We’re live from Gamescom 2012, in Cologne, Germany!

DNP We're live from Gamescom 2012, in Cologne, Germany!

Europe’s premier gaming event starts today. In fact, Sony got the party started a little early, with its own press preview last night. The PlayStation maker is the only one of the Big Three to offer up a show here, but that shouldn’t mean there’s nothing else to see — this is the place for game devs and manufacturers to make an impression on Europe’s tastemakers and games journalists. If you’re in the area, the show even opens up to Joe Public later this week. But if the Rhine seems a little too far away, there’s nothing to worry about, we’ll be bringing all the notable hardware additions — just point your browser to our Gamescom 2012 tag. Our sister site, Joystiq, is also out in force im Deutschland, so check the More Coverage link for their take on what Gamescom’s got to offer.

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We’re live from Gamescom 2012, in Cologne, Germany! originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 15 Aug 2012 05:00:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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PlayStation Plus coming to the PS Vita this year, cloud storage increasing from 150MB to 1GB ‘from September’

PlayStation Plus coming to the PS Vita, cloud storage space increasing from 150MB to 1GB 'from September'

Sony’s decided that you’ve been playing so much with their dedicated online service, you deserve more space for your cloud saves. From next month, users will see their cloud storage increase from 150MB to 1GB. We were also teased that the PlayStation Vita would be getting into PlayStation Plus soon, but it looks like SCEE CEO Jim Ryan is holding onto that tantalizing nugget for now. Hopefully we’ll hear more on this a bit later.

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PlayStation Plus coming to the PS Vita this year, cloud storage increasing from 150MB to 1GB ‘from September’ originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 14 Aug 2012 13:45:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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PlayStation Mobile detailed: different screens, same games

PlayStation Mobile announced connects to Android platform

Sony’s decided to spill the beans on PlayStation Mobile, its upcoming cross-platform gaming service. It will connect to your own PSN ID, linking into its software store and aiming to offer up a “wide range of portable experiences.” We’re still looking at PlayStation-certified devices here, but Sony’s also announced that ASUS and (bizarrely) Wikipad hardware will join the (pretty Sony-centric) line-up. We can already recognize a handful of Xperia phones alongside the Tablet S and, of course, Sony’s premier handheld, which will also be able to play the incoming selection of mini-games.

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PlayStation Mobile detailed: different screens, same games originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 14 Aug 2012 13:28:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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PlayStation Vita Call of Duty: Black Ops Declassified bundle announced, pricing MIA

Playstation Vita Call of Duty Black Ops Declassified bundle announced

Sony’s handheld will get its own companion bundle for its incoming (and exclusive) Call of Duty title. The set will include the game, a PlayStation Vita and a carry pouch — camouflage pattern TBC. Unfortunately, Sony it neglected to mention a price or a date — though it’s likely to arrive around the same time as the game, later this year.

Continue reading PlayStation Vita Call of Duty: Black Ops Declassified bundle announced, pricing MIA

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PlayStation Vita Call of Duty: Black Ops Declassified bundle announced, pricing MIA originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 14 Aug 2012 13:23:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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PS Vita and PS3 cross-buy feature revealed: buy one copy, get the other free

PS Vita and PS3 crossbuy feature revealed Buy one copy, get the other free

Sony’s kicked off its Gamescom event in Germany by revealing a new deal for games playable on both the PS3 and its handheld relative, the PS Vita. The incoming PlayStation All-Stars Battle Royale and Ratchet & Clank: Full Frontal Assault will be two of the first titles to arrive on both — with a single purchase giving you both versions. According to Jim Ryan, president and CEO for Sony Computer Entertainment Europe, you’ll get both copies in the single package but there’s no word on whether both, or one, will be digital download-only. We’ll update this post when we hear more.

