If you plan on traveling to either Tokyo, Paris, or Rome any time soon, don't forget to bring along your PlayStation Portable. Tsubasa Inaba on the PlayStation Blog recently announced an interesting new download which will be hitting PSN this Thursday which can serve as your interactive travel guide to any of these places. Find out more about it in our full article.

Want some brain food? We're serving a platter of delectable trivial delights to lighten up your day - maybe enlighten your brain too. Here's a list of fifteen facts - probably the most useless facts that you'll even come across, but knowledge is knowledge and it pays to learn certain things too. Who knows, it might save you life one day (especially with the Large Hadron Collider's looming activation date)! Trivia can't get any more trivial than this!

If you are a fan of the TV series Hannah Montana and you happen to live in Europe, then you are in luck because Disney Interactive Studios that it will be bringing the franchise to Nintendo consoles, DS and Wii.

The new titles will be called Music Jam and Spotlight World Tour respectively. Know more about these games after the jump!

Ever played slot car racing as a kid? Good ol' days, huh? Now since Hot Wheels and Tamiya sets haven't grown old today, it's become a time-proven concept of entertainment. Apparently, Nadeo and Focus Home Interactive brought that type of racing experience to a single game, captivating audiences from around the world with TrackMania United. Read our review at the full story.

Countless numbers of lives have already been taken by the H5N1 virus and it's not going to stop unless something is done about the problem. The avian flu, more commonly known as the bird flu, is still continuing to infect people.

But an Italian group of scientists have found that something can be done by simply getting annual flu shots. If you want to know more about their study, just click the "read more" link below.

Archaeologists in Jerusalem have uncovered what seems to be the remains of a 2,000-year old mansion belonging to the royal clan that ruled Adiabene, a region in current day northern Iraq.

The remains of the building was found just outside the walls of Jerusalem's Old City, hidden under the asphalt of a small parking lot in the eastern part of the city. This discovery was by far the largest and most elaborate one discovered in the City of David area.

In a recent interview with GameTap, Peter Moore stated his intentions to take Electronic Arts from an "American" brand to a global one. Although EA continues to be popular within the US and without, Moore feels that it doesn't "feel local" to the European and Asian market.

Moore, President of EA, also mentioned last week how EA Sports is looking at cricket as a sport, perhaps as a hint of more things to come to make the brand more global, or depending on your point of view, local to your country. As Moore explains:

I talked a lot [...] about cricket, tennis, mixed martial arts, open-wheel racing [...] all of which can make a difference in the way people perceive us. [...] We don't have that depth and penetration into the psyche of the European sports consumer. We need to change that, and we need to change that quickly.

The goal is to let consumers outside of the US to relate more to the games they play and not just feel like a "brand that has been exported." (Well, when in Rome, people say poh-tah-toh. Or is it the other way around?) At any rate, EA's recent acquisition of Bioware and Pandemic Studios should help broaden their horizons.

Check out the Read link for the full interview.

Co-Chairman and President of Perpetual Entertainment Chris McKibbin has announced that they will be putting Gods & Heroes: Rome Rising on hold indefinitely to focus on Star Trek Online. According to him, they made this decision after evaluating the current competitive landscape, the game's state, and the company's goals. 

McKibbin pointed out that they would still need to make a "significant investment" if they want Gods & Heroes to reach the level of quality and polishing they want. Apparently, they don't have the resources to do that at the moment so they decided to shift their focus to Star Trek Online.

Fans of the Gods & Heroes will undoubtedly be disappointed by this move by Perpetual Entertainment. It was pretty surprising considering it was only recently when they started asking for more beta testers for a stress test. On the bright side, the company hasn't completely abandoned the game and may choose to go back to developing it after they have finished Star Trek Online.

 

Perpetual Entertainment have announced that they will be releasing some beta codes for Gods and Heroes: Rome Rising. The keys are being given out to help facilitate the stability test that will be happening over the weekend.

Before you go rushing off to get a beta key though, you might want to know what the game is about first. Players will be placed in a very problematic time in the history of Rome. A race of beings that the Olympian gods imprisoned has returned from exile seeking vengeance. They start their assault by kidnapping all of Rome's heroes and inciting beasts, creatures, and rival cultures to attack the city.

If that got you interested in trying the game, click on our Read Link for more details on how you can get a beta code for Gods and Heroes: Rome Rising.

You can't play Gods and Heroes: Rome Rising without delving into the history and culture of Rome itself. It's part of the title after all, and you'll be spending a lot if time in the city once the game arrives so a quick look into the heart of the city won't hurt. Unless when you're fighting of course.

In Rome, you'll be able to align yourself with two gods (there are plenty to choose from, don't worry). Each class quarter in Roma has two temples, one for each god of that class. Each class quarter has its own Skills and Feats trainers where you can train for new abilities, moves and skills.

You can also give offerings to your gods in the temples to keep yourself in their favor. In fact, it's a must. Training your skills will be essential in fighting, but you must have the favor of the gods or you will not last long. Here's a brief overview of the gods you can find in Roma.

Caelius is the Scout quarter of Roma where you you can train for archery and hunting in the temples of Apollo and Diana. Capitolium is the Priest quarter, where the temples of Pluto and Juno reside. The Colosseum district houses the gladiators and you can train in weaponry at the temples of Fortuna and Jupiter.

In Palatinus lies the temples of Trevia and Bacchus. It is the district where the legendary Romulus and Remus were said to have first established the city. Vallis Murcia is the Soldier quarter, where the barracks of the city can be found. The temples of Minerva and Mars are in this district. In Viminalis, the Nomad quarter, you can find the darker side of the city. Within lies the temples of Mercury and Nemesis.