Sony Playstation 4 – Lands 29th November
Game on people. Sony have now officially announced the launch date for the much anticipated Playstation 4. The announcement, made at Gamecon in Germany, is that Sony will be launching to all regions from the 29th November. This date covers 20 countries including Australia and New Zealand.
Alongside this announcement was the news that we are likely to see price drops on the PS Vita and PS3 range starting early next month. Some further points from the Gamescon announcement (from official Sony PR) :
PLAYSTATION®3
- Innovative new partnership between Gran Turismo®6 (GT6) and leading auto manufacturers to bring exclusive concept vehicles to life in the ultimate racing simulator
- Sony Pictures are developing a full length feature film inspired by the GT franchise. Produced by Michael Deluca and Dana Brunetti the film will capture the adrenalin of the racing world and a human dimension will be inspired by GT Academy
- Rockstar Games’ highly anticipated GTAV, given release date of 17th September
- LittleBigPlanet HUB, a new free-to-play service heading to PS3 later in the year was unveiled, offering gamers from novices to hard-core enthusiasts ease of access to the extensive library of games and expansive array of entertainment services
PLAYSTATION®VITA
- Library of almost 150 dedicated games and access to over 900 titles including PSP® (PlayStation Portable), Minis, PS One and PlayStation®Mobile
- PS Vita is offering all types of gamers fun, interesting, and compelling experiences legitimizing PS Vita as the gamer’s mobile platform
- As of 2nd September 2013 the RRP of PS Vita will be €199 (NZ$329.95) alongside a reduction in the price of the Memory Card for PS Vita
- 4GB – €14.99 (NZ$24.95), 8GB – €19.99 (NZ$33.95), 16GB – €34.99 (NZ$56.95), 32GB – €64.99 (NZ$104.95),
- The new PS Vita Mega Pack announced
- Over 25 new titles coming to PS Vita over the next 12 months including:
- Top selling Borderlands 2 from 2k Games
- Also coming to PS Vita is LEGO® Marvel™ Super Heroes from Warner Bros and Football Manager Classic 2014 from SEGA, offering the full PC game available for portable gaming for the very first time including continuous play between the PC and PS Vita versions
- Killzone: Mercenary, launching on 4th September 2013 – demonstrated PS Vita’s potential to deliver home console quality FPS with graphics and gameplay to match
- Tearaway™, launching on 22nd November 2013 – won the E3 Critics choice award for best handheld game, showcased PS Vita’s ability to deliver truly innovative gameplay, with that distinctive Media Molecule charm
- Murasaki Baby, which has been designed specifically around PS Vita touch controls by start-up Italian developer Ovosonico, led by acclaimed industry veterans Massimo Guarini and Gianni Ricciardi
- BigFest™, a free-to- play game where music fans are invited to create, build and manage their ultimate music festival working with real unsigned bands in a unique collaboration with online music portal Jamendo
PSNSM
- Popular entertainment service VidZone, currently available for PS3, was announced for PS4, and TuneIn and IGN were confirmed for PS3, PS Vita and PS4 across multiple SCEE regions
- Enhanced Music Unlimited specifically for PS4 through a new user interface that is faster, simpler and better enables gamers to discover new artists and songs within the global catalog of 22 million tracks. Furthermore, “Play as you listen to music in the background” feature will be ready for PS4 launch
Over 20 video services and applications coming to PS4 across Europe: Watchever, Maxdome and LoveFilm (Germany), Wuaki and TotalChannel (Spain), BBC iPlayer, BBC Sport, BBC News, Demand5 and LoveFilm (UK), Tvigle (Russia), RTBF and DVDPost (Belgium), Ximon (Netherlands / Belgium), Pathe (Netherlands), Viaplay (Nordics), and FilmoTV, Jook and GameOne (France)
- Twitch, the world’s leading video platform and community for gamers, will come to PS4 globally. This will enable gamers to live stream their gameplay as well as view the live broadcasts of others as part of the “spectate” feature on PS4, enhancing the overall user experience
- Broadband partnerships with: Deutsche Telekom , Orange (France), Virgin Media (UK), and ONO (Spain)
- When it launches on PS4, PS Plus will give members access to features such as the instant game collection, cloud storage and immersive online multiplayer play along with the exciting new titles Resogun™ and #DRIVECLUB PS Plus Edition for PS4 and Assassin’s Creed® III for PS3 instant game collection
- Great perks announced for the service including a 14-day free trial with every PS4 purchased and 90 days free upon signing up for a year’s membership
