CES 2012 Gaming Report from the Sony Keynote

While we don’t come to CES necessarily expecting big news in the gaming world, it’s hard not to look to the big reveals of previous years such as the NES and the original Xbox. You can’t help but hope for something big each time the annual CES press conferences come round.

Not to mention that this is Microsofts last year at CES so maybe the stakes are slightly higher this time since they may want to go out on a bang!

Here at Push-Start, we’re focused on the gaming side of CES 2012, so don’t come expecting to find out the latest on 3D Tv’s and HD Camcorders, instead come to read the content that matters to you, the gamer. You’ll find two articles, one for the Sony Keynote, and one for the Microsoft Keynote. Below, you’ll find the Sony wrap up, head over here for the Microsoft one.

Sony Roundup

Many of Sony’s announcements this year CES were, as expected, technology and entertainment focused. New applications and services were at the forefront, especially in reference to the Playstation Vita. So, without further ado, here’s a roundup of what went down at the Keynote for gamers.

Music Unlimited will be arriving for Playstation Vita on Day One. Music Unlimited for the PS Vita will offer a service that combines a number of aspects from other popular music services such as iTunes (iCloud), Spotify and Last FM. Artist recommendations as well as music that is instantly accessible on all platforms will allow users of the PS Vita to access their music library wherever they go, another plus for the 3G version.

Netflix will also be heading to the Playstation Vita in the US (though we expect it to follow to other territories soon as Netflix has just launched in the UK), with Sony again aiming for a day one release. Details are scarce at the moment, though expect a similar service to that on the iPhone and Android Netflix App. It is unconfirmed whether this will require a WiFi connection, or if it will support 3G connections also, as the mobile app currently does.

The Playstation Certified programme was brought to the forefront again with discussion of the new Sony Tablets including the dual screen Sony Tablet P. The scheme brings playstation content to new Sony devices such as Playstation 1 classics. This was seen last year with the Sony Xperia Play device.And that brings Sony’s announcements to a close. Not a huge pull for gamers, but a few important announcements and precedents show that Sony are open for more ‘Apps’ and services for the PS Vita, especially when it comes to entertainment possibilities, it’s certainly looking like the handheld will have a strong feature set when it launches 22nd February.

Not to feel left out, the Playstation 3 will be getting a new Video Editing application called PlayMemories Studio. This tool will allow you to use your controller to edit together photos and video clips. Other features such as YouTube upload are expected, but have not been announced. Hopefully the application will feature an intuitive interface allowing everyone to get to grips with what generally is seen as a complicated process. This service will also be available on the PS Vita, as well as many other connected Sony devices such as their Android phones, Tablets, HD TV’s and even their Vaio Laptop line.

The Playstation Vita can be pre-ordered from a number of retailers, so be sure to get your order in to get yours when it’s released later next month.

PS Vita European Release Date Finally Anounced

Sony Computer this morning announced that PlayStation Vita (PS Vita) will launch throughout Europe, Africa, the Middle East and Australasia from 22^nd February, 2012. Available from £229.99 (RRP) for the Wi-Fi model and £279.99 (RRP) for the 3G/Wi-Fi model, PS Vita will offer uncompromised portable gaming experiences, anytime, and anywhere.

“PlayStation Vita is an incredible device that offers the best possible portable gaming experiences. Its revolutionary mix of features combined with social connectivity, delivers a platform for gamers to play games in a whole new way and to connect with their friends and the world around them” said Jim Ryan, President and CEO, SCEE. “We’re very excited to launch a portable gaming device that goes beyond anything available on the market and is positioned to deliver the uncompromised gaming experiences consumers have been asking for.”

Leveraging PlayStation’s legacy of delivering deep and immersive gaming experiences, the PS Vita system will bring to consumers new ways to play through a unique feature set such as a stunning OLED front touch screen and rear touch pad, dual analog sticks, motion sensors, and dual cameras. With more than 80 games currently in production from first and third party studios including “LittleBigPlanet,” “Wipeout 2048,” “Resistance: Burning Skies^TM,” “Uncharted Golden Abyss^TM,” Ubisoft’s “Assassin’s Creed,” EA Sports’ “FIFA”, Activision’s ‘Call of Duty’,  and many more, the PS Vita is poised to deliver gameplay experiences unmatched by any handheld or mobile device on the market. 

