Sony concluded the big three press conferences with a bang by including the announcement of a new PSP, the debut of Final Fantasy XIV, Sony’s answer to the motion-sensing controller and look at some of their hottest exclusive titles. Read on for the scoop.
Facts and Figures

• Jack Tretton, President and CEO of Sony Computer Entertainment of America, started off the presentation with the usual facts and figures.
• There are an expected 464 titles coming out on PlayStation platforms this year. In 2008 PlayStation broke prior records by grabbing 30 percent of total of retail hardware sales in the U.S.
• The PS2, which is now retailing for $99, outsold all next-gen systems in April 2009, illustrating their successful ten-year system lifetime. The PS2 is currently in its ninth year. However, Tretton confirmed that they don’t intend to see an end to the PS2 next year. Instead they will keep supporting it until fans are ready to move on. The PS2 will boast nearly 100 new titles this year alone.
• The PlayStation Network scored 24 million registered accounts in 55 countries and Home has attracted 6.5 million people worldwide, 85% of which are returning users.
• Using Infamous as an example, Sony called out several of the 35 exclusive titles their platforms will host this year.

Uncharted 2: Among Thieves
Next Sony showed off Uncharted 2: Among Thieves. Recently they divulged that competitive multiplayer and co-op have been added to the title. This time they showed off the single-player campaign.

• The demo started with Drake and his new partner traversing a war-torn city. As we would expect, everything was beautifully rendered. At the top of a tall building you could see for miles.

• Drake shimmied across a beam between two buildings only to have a helicopter open fire as he dangled far above the ground. The action initiated a scene with Drake and Chloe running and gunning their way through the collapsing building.
• The voice acting is still superb, with the two bantering back and forth as the ground beneath them crumbled. The scenario highlighted the massive action upgrade that Uncharted 2 has received.

MAG: Massive Action Game
Moving on, the team at Zipper interactive treated us to the first live gameplay footage of MAG.

• MAG boasts massive action, obviously. Up to 256 players can engage in battle at a time. In our demo, all 256 players were engaged live back in the Zipper office.
• The demo began with an overhead view of the battlefield in order to give us a better understanding of how to approach the skirmish. The camera followed the squad leader of a team of eight. The massive spread of blue dots on the field represented our team. Red players were undetected at the early point in time.
• Squads are given particular missions for each battle. The mission was to take out bunkers and anti-aircraft weaponry so that support could be called in. Squads get bonus points for working together in achieving goals within the larger mission.
• Once the bunkers were taken out helicopters arrived and acted as spawn points for the team. Even the pilots in the helicopters were real players. More on MAG later in the show.

PSP Go
Next Kaz Hirai, president and CEO of Sony Computer Entertainment Inc., took the stage to introduce “the worst kept secret of E3.”

• Hirai unveiled the PSP Go, positioned to be the next step in the PSP line. PSP Go is for gamers who don’t need tangible products or UMD devices to enjoy games.
• The handheld is much smaller and fit easily into his shirt pocket. It is 50 percent smaller, 40 percent lighter and flips open to access buttons and the analogue nub.
• PSP Go includes 16 gig of internal flash memory and boasts built in WiFi to allow for easy downloading of games.

• Hirai explained that the PSP Go is not intended to replace the PSP 3000 or the UMD. Sony sees the audiences as different and diverse from each other.
• Sony is also introducing a new application to access PSN on your PC. The idea is to make content transfer easier. Sony then introduced a new application called Sense Me, which will analyze your music library and create a playlist based on your selected mood.
• PSP Go will launch for $249.99

Gran Turismo PSP
Keeping with the PSP focus Sony next introduced Gran Turismo PSP

• Gran Turismo PSP is the first time the franchise has made it to the handheld system.
• We were reassured that it isn’t a shrunken subset of the series; instead it’s a full-scale GT title, running at 60 frames per second.
• The game will feature 800 cars, 35 tracks and 60 layout variations. Ad Hoc tech will let you race with up to four other players.
• The game will allow you to trade and share cars through your garage. Since all 800 cars would be difficult to obtain on your own, the game fosters interaction with friends.
• Gran Turismo PSP will launch October 1 to help celebrate the launch of PSP Go.

Metal Gear Solid: Peace Walker
Kojima Productions has been busy. Yesterday they announced a new Metal Gear title for the Xbox 360. Today they introduced another work-in-progress within the franchise for the PSP.

• We were assured that Metal Gear Solid: Peace Walker is in development by the main MGS4 team and that it’s not a simple spinoff or side story.
• Peace Walker takes place ten years after Metal Gear Solid 3 in the 1970s.
• Little other details were given, aside from the fact that Solid Snake is the protagonist.
• Peace Walker is expected to debut in 2010.

