Playstation Vita

[mesh control]

Is anyone looking forward to this? Japanese release is only a week away.


I'm not entirely sure if I want one yet. The launch titles are slim and the hardware is typical Sony BS: proprietary memory cards, limited backwards compatibility, iffy battery life, etc.

Positive things:
- Region free
- New Wipeout game (although the new Wipeouts don't give me that same "futuristic" feel)
- Wikipedia lists a Gradius HD collection in the games list with no source.
- Two analog stick? I can see a slew of FPS's hitting the handheld


^_^'

[BulletMagnet]

- Region free

Unfortunately this positive is somewhat dulled by the fact that you can only have one player ID per memory card you own, so if you want to have, say, both a US and a JP account to get at the store content for both regions you'll need to buy two (stupidly high-priced) memory cards.

That said, I don't have a 3DS yet, but I find myself more interested in the Vita overall, at least so far - not going to get one at launch, but I might after a revision/upgrade, as I did with the PSP 2000.

[Estebang]

Not buying one at launch, but I will eventually get one for:

- Ys IV remake
- "Untitled Cave Shmup"
- Persona 4: Golden
- Gravity Daze
- Shinobido 2

[GaijinPunch]

I will get one when:

-It can be used as a pocket pussy
-Sega makes Phantasy Star V for it
-Shenmue III comes out on it

EDIT: Those are ranked in most likely to least likely, top to bottom.

[PC Engine Fan X!]

Ridge Racer's also slated for release on the Vita. Will it be as good as the PSP version of the same name though?

It's be ace to see a bonafide sequel to the PSX release of Rage Racer but it seems likely that it won't happen.

PC Engine Fan X! ^_~

[Vyxx]

Not huge on handheld gaming myself, but the Vita definitely interests me more than the 3DS.

[Estebang]

All of you will change your tune when Deathsmiles 3 is announced as a Vita exclusive.

[Drum]

Gravity Daze looks like it could be cool but nothing else interests me much. What are people seeing in this that I'm not?

[Lordstar]

All of you will change your tune when Deathsmiles 3 is announced as a Vita exclusive.

not really. If its the going trend of Ds games deathsmiles three will be utter dog turd.

[Elixir]

I just outright don't care. Cancelled my preorder.

[Friendly]

PS Vita sure is impressive, and there's a boatload of 2D games announced for it (which I usually prefer over 3D stuff). Furthermore, no region locking FTW. So for me, the question rather is when, not if.
Buying game systems at launch is hardly ever wise. Moreso when handhelds are concerned, because future hardware revisions tend to have improved battery life and decreased weight/size.
However, PS Vita would be awesome for homebrew (especially emulators). And for hacking, lower firmwares/hardware revisions are often better (or even necessary), so waiting too long could be bad. Of course buying one early just to *maybe* get homebrew later on seems a bit silly, but it definitley is a criterion...

Anyway, I'm not importing a Japanese model next week, but I'm still undecided about the western launch model.

[Rebel Ninja]

Ridge Racer's also slated for release on the Vita. Will it be as good as the PSP version of the same name though?

It's be ace to see a bonafide sequel to the PSX release of Rage Racer but it seems likely that it won't happen.

PC Engine Fan X! ^_~

This game only comes with three tracks and 5 cars on the card right? I suppose the typically overpriced "Namco DLC" will be accompanying this game over the months after its release.

[Shocky]

I'll wait for an updated hw revision too, thanks. Skeptical of the battery life, and then again nothing super interesting has been announced, except Super Stardust Delta. The thing about Vita is the dual analog "sticks". They feel more accurate and the grip is much better than in the ones in PS3 controllers, where my thumb sometimes slips when the going gets hectic. On the original PSP, I just couldn't bring myself to play for example Metal Gear: Portable Ops because the one-stick control scheme was pig disgusting. Now, with two sticks, it's finally going to be possible to really enjoy almost all kinds of games. Looking forward to playing the PS1/PS2 classics on this thing eventually.

[Estebang]

This game only comes with three tracks and 5 cars on the card right? I suppose the typically overpriced "Namco DLC" will be accompanying this game over the months after its release.

That was always a misunderstanding. The demo version that Bamco was showing off will only have three tracks and five cars. The full game will be far more robust.

[mesh control]

CUTE GIRLS IN WIPEOUT COSPLAY WANT

http://www.viddler.com/explore/Joystiq/videos/7451/
Not sure if I'm feeling the trailer though.

[JJXB]

sony make some great hardware but it requires cfw to be truly usable. using a fat psp on 6.60 cfw, pspkvm and opera mini to type and browse infact. so without cfw, psv will be a no-buy.

[CMPXCHG8B]

- New Wipeout game (although the new Wipeouts don't give me that same "futuristic" feel)

...

Except that it's just Wipeout HD/Fury downported to the Vita. 95% of the stuff is the same- ships, levels, and music.

Personally, all that gimmicky shit they're showing in the ad pisses me off. Wipeout used to be a fairly serious game (in a radical awesome sort of way). I don't need accelerometers or touch-enabled backpads just to make gestures on. Have you ever tried to play an accelerometer-enabled game on an iPhone or iPad while you're in a moving vehicle rounding a corner? I'll give you a hint, it's really annoying.

I wish we had Psygnosis back, truly I do. No more console exclusives (since Sony's architecture flat out sucks, it did then, and it does now), faster release cycles that aren't used as giant marketing advertisements for a new platform, and PC gaming. I would direly love to have Wipeout HD on my computer again at a real resolution.

-CMPX

[neorichieb1971]

Portable hardware doesn't agree with me. Complex gaming on one just isn't fun. One game could change my mind though, my driller HD.

Why anyone wants PS3 capabilities on the move I just don't know. There is nothing like sitting in front of a TV.

