Apple iPad 3 Smash Universe March 7th

I am very excited about this.

I purchased a Sony Tablet S last November during pre-Christmas sales. The savings where literally around $200 bucks over an iPad 2. So I caved in and was delighted by Sony's first venture into the tablet territory, with award winning results.

Now Apple is bringing out the big guns.

Rumors of a monsterous retina display for the device appear to be concrete alongside HD cameras and quad core CPUs. The iPad 3 is going to be a beast. Will it be enough as a wanted purchase? Only time will tell. I hope they don't jack the price up, which is also another rumor in itself. I wouldn't doubt that Apple would do it, because they can. The iPad 3 will be officially unveiled on Wedneday, March 7th during one of Apple's much anticipated events.

Hooray! I love me some tech press conferences!

PS Vita and Fireplace Update

Winter in my Canadian neck of the woods has been beyond normal, in a good way. It has been sunny, warm with barely a hint of snow. Last season was typical. Lots of snow. Lots of cold.

Now the snow hits the fan. An incoming snow and cold spell is flying in from the west, headed east bringing the season back to its normal course.

Yes. Lots of snow. Lots of cold. Returns.

So this weekend, I find myself seated into my fireplace, playing my Vita. Oh the things I am forced to do by nature itself. ;)

Playing Vita Is Good For You

I was going to upload an audio journal of my first five days with the PS Vita Early Edition, however that is on hold for a bit. I'll get to it at some point, but I would rather play the thing as much as possible. I'm pretty sure you've got your fill of reviews and previews. Look the bottom line is that it is a console, portable and mobile experience smashed beautifully all into one. Only it is so much more than any single one of those devices. You owe it to yourself to get one.

I've been enjoying Uncharted, Lumines, Super Stardust and Rayman. All are awesome. These giant console games are always with me. I can obtain trophies wherever I am. I can access the PlayStation Network on any wi-fi spot. Near is simply amazing.

I could jibber-jab further about it but simply, you won't understand me until you experience it for yourself.

BigBoss Wants You! Next MGS In Development!

Hooray!

It appears that Kojima Productions is now hiring for their next Metal Gear Solid title.

Sick! Awesome! Kick ass!

The game is being developed for "next generations consoles and PC". Nice. The last MGS game that hit the PC was Metal Gear Solid 2, a long time ago.

On a similar, some what related note, MGS: Peace Walker and MGS: Digital Comic are both compatible with the PS Vita. Simply re-download the titles from your PSN account onto your PS3. Do not install the titles on to the console, let them stay as bubbles. Next, connect your Vita to the PS3 and fire up the Content Manager on your Vita. Then... SHAZZAM! Copy them over and play a little bit of Metal Gear on your portable. It'll help tide you over until the HD collection hits it.

Vita Impressions Continued

I can confidently confirm that the PS Vita is awesome and after 3 days of playing with it, still highly entertaining. ;)

I've been playing it in a few public places with public wi-fi access. Syncing trophies from those spots has been fast. Faster than my PS3 ever synced at home.

Let's just say that the Vita is more than a PS3, much more than a PSP. It has more ways to interact with games than any previous desktop, console, portable or mobile device before it. It is such a joy to play with. That is saying a lot my friends and I'm dead serious about that.

It is the best. If you are a gamer and gaming is your hobby, you owe it to yourself to get one. This is why we game. This is why we play. The Vita does everything RIGHT.

Go get one.

Twisted Metal Shoots My Truck

I did it. I did it for the Jaffe.

Even with spending a zillion dollars on Vita Early Editions, games and accessories, I still had to pick up Twisted Metal. The latest entry for the series and the first for the PS3 is an absolute blast! The game is heart pounding and extremely addictive. This is one of those games you play with a big fat grin on your face in delight. Damn! The soundtrack kicks ass! It fits the experience perfectly. I have to admit, when you finally complete an extremely challenging stage over 20 minutes, you feel damn good and exhausted.

I love this game. I'm happy I got it.

Check out below for the finale of the "Shoot My Truck" ad campaign from Sony. Hosted by David "The Man" Jaffe, as contestants had an opportunity to destroy Sweet Tooth's truck in real life. Yes, with a real gun and real bullets. Enjoy!

PS Vita More Impressions.

Included with the Vita is a series of interactive tutorials. Entitled Welcome Park, they easily show the user all of the features of your new favorite mobile device.

I have tried out the Content Manager to copy over a few movies, psp games and a couple of music albums to the Vita. The interface is easy to use. You use your Vita touch screen to do all of the navigation between the connected devices, via usb cable, to select and copy the content. Straight forward and easy to use.

Psp games look awesome. Press and hold the Vita's front touch screen to provide you with a series of emulation options including screen filtering and second analog stick support. Oh my!

I am working on a day to day, audio diary of my Vita experience. Expect these complete recordings to be offered as a podcast later in the week!

