Looks like we'll get to control a god of war War himself and do it with style in Vigil Games' open-world action game, Darksiders: Wrath of War. Considering that Joe "Mad!" Madureira of X-Men and Battle Chasers fame is the developer's creative director, the fact that it's looking smoking hot doesn't surprise us.

This new video of Darksiders features Madureira and Vigil's general manager, David Adams, talking about all of the nifty stuff you can see and do thanks to the game's open world nature. It's worth noting that the video is from the upcoming E3 demo of Darksiders, meaning that we'll get our hands on the game's latest milestone later this month to report on all the nitty-gritty (and pretty-pretty) details.

Guitar Hero World Tour is going to let players make their own songs, so it only stands to reason that Rock Band 2 will as well, right? Right? Not according to Alex Rigopulos, the CEO and co-founder of Rock Band developer Harmonix.

Speaking to CNN, Rigopulos states that his company "wanted to do [song creation] right." He adds that Harmonix is "taking a radically different approach" to player-created tracks – presumably he means from the way Guitar Hero World Tour dev Neversoft is handling it – and will "take more time to do it." So, Rock Band 3 with a song creator it is then, right? Right?

Unless the promise of spending time with our pal Ms. Veronica Belmont and another episode of Qore sounds like a nice Thursday night (there's an episode teaser after the break) it might be best to just ignore this week's PSN update. Per usual, the rhythm games add some content and there's also some game videos that might be of interest. With E3 only a couple weeks away, it's understandable that things are a bit quiet at the moment, but we're seriously starting to itch for PixelJunk Eden!

This week's European PSN update adds several pieces of Buzz!-worthy content; check it out over at PS3 Fanboy.

With tomorrow being the day the US became independent from France ... what, England, really? Anyway, Harmonix announced its tracks for next week's Rock Band DLC a day early. We've got a couple songs from the Red Hot Chili Peppers and Rush. "Working Man" was actually released as DLC before, but this version is a master and features an alternate solo.

Individual songs (160 MS points/ $2)

• "Snow (Hey Oh)" - Red Hot Chili Peppers
• "Tell Me Baby" - Red Hot Chili Peppers
• "Closer to the Heart" - Rush
• "Working Man" (Vault Edition) - Rush

Check out the videos for these songs after the break. The tracks will be available for download next Tuesday and Thursday for Xbox 360 and PS3, respectively.

No sooner does Sony (briefly) improve the PS3 user interface with the much-talked-about version 2.4 firmware update, than some at the company feel cocky enough to start badmouthing the competition's interface. Speaking to Next-Gen, PlayStation Network Director of Operations Eric Lempel took the bait, comparing Sony's redesigned PlayStation Store to Microsoft's Xbox Live Marketplace. "I think if I look over at the competitors' UI they may have some issues just displaying content," Lempel said, "and scrolling up and down lists isn't the easiest way to find things." Tell that to McSweeny's, why don'tcha?

Lempel also pointed out that the PlayStation Store interface has "a lot of room with virtual shelf space to put a lot of things," a not-so-subtle jab at Microsoft's recently announced plan to de-list some Xbox Live Arcade games. "Depending on what type of UI you have you can accommodate a lot of titles," Lempel continued, "and specifically with our new store redesign which launched back in April we have a great ability to merchandise a wide variety of titles." That's all well and good, assuming your PS3 is currently working.

[Via X3F]

Sony has revised a remark made by Eric Lampel that "every game" would eventually feature Trophies. What Lampel likely meant, and what he apparently relayed to GameSpot is that at some point, all new PlayStation 3 releases -- both first- and third-party -- will feature Trophies. Sony has clarified that Trophy patches for existing games are the responsibility of the games' respective publishers and developers, and we should not expect to "ultimately" enjoy a complete catalog with Trophy support.

Insomniac has already pledged its intent to stay focused on Resistance 2, passing up the invitation to add Trophies to its previous titles, the first Resistance and Ratchet and Clank Future. Also joining the "much too late" camp, are Infinity Ward and 2K Games, both releasing statements (here & here) that affirm there are no plans to add Trophies to Call of Duty 4 and Civilization Revolution. (Though we doubt that it will ever be reflected on the back of the box; as it is on our mock-up above.)

2K Games has announced a partnership with Dark Sector developer, Digital Extremes, to aid in the completion of the PlayStation 3 version of superb submerged shooter, BioShock. Digital Extremes is the fourth studio to join the project -- 2K Marin, 2K Australia and 2K Boston have already dove in -- and aims to give PS3 players a "fully optimized experience," complete with new features and content. And trophies, probably.

James Schmalz, CEO and founder of Digital Extremes, noted that the decision to work on the critically acclaimed project didn't even require a brain. "When 2K approached us to assist with development on BioShock for the PLAYSTATION 3 system, it was a no-brainer," he said. "You really can't ask for a more exciting, technically impressive world to work in than Rapture, and the incredible knowledge and talent between the 2K studios and our team at Digital Extremes is unprecedented." Apparently, when it launches this October, BioShock will make the PS3 "sing with Big Daddy goodness and Little Sister 'thank you's'."

