E3 2011: Sony Press Conference

[+Mystic MVC]

OK, as someone who has no interest in a mobile gaming device other than a phone, I stand by my previous statements: pretty disappointed. I expected them to crush Microsoft. They ended at par with Microsoft (B or B- for both of them; if you're a mobile gamer, then maybe B+ or A- for Sony?). Can Nintendo steal the show with their new console? I don't know why, but I get the feeling the controller will be a failure compared to the Wii. (Blasphemy, I know, right?)

I'm kind of in the same boat. Although I did own the original PSP, that was before mobile phone gaming got so big. I'm also a lot more budget concious now and can't see myself buying a portable.

Regardless of what Sony showed outside of the Vita, new hardware will always steal the show (even if it is a handheld) so Sony has the conference to beat. Even if Microsoft would have released some unexpected game, they still wouldn't have won. So in reality I definitely think they might have escaped some of the pressure of this year's E3. Next year will be a defining E3 though, I just have a weird feeling about it for Sony/MS.

[danisflying527]

Nope. same price as the 3ds is as of now. However, since it's not due out till around the holidays there's a chance nintendo could simply one up them by dropping the 3ds to $199 come the holidays.

On a related note: i wonder how much sony had to gimp their original grand plans for internal hardware specs to meet the current 3ds price.

Oh right I'm not really aware of 3DS price and I thought It was 300, either way at least there being pretty competitive, It'd be a disaster if it was aorund 400-500

[~Johnny]

Because it is designed as a gaming device and not a cellphone.

Component wise most of the same stuff is there... 3G radio, WiFi , probably bluetooth, microphones, front & rear cameras, - though the Vita goes even further than most with 5" high res OLED screen, extra touch panels. The only thing they're missing is a vibration motor :p

[DukeEsquire]

OK, as someone who has no interest in a mobile gaming device other than a phone, I stand by my previous statements: pretty disappointed. I expected them to crush Microsoft. They ended at par with Microsoft (B or B- for both of them; if you're a mobile gamer, then maybe A- for Sony?). Can Nintendo steal the show with their new console? I don't know why, but I get the feeling the controller will be a failure compared to the Wii. (Blasphemy, I know, right?)

Guess it's not for you. Obviously PSVita details was the big reveal of the show. If that's not your cup of soup, then I guess too bad. Different strokes for different folks.

Personally, I'm not a big portable gamer--never owned any unless you want to count the iPhone--but the PSVita legitimately has me excited. I won't be a first day buyer, because I want to make sure that there is a steady stream of software, but I could see myself getting one after 6 months.

[+Mystic MVC]

Component wise most of the same stuff is there... 3G radio, WiFi , probably bluetooth, microphones, front & rear cameras, - though the Vita goes even further than most with 5" high res OLED screen, extra touch panels. The only thing they're missing is a vibration motor :p

All well and good but you will still have to own a phone in the end. I guess if somebody wants to buy the cheapest dumb phone available and buy a Vita, they can try to have the best of both worlds?

Edit: Duke I think you have the right idea of waiting, although I would almost hold off at least a year for a possible price drop/bundle release. This will also help avoid the inevitable pitfalls of such a complex platform's launch. By a year later, the firmware will have definitely matured.

[Ayepecks]

Guess it's not for you. Obviously PSVita details was the big reveal of the show. If that's not your cup of soup, then I guess too bad. Different strokes for different folks.

Personally, I'm not a big portable gamer--never owned any unless you want to count the iPhone--but the PSVita legitimately has me excited. I won't be a first day buyer, because I want to make sure that there is a steady stream of software, but I could see myself getting one after 6 months.

Yeah, that's what I'm saying, I have no interest in portable gaming devices. I would never use one.

[Corris Veteran]

Little disapointed that there wasn't any sort of Firmware details, though they are usually left out of the show.

But more importantly, Vita cross-game chat, but not for PS3, lame!

[~Johnny]

All well and good but you will still have to own a phone in the end. I guess if somebody wants to buy the cheapest dumb phone available and buy a Vita, they can try to have the best of both worlds?

I take it it's porbably just a data-only plan, but my point was more that hardware wise it's better specced than a lot of very high priced smartphones, even though it doesn't differ greatly from from, which themselves tend to have thin profit margins - so Sony are probably losing quite a good chunk of cash on these things :p And that's without any of their R&D and marketing taken into account. And I love them for it :laugh:

[KoL Veteran]

I'm going to get a WiFi PS Vita with Uncharted for Christmas :D I'm very excited about both Uncharted games. Both games look amazing.

