No Heroes Allowed! VR flops in Japanese debut
The first major 2017 Japanese PlayStation VR exclusive didn’t turn out to be so major after all. Sony Interactive Entertainment and Acquire’s No Heroes Allowed! VR pushed just 5,462 units at retail in Japan in its debut week of sale, according to the latest Media Create report. This represents a complete collapse from the prior three physically released entries in the franchise:
[PSP] No Heroes Allowed! – 29,262 / 173,724
[PSP] No Heroes Allowed! 2 – 58,806 / 217,627
[PSP] No Heroes Allowed! 3D – 33,920 / 100,308
In addition to these main entries, the series has inspired multiple i-mode mobile phone titles, a PlayStation Mobile spinoff, and two free-to-play downloadable spinoffs on PlayStation Vita. Sony’s Forward Works division is currently developing another spinoff, No Heroes Allowed! DASH, for iOS and Android devices. The virtual reality outing has been the first time the franchise has been available on a home console and sales suggest it might be the last. Read the rest of this entry
Hamster’s Appli Archives for PlayStation Mobile
Remember PlayStation Mobile? Sony’s attempt to bridge mobile (Android) and dedicated handheld gaming (PlayStation Vita) with a shared library of content. While the initiative never really got the attention of mainstream game developers, a small Japanese company named Hamster wound up being one of the most prolific publishers. Mirroring their Arcade Archives series on PS4, Appli Archives (アプリアーカイブス) was a series of emulated early 2000s Japanese feature phone games. The series started on December 17, 2014 and saw its last launch alongside the closure of PlayStation Mobile on June 24, 2015. Read the rest of this entry
Sony sees their first million seller in Japan since 2004
According to data published by Japanese sales tracking firm Media Create, Minecraft: PlayStation Vita Edition moved 51,723 units over the week of December 19-25, 2016. This brings the portable version of Mojang’s builder to a grand total of 1,018,699 units sold since its release in March 2015.
The physical version of the game is published by Sony Interactive Entertainment (formerly Sony Computer Entertainment) and acts as the company’s first million seller in Japan since 2004’s Gran Turismo 4 on the PlayStation 2.
Yes, Sony’s best selling title in its home region in more than decade is from a series owned by Microsoft on a platform they abandoned years ago. As it stands now, Minecraft: PlayStation Vita Edition has been Sony’s final retail release for the handheld in Japan.
Corecell brings one-man indie clicker RPG Wanderjahr to PSN later this month
Corecell, the makers of games like Crazy Strike Bowling and Aeternoblade, has partnered up with Thai indie developer Workyrie Company to bring their point-and-click RPG Wanderjahr to the North American PlayStation Store for PS Vita on August 31st. Read the rest of this entry
Minecraft reaches major sales milestones in Japan
While Minecraft has been a colossal hit in the west for years, it looks like Mojang’s world builder Minecraft has finally taken off in Japan. According to Japanese media outlet Famitsu, the game has passed one million copies sold in the region … just on PS Vita. Yep, as it turns out the most popular platform for Microsoft’s IP is the handheld Sony has abandoned. Read the rest of this entry
Tearaway Unfolded Flops In Japanese Debut
Sony ports their handheld games to home consoles in an effort to try to introduce new audiences to quality content, but that doesn’t look like it’s working out for Tearaway. After a poor showing in the United Kingdom, the PS4 reversioning of 2013’s Vita classic has failed to make all three major Japanese sales tracking charts after its October 1st debut. Read the rest of this entry
Square Enix Purposely Ignores Sony Handhelds In New Survey
Square Enix has released a new questionnaire that they claim will “shape the future” of the company. In it you’ll find the company quizzing the applicant on their media consumption habits. In the eighth and ninth questions, Square Enix asks which of the listed platforms the user owns and plays the most. Initially the multiple choices included every recent (in the last 10 years) commercial platform – barring PSP, 3DS, PS Vita and Wii U. With the Nintendo snub raising eyebrows, the company updated the survey earlier today to include Nintendo’s current gen platforms. However, the PlayStation handhelds were once again neglected. Read the rest of this entry
Killzone: Mercenary, and Tearaway info to be released this week, Polish magazine gets the scoop
Upcoming PSVita exclusives, Killzone: Mercenary, and Tearaway will have more information unveiled this week as embargos on a PlayStation event held weeks back end. Polish gaming magazine PSX Extreme posted up a preview of their upcoming February issue with the cover story being more information regarding Killzone: Mercenary, and Tearaway. Killzone: Mercenary is reportedly running the PlayStation 3 Killzone engine, and looks gorgeous, with crispy textures, and big draw distances. Characters models are also well detailed, with the animation to match. The game’s frame rate is steady despite the stunning action, and has been tailored for on the go gaming. Story wise the game will star new protagonists. More information regarding the multiplayer, story, and social features as well as the release date (described as “sooner than we think”) will be revealed shortly. The first person shooter will be Vita’s first retail game in the genre not made by Nihilistic Software, the studio behind the poorly received Resistance: Burning Skies, and Call of Duty: Black Ops Declassified releases.
Unfortunately, more information regarding the magazine’s coverage of Tearaway, the new IP from Media Molecule wasn’t shared.
Issue 185 of PSX Extreme will hit Polish news stands on January 27.
Invizimals: Hidden Challenges Trading Card Game App released
European PlayStation Vita owners may have noticed an Invizimals: Trading Card App on the weekly PlayStation Store update. There’s a reason for that. Sony, Invizimals developer Novarama, and Italian collectibles company Panini have partnered up to launch a new Invizimals trading card game. While there has been other Invizimals collectibles from that trio this new set of cards, dubbed “Hidden Challenges” marks a new move in the franchise’s expansion in Portugal, and Spain. Panini has committed to releasing over 470 different physical cards that’ll have players battling their favourites Invizimals, and launching powerful vortex strikes. Cards will retail for euros. In addition to the physical game, there is the Trading Card App that has been released on PSVita, PSP, iOS, and Android. This free app will allow users to import their physical Hidden Challenges cards into the virtual world to continue the fight. The app will provide collection statistics, online multiplayer, and of course allow users to demo the augmented reality features that made the franchise famous.
Invizimals: Hidden Challenges Trading Card Game Promo
Daniel Crespo of Novarama said that while Invizimals is a Sony property, the ability to release mobile apps expands the amount of people who can become aware of the series. He later said that it’s important to distinguish mobile apps from the traditional Invizimals games to ensure that one doesn’t replace the other. The studio saw Invizimals: Hidden Challenges as a fun diversion while the studio took 2012 off from releasing Invizimals games in an attempt to make the next one special. Presumably the next game will be launched alongside the Invizimals television series set to air later this year.
Panini currently plans to release Hidden Challenges only in Spain, and Portugal. As such, the apps are also exclusive to those countries. The Invizimals games have sold over 600,000 units in that market since launch in 2009.
Via: ABC.es
Gamescom 2011: Alien Spidy Gameplay
Enigma Games unique yet cute platformer Alien Spidy now has a video showcasing its gameplay capabilities. Take a look at the embedded trailer below:
No Games Portable 