As the sales figures for the PlayStation Vita launch in Japan start to emerge and many question their health, it’s good to remember the times we are living in. No, I’m not talking about the tough economics of recession but rather the brave new opportunities of untapped markets.

Since the PSP launched in 2005, gaming has become a very different place. Smartphones, Wii, Kinect and Sony’s own Move technology have all created a new gaming landscape. Gaming is not the preserve of a hard-core minority, but now in the hands of the masses.

This has meant that some of the biggest-selling games of the last few years haven’t (just) been those with stellar first weeks. Titles that go on selling week in and week out feed on the trickle of recommendations from family to family at the school gate, from child to child in the playground and from visiting friends on the weekend.

Hardware manufacturers haven’t managed to escape their habit of pinning a new device on one unique selling point, but it is now the versatility of these systems that attracts this wider audience. Nintendo did itself no favors (in my opinion) by hanging so much on the 3DS 3-D screen. It’s only now, almost a year later, that families are realizing that it is actually more than just a 3-D DS, and brings a raft of family-friendly features to the table.

The PS Vita is doing a better job of highlighting its features, but still gravitates towards a “console games on the move” selling point aimed at hardcore players. The extent to which Sony is able to move beyond this message and engage families with the new ways they can play games on the Vita will determine how quickly it is adopted by a broader audience.

As I mentioned in my rundown of top PS Vita games I’m really looking forward to the Vita, and will be getting my pre-order in promptly ($250 on Amazon). However, it’s not the hard-core headlines or games that I’m relishing the most. Sure, I like a good-looking game as much as the next person, but it’s being able to chat with friends while I play (Party Chat), get recommendations from friends and family (Live Area) and play on the PS Vita against my family on the PlayStation 3 (Cross Play) that have me most excited.

1. Cross Play

PS Vita Cross Play

Cross Play is rather mouth-watering for family gamers as it enables you to compete against each other across PlayStation 3 and PS Vita. This is the Vita stealing a march on the Wii U, which demonstrated exactly this kind of feature back in June — but has yet to be given a firm launch date.

Although full details of which titles will support this and just how far the functionality goes are a little sparse, I have already seen that you can play Wipeout against up to seven other people made up from any combination of Vitas and PS3s. Then there is the functionality with Little Big Planet that turns the PS Vita into a portable editing device linked to the PS3 game — the touch screen and tilt controls really make editing levels look a lot more intuitive.

It’s not only a nice touch, but something that will change the way my family plays games on the PlayStation 3 as well as the Vita. The opportunity to take advantage of the Vita’s screen for innovative game-play is where the real fun will begin for us.

2. Remote Play

Remote Play was a feature I really appreciated on the PSP. It enabled me to stream PlayTV (and some games) straight to the handheld — and provided entertainment for many baths. Not only that but you could remotely turn on your PS3 via any internet connection to access your media from anywhere in the world. The PS Vita remote play feature has been beefed up somewhat.

In practice (as revealed by a recent PlayStation 3 firmware update) this means that you can play any PS3 game remotely — from Uncharted 3 to Limbo. The compromise is that this will be at the old PlayStation Portable resolution (480×272) up-scaled to the Vita’s OLED screen (960×544) to fill the screen — although new games should have the option of a Vita-specific remote play mode with enhanced resolution.

This is another strong feature for families and delivers features mooted by the Wii U. As Nintendo made clear back in June, being able to play games on a portable or big screen not only gives you more ways to play but enables you to free up the TV for other uses while you continue playing on the portable. It offers families flexibility.

3. Rear Touch Panel

PS Vita Rear Touch Panel

The rear touch panel on the Vita may seem like something of a novelty, but as soon as you see the device in the hands of a younger family member it makes perfect sense. My kids love the DS and 3DS but I am constantly cleaning the screens of their sticky paw marks — and goodness knows what else. They have the ability to cover their touchscreen devices in a veneer of food within seconds. The rear touchscreen is a great way to encourage them to stop touching the front screen — which of course they have to do on other touchscreen devices.

It also gets around the problem of obscuring the game-play with a finger, something my kids find really frustrating when they are trying to play games together. Controlling a game via a rear touch screen is a great feature for families. The only issue is ensuring small hands are able to hold the device and touch the back panel at the same time, something that is down to how games implement its use, and only time will tell.

4. Live Area

Live Area is the PS Vita equivalent of PlayStation Home, as far as I can tell. It offers an interactive portal that connects you to your friends and family. Where it gets interesting for me though is that this also lets you browse the content (games/media/music and so on) that friends are consuming on their Vita.

I like this because discovery is one of the biggest barriers to family gamers. So many families have bought a system only to play the launch titles and then have it sit there gathering dust. The Wii was a big culprit of this, and anything that helps connect people with games they will enjoy is a big step forward. Having a route to discover and download great games is a big help, although it will make my self proclaimed job of Limbo evangelist slightly defunct.

5. Party Chat

Party Chat is a new feature that enables you to voice and text chat with friends and family. But unlike other PlayStation communication, offerings this versatile feature can be used when playing the same game online or across different games. Using the built-in microphone (or optional headset) you can co-ordinate your strategy or just catch up with gossip while you spend time playing Motorstorm or Uncharted.

I had my own version of this feature on the PSP that involved a Skype chat while I played. That was a real hassle to setup though, and Skype didn’t always play nicely with the bandwidth I needed for PlayStation Network online play. Having a built in solution for free is another great little feature for families.

Conclusion

The PS Vita has some interesting things to offer family gamers, although of course price is also key to this broader market. We’ve seen the 3DS take off with its unprecedented (for Nintendo at least) price cut, and it may not be until the Vita hits a similar mark that families will really see it as an option.

