The PlayStation Vita: Revisted

Upon its release, the PlayStation Vita was a big talking point around the industry. Sadly, it focused on the system's woes when it came to its lack of commercial success and a consistent lineup of games. This unfortunate turn of events has gone to plague the Vita for its entire life. It is remarkable that the Vita is only three years old and the system is already considered dead. Apart from niche Japanese games published by Atlus, NIS America or Aksys Games, and cross-buy indie titles, Sony and third-parties abandoned the handheld by the end of 2014 at the latest.

The Vita's life has been tragic to say the least, but I am not here to rub salt in wound. Since I recently picked it up for myself, I am here to give an honest opinion to those that may be seriously considering buying the system in the near or distant future.

First and foremost, the PlayStation Vita is a well-designed handheld, which is impressive since it is Sony's second stab at a handheld. Originally, I thought the button placement was too close together. After an extensive amount of time with the Vita over the past month, everything feels responsive and fits well in my hands. I only had a problem with the system's d-pad, which is incredibly flimsy due to Sony's decision to meld it to one plastic plate rather than making them separate buttons.

With front and rear touch screens, cameras, and motion controls on top of the traditional button layout, the Vita is filled to the brim with technology. Maybe a little too much technology. Although I fall under the belief Sony packed far too many things into the Vita, it comes down to how the software uses said technology that determines if it's all warranted. Considering Tearaway is the only Vita game out of the 14 I own that properly uses everything in the system, the touch and motion controls mostly come off as gimmicks instead of essential features.

While the Vita may not have be as powerful as the PS3 in the graphics department, the system's OLED screen, found in all original units but not in the Slim redesign, is wonderful to look at. The high screen resolution makes hand-drawn 2D art pop off the screen. It's like watching a painting in motion. Games that lean towards realism in their graphics, such as Uncharted and Killzone, don't fair as well since the Vita can't pump out realistic polygons and textures like its console brethren.

Apart from the Vita's well-documented lacking library, the system suffers from a major problem when it comes to storage. In order to save or download games, you need a memory card for the Vita. Rather than use a universal memory card like a micro SD, Sony decided to force Vita owners to buy their own proprietary cards for outrageous prices. You can find four or eight gigabyte cards for something more reasonable, but you'll run out of room quick if you start downloading PSP and PS1 games to your system. Due to Sony intentionally shortchanging consumers on memory, you might have to fork over another 50 to 100 dollars on top of the price of the Vita to get enough memory to be comfortable with.

For the 100 dollars I spent on a used PlayStation Vita, it was well worth it. I now own 14 great titles I cannot get on any other system, can experience all the PSP games that I missed out on like Valkyria Chronicles II and Patapon, and have a chance to play all my PS1 classics and cross-buy games on the go. For those that are unable to get the Vita for the same price, I suggest you do some research and determine if there enough games, features and applications to warrant spending 200 dollars or more to buy one for yourself.

Overall, the Vita is a great portable system that is superior all other handhelds on the market when it comes to power and beauty. Unless you're a hardcore gamer or own the consoles needed to unlock the system's full potential, the Vita doesn't have the library or the features to be worth spending upwards of 200 dollars on.

Bit by Bit: July 2015

I did promise back in March to be better at announcing hiatuses for Silver Bit, but I honestly didn't plan this at all.  After the craziness that was E3 2015, I didn't have much drive to write Best Games of E3 article because of the lack of playable demos on the show floor this year.  On top of E3 fatigue, I tried to write an article on collector's editions, but it didn't pan out.

Although a lot of July didn't work out as planned, I am hoping to update Silver Bit on a regular basis in August.  Fingers crossed.

Game of the Month
Two games took up most of my time this past month. The first is Radiant Historia, a turned-based RPG that has you bouncing between two parallel timelines in order to save the world from desertification.  I bought the game two years ago and spent a few hours with it before putting it down until recently.  I always enjoyed the gameplay and premise of Radiant Historia, but it's story and timeline-weaving quests are what will keep you gripping your DS or 3DS for hours on end.  In all seriousness, I play Radiant Historia a good hour or two at a time.  Sadly, I hit a grind wall around chapter four that has caused me to put the game down for the time being.

The second game and July's Game of the Month is Tearaway for the PlayStation Vita.  While I planned on waiting until Tearaway Unfolded for PS4 to dive into Media Molecule's critical darling, my curiosity got the best of me especially considering I found the game for 10 dollars new.  As cool as it would be to experience the beautiful paper craft visuals on a big HDTV, I am so happy that I experienced Tearaway on its system of origin.

Out of all the games on the Vita, Tearaway is the system's killer app.  Unlike other titles, such as Uncharted: Golden Abyss or Killzone: Mercenary, where the use of motion and touch controls feels tacked on, Tearaway uses every feature built into the Vita in an intuitive way.  Seeing your fingers pop out of the back touch screen to dispatch enemies or watching your face play a role as the ever-present sun are just magical.  My descriptions don't do Tearaway justice; it is a game that you have to experience for yourself in order to understand how special it is.

Video of the Month
On July 12th, 2015, the video game industry lost a visionary in Satoru Iwata.  Since the tragic news broke, many lovely tributes for Iwata-san have been made.  All these tributes are amazing, but I can't showcase them all here.  I choose to highlight Screwattack's tribute video because it does a wonderful job at blending Iwata's greatest quotes and the video clips that highlight his quirky personality.

Thank you, Satoru Iwata.  You will be deeply missed.

E3 2015: Sony Press Conference Impressions

There is no need for a cool intro because I'm just going to get to the point.  Sony put on one of the greatest E3 press conferences ever.  If you thought their performance two years ago when they stabbed the knife into Microsoft's heart and just kept digging it in was amazing, this show was light years greater than that one.  I have never been physically exhausted from watching a press conference due to all the cheering, smiling and hysterical laughing I did throughout the show.

Sony started their presser by re-revealing The Last Guardian for PS4 and didn't slow down until a hour into it.  Each game in that hour from the large AAA titles to the small indie titles hit it out of the park.  The pace was just rapid fire one after the other with little time to rest, but that breakneck speed made everyone in the audience and watching across the globe experience an unimaginable sense of adrenaline.

Every title at Sony's press conference, except for Call of Duty: Black Ops III and its generic explosion-fest of a demo, had an impressive showing.  Even among the masses of great titles, there were a few standouts.  Guerilla Games' new IP Horizon: Zero Dawn could of easily closed the show with its unique premise, compelling gameplay and freaking robot dinosaurs!  Naughty Dog made the Uncharted 4 delay even more unbearable thanks to a wonderful demo following Drake and Sully's misadventures through a South American town.  Media Molecule's game Dreams intrigued with its ability to literally mold anything you want into reality be it a game, film or piece of interactive media.

