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Daily Roundup: Super Bowl XLVIII survival guide, iWatch rumors and more!
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.
PlayStation Vita TV review: Sony's first mini-console has some growing pains
Sony had a tiny surprise to share just ahead of the Tokyo Games Show: the PS Vita TV, appearing from inside SCE President Andrew House's jacket pocket. Having already announced a new, slender PS Vita handheld less than an hour earlier, Sony showed off this minute console -- roughly the same footprint as a smartphone -- that plays Vita games, PlayStation games and streams video content, as well as music and video from Sony's own store. It can also connect with multiple PS3 DualShock controllers, allowing for proper, responsive gaming -- something we're not quite used to getting from something so tiny. You could see it as a brutal counterstrike from the PlayStation team against the cheap, mini-console likes of OUYA and GameStick, even Huawei. Aside from contemporary Vita titles and indie games, you can also tap into an ever-increasing catalog of hits from yesteryear -- something that the Android and iOS platforms also dip their feet into, but with the peace of mind (read: stability) of PlayStation hardware, and the ability to steer the action with a DualShock controller. Sound like something you'd like to try out? Well, unfortunately, unlike the new PS Vita, this is currently a Japan-only deal. What's more, availability in Nihon is directly tied to compatibility there, too; you'll need a Japanese PSN account to even use it. We're still getting a vague line from SCE on whether it will eventually arrive outside of Japan. (It would be a convenient bit of hardware to sell alongside Sony's PlayStation Now streaming-game service, set to launch in the US later this year, right?) So, is this just a tenuous experiment or a whole new console line for PlayStation? Or, given that it's practically got all the same internals, would you be better off just buying a Vita?
Furmins line up a path to Vitas, candy on December 17
The less-than-coordinated of us know that navigating spaces can at times be harder than it looks. As often as we may stumble, Furmins have it one step harder - they're just limbless balls of fur waiting on an omniscient power to guide them to their destinations. Their puzzle-oriented plight is lining up a pathway from iOS devices to Vitas on December 17. Compared to Resogun, Furmins is a less explosive effort from developer Housemarque that makes a puzzle out of the journey from Point A to Point B. Players construct potential solutions for any given level in Furmins' Setup mode, which pauses the environment to allow for a path to be constructed out of objects. Once a solution is ready, switching to the Action mode lets the scenario play out, resulting in glory or a return to the phase of blueprints. If you're feeling particularly crafty, you can build with the bits of candy strewn across levels in mind. The PlayStation Blog notes that Furmins has "100+ unique levels," but it does not suggest a price. The iOS version, Furmins HD, is currently $2.99 on the App Store, but you can try the first world of Furmins Free at no charge.
Is Sony prepping a PlayStation 4 and PS Vita bundle for the UK?
It's the hardware marriage we all assumed (and hoped) would eventually happen. A report over on gaming site MCV claims Sony is planning to offer an 'Ultimate Edition' PlayStation 4 bundle that would include its portable console, the PS Vita, as a pack-in for the UK. Further corroborating this rumor is an alleged image of the bundle (pictured above) said to be featured in MCV's upcoming print edition. If this turns out to be true, Brits could very well see the next-gen PlayStation combo hit retail in time for the holidays, although there's no word on how much it'll cost. Aside from being a match made in gamer heaven, the purported move is somewhat of a no-brainer for Sony, given the PS4's much touted Remote Play functionality (which streams next-gen games to the handheld) and the Vita's less-than-stellar install base. With about a month to go before holiday mania sets in, we should know sooner rather than later just how real this bundle fantasy is and whether it's also destined for US shores.
Daily Roundup: NVIDIA Gamestream, Playstation Vita review, an interview with Pebble and more!
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.
PlayStation Vita review (2013)
It's about time Sony's next-generation handheld got a redesign. Not that the new PS Vita is so different from the original models. The screen's no bigger, and it hasn't lost any backward compatibility either. In fact, nearly everything that Sony's changed here is for the better (and that includes the fizzy new array of colors too). Perhaps the biggest negative, however, is that the new Vita is a Japan-only device, at least for now. But importers delight: our non-Japanese PSN account worked fine (as did our game cards), and with 1GB of built-in memory, there's the possibility that you won't need to pony up more money for Sony's pricey Vita memory cards. But how does that cheaper screen fare against its predecessor's sparkling OLED? And can you play it for more than five hours? Keep reading, folks: we've got some good news and some bad news.