However, for families who already have a PlayStation 3 there are a number of features (Remote Play and Cross Play) that offer great value and create new ways to play together. The ability to free up the TV while continuing a game on the portable will save not a few arguments in our house, as will being able to compete across portable and console platforms.

Even for those that don’t the PS Vita brings some great ideas (Party, Live Area and the Rear Touch Panel) to the table that make it engaging for a wide range of family members. The speed of uptake of Vita by families will be as much determined by Sony’s ability to get this message out as by price point.

The PS Vita is available for $250 on Amazon and is scheduled for release on February 22.

PS Vita games range from $30 to $50 on Amazon. PSN download titles for PS Vita start at $10.

With Christmas almost upon us and the big videogame releases of the year under our belts, it’s this time of year that a gamer’s thoughts turn to sunshine, spring, and the next round of videogame releases. While the WiiU is still on the far horizon, the PlayStation Vita is starting to loom large as an exciting reality.

To get you ready for release day, and to help you make your pre-order choices I’ve been trawling through footage and screenshots to sniff out the best games to go for. Revisiting this again brought back the excitement I had when I first held a Vita at E3 this year. It maybe a little bigger than I am used to for a handheld but visually it really did look on a par to the PS3.

The first pre-order choice you have is which form factor you want. The Wi-Fi only model is $249.99, The 3G/Wi-Fi model is $299.99 and the first edition bundle is $349.99. I think I will be going for the cheaper model as I don’t intend to be playing online out and about a huge deal, and I’m keen to preserve my battery when I do.

Choosing which games I will be playing first on PS Vita is more of a conundrum, though. The games range from $9.99 for download titles to a hefty $49.99 for top-tier boxed games. Between these two extremes everything else is either $29.99 or $39.99. To help me sift through the impressively big launch list I roped in fellow blogger Chris Jarvis to help me pick the best launch games, and here’s what we came up with…

1. Uncharted: Golden Abyss (Pre-order from Amazon for $49.99)

Uncharted Golden Abyss

Uncharted: Golden Abyss promises the big console experiences on a handheld device — but this time has a few tricks to make accessibility the key.

With Uncharted: Golden Abyss that promise of legitimate adventures ‘on the go’ is closer than ever. The newly announced PS Vita seems to combine the graphical power we would expect from a Sony console with the touch screen and tilt control that is now almost a minimum requirement for a handheld gadget. But it’s interesting to see how these control additions affect an established title like Uncharted.

The core game play of Uncharted: Golden Abyss seems faithful to the main titles from the PlayStation 3. While there are a host of additional touch-screen prompts and ways to control the game, I feel comfortable knowing that I can bring my experiences from Uncharted 2 & 3 and play Golden Abyss as though it were simply another Uncharted title. This is especially true now that the PS Vita has implemented the long-sought-after dual analogue sticks — why have we been waiting so long for a handheld to do this?

There are only two drawbacks to the PS Vita controls that I have seen. The melee combat seems to introduce a slow-motion camera for touch-moves, which is in danger of breaking the fluid pace that makes Uncharted‘s combat so addictive. Secondly, the motion controls have to strike a tricky balance between being sensitive enough to trigger without have to resort to wild movements, yet resistant enough to avoid unintentional use. I would hate to be playing on Uncharted: Golden Abyss while lying on my side only to find that Drake is jumping off to his death. Hopefully the feature can be turned off.

While the new controls promise to add some nifty tricks and shortcuts to make the experience more suited to a handheld medium, I am comforted that I should be able to pick up Uncharted: Golden Abyss and drift into old habits of control and tactics. If there is any one game from my home console I would like to be able to carry with me, it would definitely be Uncharted.

2. Escape Plan (Purchase with PSN Credit from Amazon)

Escape Plan

Escape Plan PS Vita is another thoughtful dark side-scrolling platform game, with a dash of cartoon wit and comprehensive touch controls.

Visuals draw a lot of comparison to Limbo due to its black and white display and the sudden and gory nature of the deaths involved for the two heroes. For me, with the more rounded 3D scenes, it is more reminiscent of Tim Burton’s Stainboy or even some of the early black and white Disney cartoons of the 1920s.

Rather than using the front controls of the PlayStation Vita, Escape Plan allows you to guide the heroes through obstacles using touch controls, including moving objects by touching them from either the front or rear touch pads. It would seem that the aim in this game is to exercise careful thought and possibly even more careful control in order to succeed. However it turns out it is certainly a unique title for the Vita and promises a rare offbeat treat for a launch game.

3. Super Stardust Delta (Purchase with PSN Credit from Amazon)

Super Stardust Delta

Super Stardust Delta finds a more natural home on the PS Vita due to the second analogue stick and version specific features.

Super Stardust Delta is the handheld iteration of a game that went a long way to define the twin-stick shooter, with movement on one stick and 360 degrees of shooting on the other. It’s a phenomenal experience on the PlayStation 3 (especially in 3D), but sadly the PSP version attempted to map the shooting controls to the face buttons, which never really proved satisfying.

Thankfully the Vita does provide that much-needed second stick and Super Stardust Delta promises to be the definitive handheld version of this game. The control benefits of the Vita do not stop there, with the rear touch screen used to deploy miniature black holes as a special move.

As well as this, the motion controls have been used, allowing the player to move the camera by tilting the console, avoiding having to lose control of the ship. Additionally the Vita can be shaken to unleash a “Shockwave” attack.

How much these touch and tilt controls add to the game — above and beyond showcasing the Vita’s new features — remains to be seen but at the very least if this is faithful to the original Super Stardust HD then Vita owners are in for a treat.

