Today is February 10. It’s been a fast month so far, and that is solely because of February 15th, which is Vita Day! We’ve been looking forward to this day (without knowing for sure it would be this long at the outset) for just over a year. We watch the introduction of the NGP via Sony’s broadcast of their press conference on the internet in the browser, January 2011. Yes, we watched it ‘live’ but the exact date isn’t what I’m going for here.<\/p>\n
We had planned for [ what became the PS Vita<\/a> ] to be Christmas presents for me and my eldest son. All year we looked forward to that, only to be totally blown to pieces when they announced an early 2012 launch for the whole world, but a December 2011 launch in Japan. Oh well, we picked up the pieces and found other things to wish for, for Christmas 2011.<\/p>\n All in all, I was sold on the new device via the internet that January 2011. It’s sleek but not TOO sleek, it’s not skinny by any perspective. It has the nicest light heft feeling when holding it (I got to play around with one in December 2011 at a PS Vita Mall Event.) The OLED screen is bright, colorful, deep, wonderful.<\/p>\n My PSP is good. But it looks so dull, on any brightness setting, compared to the OLED PS Vita. I haven’t done a side by side comparison yet. I don’t have an actual PS Vita in my house. I didn’t carry my PSP around with me to compare it at the mall either. Having them side by side in less than a week will be nice.<\/p>\n Some people online are writing about getting their pre-orders of the PS Vita shipped already, but that was a mistake and halted. Lucky them.<\/p>\n In any case, we have them pre-ordered at a brick store. We’ll pay for them on the 15th. I’m hoping we can get some accessories and games too. There are not a lot of games we are interested in right away. There are a few.<\/p>\n In the 1st Edition Bundle there is a case, the PS Vita, a 4g Card, and Little Deviants game. That game isn’t one I’d pick exactly, but it’s not un-welcomed. For me I often just won’t play something unless there is a reason that I find out about it that will drive me to wish to play. Simply being “popular” isn’t the thing. Actually, that’s exactly a mark against something \ud83d\ude42<\/p>\n The Vita will also come with 6 AR cards. It’s capable of playing AR games with those cards, and also can do WAR without the cards in AR games. With the PS Vita there are 3 free downloadable games officially announced to work with the cards, and I guess WAR as well. <\/p>\n Cliff Diving, Tabletop Soccer, and Fireworks.<\/p>\n I’ve seen others posting on blogs about how they are not impressed, the games look boring, whatever, cheap.<\/p>\n Well they aren’t impressed, that’s too bad. I know it’s cool to get things that are novel, for awhile. Is this novel? Yes. Is it something that’ll stick around? Well, it is already around. There are AR games for the PSP, for instance, with a camera add-on. Other things exist. <\/p>\n Kind of how 3D is not new, but still novel, not widespread, will stay novel … until holodecks arrive. AR and WAR will be more popular I think, and be a bridge to those holodecks. \ud83d\ude42<\/p>\n I’m looking forward to the Fireworks game. I love fireworks. It’ll be fun. We’ll see how long that lasts. I’ll try and be sure to post my thoughts on all of this later, once the PS Vita and all that gaming is in my grasp.<\/p>\n The thing about the PS Vita that is really nice: Trophy support. Games for the portable now can have real trophies that sync with one’s true PSN Trophy List. Integration. Woo! Hoo!<\/p>\n What games will have trophies? That’s up to the game devs. I am interested in the AR Suite games, will they have trophies? No word on that, so either they do or they don’t. Either\/Or with a hedged bet towards the latter.<\/p>\n There’s a game I’m interested in. It’s something that is fantasy and it’s just something I bet would have certain folks up in arms about it. So, I won’t say more than that.<\/p>\n I like the idea of Lumines & Sound Shapes too. The new Vita version, of Lumines, and Sound Shapes is a totally new game, I’ve been following it’s development some this past year.<\/p>\n MLB 12: The Show will have a PS Vita version that will work with the PS3 version, that is awesome, but it’s cost prohibitive. To do that in the beginning of March, when it’s available, it’ll be $100 for both pieces of software. Ouch. I want other games though. As time goes by there will be more published. I’ll be getting what I can from BB & Amazon with bonus points …<\/p>\n The Playstation blog<\/a> has a list of compatible PSN games with the PS Vita<\/a>, it’s not a final list, but it’s missing all the digital full PSP games we’ve bought, and lists SOME of the mini’s I got from PSN Plus for free, and some of the ones I bought outright, but not all of it, not by far.<\/p>\n I wanted to play Fat Princess: Fistful of Cake, as well as Savage Moon: The Hera Campaign. We’ll see.<\/p>\n Now a thing that would be necessary to have is Pixel Junk Monsters Deluxe. I’d prefer Pixel Junk Monsters Super Deluxe for PS Vita. Anyhow, the Pixel Junk Monsters Deluxe page from Q Games<\/a> has a PSP –> Vita vertical symbol on the bottom right of the page. No word anywhere that I can find about it being re-done for the Vita or anything though. PJMD is not on the playstation blog list. I have also read about those with Vita’s already in the US cannot download PJMD from the Vita store, it’s not compatible, they are told.<\/p>\n There are also lots of apps for the PS Vita, a camera with video support now. I’m just waiting for a Get Glue app. I need to suggest that on their site. I’ve been spending more time in the PS forums of late, instead of doing stuff like that. FWIW<\/p>\n