Treasure, trailblazing and trophies combine in the outstanding adventure of 2011. Here’s how to max out your trophy list.

Uncharted 3: Drake’s Deception puts you on the trail of mystery, glory and some of the most challenging trophies on PlayStation 3. Luckily, the PlayStation Community are on hand with expert advice to help you unlock every trophy and achieve platinum status.

For the next Trophy Cabinet instalment, we’d like you to think about the explosive Battlefield 3. Head to community.eu.playstation.com and tell your fellow PS3 gamers how you tackled the action-packed shooter’s trophy list. The best advice will be published right here on eu.playstation.com.

In the meantime, your path to platinum in Uncharted 3: Drake’s Deception is mapped out below.

“I spent about 18 hours chasing down the platinum trophy. When I bought the game I played it at my own pace to experience the story. After completing that, I played through again on the Crushing difficulty setting, where it takes more skill to kill enemies and stay alive.” (Zamunda, Portugal)

“Playing about two hours per afternoon, I managed to obtain the platinum trophy roughly 11 days after buying the game. Finding solid cover was crucial to my success – I did this 1,000 times, according to the in-game stats.” (Netweb, Portugal)

“Unlike many of my friends, I hunted for my platinum trophy backwards. I played the Hard and Crushing settings first, and then started all over again on Easy so I could explore all the nooks and crannies. I found it a phenomenal game.” (Aluai, Portugal)

“The hardest trophy to get is Dyno-Might Master, where you have to kill two enemies by returning a grenade. It’s impossible to earn it on the Easy difficulty setting because the enemies don’t throw grenades. In the harder modes the enemies do lob bombs, so it’s easier to find the right moment.” (Ghri, Italy)

“The Crushing difficulty setting will give you a hard time, so you cannot play as Rambo. Eliminate your opponents, take care of your ammo and be prepared to restart from checkpoints until you get the right result.” (Pioterek2010, Poland)

“Finishing some sections in Crushing mode took me up to ten attempts, and ultimately I survived these with lots of patience. You won’t have to try many sections too often if you remember to choose the best possible weapons in difficult shoot-outs, and stay behind cover as much as possible.” (Jyyste, Finland)

“Complete the game on any difficulty level to unlock the Crushing setting. Just enjoy the process and don’t pay attention to the trophies for this run-through. Don’t rush straight into gun battles and you’ll eventually succeed. You will also need to collect the treasures in at least one level and take part in at least one match in two different online modes. I recommend Chapter 19: The Settlement for earning the trophies. Good luck!” (Unostar, Russia)

“Some treasures are placed in very obscure locations. For example, some are located not on the floor, but in the ceiling. Shoot to dislodge them, and watch carefully to see where they fall.” (totAntoxaxa, Russia)

Need a little friendly advice about trophy hunting? Then put your questions to the experts of the official PlayStation Forums at community.eu.playstation.com. Don’t forget to come back next month to find out how to strike platinum in Battlefield 3 on PS3.

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Justin Richmond and Arne Meyer reveal all about the stars of the latest in the blockbuster adventure series.

Ever wondered what Nathan Drake would be doing if he wasn’t a globetrotting explorer? Or what crafty old fox Victor Sullivan used to do before he met his protégé? Well wonder no more, as our exclusive video interview with two of the team behind Uncharted 3: Drake’s Deception will fill in the gaps.

Naughty Dog’s Justin Richmond and Arne Meyer, game director and community strategist respectively, sat down to give eu.playstation.com a peek into the past of some of the biggest stars on PlayStation 3. 

Watch the video to discover how Nolan North, the voice of Nathan Drake, is becoming more like his alter ego; why Graham McTavish, who lends his tones to series newcomer Charlie Cutter, is the last person you’d want to meet in a dark alley and how festive Bill Murray movie, Scrooged, inspired Nathan’s latest nemesis.

Don’t miss out on this essential insight into one of the best-loved games on PS3.