4. Wipeout 2048 (Pre-order on Amazon for $29.99)

Wipeout-2048

Wipeout 2048 again promises to provide a run-out for a new console, while expanding the portable racing with some engaging multi-player features.

The Wipeout series has long been used as a flagship title for Sony’s new consoles, all the way back to the original PlayStation. In fact, the series’ trademark urban cool, flashing lights and driving electronic beats were plastered over video screens in nightclubs during the original promotion. This has been attributed by many as the turning point of gaming becoming more accepted in wider popular culture and understanding.

The most exciting feature — which Sony Liverpool promises will be available from the day of release — is cross-platform multi-player. Players on PS Vita and PS3 will now be able to race together, utilizing Wipeout HD/Fury on the PS3. This suggests that Wipeout 2048 will have access to the tracks from Wipeout HD/Fury on top of its 10 new tracks. Whether the new 2048 tracks will be made available in reverse to the PS3 version remains to be seen. Whatever happens there is a range of multi-player styles, from pure racing, to the death match style of Eliminator which will hopefully make it to this edition.

Although some of the features feel like their inclusion is box-ticking on the new device, overall Wipeout 2048 is a generous proposition with a lot of racing options. It certainly demonstrates the strengths of the PS Vita well.

What will be fascinating about this cross-platform multi-player is the level of skill players on each platform can achieve with the respective controls and systems. Once players of Wipeout 2048 have caught up with the established experience of racers on Wipeout HD/Fury it will be interesting to see who comes out on top, competitively.

5. Mod Nation Racers Road Trip (Pre-order on Amazon for $29.99)

Wipeout-2048

Mod Nation Racers: Road Trip not only brings the addictive kart racer to the Vita but also allows you to paint the road ahead using the tip of your finger.

Mod Nation Racers: Road Trip is to kart racing what LittleBigPlanet is to platform games. At the same time it promises fast and frantic racing with speed boosts, weapon power-ups and friendly jostling alongside a powerful track editor allowing you to create an endless variety of new tracks — and download those created by others.

With the new touch-screen controls of the Vita, track creation is now easier than ever. The basic track shape can be drawn simply by dragging a finger over the screen to trace the desired route. Also utilized is the rear touch pad while editing the landscape deformation. The rear touch allows hills and mountains to be pressed out of the ground while the front touch allows shallows, lakes and canyons to be drawn in. Within a few moments you will be able to create an entirely new track.

As a kart racer, Mod Nation Racers: Road Trip also looks pretty solid, with bouncy and fun handling and cheerful characters. There’s plenty of choice for tracks as Sony have previously suggested that the 2 million user-generated tracks previously published on the PS3 version of Mod Nation Racers will be available in the Vita version from launch.

There’s no confirmation of online multi-player as yet, although the previous PSP version did support online multi-player for up to 6 players so it would be a real pity if it didn’t feature in this Vita version.

6. Ridge Racer (Pre-Order on Amazon for $29.99)

Ridge Racer

Ridge Racer definitely looks the part on the Vita, but is in danger of disappointing players by offering only a tiny amount of content. Early reports are indicating that the retail version of Ridge Racer, boxed and download, will come with only three courses and five cars.

Either way this looks more than a little impressive and brings the big screen drifting experience to a handheld that can keep both frame rate and polygon count high enough to impress. Although this is now a launch window rather than launch day title, there is still plenty to be excited about here.

7. Unit 13 (Not listed on Amazon.com yet)

Unit 13

Unit 13 promises an exciting new idea on the PlayStation Vita, born from the legacy of great online shooters. Although a launch window rather than launch day title, there is still plenty to be excited about here.

A third-person military shooter developed by the team behind MAG and SOCOM, this is a significant heritage, as the early SOCOM games were the driving force behind many PS2 players making the effort to game online. Featuring large online multi-player battles and voice chat (for many for the first time), SOCOM set a standard for online console shooters. Make no mistake, before there was Call of Duty: Modern Warfare, there was SOCOM.

Meanwhile Unit 13 is set to provide 36 engaging missions across nine locations. It will also feature online competitive multi-player as well as a co-operative mission mode. It is a modern special forces shooter with mission premises designed to ring true with modern headlines. So, SOCOM in all but name?

Fortunately, this game has been designed entirely with the PlayStation Vita in mind, so it is likely that the experience will suit the new handheld perfectly and will avoid any potential messiness created by trying to force a previous title onto new hardware. Perhaps this is the reason to break away from the SOCOM franchise, to encourage players that this offers a totally new experience?

But that best fit is more than a purely technical consideration. Unit 13 has been designed to fit in with the ethos of the portable console: bite-sized game play and non-linear missions that will suit gaming on-the-go.

8. Gravity Rush (Pre-order on Amazon for $39.99)

Gravity Rush

Gravity Rush promises a shift in perspective to the standard third person adventure, with a compelling visual style.

A launch window rather than launch day release and there is still a lot unknown about this. Part animated adventure, part Gothic fantasy in the style of Dark City, the dirty, industrial and oppressive world of Hekseville already presents an intriguing narrative hook.

Clearly the third person adventure genre already has a great many titles to offer, but the twist in this case is that you will be given control over the gravity in the scene, allowing the heroine to run up walls, leap from one building to another and escape dark forces quickly. Gravity Rush also promises touch-screen controls and the gyroscope will be linked to motion control over the direction of gravity.

The story is told through a mix of in-game animation and comic-book styles paneled narrative which provide character and drive the story forward. This is combined with fast and frenetic group combat and looks to up the ante with boss challenges.

