PlayStation Vita Launches, The Games Make A Strong Statement
See Full ImageOh sure, it's quite the advanced piece of equipment. It can do all sorts of cool things.
And all those features have been highlighted and pored over a thousand times in the past few months. But what will strike gamers most of all is - wait for it - the games. And as we at PSXE have come to learn over the past week, the launch lineup for Sony's new portable is about to make a very strong statement.
Not only is the quality of these handheld productions impressively high, but the variety is there as well. Just about any kind of gamer can find at least a few titles that appeal to him (or her): for the action/adventure fans, there's Uncharted: Golden Abyss, for those who want a pure, high-adrenaline racing rush, there's Wipeout 2048, and for the platforming peeps who find fewer and fewer titles on store shelves, there's the artistically amazing Rayman Origins. And we still say just about anyone can have fun with Hot Shots Golf: World Invitational. It's just impossible not to like.
But it doesn't end there. No, we haven't even made it halfway through our stack of Vita games. There's more racing in Asphalt Injection, strategy with a dose of dark action in Army Corps of Hell, the kooky and always entertaining Touch My Katamari, a top-notch fighter in Ultimate Marvel vs. Capcom 3, a likely sports gem in FIFA Soccer, what should be a great puzzler in Lumines: Electronic Symphony, the Tenchu-like Shinobido 2: Revenge of Zen, rhythm fun in Michael Jackson: The Experience, and even old-school dungeon-crawling RPG entertainment in Dungeon Hunter Alliance.
Is it the very best launch lineup in PlayStation history? Very likely. It might even be the best starting lineup in console history, period. We're not about to make that judgment with so many more reviews to conduct but right now, we're pretty damn happy with the result. And hopefully, these titles will do all the talking required today; tech-y stuff is cool, but remember, the PlayStation Vita is for gamers.
And in that respect, it seems to succeed beautifully.
Tags: vita, playstation vita, vita games, vita launch lineup
2/21/2012 9:06:18 PM Ben Dutka
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Comments (44 posts)
Shams
Wednesday, February 22, 2012 @ 12:07:14 AM
3 up, 0 down
___________
Wednesday, February 22, 2012 @ 3:46:44 AM
which is why the demo for HK had english, but the full release is chinese only they did not have enough time to have it for launch.
shame, id definitely be the first game i pick up, the demo was freaking amazing!
2 up, 0 down
Red 5
Tuesday, February 21, 2012 @ 10:33:52 PM
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So, do you suggest "Rayman Origins and Hot Shots Golf: World Invitational" as two Must Have Games? I want to buy two games and one as a gift.. Ultimate Marvel vs Capcom 3, I guess.
Red 5.
1 up, 0 down
Ben Dutka PSXE [Administrator]
Wednesday, February 22, 2012 @ 12:07:03 AM
Hot Shots is great, but it really helps if you're a fan of the series.
3 up, 0 down
sdragon001
Tuesday, February 21, 2012 @ 10:36:22 PM
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1 up, 2 down
Highlander
Wednesday, February 22, 2012 @ 8:40:07 PM
The firmware update we got was a day 1 update, so there's no way in heck that it will restrict access to anything. So to draw a conclusion that a failure to install future official firmware will not restrict you is shortsighted at best and delusional at worst. The truth is that there's no way that Sony are going to permit casually cracked devices onto PSN. They way you phrase it it sounds like a 100% confirmed fact and yet I can't envisage anything that would lead to Sony saying that future firmware will not include security measures to prevent unauthorized access.
After the trouble that Sony went to with PSP and PS3 firmware and with the steps they have taken with respect to encryption and secure activations, I just can't think of a reason why they'd leave PSN open to an attack via a cracked Vita.
As for just throwing the info out there, you might as well throw it under the bus since it has as much validity as every piece of rumor and speculation yet written about Sony products.
0 up, 0 down
sdragon001
Tuesday, February 21, 2012 @ 10:38:06 PM
Reply
2 up, 0 down
BikerSaint
Tuesday, February 21, 2012 @ 11:26:13 PM
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When I asked why, he said there were only 17 preorders(or 18 counting mine), so he couldn't justify all that overtime.
DAMN, only 17 preorders, that's pretty shabby.
Oh, I wanted it, so this "Gamer of One" is getting it.
Not sure if I'm going to do the B2-G1F deal or not, but I do know that I'm going to get Uncharted & a $50 Sony card so I can also get Escape Plan & maybe some other PS3/PSP games on sale too, for 2/3's off like Swarm & Blacklight Tango Down and Rocketbirds for only $5.99 by way of my PS3 messages form the PSN. They've been sending me an awful lot of individual game offers the last couple of month
Just wish all the D/L's I want were all on disc too, damnit!!!