On top of all that, Sony dropped some mind-blowing surprises that left many jaws gaping, eyes popping and tears flowing.  Sony started off with a cool trailer for a brand new Hitman game followed by giving us a charming crossover in World of Final Fantasy.  Then the bombs started dropping.  Right after the World of Final Fantasy reveal, Sony announced the heavily-requested full remake of Final Fantasy VII, which had people going bonkers.  If you didn't think that was enough, Sony made waves upon unveiling Shenmue III's existence.  I will be honesty, I choked up when the Shenmue III trailer appeared on the screen; I couldn't believe what I was watching.  It was a magical moment to say the least.

Although I have been singing this conferences praises, it did slow down considerably after the first hour.  The clear change in pace came from an out-of-place montage that should have gone at the end of the show instead of right in the middle.  Seriously, I thought the show was over when they played that montage.  Sony did bounce back with some Project Morpheus updates, exclusive packages for Disney Infinity 3.0 and a new gameplay trailer for Star Wars Battlefront.  It was almost all for naught when Sony ran into some difficulties connecting controllers for the Uncharted demo, but it was fixed thanks to a timely reset.

Even with a few hiccups and a generic demo, Sony's E3 2015 press conference will be immortalized for its breakneck pace, mind-blowing surprises and impressive games.  While I am disappointed that Sony did nothing to bolster their offerings this holiday season, 2016's lineup will sure make up for it in spades.

Grade:  A+

E3 2015: The Big Questions

Here we go again.  Another year, another week of gaming goodness or corporate catastrophe is less than a day away.  This uncertainty seems to be the name of the game when it comes to the 2015 Electronic Entertainment Expo (E3).  On one hand, there has been little in the way of earth-shattering news to come out of the video game industry in such a long time that E3 could be a glorious avalanche of huge announcements and surprises.  On the other hand, all the leaks and trailers from the past two weeks could be the extent of this year's offerings.

While E3 2015 could go either way, there a some big questions that the industry needs to address in the coming week.  Questions that concern the video game industry's future in both the short and long-term.

How will a lack of exclusives affect Sony and Microsoft?
This question only concerns Sony and Microsoft because a console manufacturer (*cough* Nintendo) needs to rely solely on their exclusive content to sell their consoles when they have no third-party support.

The challenges Sony and Microsoft face when it comes to their lineup of exclusives are completely different.  Sony has a problem when it comes to mobilizing an exclusive game to fill the void Uncharted 4's delay left, while Microsoft relies far too much on third-parties that their small roster of over-exposed exclusives are struggling to maintain momentum from year-to-year.

Yet again, we enter a Sony press conference with little to no plan for the holiday season.  Uncharted 4 was suppose to Sony's answer to Halo 5 and Rise of the Tomb Raider.  Now, all Sony has planned are Until Dawn and Tearaway Unfolded, two great-looking titles that sadly are nowhere close to heavy-hitters.  Sony is also re-releasing the first three Uncharted games on PS4, but the Uncharted Collection's upwards of 70 dollars price point is more of a rip-off than a worthy substitute for Uncharted 4.

Last holiday season, Sony relied a lot on third-parties, especially Activision's Destiny, to move PS4s because their exclusives—DriveClub and LittleBigPlanet 3—weren't the killer apps that people wanted.  These wise business decisions along with an insane wave of momentum Sony has been riding since the PS4's launch has kept the system leaps and bounds ahead of the Xbox One, but that string of good luck will eventually run out.  Sony needs to start capitalizing on their huge lead or somebody else, namely Microsoft, will take advantage of their arrogance.  Sony has an army of game studios at their disposal so how we don't have another huge title to replace Uncharted 4 is absurd.  Slot in The Last Guardian or Guerrilla's unannounced project into Uncharted's spot because Sony cannot spend another holiday season sitting on their hands.

While Sony has a problem with capitalizing on their lead, Microsoft is having problems convincing people to buy the Xbox One.  In all honesty, the Xbox One is severely lacking when it comes to exclusives, especially when you take into account indie titles and timed exclusives such as Titanfall, Sunset Overdrive and Rise of the Tomb Raider.  On top of that, their small roster of first-party properties (Halo, Fable, Forza and Gears of War) have all been over-exposed thanks to yearly releases or franchise mismanagement.  Gears of War may be the only major franchise that gamers are craving for since there hasn't been a new entry in the series for over two years now.

Last year at E3, Microsoft made a concerted effort to show gamers that they had a renewed interest in first-party development with a large lineup of new exclusive content including Scalebound, Crackdown, Quantum Break and Phantom Dust.  Here we are a year later and Microsoft's supposed renewed interest in first-party development has seemingly gone up in smoke.  Scalebound, Crackdown and Quantum Break will not be at this year's E3 and Phantom Dust is stuck in development limbo as Microsoft dropped the game's developer in February and has yet to find a replacement.  Unless Microsoft has a slew of unannounced projects ready to drop on us at their press conference, they are stuck with a major problem that could plague them this entire generation.

Third-party support and exclusive DLC can only take a system so far.  There NEEDS to be a consistent lineup of exclusives or the Xbox One won't have the staying power needed to compete with the more robust lineups of the Wii U and PS4.

Will the new contenders in press conference circuit sink or swim?
There use to be a time when E3 played host to a plethora of press conferences from Konami to Disney Interactive.  Sadly as time went on, some publishers stopped running press conferences due to ever-increasing costs or their own corporate restructuring.  As a result, five publishers were left as the flag bearers for every show: Microsoft, EA, Ubisoft, Sony and Nintendo.  This time around two new challengers in Bethesda and Square Enix are entering the E3 press conference circuit to try their luck at hanging with the big publishers in the industry.

There has been a lot of speculation surrounding these new conferences because neither company would invest the insane amount of money and effort into a conference if they didn't have a stellar lineup of titles to show.  Bethesda has already announced that Fallout 4 and Doom 4 will be at their presser.  On the other end, Square Enix has confirmed Deus Ex: Mankind Divided's first gameplay footage for their conference along with Final Fantasy XV's absence from the show altogether.  Could this mean we'll get some surprises like the rumoured Dishonored 2 or an official release date for Kingdom Hearts 3?  Those questions may soon be answered as Bethesda kicks off the proceedings late Sunday, June 14th and Square Enix stands as the final press conference before the show floor opens Tuesday, June 16th.

How will Virtual Reality (VR) headsets factor into E3?
With Oculus VR at the helm, virtual reality (VR) headsets have taken the industry by storm.  Game publishers and developers are eagerly jumping into the VR headset race with their own VR headset or games made for the devices.

Is VR the future of video games as we know it?  Maybe in the distant future, but it's hard to say at this point in time.  At this very moment, there are two key issues that can completely halt VR's forward momentum: price and input.  Funny enough, price is the one topic no one wants to talk about and input devices like Oculus Touch have only been demoed through video or behind closed doors.

