You might say the week is never really done in consumer technology news. Your workweek, however, hopefully draws to a close at some point. This is the Weekly Roundup on Engadget, a quick peek back at the top headlines for the past seven days — all handpicked by the editors here at the site. Click on through the break, and enjoy.
Suggesting that they’ve attained the honor of becoming the fastest entertainment property in history to achieve worldwide retail sales of $1 billion dollars, GTA V sets itself up against not only other video games, but feature films as well. Though it’s not the same industry save its ability to entertain, it is entertaining (perhaps ironically), […]
As if it weren’t already expected enough, PlayStation Vita TV is almost certainly headed to territories outside of Japan. “During the presentation yesterday, the European / American users showed a very strong response, more than we expected, and there has been a strong inquiry / request / demand that they want the product,” SVP and Division President of Business Division 1 at Sony Computer Entertainment Masayasu Ito told Engadget in an interview today. “Of course we are thinking of launching in the EU and US, but in terms of timing we have to watch the timing and watch the environment carefully,” he added.
That echoes statements made by Sony, who told us “We are considering every opportunity, but have nothing to announce at this time” a few weeks back. What Ito expanded on, though, was how the system might change before heading to other regions. “If we have to add further services or not. It’s not that we have decided, but cloud gaming services, how can we work on that? So we are looking at each of the possible items before launching in Europe or the United States,” he told us. Interesting indeed, especially considering the upcoming Gaikai game streaming functionality for PlayStation game consoles. It sounds like the rest of the world won’t see Vita TV this year, but rest assured, it’s almost certainly on the way.
The PlayStation 4 launches on November 15th. Well, it does in the US. For Japanese gamers, they’re going to have to wait over three months before they’re able to buy Sony’s next-gen console. But why? A lot of Japanese gamers are not happy, and SCEJA’s CEO excused the later launch, saying that the company needed more time to ensure the game selection was up to standard for Japanese audiences. However, it wasn’t quite enough to quash complaints from its native fans. In a roundtable interview at TGS 2013 with Sony’s SVP of PlayStation hardware, Masayasu Ito explained that in Japan, its portable devices continue to sell well — in comparison to Europe and the US. Thus, the company decided to launch the PS4 in the west first, where there was already “much more excitement” about next-generation consoles. (It also explains why Sony Computer Entertainment Japan focused on refreshed Vita hardware and the Vita TV before this year’s Tokyo Game Show even began).
“Until now, we’ve placed emphasis on the launch titles that are ready for Europe and the US… As I said, in Japan, portable devices are selling very well. So, first and foremost, gaming titles released in Japan would be first for Vita and portables. That’s why the PS4 will come later.”
However, that’s not to say that Sony Japan’s game studios aren’t already at work on PS4 titles: Knack, for example, is being developed in the Land of the Rising Sun. “Our worldwide studios look at worldwide titles rather than directing attention to the Japan-centric titles. So what’s being worked on in Japan is not Japanese-specific, but could (also) be applied on a worldwide basis.” He added that Japan will see around 19 games at launch, with “continuous titles” appearing after that. As a note, both the US and European PS4s can expect roughly 33 games within a “launch window” that will last until the end of 2013.
At Tokyo Game Show, Sony has announced that it will introduce PS3 games via cloud streaming sometime in 2014. If you remember, Sony had purchased game streaming startup Gaikai (for $380M) which was founded by industry legend David Perry. Back then, I wrote about how Gaikai may change Sony Computer Entertainment forever, and it looks like the transformation will start next year, as Sony starts to roll out PlayStation games into the cloud. When it does that, other devices large (PS4) and small (PS VITA TV, XPERIA phones/tablets?) may access PlayStation 3 games over the cloud. This could be the first step towards a cloud-based gaming future. (more…)
Cloud Gaming: Sony To Leverage Its Hardware Diversity original content from Ubergizmo. 
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You might say the day is never really done in consumer technology news. Your workday, however, hopefully draws to a close at some point. This is the Daily Roundup on Engadget, a quick peek back at the top headlines for the past 24 hours — all handpicked by the editors here at the site. Click on through the break, and enjoy.
As had been previously revealed, Sony will allow select PlayStation 3 game titles to be upgraded to PlayStation 4 digital versions, allowing gamers to get the game at a reduced cost on the next-generation console. Ahead of the PS4′s release on November 15, Sony has released the step-by-step instructions on how gamers can go about […]
The PlayStation 4 is set to be released on November 15 in North America, but Sony had promised the console would play nice with current mobile devices in addition to its PlayStation Vita. It looks like Sony is keeping true to their promise as the company announced at the Tokyo Game Show they would be launching a PlayStation application for both iOS and Android some time in November. (more…)
PS4′s PlayStation App Releasing For iOS, Android In November original content from Ubergizmo. 
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Tokyo e, yookoso. Well, actually, Japan’s biggest gaming show is in Chiba, but we’re not going to complain. Sony’s already revealed its Vita handheld refresh, the new Vita TV mini-console and more global launch dates for the PlayStation 4, while Microsoft returns after a one-year hiatus, to show off its next-generation console. We’ve already seen Sony’s keynote, but there’s still a whole lot of halls to explore. Heck, maybe we’ll find out exactly what the next-generation iteration of brain-reading cat ears is. Follow our tgs2013 tag and for even more gaming news, our sister site Joystiq has got you covered.
Just like the PlayStation Portable before it, the PlayStation Vita comes in iterations. There’s the standard, original Vita, and then there’s the new, even nicer version. Sony unveiled that new iteration recently at a Japanese event, and we got our first hands-on with it today at Tokyo Game Show 2013. So, what’s different? Not too much. As it turns out, it’s still a Vita.
The good news is that it’s a far lighter, more comfy version of the Vita you already know and (maybe) love. Rounded edges make holding the Vita distinctly less abrasive — the sharper angles on the original Vita were pretty from a design perspective, but not so much from an ergonomic standpoint. The buttons have been rejiggered as well, with a solid click for each (the start / select / PS Home buttons are also all now circles instead of ovals). And hey, the micro-USB port for charging is an unbelievably welcome addition. Gone are the days of your proprietary Vita charging cable (though there’s still a port for it as well, should you refuse to change).
And that’s not the only ergonomic improvement: the new Vita is dramatically lighter than its predecessor, making it all the easier to take on-the-go. We’re told that its battery life is also much improved, but we’ve yet to see that play out in real life, so we’ll reserve judgment for now.
Update: We’ve added video just below walking through the new Vita — please excuse us, as we called the new Vita’s LCD screen an LED in the video. Chock it up to jet lag!%Gallery-slideshow89586%
Check out all our Tokyo Game Show 2013 coverage right here at our hub!
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