PS3's downloadable games confirmed

Five (maybe six) new games confirmed for PS3's download service following info leak; SOE's Cash Carnage Chaos likely makes it half-dozen.

In preparation for its event being held in San Francisco today, Sony Computer Entertainment America has released the latest details and information on several games. Among the list is a new batch of arcade-style games slated for release as part of Sony's online initiative, similar to the Xbox 360's Xbox Live Arcade service.

Those who keep up to date with gaming news will note that these games were leaked earlier this week, but today's releases are the first official confirmation of the titles.

In addition to the previously announced flOw, five first-party games are included in the list. The games are Blast Factor, Go! Sudoku!, Criminal Crackdown, Lemmings 2, and Go! Swizzleblock2. Another game from Sony Online Entertainment, Cash Carnage Chaos, was also announced today through a slew of screenshots. Though the screenshots appear to indicate that the game is headed for e-distribution, there were no details on the game.

Details on each of the first-party games are listed below. No prices or release dates were given for any of the games.

Next-gen flu shots, courtesy of Blast Factor.

Blast Factor
Developer: Bluepoint Games
Supports: 1080p, Sixaxis tilt sensitivity

Blast Factor takes gaming microscopic, as players move through "specimens" and shoot down deadly viruses. By looking at the screenshots, it appears Blast Factor is in the vein of Bizarre Creations' XBLA hit Geometry Wars. Gamers will be able to compare their ranking online against other PS3 owners, and the difficulty level will adjust according to each player's skill.

Sudoku with the power of the Cell processor!

Go! Sudoku!
Developer: Sumo Digital (OutRun 2 for the Xbox)

As its name suggest, Go! Sudoku! plays on the Sudoku craze that's currently sweeping the world. Each puzzle will be accompanied by an animated background and music, both of which respond to players' actions. The game's multiplayer mode will support up to four players. In an interesting choice of words, Sony's press release states that gamers will be able to download "up to 1,000 puzzles," possibly indicating that puzzle packs will be individual purchases.

Block party!

Go! Swizzleblock2
Developer: not announced

Sony describes the game as a PS3 makeover of the "classic cube-swapping puzzle game." The game follows the formula of several block-based puzzlers--namely, match like colors and remove all the blocks from the screen. Buddies will be able to get together for four-player cooperative play or competitive team battles, or gamers can play solo in challenge, puzzle, and time-attack modes. Those with enough skills will be able to unlock the curiously titled hallucination option--which turns blocks into animals--or the hyper attack option.

Criminal Crackdown.

Criminal Crackdown
Developer: SCEA Santa Monica (God of War) & Incognito Entertainment (Warhawk, Twisted Metal: Black)
Supports: 1080p, Sixaxis tilt sensitivity

Two studios with ties to God of War creator David Jaffe are getting together for Criminal Crackdown, which is almost certainly the mystery game that Jaffe alluded to in a recent blog post. The game is described as vehicular-based multiplayer party game set in a cartoonish environment where players are bounty hunters scouring the streets for criminals on the lam. There will be four levels of gameplay, more than 10 rides, and several weapon power-ups.

Sony fanbo--I mean, Lemmings!.

Lemmings 2 (published by Sony Computer Entertainment Europe)
Developer: SCEA
Supports: 1080p

The classic franchise Lemmings--which had gamers lead poor mindless creatures toward salvation--gets another console incarnation in Lemmings 2. The PS3 version will include 40 new levels featuring dynamic lighting, all supporting high-definition 1080p resolution. New to this version are cloning and teleporting machines, as well as online leaderboards.

For more information on these games, check back later for GameSpot's previews or head over to the PlayStation 3 launch-center page.

123 Comments

  • killerwsyan

    Posted Jan 14, 2009 1:45 pm PT

    bad games

  • killer-hawk

    Posted Dec 21, 2006 2:45 pm PT

    I find it pretty cool that you can get these games without having to drive to the store.

  • zero9167

    Posted Oct 24, 2006 10:53 am PT

    haha GS doesnt know what sony fanboys are called

  • Rhubarb9

    Posted Oct 23, 2006 2:20 pm PT

    I though the xbox fanboys were called the lemmings and sony
    cows???