A second partial Rock Band 2 setlist, supposedly culled from a playtest, popped up on the ScoreHero Forum recently, only to be removed and its author disciplined by a moderator. Lucky for you, a Joystiq tipster (thank you!) slipped a crumpled note into our back pocket with the same list:

• "Man in the Box" - Alice in Chains
• "We Got The Beat" - The Go Go
• "American Woman" - The Guess Who? (or Lenny Kravitz)
• "White Wedding" - Billy Idol
• "Aqua Lung" - Jethro Tull
• "Bad Reputation" - Joan Jett
• "One Step Closer" - Linkin Park
• "Peace Sells" - Megadeth
• "You Oughta Know" - Alanis Morissette
• "Testify" - Rage Against The Machine
• "Spoonman" - Soundgarden

These 11 songs join the nine that were shown in a possible screen grab earlier this week, forming what could be roughly a quarter of the 80 or so master recordings to be featured on the Rock Band expansion sequel disc. Be sure to stretch it out and drink your fluids because the new "Endless Setlist" is shaping up to be a doozie.

We admit that we have an obsession with Little Big Planet, bordering on addiction. It's something with which we're trying our best to cope, a therapy helped somewhat by Media Molecule co-founder and technical guru David Smith. We like to think of his recent interview with Eurogamer as a kind of patch, letting information seep into our bloodstreams, taking the edge off as we pine for the game's October release.

Among the number of topics discussed, Smith spoke out in support of the game's beta testing, something he noted as being "in progress," and -- contrary to earlier reports -- that "it should gradually grow to include more people." In addition, with the recent addition of Trophies, he stated that the team is "having a lot of fun working out what trophies most fit" Little Big Planet, teasing that one will involve "making your sackperson be thrown at some huge velocity." Check out the full interview for more words strung together about Little Big Planet. We'll be quietly twitching in the corner.

We hope you opted to use pencil when scribbling the release date for Rockstar's latest non-felony related driving game into your Niko Bellic pinup calendar. Midnight Club: Los Angeles – the fourth installment in Rockstar San Diego's pimp-your-ride racing game – has jettisoned the old September 9 release date in favor of a new October 7th date (October 10 for you Europeans). Ostensibly, the extra time is being used to put that final coat of Turtle Wax on the open-world, track-less, load-time-less title but we like to imagine they're having difficulty getting the LA traffic experience just right.

While elsewhere in the world, the Wii has little trouble outpacing its competition – with nearly 25 million units sold worldwide, nearly double the PS3's 13 million and a solid 25% lead on the Xbox 360's 20 million in sales – in Japan, it's a two console race (sorry, Xbox). In a piece headlined "Sony PS3 catching up to Wii in Japanese sales," Reuters' Tokyo branch covers the horse race, writing that the Wii "once again outsold Sony Corp's PlayStation 3 in Japan in June, but its lead is fading." While technically accurate if referring to monthly sales – the Wii only outsold the PS3 by a margin of 1.7 to 1 last month, a dip from the 6 to 1 margin of the previous month – the bigger picture isn't so clear.

So, spurred on by sales of Metal Gear Solid 4, the PS3 did better last month, okay (you already know that, of course, from reading our Japanese hardware sales series). But with nearly 6 million Wii units sold in Japan, versus just 2 million PlayStation 3 units sold (source: Wii, PS3), it looks to us like the PlayStation 3 still has a lot of "catching up" to do and no more Metal Gear Solids.

While GamePro is sharing the goods on Resistance 2 in its latest issue, we know that not everyone is a fan of getting their game news off the rack so we thought we'd share the first couple of screens from the magazine's cover story. Posted by the PlayStation Blog, the shots give us a look at Chimera-occupied Chicago as well as the city's resident boss, a massive 300-foot Leviathan. Honestly, we don't know if we're more excited to collect the Trophy for dropping this baddie, or simply watch him rip through downtown, Cloverfield-style.

What a day for PS3 Firmware. (Image via Engadget). Dare we call it the "killer app?" Check out the highlights for today:

The Rise and Fall of PS3 Firmware 2.40 and (the Spiders from Super Stardust HD)
PS3 Firmware 2.40 is now live
PS3 firmware 2.40 spruces up PSN Store
PlayStation 3 2.40 firmware update not available (pulled?)
Sony responds to adverse firmware 2.40 effects

Joystiquery
An exhaustive look at Game & Watch
Joystiq eyes (only) on: James Bond in Quantum of Solace: The Game
Joystiq hands-on: American McGee's Grimm
Metareview - Guitar Hero: Aerosmith
Poll: Does Guitar Hero Aerosmith support Rock Band guitars?
PS3 Fanboy's guide to Super Stardust HD Trophies
Wii Fanboy Weekly: June 26 - July 2

News
Heavy is next in line for Team Fortress 2 update
Square Enix countdown site opens, most likely Chrono Trigger DS
GamePro August issue sheds Resistance 2 details
Nyko Media Hub adds USB, card readers back to 40GB PS3s
Chrono Trigger DS confirmed for North America this holiday
New Games This Month: July 2008
Uncharted and 'every game' getting PS3 Trophies
Battlefield: Bad Company dev lists 'issues' to be fixed
'Several' Halo Wars demo stations at E3
American McGee's Grimm: All episodes free for first 24 hours
See Bond run in Quantum of Solace: The Game screenshots
DC Universe Online images revealed on MySpace
Yakuza 3 confirmed, coming exclusively to PS3
Oh craps! This is Vegas delayed until 2009
Ninja Gaiden 2 'horse armor' now on sale
GameStop officially acquires NZ's Gamesman
Insomniac not 'currently' adding trophies to Ratchet or Resistance
Diablo 3 producer talks art, says 'color is your friend'
Elebits 2 charging DS for Fall release
Activision execs receive millions in bonuses
Hypnotic new PixelJunk Eden multiplayer footage
PlayStation.com hacked, security firm reports
Dead Space box art a hands-off affair

Rumors & Speculation
Rumor: Next Tony Hawk to have peripheral, not developed by Neversoft