PlayStation Vita is a ‘quantum leap’ in gaming, gets its own interactive Youtube channel, rear touch-pad was scrapped
The PlayStation Vita, originally dubbed the Next Generation Portable or NGP, has had a flood of news in recent weeks.
According to the Senior Vice President of Sony Computer Entertainment America, Phil Rosenberg, the PlayStation Vita will take gaming forward into areas it has never been before.
Or as he so aptly put it, "I feel that this device is really the start of our future for PlayStation. It's that big of a quantum leap in what it's going to enable our gamers to do - and saying that, it's a quantum leap in what we're going to be able to bring
to our gamers."
Phil pondered over his choice of words carefully and it seems that ‘quantum leap’ was the best to describe it as he used it twice in the same breath.
Since its official reveal in Los Angeles during Sony’s E3 Press Conference, there has been plenty of interest in the next generation handheld, portable gaming device. The $249.99 price for the Wi-Fi only model received a huge cheer from the crowd.
The front and rear cameras, dual analogue sticks, rear touch-pad and impressive graphics held its own during its various stage demos and it seems Sony is confident it can take gaming places it has not been to before.
In a unique and rather bizarre marketing move, Sony has launched a YouTube channel for the PlayStation Vita. Not only that, but the channel itself is interactive as it plays much like a slot machine.
Every time a viewer ‘spins’, random videos appear that are linked to the various features of the PlayStation Vita, ranging from those that frighten, to those that entertain. It is not all pointless gambling though as ‘winners’ get their hands, or rather
their eyes, on a video montage of the PSVita as well a Vita screensaver which can be used on PCs.
The channel has been receiving generally positive responses and seems to fit in well with the entire Vita ethos.
Lastly comes an ‘almost did not happen story’ with the news that the rear touch-pad on the PlayStation Vita was originally scrapped.
According to the Head of Sony Worldwide Studios, Shuhei Yoshida, the feature was removed in an effort to reduce its cost. Another reason was whether or not the feature would have any use in terms of how it would help gameplay.
All that changed when the feature was actually tested and it seemed to show enough potential as it was eventually approved.
There is still no confirmation on when the PlayStation Vita will be officially released, yet there is plenty of speculation that it would be later on this year.
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