Weekly Roundup: iPhone 5s and 5c reviews, Droid Maxx review, iOS 7 available to download, and more!
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.
PlayStation Vita TV puts Vita games on a TV, out in Japan on Nov. 14 [update: specs]
Sony Computer Entertainment Japan has revealed the PlayStation Vita TV, a miniature system that plays Vita games on the television. The Vita TV has slots for both Vita games and memory cards, allowing users to play games on their tellies with a DualShock 3. It'll support 1,300 games, including Vita, PSP, and other PlayStation offerings. Like the Vita, Vita TV will also support PS4 Remote Play through a future system update. Vita TV also enables streaming services such as Hulu. The PlayStation Vita TV will cost 9,954 yen including tax when it launches November 14 in Japan, that converting to around $100. There'll also be a bundle that includes a DualShock 3 controller and 8 GB Vita memory card for 14,994 yen after tax, or around $150. Update: Sony Computer Entertainment's press release provides some specs on Sony's littlest new device. The Vita TV comes in at 6.5cm by 10.5cm, and weighs just 110 grams. It connects to the TV via HDMI, supports Wi-Fi, and has an internal memory card of 1GB. Also, Vita TV can connect to two DualShocks at once, this functionality applied with PSOne games in mind. Full specs are below the break. Update 2: Our pals at Engadget have a great eyes-on gallery with Vita TV.
Final Fantasy XIV's Yoshida sheds some light on PlayStation 4 remote play
If you're thinking about getting a PlayStation 4 for Final Fantasy XIV, you'll be interested to know that you aren't just shackled to playing on the console. We don't mean in the sense you could also play on your PC, either. The game will support the system's remote play functionality with the Vita, allowing you to log in and play on your handheld even when you're nowhere near the actual console. Producer Naoki Yoshida discussed the functionality with Famitsu recently, explaining that while remote play won't be appropriate for large-group endgame content, there are a variety of things that can be done just fine remotely. Gathering and crafting, for example, can be handled without much loss from the handheld device, and even low-impact questing should work out just fine. Sure, that means that you can't fight a Primal while leeching off of the Starbucks wifi, but at least you can harvest some in-game goods whilst waiting for a coffee.
State of the PS Vita: Sony's portable gets a second lease on life
Consoles don't ever really come back from the dead, they just usually become niche. But the PlayStation Vita, Sony's redheaded portable stepchild, is currently having its Lazarus moment more than a year after release; a solid second chance at relevance. It's a resurrection owed entirely to the indie community, a fact Sony's more than happy to acknowledge -- just look at the company's recent marketing and Gamescom presser for proof. But before we talk Vita 2.0 and the promising future ahead, let's rewind a bit to examine the missteps that almost pushed Sony's powerhouse portable off a cliff.
Rumor: Leaked Target ad shows Vita for $200
The PlayStation Vita's price may be coming down in the near future, providing a leaked Target ad by the Blu-Ray Forum is accurate. The ad, a snippet of which can be seen above, shows a $200 price point for the system. The standard retail price for the WiFi-only Vita is $250, while the 3G-enabled Vita is $300. Japan received a price cut for the system in February, which was followed by Sony Worldwide Studios head Shuhei Yoshida saying that North American players would not see the same price drop. Whether this ad indicates a permanent price drop is on the way is unclear, though it's just a matter of time before we know for sure; the ad is reportedly for the week of August 18 through August 24.
Sony adds Indie Games category to PSN, brings Hotline Miami to the Vita (video)
As much as we'd like to talk about Sony's increasing hospitality toward independent developers, we're a little too anxious. You see, the company has just added an indie games channel to its handheld console, with Hotline Miami as the flagship title. Users will also be able to grab 53 other titles, like Thomas Was Alone, Sound Shapes and Limbo, but we're too busy with Hotline Miami to pay attention right now. Sony is also promising that we'll see Spelunky, Terraria and Hohokum in the next few months, which'll keep you entertained when you've finished, you know, Hotline Miami. If you'd like to catch a trailer showcasing all the new games, head on past the break.
The Walking Dead heads to Vita with new bundle, '400 Days' episode
Sony announced at its E3 conference that Telltale's acclaimed episodic adventure game series The Walking Dead is headed to the PlayStation Vita. The platform will also host an all-new episode titled "400 Days," along with other bonus content. "400 Days" will also come to Xbox 360, PS3, PC, Mac and iOS this summer. A new PlayStation Vita bundle that collects every episode of The Walking Dead is set to hit retail in August alongside the release of the new episode.
