Games rule for PlayStation in 2010 and beyond

On the eve of gamescom 2010, Sony Computer Entertainment Europe lifts the lid on exciting new titles coming to PS3.

At the E-Werk building on the outskirts of Cologne, Germany, Andrew House, president of Sony Computer Entertainment Europe, hosted a media briefing on 17 August 2010 that culminated in the reveal of two exciting new titles for PlayStation 3 owners.

Earlier in the day, Electronic Arts had hosted their own update, in which they announced that Mass Effect 2, the hotly anticipated science fiction role-playing game, would be coming to PlayStation in January 2011.

The publisher confirmed the upcoming release of Dead Space 2, also in January 2011, to include Dead Space: Extraction, the latter compatible with PlayStation Move.

Back at E-Werk, Andrew House kicked off with a quick business update, stating that PS3 sales had hit 38 million units globally, with a 57 per cent growth in the SCEE region in the last year alone. This was the perfect opportunity to introduce two new PS3 models that will be hitting stores in the near future, a storage friendly 320GB version and an equally meaty 160GB model.

There was an update on MUBI, the independent cinema streaming service for PS3 owners, which will include a raft of community features when it launches across 18 countries in October this year, as well as confirmation of new catch-up tv channels in six SCEE territories.

On PSP, House confirmed the addition of new titles to the PSP Essentials range, including FIFA Street 2 and Patapon and then it was time to start ramping up the excitement with a series of big game announcements.

One of the most anticipated titles on PS3 was given a firm street date, as Gran Turismo 5 was confirmed as coming out on 3 November 2010. This was followed by a fantastically atmospheric trailer for inFamous 2, set to Buster Poindexter's version of The House Of The Rising Sun, and then it was time for the first live stage demo.

Greg Goodrich, executive producer of Medal of Honor, confirmed that PS3 owners will be able to purchase a special edition of the game which will include the PlayStation 2 hit Medal of Honor Frontline, before introducing Linkin Park's Mike Shinoda to play through a level of the game on the big screen.

With the release of PlayStation Move less than a month away, there was an update on the many titles that will accompany the release of the new peripheral, including confirmation that Virtua Tennis 4 from SEGA will support stereoscopic 3D as well as PS Move.

Talking of 3D, that was the perfect opportunity for the assembled crowd to don their 3D glasses and take a look at a selection of compatible titles including Hustle Kings and Gran Turismo 5.

Glasses still firmly in position, the boys from Evolution Studios played through a level from MotorStorm Apocalypse, game director Matt Southern explaining that the inclusion of the new technology took off-road racing "to a new dimension".

And then it was time for the big news of the night, as Ted Price, head of Insomniac Games, one of the most succesful studios ever on PlayStation, introduced new instalments to two very different and nevertheless iconic PlayStation series.

First up, it was the turn of Ratchet, and Clank, and Captain Quark, and Doctor Nefarious as Price and his colleagues from Insomniac took the crowd through a demo of Ratchet & Clank All 4 One. For the first time, you'll be able to play through the intergalactic space adventures of the intrepid duo and their co-stars in co-op and competitive multiplayer.

And then for the coup de grace, Price introduced the final trailer of the evening. Against a haunting musical back drop, and with cinematic camerawork that encompassed a a desolate 20th century American landscape, the video slowly unravelled to reveal the return of the deadly Chimera, in Resistance 3.

With that, all that remained was for Andrew House to urge the crowd to "join us for the ride" as the attendees grabbed their chance to get their hands on the latest games coming to PlayStation in 2010 and beyond.