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Bring rough justice to the streets of Arkham City– equip these handy tips from Rocksteady Studios into your PlayStation 3 utility belt.

Want to fight like the Dark Knight in Batman: Arkham City? You don’t need to be like Bruce Wayne and travel around the world learning every form of combat that’s ever existed – simply follow these Challenge mode pointers from Sarah Wellock, community manager at Rocksteady Studios.

From the Asylum to the City

The combat in Batman: Arkham City is the same used in Batman: Arkham Asylum. The key is to always make some form of contact with someone, whether you’re evading, stunning or striking. This gets you into the rhythm of the game and you’ll get a better score through the combos you’ll create.

The Cat versus the Bat

Batman is useful to start with if you want to get a high score. You only play as Catwoman for around 10 per cent of Batman: Arkham City’s main story mode, so you’ll be more familiar with Batman’s moves and style when you first play.

Batman is a powerful juggernaut, so you’ll take down thugs efficiently, however, he’s also a bit slower than Catwoman. So counter-attack often to defeat some of the quicker enemies.

Playing the Challenge mode maps with Catwoman requires a bit more time to learn how her moves work effectively in that environment. And, while she has twice the speed of Batman, she does half the damage. So take advantage of her unique skills, such as her whip and caltrops. Keep jumping around to get a bit more breathing space and make use of the whip stun attack if you find yourself backed into a corner.

The art of fighting, without fighting

As the difficulty begins to increase, evading and counter attacking are essential, so make sure you master these techniques during the easier levels of the challenge. Batman: Arkham City is designed to make you look cool no matter who you play as, so if you’re new to the series you’ll still feel like a superhero while you’re learning the ropes.

Think like the Bat

Don’t be afraid to use gadgets in your attacks as Batman. In Arkham Asylum, if you used your gadgets in combat you would lose your combo. In Arkham City you can use gadgets to keep your combos going, so things like the Batclaw and batarangs are useful to help rack up a great score.

Batman’s explosive gel is also very useful once you’re comfortable with it. The gadget can either be sprayed on the ground or an enemy, and then detonated whenever you like, so make best use of it when you want to build a combo or if you’re on the wrong end of a beating and need some space.

Not all criminals are superstitious and cowardly

When you get to the higher difficulty levels and there are lots of tricky baddies to take on, it’s sometimes best to start off by concentrating on countering to reduce their numbers. There will be a lot of guys coming at you at once, so it’s easy to lose track of an incoming attack which can put you on the back foot.

Whittle down their numbers with sneaky counter-attacks and takedowns, and when things become more manageable you can begin a brutal assault without fear of being blindsided.

A knuckle sandwich for table nine

Don’t forget to make use of your Beatdown attack, which unleashes a flurry of punches and kicks on your hapless opponent and increases your combo count. There are some dangerous armoured enemies who need to be taken care of quickly and a Beatdown is the most efficient method to do this.

Panic is the enemy

Don’t panic. Batman: Arkham City’s combat is all about rhythm and flow, and while there are a lot of thugs attacking you at once there’s always a way to counter them while fending off other approaching baddies.

Panicking will often result in missing out vital moves such as the double and triple takedowns, which also means you miss out on a massive combo bonus. So just like Batman, you have to stay calm no matter what.

Ready to show the criminals of Gotham the error of their ways? Buy Batman: Arkham City on PlayStation 3 now.

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Experience the chilling thrill of a near-future wasteland in RAGE and the dank fear of Dark Souls on PlayStation 3 this weekend.

RAGE against the machine

A grim and gritty first person shooter awaits you in the desolate streets of RAGE on PlayStation 3. The only things between you and the deadly grip of a tyrannical government are your wits, weapons and a range of customisable vehicles. It’s a wasteland out there, with mutants, bandits and other dangerous factions – can you survive?

A dark battle of souls

If the brutally challenging Demon’s Souls wasn’t enough for your skills, then you’re ready for the brilliant sequel, Dark Souls. A PS3 action adventure that delights at putting you to the sword, Dark Souls is a shadowy fantasy where every turn could lead to your doom. Customise your character and explore a universe full of gloomy castles, labyrinthine catacombs and haunted forests. Is your soul ready for the darkness?

