E3 2011: Sony Press Conference Roundup

Sony began their 15th E3 press conference by apologising for the disruption to PlayStation Network. Jack Tretton personally apologised on behalf of the company to the audience, both in the conference and viewing online. Tretton also announced that PSN usage was at 90% of the level it was prior to the outages.

Eager to put the bad press behind them, Sony put out quite a showing, including launching a new console, the PlayStation Vita and also showcasing a whole host of titles that will be coming to the console.

Evan Wells and Chris Balestra from Naughty Dog came on stage to demo Uncharted 3 in 3D for the audience, while viewers are home watched it on a live stream. The live demo included several gameplay elements to be found in the game, including stealth combat, swimming and even horse riding. In addition, it was announced that Subway customers in the US would get full multiplayer access before the game is released.

Next up was Resistance 3, where Sony announced the Doomsday edition for the game, as well as showing off some gameplay on stage. The Doomsday Edition will come with the PlayStation Move kit and the Sharpshooter gun attachment for Move. Resistance 3 will have 3D support when it launches.

HD remakes are all the rage at E3 this year, and Sony wasn’t going to be left out, so announced that the PSP God of War titles, bundled as God of War: Origins, would be coming to PS3, as well as Team Ico Classics, which will be releasing in September 2011.

In a push for 3D gaming, Sony announced their very own branded 24″ 3D Display. The screen allows two players to view a different image on the same screen, which is ideal for multiplayer fun. The screen will be bundled with Resistance 3, cables, 3D glasses and will cost $499. Additional 3D glasses will cost $69.99. The aim of this is to make 3D more accessible to the masses.

Next up was future PlayStation Move titles, whereby 2K Sports came onto the stage, bringing Kobe Bryant along with them to display the new Move features for NBA 2K12. The Move feature will be called NBA on the Move and Bryant described the experience as being “So realistic, it’s frightening.”

Another title coming to Move is Medieval Moves: Deadmund’s Quest, which will have no inventory or menu, and instead rely entirely on the player’s gestures to choose weapons navigate the menu. Deadmund’s Quest will be out this fall. inFamous 2 will also be getting an update later in the year which will add Move support and on top of this, LittleBigPlanet 2 will also be getting a big Move update. Then came Starhawk and Sly Cooper: Thieves in Time, which will both be released in 2012.

CCP then came up to introduce Dust 514, a PlayStation exclusive shooter that will connect to EVE Online and run on the same servers. Interestingly, actions in the console version of the game will affect happenings in EVE. The game will also have Home, Move and Vita support, which will make for some really interesting cross-platform gameplay. Dust 514 will be getting a beta later in the year.

Then came quite a big announcement, Bioshock Infinite will feature Move support, as well as confirming a Bioshock title will be coming to the PlayStation Vita. The first Bioshock title will also be on the same disc as Infinite when it releases for PlayStation 3. You can check out nine minutes of gameplay, which looks epic, and the E3 trailer here.

Sony then pushed some exclusive content that it will be bringing to titles as they arrive, including an exclusive multiplayer mode in Saints Row The Third, as well as Move support for the new Star Trek game, which will come with a phaser attachment.

EA has given Sony some sweet exclusives, too, including  a Mount Fuji level for SSX, a special disc which will feature seven additional supercars for Need for Speed: The Run, and Battlefield 3 will be bundled with Battlefield 1943 when it is released on PS3 come October 25.

Finally, the news everyone was waiting for, the NGP got it’s proper name, PlayStation Vita, which meant that previous leaks were accurate. Kaz Hirai came on stage to talk about the new handheld console. Hirai gave an overview of the specification of the device, including the OLED touch screen, rear touch panel and front and rear facing cameras that were announced when the console was announced in January. Cross-game chat and was also revealed for Vita, in a feature called Party Room. Many gamers will hope this feature arrives for PlayStation 3 soon, too.

Hirai also said that Vita would have 3G and Wi-Fi models,  and would start at $249 in the US when it is launched globally this year. UK retailer GAME is taking pre-orders for the console and pricing it at £229.99.

Vita is getting some big-hitting titles, including the flagship Uncharted: Golden Abyss, which implements many of Vita’s capabilities. Other titles coming to Vita are Modnation Racers, Dynasty Warriors, LittleBigPlanet, Ruin and Street Fighter X Tekken, which will feature Cole from inFamous as an exclusive character. WipEout, Hot Shots Golf, Super Stardust Delta and Reality Fighter were also announced shown in a trailer for Vita.

Ruin allows for cross-platform game saves between Vita and PlayStation 3, meaning gamers will be able to pick up right where they left off when on the move, a feature we are likely to see a lot more of thanks to the power of the console.

Later on in the day, Ridge Racer was also announced for Vita, and we are sure plenty more titles will be announced in anticipation of the launch of Vita later in the year.

That’s about that from Sony’s E3 announcements. Be sure to check the GodisaGeek E3 Page for all the news coming out of the event over the next few days.