Since E3 will be the final trade show before VR headsets land on store shelves starting this Fall, it will be the most important show for VR as a whole.  E3 is the final push for these VR manufacturers and developers to convince gamers to shell their hard-earned cash on their products.  There is also a possibility that VR headsets could be a centerpiece at the Sony and Microsoft press conferences considering Sony is developing their own headset called Project Morpheus and Microsoft's newly announced partnership with Oculus.

It will be interesting to see how much of a factor VR will play into E3 as a whole.  VR could either end up being the new input device for games going forward or go the way of 3D and motion gaming.

Bit by Bit: December 2014

The funny thing about plans is that they get thrown out the window at a moment's notice.  Coming off of school, I had a lot of ideas swirling around my head in which I was so eager to write about.  During this time, life has been a lot more eventful than I anticipated it to be and plans changed to cover these new developments like The Game Awards, Amiibogeddon and the Uncharted 4 demo.  In all honesty, I was hoping to produce a lot more content than I actually did, but I am really happy with the quality of articles posted in the last month.

As 2014 comes to a close, Silver Bit starts its annual Year in Review series.  Check back in the coming weeks to see the great games I missed out on, my favourite games of the year and the illustrious Game of the Year.  Starting with this new edition of Bit by Bit, Silver Bit is going to bring in 2015 in style.

Game of the Month
With Silver Bit's Year in Review just around the corner, I am going to be highlighting a lot of great games.  Sadly, I am going to be cutting back on the number of games I highlight in The Games portion of the Year in Review.  I am making this decision due to how little games I played this year compared to previous years.  Since I am cutting back, some great games are not going to make the cut.  Most of these titles have already been highlighted in past editions of Bit by Bit or through reviews and previews.  With that in mind, I want to shine the spotlight on one more title that deserves some love despite not making the cut.  Without any further ado, December's Game of the Month is Captain Toad: Treasure Tracker for the Wii U.

Many people fondly remember the Captain Toad levels from Super Mario 3D World for their change in pace and unorthodox gameplay.  Mario games are known for their pixel perfect platforming and these levels stripped that away.  Since Captain Toad couldn't jump, players needed to maneuver the camera in order to reveal the optimal path for Toad to take.  While there were only a handful of Captain Toad levels in 3D World, they left quite the impression on players.  In fact, these levels left such a great impression that Nintendo elaborated on the gameplay and puzzles to create an entire game revolving around the whimsical captain.

Captain Toad: Treasure Tracker features over 70 levels to complete on Toad and Toadette's quest to collect treasure and defeat the psychedelic bird Wingo.  The levels in Treasure Tracker grow to be four to five times larger than the ones found in 3D World.  This expansion in level size creates new challenges for players to overcome as the puzzles involve multiple levels and more enemies stand in the way.  Adding to this challenge are the special objectives, such as collecting three gems, completing a level without taking damage or finding the Gold Mushroom, offered for every level.  All-in-all, Captain Toad: Treasure Tracker is a charmingly fun puzzle platformer that deserves more than getting lost in the hustle and bustle of larger titles this holiday season.

Most Anticipated Toys of the Month
Nintendo's line of Amiibo figures have gotten tons of attention since they released alongside Super Smash Bros. for Wii U this past November.  This attention stems from the ensuing craze started from these figures selling out across the globe.  I have been fortunate enough to get every Amiibo released in the first two waves.  Now, my sights are set on collecting the third wave releasing this coming February.  So far, I have pre-ordered every figure available through EB Games including the exclusive Shulk figure and am impatiently waiting to pre-order the other exclusive figures as soon as they are available.  To say these figures are my most anticipated things of the month may be an understatement as collecting these toys are becoming a job unto itself.

Video of the Month 
There was nothing better at The Game Awards than the world premiere gameplay for the new Legend of Zelda for Wii U.  Way back at E3, Nintendo gave us a thin little snippet of a trailer to show the initial vision of the game.  While only four minutes in length, this video gave gamers a ton more information to chew on.  No piece of information made my jaw drop than the sheer size of Hyrule in the new Zelda.  From the few seconds focused on the map, Hyrule looks to be as expansive as the largest open worlds from the past generation.  Some cool moments came from showcasing the horseback combat especially the slow motion vaulting bow attack.  Altogether, the gameplay video for the new Legend of Zelda is something to behold.  Take four minutes out of your busy schedule to take in the awesomeness of the next evolution in this legendary franchise.

First Byte: Uncharted 4: A Thief's End

Two weekends ago, Sony held an event in Las Vegas called the PlayStation Experience.  This event was open to the public and press with the keynote conference and demos streamed on Twitch for those unable to be in attendance.  A lot of big news came out of the PlayStation Experience such as the reveal of David Jaffe's new game Drawn to Death, Bastion, Shovel Knight and Super Time Force all making the jump to PlayStation and Street Fighter V being a PS4 console exclusive.  The next God of War game was even unintentionally confirmed by series director Cory Balrog during a panel at the event.  In addition to the news, the PlayStation Experience gave gamers a comprehensive look at the upcoming projects from all the first and third-party studios working on both PS4 and Vita.  It served as a great way for Sony to continue their upward momentum while simultaneously enticing undecided consumers to buy a PS4 during the holiday season.

The biggest thing to come out of the PlayStation Experience was the 15 minute gameplay demo for Uncharted 4: A Thief's End.  Sony revealed the new Uncharted over a year ago at the launch party for the PS4.  Sony followed up that reveal with a brief cinematic teaser at E3 which revealed the game's subtitle and setting.  While these two teasers got many excited for Uncharted 4, I personally needed to see more to get behind the hype for this game especially since so many games have fallen short of their hype in the past year.  After the gameplay trailer from the PlayStation Experience, my doubts over Uncharted 4 are now nonexistent.  Although it was a 15 minute snippet of gameplay, Naughty Dog packed a lot of information about Uncharted's PS4 evolution into this demo.

The demo starts with protagonist Nathan Drake standing on a cliff overlooking the dangerous terrain the island setting has to offer.  This view and the following movement of the camera shows off Uncharted 4's gorgeous graphics and great water effects.  Drake then enters a nearby cave which provides ample opportunities to see that the game's platforming mechanics in action.  In short, the platforming looks to work just as great as they did in previous entries in the series.  More platforming sections follow once Drake exits the cave, but with an added twist.  He finds a spike which can be used on certain rock formations as an anchor point in order to grab out-of-reach ledges and cervices.  The demo showed a few exciting instances where using the spike while jumping is necessary to reach new areas and save Drake from falling to certain death.

