PS3 Fanboy

Yeah, it's July 16th in Europe right now, but we've been too busy to post the update until now. The fact we even know what's up on the store is a near miracle (thanks, Tom!), seeing as we're actually nowhere near a PS3 right now. With our excuses out of the way, we present to you today's update which, apart from a whole bunch of awesome E3 trailers, includes the SSHD Team Pack. Best thing about the Team Pack? Another potential trophy. Here's the full release list:

Playable Content

• Fatal Inertia EX demo (free)
• Fatal Inertia EX Full Game (£14.99)

Add-on Content

• Super Stardust HD "Team Pack" (£2.99)

Videos

• Buzz! Quiz TV advert
  
• Buzz! Quiz TV "Sofa vs Sofa" advert
• Resistance 2 E3 trailer
• PixelJunk Eden E3 trailer
• PAIN E3 trailer
• LittleBigPlanet E3 trailer
• MotorStorm Pacific Rift E3
• GT TV E3 trailer

With E3 happening this week (stay tuned for live coverage!), the PLAYSTATION Store will be updated every day, with new content arriving from first and third parties. In addition to the requisite trailers and videos that will appear on the Store, PlayStation will be bringing it home with playable content. Watch out for Rock Band DLC, featuring The Who, the official release of the Super Stardust HD team pack, and a new PSN game, Elefunk.

Stay tuned for more info as it happens.

We finally unlocked all the Trophies for Super Stardust HD. As the first game available with Trophy support, many are jumping online to boost their PlayStation level. With 9 Bronze, 6 Silver and 2 Gold Trophies, we're sure this is going to keep many occupied for quite some time. Here's our guide to unlock all the Trophies. Good luck!

Hero of Lave - Complete planet Lave
Bronze | Difficulty: Very Easy
All Arcade mode Trophies can be earned in Easy mode. We recommend that you play on that difficulty to make it easier to get the Trophies you want. For this Trophy, simply beat the first level. Having trouble with the boss? Make sure you focus on only one weak point at a time. You should be able to destroy one weak point before he does his spin attack. His spin will vacuum space debris, so you may want to keep your distance in the early parts of this battle. The Trophy will unlock once you start the next level.

The popular PSN arcade shooter now includes trophies. Download the free 4.00 patch and you'll be able to acquire these 17 trophies:

Bronze Trophies

• Hero of Lave - Complete planet Lave
• Hero of Coventina - Complete planet Coventina
• Hero of Nemain - Complete planet Nemain
• Hero of Taranis - Complete planet Taranis
• Hero of Segomo - Complete planet Segomo
• The Tokenizer - Collect 5 tokens with a single boost in Arcade
  
• Scrooge MacBoom - Get 10 bombs in Arcade
• Extra Ships Optional - Survive 7 minutes without dying in Endless*
• Close Encounters - Survive 45 seconds without shooting or using bombs in Survival*

Silver Trophies

• Token Hoarder - Collect 15 tokens with a single boost in Arcade
• Well Prepared - Get 20 bombs in Arcade
• Shield Blaster - Collect 5 shield tokens while already having a shield
• Scenic Route - Complete a planet without using boost
• Late Boomer - Get 15 bombs in Bomber*
• Shock and Awe - Destroy 10 nukes in Endless*

Gold Trophies

• Multiplier Hero - Get 10x multiplier
• Split screen Co-op - Get 3 minutes of continuous Co-Op weapon boost on Segomo*

* These trophies require the purchase of additional expansion content.

Super Stardust HD received its first expansion pack last month, to much praise from the Stardust community. The Solo Pack added several different modes, and the upcoming multiplayer add-on promises to do the same. We had an opportunity to try it out during PlayStation Day and we loved what we saw.

The "Team Pack" adds a Co-op split-screen mode, as well as the incredible Versus Mode. Within Versus Mode, you can partake in a number of different challenges, similar to the offering found in many other multiplayer games: there's Deathmatch, King of the Hill, and Grab and Run. This whole mode has been built specifically with party gaming in mind.

