Team Superfriends|Fighting the good fight

Even though official news about Uncharted: Drake's Fortune making its way to the big screen only broke last week, Naughty Dog has been collaborating with the Hollywood producers involved for about a year-and-a-half, Naughty Dog creative director Amy Hennig revealed in an online chat with fans on the PlayStation Blog this afternoon.

"We're really excited about the development of Uncharted: Drake's Fortune as a movie," said Hennig. "We've been working with Arad Productions for the last year-and-a-half or so, and couldn't be happier about their enthusiasm for the project. We're looking forward to sharing more info with you all as soon as we can."

With rumors that Steven Spielberg, George Lucas and Harrison Ford are considering another stab at the Indiana Jones franchise, does Dr. Jones suddenly have competition?

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In an interview with Shacknews, id Software's John Carmack and Tom Mustaine spoke on the iPhone and the company's plans for Apple's device.

On iPhone OS 3.0 allowing paid downloadable content, Mustaine confirms that the recently released Doom Resurrection will eventually snag DLC:

Yeah, we are absolutely. It won't be in the shipping version, we actually kind of got sideswiped by the 3.0 launch happening so quickly. But we actually have a version of the game that does cooperative multiplayer, so you can actually do peer-to-peer multiplayer, where you see two persons on the screen at the time, and maybe we'll actually have more than that, up to four players.

And it's a blast. You can play through the levels, they scale up, and you can compete for score and play cooperatively. And then also this game really fits well with downloadable content, so we're definitely looking at those with a future 3.0 update.

Have you downloaded rail-shooting Doom Resurrection? The $9.99 price is a bit daunting, but it is a new Doom story that you'll only get on the iPhone and iPod Touch. The user reviews are overwhelmingly positive, as well.

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The first two things that come to mind when I hear “PS Cloud” are a mass of airborne toxins slowly engulfing a small town and perhaps the most benign post-script ever (P.S. Cloud. Rainbow. Dew drops. Awww.)

Back here in the real world though, PS Cloud refers to Sony’s PlayStation Cloud, a mysterious set of Internet-based services that may or may not have anything to do with gaming, social networking or some combination of the two.

Now, while Sony's patent filing mentions handheld games and rental services (among a ton of other applications), the service could very well be referring to the revamped PlayStation Store features announced a few weeks ago, or it could that new online service built on the PlayStation Network that Sony plans to unveil next spring, or it could something entirely new.

However, as PlayStationLifeStyle.net found out, the PS Cloud website is registered to SCEA San Diego, who is supposedly “exclusively” developing PSN games at the moment. Perhaps then, PS Cloud will be a mobile version of PlayStation Home designed specifically for the PSP Go. Whatever it is, one thing is for sure: Sony has quite a few Internet-based plates spinning at the moment, and it looks like it will still be a while before we know exactly what the company has planned for all of them.

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Updated: 4:41PM EST

Microsoft has been very clear it's taking Project Natal, their camera-based, controller-less new form of gaming, very seriously. Bungie's said Halo Reach could possibly incorporate Project Natal and based on a series of hiring posts I discovered this morning, Microsoft is seriously staffing up for a brand-new, internal Project Natal development studio.

There are currently at least 20 different positions Microsoft is currently looking to fill related to Project Natal, including five artists, 11 software development engineers, three game designers and one audio engineer.

"Would you like to work on a next-generation project, built from the ground up in MGS," asks one Natal-related post. "We have a very strong team, currently responsible for Gears of War 2, starting a new project in a start-up like environment. This is a rare opportunity to work on a team of game industry experts tackling a new challenge."

Does this mean Epic Games is heading up a new Project Natal-focused studio at Microsoft? Not necessarily. Kudo Tsunoda, formerly of EA Chicago, originally landed at Microsoft to become the brand manager for the Gears of War franchise. Tsunoda was later assigned to the then-secret Project Natal and helped unveil the technology at E3 earlier this month. But the job listings suggest this involves more than just one man, but again -- this could simply be internal Microsoft staff that worked with Epic Games on Gears of War 2 moving onto a new Project Natal assignment.