Bungie quashes rumors that Destiny might come to the PlayStation Vita
Some rumors recently started circulating regarding Bungie's upcoming title, Destiny, and the PlayStation Vita. Bungie confirmed that these rumors are false and that Destiny will not be revealed on the PlayStation Vita (despite some previous vague hints to the contrary in the preorder page's source code). The rumors started after the release of an image that hinted at a Bungie game coming to PS Vita in 2014 called Destiny of Spirits. Given that Sony trademarked the name Destiny of Spirits, something may still be afoot there. Destiny officially launches for the Xbox 360, PlayStation 3, and PlayStation4 some time next year.
iOS games spending overtakes dedicated games
App analytics firm App Annie has released a new report about portable gaming, and announced that iOS gamers are now spending more money on Apple's platform than on traditional handheld titles. The light blue above is last year's fourth quarter, the dark blue is this year's first quarter, and as you can see, both iOS and Google Play spending is up, and has actually topped spending on traditional handheld devices like the Nintendo 3DS and the PS Vita. This is mostly due, says App Annie, to a seasonal drop in traditional handheld game spending -- game sales always tend to go up over the holidays, and then drop in the new year. But it's also clear that iOS is growing a lot -- and in fact, in the chart above, it's actually higher than even traditional gaming was last quarter. We'll have to see how this plays out going forwards. Both the PS Vita (made by Sony) and the 3DS (made by Nintendo) have packed schedules for software releases this year, and the Sony handheld is set to be supported by the release of the new PS4 console. So this battle isn't over at all yet. But smartphones are clearly a dominant force in the world of portable gaming, and consumers are happy more and more to spend their money on iOS games rather than another traditional handheld title.
Sony asking PS4 devs to try PS Vita remote play before submission
A major feature of the PlayStation 4 is native remote play support on the Vita for PS4 games. During last night's presentation, Gaikai CEO David Perry talked about the work being put in to ensure the fastest response times for remote play. It's a big part of the PS4 and speaking to Engadget, Sony worldwide studios president Shuhei Yoshida said Sony is requests developers for its new console test their game on Vita using remote play before submitting for certification.Yoshida said the addition of remote play with the PS Vita means developers can create custom control layouts on Vita. "Some PS Vita games make use of the edge of the screen to add contextual buttons – that works really well, I think, and it's easy to see. So that kind of thing I'd like to see developers do on PS Vita over remote play." Of course, the onus is entirely on the developer, but custom controls for the handheld would be swell.
The Daily Roundup for 02.18.2013
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.
The Daily Roundup for 01.17.2013
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.
Fourth generation iPad bests Playstation Vita in graphics power
Portable gaming has come a long way in recent years, but in many ways the biggest push for gaming on the go has come from smartphone and tablet makers, rather than video game hardware manufacturers. Nowhere is this more apparent than a recent GPU throwdown test by AnandTech that shows the new fourth-generation iPad boasts enough graphical might to edge out known benchmarks of Sony's PlayStation Vita. The Vita was released in February of this year, making it a relative newcomer -- not to mention the most powerful dedicated gaming handheld ever. But with the new iPad's huge increase in graphical muscle over the Apple's previous, third-generation tablet, it manages to top Sony's portable console. Now, just because the new iPad's guts are technically more capable of rending a game world than the Vita, there are other factors to consider. The biggest is screen size, and with so many more pixels to power than the Vita, the fourth-gen iPad still has to make compromises when it comes to resolution. [Via: VentureBeat]
PSN Tuesday: Portal 2 In Motion, Toe Jam & Earl return
All of the Xbox owners out there are probably spending Election Night celebrating the arrival of Halo 4, but there's good news for you too, PS3 owners. The latest update to PSN brings digital versions of LittleBigPlanet Karting and Vanquish, as well as a digital version of Portal 2 with "In Motion" DLC, for use with the PlayStation Move accessory (as seen in the trailer above). When Vikings Attack and PID are now both available on the PSN store, as are both the original Toe Jam & Earl and the Panic on Funkotron sequel. Rygar hits as a PS2 classic, and Saint's Row 3 and Sleeping Dogs have digital bundles to download. PS Plus members have some new sales to choose from, and there are all kinds of new downloads and add-ons to find across the rest of the network. To see everything that's new on the PlayStation Store, hit up the PlayStation blog.