  • _-SMILEYDUDE-_

    Posted Oct 22, 2006 3:12 pm PT

    pretty cool for cheap fun but need 60g mem to hold lots of games

  • _Sam_

    Posted Oct 22, 2006 1:55 pm PT

    I'm not very interested in these games

  • Gamepro2421

    Posted Oct 22, 2006 11:13 am PT

    you could say that any online arcade system is a rip off of the 360's...there's not really that much you can do to make downloading arcade games different form the next guys system.

  • kilcoyne

    Posted Oct 22, 2006 9:03 am PT

    the whole new playstation network thing is a total rip of of xbox live! in my opinion

  • Bert7

    Posted Oct 21, 2006 11:49 pm PT

    this is such an Xbox Live Arcade RIP OFF!!!

  • jmford_1

    Posted Oct 21, 2006 1:37 pm PT

    nitrog:
    "if anything they will get smaller. ps2 games yeah they are over a gig each BUT those are NOT for download they are just backwards compatable to the ps3. please get your facts straight before you start to bash a system you really know next to nothing about."

    Uh, the announcement says that Sony will make PS1 AND PS2 games available for download. Get YOUR facts straight - Read the 3rd paragraph:

    http://www.gamespot.com/events/ps3launch/story.html?sid=6160120

  • Murpheus007

    Posted Oct 20, 2006 6:04 pm PT

    Small downloadable games are a novelty. I wish people would stop toting Geometry Wars around like it's the best simple arcade style games since Pac Man. It's fun, but come on. And not every game is going to push the system to it's limits. In fact, none of the first generation of software titles are going to do so. Oooh, Sudoku with the power of a cell processor!!! Oh my god Sony what next?!!!? I love Sudoku, and I will definitely get it. Does anyone scruitinize XBL for having UNO on their market? No. And as far as it being a knock off, I don't care. What could they have done dramatically different. I've already said that the online strategy for the PS2 was weak, and when Microsoft made their first console, you better believe they sat down and looked at all the things people complained about with the PS2, and said, hey let's do these things so we look like geniuses. They did them, and they look like geniuses. So when Sony wakes up and says, hey we missed the boat on that, we better hop to it, everyone says they're copycats, and that the whole PS3 online network is a rip off. SO WHAT!!!! If they didn't rip off the things that obviously worked, then the PS3 would launch, and everyone who bought one would say, WTF Sony!!!! Didn't you learn anything from the last horrible online service you provided? I'll tell you one thing, I love the 360. But it's no freakin leap into the future that's for sure. I played COD 2, Dead Rising, Perfect Dark Zero, Madden 07, Condemned, Oblivion, Splinter Cell, Full Auto, Kameo, PGR and I have to say that Full Auto, COD 2, Oblivion, and Splinter Cell are all good games. Every other one on that list was a rushed product, and is nowhere near to being a next gen game. Can anyone who developed Perfect Dark Zero look me in the face and say that they played that Multiplayer and loved it? Did everyone who made Dead Rising have 20/20 vision? I mean I've never played a game that was that cool in concept, but sucked so bad because I couldn't read a single line of text without squinting so hard I got a headache. And finally, can the developer of the next gen Madden look me in the eye and tell me it's a better game than '05. I'd call them a liar right then and there if they ever did. I'm done here

  • crithon

    Posted Oct 20, 2006 3:54 pm PT

    so..... uh, what about the Sega Genesis and Hudson Turbographic 16 titles that was mentioned at TGS 2006? I mean, Smash TV and Geometry War clones are really cheap attempts at making something quick to fill in the libary but I mean, aside from "Go! Swizzleblock2" there is nothing here that sounds really worth downloading. Although I would get Lemming 2 wouldn't be half bad, but I mean majority of these games remind me of the Philips CD-i or the 3DO.

  • SoreBastard

    Posted Oct 20, 2006 3:00 pm PT

    WoW Sony!!! Such an original idea.