This is already shaping up to be an interesting and hardcore title for sci-fi and fantasy fans and we will eagerly await more details and hands-on look.

9. Touch My Katamari (Pre-order on Amazon for $29.99)

Touch My Katamari

Touch My Katamari is the return of a hilarious object collection series and challenges you to roll up everyday artifacts like never before.

It’s been a few years since we last saw the King of all Cosmos binge-drinking his way to infinity and then tasking The Prince with picking up enough pieces to fix creation (Ed: quite a story that). With Touch My Katamari the series returns to its roots with a handheld installment.

If you’re not familiar with the original Katamari Damacy the premise of the game is that you are in control of a rolling ball which collects objects to which it sticks. The ball starts off a few centimeters across, picking up batteries and sugar cubes. Once it is larger, you’ll find yourself picking up cows, cars, buildings and eventually becoming enormous.

Touch My Katamari seems to share the unique visual comedy and surreal writing of previous titles. Hopefully this will be combined with the addictive object-searching and puzzle-solving which made the original great.

If there is a reason for Katamari‘s decline in popularity in recent years, it must be down to how stale the simple formula of rolling over objects became. Thankfully, in Touch My Katamari, touch-screen controls provide a new control system as well as rear-touch controls which allow the ball to be stretched into a rolling-pin shape or squashed small to fit through tiny gaps. Hopefully these simple additions will provide the game with a much-needed freshness.

10. Lumines: Electronic Symphony (Not listed on Amazon yet)

Lumines Vita

Lumines: Electronic Symphony marks a return to the handheld classic with a pounding electronic soundtrack and a variety of game modes on Vita.

It’s interesting how Sony is turning to classic PSP games to make an impact in the Vita’s launch lineup. Lumines: Electronic Symphony joins Wipeout, Hot Shots Golf and Ridge Racer in retreading the spread of titles which defined the original PSP’s early lineup.

With Lumines, this is certainly no bad thing. The original’s block-matching action and enthralling soundtrack made it an instant hit and is still regarded as a classic. Despite falling on hard times in recent years the PSP made a good impact with its early titles. For me I’d like to see a return to the turn-based action of Metal Gear Ac!d.

In this new version, there will be four different games modes called Journey, Duel, Stopwatch and Masters. No details are currently available about how these will actually play, but Duel suggests that a multi-player mode similar to Tetris‘ duel may be among the features.

Also tightly under wraps is the actual play-list, with the only hints being the inclusion of The Chemical Brothers and Kaskade. However with a focus on a DJ-produced set-list and catchy Electronica, it’s sure to be a fantastic musical journey.

That leaves the following launch day titles to choose from:

• Hot Shots Golf (Pre-order on Amazon for $29.99)
• Hustle Kings (Purchase with PSN Credit from Amazon)
• Little Deviants (Pre-order to Amazon for $39.99)
• Army Corps of Hell (Pre-order on Amazon for $39.99)
• Asphalt Injection (Not listed on Amazon yet)
• Ben 10 Galactic Racing (Pre-order on Amazon for $39.99)
• Blazblue: Continuum Shift Extend (Pre-order on Amazon for $39.99)
• Dungeon Hunter Alliance (Not listed on Amazon yet)
• Dynasty Warriors Next (Not listed on Amazon yet)
• F1 2011 (Not listed on Amazon yet)
• FIFA Soccer (Not listed on Amazon yet)
• Michael Jackson The Experience (Not listed on Amazon yet)
• Plants vs. Zombies (Purchase with PSN Credit from Amazon)
• Rayman Origins (Not listed on Amazon yet)
• Shinobido 2 Revenge of Zen (Pre-order on Amazon for $39.99)
• Tales of Space: Mutant Blobs (Purchase with PSN Credit from Amazon)
• Ultimate Marvel vs Capcom 3 (Pre-order on Amazon for $39.96)
• Virtua Tennis 4: World Tour Edition (Not listed on Amazon yet)

And the following launch window games:

• Reality Fighters (Pre-order on Amazon for $39.99)
• MLB 12 The Show (Pre-order on Amazon for $39.99)
• LEGO Harry Potter: Years 5-7 (Not listed on Amazon yet)
• Disgaea 3: Absence of Detention (Pre-order on Amazon for $39.99)
• Ninja Gaiden Plus (Not listed on Amazon yet)
• Silent Hill Book of Memories (Pre-order on Amazon for $39.99)
• Supremacy MMA: Unrestricted (Pre-order on Amazon for £39.99)

And, finally, games that will follow through the rest of 2012:

• Ruin (Pre-order on Amazon for $39.99)
• LittleBigPlanet (Pre-order on Amazon for $39.99)
• Motorstorm RC (Purchase with PSN Credit from Amazon)
• Street Fighter X Tekken (Pre-order on Amazon for $39.99)

In the motion controller wars, the Move stands head and shoulders above the competition. Its controller, combined with the Eye camera, allows for accurate movement tracking and integrates well with Sony’s selection of movement games. Just in time for the holidays, Sony has released four new games that take advantage of the Move controller. All are rated “E” for Everyone, all are priced affordably, and all are very fun.

Medieval Moves: Deadmund’s Quest

This sword-slashing game is just the ticket for the boys and girls looking for adventure. As Deadmund, players move through castle after cavern, attacking and defending against a variety of comical undead skeletal foes. In his arsenal, Deadmund has access to a sword, bow and arrows, and throwing stars, as well as a shield for blocking. It’s one of the better Move titles to date and does a great job with its storytelling. Gameplay is intuitive and simple, but the one drawback is that the game is very much on rails; you have no control over Deadmund’s movement. Still, Medieval Moves will provide hours of enjoyment for even the most adventuresome young swashbuckler.