0 up, 0 down
Jed
Wednesday, February 22, 2012 @ 1:12:29 AM
0 up, 0 down
inkme101
Wednesday, February 22, 2012 @ 12:07:28 AM
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5 up, 0 down
Palpatations911
Wednesday, February 22, 2012 @ 12:56:47 AM
2 up, 0 down
inkme101
Wednesday, February 22, 2012 @ 1:07:00 AM
4 up, 0 down
AcHiLLiA
Wednesday, February 22, 2012 @ 11:24:33 AM
0 up, 0 down
Qubex
Wednesday, February 22, 2012 @ 6:11:43 PM
Q!
"play.experience.enjoy"
0 up, 0 down
Cpt_Geez
Wednesday, February 22, 2012 @ 12:31:59 AM
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1 up, 0 down
Stabs88
Wednesday, February 22, 2012 @ 1:18:39 AM
1 up, 0 down
Cpt_Geez
Wednesday, February 22, 2012 @ 2:55:34 AM
2 up, 0 down
Jed
Wednesday, February 22, 2012 @ 1:14:52 AM
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1 up, 0 down
___________
Wednesday, February 22, 2012 @ 3:50:20 AM
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as i said yesterday only having vita content as preorder is just ridiculous!
and cancelling midnight launches 2 days prior?
and leaving it till a few days before launch to announce bigw, kmart and target, 3 of the biggest retailers wont even be stocking it!
yeah, not exactly shaping up well and its not even out yet!
i always said the vita will flop so hard, but they did not have to prove it to me!
oh well, not even jesus christ could save $ony now!
R.I.P to what was the best electronic company in the world!
1 up, 12 down
Ben Dutka PSXE [Administrator]
Wednesday, February 22, 2012 @ 10:01:39 AM
12 up, 0 down
Qubex
Wednesday, February 22, 2012 @ 6:12:51 PM
Q!
"play.experience.enjoy"
1 up, 0 down
Highlander
Wednesday, February 22, 2012 @ 8:41:25 PM
2 up, 0 down
Beamboom
Wednesday, February 22, 2012 @ 8:44:17 AM
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He basically thought Sony should have focused *more* on making this a games machine and only that, and not even try to pretend it was anything else. He were not at all impressed with the other applications that came with it.
All in all the review were OK, he praised the quality of the screen and graphics.
But were less enthusiastic about the proprietary stuff, to put it mildly. In addition to the memory card even the USB cable is proprietary and has to be made by Sony (according to the reviewer), and that was not well received.
Last edited by Beamboom on 2/22/2012 9:19:05 AM
0 up, 1 down
Ben Dutka PSXE [Administrator]
Wednesday, February 22, 2012 @ 10:03:02 AM
It can't be more about games. It just isn't possible. It's also completely meaningless to review a piece of hardware and not say games are the most important element.
8 up, 0 down
Beamboom
Wednesday, February 22, 2012 @ 11:46:40 AM
He also called the software/account system a "DRM hysteria", the lack of default storage capacity and proprietary memory cards as a big mistake, saying "it looks like Sony created this machine five years ago and refused to realise the market has changed since then".
He summarise it as a "modern day Game Boy" who will mainly only appeal to PS3 gamers and gadget freaks.
That said, he *do* speak warmly about Vita as a portable gaming machine, the sturdy feeling of the hardware and the excellent screen.
However he also said that while playing he could not fully shake the feeling that "this would have been cooler to play on the PS3".
So there you have it, that's the verdict from one of the major Norwegian reviews in a nutshell. Take it for whatever it's worth. I am merely the messenger. :)
Last edited by Beamboom on 2/22/2012 12:02:55 PM
0 up, 0 down
Ben Dutka PSXE [Administrator]
Wednesday, February 22, 2012 @ 12:15:28 PM
Everyone is entitled to their opinion but people like that irritate me. It's a games machine. You compare it to other portable game machines, like the 3DS. When you do that correctly and objectively, everything changes.
I mean, I'm sorry, but you have to disqualify anyone who calls the Vita a "modern day Gameboy." That's...idiotic. In all respects.
Last edited by Ben Dutka PSXE on 2/22/2012 12:18:04 PM
3 up, 1 down
BikerSaint
Wednesday, February 22, 2012 @ 1:34:46 PM
Here's an Vita tech article you might find more enlightening...
Check out this IndustryGamer(dot)biz(UK) article that just came out today on Digital Foundry's "Tech Focus: The Power of PlayStation Vita"
And except for a bit of negativity towards the Vita's memory cards & it's browser, the rest of the article is pretty much a glowing report & review on the Vita.
http://www.gamesindustry.biz/articles/digitalfoundry-the-power-of-playstation-vita
0 up, 0 down
Beamboom
Wednesday, February 22, 2012 @ 2:15:50 PM
No rating, but essentially I'd say it's more positive overall. Not ecstatic, calling it a niche product too, but at least it reviews it as such. Main concerns are the memory cards and also question if "the niche for this product will be too small for the major games devs", voicing concern about the future software support.
