This has to be the longest list of games ever for a week of releases. There are many major titles coming out next week, from Zack & Wiki to Jericho to Ratchet and Clank, there is sure to be something for everyone. What are you getting next week?
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Prime time Saturday night spots secured as SCEE gets behind 'benchmark PS3 title'

Sony is backing upcoming PS3 title Ratchet and Clank: Tools Of Destruction with a million pound TV campaign throughout the gifting season.

The platform holder has heralded the game as a 'benchmark' release for PS3 owners, and set its sights on a target demographic that covers the whole family.

"The ad will target 16-34 year olds, with a focus on Saturday night family programming, which draws upon a broad demographic of viewers, matching Ratchet And Clank's target audience," Sony product manager Lucy Garnett told MCV.
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As frequent Playstation.Blog readers will remember, about two weeks back we announced Ratchet & Clank Future: Tools of Destruction had gone gold and would ship to stores Oct 30th. Well, due to some unexpected quickness at the factory, a vast majority of retailers have already received the game. With that, some retailers are choosing to release the game next week instead of waiting until the 30th, which we are all too happy to allow :).

Official launch date remains October 30, but for those who can't wait to use your trigger fingers on the Tornado Launcher (or any other weapon in Ratchet's arsenal), check with your local game retailer next week.
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We have just confirmed with SCEA that Ratchet & Clank Future: Tools of Destruction will be shipping early.

Originally scheduled for an October 23rd date, the game was recently pushed back to October 30th. But after seeing a few retail outlets with newly updated October 23rd release dates we contacted our friendly SCEA rep. And it is indeed true, the game is shipping to most retailers early and will be available next week.
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Ratchet & Clank: Tools of Destruction was pushed back by Insomniac for 1 week to release on the 30th October in the US. This was so they could thoroughly check the game and make it as perfect as they could before it went to print. We know that the game has gone gold now, and there are now signs that it may be releasing on the 23rd October.
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There has been some discussion about the recently released demo of Ratchet and Clank: Tools of Destruction for the Playstation 3 on the well known gaming forum Neogaf.

A very select few have been having some visual troubles with the game, resulting in a pixelated mess on their HDTV's. This is surprising, since most who have experienced the beauty of Insomniac's game can see that it is very sharp and pretty damn special to say the least. So what is going on here?

MANUAL UPDATE: Images of the actual problem have been added as well as the actual link to the Neogaf forum containing supposed response from the Insomniac employee.
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The New York Times report on October 16, 2007:

Where have all the elves gone?

That's the question gamers and the people who love them are bound to ask this fall as they take in the latest crop of big-budget video games. Since the 1970s, dragons, orcs, wizards and dwarfs have been staples of interactive entertainment, yet this holiday season there are hardly any top new games in the traditional fantasy mode.

Instead 2007 has been dominated by perhaps the deepest lineup of science fiction games ever.
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This afternoon, Kotaku checked up on the Insomniac Games office for a last minute look at Ratchet & Clank Future: Tools of Destruction for the PLAYSTATION 3. Having missed out on the game's DualShock 3 support in the Tokyo Game Show demo and well aware at the release "lag" that meant most North Americans won't have access to the PS3's rumbling afterthought, they were curious about support for the "ShockAxis" for the domestic release. Short answer? It's looking good.

Here's the deal: while Sony won't officially support an imported Japanese DualShock 3, games like Ratchet & Clank Future will. The game was listed as DualShock 3 ready in the official "List Of PS3 Games That Support The DualShock 3" without requiring a software update, but Kotaku wanted to be sure.

The game-the first to support the new controller sans software update-ships on October 30, with the DualShock 3 hitting Japanese retailers on November 11, so there's still a potential delay in getting to enjoy Ratchet & Clank Future as it was intended. The worse news is that actually finding an importer with one in stock is going to prove more difficult.
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Oct 3, 2007 If you want to discover the wonders of Ratchet & Clank Future: Tools of Destruction for yourself, we'd suggest clicking away now. The video we're about to show you features action from the later levels, tackled with some of the best gadgetry in the game. Yup - we would have stuck around too. First, you'll see the planet Viceron and the start of your break-in run on the intergalactic jail. We're not going to tell you why you're breaking in - we're not that mean. Then you'll see the ... » Read More

