Perhaps they should reconsider that title ...

Mytran Wars is a PSP-exclusive cel-shaded strategy game from Budapest-based developer Stormregion. It's classic strategy fare set in the 23rd century, with humans and aliens at war over resources. It actually looks very good, and should (shock!) actually make it's way to the US.

For those of you without Japanese PLAYSTATION Network accounts, it'll be pretty much impossible to play the current Prinny demo. Thankfully, our friends at PSP GadgetZ have recorded footage of the demo in action. Enjoy the energetic, upbeat music and classic 2D platforming action ... after the break.

While Sony will be showing off nine unannounced PS3 titles at this year's Tokyo Game Show, they'll be showing off three new games for the PSP. All of the games will be published by SCEI, meaning they'll either be new IPs, or extensions of currently popular Sony franchises.

Some of the known titles to be showcase at TGS this year include Kingdom Hearts: Birth by Sleep, Dissidia: Final Fantasy, Patapon 2, Bleach: Soul Carnival, and Loco Roco 2. For the complete list (in English), visit PSP-Hyper.

Sony Online Entertainment has a lot of development planned for PS3. But what about its little sibling, the PSP? SOE president John Smedley told MTV Multiplayer that "PSP is something that we're definitely looking at." With so many online-ready systems in the hands of gamers worldwide, it's an opportunity they don't want to miss on. "We're really starting to see a big push for PSP. We think it's a world-class device ... In the future, we see full MMOs that are designed for the PSP."

But before diving straight into full online games on the PSP, Smedley believes online integration into existing games will come first. Imagine, a mini-game that can be played on PSP that will add to an existing game, like Free Realms. "You're sitting there leveling up your character, you log in at home when you're on wi-fi, and all of sudden your character has leveled up. We think those kinds of experiences are very possible."

We feel sorry for the oft-misunderstood SOCOM: Tactical Strike. Fans who bought the game were surprised to see it wasn't a shooter -- instead, it was a methodically paced strategy game which required patience, intelligence and nerves of steel. PSP Fanboy reader Jason commented earlier: "I guess if you bought it without checking out any previews and thought it was an action shooter, then yeah, it could be a let down. If you play the first mission with the tutorial it shows you everything you need to know and it does it in a real game situation."

For those of you ready to take the plunge into the full game, check out this week's Best Buy circulars. You'll see that Tactical Strike is on sale this week for a measly $20. Go to your local Best Buy, or simply buy online. You can also check out the downloadable demo here.

[Via CAG]

Valhalla Knights 2 comes out in stores this week -- meaning this video is one of the last things you'll see before making your choice. To buy or not to buy? You can judge for yourself. Take a peek at this multiplayer video and see if the gameplay and graphics are up to your demanding standards.

"I think going into next year we're going to see significant growth. We're counseling retail to be ready for it. We have a number of very strong franchise games on the docket that will be launching next year," John Koller responded to Edge's troubling report on the decline of PSP software. "We haven't gone public with those, and many third-parties have not yet either because they're concentrating on holiday, but we have a number of very strong titles coming."

While we understand that many of these unannounced titles may be far off from now, we're a bit saddened to see Sony (and their third party partners) remain so secretive about the upcoming 2009 lineup. Right now, it appears Sony is abandoning holiday 2008 altogether. How will they drum up support for the handheld this Christmas season, when they've shown no guarantees of what will be available in the coming months? Sony -- it's time to stop playing the same ol' game of secrecy. Now, when your customers are losing faith in your system, is when you should bypass the typical product marketing schedule -- and you give us something to get excited about.

Edge has created a chart which illustrates something we all know: PSP has lost software support.

Well, thanks a lot jerks. When you put it in graph form like this, obviously it's going to hurt. (sobs)

But in all seriousness, the piece does an excellent job in articulating the finer details of PSP's slow loss of support. In spite of the smaller games library this year, the percentage of exclusives is also steadily dropping. While this piece could be yet another mantra against piracy and the likes, we want to direct you to an excellent piece by PSP World, which offers an alternative: it's all Xbox's fault. Kris Erickson postulates that a number of excellent XBLA games would be perfect for play on PSP. We'd agree. Developers may be moving resources to XBLA, away from PSP, when thinking up short, accessible games that would play well on handhelds. An interesting theory, yes. However, we're confident that upcoming PSN ports of Super Stardust and Everyday Shooter are just the beginning of a slew of downloadable PSP games.

