New PS3 titles highlight of summer games

Is 2008 Sony's time to shine? Since the PlayStation 3's launch in November 2006, gamers have held their collective breath in hopes that familiar names like "Final Fantasy," "God of War," "Metal Gear Solid" or "SSX" will float onto store shelves. The PS2's 120 million-selling success was built on the shoulders of these franchises, but just one has climbed aboard the PS3. Don't abandon ship! The PS3 is showing promise as its slow trickle of software speeds to a steadier drip of good games.

The Xbox 360's broad library and the Nintendo Wii's accessible ease-of-use make them great gaming units, but if you're still on the fence about high-end hardware, the PlayStation 3 stands out as a versatile alternative. No other console has Blu-ray, HD output, built-in Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, downloadable games, free online play and a bulky hard drive bundled into the same plastic package.

As Sony seeks to hit its stride through the latter half of '08, we've labored behind our controllers for more than a month to evaluate the best games on the PS3, as well as its portable partner, the PSP.

PS3 picks

"Uncharted: Drake's Fortune"

Guy meets perky girl reporter. Guy discovers Sir Francis Drake's undersea coffin and finds a treasure map to El Dorado, the Aztec city of gold. Guy and gal explore ancient ruins, met by not-so-friendly treasure-hunting mercenaries. Cue a modern adventure tale with likable characters in a context that isn't WWII or outer space.

Anyone jonesing for some Indiana Jones should look no further than "Uncharted." It's packed with booby traps, puzzles and rich flora ripe for exploring. An hour in, you're running through Central American ruins or pulling gold doubloons from a rusted German U-boat trapped in a waterfall. With these delightful detours, Drake's articulate animations for jumping, climbing and gunslinging (all the necessities for treasure hunting) give gameplay an organic feel throughout.

"Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots"

Stealth, storytelling and subversion -- "Metal Gear" is made from these traits. It's an action game with a ponderous anti-war message; it's an interactive experience with hours of scripted cutscenes; it takes place in a war zone, but you can win without killing anyone.

"In Guns of the Patriots," players resume Solid Snake's story - the aging super spy is struggling with the realities of modern war and the paid paramilitaries that wage it. With color-changing camouflage, MGS 4 encourages sneaking and playing patiently to avoid enemies - running and gunning won't get you far. The game's cinematic approach sets the table for unique characters (with names like "Liquid Ocelot" and "Screaming Beauty," how couldn't they be?) and compelling performances. A must-have for anyone already invested in the franchise.

"Major League Baseball 08: The Show"

Carlos Zambrano aims a finger to the sky as he exits the mound, giving thanks for another shutout inning. Gary Sheffield's pendulum-swing stance intimidates as you spool up another curve. David Ortiz's lumbering, plate-shaking gait kicks up dirt as he rounds third base.

It isn't the seamless presentation, spot-on audio commentary or visual fidelity that makes "MLB 08: The Show" the best baseball game ever made, but measured nuances like these. Animations capture rituals and batting stances, articulating your favorite players with clarity comparable to sitting in the bleachers. Umpire personalities, batting slumps, savable highlights; the depth and attention to detail is ridiculous.

"PixelJunk Monsters"

Cute spiders, golems, bats and other cartoon critters are crawling toward your forest dwelling to eat your young. What do you do? Build giant cannons in the trees. Fashion flamethrowers, assemble anti-air guns, temper tesla coils, ice turrets and more munitions to mow 'em down.

At $10, "PixelJunk Monsters" is perfect in 20-minute spurts. Part puzzle and strategy, its colorful take on the defense game genre ateÃÆ'Æ'ˆ¯ÃƒÆ’Æ'Ȣ₈¬Ã…ˆ¡ÃƒÆ’‚ˆ¿ÃƒÆ’Æ'Ȣ₈¬Ã…ˆ¡ÃƒÆ’‚ˆ½up the most time out of everything we played. Crisp, animated graphics show well in HD alongside soothing audio, and the one-screen battle scenes are manageable enough to be a relaxing experience, especially in two-player cooperative mode.

"Everyday Shooter"

If you've got any perception-altering substances around the house (Sour Patch Kids?), this would be a prime time to use them. A psychedelic meld of music, art and arcade gameplay, "Everyday Shooter" is a trippy, indie take on "Asteroids."

Flying and firing a tiny ship with your pair of analog sticks, you zap shapes that spawn in the environment - blobs, triangles and small robots, to name a few. To the eye, it's something like fighting rapid-growing neon bacteria under a microscope in space ... while a rock band jams in the background. Each level is set to a different tune, with explosions or weapons fire sprinkling guitar riffs and other sounds dynamically as you play - your progress provides the instrumentation.

"Ninja Gaiden Sigma"

With more backflips than a high school gymnastics meet, "Ninja Gaiden Sigma" is all about over-the-top, stylized ninja combat. It's also a wholly relentless action game, one that prides itself on pummeling the player with demonic enemies and unbalanced bosses.

But that makes its complexity that more rewarding. No other action title unites the technical focus of a fighting game with the pace of a beat 'em up, equipping you with true-to-life ninja techniques like fireballs and ice tornadoes. Simple button presses translate into somersaults and shuriken tosses, and this finesse adds drama to basic encounters.

PSP picks

"Final Fantasy Tactics: The War of the Lions"

A remastering of one of the most adored strategy role-playing games of all time, "War of the Lions" is a pocket-size port of the original with added content in new character classes, cooperative multiplayer, animated cut-scenes and a rewritten script.

You'll feel ownership over your team of knights, archers, mages, monks, samurai and lancers (... or bards) as you level them up through FFT's 60-hour campaign (a month's worth of Metra rides, we'd wager), earning spells and new equipment. No other RPG on the hand-held offers this much replayability and reward from hours of investment.

"Hot Shots Golf: Open Tee 2"

"Hot Shots" is titled "Everybody's Golf" overseas for good reason: It's a simple take on the gentleman's game that tacks on enough nuance to counter its youthful aesthetic. Stable online (and local) multiplayer, along with collectible items, make it a relatively deep experience, but it's the core mechanics that keeps "Hot Shots" fresh as you fill holes.

Top-notch playability ties simple controls to friendly physics, and this combination means each perfect putt, killer drive and unfavorable roll into the rough feels represented accurately, but not too judgmentally. Hole after hole, it's the sense of consistency and balance that makes "Hot Shots" such a relaxing experience. Bagging a birdie demands careful plotting and execution, but you never feel like the holes are holding grudges. Likewise, the gameplay's load-free flow makes for a quick, dense pace even when you're working through a full 18.

"Patapon"

Drum beats, snare taps, maraca shakes - they each unleash waves of arrows, spears or sword swipes from your squads of tiny walking eyeballs, the Patapons. A charming meld of strategy and rhythm gameplay with 2-D visuals, "Patapon" showcases the PSP's capabilities perfectly. The system's wide screen stages your Patapons' side-scrolling movement and attacks.

Moving your musical menagerie forward ("pon, pon, pata, pon" tells them to advance; "chaka, chaka, pata, pon" puts them on defense), is an indirect practice that requires patience, but seeing your rhythm's violent (and adorable) results supplies a fun sense of input/output. Outside of story missions, you'll complete minigames and hunt wildlife for rare weapons or spare change while Patapons dance and cheer when they collect animal hides or new armor. Plain and simple, playing with your army of parading cartoon combatants is a delight.