EyePet & Friends

With the launch success of the virtual pet game, EyePet, a sequel was guaranteed. Now, EyePet & Friends is available for kids of all ages to experience the fun of having a pet without those late night trips outside or costly vet bills. The biggest addition this time around is a second onscreen pet, so two kids can play at the same time. You can teach your EyePet tricks and play with it as the Eye camera superimposes the pet to an onscreen image of your living room. There’s even a reward system that allows players to earn tokens to customize their pets and toys and the best part is that this pet will never scratch up your furniture.

Carnival Island

Carnival Island is a new title that brings all the fun of a carnival midway to your home, without the scary carnies. This fun party game lets players compete in nearly three dozen minigames from Skeeball to ring toss and nearly everything in between. Up to four players can play at a time, battling for high score and winning tickets, which players can redeem for in-game prizes and extra activities. One of our favorite parts of the game was using the Move control to distort our image in the Magic Mirror. Carnival Island is an amusement park’s worth of fun.

LittleBigPlanet 2 Special Edition

In addition to the award winning ultra-creative puzzle game, the LittleBigPlanet 2 Special Edition packs in more than $35 of extras, including 5 new Move levels, 7 mini levels, the Toy Story costume pack, Toy Story level pack and a dozen more costumes for your Sackfolk. You can still control your character from start to finish with your PlayStation controller or, if the feeling, um, moves you, your Move controller. However you decide to control your Sackboy or girl, LittleBigPlanet remains one of the best all ages games ever.

Disclosure: GeekDad received review copies of these games. 

Fortunately, this provides opportunity for third party solutions, which can oftentimes provide better outcomes than the original solution. Such is the case with the Nyko Charge Base 3. Like good design, the Nyko solution is simple: attach a dongle (magnetic USB adapter) to your PS3 controller, rest it in the charger, turn it on, and walk away. Charging is fast and simple. The magnetic USB adapters are easy to install and don’t interfere with holding or operating the controller. The magnetic plates makes placing and removing the controller on the charger easy, plus the magnets keep the controller aligned properly. The charger also has an adhesive footpad to secure the charger to your shelf or TV cabinet, though I found it unnecessary.

The charger provides feedback with different LED lighting. When the system is on, but the controllers do not need charging, the light is green. When controllers are charging, the light turns orange. The charger can charge both Sixaxis and DualShock controllers and, let’s face it, holding the controllers in a gravity-defying horizontal position, it looks pretty damn cool, too.

As far as I can tell, you can’t buy additional USB adapters, which would be nice if you have more than two controllers, and you can’t charge Move controllers with the Charge Base 3 (but Nyko has another product for that). Having used the Nyko Charge Base 3 for about a month now, I can’t imagine having a PS3 without it.

Disclosure: GeekDad was sent a unit for review.

This past week in Las Vegas, the annual Gran Turismo awards were held, recognizing excellence in automotive customization. The awards, which are held in conjunction with the automotive industry’s Specialty Equipment Market Association (SEMA) convention, annually invite petrolheads to submit their custom car for judging and potential inclusion in the Gran Turismo game for the PlayStation 3.

This year’s crop of contestants was narrowed down by a field of judges who were on the lookout for unique vehicles that embodied the soul of the top-selling driving simulator. Submissions were broken down into five categories – Asian import, European import, domestic, hot rod, and truck. The Asian import, a 2009 Nissan 370Z, was a wide body with seemingly endless horsepower and an angry, barking exhaust note. A Porsche 964 represented the European import category and is the first car in the US built using a Rauh-Welt body kit from the very popular Japanese tuner.

Deeper in the Las Vegas Convention Center was a Ford F150 with deep dish wheels, suicide doors and the reddest interior you will ever see. The supercharged pickup lays claim to the truck category. A ‘72 Chevy Camaro represents the hot rod group, a car that tips its hand with a roll bar, carbon fiber panels and race suspension. Finally, a 1966 Ford Mustang, built for speed in gorgeous deep red rounds out the competition and represents the domestic class.

The father of the Gran Turismo series and race driver himself, Kazunori Yamauchi, was on hand to judge the finalists and select an overall winner. The lucky vehicle would be meticulously examined, photographed, and recreated for inclusion in the game. The honor, which takes up to a year to complete, has only been bestowed eight times prior to this year’s awards. Before announcing the winner, Yamauchi-san sat down and answered a few questions for us.

GeekDad: A year after release, Gran Turismo 5 continues to do well, Spec 2 has just been released … are you happy with how things are evolving with this version of the game?

Kazunori Yamauchi: Of course, we’re never completely satisfied, but we’ve done the best we can in the time that we have, so we have to be satisfied with that.

GD: We are also about a year past the widespread release of motion controls, but they still seem to be most appropriately used in casual games or with minimal use in more serious games. Can you envision how motion controls might be used in a more serious game like Gran Turismo?

KY: Technically, we can make the game compatible with Move but once you try it out being able to do it and it actually being fun is two different things – it’s kind of hard.

GD: I imagine a lot of GeekDad readers could benefit (and breathe easier) from their children learning to drive in a digital environment. Have you ever considered adapting Gran Turismo to educate kids, much in the way that the licenses work in the game?

KY: Kids that grew up with Gran Turismo already have very high driving skills. So if you want to make your kids a racing driver, that’s the way to go!

GD: You had the chance to work with Adrian Newey in developing the X2010 — that must have been an interesting experience. What else can motorsport learn from a simulation like Gran Turismo?

