PixelJunk lifelike is hard enough to describe that I'm just going to let you watch this video demo we shot at E3 before I say anything else about it.
That's Kyoto DJ and Q-Games collaborator Baiyon using a PlayStation Move to layer sounds and apply digital effects to create his own improvised music. Sony wasn't letting showgoers play lifelike themselves, but from their description it sounds like you can hold down one of the buttons on the Move to access a specific set of samples, then flick the controller in different directions to trigger and loop the samples. Moving the controller around fluidly will let you put some effects like reverb and flange on those looped samples too.
The game's audience feature might be the best thing about it. You'll essentially be able to stage your own live performance on the PlayStation Network by opening up your game to other listeners who have the game. There weren't a lot of hard details on how exactly people will connect to your game or how many people will be able to listen in, but this sounds like a pretty ingenious way to share your creations with other people. (Q hasn't decided on specific saving and playback features yet.)
This is an unexpected departure for the PixelJunk series, which has been a little experimental up to now but generally conforms to familiar genres like tower defense and racing. Lifelike isn't even really a game--Q's big cheese Dylan Cuthbert told us before the demo not to expect much gameplay, which is a telling statement in itself--but it's an interesting addition to PSN that I bet some people will use to create some pretty neat stuff.
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