Though Play Station has taken an image hit with the recent hack attacks. The fact is that, it still remains one of the major player in the gaming segment with a huge fan following. And Sony Play Station was at E3 to please one and all and win some of their estranged fans back with their latest offerings.
Sony started the proceedings in some style with Kazuo Hirai, President and Group CEO of Sony Entertainment began with PlayStation Suite a program for certifying Android handsets and PlayStation games. Then came the BIG announcement; the unveiling of the PlayStation Vita (PS Vita) for North America, the successor to the PSP. Well the PS Vita comes in loaded with a host of features like OLED touchscreen, rear touchpad, six -axis motion sensors, front and rear cameras, dual analog sticks to name a few.
Well its demo was fantastic and left me in awe of the device. It will be shipped in both 3G and Wi-Fi models enabling social networking and location-based gaming as well. Mr. Hirai confirmed that AT&T has been chosen as the carrier for PS Vita in the US, which will also provide with a free WiFi hotspot access at AT&T locations as well.
Some smart social networking apps have been added to the device to ensure that no gamer feels lonely while gaming away on the device. The Vita has a ‘Party’ mode for connecting and chatting with friends as well as ‘Near’ a location based system which will give a list of friends and discoveries around you.
A few game titles optimized for the Vita were also demoed to impress upon the audience the amazing gaming abilities of the device. The titles list included:
- Uncharted: Golden Abys,
- Ruin from Idleminds,
- ModNation Racers (where in during the demo, a race track was created on the NGP touchscreen just by touching the screen and using the rear touch pad of the device within 2 minutes)
- Capcom’s Street FighterxTekken was announced last year but has finally made it to the PS Vita
- Infamous2
among others titles.
Demo of these titles not only showcased the amazing controls on the PS Vita but also showed us how social networking works on some of the games as well.
Pricing for these handhelds are $250 for the Wi-Fi only and $300 for the 3G+Wi-Fi model. Well must admit that the PS Vita costs a bomb for a handheld gaming device but the kind of features that it brings with it are a real delight for the gaming souls.
For more info visit: PlayStation US