What? Two PSP game announcements on the same day? From the same developer? Yes, Level-5 loves PSP. Ushiro was revealed earlier -- now, hold your applause for Cardboard Senki. As usual, this is another JRPG from the talented team, and features a rather unique graphics presentation, where everything is made of cardboard. You'll control a customizable robot which will most likely fight some forces of evil. Check out Gamekyo for the scans.

Level-5, developers of Jeanne d'arc on PSP, have just announced a new horror-themed RPG called Ushiro. Players will take on the role of a death god (shinigami) to help people fulfill their wishes, and fight monsters along the way. It's scheduled for a release next year. Check out a scan at Gamekyo.

[Thanks, Jon C.!]

Have you ever seen the game show Temptation? Probably not. It's a game show with an incredibly low budget -- so low, in fact, it doesn't have a studio audience. Prizes are worth only a few thousand bucks at best, and it's syndicated on stations that used to be the UPN. If Buzz! Quiz TV on PS3 is "Who Wants to be a Millionaire?" then Buzz! Master Quiz on PSP is "Temptation."

Unfortunately, PSP isn't very well suited for a Buzz! game. The franchise is best in front of a television with three of your friends. However, Master Quiz simply can't offer the same kind of competitive spirit, especially on a system like the PSP. It's not to say the developers at Relentless Software didn't try -- there are a number of creative multiplayer modes included. However, they're ultimately unsuccessful in emulating a fun Buzz! experience.

You're not getting one, sorry. The Limited Edition Dissidia PSP-3000 bundle bound for Japan is being sold exclusively through a lottery system that only Square Enix members in Japan can enter in. The entry period is limited to a one week window, and amongst those entries, random people will be selected to purchase those systems.

So your best bet: eBay.

[Thanks, Darryl!]

Siliconera has discovered Metal Gear Solid Existence in the Japanese trademark database. We're going to give you a number of things this could possibly be. Let's make some predictions now and see who wins.

• Metal Gear Solid 4: Existence - A re-release of MGS4 with added content, much in the vein of Substance and Subsistence.
• Portable Ops 2 - The long-rumored real sequel to the PSP-exclusive Portable Ops series.
• Metal Gear Solid EXistence - An Xbox 360-exclusive Metal Gear Solid game.
• OR ... A damn cell phone game that won't ever come out in America.

With TGS around the corner, there's a chance we may find out what this mysterious title is sooner than later. Stay tuned.

[Thanks, Kspraydad!]

This used to be a GBA game? That's what you'll think to yourself after only a few hours with Yggdra Union. While the map sprites are taken directly from the GBA original, everything else about this PSP remake shows incredible polish. The redrawn high-res sprites used in battle and story sequences look sharp on the PSP screen. But what really steals the show, on a technical level, is the impressive amount of voice acting. Nearly every important story sequence is voiced in both English and Japanese, which makes for a really immersive experience.

Of course, a game needs to do more than look and sound pretty to be good -- and thankfully, Yggdra Union offers tons of gameplay. In fact, it may offer too much with an adventure that clocks in at about 30 hours. The lengthy story is far from original, but a growing cast of likable characters and a few nice plot twists make it an enjoyable adventure that kept me chugging through the lengthy story.

At its heart, Yggdra Union is an epic about underdogs that overthrow an empire. Your starting cast of a group of bandits and an exiled princess is severely outnumbered in an obviously one-sided battle. As such, players shouldn't expect a cakewalk through the game. Yggdra Union can be a relentless difficult game at times, so much so to the point of frustration. However, the challenge only emphasizes how important a solid strategy is when approaching each situation. Players must understand the importance of character placement and card selection -- a single error can lead to game over. However, the game's greatest hook comes from the exuberant ability to seize victory in a rather dire situation. Each battle is hard fought and incredibly rewarding.

There isn't anything "new" to be found in this video walkthrough of the upcoming PSP-exclusive Resistance Retribution, but it is nice to see the game in action once again. Bend Studio's Chris Reese offers commentary as he goes through this beautiful demo, the one shown at both E3 and PAX earlier this year.