Bloggin With The Vita

This quick post is being written via the PS Vita's web browser. I'm impressed by the speed of it. The glorious OLED screen makes the internets look very impressive. On the game side, holy crap Uncharted: Golden Abyss is friggin amazing! I love it! Big impressions will be posted soon. Stay tuned!

PlayStation Vita Launches!

It's here!

I've got mine. I haven't been able to play it yet with life being so busy. However, I can confirm that the screen is gorgeous. I have updated the firmware, installed my downloaded purchases and charged her up. So she's ready for prime-time!

Expect impressions very soon.

To hold you over here are a few reviews to check out. I choose non-video game news sites. Why? I found it interesting that general tech news sites to be very impressed with the hardware and software offering. Their opinions, I found to be very informative, comparing the hardware to the grand scheme of things within the mobile tech industry.

PC WORLD

ENGADGET

CNET

Sony Tablet S Wins Design Award

One of the greatest compliments out of all of the reviews for Sony's Tablet S is it's beautiful, comfortable design factor. Elegant, Sexy, yet extremely comfortable to use, the tablet has been a winner. To many, it is their favorite Android tablet.

Esato is reporting that the S has won the iF Product Design Award 2012 in the Tablet category. The iF awards are selected from industry professionals from all corners of mobile, electronics and telecommunications. Sony also won an award for their Ericsson Xperia active, which was awarded the iF Product Design Award 2012 gold.

Very cool! Could 2012 be the year of Sony? I hope so!

BTW: Did you get your PS Vita yet?!?

My First Computer

Yes it was a long, long time ago in a galaxy far, far away...

I introduce you to the TRS-80 MC-10. An under powered, introductory computer that would be crushed by my eventual Commodore 64.

Wow. I honestly haven't even thought about that little computer in ages. She sure is a cute little computer. Definitely attractive with the "chiclets" style keyboard and piano white, modern style. I remember coding for hours, typing in basic code to breath life into it. I think I still have it in my basement somewhere.

If your interested in learning more, check out the wikipedia entry HERE.

Plus, these guys have a kick ass site with brand new games for it HERE.

Madden 12 Season Is At An End

Well Football fans. *sniff*

The Super Bowl has ended which means, the big ole' final Madden 12 roster update will be rolling out. *sniff* Expect it sometime this week. *sniff* ;(

There is the NFL Combine and Draft to look forward to. *sniff* EA Sports has also announced they will be starting their Madden 13 cover vote on March 6th.

There is stuff to look forward to. No games being played, but mystery and intrigue continues to lure fans for their favorite NFL franchise. Who will be in, who will be out. Hmmm... Interesting.

It was a particular exciting yet frustrating season for Packers fans, such as myself. An awesome record setting 15-1 season was rolling out, that is until the 1st round of the playoffs when we where blown away by the Giants. *sniff* It still burns. However, according to my franchise in Madden 12, the Green Bay Packers did win the Super Bowl. ;)

David Jaffe Kicks Ass

One of my favourite modern game developers is the man, David Jaffe.

God of War and Twisted Metal are two big PlayStation franchises the man is responsible for. The upcoming release of PS3's Twisted Metal is generating big buzz with old and new fans alike. So watch this...



Awesome! Right? Hell yeah!
While we are on topic the man. Why not watch this and exercise your brain a bit? It's great stuff! From DICE 2012, the man discusses narrative and video gameplay.

PlayStation Blog Welcomes You To Vita

This is awesome.

To be surrounded by crap loads of social media and sites celebrating the PlayStation Vita's upcoming launch. Sony's own PS Blog, has uploaded a heft 12 minute video showing off the portable powerhouse.

Enjoy!

PSP Compatible Vita Titles

What I understand about PSP backwards compatibility for the Vita is that, it is a combination of software emulation and hardware. Sorta a half and half situation. One can't strictly write an emulator and SHAZAAM! It works.

Off the start, not all of the PSP games downloadable from the PSN are ready to run on your brand spanking new Vita. Sony has comprised a list and a "how-to-guide" of getting your classic collection on to the new portable power house.

Notable games that are compatible include the God of War titles, The 3rd Birthday, Dissidia: Final Fantasy and Soul Calibur: Broken Destiny.

Check out the complete list HERE. It is noted that as time marches forward, more and more titles will be added.

PS Vita Unboxed

The kind folks at The Official PlayStation Blog have uploaded a video showcasing the unboxing of your favorite new portable video game system. Damn fine! Oh and Abby Reyes of the PS Blog is very cute as well. ;)

Enjoy!

Breaking News: Vita Games On The PSN!

I'll get straight to the point.

