It is always a pain to find someone that lives near you to play the same PSP game via adhoc. It is also awkward to sit in the same room looking at two different small screens. But luckily Sony has released the adhocParty system will be releasing the adhocParty system “soon” to help reduce those awkward moments.

The adhocParty software will allow PSP owners who own a PS3 to connect to other PSP owners over the Playstation Network to play PSP games that have an adhoc mode. It will also allow the players to talk to each other with the PlayStation Eye or Wireless Headset. To top it all off, the software will be free to download.

So all of you people out there with the new Gran Turismo and Monster Hunter Freedom Unite will be able to play each other in the comforts of your living rooms. As for me I will be getting out Disgaea: Afternoon of Darkness and purchasing Disgaea 2: Dark Hero Days in hopes that there are others out there to throw people at.

[Source Playstation.Blog]

It seems that Joker’s been up to his old antics. The beginning of the game finds Batman bringing him in to Joker’s on again off again residence, Arkham Asylum. Shortly after arriving, Joker manages to break free of his captors and sets his followers free, quickly gaining total control over the entire island citadel. It is up to Batman’s combat and investigative prowess to unlock the mysteries behind Joker’s plot, and to bring the asylum under control from the inside.

The combat system is one of the most entertaining and intuitive I’ve ever experienced. By simply pressing X for strikes and Y for counters, Bats unleashes a bevy of attack animations to knock out his opponents with cinematic precision and detail. Additional combo skills can be purchased upon leveling up, making the combo system into an even more deadly stylish experience.

Many of the opponents you encounter will be armed, forcing you to utilize Batman’s signature stealth to perform silent takedowns fr0m the shadows. As more and more of their partners drop, inmates will become increasingly nervous, affecting how observant they are of their surroundings. Using a variety of techniques, the predatory sections of the game on their own provide an espionage experience easily on par with the Metal Gear series.

On top of two gameplay mechanics that would each make for an excellent game on their own, The Riddler has 240 different challenges to be accomplished throughout the island. These challenges range from trophies that merely need to be located on the map, to solving riddles by taking a picture of the item which answers the riddle. Most of these will provide the player with some kind of reward such as a character trophy, or gameplay challenge.

S0 far after a little more than 5 hours of gameplay, I’ve completed 22% of the story content and just over 25% of the Riddler challenges. No part of the game has gotten stale so far, and it seems that there is going to be plenty to go back and hunt for after the story is over. At the moment, I would highly recommend this as a rental at the very least. As there is no multiplayer mode, I would suggest purchasing if you are the type of person that likes to go back and complete single player games to their full extent.

Seeing how things are made, and where they are made, is always awesome. When it pertains to new technology even better. That chance was seized by Charlie Brewer as he got a tour of Sony’s new blu-ray factory in Sydney, Australia.

Charlie goes through what looks to be the whole factory as he takes pictures of it all for our viewing pleasure. You can view the beginning of the discs as small polycarbonate granules, all the way to the end as they are packaged, and everything in-between at new.com.au.

[source Kotaku]