Toro and Kuro are Homeless

You might have already heard by now, but Sony's mascot cats Toro and Kuro were recently kicked out of their home -- the same home in which they've lived since Mainichi Issyo hit PlayStation Store simultaneous with the PS3 hardware in late 2006.

Their departure looked a little something like this:

Please, take a moment if you feel the need. For the male readers, don't worry too much -- men cry too sometimes.

The above video shows Toro and Kuro taking leave of their home for the last time (it appears the player's avatar is the one doing the evicting for some reason). Why are they leaving? As Sony announced back at the Tokyo Game Show, Mainichi Issyo is being replaced by a new PS3 and PSP app, Weekly Toro Station. The above video is actually the final episode of Toro Station, a section of Mainichi Issyo that has been updated every day since the PS3's launch. For the record, this was episode 1,088.

The Weekly Toro Station app will become available for PSP and PS3 download on November 11. As with Mainichi Issyo, it will be downloadable from PlayStation Store for the entry-friendly price of zero yen.

So what's the difference between Mainichi Issyo and Weekly Toro Station? Mainichi is Japanese for "daily," so that should give you a clue. Rather than the daily broadcast schedule of the Toro Station featured in Mainichi Issyo, Weekly Toro Station's broadcast will have a once-a-week schedule.

Based off the description at the official site, the show will have the same format as the current daily broadcast, with Toro and Kuro acting as anchors behind their news desk (actually just two cardboard boxes). Every Friday night, the two will deliver game, entertainment, and anime information, along with, hopefully, the same general wackiness that Sony has someone managed to delivery daily for the past three years.

Outside of the broadcast, players will be able to play mini games and capsule games in an arcade, customize a room and garden, and create a custom avatar. As with Mainichi Issyo, some of this content will require micro transaction style payments.

It all really looks just like Mainichi Issyo. In fact, you can import your current Maincihi Issyo data. Rather than a new app, Toro Station appears to be just a rebranding (along with an excuse to get out of the daily update schedules).

Outside of the different broadcast schedules for Toro Station, there's one big difference between Weekly Toro Station and Mainichi Issyo. The two bungling cats apparently didn't have much of a plan for what to do once they left home, as they're now homeless.

They end up occupying a lot of land that's up for sale, and this is where they begin their Weekly Toro Station broadcasts.

So how exactly do you go about customizing Toro's room when Toro lives on an empty lot of land? Cardboard boxes and lots of tape, it seems:

Feel sorry for Toro and Kuro? Sony is giving you a chance to help them out through its new Weekly Toro Station Platinum Member service. For just ¥800 a month (that's only ¥9,600 a year!), you'll get Toro and Kuro out of that cold abandoned lot and into a massive mansion.

In addition to peace of mind, member benefits include:

• The ability to view past episodes of Weekly Toro Station
• A special members-only news update
• Early access to the Weekly Tory Station broadcast (every Friday at 18:00 instead of late at night)
• Access to extra items at the in-game shop
• Fashion show access

Look how much happier Kuro is when broadcasting from inside the mansion, with a warm fireplace behind him:

Happiness for your digital cat friends can be bought for ¥800 yen a month in less than a week.

For those who want to make sure they get a glimpse of some PlayStation 3 history before it's gone forever, Mainichi Issyo will cease to be offered as a new download through PlayStation Store starting 11/11. Make sure you download it before then!