I reached out to Microsoft for comment about this new internal studio, but Microsoft did not respond to comment. If I receive clarification from the company, I'll update this story with more information. [Note: Microsoft has responded -- scroll to the bottom of the story for their statement]

Some job postings appear to conflict with one another; a few hope to attract talent for a Project Natal-based game, while others specifically discuss the new Project Natal studio with the goal of producing "interactive and creative content for Project Natal." It's unclear whether they are one and the same or completely different initiatives. Microsoft is clearly hoping for big things from this. Job listings are meant to incite enthusiasm, but Microsoft's implying a revolution is expected from this studio.

"Are you interested in shipping innovative games that will change the way people play?" said another Project Natal-related listing. "If so, we want you to join our team to work on an amazing next-generation project, built from the ground up, in Microsoft Game Studios. We are building a NEW GAME STUDIO from the ground up that will revolutionize both WHAT you play and HOW you play. You have the chance to get in on the ground floor and work with professionals responsible for some of the industry’s greatest innovations to date."

What do you think they're up to?

Update: Microsoft released the following statement about the Project Natal job postings:

"Regarding the recent job postings," said the company, "some MGS employees who worked on 'Gears of War 2' are moving onto a new, unrelated project. We have no details to share about the project at this time."

Sounds like our analysis was right on -- the listings referenced Microsoft employees, not Epic Games' staff.

Updated: 4:41PM EST

Microsoft has been very clear it's taking Project Natal, their camera-based, controller-less new form of gaming, very seriously. Bungie's said Halo Reach could possibly incorporate Project Natal and based on a series of hiring posts I discovered this morning, Microsoft is seriously staffing up for a brand-new, internal Project Natal development studio.

There are currently at least 20 different positions Microsoft is currently looking to fill related to Project Natal, including five artists, 11 software development engineers, three game designers and one audio engineer.

"Would you like to work on a next-generation project, built from the ground up in MGS," asks one Natal-related post. "We have a very strong team, currently responsible for Gears of War 2, starting a new project in a start-up like environment. This is a rare opportunity to work on a team of game industry experts tackling a new challenge."

Does this mean Epic Games is heading up a new Project Natal-focused studio at Microsoft? Not necessarily. Kudo Tsunoda, formerly of EA Chicago, originally landed at Microsoft to become the brand manager for the Gears of War franchise. Tsunoda was later assigned to the then-secret Project Natal and helped unveil the technology at E3 earlier this month. But the job listings suggest this involves more than just one man, but again -- this could simply be internal Microsoft staff that worked with Epic Games on Gears of War 2 moving onto a new Project Natal assignment.

I reached out to Microsoft for comment about this new internal studio, but Microsoft did not respond to comment. If I receive clarification from the company, I'll update this story with more information. [Note: Microsoft has responded -- scroll to the bottom of the story for their statement]

Some job postings appear to conflict with one another; a few hope to attract talent for a Project Natal-based game, while others specifically discuss the new Project Natal studio with the goal of producing "interactive and creative content for Project Natal." It's unclear whether they are one and the same or completely different initiatives. Microsoft is clearly hoping for big things from this. Job listings are meant to incite enthusiasm, but Microsoft's implying a revolution is expected from this studio.

"Are you interested in shipping innovative games that will change the way people play?" said another Project Natal-related listing. "If so, we want you to join our team to work on an amazing next-generation project, built from the ground up, in Microsoft Game Studios. We are building a NEW GAME STUDIO from the ground up that will revolutionize both WHAT you play and HOW you play. You have the chance to get in on the ground floor and work with professionals responsible for some of the industry’s greatest innovations to date."

What do you think they're up to?

Update: Microsoft released the following statement about the Project Natal job postings:

"Regarding the recent job postings," said the company, "some MGS employees who worked on 'Gears of War 2' are moving onto a new, unrelated project. We have no details to share about the project at this time."

Sounds like our analysis was right on -- the listings referenced Microsoft employees, not Epic Games' staff.

