally settled on a price and release date for the hardcore controller.

On November 9 you'll be able to purchase a brand new Xbox 360 controller with an actual dpad, instead of the mushy mess of a control pad Xbox gamers have been using since the original Xbox - as long as you have the AU$99.95 MS is asking for it. And if you're a New Zealander you can pick it up for NZD$109.95 - it seems that twisty dpad technology doesn't come cheap. The controller pack does include a pay play-and-charge kit alongside the controller.

What do you think of the price point? The same controller is going for US$64.99 in the US, so there's quite a premium added for shipping across the Pacific - is it worth the price to get the level of control you're used to on pretty much every other controller ever?

With the launch of the final Brink Developer Diary today we figured it would be easier for people to catch up on the insightful video series if we put all five in the one convenient location.

The first video discusses the story of Brink - the why of The Ark.
Diary 1 - The Last Stand

PSP Mini titles are hit and - more often - miss, but when they strike a chord they're completely worthwhile purchases - they're playable on both your PSP and PS3. Futurlab makes PSP mini games, but it seems they have used all their creativity coming up with game ideas so they can't decide on a name.

Their new game is a vertically scrolling shmup with a twist - your mission is to save others from a massive black hole using your experimental teleporting technology. Other details about the game are scarce, but the good news is that the game naming competition isn't one of those lame 'US only' deals - head over and try to name the game and if you succeed you'll be featured somewhere in the game, get a copy and score some other swag they haven't envisaged yet.

Futurlab

Valkyria Chronicles one was a very popular PS3 game amongst the anime types, and it looks like the shift down to PSP hasn't really changed things that much!

The only real problem with the missions is the limited number and size of the maps. This is caused by the limitations of the PSP - and not noticeable for a lot of the game thanks to the nature of the battlefield setup. Battlefields are split up into smaller sections with gateway camps between them to join each area. Each area can hold a limited number of units and those units are used to secure the gateway camps, unlocking more areas of the battlefield and raising morale.

The game came out last week for the PSP - head through to read Limimi's full review now!

The new trailer for inFAMOUS 2 in our videos library shows off some of the gameplay from the upcoming Sucker Punch Studios title.

The three minute long video follows Cole as he makes his way to a little boss battle - along the way giving us a closer look at some of his abilities. Head over to our videos library to watch the trailer in your browser now - we're hoping to get some hands-on time with inFAMOUS 2 sooner rather than later... it's looking pretty good!

The latest episode of the Benny & Richie Show is available to watch now - both in browser and for download. This episode of the B&R Show features Christiaan van Vuuren - The Fully Sick Rapper - talking about life after quarantine and what it's like being a youtube sensation. The boys also catch up with Nina Kristensen - the Chief Development Ninja (her actual title) at Ninja Theory - to talk about the upcoming Enslaved.

Watch it in your browser by bouncing over to our videos library or download it to watch where/whenever from our files library.

Warren Spector's latest project is due November this year, and the Epic Mickey opening cinematic has hit our video library - and it's available in HD from our files library!

The video details how the world in Epic Mickey came to exist - basically Mickey Mouse is a little homewrecker who can't keep his hands to himself. When he finds himself hovering over the art project of a wizard it's only natural that he should grab the paint brush and start painting stuff.

Watch Mickey Mouse suffer the consequences of his actions in your browser by heading to our videos library, or download a HD version of the opening cinematic from our files library. Epic Mickey is a Wii exclusive, coming out November 2010.