What's weirder is that none of the non-game-specific media has given the launch any attention at all - not even a story, let alone any review.
Not that I'd expect a huge bang, but I'd expect it to at least be noted...
Last edited by Beamboom on 2/22/2012 2:17:19 PM
0 up, 1 down
Ben Dutka PSXE [Administrator]
Wednesday, February 22, 2012 @ 3:13:59 PM
There's no doubt that it should come with a memory card. And storage capacity could've been higher. But we're talking about a portable machine designed for video games, not for the bored techies who think apps are something special.
0 up, 0 down
Beamboom
Wednesday, February 22, 2012 @ 3:58:55 PM
0 up, 1 down
br0d1n
Wednesday, February 22, 2012 @ 4:51:15 PM
Wasn't the game boy a massively popular, well received portable gaming device? Didn't it shape the future of portable gaming?
Regardless of the meaning, I don't appreciate a beloved part of my childhood being used as a technological insult.
1 up, 0 down
Beamboom
Thursday, February 23, 2012 @ 8:27:21 AM
0 up, 0 down
___________
Wednesday, February 22, 2012 @ 8:48:46 AM
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and GAME are not stocking those, and all ubisoft titles!
dear lord, the vitas already dead and its not even out yet!
this has got to be the worst launch a product has ever had here!
1 up, 6 down
Cuetes
Wednesday, February 22, 2012 @ 9:24:52 AM
oh and Im loving my new Vita.....
8 up, 0 down
Highlander
Wednesday, February 22, 2012 @ 8:43:49 PM
2 up, 0 down
DazeOfWar
Wednesday, February 22, 2012 @ 10:01:13 AM
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I already bought Uncharted, Blazblue, Escape Plan, SSD: Delta, and TFS: Mutant Blobs Attack. I also plan on stopping by Target after work to pick up some more games with the B2G1 deal. Probably Wipeout, Lumines, and Ninja Gaiden. Also may pick up Katamari.
Whoever wants to play some Vita sometime go ahead and send me a FR.
PSNID: DazeOfWar
2 up, 0 down
telly
Wednesday, February 22, 2012 @ 10:10:23 AM
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1 up, 0 down
BikerSaint
Wednesday, February 22, 2012 @ 1:54:19 PM
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Besides buying the cradle too$19,95) I also got GameStop's B2-G1F deal & got Uncharted, Wipeout & Hot Shots Golf(came out to less than $27 each after deal).
And I also bought the D/L code for Vita'S Escape Plan($15) plus a $50 Sony card in case I want to add any PSN games.
And my GS manager also gave me a free PC code for for some kind of dynamic puzzle arcade game called "Stoneloops of Jurassica".
I also bought some non Vita games to go towards filling in some of my other system's games collections too.
PS3....Alice:Madness Returns(plus Alice American McGee DLC code, Battlefield 3, Fear 3, & inFamous 2(been completely hooked on I2 for the last few days....and all-nighter's too).
360...The First Templar, and Morph.
PS2....Dark Cloud, Yu-Gi-Oh: The Duelists Of The Roses, Gladius, Monster House, SSX & SSX 3,
And 7 assorted GameCube games.
(I guess one of my bill collector's will be pretty mad once he finds that he's getting paid a bit late next month, LOL)
4 up, 0 down
Qubex
Wednesday, February 22, 2012 @ 6:19:25 PM
Q!
"play.experience.enjoy"
0 up, 0 down
BikerSaint
Wednesday, February 22, 2012 @ 7:16:09 PM
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I've been in the progress of re-doing my whole living room to make it into one big-a$$ gaming den.
Although it's been going "slower as molasses in January", I hope to have it done by late Spring/early Summer.
My biggest problem that has been temporarily stopping me, has been trying to find either 5-console(preferably higher) switchbox's, or at least a bunch of "2 into 1" piggyback adapters so I can chain-gang, all those older red, white, & yellow audio/video wires from some of my retro consoles into just one straight combo line.
In the meantime, I've already found some cool adapters that change RF cables output ends into ends for coaxial inputs.
But here again, I haven't found any proper way to do some "2 into 1" piggybacking of those either.
I know it's OT, but if anyone's got a better way, any ideas, or solutions, please let me know so I can get this project finished.
Anyway, once that's all been rectified and after everything's all completely set up, I'll try and post the pics of everything over in the forum so all can see.
Last edited by BikerSaint on 2/22/2012 7:21:01 PM
2 up, 0 down
Mogreen
Reply
Tuesday, February 21, 2012 @ 9:29:47 PM