Resident Evil Portable

• No real details were given about the title, other than that it exists and is currently in development.

Agent
After depleting their PSP news cache, Sony moved onto their bread and butter, the PS3.

• First to be announced was a new Rockstar North property – Agent. All that was disclosed about the title is that it will be exclusive to the PS3 and involves espionage and assassins in the 1970s.

Assassin’s Creed II

• Next we were treated to a demo of Assassin’s Creed II. The main mantra of the new title is to give players more options in all aspects of the game. Diversity in play is key this time around.
• Assassin’s Creed II takes place in Italy during the renaissance, the birth of the modern world.
• The protagonist is a Florentine noble named Ezio Auditore di Firenze who is out for vengeance. Strangely enough, Leonardo da Vinci is his own personal inventor. Da Vinci will make gadgets and tools for Ezio, such as a flying machine we witness first hand. The gliding contraption would gain altitude from drafts of fires burning throughout the city. The glider is one key example of new variation in gameplay.

• While Ezio now has more assassination techniques, there are also new AI archetypes such as “the Seeker” that will make hiding a bit less safe.
• You can now disarm enemies and use their weapons against them. Over thirty will be available to choose from.
• The demo ended with Ezio sneaking away under the cover of a smoke bomb, another one of his new tools.
• Assassin’s Creed II is slated to hit store shelves this holiday.

Final Fantasy XIV Online

• Yep, we are only beginning to unravel the mystery that is Final Fantasy XIII and the next sequential installment is already on the horizon. Even better? The Final Fantasy MMO is slated to launch next year.

Motion Controller Prototype
It’s almost easy to feel bad for Sony, with Microsoft stealing the thunder yesterday with their introduction of Project Natal. Appearing to be the last on the bandwagon isn’t really Sony’s fault, as they have also been working on a motion controller for some time.

• The best way to describe the controller’s appearance is similar to a Bingo dauber. Essentially it’s a short, hand-sized column with a glowing sphere on the end. Buttons are included but from our vantage point we couldn’t see much. We were told that it the controller is a very early prototype.
• The controller can be used alone or as part of a pair. The controller works in tandem with the EyeToy and the result is a one-to-one replication of your movements and gestures on screen. The Eye Toy camera even can swap out the controller with random items such as a tennis racquet, a sword, a mace and a fan. Moving into a first person perspective we were shown the potential for the technology to be used in shooters.
• We watched two tech demos, the first highlighting a digital representation of the presenter trading blows using a sword. Eventually he switched to a bow and arrow, replicating the movements and even dropping down to one knee to get a more steady shot.
• Little more was said, but it appears that the technology will be debuting spring of 2010.

ModNation Racers
Moving along, we were introduced to a game following in LittleBigPlanet’s footsteps under the newly established “play, create and share” genre.

• ModNation Racers is a cart-style racer complete with boosts and weapons that has heavy aesthetic roots in the vinyl toy culture. The game allows you to completely customize your character and your cart.
• However, the real customization comes from the process of designing your own tracks in the Track Studio. You start by laying down a basic outline of the track. The program is smart enough to add elevation if you double back on yourself. From there you can change the texture of the track, add mountains, forests, lakes, villages and more. You can even place weapons and objects where you desire and change the time of day. The items we saw were all contextual to the rural setting of the demo, but the potential for unique tracks is endless.

The Last Guardian
An extremely pleasant surprise, Sony revealed the last in Fumito Ueda’s trilogy comprised of Ico and Shadow of the Colossus.

• No details were given; instead we watched a several minute long trailer to get the general premise of the game.
• The game stars a young boy and a rather bizarre looking griffon/dog amalgamation. The creature is giant and the pair appears to look out for each other and solve puzzles together.
• At one point in time it appeared that some soldiers were chasing the young boy, and the guardian put his life on the line to save him. If one thing is sure, the first time you look at the Guardian’s ugly but completely endearing mug you will be hooked.

God of War III
Sony ended the briefing with a bang by giving us a glimpse of God of War III.

• The demo was brief, but what we saw was visceral beyond comprehension. In Kratos’ mission to exact revenge on the gods he leaves a rather large wake of destruction and blood.

• A good example came from a chimera baddie. A few seconds into the fight and Kratos had already cut off the snake-like tail, leaving it a bloody stump for the remainder of the fight. A few moments later Kratos broke off one of it’s towering horns and impaled the beast with it in one blow. We also witnessed Kratos completely eviscerate a centaur. It was grizzly.
• God of War III is slated for a March 2010 release.