  • blancobo

    Posted Oct 20, 2006 2:13 pm PT

    Boom!!! and there were unfaithful skeptic fans that doubted Sony's capabilities. Not only is the PS3 price a NON-FACTOR, but the system's online capabilities a reality. Sony - though criticized by many - as an optimistic company, I believe has the smart group of individuals to ensure their future plans. Ladies and gentlemen, the PS3 is coming, the master of MODERN gaming. I now vouche for Sony becoming the Ultimate authority for online gaming. Very pleased with this official confirmation. Will pick my PS3 in EBGAMES on Nov, 17, 2006. Along with Talladega nights and NFS Carbon! + the Internet Browser.

  • thefjk

    Posted Oct 20, 2006 2:11 pm PT

    Coool!

  • ocdog45

    Posted Oct 20, 2006 1:46 pm PT

    for $599 they should be free

  • westsider101

    Posted Oct 20, 2006 1:36 pm PT

    These games are no geometry wars

  • RahKayne

    Posted Oct 20, 2006 11:24 am PT

    Sony fanboys aren't lemmings they are cows, 360 fanboys are lemmings.
    I guess that'll change for this generation.

  • abood_x

    Posted Oct 20, 2006 10:44 am PT

    mmm they didn,t name it ps live aracde or xbox live arcade i don,t see youre point and xbox fan plz go away

  • anamnawshad

    Posted Oct 20, 2006 10:27 am PT


    Keep copying $ony
    XBL, Wiimote whats next?

  • WolfSkill5544

    Posted Oct 20, 2006 10:04 am PT

    Ok, I guess

  • XerenX_Storm

    Posted Oct 20, 2006 9:15 am PT

    why are they copying everything microsoft do

  • Monstromo

    Posted Oct 20, 2006 9:12 am PT

    So this is what Jaffe has been working on? Wow, look how far the mighty have fallen. I had a lot of hopes for that guy.

  • cannibal127-9

    Posted Oct 20, 2006 9:04 am PT

    These games actually look pretty fun. Not all of them, but I have always LOVED Lemmings. And, in the future we'll start to see tons of affordable downloadable games, which is awesome! I vaguely recall Sega saying something about the Genesis and the Master System being a part of the download library. Does anyone else remember that, or am I completely lost?

  • qlcoffeecup

    Posted Oct 20, 2006 8:44 am PT

    "1080p is a resolution and in no way a indicator of size. full blown PC games have been running resolutions even higher then 1080p for a long time now and haven't been completely eatting up a 80gig hard disk drive. doom 3 max rez is something like 1600x1200 acctually i think it higher then that. the pc equivelent of 1080p is 1024x768 which i have seen full release games under 80meg that have ran at that resolution. "

    Just to correct the correction, 1080p is not 1024x768. "Let’s cut to the chase: It’s the highest of high-definition signal formats, with 1080 vertical pixels by 1920 horizontal pixels, and uses progressive scanning. " In other words, 1920x1080. (See http://news.digitaltrends.com/print_talkback47.html)

    PC monitors, especially CRTs, have supported resolutions higher than these for years. PC games can scale up incredibly, but that doesn't mean the textures will follow suit. A higher resolution with low-res textures does not a better looking game make.

    What takes up room in a download is textures - pre-drawn art - and sound files (music, speech, effects, whatever.) Video is also heavy. The executable is relatively small compared to the bitmaps and assets required by most games. In contrast, Geometry Wars for the 360 is vector-graphic based. This means that the graphics are _drawn_, (based on simple or non-simple algorithms), not painted from bitmaps, so the game itself is tiny. It looks like a few of these games might use the same approach. A case where a high-res game would require a larger download might be doom3, if you wanted the game to look as sharp in 1080p as it does in 1280x1024. In that case, you'd need to ship higher res graphics which would take up a lot of room.

  • theKSMM

    Posted Oct 20, 2006 8:40 am PT

    These smaller, downloadable, retro games are a cool thing to have. And it was inevitable that Sony was going to have them after Microsoft was having success (i.e. making money) with them. I don't doubt that Nintendo will follow suit.