KY: I’ve actually visited a lot of Formula One teams including McLaren, Ferrari, Mercedes GP, and, of course, Red Bull. They all base the development of their cars on simulation first. It’s reached the point where there’s really no difference between simulation and the real life of a car. Something that’s really interesting, regarding the cars and the actual driving simulation, is the A-Spec part of the game. Something that’s really important to Formula One racing now is the racing strategy where you decide when you’re going to pit the car and how you distribute time and everything. And they already use a simulator that’s similar to the B-Spec simulator in the game to get the team organized in those race-type situations. So it really surprised me that, after seeing the teams, that they’re doing the same thing as we are.

GD: If the difference between current simulations and real life is thin, where’s the room for improvement in the next iteration of the game?

KY: There’s still a very long list of to-dos, a lot of things we haven’t done yet and we’re going to start doing them one by one.

GD: Each year we see dramatic improvements in automobile technology. When you walk around a show like SEMA, do you see a lot you want to incorporate into the game or is it more about your list of to-dos?

KY: At Gran Turismo, we are really focused on monitoring the all of the new technology that comes out for automobiles and we’ve gone to great lengths to include that in the game in every iteration. That’s something we never neglect.

GD: Gran Turismo has sold more than 60 million copies, you’ve personally had great success on the track. What would you say your most memorable accomplishment?

KY: I think the day we launched the first Gran Turismo is a day I’ll never forget, because I really saw a huge movement start then and there. Of course, winning the class in the 24 hours of Nubrugring is something that’s obviously a deep experience for me. Having been involved in working on a sports driving formula for this long, and to be actually able to leave visible results from that is something major in my life.

GD: When you work on a game for so long, there are certainly things, as we talked about before, that don’t get finished or you just can’t do. Can you talk about how downloadable content has affected the process of game creation?

KY: What we do during development, we do our best in developing every day and we do what we can do. The difference between having a package only release like we did in the past and how we have downloadable content now is that before, it used to be you would have to set an objective five years ahead and work toward that goal. But now, there’s this time in between where you can keep releasing new content and implement new ideas. It’s great that we can do that because it keeps the content fresh and gives us structure and objectives that we can work towards instead of of having this big objective far out there in the future. It helps to keep our motivation up, as well.

GD: What games do you see today that impress you as innovative or exciting?

KY: All the games that Will Wright makes, like Spore and the various Sims games. His games are really, really innovative. And I always have an interest for games that have that type of fresh innovation.

The Winner Is Announced

In a small club atop one of the strip’s many high rise casinos, a huge crowd surges forward. Kazunori Yamauchi has taken to the stage to announce the winners, along with GT Academy winner, Bryan Heitkotter. As each category winner is introduced, the anticipation ratchets up another gear. Finally, the overall winner is announced, Mary Pozzi’s 1972 hot rod Chevy Camaro will be digitally immortalized for the millions of Gran Turismo fans around the globe to race. The crowd cheers, on screen engines roar, and spotlights sweep the room like headlights following through a turn. A short time later, the Stone Temple Pilots take the stage and the celebration begins in earnest.

All images courtesy of Associated Press.

Image Courtesy Sony

Point and shoot cameras are okay, but they really don’t take the kind of awesome photos you can get from dSLR cameras with interchangeable lenses.

At the same time, those cameras are so huge that you really have to want to take one with you. They have not only huge lenses, but a huge camera body. Even though the camera itself has moved to the digital age, the mirror has stayed as if we just slapped some electronic sensors on the back of the same camera design we’ve been using for decades. But now there’s another choice.

Let me explain a little. On dSLR cameras, the d stands for digital, and the SLR stands for Single-Lens Reflex. The camera has a series of mirrors that lets you see through the lens when you look through the viewfinder, and the mirrors go up out of the way when you snap a shot to let the camera sensors record the image. You can also swap out lenses for a variety of shots or effects.

That has a couple of inconvenient side effects. It means your camera body has to be big and bulky enough to house those mirrors, and it means that although you can change lenses, you can’t always change them between brands of camera body, since some of them would require the lens to be closer to the camera in order to focus.

Enter the mirrorless cameras.

Read more about these new cameras at GeekMom.

Uncharted 3

As I wrote my Uncharted 3 review I found myself taking a different route, and along the way comparing it to Lord of the Rings, Star Wars, The Wire and Toy Story 3. As I alluded to in my Uncharted 3 preview, I guess this game feels more like a film than any other I have played, so I wrote about it as if it was a film…

Uncharted 3: Drake’s Deception sacrifices too much to Hollywood, but such is Naughty Dog’s skill and care that I’m happy to forgive what is lost for all that is gained.

The third and final installment in any game trilogy is notoriously hard to get right. It’s the videogame equivalent of the awkward second album, or difficult third film, and it’s all the harder when the penultimate outing was roundly applauded and sold so well.

Naughty Dog took this in stride as it takes its place with great artists before it, Radiohead’s onward survival after OK Computer’s global success and Star Wars‘ final outing after fan favorite Empire Strikes Back. It looks down this barrel and holds its nerve with the same quiet confidence that told players of the first game, Uncharted: Drake’s Fortune, that this was going to be a great series long before the general populace caught up with the release of Uncharted 2: Among Thieves.

Uncharted 3: Drake’s Deception starts as it means to go on, but this is not quite what I expected. After the work of the first two establishing locations and enemies I thought it would simply build on all this. But what I found was a fresh approach that immediately took me to new locations and pitted me against quite different enemies — both at henchman and headman(/woman) level.