In addition, with both 3G and Wi-Fi support, PS Vita will draw consumers deeper into the gameplay experience and enable them to connect and play with the world around them, including their friends and other PS Vita owners through native PS Vita applications – near, and Party. A variety of social networking and communications services such as Facebook, foursquare, Skype^TM, and Twitter will also be available on PS Vita.

Product Outline

PlayStation Vita 3G/Wi-Fi Model Crystal Black

PlayStation Vita Wi-Fi Model Crystal Black

 PlayStation Vita Product Specification

Sony’s “Long Live Play” TV Ad Celebrates YOU!

A new PlayStation ad has been unveiled by Sony, as part of the company’s new ‘Long Live Play’ campaign, dedicated to none other than the fans of PlayStation. This comes after a teaser trailer was unveiled by Sony last week, insinuating some kind of reveal scheduled for today.

Early last month, Sony made the announcement that they were on the lookout for “a few good gamers” to assist in a special assignment to the brand-new ‘Long Live Play’ campaign. Asking PlayStation fans to email pictures of themselves holding a PS3 controller and in 30 words-or-less; describe how they epitomize the ultimate PlayStation gamer. After reaming through the thousands of responses sent, here is the end result.

With the gobsmacking array of cameo appearances from both multi-platform and PS3-exclusive titles, the message of this campaign is simple – PlayStation and its titles would be nothing without the fans. How many video game icons can you pick out?

On the US PlayStation Blog, Sony’s VP of product marketing, Scott Steinberg had this to say:

It is our hope that this film showcases to all gamers the incredible characters and experiences that make PlayStation 3 the ultimate platform for people who love to game. You know that PlayStation has the industry’s best line-up of exclusive software titles, features highly immersive motion-control and 3D gaming, and free access to vast amounts of sports, movies, TV, games and more on PlayStation Network. Now, with your help, we’re spreading the word so the world knows that PlayStation continues to be the top destination for gaming.

FIFA 12 Sells A Record Breaking 3.2 Million Units In Opening Sales

Football fans will be happy to know that this years FIFA has sold a new record breaking sales figure. Electronic Arts Inc. today announced the most successful launch in EA SPORTS FIFA 12 hit store shelves and online retailers across the globe. Fans around the world have already played more than 200 million minutes of online games of FIFA 12.

Based on internal estimates since its September 27 launch in North America and September 30 worldwide, FIFA 12 has sold-through an estimated 3.2 million units across all consoles worldwide**, making it the biggest launch in the history of sports videogames and the biggest videogame launch of 2011 to date. These are preliminary EA estimates.  EA plans to provide further information regarding sales of FIFA 12 during its earnings call for the second quarter of fiscal year 2012.

“FIFA 12 is a stunning achievement by our team at EA Canada,” said Andrew Wilson, Executive Vice-President of EA SPORTS. “The massive FIFA online community has overwhelmingly connected to the new live services in the game, including EA SPORTS Football Club, and we intend to keep them engaged all season long as FIFA 12 follows the heartbeat of the football season.”

Other notable achievements from the game’s record-breaking launch include:
·         FIFA 12 sell-through is estimated to be up approximately 23 percent over last year’s record-breaking launch.
·         FIFA 12 for iPhone and iPad has already sold 879,000 units, and achieved the Top Grossing App for iPhone on 30 worldwide storefronts.

• October 1, 2011 was the busiest day for online gaming in EA SPORTS history.  Fans registered more than 10 million EA SPORTS game sessions, including almost eight million game sessions of FIFA 12.