[+Mystic MVC]

I take it it's porbably just a data-only plan, but my point was more that hardware wise it's better specced than a lot of very high priced smartphones, even though it doesn't differ greatly from from, which themselves tend to have thin profit margins - so Sony are probably losing quite a good chunk of cash on these things :p And that's without any of their R&D and marketing taken into account. And I love them for it :laugh:

Yes I'm pretty sure I got that point so I'm not sure what you were trying to clear up for me. :p I think we are all in agreement that this will be quite a loss for a while even after making the cuts to be near it's competitor's price point.

[Corris Veteran]

I'm surprised at the lack of 3rd party stuff shown at both Sony and MS conferences this year, especially games like Assassins Creed which usually appear at one.

I'm going to get a WiFi PS Vita with Uncharted for Christmas :D I'm very excited about both Uncharted games. Both games look amazing.

Gonna be a very Uncharted Christmas this year in some homes, lol.

[+Mystic MVC]

Definitely think the Vita will make everybody quickly forget last year's disappointing Sony conference, so I'm glad to see they had a decent rebound.

[DirtyLarry Veteran]

Well, overall I think it was a really good showing by Sony. I left their conference possibly wanting two items of hardware shown (the 24" 3D monitor and the Vita), and I thought they did a really good job of balancing everything. They showed Move, which they more or less had to I suppose, but it was still catered to the core gamer. I without a doubt think Sony gets the gamer more then MS does at this point in time, but they are obviously going after two very different demographics based on their presentations this year. I also like how Sony really is no frills at the end of the day. MS is more about the glitz and glamor (as one of my friends put it) and making a spectacle of things, making things seem much more grandiose then they actually are, whereas Sony is just about showing the games without much fanfare. Some my prefer MS because of this fact, but for me it is about the games, and the winner was clearly Sony in that regards. What Nintendo has to say about that is yet to be seen.

I was disappointed there was not the rumored price drop, but that did not stop me from just ordering the PS3 Black Ops bundle from Amazon, and thanks to Prime I will have it on Weds.

What was once a 2 XBox 360 | 1 PS3 household is now a 2 PS3 | 1 XBox 360 household.

[4CxbqFxVnstmA Veteran]

? I'm pretty sure portables have better sales in Japan compared to the US

Edit: I stand corrected

Well, maybe they do. The population of Japan is about 127,560,000. The population of America is about 307,006,550.

So, 15,000,000 sold in Japan means one for every 8.5 people, more or less.

And, 17,000,000 sold in USA means one for every 18 people, more or less.

So, per capita more than twice as many Japanese have them as Americans.

[madd-hatter]

I'd give Sony a solid A.

The $499 24" 3D TV bundle that can show 2 separate images to separate people came out of no-where. Bravo to moving forward.

[+Mystic MVC]

Well, overall I think it was a really good showing by Sony. I left their conference possibly wanting two items of hardware shown (the 24" 3D monitor and the Vita), and I thought they did a really good job of balancing everything. They showed Move, which they more or less had to I suppose, but it was still catered to the core gamer. I without a doubt think Sony gets the gamer more then MS does at this point in time, but they are obviously going after two very different demographics based on their presentations this year. I also like how Sony really is no frills at the end of the day. MS is more about the glitz and glamor (as one of my friends put it) and making a spectacle of things, making things seem much more grandiose then they actually are, whereas Sony is just about showing the games without much fanfare. Some my prefer MS because of this fact, but for me it is about the games, and the winner was clearly Sony in that regards. What Nintendo has to say about that is yet to be seen.

I was disappointed there was not the rumored price drop, but that did not stop me from just ordering the PS3 Black Ops bundle from Amazon, and thanks to Prime I will have it on Weds.

What was once a 2 XBox 360 | 1 PS3 household is now a 2 PS3 | 1 XBox 360 household.

To me I think that all comes from Microsoft's obvious lack in the number of exclusives in comparison to Sony still at this point and time. Whether or not some of the exclusives aren't worth playing is debate-able but in the end, Sony can still tout it as variety to its exclusive list. They've got to do something to draw attention away from the fact they are still getting to Sony's level even though they doing an amazing job of catching up after only its second generation of only console based systems. I say the same thing every year but until Microsoft gets a few more years under its belt to develop the backlog of exclusive developing studios like Sony, we are going to see more of the grandiose presentations. That's why I'm so excited for the next generation because I believe it will be a make or break period in terms of whether or not they really begun to develop a long list of exclusives after that many years.

Sidenote: Was that one wizard Move game shown? I missed the Move part of the presentation so I didn't see if it made another appearance of if it got cancelled.

[SuperJediMedia]

Thoughts on the 3D TV package? TV is how many inches?

[S00N3R FR3AK]

Both were disapointing for me but seeing as MS had Halo 4 and Sony didn't show Agent Ms won for me. But I am expecting Nintendo to blow them both out of the water.