Grow with Eufloria

Refreshingly different, Eufloria takes you on a journey of space exploration and plant growth. This original game on PS3 sows the seeds of a classic that you’ll never forget.

Download Eufloria from PlayStation Store and discover its charms for yourself.

Evil comes with a discount

Yet to experience the terror of Resident Evil 5: Gold Edition on PS3? There’s no excuse now – you can enjoy this storming survival horror with 25 per cent off when you download it from PlayStation Store this weekend. The only question you need to ask yourself is whether your nerves are up to the task of playing one of the scariest games ever created… grab your PlayStation Move motion controller and find out.

Never bored with Borderlands

The unmissable Borderlands: Game of the Year Edition on PS3 is available at a discounted price on PlayStation Store. Now you can get this deep and entertaining blast of first person shooter action and all four frenzied downloadable adventures in one package at an unbeatable price. Head over to PlayStation Store this weekend and check it out.

Go Ape

It’s a crazy case of monkey business on PlayStation Store this weekend – join in the fun and download Ape Escape from PlayStation Store for PS3. Use your PS Move motion controller to go bananas with a variety of great gadgets and take part in madcap mini-games.

Crysis point

Intense blaster Crysis is ready for you to download from PlayStation Store so now’s the perfect time to jump on board its blistering blend of sci-fi and enhanced sandbox gameplay. Featuring stereoscopic 3D support for some dazzling visuals, Crysis transports you to an action-packed world you won’t want to leave.  

Don’t miss your chance to meet Kasabian 

There’s only a couple of days left to grab your chance to meet Kasabian at their O2 Arena gig in London on 14 December 2011. Visit eu.playstation.com/competitions and enter our competition which could earn you a pair of tickets to the performance and the opportunity to meet the band backstage.

Level Up!

Fancy a bit of fun to keep boredom at bay and show off your video game knowledge? Try your hand at our new monthly quiz, Level Up. Testing your know-how on game news and releases from the previous month, Level Up teases your brain cells with 10 questions using screenshots, music and videos. How many can you get right? Head over to Level Up and challenge your friends.

Keep an eye on PlayStation.Blog at blog.eu.playstation.com for the latest PlayStation news.

Visit eu.playstation.com/competitions for your chance to win great prizes.

Follow us on Twitter at twitter.com/PlayStationEU.

Join in with a variety of activities on the Official PlayStation Facebook page at facebook.com/SonyPlayStation.

Have your say in the official PlayStation Forums at community.eu.playstation.com.

Sign up to Inside PS Vita at eu.playstation.com/psvita to be first with the news on the revolutionary handheld coming to PlayStation in 2012.

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Stay alive on the island of the dead with these horrifying hints from the game’s developer, Techland.

Fight smart, fight zombie smartWhenever you can, aim your attacks. A hit to the head deals much more damage than a hit to a zombie’s leg. Aiming is the best way to take down Thug Zombies – their long reach and hitting power can be stopped as soon as you can cut off or break their arms.

It’s a good idea to start a sequence of attacks with a kick. It will break the zombie’s counter-attack by throwing it off balance, giving you that extra second to land your own blow. A well aimed jump-kick combo knocks out enemies but the stamina cost is very high.

Know your weapons, respect your weapons

The hammer may be your best friend on this island. You should always have at least one or two really good melee weapons in your inventory. Keep an eye on their durability indicator and repair them whenever you can.

It’s much more expensive to restore a completely broken weapon than it is to keep it in shape. You can also maintain a number of expendable weapons that you won’t miss that much if you need to throw them quickly, or drop them on the battlefield. Be sure to favour weapons that benefit your character’s skill bonuses because they make a big difference.

Collect, upgrade, modifyThe better your base weapon is, the more effective modifications will be. Save the most expensive modifications for really good weapons such as the ones marked in green. They will serve you for a long time when fully upgraded and modified.

