“SCEA will not be offering the UMD Passport program. U.S. consumers who already own digital versions of select PSP titles will be able to seamlessly transfer those games to their PS Vita system. What’s great for PS Vita owners is that they can enjoy PSP games with upscaled video quality that’s ideal for the system’s 5-inch OLED screen, along with controls that are optimized for its features such as the dual analog sticks. More than 250 PSP titles (including minis) will be available at the launch of PS Vita, and hundreds of additional titles will be available post-launch,” said a Sony rep in a statement.

The UMD Passport program was introduced in Japan as a means for PSP owners to transfer their UMD-locked games to the Vita. The transfer involved a small fee, which quickly became a point of contention as publishers were given a free hand to decide on the pricing. As Giant Bomb points out, this brought inconsistency to the program where some games like Patapon 3 and Gran Turismo costing $12.89, while Hot Shots Golf 2 cost $6.44. Many games weren’t even part of the passport program.

We have contacted Sony to see if this applies to the Middle East as well. PS Vita launches on February 22 worldwide.

The v1.60 firmware update will add a map application, that will use satellite to provide directions and others things that a ‘map app’ should.

The camera app will receive a bump up as well, with the system now able to handle video recording.

Finally, the update will add Mac OSX support for Vita. Sony will also release a OSX version of the Content Managmenet Assistant for PlayStation, allowing Mac users to transfer content between their PC and Vita.

Vita launches on Feb 22 worldwide. We are guessing the update will come pre-packaged with it?

Is it me, or does 'SEN' sound sinister?

The change is touted as a means to “establishing a global comprehensive network platform of services across games, movies, music and more, all accessible from one convenient account.”

Fortunately, nothing much is needed from the user’s end – except signing a new Terms of Service. PS3 and Vita will soon require an update, formally making the change on the systems themselves. All of the account information, including IDs, addresses and passwords will stay as-is.

Sony is currently sending out emails informing PSN users of the change. If you haven’t received yours, here’s what it will say:

On February 8, 2012, your “PlayStation®Network account” will be renamed a “Sony Entertainment Network account” or a “SEN account” in conjunction with Sony Computer Entertainment’s PlayStation®3 system software and PlayStation®Vita system software updates. (Note, this change will not be applied to the PSP® (PlayStation®Portable) system at this time.)

Sincerely,
The Sony Entertainment Network Team

PSN – lay peaceful, good friend.

A $23.27 billion in revenue apparently didn’t help the Japanese corporation avoid the massive loss.

Sony blames the “significant” decreased sales of its products as well as the floods in Thailand among the reasons behind the loss, while citing the price cut of the PS3 and poor sales of LCD TVs as a contributing factor “to the deterioration in operating results.”

Damage to Sony’s Thai manufacturing plants accounted for the total loss of $114 million.

Meanwhile Sony reports that 6.5 million PlayStation 3 units were sold during that period of the quarter, lifting the worldwide lifetime sales of the home console to the grand total 62 million.

We have today received confirmation from Sony that the case will be similar for the Middle East as well.

The news surfaced after a NeoGaf user spotted a BestBuy advert showing digital versions of PS Vita games to be at least 10% cheaper than the retail versions.

Sony hasn’t yet poured in the specifics, but has promised to announce something very soon.

The PS Vita launches on Feb 22nd.

When will it release in the UAE? (Aboody Isaac)
The UAE release date for the PS Vita is February 22nd, with the Wi-fi and 3G editions being available. For full pricing information, click here, and for launch details outside of the UAE click here.

Where can I pre-order a PS Vita ? (Mohamed Shahin)
If you are in Dubai, pre-orders are currently being taken for PS Vita at Jumbo Electronics and at Geekay Games. Their pre-order campaign should also be available in branches in other parts of the UAE, but it’s worth just calling them first to check.

Is a PS Vita game bound to a PS Vita? Can I re-sell a PS Vita game? (Salue Salute)
To the best of our knowledge, games are not bound to the Vita, only the memory cards are. So you will be able to sell your game cards or borrow a game card to play from a friend. The only thing to pay attention to is that if you want to earn Trophies from the game, you will have to delete any game data that is saved on the game card itself – you will be prompted if you want to do this if the Vita detects save data on your game card that does not belong to your profile.

This handheld is non-UMD right? So it’s going be more like download games only? But I would like to know more about the game card. Are they having cards instead of UMD’s? (Kammie Dante)
The PS Vita will allow you to download games from the Playstation Store, and will also allow you to play games from the PS Vita game cards. The cards effectively replace the UMD discs that were used in the PSP.

Can Vita be integrated in games for PS3? I mean to be used as a controller for PS3? (various)
There are a few things you can do with a Vita and PS3. On games like Wipeout, you can use the Crossplay feature to play games against each other on the PS Vita and PS3. You can also connect the PS Vita to the PS3 system to copy or backup applications and multimedia such as photos, music, and videos. You cannot use the Vita as an additional controller or integrated it into any PS3 games. You can however use the Remote Play feature on the PS Vita to remotely connect to and control your PS3, as you could do on the PSP.

Can you play videos on PS Vita? (various)
During our test we were able to copy videos to the PS Vita, but they had to be of mp4 / .H364 format. Playback also only supports up to 720p, so any video content in high definition that you’ve downloaded on your PS3 from the Playstation Store won’t work on the Vita.