As Drake makes his way around the island, he eventually meets up with some hostiles.  While this encounter lasts rest of the demo, it perfectly showcases Uncharted's next-gen evolution.  Since Drake is usually placed against insurmountable odds, stealth has played a huge part in the Uncharted series.  It certainly takes centre stage in Uncharted 4 as Drake can use the large patches of flora and fauna to get the jump on enemies and for hiding when spotted.  In addition to the stealth mechanics, combat has received some retooling especially the hand-to-hand combat.  These hand-to-hand fights look a lot more fluid and dynamic as Drake and his opponents can use the environment as a part of their offence, transition to different positions like belly-to-back and throw grapples such as an arm drag.  These new combat scenarios can even occur when platforming around a firefight.  During a particular moment in the demo, Drake is trying to climb up a cliff only to be cut-off by a boot to the face.  Drake takes the boot in stride, punches the enemy and throws him off the cliff in a similar fashion to ledge takedowns from past Uncharteds.  Instead of falling to his doom, the enemy grabs onto Drake's foot thus leading to more input in order to escape the enemy's grasp.  Moments like these should make Uncharted 4's combat unpredictable and exciting throughout the entire game.

The last thing I want to touch on from the Uncharted 4 demo is the grappling hook.  While it is only used two times throughout the entire demo, it leaves one amazing impression.  The first time we see it is in the heat of battle as an enemy throws a grenade at Drake's feet.  With only a few seconds to react, Drake jumps to the right and throws out his grabbing hook at a nearby branch with the press of the R1 button.  In that brief instant, he sours through the air directly toward the grenade-throwing enemy to deliver a devastating punch to the face.  In my opinion, this sequence is one of the most exhilarating parts of the demo and perfectly shows the combat capabilities of the grappling hook.  Aside from its use in combat, the grappling hook adds new dimensions to Uncharted's exploration and platforming as it gives Drake more versatility in maneuvering around the environment.

All-in-all, this 15 minute demo has completely sold me on Uncharted 4: A Thief's End.  It looks like a spectacular showcase of the PS4's power and solidifies Naughty Dog's position as one of the elite developers in this industry.  Now sitting upon my list of most anticipated games of 2015, I really look forward to playing Uncharted 4 next holiday season.  If you do not agree with my analysis, the gameplay video of Uncharted 4's demo is included below so you can see for yourself.

Bit by Bit: E3 2014 Wrap-up

E3 has come and gone for yet another year.  While the event may be over, the analysis of the show and all the games shown off has just begun.  All over the net, you see all the podcasts, reviews and awards dedicated to every aspect of the show popping up in the next couple weeks.  Here at Silver Bit, the month of June usually is solely focused on E3 from the previews to the conference impressions to the wrap-up articles.  In fact, I am watching all the gameplay footage that I can get my hands on to put together the annual Top 10 Games of E3 article which will conclude the month of June.  Before we move onto bigger and better things, let us look back on the show that was E3 2014 in this special edition of Bit by Bit.

Winner of E3 2014
As a whole, E3 2014 was an entertaining and ultimately safe show.  Aside from a few unique experiences, not many gambles were taken to infuse some innovation into the industry.  Although there were a plethora of familiar games showcased, all of them looked incredible.  With the amount of detail and fidelity in the coming wave of next generation titles, I can understand the current lack of new properties as a trade-off to getting a handle on the new hardware.  There were still new properties shown at the event in Evolve, The Order 1886, No Man's Sky and Sunset Overdrive, but they have not been put on the same pedestal that Assassin's Creed, Gears of War and Uncharted were early in the previous console generation.  Apart from the focus on familiar franchises, E3 2014 did an excellent job in showcasing how great 2015 will be compared to the rest of 2014.  All of the games people eagerly desire except Destiny or Super Smash Bros. comes out next year and that fact is just a little upsetting considering there is still no killer app for this generation yet.  Guess it will come with everything else releasing in 2015.

Enough of my analysis of E3 2014, let us get down to which company won at this year's show.  Winning E3 really comes down to personal opinion and how the showcased games appeal to each individual.  This year, the three console manufacturers were neck-and-neck in their showings.  Everybody did a good job in providing gamers with the games they wanted to see and the information they wanted to hear.  As close as this arms race was, Sony impressed me the most at E3 2014.  While I am in the minority, Sony's winning performance last year only came because they did the exact opposite of Microsoft and built their hype for the PS4 around that plan.  On the software side, not much impressed last year.  However this year Sony delivered with the games and content to compliment their highly successful system.  I came out of the Sony Press Conference knowing that I need a PS4 to get the most out of this new generation.  Even though the press conference had that excruciatingly boring thirty minutes, I would take this year's great three quarters over last year's excellent one fourth any day.  Sony could have lost some ground at E3 2014 with a lacklustre showing, but they delivered and solidified their place as number one this console generation.

Surprise of E3 2014
In the last few years, E3 surprises have become few and far between.  With the internet now, the few surprises actually planned for E3 might not make it to the show itself as they are leaked in the months, weeks and even days in advance.  For a surprise to stay a surprise right up until the moment of its revealed makes the moment feel like an event especially on this stage.  There were a slightly more surprises this year in Phantom Dust, Rainbow Six: Siege, Splatoon and Codename S.T.E.A.M., but one stood tall over the rest.  That surprise came at the Sony Press Conference from Adam Boyes along with some help from a girl named Sally.  It would turn out that Sally was not a girl, but renowned adventure game designer Tim Schafer.  Sally's wish for a return to a classic Tim Schafer adventure game came true when Boyes announced the Grim Fandango HD remake exclusively for PS4 and PS Vita.  As niche as adventure games may be, this news got me very excited because I have never played the original and heard so many great things about the game.  Funny enough, I was actually wondering if Double Fine would re-release Grim Fandango on Steam or remake the game for this generation a few months back.  After thinking about it, to actually see Grim Fandango HD become reality was like Sony found a way to read my mind.  It was an incredible reveal that easily was the highlight of the Sony Press Conference and the entire show.

Trailer of E3 2014
The only thing more prevalent at E3 than the plethora of demos that line the show floor are the trailers.  Each game at the event has a trailer to get gamers excited and to permeate the hundreds of screens covering the E3 booths.  Ranging from multi-minute vignettes to short little teasers, the trailers at this year's event varied in quality.  Some tried to be incredibly dramatic while others went lighter in tone and heavy with the humour.  There were quite a few standouts such as The Witcher III's epic story trailer, Sunset Overdrive's hilarious parody of modern shooters and Super Smash Bros.'s Mii Fighter reveal which saw Reggie and Iwata duke it out in spectacular fashion.  Out of those great trailers, The Legend of Zelda for Wii U reveal trailer was the best.  While short in length, the trailer captured key details for this new adventure in the world of Hyrule.  The beautiful cel-shaded anime-inspired graphics and the grand vistas will be the first things to catch the eye, but there are much more to dig into with this trailer.  The confirmation of horse riding, more options to fight on horseback, the blend of modern technology and medieval fantasy and the dynamic open world were among the amazing features revealed through this trailer.  While early in development, The Legend of Zelda for Wii U looks absolutely incredible and this trailer is just the beginning of all the great media we will receive in the near future.

