New PAL Releases Roundup

They said it was impossible. They said it would never happen. Those two things mean basically the same thing. But whoever they are and whatever point I was trying to make, Demon's Souls is finally released in Europe this week.

Yes! Now you too can play the game that kills you so much and so brutally that playing it is practically masochism and yet oh so rewarding. (Assuming you've got a PlayStation 3 anyway - it's exclusive to Sony's console.)

What makes it work, given all the player-killing? Keza MacDonald's original review explains at joy-filled length, but for me it's a few key things. One is the sense of camaraderie you get from the shared messages of warning and help from strangers, the value of which cannot be understated.

But particularly it's the knowledge that if you watch your step and don't do anything rash, nine times out of ten you'll be okay. It's only when you let impatience get the better of you that you really fall foul. In these times of bleak economic uncertainty, there's a lesson there for us all. If only Gordon Brown had played Demon's Souls.

Elsewhere this week, Raven's Singularity is an interesting, relatively unknown quantity. Activision has embargoed reviews of its latest FPS until tomorrow, as is the mega-publisher's screamingly paranoid and frustrating wont, so naturally we assumed the game was rubbish, but the first few hours suggest it isn't. Watch out for our full verdict on Friday morning.

Transformers is also embargoed until tomorrow, but your suspicions about that one probably aren't so far wide of the mark.

Look out also for reviews of pretty much all of the below very soon.

This week in shops:

• Demon's Souls: Black Phantom Edition (PS3)
• Disciples III: Renaissance (PC)
• LEGO Harry Potter: Years 1-4 (DS, PC, PS3, PSP, Wii, Xbox 360)
• Naughty Bear (PS3, Xbox 360)
• Singularity (PC, PS3, Xbox 360)
• Transformers: War for Cybertron (DS, PC, PS3, Wii, Xbox 360)
• Trinity Universe (PS3)

This week online:

• 24/7 Solitaire (DSiWare)
• 4x4 Jam (PSP/PS3 minis)
• Arcade Darts (PSP/PS3 minis)
• Bloons TD (PSP/PS3 minis)
• Blue Toad Murder Files Episodes 1-6 Bundle (PSN)
• Duke Nuke: Manhattan Project (XBLA)
• Fret Nice (PSN)
• Landit Bandit (PSN)
• NBA Unrivaled (PSN)
• Puzzlegeddon (PSN)
• Real Crimes: Jack the Ripper (DSiWare)
• RISK: Factions (XBLA)
• Sam & Max Episode 3: They Stole Max's Brain (PSN)
• The Secret of Monkey Island: Special Edition (PSN)