Parts for modifications can be bought from merchants. Tour their shops once in a while to check for missing components. It’s also a good idea to invest in diamonds because you won’t lose them when you die.

Be prepared

The resort area is only the beginning. In the city slums and further into the island’s interior, you’ll have to be alert and plan ahead for some really tough fights. Always carry at least one or two Molotov cocktails. They go great with meat bait if you can get it (by killing the infected with blunt instruments). Save the Molotov cocktails for situations where there’s more at stake than just your life, like characters you may be escorting to safety.

Hit them when they’re downSave your weapons for worthy opponents. When the zombies are down, kick or stomp on them to finish the fight. If you have to use something other than your boots, remember that a downward swing damages your weapon, but is also extremely powerful. Don’t forget to use your fury skills for large groups of enemies by pressing the Circle button on your wireless controller.

Embrace analog

In the options menu you can switch combat controls to analog on your wireless controller. This is a cool mode designed for better control and immersion. Push the right stick to precisely launch your melee attacks and enable some new tricks. An upward swing is the ultimate weapon against charging infected. Give it a try, you won’t regret it.

Pick up a copy of Dead Island on PlayStation 3 today and see if you can survive the night at the world’s most terrifying holiday resort.

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Before she departs for a spot of maternity leave, Jemima’s potty mouth punctuates the rest of the podcast, with news that mobile handset manufacturer HTC is considering a move into the operating system space, the business sense behind ousted Yahoo! CEO Carol Bartz’s latest outbursts against the management of her former employers, the search/content/advertising company’s alleged in-bed relationship with industry stalwart AOL, and Amazon’s intentions to become the world’s biggest ebook library.

All this and more from Tech Weekly from the Guardian.

Don’t forget to…

• Comment below• Mail the producer tech@guardian.co.uk• Get our Twitter feed for programme updates or follow our Twitter list• Like our Facebook page• See our pics on Flickr/Post your tech pics

Aleks Krotoski

Keith Stuart

Jemima Kiss

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Take a trip to gamescom, speed through the streets of San Francisco and scare yourself stiff with PlayStation this weekend.

Battle it out in Arcana Heart 3 on PlayStation 3Step into a world of colourful characters and hard-hitting female combatants in Arcana Heart 3 this weekend. Packed with hours of action and the unique Elemental Alignment fighting system, Arcana Heart 3 is a new kind of beat ‘em up experience on PlayStation 3. Pick up a copy from your store today and fight your way to the top.

Control a Cubot in Cubixx HDThe high speed arcade puzzle game, Cubixx HD, hits PlayStation Store this weekend. The sequel to the brain-busting original PlayStation minis title, Cubixx, challenges you to grab your Cubot and blast your laser across 50 increasingly challenging levels. The great news is PlayStation Plus subscribers are entitled to a 20 per cent discount, so be sure to download Cubixx HD from PlayStation Store today.

gamescom 2011 on PlayStation Store Couldn’t make it to gamescom 2011? Don’t worry; PlayStation has got it covered for you. Get yourself to PlayStation Store today to check out all the amazing trailers for the hottest titles you’ll be playing from this year into the next that featured at the bustling event in Cologne, Germany.

Hit the streets of San FranciscoGrab the wheel and burn rubber in this pulse-pounding multiplayer demo for Driver San Francisco available to download for free from PlayStation Store now. Don’t forget, you can also download a single player demo for free, so why not grab both this weekend and get a taste of the action due in September 2011.

Dead Space and Dead Space 2 haunt PlayStation StoreYet to play the eerie Dead Space or it’s blood curdling sequel, Dead Space 2 on PlayStation 3? Then be sure to get yourself to PlayStation Store this weekend, where you’ll find both horror titles available to download to your PS3 from the comfort of your sofa.

Stock up on fantastic films at unbelievable prices The discounts continue on the Video Store of PlayStation Store this weekend with huge reductions on a great selection of movies from Warner Bros. Some you’ll want to keep forever, while others are available for rental so you can save room for exciting new content that will be heading your way in the near future.

