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The Hustle: Detroit Streets on PSP eyes up your wallet

Pool your resources

The Hustle: Detroit Streets on PSP eyes up your wallet

We're looking out for the sting, but as far as we can tell Blade Interactive's down-and-dirty pool romp, The Hustle: Detroit Streets, has simply shifted to a new publisher.

Set to be released by Activision when we first encountered it in January, The Hustle has now found a home at Deep Silver, which is much better known for its PC titles. Then again, these are the first screenshots released so far of the PSP title, so who knows what's changed?

The essential set-up remains GTA's bad boy vibe meets Ronnie O'Sullivan's way with balls. Choosing to shark along as one of two characters, Jack Stone or Kat Hudson, you head up the pool scene's ranks through either the story-based mode (where respect, almost inevitably, is a major currency) or through playing AI opponents in one-off single matches.

You make money by betting on matches, gambling on single shots and, we're promised, hustling – although regarding the latter, there's no word yet on how our likely early ineptitude at nailing the angles can be exploited in a complicated double bluff.

Winning gets you more money, new challenges, access to new venues and opponents, and the chance to buy better clothes and cues from your local pool emporium.

In total, there are some 120 pool sharks to be soundly beaten, circling around in seven venues – all of whom you'll earn respect by overcoming – and 120 challenge games, 26 trick shots and 10 types of pool. There's wi-fi multiplayer too.

But despite this being the mean streets of Detroit, there's no real detail on whether you can grab the thin end of the cue to wield it in a more unsavoury way if you're really on the ropes; the press statement simply refers to 'barroom brawls' in the same breath as 'hot chicks'.

So, all good or a load of rubbish just looking to dupe us out of our dollars? Or pounds, even. Well, a change of publisher is rarely a great sign, but we'll reserve our judgement until we play. The Hustle: Detroit Streets is out in early October so not too long to wait to find out.