About the “3G”, will providers like Zain, VIVA or STC, Etisalat etc provide us with 3G for our PS VITA? Or are we going to stay with Wifi only? (Reaper Ex)
Playstation have partnered with Vodafone to provide 3G content for the PS Vita, however we aren’t sure if this extends to Middle East countries where Vodafone operates. In the UAE there have been no announced partnerships with local ISPs du and Etisalat, however you will be able to use a regular SIM card with an active data package in the Vita. The Vita is also not SIM-locked, so any SIM card can be used.

How are the graphics? Can it beat tablets? (@Saadie)
The graphics on the Vita are certainly very impressive for such a device. It handles graphics very well and most games look very smooth and glitch-free. While the screen size might not be as large as most tablets, its OLED screen offers a more than adequate gaming experience, and even web browsing is quite comfortable.

Is there a Metal Gear game on the PS Vita? (Al Kim)
Metal Gear Solid HD collection will be coming to the PS Vita, but no release date has been announced yet.

How good is it compared to the PS3? (Akash Ladkani)
It’s hard to do a direct comparison between the two as they are different pieces of hardware. The PS Vita is capable of near-PS3 graphics in games like Uncharted, and many others.

I heard that it can be use as a smart phone? How true is that? (Frank San)
Completely false. The SIM card you insert is for data services only, and there’s nothing on the Vita that will allow you to make or receive phone calls or send messages etc. Skype will be made available through the Playstation Store (its availability in the Middle East is unknown), however apart from Skype there is no other way to turn your PS Vita into a smart phone.

If you get the device from japan do we need a transformer to charge it? (Sulaiman Al-jaber)
Yes, as the voltage in Japan is 100 volts, so you would need to buy a power adapter that would be able to convert this into a compatible charge. One thing worth noting is that for Vitas sold in Japan, the X and O buttons are reversed, as X in Japanese games is to cancel an option, and O is to accept.

How does the PSN accounts work with the memory cards? (Omar Nassralla Ali)
You can only have one Playstation account associated to one memory card. So if you want to have multiple players sharing one PS Vita, they all need to have their own memor card.

Main questions, is it any good? And worth buying ? How are the graphics Speed ? Touch? (Charitha Rukshan)
Questions best answered by our in-depth Vita review!

Does it play PS3 titles too? 
Er, no.

The first to come forth was Cedrick Delmas, marketing director of Microsoft France who, in an interview with Lepoint.Fr said that he is “not convinced” if anything “will happen this year”. There is “nothing new in 2012″.

“We’re in an industry that talks a lot, that likes to tell stories. I am not convinced things will happen this year. Xbox 360′s cycle is not at all finished. The proof is that we don’t see the logic in cutting the price this year. E3 is still premature. What’s certain is that there’ll be nothing new in 2012.”

“We’re not here to counter Nintendo and they’re not here to fight the other manufacturers. Nintendo has put itself in a different cycle, they’re advancing at their own pace,” he added.

Again, in an interview with Lepoint.Fr, PlayStation France boss said that not only will PlayStation 4 miss a 2012 release, but the company will probably be the “last to announce something.”

“It’s true that there are a lot of rumours, but I couldn’t tell you anything,” said Philippe Cardone.

“Wii is pressed for time because it’s in decline. In our case, we have a lot less pressure. We were the last to release PS3, and we will probably be the last to announce something.”

In a YouTube video addressing fans, CEO Ted Price said the team believes the series has reached its “logical conclusion” in terms of story. It’s not the end for the franchise, however, with Price hoping it will continue to live on under Sony, and expand in the future.

“We believe that Resistance has reached its logical conclusion in terms of the story that we wanted to tell,” he said.

“However, that doesn’t mean that the Resistance franchise isn’t continuing – it’s already in the capable hands of Nihilistic and with Sony’s shepherding we know that it will continue to live on and expand.

“We’re excited as fanboys to see where it goes.”

The PlayStation Vita will release on the same day as the UAE for all the countries listed below, which is February 22nd. Memory cards will be available in 4Gb, 8GB and 16GB varieties. Pricing as below:

Saudi Arabia
Vita WiFi-only – SAR 1199
Vita WiFi+3G – SAR 1499

Bahrain
Vita WiFi-only – BD 119.900
Vita WiFi+3G – BD 156.900

Kuwait
Vita WiFi-only – KD 89
Vita WiFi+3G – KD 116

Qatar
Vita WiFi-only – QR 1140.221
Vita WiFi+3G – QR 1486.442

Oman
Vita WiFi-only – OMR 120.628
Vita WiFi+3G – OMR 157.256

Speaking to Industry Gamers, the CPO of the cloud-based gaming service has predicted that at least one of the current console manufacturer will raise hands, accept defeat and politely withdraw from the console war. And that, in fact, will be the big news at E3, not the nex-gen consoles itself.

“Not all of the current console makers will have one more generation. That will be the big news at E3,” said Reeves.

The possibilities of either Microsoft or Sony backing down is ridiculous. Not only do they have both resources and projects tied up to the business, both the companies have massive egos that just won’t accept the beating.

Of course, Reeves could be hinting at a cloud-based service, but that seems quite far-fetched considering how it will just limit the platform’s reach. Many parts of the world, including the Middle East upto certain extent, is not fully equipped, in terms of technology and price, to run avail such a service. Plus, hey, hiring servers all around the world is a massively huge investment in itself.