Taking place at the historic Gurzeniche building, and flanked with plenty of tough-looking security, it was clear that Sony had something special inside, as the scores of writers and journalists got ready for the Sony conference.
Sony clearly also had a specific agenda this year, something that they were only to keen to tell everyone about.
Sony Europes Andrew House was on the stage, to tell everyone just exactly how important the European market was to the company, before announcing that he will shortly step down from his role and go on to work for Sony in Tokyo.
House then gave the floor to his replacement Jim Ryan, who is now head of SCEE. Ryan then spoke about the upcoming PS Vita, confirming that the final model will have the rear touch screen, front touch screen and cameras, as well as several software programs such as Near, Party and LiveArea. As well as being available in wifi only and 3G models, the “Vita will enjoy an always-connected experienceâ€, according to Ryan, before he briefly left the floor for a quick demo video of upcoming Vita games.
Next, we got to see one of the more anticipated Vita games, Resistance: Burning Skies. Sony WWS is up on the stage, and they’re telling us how this is a brand new chapter in the Resistance story, as players will take control of a fire fighter named Tom, who becomes an underground hero to the oppressed humans.
There’s some impressive footage of the front touch screen in action, with weapons being assigned to icons on it, for quick use, while we’re also told that each gun in the game has an alt fire mode, that can be used with the touch screen. Highlighting enemies and tagging areas with bombs is just a taste of what we’re shown, and the action on the little screen looks solid so far for the Insomniac developed game.
Afterwards, Sony Worldwide Studios Europe Vice President Michael Denny comes to talk to us, about shows us some more footage of the upcoming Little Big Planet for the Vita, and then we’re treated to an impromptu match for the upcoming Reality Fighters game, which makes full use of augmented reality mechanics.
Denny calls the match between two of his underlings, as they use the very same Sony stage that they’re standing on to fight each other. It looks like a fun little brawler of a title, but its going to need more than just a quick dose of AR if Reality Fighters wants to be a must have game.
Denny then shows us footage afterwards of another upcoming Vita game, Escape plan. This looks much more promising and entertaining, as it sees two strange people, one jolly fat man and his smaller partner with an inflatable suit, attempt to escape a facility that they have been locked up in.
The visuals are crisp and beautifully stylised, while the puzzles look devious and mind-boggling, as well as completely lethal should you fail them. A montage clip shows us exactly how dangerous the world is for characters Lil and Laarg, as they’re constantly and horribly killed by the various hazards around them.
Ryan was back on stage then, to talk about how the PSP has been a successful venture for Sony, and how the company wants to keep the original handheld around, by introducing more games into the budget range, while also selling a new model PSP, that will retail for 100 Euros. Its slimmer, but the original design is still there.
Denny the returns to the stage, to tell us how relevant the PS3 still is after being around for over 4 years now, while also confirming that Sony wants to implement more move functionality into their games, with FIFA 13 currently being developed for this function.
Afterwards, some bizarre dance choreography by a group that looks like Cobra Command henchman takes the stage, as they bust out new moves to promote the upcoming Dance Star Party. There’s some polite clapping for the dance group Diversity at the end of that.
Denny then shows us a Resistance 3 video, which includes all the the usual bits of action and ominous foretellings, as main character Grayson attempts to finally stop the Chimera threat. Resistance 3 is confirmed with a release date of September 7 in European territories.
We’re then treated to some upcoming Infamous 2 content, this time with a dark twist. Festival of Blood will see Cole try and drive back the vampires that have descended on New Marais, as well as try and find a cure for the vampirism that he currently suffers from, after having been bitten. The new Infamous mission is available from October.
After that, we got to see some more Uncharted 3 action. The action flows freely and quickly in this shirt demo, as Drake attempts to board an enemy plane while under attack, only to be assaulted by a tough opponent who easily shrugs off his blows, and then tries to throw Drake out of the plane. The demo ends with Drake victorious, but hanging on for dear life as he desperately tries not to fall from the plane.
Ryan is back, this time to talk to us about the upcoming PS3 3D TV. There’s no real new information about the device, but we are told that the official price for the 24 inch set will be 500 Euros, and that it will launch with two pairs of 3D glasses.
Finally, we got official confirmation that the PS3 will indeed be receiving a significant price cut, effective immediately, with the home console now being marketed at the $249/ Euros range, so if you’re planning on buying the console, hold on until the price cut hits us over here.
With that being said, the Sony Conference was over, with everyone migrating to the foyer to play some upcoming games and enjoy some wonderful German cuisine.
Last Updated: August 17, 2011