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PS Vita and PS3 cross-buy feature revealed: buy one copy, get the other free originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 14 Aug 2012 13:16:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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NPD: Xbox 360 ruled a steadily declining video game empire in July

Xbox 360 slim review

Microsoft must sometimes feel like its lead in the game market is a Pyrrhic victory. The Xbox 360 once again topped the NPD Group’s hardware charts in July, claiming a near-majority 49 percent market share of consoles — but the 203,000 units sold were a steep drop from the 257,000 units that traded hands in June, and a far cry from the glory days that would have given a victory more meaning. Nintendo and Sony haven’t shared their own figures, although the analyst group notes that only Nintendo’s 3DS and DSi had any kind of increase in the month. The industry as a whole was unmistakably feeling the combined effects of the pre-holiday doldrums and a console generation that’s long in the tooth: hardware revenue was down 32 percent in the month to $150.7 million, while the games in question saw revenue dip 23 percent to $260.7 million. If you need a culprit, earlier reports for the second quarter had credited similar shifts to sales of physical game copies declining faster than digital sales could replace them. Hope remains in the usual fall spike; even so, the July figures suggest the big three platforms might be living on borrowed time.

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NPD: Xbox 360 ruled a steadily declining video game empire in July originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 10 Aug 2012 16:26:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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PSA: PlayStation Network scheduled maintenance in Europe starts tomorrow

PSA: PlayStation Network scheduled maintenace in Europe starts tomorrowEuropean gamers are warned to get something else to do from Thursday afternoon. Sony’s PlayStation Network is set to go offline on that side of the Atlantic starting from 4PM GMT tomorrow, through to 8AM Friday. Maintenance work will pull the PlayStation Store, account management and registration offline for this time, although anyone looking to play online can still do so — as long as they’re signed in to PSN before network… work begins. Updates on Sony’s network tinkering will be posted on both on its own blog and twitter — linked below for your convenience.

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PSA: PlayStation Network scheduled maintenance in Europe starts tomorrow originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 25 Jul 2012 06:01:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Sony Japan: PSOne classics coming to Vita in summer update, PlayStation 3 to get downloadable PS2 catalog later this month

PS One classics coming to Vita in 18 update,  PS3 gets access to downloadable PS2 catalogue in Japan later this month

If you’ve been aching to wile away hundreds more hours replaying Final Fantasy classics on the go, then Sony Japan’s got some good news for you. It’s finally revealed that the ability to play those charming, if a little dated, PSOne titles will arrive on the PS Vita‘s next software update, version 1.80, later this summer. This little nugget was tucked away behind the news that a handful of PS2 titles, playable on all versions of the PS3, will launch in the Japanese PlayStation Store on July 25th. The first wave of titles include Biohazard Code: Veronica, Siren and Dragon Force, all priced between 800 and 1,200 yen. No news yet, however, on when (or if) a similar retro-gaming bounty will arrive outside of Japan.

Sony Japan: PSOne classics coming to Vita in summer update, PlayStation 3 to get downloadable PS2 catalog later this month originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 05 Jul 2012 02:46:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Sony drops VAIO T from free PlayStation offer, hikes real cost of entry to $970

Sony drops VAIO T from free PlayStation offer, hikes real cost of entry to $970

Remember how it seemed too good to be true that Sony’s back to school promo would let you buy a VAIO T and get a free PlayStation 3 or Vita worth a third of the value of the Ultrabook you just bought? Well, it was. Sony has quietly dropped the $750 laptop from the PCs that qualify for the deal, raising the real qualifying price to $970 for a 15.5-inch VAIO S. Some will cry foul at being denied such a killer bargain without warning, but it’s easy to see why Sony backed out: that’s a lot of gear to give away for little in return. Dreams of heading to class with an ultraportable in hand and a PS3 at the dorm will have to be postponed, then, even if it’s still an ample discount.

[Thanks, Gabriel]

Sony drops VAIO T from free PlayStation offer, hikes real cost of entry to $970 originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 29 Jun 2012 14:26:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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YouTube for PS Vita now ready, will help you watch more kitties than Killzone

YouTube for PS Vita goes live, will help you watch games more than play them

Sony promised us a YouTube app for the PlayStation Vita this month, and although it’s just sliding under the wire, that app is here. The viewer as it hits the console will play videos over 3G and WiFi as well as in HD quality, if you’ve got the bandwidth to burn. Most of the basics for favorites and searches are covered, including a small player that will let you hop between clips. There’s no mention of subscriptions for those perpetually addicted to Maru or Ray William Johnson, however. That quirk aside, the free app is due to swing by the PlayStation Store any moment now, so fire up your Vita and get ready to watch game strategy videos distracting pet clips on that OLED-packing handheld.

YouTube for PS Vita now ready, will help you watch more kitties than Killzone originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 26 Jun 2012 16:58:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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