Ratchet and Clank: All 4 One (can you believe they didn't go with Four-play as the subtitle?) feels like a whimsical, cartoon version of Gauntlet. Using a more distant automatic camera, instead of the standard behind-the-back perspective used throughout the series, this Ratchet game introduces four-player cooperation to the franchise -- and that also means crazy four-player destruction, given Insomniac's flair for futuristic weaponry.

Announced at Gamescom this week, the game features series regulars Ratchet, Clank, Qwark and Dr. Nefarious in a new story that still fits within the loose continuity built over the years. If you think it's a little too loose, you'll be pleased to learn that Insomniac will release a series of comics that bridges the gap between Ratchet & Clank Future and All 4 One.

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In 2008, Fable 2 had a unique pre-launch promotion in the form of Fable 2 Pub Games, an Xbox Live Arcade collection of three gambling minigames. The money earned from the XBLA game (and for cheaters, it was an awful lot of money) could then be transferred into the action RPG and fund further in-game gambling. Pub Games won't return for the release of Fable 3, but there is some kind of new tie-in that Lionhead plans to reveal in "early October" -- a few weeks ahead of the game's October 26 launch.

In an interview with Joystiq today at Gamescom, Microsoft's Peter Molyneux wouldn't get into details about the project, but did seem to fiddle with his mobile phone as he said, "It's more to do with this sort of thing." Molyneux previously teased another Fable 3 tie-in back in February, but that turned out to be the player-created NPCs. This appears to be something different.

The designer had some colorful commentary on Pub Games, describing the infamous exploit as a "disaster." After finding out that unscrupulous individuals could start the game with millions in gold, Lionhead had tried to pull Fable 2 out of certification in order to make the word "cheat" float over their head of anyone that left Pub Games a little too rich. He concluded jovially, "That's not going to f*cking happen in Fable 3!"

Konami has announced that Castlevania: Lords of Shadow will be whipped onto North American shelves starting October 5. This puts the American launch just shy of the October 7 and 8 release dates for Europe and the UK, respectively.

In related news, Lords of Shadow Producer David Cox informed 1UP that two DLC packs are planned for the game. Cox offered few details, though both packs will feature new areas to explore and enemies to slay. He also attempted to assuage fears that the revelation of DLC means the full game will be less than complete, saying that it "absolutely has an ending." Check out the full interview for Cox's thoughts on working with Kojima Productions and how Mercury Steam approached making a 3D Castlevania title.

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Leave it to the makers of Gran Turismo 5 to take all the "cute" out of kart racing. At Gamescom this week, Polyphony Digital is showing off the two newest features of the ever-expanding sim racer: incredibly realistic go-karts and a track editor (which were unceremoniously revealed a few months ago). The track editor, dubbed "Course Maker," is described by the EU PlayStation Blog as featuring "a dizzying array of settings to tweak" -- no surprise there! Actually, Yamauchi and company appear to have connected with reality just long enough to pare down the editor to four selectable themes for custom tracks.

Of course, by not sinking resources into a more full-featured track editor, Polyphony Digital came up with plenty of time to expand GT5 in other directions. Did you know the Photo Travel mode you'll never use now supports 3D images through the use of technology you don't own? Don't worry -- you won't miss out on the complete "racing simulator RPG" that's been added. At least, that's how Yamauchi described the enhanced B-Spec race manager mode, which has you coaching up to six racers and their varying personalities throughout a simulated lifetime.

"In GT5 we have been able to create what I originally intended," Yamauchi said of the updated B-Spec mode during his Gamescom presentation. The team's even created what was originally intended for GT6: kart racing. And why not? Gran Turismo 6 could be a while.

Update: We've embedded a few third-party videos of the kart racing filmed at Gamescom after the break.

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Red Faction: Guerrilla's nano forge gun could disintegrate objects large and small, but did you know it could also rebuild them? Apparently in Red Faction: Armageddon, the nano forge will gain the ability to recreate structures out of thin air, allowing for the construction (and, likely, subsequent destruction) of buildings, walkways, and other such objects in the underground world of Mars. Finally, destruction with meaning!

THQ executive VP Danny Bilson and Volition creative director Jacques Hennequet spend the majority of two dev diaries explaining how this -- among many other new features -- will work in next March's release. Head past the break for both.

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Konami revealed at Gamescom that it will be possible to have a "no kill" game of Metal Gear Solid: Rising, much like you can in previous Metal Gear Solid games (which reward you with high ranks, or, in the case of Metal Gear Solid 3, stealth camo). Of course, those Metal Gear Solid games in which it was possible to do that also had tranquilizer guns. Does Raiden have a tranquilizer ... sword?

"When you encounter human resistance you can slice their weapons in half, causing them to run away in fear," IGN explains. "If you accidentally slice off a hand or two, well, that will be forgiven, we are told." So even if you choose to play that way, you still get to slice a lot of things with your sword. That's a relief! The game is also full of mechanical enemies and watermelons, which can all be safely sliced without damaging your no-kill status.

Gears of War 2 executive producer Rod Fergusson recently revealed on Twitter that folks who play the shooter's multiplayer component over Labor Day weekend will be treated to a little something special. Yes, Epic is rewarding players with yet another extended weekend of bonus XP -- though this time, the value of the multiplier is being determined in a decidedly sinister manner.

Fergusson revealed that the number of people who Like the official Gears of War page on Facebook will be divided by 1,000 to determine the XP multiplier over Labor Day weekend. At the time of this writing, that figure is sitting at a little over 14,800 users, which should result in a hefty experience boost. Of course, taking the planet's current population into account, you could easily bump that multiplier up to 6.8 million times the standard XP rate, provided you're willing to do a great deal of word-spreading.

[Thanks, Richard!]

A video coming out of Germany's Gamescom convention yesterday may have accidentally revealed a whole mess of unannounced tracks for upcoming rhythm/music title Rock Band 3. During an interview shot by YouTube user GottGamesShow (since taken down), an RB3 rep could be seen scrolling through the entire setlist for the game, apparently revealing tracks from John Lennon's "Imagine" to Devo's "Whip It."

RockBandAide grabbed the whole list before the video went down, which we've dropped for you after the break. And though we've reached out to Harmonix and MTV Games for confirmation, we'd like to point out that, for now, the songs could potentially be future Rock Band Network tracks or simply placeholder. That said, we're hoping they're not -- we're pretty psyched about the two songs we already mentioned, and frankly, it's all about James Brown.

[Thanks to everyone who sent this in!]

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Sony fans have been anxiously awaiting word on the company's next handheld -- one which might serve as an answer back to the Nintendo 3DS. Earlier today, Eurogamer cited a number of unnamed sources who gave a few hints as to what the next PSP might look like. Or, rather, what it will feel like, as the device's most notable reported feature is a touch-sensitive area on the back of the unit.

Sony Computer Entertainment CEO Kaz Hirai also gave a hint about the handheld's next iteration in an interview with MCV. Though Hirai insisted the slow-selling PSP Go has been a success, he confirmed future iterations of the handheld won't be download-only. He explained, "there's always going to be requirement for a business with the size and scope of our magnitude to have a physical medium. Whether it a portable device or a home-based console." Eurogamer's sources mentioned the device is roughly the size of the PSP-3000, hypothetically leaving plenty of room for the return of a physical media slot.

These tipsters reported the device is still a long, long way from seeing the light of day, but that an unfinished version is currently being shopped around to developers. Even though the handheld is still just a faint, distant rumor, we still feel compelled to get in on the ground floor for coming up with a nickname, just in case it all pans out. How about this: The Backrub™. That sounds inviting, doesn't it?