Direct feed vid of iPhone UE3 demo.

Epic's Project Sword, the star of last night's Apple press conference, is the first Unreal Engine 3-powered game for the iOS platform, and what many believe is a quantum leap in the quality of 3D visuals running on Apple's handheld devices.

Little has been seen of the iOS rendition of UE3 since the initial reveal, where an old Unreal Tournament level was demonstrated running on an iPhone 3GS. Back at GDC 2010, we attended a session where Epic's Josh Adams described the process by which the development framework was ported across to the platform, how it integrated with Apple's XCode and how artwork and lighting were convincingly downsampled to run effectively on the system.

iPhone 3GS, iPad and iPhone 4 owners can get their first taste of Project Sword and Unreal Engine 3 running on their systems by visiting iTunes now, or alternatively you can check out our screenshot gallery plus the video below.

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Platinum targets PS3 as lead platform.

Platinum Games is on a mission with its upcoming shooter, Vanquish. In the wake of the disappointing reception offered to the third-party PS3 conversion of its last title, Bayonetta, the developer has switched to the Sony platform as its lead console.

"The PS3 is kind of like a sports car that's very high-performance and specific in its usage, whereas the 360 is more like a car that everybody's driving. It doesn't have the same range as a sports car, but it has more versatility," producer Atsushi Inaba told VG247 during E3.

"It's about adapting your game to those two sorts of different framework. That's where we're focusing. Fundamentally, the gameplay experience itself is the exact same game."

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An open source alternative to the PSJailbreak hack called PSGroove has been released to PlayStation 3 owners this morning.

The release takes the form of a download package that users must compile and then transfer across to a AT90USB or related microcontroller found in USB development kits such as the Teensy++ or AT90USBKEY. These small dongles are typically available for around £25.

The open source version of the jailbreak is effectively a clone of the commercial hack, which has yet to make it in volume to the modchip suppliers, but it features a couple of fundamental changes over the original.

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Mafia II! Dragon Quest IX! With special guest Leo Tan from Capcom.

We've had Leo Tan from Capcom on the podcast before, but when he immediately asked to be on it again and we had no one else booked, it was an offer we couldn't refuse.

Leo joins host Tom Bramwell and new GamesIndustry.biz staff writer Dan Pearson to discuss the issues of the week - or at least the two-day period that elapsed between podcast recordings thanks to an inconvenient bank holiday.

That means we get stuck into the controversy around Eurogamer's 4/10 Mafia II review, while Leo harks us back to Dragon Quest IX and Dan bangs on about non-GAAP reporting methods or whatever nonsense he does now.

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The fun never stops here at Eurogamer, as Ray Maguire’s teeth can attest, but sometimes the work has to stop because the government enforces national holidays and I wasn’t around when we drew up the original employment contracts.

Monday 30th August is one such day, but don’t you worry, because we know that when you kick back on a long weekend you’re going to need something to read – so we’ve got your back.

On Saturday you will be able to read a fascinating investigation by Digital Foundry into some wacky nuclear-sounding Russian technology I don’t understand that allows games of one frame-rate to run in another. Trust me when I say it’s a must-read.

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BioShock Infinite! Deus Ex! PSP2! Kinectimals!

Guten tag! Wie gehts?! Yes we've been to Germany again and have now returned with exciting tales of new games, exotic unannounced hardware and more.

This week on the podcast we discuss at least eight games, including BioShock Infinite, Deus Ex: Human Revolution, Marvel vs. Capcom 3 and - at long and exciting last - Kinectimals.

Yes, podcast host Tom Bramwell has now played Kinectimals - the spiritual successor to Viva Pinata, at least in his eyes/head - and has stories to tell about rolling on the floor and being gobbed on by a fictional tiger.

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Does "PSJailbreak" herald PS3 piracy?

Rumours are swirling this morning that the PlayStation 3's security has finally been breached and "backup" software now runs on the Sony platform.

A company of unknown origin has created what it calls the PSJailbreak - a combination of software and USB dongle that seemingly allows all makes and model of retail PlayStation 3 to copy and run any kind of game code, even with the latest firmware updates in place.

While it remains to be seen whether it is another in a long line of elaborate fakes, it's understood that multiple modchip resellers were sent anonymous packages from Hong Kong, and one of the recipients - Australia-based OzModChips - has posted two convincing-looking videos on YouTube showing the system in action.

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Optimised for each platform?

2K Games has taken the unusual step of responding to negative fan comments over the PS3 version of its forthcoming Mafia II, claiming that the game code has been optimised for each specific platform.

"When designing Mafia II, we optimised for each of the three different systems the game would run on to make sure the core experience was the best it could be," wrote 2K's senior manager of interactive marketing, Elizabeth Tovey, on the company's forum.

"Because of this, there are some differences from one platform to the next. In terms of the PS3 version, I wanted to clarify a couple points you have been asking about. There will not be highly detailed grass or large pools of blood, the cloth movement is less noticeable than, for example, the PC version, and the visual fidelity in the demo is generally representative of what you'll see in the full game."

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FF XIII! Video Reviews! Expo questions! Harold Shipman!

Yes, lady and gentlemen, it's time for another episode of the AWARD-NOMINATED Eurogamer Podcast. This week it's a Eurogamer Expo special, in which we put YOUR questions to event organisers Tom Champion and David Lilley. They are joined by special guest host Ellie Gibson, who only mentions FarmVille once due to recently renegotiated contractual obligations.

Stream the Eurogamer.net Podcast:

But don't think of this week's podcast as just another excuse to pimp tickets to the Eurogamer Expo, Earl's Court 1st - 3rd October tickets £8 no queues for the ladies guaranteed. David Lilley reveals what he's swapped his Angry Birds addiction for, Tom Champion gives his views on Final Fantasy XIII and Ellie makes up something about a Flash game about skiing because she's not allowed to mention FarmVille any more.

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Need for Speed: Hot Pursuit is set to take centrestage at EA’s press conference next Tuesday at gamescom, but what you may not know is that Mirror’s Edge and Battlefield developer DICE has worked closely with Criterion in building the new racer’s massive open world. Speaking to Digital Foundry during our recent studio visit, key Criterion staff talked in-depth about Need for Speed’s Swedish connection.

Faced with the task of creating an in-game map four times the size of Burnout Paradise’s city, the small Guildford based studio called upon the might of the 200-strong DICE in order to lend a hand in creating a world massively divorced in terms of style and make-up from Criterion’s previous Burnout work.

Art director Henry LaBounta is an ILM alumnus who has contributed to previous Need for Speed titles including Hot Pursuit 2 and Most Wanted. He joined up with Criterion for the new project and as you might expect, he is very enthusiastic about the partnership with DICE.

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