Microsoft has been very clear it's taking Project Natal, their camera-based, controller-less new form of gaming, very seriously. Bungie's said Halo Reach could possibly incorporate Project Natal and based on a series of hiring posts I discovered this morning, Microsoft is seriously staffing up for a brand-new, internal Project Natal development studio.

There are currently at least 20 different positions Microsoft is currently looking to fill related to Project Natal, including five artists, 11 software development engineers, three game designers and one audio engineer.

"Would you like to work on a next-generation project, built from the ground up in MGS," asks one Natal-related post. "We have a very strong team, currently responsible for Gears of War 2, starting a new project in a start-up like environment. This is a rare opportunity to work on a team of game industry experts tackling a new challenge."

Does this mean Epic Games is heading up a new Project Natal-focused studio at Microsoft? Not necessarily. Kudo Tsunoda, formerly of EA Chicago, originally landed at Microsoft to become the brand manager for the Gears of War franchise. Tsunoda was later assigned to the then-secret Project Natal and helped unveil the technology at E3 earlier this month. But the job listings suggest this involves more than just one man, but again -- this could simply be internal Microsoft staff that worked with Epic Games on Gears of War 2 moving onto a new Project Natal assignment.

I reached out to Microsoft for comment about this new internal studio, but Microsoft did not respond to comment. If I receive clarification from the company, I'll update this story with more information.

Some job postings appear to conflict with one another; a few hope to attract talent for a Project Natal-based game, while others specifically discuss the new Project Natal studio with the goal of producing "interactive and creative content for Project Natal." It's unclear whether they are one and the same or completely different initiatives. Microsoft is clearly hoping for big things from this. Job listings are meant to incite enthusiasm, but Microsoft's implying a revolution is expected from this studio.

"Are you interested in shipping innovative games that will change the way people play?" said another Project Natal-related listing. "If so, we want you to join our team to work on an amazing next-generation project, built from the ground up, in Microsoft Game Studios. We are building a NEW GAME STUDIO from the ground up that will revolutionize both WHAT you play and HOW you play. You have the chance to get in on the ground floor and work with professionals responsible for some of the industry’s greatest innovations to date."

What do you think they're up to?

Kevin Pereira and Olivia Munn take a look at the Olympus E-P1, the world's smallest 12.3 megapixel interchangeable lens camera.

Check out the full review from Attack of the Show after the cut.

What You Need to Know

• The camera is only 11 oz.
• It is 3" deep with the retractable lens: the lens is only 14-42 mm (normal is 18-55 mm)
• Everything works just the way a point and shoot does, so if you're familiar with that, you'll be able to use this with no problem
• It takes a little long to take a picture, because the auto focus is slow
• The camera has no built-in flash or viewfinder, but you can buy them for $100 each
• Using the camera you can record video in 720p and even though it's not full high def, the video looks really good
• The art filters turned out to be surprisingly useful; styles like black and white, soft focus, and pop art complement the photos well
• Overall, these features are a lot of fun to use
• Olympus' micro four thirds technology has the same photo quality as a standard DSLR
• Normal light pictures are very sharp and detailed and colors look good
• Low light pictures are evenly exposed and look good, but it's tough not having a flash, because sometimes it results in blurry or tinted pictures

Price

• $800 with a lens

Overall Rating

• 4 Seals of Approval out of 5 (How do we rate gadgets?)

Great news today for anyone who enjoys blowing the crap out of Mars. "Red Faction: Guerrilla" is getting a series of 3 DLC packs. The first is called "Demons of the Badlands" and will release sometime in August. It's a single-player campaign-extending pack which will be set primarily in the ...

UPDATE: Despite appearing for pay on the "Battlefield Heroes" test servers, EA has reached out to inform us that the costumes will be free upon release. Rejoice! ORIGINAL STORY: Looking to pay tribute to Michael Jackson's passing? Well then you should probably pay MONEY to Electronic Arts. "Battlefield Heroes" players will be ...

I haven't participated in a real-life, honest-to-goodness LAN party in a few years, but I'm well aware at the joy they bring to the world. It's with that in mind that I'm a little shocked that Blizzard is out-and-out preventing LAN play with "StarCraft 2." They explained to Joystiq why they ...