E3 2014: Sony Press Conference Impressions

Heading into E3, Sony was in the best position amongst the three console manufacturers as the PS4 has sold over seven million units.  With the immense amount of pressure on Microsoft and Nintendo to deliver this year, E3 2014 was Sony's to lose.  Could Sony pull out another show stopping performance or would they rest on their laurels now that they are number one in the current console war?

To answer that question, Sony killed it again this year.  While last year's conference only came together in the last thirty minutes, Sony kept people excited and interested throughout their two hour presentation.  There was a good thirty minute chuck that almost killed the pace of the entire conference as Sony took time to talk about Free to Play titles, PlayStation Now, PlayStation Plus and the PS Vita.  Although it may have been a dry thirty minutes, it was necessary portion of the conference because it gave important information on the PlayStation Now Beta coming this summer, announced the PlayStation TV for 100 dollars or 139 dollars with a controller and the Lego Movie video game and gave a little life to the PS Vita with games like Tales of Heart R and Minecraft.  The portion of the conference that felt completely unnecessary was the presentation of the PlayStation exclusive show Powers and the Ratchet & Clank movie.  It may have lasted close to ten minutes, but it added nothing to the conference other than a lot of eye rolling.  Aside from that forty minute portion of the conference, Sony hit everything else out of the park.  There were tons of great gameplay demos for The Order 1886, Entwined, Far Cry 4, LittleBigPlanet 3, Mortal Kombat X and Batman: Arkham Knight.  Each demo made this writer and the company watching gasp, laugh, pump their fists and get excited.  These gameplay demos sold a lot of these games as must owns to yours truly.  Along with the great demos, Sony dropped a lot of surprises at the conference like a remastered version of Grim Fandango exclusive to PlayStation, From Software's Bloodborne, Dead Island 2, Magika 2, Giant Squid's Abzu and Devolver Digital games coming exclusively the PlayStation consoles.  Sony also made a big effort in pushing exclusive content and benefits for multiplatform games on their consoles such as the Destiny Alpha and Beta coming first to PS4 and exclusive missions or enemies in Batman and Diablo III respectively.  Sony ended the show in style too as they showed off the first trailer for Uncharted 4: A Thief's End.  After all the controversy surrounding The Last Guardian's false cancellation announcement, this writer thought Sony had to make an effort in showing the game is still alive and kicking.  Although The Last Guardian would have brought this conference to legendary levels, Uncharted 4 did its job in ending the Sony press conference with a bang.

After the end of every conference leading up to Sony's, this writer felt underwhelmed with the lack of legitimate surprises and games that truly captured my imagination.  Apart from the dull forty minute information dump, Sony's conference was a breath of fresh air.  Everything showcased at this conference are the reasons people play and get excited about video games.  Due to Sony's efforts on Monday, this writer is finally feeling much more optimistic about the next generation of video game consoles.  Last year Sony dropped the mic, this year they stole the show.

Grade:  A

Year in Review 2013: Disappointments

2013 marked the end of one generation and the beginning of another.  The release of both the PlayStation 4 and Xbox One held center stage in the video game industry.  This focus on the next generation saw fewer games release throughout the year compared to years past.  It was very easy to keep on top of the major releases in 2013 and this year saw yours truly buy many games upon release, much more than I have ever bought in years prior.  With buying many games upon release, not every game will live up to a person's expectations.  There were quite a few games that I played this year that fell short of my expectations and left me disappointed.  Being disappointed in a game is not the same as hating a game.  All of the games I will list are fine games, they just left me feeling a little empty after beating them for one reason or another.

BioShock Infinite
The original BioShock was a revolutionary shooter that engrossed gamers in its environment unlike any game before it and few after it.  The impression left by the first BioShock set the bar high for Irrational's next entry in the BioShock series.  In trying to reach a broader audience, Irrational took BioShock Infinite away from the revolution it could have been and made it more of an evolution.  The setting of Columbia and the excellently programmed AI companion Elizabeth are Infinite's clear strengths, but the game is held back by a considerable amount of key flaws such as the last three hours of the game being a relentless slog of dispatching waves upon waves of enemies, the unnecessary additions of the Boys of Silence and Sirens, the shoe-horned stealth sections and the pretentiously convoluted ending.  The most aggravating flaw is how Irrational forgot the tenets of exploration and freedom that makes Infinite stand out from the all the other first-person shooters in the most crucial hours of the game.  Those last hours can make or break one's enjoyment with a game.  In BioShock Infinite's case, it severely derailed my enjoyment of the game.

The Last of Us
First things first, The Last of Us and I have never been on the same page.  While people were crying to the heavens that it was the best game showed at the Video Game Awards, E3 or whatever other video game show, it never impressed me.  I surely wanted to see what all the fuss was about, but it looked too derivative of Naughty Dog's Uncharted series.  When I saw all the excellent reviews The Last of Us got upon its release, I was caught up in the hype and wanted to see if Naughty Dog proved me wrong.  Well they did not.  Do not get me wrong, The Last of Us is a good game.  It is not the greatest game of this past generation that everybody has been labeling it.  The game has some good ideas and an incredibly emotional story, but those two strengths alone do not allow a game with considerable technical and pacing problems to get a pass.  As much as Naughty Dog tried to engross me in the post-apocalyptic world of The Last of Us, I was taken out from my AI companions running head-first into the strongest enemies in the game, known as clickers, with no reaction from said enemies or hunting for the extremely small triangle button prompt to tell me which objects I can interact with.  While there were some great moments like the entire opening two hours and the Winter section of the game, I never felt much emotional attachment to the characters  or my actions in the game.  The Last of Us is more on par with Naughty Dog's efforts on the first Uncharted.  There is some good stuff in The Last of Us, but there needs to be more refinement before The Last of Us can truly grasp its full potential.

Project X Zone
One of the largest crossovers in video game history, Project X Zone was high on this writer's radar especially considering many never thought the game would release outside of Japan.  Mixing the biggest franchises from Capcom, Namco and Sega into one strategy game was mind-boggling.  Project X Zone's combat was incredibly unique.  While you moved units on a grid-like battlefield like any other strategy game, the combat was more in line with a fighting game where you choose different combos and juggle enemies to cause the most damage.  The combat along with the craziness of the plot gave me hours of enjoyment.  Sadly those hours of enjoyment did not last for the entirety of the game.  Around the 25 to 30 hour mark, the mechanics and story grow rather tiresome and repetitive.  The developers at Banpresto and Monolith Soft could have easily cut down the game by at least 5 hours or more because there are plenty of chapters that feel like padding.  Much like BioShock Infinite, Project X Zone's last few hours became a boring slog through an ever increasing amount of difficult enemies.  Thanks Project X Zone for disappointing me and killing the left trigger on my 3DS.