[Ayepecks]

Engadget on Playstation TV: "True to its schtick, the stereoscopic display simultaneously displays two separate full screen images, hidden behind the smoke and mirrors of active shutter 3D technology -- while suffering only a minimal amount of ghosting. ... While the demo units we saw performed their trick reasonably well, visible ghosting and flat, muted colors give us some reservations about that competitive $499 price tag."

http://www.engadget.com/2011/06/07/sonys-24-inch-playstation-3d-display-first-hands-on/

[+Audioboxer Subscriber²]

I think it was a pretty soild conference, by no means the most exciting I've ever seen but the finer details announced amongst things are pretty cool. Such as the PS3/PC crossover, Vita/PS3 crossover with cloud saving, PS Suite, just all the interconnectivity. If there's one thing that bugged my PSP ownership whilst I had one was feeling so disconnected from my PS3 experience, now we've got full fledged PSN and proper interplay between them (and trophies! :rofl: ). I'm 99% sure you'll now see cross game chat hit the PS3 a good bit before Vita comes out as well :p

That price point was awesome as well, I genuinely thought $299 at lowest, although whilst they were rolling out specs on stage I thought ahhh $325/$369 might be the "shock". It's definitely the most exciting handheld I've seen from a gamer of our perspectives as it doesn't hold back on functionality/features. The Street Fighter x Tekken announcement done nothing for me though, but I don't really like fighting games. I don't think Uncharted was the best title to show off touch screen, Modnation done a better job although it was a bit rough development wise (lag), however I'm glad they're there, a lot of great iPhone/Android games using touchscreens. From journalist previews Jonathan Maks new title should of been shown! However apparently he's in London doing a press event for it.

As for the name, it's not that bad, PSV sounds good, and it is the fifth playstation I believe (PS1/PS2/PS3/PSP/PSPGo....), so V makes sense. I think a re-branding from PSP1 (going to PSP2) is the way to go, this thing is on a whole new level and they don't want consumers thinking it's just a simple PSP upgrade when it's much more.

I can't help but feel a little disappointed none of the following made an appearance, The Last Guardian, New Syphon Filter, Guerillas new IP, David Cages new IP, Agent. However Uncharted 3 looks gorgeous and varied as hell, I couldn't stop thinking of The Poseidon Adventure whilst watching it, which I'm sure is completely intentional. Sly 4 was a nice announcement, much expected at some point, don't see many people talk about it, but for sure it's a great PS2 platformer series. Resistance 3 looks like a good improvement over 1 and 2, and maybe just maybe going 8 multiplayer will make for a good change for the series which has struggled to cement itself on the MP stage. The new Dust game looks like an interesting collaboration, but Sony didn't do a good enough job communicating it's free to play.

The move stuff was meh (basketball does not interest me at all), but I will say Sports Champions does the best job IMO of showing off 1:1 with Move on the PS3, so I'm cautiously optimistic for this new title. Ken Levine rambled on far too much, but Bioshock infinite looks great and probably will play well with Move.

Overall definitely a less flashy approach, no "E3 megatons", etc. Basically the inner child in most people feeling deflated at the lack of glitz, glamour, surprises and shocks, however all that stuff only tends to stay in the blood stream for a few days. Still due to that it's now eyes on TGS for me, it still hurts The Last Guardian wasn't there :( SCEJ were definitely absent, PD are suppose to be announcing new stuff but its apparently going to be kept for Europe, aka that German games show in a month or so Sony goes to (used to be called Leipzig). So yeah, eyes on TGS and "Leipzig", traditionally announcements are spread over them by Sony.

Oh yeah, call me a sellout if you want, but the amount of 3D stuff is ridiculous. I can't help feel I at least want to try it out, as I still haven't played a 3D game :(

[TheLegendOfMart]

They already said TLG wasnt going to be at E3, they are probably saving it for TGS.

[+Audioboxer Subscriber²]

They already said TLG wasnt going to be at E3, they are probably saving it for TGS.

It was? Guess I missed that confirmation. I know TGS is made for SCEJ, but I still like seeing SCEJ work at E3, as it's usually much easier to get a stream of E3, and one in English! I only remember seeing one TGS done in dual Japanese/English. Kaz was talking in Japanese, and a translator was simultaneously speaking in English through headsets if you were there, obviously just an audio channel selection when watching online.

[Sylar0]

Hey all sorry if this has been asked before, but is the full sony press event on demand anywhere I am from the uk and could only watch part of it last night thanks in advance.

[neoadorable]

just like with MS, nothing overly exciting. we know UC3 and Resistance 3 are going to be awesome games, we didn't need E3 for that. Dust 514 looks uncomfortably like Section 8. that's not a good thing in case you were wondering.

[Sylar0]

Is it on demand anywhere?