Grandia (video game)
In March 1999, Game Art's Japanese publisher ESP Software showcased a PlayStation version of "Grandia" at that year's Tokyo Game Show expo, along with confirmation that the game would be released in English for the first time in North America by Sony Computer Entertainment America. Working Designs, which had previously worked with Game Arts on bringing their "Lunar" games to the region, had expressed interest in publishing the game, but were ultimately unable to secure the rights. New features for the PlayStation version included support for the system's DualShock analog control sticks and vibration function, as well as compatibility with Sony's Japanese-only PocketStation peripheral, which allows players to download game data on a portable device for use in a special mini-game. Although the company had expressed interest in bringing the game to the PlayStation as early as 1998, technical problems originally prevented the title from being ported to the system. Game Arts was later able to release the game with a slight loss in frame rate and a marginal decrease in video effects the following June. The North American version was originally announced by Sony as a summer release during the 1999 Electronic Entertainment Expo in Los Angeles, but was pushed back to the following October. "Grandia" was later released for the PlayStation in Europe in 2000 by Ubisoft.
Ape Escape
"Ape Quest" was officially released in 2008 exclusively to the US PSN store, and was the first game to be developed by Sony Computer Entertainment America. It was then published by Sony Computer Entertainment Europe in May 2008 and was finally released in March 2009 in Japan. It was the first game in the series to be a PSN-only title, excluding Asia, where it received a physical release. In 2009, a game titled "Ape Escape" was announced along with the PlayStation Move. Fans and critics speculated that it was the fourth entry in the series, after Sony's 2006 advertisement. In Q3 2010, "PlayStation Move: Ape Escape" was officially announced under the party genre, and with a different name for every region. It was released in Japan in December 2010, Asia in January 2011, and the UK and Europe in mid-2012. In the US, the title was only made available on the PSN store. After the release of "PlayStation Move: Ape Escape", no titles were announced in 2012, making it the first year since 2002 that no "Ape Escape" title had been released and the first year in the history of the franchise that no title had been announced within each region. Despite this, Spike is a character in "PlayStation All-Stars Battle Royale", which was released in November 2012.One of the main story elements of each of the main series involves a white-haired monkey named Specter obtaining a helmet known as the Peak Point Helmet (Pipo Helmet for short), which boosts his intelligence. After equipping an army of monkeys with Pipo Helmets, and using an enhanced helmet for himself, Specter sends his monkey army to take over the world, and Space. It is up to the game's protagonists, equipped with various gadgets, to capture the monkeys and restore order to the world.