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Video: PlayStation Vita's AR game trio
With the retail launch of the Vita hardware comes the arrival of three augmented reality games, using a set of six cards that look an awful lot like the ESP test cards Dr. Venkman used in Ghostbusters. I downloaded them all from the PlayStation Store today, carefully set up a camera between my face and Vita (keeping the table in view) and demonstrated all three.Of the three, Fireworks is the definite standout. And by "standout" I mean "one I could foresee playing a second time." [Music: "Shanghai Moon" by USK]
Vita's Table Soccer AR game laid out on video
We didn't get the opportunity to check out the PlayStation Vita's built-in augmented reality games when we received our Japanese unit -- because the Japanese unit doesn't come with this stuff. But you can see the "Table Football"/"Table Soccer" game being prepared for the Western launches in this video from the US PlayStation Blog. Table Soccer (we're American) allows you to turn the surface of your choice into a playfield by laying out AR cards. You can adjust the size of the area by spreading the cards out, placing the bleachers and scoreboard with specific cards. Then you play soccer by flicking the ball with your finger. It's like all those table games you played in elementary school, except way more expensive and futuristic, basically. This is one of three AR games built in; the other two are Cliff Diving and Fireworks.
DIY Lego foosball table advances to Nerd Cup semi-finals (video)
Expert Lego builder Sariel managed to impress us a few months ago with his fully-articulated robotic arm, and he's now back with a particularly well-timed project: a foosball table built entirely out of Lego. While it's not fully automated (and therefore ineligible for the Robo Cup), it does use some WeDo motion sensors to automatically keep track of the score and announce goals on a laptop connected to the table (not to mention on some sliding Lego bricks above each goal), and it even packs a built-in ball return mechanism to help speed up play. Head on past the break to check it out in action.