    But honestly, I'd rather have this sort of content on a PSP than a PS3. I mean, Lemmings is still fun to this day, but I don't think I need to see it in 1080p at 52 inches. That's fun that I can take on the go, on a portable console or cellular phone. When I'm on the big screen, I want immersion that I can't get anywhere else. I want a full-blown game.

  • nitrog

    Posted Oct 20, 2006 7:55 am PT

    "jmford_1
    WOW!! Sudoku in 1080p! There's something to be proud of. I also wonder, if these game are going to support 1080p, how big are the downloads going to be...100 meg...200meg...500 meg? You'll be needing that 60 gig hd and more real quick. Not to mention that the PS1 and PS2 games are 1+ gig themselves. Have fun downloading those! "

    1080p is a resolution and in no way a indicator of size. full blown PC games have been running resolutions even higher then 1080p for a long time now and haven't been completely eatting up a 80gig hard disk drive. doom 3 max rez is something like 1600x1200 acctually i think it higher then that. the pc equivelent of 1080p is 1024x768 which i have seen full release games under 80meg that have ran at that resolution. what makes the diffrences in size is not resolution but texture quality and sound quality. how many "wav" files they include, if there are full CG cut scenes added in ect. i still expect these download and play games to come in well under the 100meg mark. also the ps1 games for the most part arn't going to be over a gig the orignal cd's for ps1 wouldn't of held that much data why would they baloon up after digital release? if anything they will get smaller. ps2 games yeah they are over a gig each BUT those are NOT for download they are just backwards compatable to the ps3. please get your facts straight before you start to bash a system you really know next to nothing about.

  • nitrog

    Posted Oct 20, 2006 7:40 am PT

    macacd
    "surely its lemmings 3? either way it looks great "

    no it's acctually a remake of lemmings 2 with updated graphics. "LosDaddie
    Yeah, this just confims that Sony doesn't have an original bone in its body. All Sony does is copy Microsoft.

    Way to rip off Xbox Live Arcade, Sony! "

    ROFL cuz micro$oft has never copied or stolen an idea from anyone anywhere.....oh yeah thats how they built their whole company. Please don't just blindly say that the live arcade is micro$ofts orignal idea either it's annoying. Services like live arcade have existed for a while now micro$oft just made it popular. I am just wondering since they released the XNA studio how long it will be before we see an xbox360 virus proliferating though the live network.

  • Dantes_Monkey

    Posted Oct 20, 2006 7:22 am PT

    lolz all here who have been saying how sony copies the "original" microsoft check microsofts track history...how mnay stolen ideas is that? loads. i thought so. Also an online arcade is hardly M$ own work.

  • macacd

    Posted Oct 20, 2006 6:57 am PT

    surely its lemmings 3? either way it looks great

  • hemakm3

    Posted Oct 20, 2006 6:40 am PT

    Lemmings 2 looks good.

  • LosDaddie

    Posted Oct 20, 2006 6:38 am PT

    Yeah, this just confims that Sony doesn't have an original bone in its body. All Sony does is copy Microsoft.

    Way to rip off Xbox Live Arcade, Sony!

  • wellingtonfo

    Posted Oct 20, 2006 5:21 am PT

    OMG! Lemmings2! I finished Lemmings1 in a Amiga600 (10 years ago? don´t remember).. It´s a fun and challenge game! Didn't played Lemmings2 at that time, can't wait to play it in my PS3 at 1080i ;-) (yeah, my Sony Wega HDTV CRT can do 1080i but the interleve image is great! Very very close to an progressive image, have to see to believe )

    And a fanboy comment.. Another game from David Jaffe, great! Keep comming! ;-)

    ps: sorry for my bad english

  • Hayabusa_san

    Posted Oct 20, 2006 4:15 am PT

    They're all looking pretty good. I think I'll download them all eventually...

  • Firestorm217

    Posted Oct 20, 2006 4:00 am PT

    I looooooooooved lemmings 2 and im gonna loooooove it on my PS3!