Sonic Lost World
Ever since the release of Sonic Colors, Sonic the Hedgehog has been on a roll.  The Blue Blur has been slowly but surely gaining back the gamers lost from the onslaught of horrible Sonic games released during the mid to late 2000s.  With the announcement of Sonic becoming a Nintendo exclusive, Sonic Lost World looked to be in a prime position to continue Sonic's upward trend.  All Sonic needed was the solid mechanics introduced in Colors and refined in Generations to be brought into this new Mario Galaxy and Sonic Xtreme inspired world of Sonic Lost Worlds, but Sonic Team decided against it.  What we got was a mixed bag.  Some levels exude creativity and bring the functionality to match it.  Other levels are exactly the opposite as they are poorly designed and can induce high amounts of frustration and possibly rage.  Sonic Lost World is not the total disaster the media paints the game to be.  Honestly, Sonic Lost World is an all-around decent game, but fails at improving the standing of Sega's mascot and it is hard to forgive the game for that major failure.  Lost World was Sonic Team's opportunity to show that the aging Blue Blur can still hang with the platforming giants of the modern era.  Sadly, Sonic Team missed their mark and Sonic fans are left with a decent Sonic game instead of a great Sonic game.

The Seventh Generation: Essential Games

What makes a game essential?  Is it the cutting-edge graphics, the gigantic scope, the innovative gameplay or the masterful mechanics?  An essential game may include one or more of these aspects, but having these aspects does not automatically make a game essential.  In this writer's honest opinion, an essential game is not the highest rated or most popular game out on the market.  An essential game is one that NEEDS to be experienced by everyone who plays video games.

There were a ton of great games from this past generation.  To boil all those great games down to a list of nine essential games is an incredibly hard and daunting process.  This writer took a lot of time and care in putting together a list that encompassed the experiences that defined the seventh console generation from the largest blockbusters to the smallest experiments.  There may be some omissions such as BioShock, Grand Theft Auto IV or The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim, but this writer has not played enough of these games to even form an opinion on them much less name them an essential game of this past generation.  Without further ado, let us dive into the final entry of The Seventh Generation, the essential games of the last console generation.

Portal
Originally bundled with Half-Life 2 and Team Fortress 2 in The Orange Box, it looked like Portal would be overshadowed by Valve's heavyweights.  Fortunately, Portal was never overshadowed.  The game's expertly crafted humour, perfectly developed villain and incredibly unique puzzle mechanics made Portal an instant classic.  Portal has the player take control of a test subject at the Aperture Science Enrichment Center.  Equipped with only the Portal Gun, the player is tasked with completing a gauntlet of test chambers which grow more difficult and dangerous as the player advances.  Throughout these chambers, the player is constantly berated by a computer AI known as GLaDOS.  While GLaDOS is the antagonist of Portal, she spouts the funniest and most memorable lines of the game.  Even though Portal can be beaten within a few hours, you grow to love the characters, the enemies, the dialogue, the Portal Gun, the level design and the puzzles.  If it was not for this little game stuck on The Orange Box, gamers would have never learned to think with portals.

Rock Band
At one point or another, everybody has wanted to be a rock star.  The dream of singing your heart out, shredding the strings on a guitar or smacking a set of drums in front of a sea of thousands is one that many imagine, but few actually live.  Many games have tried to emulate the thrill of being a rock star, but only a handful have succeeded in fulfilling this childhood dream.  Rock Band is among the pinnacle of these games.  Using the plastic instruments that come packaged with the game, one can emulate being in a band with friends and family or play the guitar, drums or sing solo.  With the focus on local multiplayer, Rock Band quickly became the most popular party game of this generation because of its excellent accessibility.  While sequels and future rhythm games made improvements on the original, nothing will ever beat the euphoric thrill of getting three to four people together to play in Rock Band.  Rock Band brought the rhythm genre to its greatest peak and no other rhythm game has been able to recreate the magic this game created.

Mass Effect
The Mass Effect trilogy as a whole encompasses the three greatest games of this past generation.  Perfectly blending the combat of a third-person action game with the complex systems of a RPG and single-handedly revolutionizing the art of storytelling in this medium as one's decisions followed them throughout each game in the series, the Mass Effect trilogy is an astonishing feat of artistry.  As great as all three Mass Effect games are, this writer can only choose one for this list--the original Mass Effect.  The sole reason this writer bought a Xbox 360, the original Mass Effect is unlike any game before it.  You are given the freedom to create whatever Shepard you desire.  Male or female, good or evil, tactically savvy or guns blazing, the player's Shepard is not just their avatar, it is an extension of themselves.  From the heart-racing thrill of threatening a journalist on the Citadel to the heart-wrenching indecision of choosing the fate of a crew mate, an entire fleet of soldiers or a small group of Council delegates, Mass Effect is never afraid in giving players decisions no matter their difficulty.  If there is one RPG that you play from this past generation, make it BioWare's sci-fi masterpiece Mass Effect.

Super Mario Galaxy
Just like Super Mario 64 defined the 3D platformer during the fifth console generation, Super Mario Galaxy defined the future of this genre.  No longer restricted by flat surfaces, Mario traversed a number of spherical planetoids on his way to retrieve all the missing stars.  Playing around with gravity in interesting ways, Galaxy provided new ways to maneuver around a three dimensional space.  The motion capabilities of the Wii remote are expertly used to ease jumping, interact with objects in the environment and control Mario on different rides such as a ball or a manta ray.  Super Mario Galaxy is the premier platforming game of this generation and it should not be skipped over by any gamer.

Uncharted 2:  Among Thieves
This writer considers Uncharted 3: Drake's Deception to be the best entry in Naught Dog's venerable series.  Although if it was not for the excellence of Uncharted 2: Among Thieves, there would be no third entry in the Uncharted series.  That is the reason Among Thieves makes this list over Drake's Deception.  Uncharted 2 launched Nathan Drake and Naughty Dog into superstardom.  It is an exhilarating roller coaster ride from beginning to end with some unbelievable set pieces like battling mercenaries in a collapsing building or traversing a moving train as a helicopter guns Drake down.  Aside from the Hollywood blockbuster-like moments, Uncharted 2 has a solid base of third-person shooting, visceral hand-to-hand combat and parkour-like platforming.  Uncharted 2: Among Thieves single-handedly created a juggernaut franchise for Sony this past generation and going forward into the future.