[dcharlie]

Except that it's just Wipeout HD/Fury downported to the Vita. 95% of the stuff is the same- ships, levels, and music.

<pantomime> ooooooooh no it isn't </pantomime>

There's a completely new game in there - Wipeout Fury content/tracks is in there as a bonus, though obviously you have to assume that the HD/Fury engine is the back bone (if that's what you are talking about ...)

All the gyro/touch nonsense is optional as well. Played it at TGS - it's pretty much as expected. Track looked great but was a little uninspired in lay out, so the jury is still out on the final game (Jan i think in Japan (?))

[GaijinPunch]

I forgot how gay you are for Wipeout. I should add you to my PS3 lovers list thingy so we can play some time.

[BulletMagnet]

It turns out I need to correct my earlier statement about accounts being tied to memory card on this thing: while they are somehow involved, even at that you'll still need to reset your system settings if you want to set up a second account on the Vita.

Sony, I'm seriously trying to like the Vita here, but you're not making it easy...

[Ex-Cyber]

I was about to join the "homebrew or GTFO" chorus, but then I realized that I can't articulate how that would really differ from a rooted Android phone ~6 months from now.

[CMPXCHG8B]

There's a completely new game in there - Wipeout Fury content/tracks is in there as a bonus, though obviously you have to assume that the HD/Fury engine is the back bone (if that's what you are talking about ...)

All the gyro/touch nonsense is optional as well. Played it at TGS - it's pretty much as expected. Track looked great but was a little uninspired in lay out, so the jury is still out on the final game (Jan i think in Japan (?))

I'm pretty sure the engine is the same. It looks nearly identical to the PS3 version, and the PS3 version uses some pretty untypical tricks with global illumination and baked irradiance maps to achieve the quality that they pull off at 60FPS (as I recall, that achievement alone was a big deal for SCE Liverpool).

I dunno, I guess I'm just annoyed that if I want to play Wipeout- I need to buy a whole new console. Again. I already fell for that with my PSP, then failing to learn from that mistake- I bought a PS3. And there is no end to my regret in giving Sony my money for that piece of gear now that they've successfully told me to bend over and take it like a man several times. Einstein once said... "Insanity is doing the same thing over and over again, and expecting different results". I look at the products I've bought from Sony and I wonder if I've truly gone insane.

I was about to join the "homebrew or GTFO" chorus, but then I realized that I can't articulate how that would really differ from a rooted Android phone ~6 months from now.

I have to ask- why do you want homebrew?

Why buy a device that doesn't do what you want out of the box?

If you want to develop for something, why would you bother putting up with the madness of having to maintain your own GCC toolchain and link to some reverse-engineered half baked API that will never offer things like true 3D acceleration, or anything else useful that a triple-A title might require?

Or do you just want your ISO loader for cracked games?

-CMPX

[Estebang]

Einstein once said... "Insanity is doing the same thing over and over again, and expecting different results". I look at the products I've bought from Sony and I wonder if I've truly gone insane.

Einstein never said that. It's just been incorrectly attributed to him.

It's a pretty nonsensical quote, anyway: doesn't the scientific method involve repeated testing of experiments?

[Moniker]

Well, in the scientific method, with repeated testing you're generally looking for the same outcome, or a different outcome consistent with a new hypothesis. But there are many cases in mathematics (mostly probability theory) where a single input may produce multiple outputs (y=arcsin(x) where x=0). And in simple math multiple inputs may produce the same output (eg, y=sin(x)) . In any case, that quote always struck me as nonsensical too.

But buying Sony products with immature dev cycles do be crazy. But then, I feel that way about any gaming hardware. Used to be you could count on nintendo due to their withered tech policy, but I'm not sure that's true anymore. I would probably buy my Wii again just for Super Mario Galaxy 1&2, but I can't say that the system's done all that much for me besides that, after all this time. Except maybe the VC and a handful of Wiiware titles.

[Vyxx]

I was about to join the "homebrew or GTFO" chorus,

I know right

I bought a PSP Vita...

So I could emulate old games.

Makes perfect fucking sense.

[Ex-Cyber]

I have to ask- why do you want homebrew?

Because it's fun to play with, doesn't come with a pile of batshit insane one-sided license agreements, and doesn't try to rope me into yet another "content platform".

Why buy a device that doesn't do what you want out of the box?

Because "does what I want" is not something that most vendors generally seem to understand, and thus I sometimes have to take what I can get.

If you want to develop for something, why would you bother putting up with the madness of having to maintain your own GCC toolchain and link to some reverse-engineered half baked API that will never offer things like true 3D acceleration, or anything else useful that a triple-A title might require?

I'm fine with my current non-game-development job, and I don't suffer from the delusion that I can make a "triple-A title" in my spare time regardless of what APIs I have. Besides, bringing up the toolchain is half the fun.

Anyway, the point was that PS Vita's hardware is surprisingly conventional for a game system.

[GaijinPunch]

It's a pretty nonsensical quote, anyway: doesn't the scientific method involve repeated testing of experiments?

If no variables are changed, the result will always be the same. Such nonsense.

[Skykid]

I forgot how gay you are for Wipeout. I should add you to my PS3 lovers list thingy so we can play some time.

I'm gay for Wipeout too, but that vid is kind of disappointing. I know what they're going for with the era this time, but the tracks look a bit bland. Hopefully it's not indicative of the game as a whole.
And I really hope the voice in the video isn't in the game because it's the same voice as the robot on this rubbish programme called "Snog, Marry Avoid" (UK members with TV watching girlfriends will probably know it.)

Can't be having any aspects of that shit in my Wipeout diet.

[DJ Incompetent]

I'm gonna wait four years to make sure the failure rate isn't 100% while hoping for a pocket version.

PSPGo fo lyfe!!