With Resistance Fall of Man’s huge success and Rachet And Clank hotly tipped as one of the next big titles to blow us all away, you can appreciate that the Insomniac team are a busy bunch at the minute.

Well, not only have we managed to pin them down, we’ve also been granted the opportunity put some questions over to their development team. And, because we’re so nice over here at Three Speech, we’ve decided to offer this opportunity back to you guys.

So, have a think and let us know what questions you’d like to ask the developers over at Insomniac? Obviously we can’t guarantee that we can get them all answered, so make sure they’re good!

Let us know by posting a comment, or e-mailing us at blog@threespeech.com.

Here’s some pics of Heavenly Sword that we thought you might appreciate:

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In response to the queries about when you’re going to be able to get your hands on the forthcoming downloadable titles, here’s some provisional dates for the UK / Europe (though they may be subject to change):

Calling all Cars - May 25th
Nucleus - June 1st
Super Stardust HD - June 15th

And moving forward…

Calling All Cars

Almost unbelievably, this comes from the planet-sized brain of Dave Jaffe, who created God Of War. Not that it’s anything like God Of War – but it is our personal favourite of the PlayStation Store downloadable games. It’s laughable simple, with over-the-top cartoon-style graphics that will make you laugh, destructible scenery and a two-thirds view that puts you in mind of Micro Machines. Set in an area around a jail, you drive a car around in search of escaped prisoners. When you find one, you must pick him up and return him to the jail – the jail entrance you use dictates the number of points you get. But there are other cars trying to do the same – either powered by AI or other people – and question-mark signs dotted around which get you power-ups that could have been lifted from Wacky Races, like giant hammers attached to your bonnet and so on. Which enemies will use against you if you are driving a convict around, or which you can use against them. Or, if you don’t have a power-up, crashing into them will dislodge their occupant. Madcap stuff which is hugely addictive. And an absolute must-download.

Nucleus

This one isn’t entirely dissimilar to Blast Factor, in that it uses the same control system – but it’s an awful lot more elaborate and sophisticated. You pilot a tiny jellyfish-type thing, again in a sort of human-body environment (made to look as though it’s seen through a microscope). Again, you must take out bacteria, viruses, super-viruses and so on, either by clearing screens or surviving for a certain amount of time. Power-ups greatly increase your firepower and you can hide behind protein cells. Surprisingly hard, intriguing visually and sure to be a PSN hit.

Super Stardust HD

This one owes a debt to Asteroids, except you aren’t cruising randomly around space – you’re defending a series of planets from attack, and are positioned on a sort of spherical matrix above the surface of each planet. And you aren’t just dealing with asteroids – there are all manner of hostile ships and nasty enemies. But there are also plenty of power-ups to find – crystals hidden in asteroids yield them, for example, and you swiftly gain things a flame-thrower which melts enemies (and requires much less aiming precision than a conventional weapon. And as seems to be the vogue, you fire using the right analogue stick – although different power-ups do require the use of various triggers. Classic-style, yet modern-feeling, shoot-em-up action that proves pretty addictive.

By Steve Boxer

We didn’t know it at the time, but it was a cruel quirk of timing which meant that the PlayStation 2 arrived while the world was still stuck on dial-up (how far-off those days seem now) and before it was either easy or cost-effective to get broadband. Of course, the world has changed immeasurably since then – the Web, in particular, having transformed itself from a teeth-grindingly slow-loading curiosity into something which is central to most people’s lives. And at last, we have a PlayStation family member which is fully geared up to the world of Web 2.0.

Sony has wasted no time in commissioning games that you can purchase over the PlayStation Network and get running on your PS3s with the minimum of fuss. Typically, they’re basic in terms of gameplay, but invariably fearsomely addictive, with plenty of nods to retro classics, but more modern production values. So we thought we’d have a look at what you can currently buy from the PlayStation Store – as well as a sneak peek at some of the next wave of games that you’ll be able to download and play.

flOw

FlOw has become the PlayStation Network’s most popular downloadable game, and you can see why. It’s very original and unconventional – the developer, thatgamecompany, originally made it as a Flash demo before being encouraged to give full reign to their imaginations on the PS3. Set in an enchanting undersea world filled with plankton, you get to manoeuvre an organism around (using, hurrah, the Sixaxis controller), eating up smaller organisms and diving to different levels by eating red or blue objects. What is good about flow is that it doesn’t tell you how to play it and, as you explore and eat lots of different creatures, you evolve. All to an ambient soundtrack. flow is deeply soothing and rather charming.

Blast Factor

This one definitely takes its inspiration from retro shoot-em-ups – you have to “decontaminate” cells by shooting all manner of nasty things which resemble blood cells, bacteria, viruses and so on. Which is achieved using a gloriously simple control system – the left stick moves you around, while you shoot in the direction of the right stick. If you’re good at rubbing your stomach and patting your head, you should do well. The graphics are pretty good – the textures feel like the sorts of things you’d find in a human body. And the game is action-packed and pretty addictive.
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It was a little while ago when Three Speech last hosted its event over at 3Rooms. However, since then, Ben Furneaux, who you may recognise from www.red-riot.net, has been busy putting together a podcast for us, discussing topics raised during the evening.

Hopefully, the first of many click here to listen. Or here if you’d prefer to listen through iTunes.

Enjoy!

As a step on from Folding@Home (of which Three Speech’s involvement with will be confirmed shortly), it’s being reported that Sony is considering making computing power available to other companies

www.dailytech.com says Sony is interested in offering discounts and other incentives to have PlayStation 3 owners create a type of supercomputer grid that can be utilised by businesses. Various companies - particularly those working in the medical and pharmaceutical industries - are apparently interested in harnessing the power from PS3s, instead of paying outright for a supercomputer. Sony would probably have to pay users to keep the PS3 running all the time for the benefit of paying businesses.

Seems this is all at the research stage with Sony not yet certain how many PS3 owners would be into signing up for such a scheme. Discounts on products, free downloads, exclusive content, and points are all possible incentives for participating PS3 owners. Let us know your thoughts on this one.

Here’s an edit of the This Is Living campaign, provided by one Xenonbyte.

Dear all,

What’s your take on fanboys, negativity, online bitching etc? Does it add to the excitement of gaming? Does it get on your nerves? Do you assume those leaving comments are genuine or do you imagine there are plots, schemes and conspiracies afoot? Why do we ask? We’re interested, that’s why! Getting an understanding of what you think will help us create the right kind of content and to move forward Three Speech in the best possible fashion.

Thanks, in advance, for your input.