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I suppose it's part of my American identity but one of my video game weaknesses is video game currency. It makes games just a bit more addicting for me whether I'm collecting Grand Theft Auto dollars, Ratchet and Clank bolts, Devil May Cry orbs, or even Metal Gear Solid 4 Drebin Points. I'll crawl out onto a raging battlefield to scoop up dropped guns for those puppies even though I almost never need to use them. It's found money, so how can I just walk away? The sound is a key part of it, too. The blips of Drebin Points and whoomp of Devil May Cry orbs can't hold a candle to the king of game currency -- Ratchet and Clank bolts. The jangling of those bolts as you scoop them up and they literally float into your account must've been designed by someone with some serious psychology chops. The clicking of the studs in Lego Star Wars probably comes in second mostly because I liked Legos so much as a kid.

Did you pick up Devil May Cry 4 for the PS3? Have you booted it up lately? You should. You just might be surprised by what you see.

One of the most exciting new trends for me as a gamer dad with growing real-world responsibilities is the rise of asynchronous online multiplayer gaming. That means that people can play online at different times and still have fun together. I haven't seen it mentioned anywhere else online, but Devil May Cry 4 has sort of an asychronous online multiplayer feature where it will tell you what your friends have done while you haven't been playing the game. Once you get to the main menu you'll see messages pop-up telling you all of the Accomplishments your friends have unlocked since the last time you logged in. If it's been a while or if you've added some new buddies on your friend's list this can add up quickly.

While you can go into the menus and dig up what your buddies have done, this advertisement of what your pals have been busy with in the game while you've been away is something I applaud Capcom for. There have been numerous chances for developers to impress us with something like this while waiting for Sony to get its act together with trophy support, and Capcom stepped up to the plate. It's an extra little incentive for me to jump in and play more of a good game, and while I hope DMC4 gets patched to add trophies, I'm not holding my breath. By itself this is the closest thing to trophies I've ever seen on the PS3, and I felt it needed to be highlighted once again.

Now if only they'd put online multiplayer into their Monster Hunter games for the PSP.