It matches The Wire’s second season commitment to keep the focus moving and make the audience work. In fact, in videogame form it epitomizes David Simon’s TV show ethic of not pandering to the masses, famously outspoken: “who wants a casual audience?” Even though I am more used to putting in the effort between each videogame cinematic this was still something of a shock.

This is offset by Uncharted 3 doing more to blur the boundary between player controlled moments and those that drop into pre-rendered sequences. Although each transition is still jarring — a problem of the medium rather than the game — one bleeds into the other much better now.

Uncharted 3

At times I think I’d almost prefer to just watch things unfold without getting involved. However, if this was just a film I simply wouldn’t be interested. It’s only because I get to control Drake, and on occasion Elena, that this means so much to me. It’s only because these people exist in three-dimensional space that when they win, lose, hurt, cry and lie it matters to me.

The overall feeling of my first play was of a more restrained and slower paced experience than Uncharted 2. This is, again, evident from the start where Naughty Dog plays another trick of the trilogy closer. Like Return of the King’s flashback opening of Smeagol and Deagol first finding the ring, Uncharted 3 takes us back to Drake and Sully’s beginnings and the finding of their (less demonically cursed) ring.

It feels a little jarring, but for good reason. Drake’s Deception, as its name suggests, is not what we’ve come to expect from our untouchable hero. Without wanting to give too much away, this reminded us of James Bond films like Die Another Day where 007 isn’t necessarily all we assumed him to be.

This is to the good because by doing more than simply joining the dots, Uncharted 3 is a much more interesting game. While it may not be to everybody’s palate, and may miss the acclaim and accolades that gamers and plaudits were waiting to shower on it, this is a game that will stand the test of time much better.

Like the final Toy Story film, which John Lasseter held off from creating for many years for fear that it would cheapen the brand, Uncharted 3 turns out to actually add to the previous outings. Toy Story 3 was similarly not another rendition of the same story, and in their shared departure from expectations this film and game have served their wider franchises and audiences much better.

Uncharted 3

Where Uncharted 3 is more predictable, and where most reviews seem to focus, is in its improved shooting, fighting and stealth mechanics. These are each individually impressive, but it is the way you can choose your route through each level that impressed me. Like MotorStorm’s ability to offer racers their own route around each course here you decide whether to snipe, run and gun or sneak through each location.

These mechanical improvements are matched by the visuals. This time round the game looks better, and considering the previous game’s propensity to cause you to stop mid gun fight and look at a sunset or babbling brook, that is no small thing. You notice it not only in the general draw distances and attention to detail, but in the glint of an eye as Drake delivers a line, or wince as Elena wonders if he has finally outstretched himself this time.

Visually, I was disappointed that Elena has succumbed to a Hollywood face and body. I enjoyed her boyish movements and slightly androgynous features in the first game, and was happy that they continued into Uncharted 2. Here though she is much more typically feminine and has features that match the manufactured look of film starlets. She is simply a much less interesting looking, and less believable, person for this.

Happily though, the writing and performances is more than able to shine through. The dialogue wisely draws on the history we have with these characters. Sexual tension, genuine affection and care as well as more bombastic bravado all work together to make it impossible not to smile as events unfold in what can now only be described as a very “Uncharted” way.

That I need to reach for so many films to describe my Uncharted 3 ride is telling. This is the high tide mark of video-game’s ode to cinema. Although this still shackles what I think games can be on their own terms, as a cinematic experience it is unlikely to be bettered.

Other games will offer better platforming mechanics, more online multi-player options, local split-screen co-op in the main campaign. But no other game creates filmic characters that we really care about like this. This has always been Uncharted’s trump card, and its third episode seals this as its lasting appeal to serious gamers everywhere.

For a more conventional review of Uncharted 3, read GeekDad Matt Blum’s take on it from yesterday.

Quite a claim, I know, but it’s based on a simple premise: Uncharted would be more engaging, convincing and exciting if it depended more on game-play and less on cut-scenes for emotion. The jarring back and forth of action and cinematics is an understandable approach, but will one day seem unnecessary.

While it will be applauded for its almost cinematic aesthetics and filmic storytelling, I worry that for a new medium to define its progress by how close it is to something previous is actually a lack of confidence and maturity.

On first hearing, I know this sounds a little ludicrous. But just because videogame technology is developing fast doesn’t equate to adulthood. Like an unruly teenager fired up with a rush of hormones it may be some time before gaming really matures and learns to make the most of its individuality — not just its raw horsepower.

Uncharted 2

I grant you, in the short term it’s fine for games like Uncharted to surrender storytelling to cinematics, and it’s undeniable that Uncharted 3: Drake’s Deception particularly impresses with dialogue and acting that are as touching as any film.

Uncharted feels assured because it knows these strengths and plays to them. It’s something that has developed with each iteration. The third game is a noticeable step forward, not just in terms of animation and realism, but in the way dialogue draws on relationships and events from the previous episodes.

However, when these cut-scenes end – often so seamlessly that I don’t realize I’m in control – there is a shift of engagement that happens. I’m jarred from a watcher to a player and my suspension of disbelief takes a battering. At times I’m even a little disappointed when the game-play starts again — almost preferring to watch rather than play Uncharted.

In the long term I think we’ll look back at and realize how far games still had to go before they really understood their own identity. It seems much more likely it will be games like Limbo, Flower and Journey (rather than the big budget blockbusters like LA Noire) that I think will stand the test of time.

They create a similarly emotionally charged experience but without resorting to movies or storytelling to capitalize on them. The player remains in control at all times, while the game constructs emotionally charged moments of engagement.

Some may say that these games don’t really tell stories, but that is actually my point. We have let storytelling and emotional engagement be defined by books, movies and theater so much so that videogame can only rehearse those old forms.