There is a rumor going on in the GameFAQs forums where member Ashunv claims that his friend was hired as an intern for animation a few months ago. He says that his friend claims that Ted Price, founder of Insomniac Games, and a good amount of others will be leaving Insomniac Games in favor of creating a new development studio. Apparently this decision was made some time ago according to his friend and will become effective later this year (After the release of the new Ratchet and Clank he is assuming). He has no information regarding Ted Price's new development studio other then the fact that it is indeed happening. Apparently this situation will be discussed on Insomniac Game's next podcast and an official statement will be soon after as he claims. So look out for the next podcast, maybe they will shed more light on the situation then the little information that his friend told him.
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Real Deal Gaming is sure you've all heard the rumor of the $399 PS3 its been going around the web for awhile now lately but even way back in July predicted by a Microsoft employee. Rumors have pegged an official announcement in October. So doing a little searching and making a few calls and putting all the information together Real Deal Gaming has come up with a well informed/unconfirmed/educated guess of when this rumored $399 PS3 would finally hit store shelves. Read on for the evidence.
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Sept 28, 2007 An "updated and optimised" version of the Ratchet & Clank Future: Tools of Destruction E3 demo will be made available for download via the PlayStation Network within the next two weeks, Sony has confirmed. Greg Phillips, line producer of SCEA revealed that the demo "should be available via PSN in North America by October 11." A Sony UK correspondent has told us it expects the demo to hit the UK PSN around "mid-October" (although if you're smart you'll already have a US account ... » Read More

Greg Phillips, SCEA's Line Producer writes:
"I'm happy to report that we've gone gold! The game is finished and will hit a store near you on October 30. As some of you know, this is a week later than the Oct 23rd date stated previously, but the extra wait will be worth it."

On the demo:
"I am also happy to report that we are wrapping up work on an updated and optimized version of our E3 demo (which is also available at Gamestop if you pre-order RCF) as I type this, and should be available via PSN in North America by October 11. The demo will be of Metropolis, the signature level in the Ratchet & Clank franchise."
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Sept 25, 2007 UK mag PSM3 has been given the world exclusive review of Ratchet & Clank Future: Tools of Destruction on PlayStation 3, slapping a 90%-plus score on the flagship title, and crediting it with "[tapping] PS3's monstrous potential". Since they're the only mag to have played and reviewed the game, we'll let some sneak quotes whet your appetite for the full verdict - but we're not about to reveal the actual score. You'll have to grab yourself a copy of PSM3 issue #93 when it goes on ... » Read More

Set to run at 60 fps, the title will support both 720p and 1080i. For all you Resistance fans, they promise that all of their upcoming PS3 titles will support 60 fps (and that means Resistance 2 as well). Back to Ratchet and Clank, the title will take up a whopping 22 GB of a 25 GB Blu-ray disc. Even without the localizations, the title couldn't fit on a DVD9.
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PS3fanboy.com reports: "Ryan, ahem, Schneider, just got back, adding a few new details to our previous interview. Firstly, it appears that the Japanese Ratchet model (the one with the big bushy eyebrows) will not be included in the US version of the game. What will make the cut, strangely, is the Japanese language track, allowing you to have all sorts of kawaii adventures with Ratchet and his robot pal"
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While a PlayStation Network demo is set to hit for downloads on October 4th, those who ramble into GameStop today can pick up a playable demo for Ratchet & Clank Future: Tools of Destruction. The demo seems to contain the first level of the game and offers gamers a chance to try out the title before its release at the end of next month.
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Fans of Ratchet & Clank are no stranger to weapon upgrades. The system featured in the upcoming Tools of Destruction takes the customizing features of Deadlocked, streamlines them and makes them more accessible. Just like previous Ratchet games, your weapons will automatically upgrade over time through experience points. However, those that want greater customization of their weapons can head to a weapons counter and access this upgrade grid (pictured, above).
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Sept 12, 2007 A single-level demo of Ratchet and Clank Future: Tools of Destruction will go live on PSN on October 4, Sony has confirmed. The free demo will let you run riot in the first level of the game, set in a now-destroyed Metropolis City. In this PS3 sequel, Ratchet and his partner must travel around the galaxy exploring new worlds in a battle against an ancient race of insect-like monsters called Cragmites unleashed by the evil Emperor Percival Tachyon. The full game will be out in ... » Read More

Despite it sounding like a euphemism for robot hemorrhoids, IGN is big fan of Insomniac's Ratchet and Clank series. Thrillingly then, Sony's told IGN that a demo of upcoming Ratchet & Clank Future: Tools of Destruction will hit PSN on October 4.
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