·         Almost 350,000 fans engaged in the early web-start for FIFA 12 Ultimate Team via easportsfootball.com, and more than 14 million trades have already occurred within the Ultimate Team mode. For the first time ever, FIFA Ultimate Team is available on disc for fans to enjoy the thrill of building, managing and playing with their ultimate team of football superstars.
·         The launch of FIFA 12 also saw the introduction of EA SPORTS Football Club – the heartbeat of FIFA 12. Millions of fans around the world have already pledged their allegiance to their favourite team through the Support Your Club feature. To date, the clubs with the most supporters*** are:
Manchester United – 241,767 supporters
FC Barcelona – 144,709 supporters
Arsenal – 131,305 supporters
Real Madrid – 126,806 supporters
Liverpool – 118,182 supporters

Chosen “Best Console Game” at Gamescom and winner of the prestigious E3 Game Critics award for “Best Sports Game” at E3 2011, FIFA 12 is the highest rated sports videogame of this console generation with a Metacritic rating of 92 on the PlayStation®3 computer entertainment system and 91 on Xbox 360® videogame and entertainment system, including perfect scores from leading media outlets like 1UP, USA Today, GamePro and The Guardian. IGN (9.5 out of 10) called FIFA 12 “amazing” and Everyeye.it (9.5 out of 10) wrote, “FIFA 12 is simply the best football simulation ever made.Our review of the title will be online shortly.

PlayStation Vita’s Box Design Revealed and Launch Apps Detailed

European Hardware Product Manager for PlayStation Vita, Adam Grant, has today shared the final box design of the handheld successor of the PlayStation Portable. The box design was first unveiled at the Tokyo Game Show.

Grant said on the European PlayStation blog:

Those of you that have managed to get a hands-on experience at one of our recent events will know that no single picture can do PS Vita justice, but we think it does look pretty stunning and I hope you agree.

Not only that, but Grant has gone to explain the pre-installed applications that will be available with the Vita when it is launched. Here is the list:

Welcome Park – We invite you to the Welcome Park to explore and discover all of the brilliant features packed into PS Vita through a series of mini-games.

Party – Fancy a chat while you’re gaming? Speak with your friends anytime you like with Party. The voice and text chat application allows you to talk to up to eight party members, no matter what you’re doing. Party also allows you to set up and jump in multiplayer games and chat with Friends while you play different games, bringing cross-game chat to PS Vita.

PlayStation Store – A direct link to PlayStation Store where you will be able to download all PS Vita games, trailers, DLC and apps.

Group Messaging – Another great way to contact your PlayStation Network friends is with a PSN Message. Send them an update or even a picture you’ve taken with your PS Vita to let them know what’s going on. You can message your friends on PSP and PS3, and you can have conversations with multiple people at once.

Near – An exclusive location based gaming network for PS Vita. With near you can stay connected to all of your PlayStation Network friends and make new ones by sharing information about yourself, based on your location. Press the Update button and find new people based on where you are, challenge them to games or play cooperatively and enjoy a completely unique gaming experience on PS Vita. You can even send and receive new levels, unlocks and in-game items to enhance the way you play – everywhere you go will hold new surprises. You can view your friends’ game preferences, see how many trophies they’ve earned and compare your stats to see who the better player is.

Trophies – PS Vita games will support Trophies and this app will store and track your Trophies earned on both PS Vita and PS3. It also allows you to compare your Trophies with your friends.

Friends – Your Friends List will allow you to search and keep in touch with your PSN Friends. Click on a friend’s profile to see what game they are playing on either PS Vita or PlayStation 3. You can join their game, take a look at what you’ve played together recently or compare your trophy collections. You can also see your friend’s recent gaming activity and what they are doing now. In your profile you can share information about yourself. Choose an avatar that represents you best, add your friends and let the world know what you are playing.

Internet Browser – With the 5″ OLED Touchscreen, PS Vita will offer a great web browsing experience over Wi-Fi and 3G.

No official release date has been made as of yet for Europe to get their hands on the PlayStation Vita, but a safe assumption would be that it won’t arrive anytime before 2012.

Source: PlayStation Blog EU

LEGO Harry Potter: Years 5-7 Release date lets you take a break from shooting everyone!

November is already quite crowded in terms of shooters and AAA titles, but Warner Bros. has something else incase you need a break from all the high octane action you’ll be having over the next few months.

The LEGO titles have always been popular both with critics and gamers alike with their drop-in drop-out coop and colourful design as well as their ability to capture the essence and character source material perfectly; not to mention their signature LEGO charm.

LEGO Harry Potter: Years 5-7 will be launching in the UK on November 18th for the (take a breath). Xbox 360, Playstation 3, PSP, Wii, Nintendo DS, Nintendo 3DS and PC.

