Tech specs, the name "Orbis," and a launch window of 2013 are speculated.
Some strong PlayStation 4 rumors have surfaced yesterday and have been swirling around the internet. A "trusted source" is claiming that the next console from Sony will be entitled "Orbis" and will be released next winter. It is not made clear if this is the American, European, or Japanese street date.
It may just be a golf game, but it’s one of the best in the Vita launch line-up.
Despite its colorful and inviting presentation, Hot Shots Golf has always been about providing a near-simulation golf experience. Like real golf, every shot counts. In order to post the lowest scores and win the most tournaments you must analyze the wind, the course’s construction, its slopes, and even the weather conditions. Hot Shots Golf: World Invitational carries the torch to the PlayStation Vita providing nearly the exact same tight experience the series has offered for years.
Those happy little bouncing Vita icons hold a deep, dark secret.
The PlayStation Vita is a fine gaming machine – one that I have enjoyed playing for the past couple of weeks since its release. It's sturdily constructed, has a beautiful OLED display, some great launch games, and a very nifty user interface that's both attractive and easy to use. Despite all it has going for it, it houses one of the worst design decisions I've ever encountered in a gaming console.
Despite the change in account branding, the PlayStation Network brand will remain intact.
Yesterday, Sony began distributing emails to PSN users to alert them of a slight scheduled change to their accounts. In an effort to unify their various digital brands, Sony is establishing the Sony Entertainment Network and subsequently converting all PSN accounts to be more universal SEN accounts. While the overall digital service Sony is providing will carry the SEN branding, the PlayStation Network brand will remain to accommodate all of Sony's gaming consoles.
There may be a reason those memory sticks are so expensive after all.
UPDATE: Sony has confirmed that digital games will cost about 10% less than physical copies of games. A user on the NeoGAF forums spotted a picture in the Best Buy database confirming this news. This story was originally reported on December 5, 2011, as a rumor.
Could Monster Hunter be just what the Vita needs?
It’s hard to say that the Japanese PlayStation Vita launch has been a resounding success. Slow sales have many gamers proclaiming the handheld’s demise even before it is launched in North America and Europe next month. Even with near abysmal sales, PlayStation France CEO Philippe Cardon doesn’t believe there is anything to worry about, saying that the Japanese launch only lacked a special something that will be coming later this year: Monster Hunter.
The public beta has begun rolling out today as well.
Starhawk, the successor to 2007's Warhawk on the PlayStation 3, has now been given a release date. Players can get their hands on the new game on May 8, 2012. However, if you don't want to wait that long, you can at least whet your palette with the public beta, which begins today. The news was announced on the PlayStation Blog.
The 3G version is seeing heavy discounts at some shops.
The video game market has been quite volatile in Japan as of late. With the economy still reeling from the current worldwide downturn and the country still rebuilding in the wake of the 3/11 tsunami, games and hardware simply haven’t been selling as well as other markets. After a decent launch, the new PS Vita is seeing price cuts after just a couple weeks on shelves.
Could the Online Pass be coming to handhelds in North America?
The PlayStation Vita was recently released in Japan with a North American and European launch coming this February. Since the Japanese launch, the internet has been abuzz with information regarding the hardware and software as it has been released in Japan. While most of the buzz pertains to information that was already well known, Destructoid discovered something not previously publicized about Hot Shots Golf: World Invitational – that the game requires an online pass to play online.
Sony's new handheld doesn't stumble out the door.
The PlayStation Vita was released this past weekend in Japan and the first round of sales figures are starting to come in. While not breaking any records, it looks like Sony’s latest handheld did pretty well in the land of the rising sun.