  • OPOLO

    Posted Oct 20, 2006 3:47 am PT

    interesting

  • SpareJesus

    Posted Oct 20, 2006 1:52 am PT

    Wow. So now they have a Virtual Console/XBox-Arcade service, too?

    What else could Sony possibly think of?

    I wonder if this'll be released over here in the UK alongside Duke Nukem Forever..?

  • adhesivespatula

    Posted Oct 20, 2006 12:58 am PT

    Hey moky, next time, open your mouth a little wider when you speak.

  • puppiemaster

    Posted Oct 20, 2006 12:42 am PT

    both blu-ray and HD dvd are old now, new storage medium will be here in 2 years and both will be as dead as betamax, Go holographic discs!!!

  • mokyumokyu_01

    Posted Oct 19, 2006 10:07 pm PT

    When as many as 360 1080p becomes possible, fellows who said that 1080p is needless are 1080p 1080p 1080p. MS is impostor, and "Xbox 360 HD DVD player" this is "HD DVD drive" and not "Player"
    How many men who buy the HD DVD drive of 360 exclusive uses only to see the movie of Universal Pictures to begin with are there?

    Blu-ray is 81%(BUENA VISTA,Sony Pictures,MGM,20th CENTURY FOX,Warner Bros,Paramount Pictures,Lionsgate), and 49.1% is Blu-ray only. (BUENA VISTA,Sony Pictures,MGM,20th CENTURY FOX,Lionsgate)

    HD DVD is 44.2%(Warner Bros,Paramount Pictures,Universal Pictures), and 12.3% is HD DVD only. (Universal Pictures)

    Universal Pictures will also come to Blu-ray, and HD DVD become needless at once.

  • GreyFoxV1

    Posted Oct 19, 2006 10:01 pm PT

    Wow when you rip a game off you rip it off good sony. Whats next Blast Factor:Evolved?

  • RaiKageRyu

    Posted Oct 19, 2006 9:37 pm PT

    Woah.. What a dream team for Criminal Crackdown.

    Go Lemmings!

  • Runningflame570

    Posted Oct 19, 2006 9:19 pm PT

    Sounds good..BEHOLD! The triumphant return of Lemmings..now get to work on releasing a Trolleys game Sony.

  • littlestreakier

    Posted Oct 19, 2006 9:08 pm PT

    to all the people talking about the HD-DVD add on...u all are stupid. this thread isn't even talking about that if it was i'd much rather have a CHOICE than be forced to buy a next gen MOVIE format player that might not win in the format wars.

    anyways, i think it's good that sony is offering downloadable games through their online service. we all knew it would happen. why would sony not do it? that'd be stupid of them not to lol. and at this point copying shouldn't be an issue, all companies to it the correct term is called "bench-marking" actually paid attention in econ class. hope to see some better games on there tho.

    one thing that would really be nice is if u didn't need to be signed in to play the games u download. with 360 if u aren't signed into xbox live u can only play the trial version of the game u already paid full price for. I HATE IT!!!!!!! so hopefully sony doesn't do that.

  • comthitnuong

    Posted Oct 19, 2006 8:56 pm PT

    thats good

  • linkdude777

    Posted Oct 19, 2006 8:48 pm PT

    looks the same as 360. I'm starting to care about ps3 less and less by the day. I'll just get myself a Wii and be done with it. I'll buy the ps3 in like 3 or 4 years from now and buy the best games of this year and next year for like $10-$20 each.

  • NinjaFoot

    Posted Oct 19, 2006 8:43 pm PT

    Sony wouldn't lift someone else's game idea. No wait.....

  • McDog3

    Posted Oct 19, 2006 8:27 pm PT

    V V V Yeah, thats what I was going to say.......

  • Neo_Strife100

    Posted Oct 19, 2006 8:17 pm PT

    "Sony fanbo--I mean, Lemmings"

    You mispelling Nintendo Gamespot

  • N15PCA

    Posted Oct 19, 2006 8:00 pm PT

    Besides Lemmings 2 were are the classic games like the X-box 360 live had on their launch day i.e. Gauntlet, Joust and Smash TV.

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