Also worth noting is that a demo for the title will be included for the PS3 in the Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 2 Blu-ray Combo Pack!

To get a feel for this new title, why not take a look at this new piece of concept art below, as all as a couple of small screens!

LEGO® Harry Potter™: Years 5-7 continues the saga of the Boy Who Lived in this spell-binding adventure for wizards and Muggles alike. This time, players are transported through the final three books and final four films - Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix™, Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince™, and Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows™ – to experience Harry’s last years at Hogwarts™ and battle Lord Voldemort™ in the ultimate fight of good vs. evil. The creative LEGO prowess unites with the expansive world of Harry Potter™ once again to deliver an exciting and rewarding gameplay experience. The game features lessons, spell-casting, dueling and much more for players of all ages to enjoy.

Street Fighter X Tekken To Get Pandora Mode and 4 Player Online

With Street Fighter X Tekken not to far away we have recieved more details of what to expect in the game. If you watch the below trailer you will notice there is a new mode called Pandora Mode which allows you to sacrifice your partner  “short, but powerful boost in strength.”

Now if you and a friend wish to take on two other fighters as a pair then you can… Scramble Mode allows four separate players to control each individual character, online or offline. There is also a Briefing Room which is an online training mode, allowing you to practice with other players.No url attribute defined!

Toro and Kuro To Appear In Street Fighter X Tekken

Capcom have just anothed that PS3 and soon to be PS Vita owners will be happy to know the Toro and Kuro cute duo will be joining the fighting world in the PS3 and Vita versions of Street Fighter x Tekken!  It’s a weird choice off characters to throw into the mix but it will be interesting what the result is.

Kevin Butler Returns to PlayStation with New Ad Campaign (And Its Epic!)

Since late last week, concerns grew over the possibility that PlayStation icon and resident Vice President, Kevin Butler, had quit Sony (gulp!).  But fear no more kids, as the official US PlayStation Blog has confirmed that the eccentric executive is back, and it’s in dramatic style to say the least.

Back from his four-day retirement as Sony put it; Smith makes the elaborate return with a brand-new campaign, entitled “Long Live Play”. The new campaign will be rolling out on various websites, TV networks, retailers, and numerous social networking sites.

Vice President of Product Marketing, Scott Steinberg, said:

It’s our way of inviting all gamers to come and join the PlayStation Nation. When we say there’s never been a better time to join, we mean it. With games like Resistance 3, UNCHARTED 3: Drake’s Deception, The ICO & Shadow of the Colossus Collection and more on the horizon, PlayStation is committed to creating a AAA software line-up that real gamers can get excited about.

Steinberg continued by saying:

We are committed to the continued expansion of the types of services and content that have made the PlayStation name synonymous with interactive entertainment and hope that through the “Long Live Play” campaign our dedication to you, the PlayStation fans, truly shines through.

Check out this brand-new TV advertisement, debuting the “Long Live Play” campaign. And it comes as no surprise that Butler is back in top-form. Long Live PlayStation.

The previous campaign that was fronted by Butler was titled “It Only Does Everything”. The PS3 has since sold over 50 million units worldwide.

Source: PlayStation Blog US

Gamescom – Sony Unveils PSP-E1000

Thats right kids, just when we all thought that the PlayStation Portable was dead and buried to make way for its successor, the PlayStation Vita, Sony Computer Entertainment Europe reveals an upcoming model of the handheld console.

The PSP-E1000, revealed at Gamescom 2011, boasts a classy matte Charcoal Black finish, which is the same as the slim PlayStation 3.

Sony stated that the goal with the PSP-E1000 is value for money, and will retail at just €99. However, despite the reasonable price tag, it does not include Wi-Fi.

The PSP-E1000 is however fully compatible with UMD disks and Media Go, allowing access to the full back catalogue of games for the PSP, whether you buy them from your local gaming retailer, or download them from the PlayStation Store.

The PSP-E1000 will be available across all PAL territories.

The unveiling came alongside other announcements, including the PS3 price cut and the new social applications and upcoming games coming to the PlayStation Vita at Gamescom.