Batman:  Arkham City
Batman: Arkham City is the ultimate superhero and ultimate Batman game.  Arkham City is a fully realized world where the player is given the skills and abilities to explore every nook and cranny, fight waves of convicts, tackle story missions or collect hundreds of creatively hidden collectables.  One can easily lose tons of hours just playing around in Arkham City's open world.  Any gamer no matter if they are hardcore fans of the Dark Knight or know nothing about the Caped Crusader will enjoy the amazing experience Arkham City offers.  It puts you in the shoes of a superhero like no other game has ever done before and few could possibly do after.  Batman: Arkham City is the best licensed game of this generation and arguably of all-time.

The Legend of Zelda:  Skyward Sword
Unlike Twilight Princess, which launched with the Wii, The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword is built from the ground up for the Nintendo's motion-based console.  In short, Skyward Sword stands as the pinnacle of the Wii’s library, an example why high definition graphics do not make games better and why motion controls are not just a gimmick.  Skyward Sword offers one-to-one swordplay like no game has ever achieved before or since, an excellent array of items with intuitive motion controls from old favourites like the bombs to new choices such as the beetle, mind-bending puzzles, beautifully constructed dungeons and a wonderfully orchestrated soundtrack (a first for the Zelda series).  Arguably the greatest game of this generation, The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword stands as the embodiment of the pure fun and emotion brought forth by Nintendo's mission with the Wii. 

Journey
Journey is one of the most unique experiences of this past generation.  There are no tutorials, no real instructions.  You are just dropped into a seemingly barren desert with this profile of a mountain in the distance.  The controls are simple yet incredibly intuitive, the graphics and art are just jaw dropping, the music is beautiful and the puzzles, while simple, are very charming and engaging.  Journey is a soothing and relaxing experience that can easily be finished in one sitting, which makes the game easy to replay again and again.  This writer cannot stress how amazing of an experience this game is.  Journey is a game that cannot be captured in words or through video.  Journey is a game that must be experienced to understand its greatness.

The Walking Dead
Unlike any experience in this medium, The Walking Dead transcends the title of being a mere licensed game.  Fans of this property or not, The Walking Dead is an emotional tale that anyone will easily be drawn into.  The Walking Dead will make you laugh, cry, scared, disgusted, shocked, surprised, intrigued and every emotion in between.  When everything is said and done, you will be amazed at how much you care about each and every character you meet and interact with in this game and contemplate on what could have been if you made different decisions.  The Walking Dead is hands down the benchmark for modern adventure games and should be experienced by all gamers mature enough to play it.

The Seventh Generation: PlayStation 3

The third and final console to look back on is the world's best Blu-Ray player, the PlayStation 3.  All joking aside, the fortunes of the Playstation 3 were the exact opposite of the Xbox 360.  The PlayStation 3 had an extremely rough first few years on the market.  Coming off the incredible success of the PlayStation 2, Sony got complacent with the PlayStation 3.  Sony's ignorance cost the company as the PlayStation 3 fell far behind the competition.  It took a large price drop and a console redesign before the PS3 started moving off the shelves.  While Sony had problems getting consumers to buy the PS3, their first-party development in both the downloadable and retail spaces and their extensive library of third-party exclusives made convincing arguments for owning Sony's third console.  Once Sony turned their string of bad luck around, the PS3 became the console of choice for many gamers this past generation.

Out of the gate, the PS3 was struck with a seemingly never ending string of problems.  The over 600 dollar price tag was far too steep for most people even the most enthusiastic gamers.  Programming for the PS3 was much harder than the other systems of this generation due to the PS3's Cell Processor.  Sony executives were making outrageous claims about the PS3's "monster" sales.  Game developers and publishers from Valve to Activision were voicing their disdain against the system.  The one glimmer of hope in the early days of the PS3 was Blu-Ray's win over HD-DVD as the definitive format for high definition home entertainment.  Despite Sony's PR nightmare with the early years of the PS3, things eventually turned around for the system.  Even with the better standing of the PS3 in later years, there were still a good number of mistakes made by Sony.  One big problem with Sony in general is the company's lack of commitment to an initiative or product if it does not have immediate success.  During the life of the PS3, Sony relentlessly tried to shove two different initiatives down the throats of gamers only to completely abandon them less than a year after announcing them.  These two initiatives were the PlayStation Move and 3D compatibility.  The PlayStation Move was Sony's answer to Nintendo's Wii and Microsoft's Kinect.  Much like the Kinect, the Move tried to bring in a casual audience to the PS3 only to alienate the system's primary audience of hardcore gamers.  Sony tried their hand at 3D compatibility with the PS3 when stereoscopic 3D was all the craze back in 2009.  Sony put 3D compatible logos on all their major games and even released an extremely overpriced 3D monitor to get people to adopt stereoscopic 3D into their lives.  Both initiatives were just gimmicks that Sony used to extend to life of the PS3, but neither caught on and Sony ceased to promote them.

While Sony has made a good number of mistakes with the PS3, they have made some good decisions as well.  People made fun of using Blu-Ray discs as the default format for all PS3 games upon first release, but it is the biggest strength of this system.  While Microsoft faced numerous problems with their dual-layered DVDs for the Xbox 360, Sony's Blu-Ray discs are nearly indestructible.  One would have to make a considerable physical effort to damage a Blu-Ray discs.  Also the PS3 never felt the need to chew up games like the Xbox 360.  Apart from the great success of the Blu-Ray format, Sony's first-party efforts during this generation were among their strongest.  From established franchises like Ratchet & Clank and God of War to newfound properties such as Uncharted and Infamous to experimental titles such as Journey and the PixelJunk series, Sony's first-party had an incredible amount of variety compared to that of Microsoft and even Nintendo this generation.  This vast library of first-party titles was complimented by the great number of third-party exclusives especially in the later years of the PS3 such as Metal Gear Solid 4, Valkyria Chronicles and 3D Dot Game Heroes.

One cannot talk about the PS3 without discussing the biggest event in the console's life-- the PlayStation Network Outage.  This outage happened during the spring of 2011 when hackers attacked PSN causing Sony to shutdown all online functions for about a month.  This outage served as the biggest scare for gamers to this date as hackers got ahold of millions of peoples' personal and even credit card information.  The outage is considered one of Sony's greatest debacles, but personally this writer believes it is a significant turning point for the Sony PlayStation brand.  This outage was a wake-up call for Sony.  They nearly hit rock bottom in the eyes of the gaming community due to the outage.  Many people to this day do not fully trust saving their credit card information to any online store including the PlayStation Store.  This outage showed Sony the horrors of not protecting their customers and has brought forth a brand new direction for the PlayStation brand as a whole.  While Sony has not entirely turned the company's consistent problems around after the outage, they have made greater efforts to push games like the slew of Sony exclusive indie games and initiatives such as PlayStation Plus which actually please and benefit gamers rather than bring in the most cash.  Personally, this writer does not believe Sony would be in such a great position with all the good will surrounding the PS4 if it was not for the lessons learned during the PSN outage.