Uncharted: Golden Abyss - $44.99
ModNation Racers Road Trip - $26.99
Hot Shots Golf: World Invitational - $35.99
Wipeout 2048 - $35.99
Super Stardust Delta - $9.99

These games are on the PlayStation Network Store right now, alongside their respected prices. Do some digging around and you'll notice that Sony did keep their promise of a "digital discount" on downloadable games. It's not the most gigantic discount ever, but it is welcome and it'll help "pay back" for that memory card you had to purchase.

I have purchased/downloaded Uncharted, ModNation Racers and Hot Shots Golf. Awesome! I can't wait for my Vita! ;)

Google Chrome Finally Hits Google Android

The Sony Tablet S is my first Android platform device. One of the first things I attempted to do was download Google's own Chrome web browser for it. It made sense, use Google's own web browser for their own mobile platform.

Sadly, Chrome wasn't on the Android Market, even alongside other useful Google apps. I'm sure there is a perfectly logical explanation as to why Google never had their beloved web browser on their own mobile OS. Hmmm...

That has all changed as of now, exclusive for Android 4.0 users, Chrome Beta has finally arrived. Ice cream Sandwich devices can use it now, sadly the Sony Tablet S won't be upgraded to the tasty platform until spring. Then I can finally test ride the "new" browser.

Vita Getting MGS HD Collection Soon

Beloved video game developer/creator/writer/producer/director/all-around-awesome-dude Hideo Kojima, has been Tweeting recently about the upcoming Metal Gear Solid HD Collection for the PlayStation Vita. I can't wait for this package!

Included should be all of the contents of the HD console package. The contents consisted of MGS 2, 3 and Peace Walker. Alongside the original MSX Metal Gear 1 & 2 games. This package is massive and is essential to any gamer. To have this much MGS goodness on the go for myself, is mind blowing awesome!

Yeah, you can tell I'm excited!

It appears that the collection will also utilize the Vita's unique controls, such as being able to slit enemies throat's via sliding the back track pad. The collection is slated to arrive later this year.

Podcast 04 - Sony PSP Retrospective

Just in time for the North American PlayStation Vita, a look back at Sony's PSP. The company's first handheld gaming/multimedia device. Discussed are the system's various hardware revisions, firmware updates and essential games.

Podcast Direct Link Download

Podcast Powered By Podbean

Podcast Powered By Podbean

Sony Troubles: Kaz Ain't Softening Sh*t Up

A few posts ago, I mentioned that The Wall Street Journal official confirmed that Kazuo Hirai will lead the full Sony company very soon. Kaz gave a recent interview to the news organization, which was direct and not full of soft cuddly BS.

"I thought turning around the PlayStation business was going to be the toughest challenge of my career, but I guess not," he said in an exclusive interview with The Wall Street Journal in January, talking about difficulties in fixing the electronics business. "It's one issue after another. I feel like 'Holy s—, now what?'"

The Interview is fascinating, especially that bit I had to BOLD with my magnificent "cut & paste" style of reporting. Kaz is serious about Sony's situation, confronted with a company that has eyes seeing through past glory's and not focused on future success. It's a great interview, so please check it out.

PS Vita Games Are Out Now!

PlayStation Vita games are out in retail chains now. Right now! Hooray!

As you can see, Uncharted: Golden Abyss and Hot Shots Golf: World International are my first two purchases. Exciting!

Expect accessories to hit shelves this week, just in time for the first bundle release on February 15th.

Hooray! :)

Breaking News: Vita Digital Distribution To Be Cheaper

Let's make this short but sweet...

You can purchase your PlayStation Vita games either -

a) In a retail chain, games are distributed on a propiatory card format.

b) On Sony's PSN, as a digital game storred on your Vita's memory card.

Of course, digital distributed of games do not have fancy box art, packaging or physical manuals. So it is with great happiness that digital game's purchases will be around 5 dollars cheaper. Hooray!

Monstrous entertaining IGN received the 411 from Sony themselves, their response ""PSN games will be discounted. We will be issuing final pricing details shortly."

My plan has been since day one, is to purchase most of Vita content via the PlayStation Network. I really don't fancy myself caring around a bunch of tiny game cards. So it is welcoming to see a discount at the checkout, since the counter argument is that I loose a physical copy.

Source: IGN

Kaz Is The Man

Beloved PlayStation big man Kaz Hirai, has been rumored for months to become president of Sony. Yes, Sony. Not it's music or movie division. The main company itself. The whole cheese.

The Wall Street Journal is reporting that Kaz will become president and chief executive officer of Sony within the next couple of months.

His success with the PlayStation brand is nothing but amazing. Especially in the wake of last year's PlayStation Network attack/shutdown and Japan's Tsunami disaster, which crippled the company, only to see profits return/rise by year's end.

Yes. Kaz is the man. We at Gamer Win Hands Down wish to congratulate him in his new roll. Hopefully, this doesn't mean that he won't be making any more E3 appearances.