The E3 2012 Sony Press Conference broadcast aired today, has revealed brand new information about Sony’s game lineup. Sony’s E3 2012 keynote conference started on June 5th at 6:00PM PDT / 9:00PM EDT / 2:00AM GMT and lasted an hour and a half. What follows is a bulletpoints roundup.
It started with the expected showings of PlayStation All-Stars Battle Royale, God of War: Ascension, and The Last of Us. Surprises this year were: Beyond: Two Souls, Assassin’s Creed III: Liberation, Call of Duty: Black Ops: Declassified, and Wonderbook’s Book of Spells being revealed for the first time. The Last Guardian was missing, though.
Here’s the full E3 2012 Sony broadcast video:
E3 2012 Sony Press Conference Roundup:
- Sony opened their E3 2012 press conference with a PS3-exclusive brand new IP announcement. Quantic Dream developer David Cage revealed “Beyond: Two Souls“. Ellen Page will play protagonist Jodie Holmes in the game, as we follow Jodie across 15 years of her life. Something called Aiden is around her, whether it’s something from beyond or not isn’t clear, but the invisible entity seems to talk to her. SWAT is tracking her down, because of the paranormal/telekinetic powers it gives her. Looks both emotional and explosive.
- A PlayStation All-Stars Battle Royale teaser was shown next. Sly Cooper, Kratos, Helghast, Parappa the Rapper, Fat Princess, Sweet Tooth; newly announced characters are Nathan Drake (Uncharted) and Big Daddy (BioShock). Game announced for PS Vita, and will be cross-play compatible with PS3. A 4-player match was shown using both systems on the same level. Key to winning is saving up power levels to do Supers and get kills on your opponents.
- LittleBigPlanet 2 update on PS3 will add PS Vita cross-controller option during gameplay.
- 80% of PS3’s and PS Vita’s are online nowadays. Gaining access to 1,500 downloadable titles. 200 new digital download titles coming to PSN in the next half year, includes the great-looking The Unfinished Swan & Papa-Yo.
- PSone Classics will finally be coming to PS Vita this summer, including Tomb Raider and Final Fantasy VII. Hulu Plus, YouTube and Crackle video services & Sony Music are also coming to PS Vita.
- Call of Duty: Black Ops: Declassified coming to PS Vita this holiday. Brings the full console experience to a portable for the first time.
- Assassin’s Creed III: Liberation announced exclusively for PS Vita. Takes place in New Orleans 1768, features the first female (and of African origin) assassin. Cross-goods between this game and the PS3 game, linking the two together unlocks special items like Connor’s tomahawk, character skin, and 2 more items. Special bundle for crystal white PS Vita. Release date is October 30, 2012. Developed from the ground up specifically for PS Vita.
- Assassin’s Creed III PS3 gameplay at sea in a ship shown. Connor is the captain of his own ship. Fire cannons during sea battles to take out the enemy fleet. Gameplay footage ends just as they are about to board the last ship left afloat.
- Far Cry 3 features a dedicated 4-player co-op mode. Promises extra insanity, looks like a hectic good time if all players can cooperate well via voicechat. You can also build your own maps to play in the game.
- New PlayStation Move supported games include.
- What if a book could come to life? Wonderbook for PS3 lets kids bring books to life via the PlayStation Eye Camera, claimed to be the reinvention of the storybook. It’s an Augmented Reality game that allows the book to jump out at you via the TV. J.K. Rowling, the creator of the Harry Potter books, Book of Spells from the Harry Potter universe teaches wizardry, it’s the first book to be published for Wonderbook. The storytelling while learning Hogwarts wizard spells seems quite charming. Coming Fall 2012. – Moonbot Studios also working on Diggs Nightcrawler story for Wonderbook.
- PlayStation Suite now named PlayStation Mobile and brings the world of PlayStation to Android devices. PlayStation Certified devices include mobile phones and tablets. HTC’s smart phone is Sony’s first industry partner.
- God of War: Ascension was shown next for PS3. The gameplay sneak peek showed a younger Kratos is still as brutal as ever, taking on hoards of enemies with his signature blades combat and quick-time finishing moves. He whips out a green orb on set location markers and on them is able to turn back time, making destroyed structures whole again in order to climb them. This could give some very interesting puzzles later in the game. The footage also showed Kratos being attacked by goats, elephant man, and a giant Hydra. Coming March 12, 2013.
- The Last of Us gets the first gameplay footage with an on-stage demonstration of a hotel level. I’m seeing a lot of environment interaction going on. Your AI co-op partner Ellie really helps out when you’re in a tight squeeze.
The other E3 2012 Press Conference Roundups:
- E3 2012 Microsoft Press Conference Roundup
- E3 2012 Nintendo Press Conference Roundup
- E3 2012 Ubisoft Press Conference Roundup
- E3 2012 EA Press Conference Roundup