It’s a trend that isn’t going away anytime soon – classic PlayStation/PlayStation 2 games being remade with high-definition gloss-overs and some new motion features added for good measure.  But at least it’s a trend with merit, judging by what we’ve seen so far in collections featuring Sly Cooper, God of War and Ico/Shadow of the Colossus.  And now you can add one more classic to the fray, as Capcom has officially unveiled Okami HD, which will be coming to PlayStation Network this fall.

When I first played Gravity Rush last year at E3, I saw how it stood out in the PlayStation Vita line-up at the time, with its exquisite art style and its innovative gameplay style.  But then I thought…”What if they ‘gimmick’ this and make it more about the features of the game than the game itself?”  And doubt began to sank in.  But, as I usually get these days with game developers, Sony Japan Studio pulled a 180 on me and actually made Gravity Rush one of the more entertaining Vita efforts to date.  Gotta love surprises.

When it comes to games made specifically for the PlayStation Move, Sony could’ve done better.  Some of the lamer party and dancing efforts are easily forgettable; Kung Fu Rider stunk worse than a slice of Gouda cheese left in an unplugged fridge for a week; and Medieval Moves was too jittery for its own good.  But now, two years after its initial announcement, we have a game that actually makes the PlayStation Move look likable, even though using it actually reveals a pretty big weakness.

Dylan Cuthbert and his team over at Q Games aren’t known for making routine downloadable game experiences.  Each one they’ve produced stands out in their own right, like the twin-stick shooting fun of PixelJunk Shooter 1 and 2, the sheer addiction of PixelJunk Monsters, or the crazy old-school-ness (that is a word) of PixelJunk Sidescroller.  But even with such an offbeat resume, there’s no way you could see something like PixelJunk 4am coming.  It’s as funky a game experience as you’re likely to find this year, if not really about being a game itself.

The PlayStation Vita.  Though it may not be everyone’s ideal handheld choice (the 3DS is out there, along with cheaper handhelds and that iPhone thing), it’s still a sleek little thing that’s well worth playing.  Sony has made quite a push with the system so far, with a number of impressive games and a few more on the way, including Resistance: Burning Skies landing at retail (and digitally) later this month.  But when it comes to games you MUST have, what are the best choices for the system?

Sony’s push for independent games continues to be a pretty solid one, with the likes of Shawn McGrath’s Dyad, the innovative Papo & Yo and several others coming to the PlayStation Network over the next few months.  But one that slipped under the radar for some time – and is just now resurfacing – is The Unfinished Swan.  First started as an independent project under the guidance of Ian Dallas in 2008, the game has since grown into a huge exclusive for the Sony camp.  Recently, the company, along with Ian’s team at Giant Sparrow, invited us to get a first look at the game, leading into the huge showing it’ll be getting at E3 next month.

With Nintendo announcing that development has just begun on the next iteration of Super Smash Bros. for Wii U and 3DS, it doesn’t look like we’ll be getting the game this year, as the team makes time to really have everything balanced.  So what’s a hardcore player to do while they wait for that brawlathon?  Well, how about engage in another?  Today, Sony announced that it is bringing its much-rumored PlayStation All Stars Battle Royale out for the holiday season, with a slew of fighters from the 15-plus year Sony gaming legacy and a smorgasbord of levels.  The company recently invited us to an event to go hands-on.

Kratos has pretty much done everything he can now, hasn’t he?  Spoilers ahead, by the way.  He’s taken down Zeus, he’s pretty much wiped out any god that’s opposed him, and he’s even managed to accidentally off Athena, all for the sake of quelling his rage.  So what’s left to do?  Put him in New York City?  Pit him against a new god?  Nah.  For Sony and its team at Sony Santa Monica, the answer is very clear – prequel.

While I appreciate the fact that Sony is going for a more diverse game collection for its PlayStation Network service, that doesn’t necessarily mean everyone’s going to be batting out of the park with their efforts.  Case in point – Gelid Games’ Wheels of Destruction, a game that obviously takes its inspiration from the Twisted Metal series, but tries to add its own diverse touches here and there to make it feel different.  And indeed, it does.  Unfortunately, it’s not for the better.

When Okami came out a few years ago from Capcom, it introduced an awe-inspiring hand-drawn world, provided by Clover Studios, that few games can match today.  It’s still highly regarded as a classic, and for good reason.  That said, Acquire, the same studio behind the old Tenchu games, has teamed up with XSEED Games to give their own artistic touch a try with Sumioni: Demon Arts, a game that combines beautiful traditional art with platforming gameplay.  It sounds like a dreamy combination, but the lack of replay value sets in way too quickly.

When ModNation Racers came out for the PlayStation 3 in 2010, United Front Games had created a great new portal for community for the PlayStation Network, allowing racers to not only engage one another in races and share their track creations with others to see what they thought.  Its community grew just as huge as LittleBigPlanet’s, making the game an imminent success.  Seeing lightning in a bottle for its handheld front, Sony decided to release a ModNation Racers game for the PlayStation Vita, Road Trip, complete with a new touch-screen track building feature and plenty of racing action.  But for some strange reason, this one feels somewhat stuck in second.

When you run out of ideas for a series, sometimes a fresh perspective is all that’s needed.  Look at Call of Duty.  For the longest time, it dwelled in past wars, and while fans thoroughly enjoyed it, the team vied for something different.  And they provided it with Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare, jettisoning the series to new heights of excitement.  Now, Evolution Studios’ latest game doesn’t go to such heights – and can’t even come close to last year’s crazy Apocalypse title – but MotorStorm RC provides an interesting new take for the series that both PS3 and Vita owners will enjoy.