PlayStation 'Vita'

Sony needs to gain back points from their customers after the many recent hacking attacks, security breaches and risks to private information of their PSN users. At E3 they opened with a large apology to their users, retailers and publishers and then got straight to the content. Most particular, Sony shed more light on it’s NGP, the successor to the PSP line launched in 2004.

The new device was first mentioned in Japan back in January but now we have a name, PlayStation Vita (Vita meaning ´life´ in Latin). It looks much the same as the PSP Go! in it’s curved design, but packs much more power inside the machine.

Like Apple with their new iCloud, the PSV will also use a cloud system to connect the PS3 and the PSV together for local ad-hoc multiplayer. This enables users to play a game on the PSV, save it and then continue playing from the same save on the PS3, as demonstrated with the upcoming ´Ruin´ RPG game. Not only that, but games such as Wipeout 2048 will let PS3 and PSV players race against each other online and the console comes with cross-game voice chat from launch.

Sony hopes to revolutionize the way that people spend their days, combining the entertainment of a handheld games console and the interactivity of social networking.

Two versions will be released, a Wi-Fi version retailing at €249 and a 3G enabled version at €299, which aren’t bad price tags for the high-end components involved which pit it against Ninetndo’s 3DS retailing at a similar price point. Will this new console be able to bring Sony back into the customers favour? Time shall tell!