While things started out the worst possible way for the PlayStation 3, things eventually turned around for Sony's third outing in console gaming.  Hard lessons learned from the PS3 has definitely changed the PlayStation brand for the better as seen with the overwhelming success of the PS4's launch.  Although the PS3 may never be considered in the same league as its predecessors,  it is arguable the best console of this past generation.

Launch Station: Tomb Raider

It has been a long wait, but the Tomb Raider reboot is finally here.  Bewitching gamers with its reveals over two years ago as the cover story of the January 2011 Game Informer and its first game footage at E3 2011, Tomb Raider is not the same as we all remember.  This Tomb Raider is a more mature game that looks to characterize Lara Croft as human being than this incredibly sexy female Indiana Jones with unrealistic assets.  A bold move for a franchise that has been so successful over the years no matter the quality of the games, but a necessary move that updates Lara and her franchise to the standards needed to survive in today's video game industry.

Tomb Raider follows Lara Croft on her first adventure.  The story shows Lara's transformation from an innocent, naive and frightened young woman to the hardened confident survivor we all know and love.  Shipwrecked on a mysterious island, Lara has a daunting task ahead of her.  Not only does she have to survive long enough to get help, she also has to find her missing crew mates and friends that have been scattered all over the island.  While there is plenty of danger on this island with the wildlife and the islands' inhabitants, Lara has to face the dangers of merciless band of mercenaries that have stumbled upon the island as well.  Tomb Raider takes elements from the other games in the series and brings it up to today's standards of action-adventure games.  Tomb Raider offers a solid third-person shooting mechanics, new character progression, crafting and skill systems, a whole open world to explore and many animals to hunt and things to scavenge in order to survive this dangerous island.  While the story is a huge focus in Tomb Raider, the open world of the island allows players to complete the many side quests and challenge tombs in the game.  If you cannot get enough of Tomb Raider, Crystal Dynamics has also included competitive multi-player in Tomb Raider.  It is not the focus for the game, but a cool little inclusion for those who would like more chances to dive into the third-person shooting of the main game.

Personally, I have been looking forward to Tomb Raider ever since I read that cover story in the January 2011 issue of Game Informer.  Crystal Dynamics new take on Lara Croft and the Tomb Raider series is incredibly refreshing as it matures a series that many gamers grew up with.  The strides taken to make Lara Croft a much more relatable and multi-dimensional character than she has been in past games have really gotten me excited to play this game.  While many have compared it to Uncharted, Tomb Raider looks to take Lara Croft to heights Naught Dog has reached with Nathan Drake and push it even higher.  This game may not be the Tomb Raider that many remember, but it is the Tomb Raider that will revitalize this franchise and propel it into the future.

Launch Station: Resistance: Burning Skies

The PlayStation Vita seems to be in a drop spot at the moment.  Since it launched in February, few games have released for the system.  It is a horrible drought of games for a handheld that really needs all the support it can get.  While no game journalist or Sony fan will admit, it is quite possibly worse than the 3DS drought last spring.  Sony hopes to give Vita owners some relief with the newly released Resistance: Burning Skies.

Resistance: Burning Skies takes place in between the events of Resistance: Fall of Man and Resistance 2. The Chimera have just begun their invasion of the US.  You play as New Jersey firefighter, Tom Riley as he fights off the Chimera invaders in order to rescue his family caught in the middle of the invasion.  Resistance: Burning Skies is the first FPS to be released for the PlayStation Vita so this game has a lot to prove as it is the benchmark for all Vita FPS's to come after it.  With the dual analog sticks, Resistance: Burning Skies exactly like the PS3 entires in the Resistance series.  As Burning Skies is made for the Vita, it features touch controls that handle other actions such as throwing a grenade or using a weapons' secondary fire.  Burning Skies also features the return of a series stable, the weapon wheel, which was absent in the last few games in the series.  Along with the single-player campaign, Resistance: Burning Skies has 8-player competitive multi-player, which includes six maps and three modes, Deathmatch, Team Deathmatch and Survival.

From what I have seen and read about Resistance: Burning Skies, it looks like a serviceable FPS for the Vita.  It is a must-buy for FPS fanatics and Resistance fans that own Sony's game deprived handheld.  For any other Vita owner, it is easier to save your money for hopefully better Vita games that should be coming later this year.

Vita Wednesday: First-Party Launch Titles

With the launch of the PlayStation Vita, welcome to the first of two Vita Wednesdays.  This week's edition of Vita Wednesday coincides with the release of the First Edition Bundle while next week's edition will coincide with the release of the base model.  For the next two Wednesdays, I am going preview three of the biggest launch games for the new PS Vita.  This week, we will be taking a look at big first-party launch titles.  So without further ado, let us jump into the very first Vita Wednesday.

Naughty Dog hands over the reins to the Uncharted franchise to Sony Bend for Nathan Drake's debut on a handheld.  Uncharted: Golden Abyss is set before the events of Uncharted: Drake's Fortune.  You follow a much younger Nathan Drake on an adventure to uncover the dark secret behind the 400-year old massacre of a Spanish expedition.  For those looking for the multi-player from the last two Uncharted games, you are out of luck as Golden Abyss is just a solo affair.  Sony Bend looks to use the Vita to it's fullest as Golden Abyss uses each of the Vita's core features to offer a new variety of puzzles to Uncharted.  Those who are picking the Vita day one will most likely make Uncharted: Golden Abyss their first game purchase for their new system.  With the caliber of all the other entries in the series, that would be a very wise decision.

Sony's answer to Mario Kart, ModNation Racers has made its way into the Vita launch line-up with ModNation Racers: Road Trip.  Much like Mario Kart, ModNation Racers offers a solid single-player circuit to play through, but that is not the core of this series.  The core of ModNation Racers is the huge suite of creation tools.  You can create anything in the game from the racers to the karts to the tracks themselves.  These creation tools are made easier to use with the Vita's touch controls.  With just a few swipes of your finger, you can create a whole track.  One you are done creating your masterpieces, share them with your friends online.  Also you can enjoy all user-created content from the PS3 game on the go with Road Trip.

It would not be a launch of a Sony handheld without this iconic anti-gravity racing series.  WipeOut Pure launched alongside the PSP, now seven years later WipeOut 2048 launches alongside the PS Vita.  Unlike other entries in the WipeOut series, WipeOut 2048 does not take in the long distant future.  It takes place in the year 2048 in the dawn of the anti-gravity racing scene.  This new setting allows for a nice mix between modern and futuristic track designs.  WipeOut 2048 offers players 10 tracks that can be played both solo and with people online.  Also you can play anybody who has a copy of WipeOut HD with the multi-payer crossover feature.  With both ModNation Racers and WipeOut, Sony has racing fans of all ages covered at the launch of the their new handheld.