Up to four players can play against each other on the same planet, but the "layout" of the planet can be changed before the game commences. This allows you to overlay a maze of rocks onto the planet's surface in various shapes which players will need to navigate through. These rocks can be destroyed and, depending on the options settings, can or cannot harm players who come too close. For people who prefer a less restricted battlefield, there's an option for a clear level layout too.

The guys at Housemarque have just finished their next Super Stardust HD expansion. The "solo pack" will be followed by the "team pack," which features a number of additions. Ilari Kuittinen, co-founder Housemarque, explained to MTV Multiplayer: "It features a split screen Versus Match and Co-Op, ship editor, a true 5.1 orchestral soundtrack, and trophies."

We're already excited for these new additions, but what we're even more intrigued by are the upcoming additions the Housemarque team is looking into. "We have been experimenting with a game mode we call "Twin gun" mode (not disclosing specifics at the moment, maybe you can guess?) and how to make music generated levels, etc." A Mizuguchi-inspired version of Stardust sounds like it would be a blast.

In tandem with the new firmware update today, Americans can enjoy a few surprising releases ahead of Thursday's normal updates. Here's what you can find on your updated Store:

Game Add-ons:

• Super Stardust HD Solo Add-on Pack ($4.99)
  This upgrade pack for Super Stardust HD requires the original game. It will add new game modes: Endless, Survival, Bomber and Time Attack. Arcade Mode now features the Easy difficulty. A new Retro soundtrack has been added. [Editor's Note: It is incredibly awesome. A must-buy for fans of Super Stardust HD.]
  
• Lair Dragons and Control Pack (free)
  Get two new playable dragons, analog flight controls, rumble support and enhanced PSP Remote Play support. It's what the game should've had from the start.

Videos:

• Gran Turismo 5 Prologue "Beyond the Apex" trailer (free)
• Gran Turismo 5 Prologue "Friendly Fires" video (free)

There will be more to see this Thursday. See you then!

It seems that the Super Stardust HD upgrade pack that is "coming soon" is already available, in one form or another. Delete and re-download the game from the EU PSN Store and you might notice a few new, exciting features. Unfortunately, the game seems to have disappeared from our download list so we had to buy it again. A separate pack will hopefully be made available soon. We've been exploring the new version (2.02, according to the credits) for a little while and are very pleased with what we've found.

The game now has full support for Dual Shock 3 rumble controllers, as well as a new online store section in the main menu. Currently this contains two add-on packs, a "Single Player expansion" and a "Multiplayer expansion", both of which are marked as "coming soon". The high score table now shows score, highest rank, session time and the time that the score was submitted. Along with the new game statistics section, you can keep a scarily accurate tally of how long you've played, how many of each enemy you've killed and how many times you've completed each level.

We've saved the best for last, though. The new version has full support for custom soundtracks. These can be edited from within the game utilising any music on your PS3's hard drive. Playing Super Stardust HD to Sufjan Stevens' "Songs for Christmas" is an amazingly cathartic experience. We currently have no idea if the US PSN Store has the upgraded version of the game yet, or when its official release is supposed to be. We will keep you informed.

[Thanks Withnail!]

Some European PSN users have stumbled across an item on the store which, it seems, ought not to be there. The Super Stardust HD update doesn't appear for everyone, but those who do see it noticed there's a large "Coming Soon" slapped across the image. But what could an update to SSHD contain? Isn't it already amazing enough as it is?

The item's description is a fantasy wishlist of desirable features, including improved graphics and sound, new game modes, split screen multiplayer, a ship editor and clan support. Clan support? How exactly that will work we have no idea, but it does give us the impression that our favourite dual analogue shooter will be heading online when the update hits. Sounds good to us - a little too good. Make of the above image what you will, we're going to remain cautiously optimistic for now, even if it is just wishful thinking.

[Via Ripten]