Weekend Confirmed is ready to formally wrap up another week. Hosts Garnett Lee and Jeff Cannata welcome in the Shacknews tandem of Andrew Yoon and Ozzie Mejia to discuss the latest news to come from Sony, including the PS Vita TV. But first, Jeff kicks off the show by talking about his experience with Final Fantasy XIV before discussing World of Warcraft's latest 5.4 patch. Talk then shifts to games by the dozen, including Grand Theft Auto V's dizzying number of missions, while Andrew catches us up on several upcoming releases, like XCOM: Enemy Within, Dying Light, Batman: Arkham Origins, and Peggle 2. The show finishes up with discussion of Puppeteer, Killzone: Mercenary, and The Wonderful 101 before ushering in the weekend with Finishing Moves and this week's Tailgate.

Listen: Weekend Confirmed Episode 182 »

Puppeteer, one of the promising titles coming from Sony's Japan studio, owes some of its charm to a child. According to Japan Studio's Gavin Moore, the seed of the idea sprouted from playing games with his son--or more specifically, why his son got bored with the games they played together.

Read more: 'Where are my royalties?' »

Nintendo has unquestionably mastered the art of platforming. Donkey Kong Country Returns and Super Mario Galaxy are examples of great games that have that unique Nintendo charm. But, Nintendo's never been able to translate that experience for the HD generation. Sure, New Super Mario Bros U is a first step in adding some visual oomph to Nintendo's wares, but there's still much work to be done.

What if a different company could figure out a way to capture that Nintendo je ne sais quoi--while crafting something extraordinarily beautiful? That's what SCE Japan Studio does with Puppeteer: a PS3-exclusive platformer that should not be ignored.

Read more: losing our heads »

Puppeteer, one of two promising projects debuted by Sony Japan at Gamescom, has revealed its pre-order bonuses. Pre-ordering gets you the "Theatrical Pack," which includes a few bonus goodies: the soundtrack, Moon Witch and Moon Bear King avatars, and a PS3 dynamic custom theme with Puppeteer art.

Read more: New trailers show off remaining powers »

Horrid things, puppets. They hide in plain sight with leering faces and dead eyes, just waiting for you to turn your back, and then smiles creak across their little cruel lips. Awful. But, Sony's Japan Studio will let you fight the blighters on September 10 in third-person puppeter Puppeteer. But to beat the puppets, you must become a puppet. Or were you a puppet all along?

Watch: Charming puppet action-platforming »

Puppeteer from Sony's Japan Studio was one of the standouts when it was announced at Gamescom this year, but we haven't seen all that much of the game. A new trailer dropped today gives us another look at the title, and appropriately enough highlights the world of Hallowee Ville. No, not Halloween. Hallowee.

Watch: Spooky monsters and puppets »

Sony debuted a handful of new PlayStation 3 titles at its Gamescom press briefing today, two of which hail from the company's Japan Studio. Rain (working title) and Puppeteer both carry some artsy-game chops, but in radically different directions.

Read more: A ghost story, and a cute story »