PlayStation news on eu.playstation.comTake a trip to gamescom 2011 without the hassle of travel, with eu.playstation.com. gamescom is one of the biggest videogame events in the year, and 2011 was no exception to the rule. We’ve got all the latest news on PlayStation Vita, exclusive interviews and brand new trailers for some of the biggest and best games headed your way later this year and right through into 2012. Get your gamescom 2011 fill right now on eu.playstation.com.

Keep an eye on PlayStation.Blog at blog.eu.playstation.com for the latest PlayStation news.

Visit eu.playstation.com/competitions for your chance to win great prizes.

Follow us on Twitter at twitter.com/PlayStationEU.

Join in with a variety of activities on the Official PlayStation Facebook page at facebook.com/SonyPlayStation.

Join the conversation in the official PlayStation Forums at community.eu.playstation.com.

Visit https://store.playstation.com/login.gvm on PC to create a PSN account and opt in for email updates on PlayStation products and services.

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Great summer deals hit PlayStation Store, win with Call of Duty: Black Ops and download your PSN Welcome Back programme games this weekend.

Sale away this summer on PlayStation NetworkThe PSN Loves DLC sale continues on PlayStation Store this week, with loads of downloadable content available with up to 50 per cent off normal prices. You can snap up a great selection of LittleBigPlanet costume and level packs at half price, so make sure you indulge yourself in the PSN Loves DLC sale on PlayStation Store before 6 July 2011.

Sweat it out with UFC Personal Trainer Hay fever hampering your efforts to go out and get fit? Then learn over 70 mixed martial arts exercises designed to improve your overall conditioning, with the help of UFC Personal Trainer and PlayStation Move. Devise your own personalised training schedule, then take on the best UFC fighters around. Pick up a copy of UFC Personal Trainer on PlayStation 3 today and get fighting fit.

Try out Music Unlimited for freeWith over 7 million tracks available on PS3 via Music Unlimited, you’d need more than 40 years to listen to every single one. You can check out Music Unlimited in a 180-day free trial – enough time to listen to roughly 86,000 tracks, non-stop – and stream your favourite music straight to your PS3. Find out how to start listening to Music Unlimited at eu.playstation.com – but don’t forget to eat and sleep. 

Win with Call of Duty: Black Ops To celebrate the release of Call of Duty: Black Ops Escalation, we’re giving you the chance to win the ultimate Call of Duty: Black Ops bundle, including a 160GB PS3 system, a copy of the game, a voucher code to download the First Strike map pack and an exclusive framed Call of the Dead poster. To enter, and to find out what six lucky runners-up will win, head to eu.playstation.com/competitions this weekend. 

Have you been welcomed back yet?Don’t forget to download your complimentary games from PlayStation Store, courtesy of the PlayStation Network Welcome Back programme. If you were a PSN account holder on or before 20 April 2011, there’s a stack of great titles waiting to be downloaded to your PS3 and PSP before 3 July 2011. Visit eu.playstation.com/welcomeback to find out more.

X-Men mark their spot on PS3X-Men First Class has just been released in cinemas, and you can get your adamantium claws into a host of classic X-Men movies on PS3. The PlayStation Store Video Store is offering the original X-Men movie, X2: X-Men United, X-Men: The Last Stand and X-Men Origins: Wolverine at special reduced prices until 7 July 2011. Head to the PlayStation Store Video Store to enjoy them on your PS3.

Keep an eye on PlayStation Blog at blog.eu.playstation.com for the latest PlayStation news as it happens and visit eu.playstation.com/competitions for your chance to win great prizes.

Be sure to opt in to receive PlayStation emails when you sign up for a PlayStation Network account. If you already have an account, sign in to your PlayStation Network account settings at eu.playstation.com/registration or via the XMB™ (XrossMediaBar) and opt in. That way, you can keep bang up to date and receive the latest PlayStation news direct to your inbox.

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