As a disgruntled Xperia Play owner, I've been waiting for quite some time for Sony to officially support my PlayStation-certified phone as promised. So far the only PlayStation title that's landed on the gamepad-like smartphone here in the States is Crash Bandicoot -- which came pre-installed -- while third-party Android app developers have, as usual, pushed on with their apps, throwing in additional support for the gamepad where possible.
Formerly known as PlayStation Suite, the PlayStation Mobile platform has seemingly become vaporware as the months since it was first announced (back in February 2011) roll by. With us now well into August 2012, Sony is finally announcing that the full-scale launch of PlayStation Mobile will begin this fall. The service will be available on open operating system-based devices in Japan, United States, Canada, United Kingdom, France, Germany, Italy, Spain, and Australia with more countries to follow.
"At launch this fall, users will be able to enjoy approximately 30 new titles from a variety of genres including Adventure, Action, Puzzle, and Sports, created by third party developers and publishers as well as SCE Worldwide Studios," Sony said on Tuesday.
The company also announced that the PlayStation Mobile Developer Program -- which includes the official version of PlayStation Mobile SDK -- will become available to the development community following the launch of the dedicated content for PlayStation Mobile through PlayStation Store. This program will allow developers to easily distribute their content through PlayStation Store on a commercial basis and market their games to millions of dedicated gamers with PlayStation Certified devices.
Currently the PlayStation Certified library includes the Xperia arc, Xperia acro, Xperia PLAY, Xperia acro HD, Xperia S, Xperia ion, Xperia acro S, Sony Tablet S and Sony Tablet P. A total of 29 developers and publishers across regions including the United States have agreed to develop content for PlayStation Mobile in addition to 56 third party developers and publishers located in Japan and Europe.
In addition to finally nailing down the PlayStation Mobile launch (to some extent at least), Sony also said Asus and WikiPad have joined the PlayStation Certified program. Essentially the Asus Transformer Pad will become a certified device while the WikiPad was an obvious choice thanks to its handheld console-like design.
"Wikipad is the first true video game tablet built with an attachable gamepad controller that enables a mobile console experience. As we head into our upcoming launch we are partnering with the industry's leading players. PlayStation's commitment to delivering innovative entertainment experiences that captivate gamers is unparalleled and we are thrilled to partner with them," said James Bower, chief executive officer, Wikipad.
Now here's the kicker for those who have waited a long time for additional PS One Classics to land on your Certified device: you'll never see them the legal way. "In conjunction with the launch of dedicated content for PlayStation Mobile through PlayStation Store, legendary PlayStation games (PS one Classics) for PlayStation Certified devices will no longer be offered," Sony said.