In fact games can engage us emotionally and tell stories in entirely new and exciting ways without reference to other media. There is just as much narrative and plot and drama in Flower as there is in Uncharted — but it is experienced in an entirely different way.

Shadow of the Colossus is another interesting example. It took a significant (and largely unnoticed) step forward in this regard. It still used cut-scenes to deliver emotional moments to the player, but it let the you control the camera throughout. This made the in-engine (another important aspect it shares with Uncharted) cut-scenes feel less like a movie and more like game-play.

Uncharted 2

Videogames create worlds that exist in a way that books and films are unable to. As I run, shoot and explore the world of Uncharted it creates a connection with me. It’s no longer a linear space I pass through at the behest of a director, but because I’m in control, it exists for me. The game-play lends a reality to the world of Uncharted that a film could never generate on its own.

It’s this that makes Uncharted 3 an exciting and emotional proposition. Because the world actually exists within the experience, so do the characters. We’ve run around together, climbed together, got shot at together and even died together in a way that doesn’t happen in a film.

But this is where Uncharted misses an opportunity to do something remarkable. Rather than capitalize on this world in the game-play, it is left to cut-scenes to cash in on all this good work. The irony is that the result is so compelling that it is hard to even imagine how it could be any different.

It’s not until videogames cut the apron strings to other media, and create new experiences that engage the emotions with game-play and interactions, that they will be taken seriously in the world at large. When games are able to capitalize on the emotional equity of their game-play without wrestling control from the player they will come of age. Until then the same mixed message and misunderstanding about what videogames are is likely to continue in mainstream culture.

This is a big part of the reason why I think that motion controlled game-play is actually more important than we realize. More than providing accessibility, it also connects us emotionally to the game in a new way. You see a lot fewer cut-scenes in Kinect, MotionPlus and Move games for this very reason.

This sounds like I’m down on games like Uncharted, but actually that couldn’t be further from the truth. Uncharted 3 will be one of the few experiences that I set aside evenings to play through from start to finish – and with a busy family life, that really only happens a handful of games a year.

The distinction I want to make is that while I’m excited about how far games have come, they still have an awful lot of maturing left to do. Like with my children I’m enthralled to hear what they have done today but also, I can’t wait for them to grow up and become what I know they can be — the reality of which will likely be as much as a surprise to me as it is to them.

Image: Flickr.com /cogdog

A recent straw poll I ran on Twitter showed me that although most families who follow me are aware of the 3DS’s glasses-less 3D screen, they are a little foggier when it comes to other differences between the new console and the original DS.

@AwesomeOrchid: I asked my daughter this morning after she’d played with her friend’s 3DS, she said it’s the same really but it’s 3D.

@V82CHRIS: The games on the 3DS are more limited. 3D graphics are good but not great on a small screen. I use our normal DS more now.

@craigbuckler: And the games aren’t any better than standard DS ones – despite the 3D.

This mirrors the general perception amongst my less techy friends that the 3DS is basically a DS but with a 3D screen. Any sense of its improved visuals (that are more akin to the N64 rather than the SNES) has passed them by.

In fact, even when I quiz my more technically-engaged colleagues they took quite some time before mentioning the 3DS’s increased graphical horsepower. The 3D screen, larger top screen, circle controller, cameras or even telescopic stylus were highlighted before any mention of improved graphics.

This could be a big reason the 3DS hasn’t sold in the numbers expected. But more worrying for Nintendo, the price drop could compound the problem. Rather than distinguishing the 3DS as the next generation DS, making it almost the same price as the DSi (£115 for a 3DS compared to £95 for a DSi on Amazon) actually blurs the distinction further — and it’s actually the same price as the DSi XL.

Maybe a better way to communicate this distinction is with the release of games that are obviously head and shoulders above their DS counterparts. Here things look more promising with Mario Kart 7, Super Mario 3D and (to a lesser extent) Starfox 64 3D arriving before Christmas. To this end, it could well be a desire to distinguish Mario Kart 3DS from Mario Kart DS that has seen the late addition of a numeric to its name — now Mario Kart 7.

All this, of course, comes in light of the upcoming release of Sony’s PlayStation Vita which boasts a slew of novel interactive ideas and visuals that edge towards PlayStation 3 quality (considering the screen real-estate). Sony has done a much better job at distinguishing its new handheld from the previous generation — not only changing the name completely but also (in tried and tested Sony fashion) focusing on how different the hardware is.

Of course Sony is understandably happier to leave the history of the PSP behind than Nintendo is with the DS. That notwithstanding though, the mum and dad on the street will be much clearer about the reasons to buy their precious offspring the PS Vita than they are about the 3DS.

The other player driving cost down in the portable gaming sector are smartphones (as recently rehearsed by Ben Kuchera). Although there has been a lot of buzz about the iPhone, Android, Blackberry and Windows Phone 7 devices being a threat to dedicated gaming machines, I don’t buy this.

While it is true that Smartphone adoption amongst a younger demographic is growing — as we have seen with use of Blackberry Messenger — this still hovers around the teenage years (and tweens from 11 yrs and older). That leaves a big window for dedicated devices like the DS and PSP (or even Mobigo and Leapfrog) to normalise younger players (as young as 3yrs) into the benefits and habit of playing games on a dedicated piece of hardware.

The conundrum remains for Nintendo to figure out what it is that is slowing 3DS sales. My money is on the fact that it is seen more as a “3D DS” rather than the truly next generation handheld device it actually is. For this reason I expect I’ll be considerably more excited about its prospects than the mums and dads I interacted with at the playground and swimming pool.

[This post was previously published on Wired.co.uk]