Sony’s website now lists Japanese release dates and prices for two PS Vita power accessories that you’re likely to need. The PCH-ZPC1 J portable charger is a 135g (4.8-ounce) unit that takes seven hours to charge to its full 5,000mAh capacity and is then good for around one and half charges of your console — we reckon that’d equate to over 12 hours of mixed-use sessions or at least seven hours of solid gaming. It’ll be out on April 5th for ¥4,500 ($60). Meanwhile, the PCH-ZCA1 J car charger will hit retailers a couple of weeks earlier on March 22nd priced at ¥1,500 ($20) — and there’s really not much more to say about it except that a dead Vita on a road trip would be both a travesty and an oxymoron. Oh, just in case it hasn’t already been etched into your memory, February 22nd is launch day in the US and Europe.

SOURCE via The Verge

Come spring you’ll finally be able to get your grubby paws on that droid-based console you’ve been looking for. Microsoft’s Major Nelson let slip in a series of tweets that the Star Wars Xbox 360 Kinect bundle will land on April 3rd. The set, which was first unveiled, fittingly, at Comic Con, is dressed up like R2-D2 and ships with a C-3P0-themed controller, a white Kinect sensor and the games Star Wars Kinect and Kinect Adventures. The 320GB system will run you $449, so start saving up those Galactic Credits now.

SOURCE via Major Nelson

Rejoice, Nintendo gamers. You will no longer be referred to as a “friend code” when Nintendo fully launches its upcoming Nintendo Network for the 3DS and Wii U. The company revealed its plans for an entirely new approach to an online community and a digital distribution platform on Thursday during its third quarter financial results briefing.

As previously reported, Nintendo expects to ship the Wii U in Japan, the U.S., Europe and Australia in time for the 2012 year-end sales season.

“For the launch of new hardware, it is, of course, regarded as a sort of requisite not to miss the critical year-end sales season,” Nintendo president Satoru Iwata told investors. “The company is aiming to firmly complete the development of the entire system and prepare sufficient software so that the Wii U will be at its best at the time of the launch. Needless to say, we have learned a bitter lesson from the launch of the Nintendo 3DS.”

The final version will be showcased this June at E3 2012, updated with extra goodies like non-contact near field communication (NFC) support. Iwata says the tech will be compatible with FeliCa and MIFARE which is expected to be widely used around the world in the near future.

“By installing this functionality, it will become possible to create cards and figurines that can electronically read and write data via noncontact NFC and to expand the new play format in the video game world,” Iwata said. “Adoption of this functionality will enable various other possibilities such as using it as a means of making micropayments.”

The NFC and micropayments system will be tied into the company’s upcoming Nintendo Network. Iwata said the new network was actually first revealed in Mario Kart 7 which landed on the 3DS back in December. Naturally it will support the 3DS and Wii U, and offer competitions and communication among users, as well as the sales of digital content and full-blown games. It will also allow for personal accounts, ditching the stiff “friend code” system.

“With this, for example, the ease of using a video game system when the hardware is shared by multiple family members, which has been a challenge we needed to tackle, shall be improved, and we will also be able to construct and offer the system by combining a variety of different services and content,” Iwata said.

Iwata claims the network already has the infrastructure to support DLC and full retail games for both the 3DS and Wii U. He offered an early glimpse into its capabilities with a few current examples including the community building aspect of Mario Kart 7 and the music DLC scheduled for the upcoming Theatrythm Final Fantasy (February 16) game published by Square Enix.

“This concept was built into the design of the Nintendo 3DS, and we already have the necessary infrastructure,” he added. “We will prepare the same infrastructure for the Wii U. However, we have not decided the concrete timing of when we will start it.”

Prior reports indicated that the Wii U will sport its own app/ebook store for downloading and installing apps directly to the Wii U controller, seemingly copying iOS and Android-based tablets. That said, there’s a good chance Nintendo will offer popular mobile games like Angry Birds and Cut The Rope that are optimized for the tablet’s 6.2-inch touchscreen and underlying hardware.

“Whether it’s our first-party titles or third parties’ titles, for a number of games, we will actively attempt to achieve compatibility so that our consumers can enjoy our online services that we will deploy under the name of the Nintendo Network,” Iwata said.

To read the entire third quarter financial results briefing, head here. The Nintendo Network aspects begins on page 4. Good luck.

Digital copies of games that you download bypass the time-and-money-consuming manufacturing, logistics and retail processes. It’s only natural that we as consumers expect some of that saving to be passed along to our own wallets. There’s a fair chunk of evidence to suggest that downloading PS Vita games over PSN will result in a ten percent saving on the boxed edition (that you’d have to drive to a store for, and everything). Of course, it would be unseemly to point out that those few dollars will spell the death-knell for thousands of jobs, so we won’t.

SOURCE via Joystiq

Now the next-gen rumor mill is really starting to get a little juicy, as cloud platform provider Gaikai reports that one of the current console manufacturers does not have plans to partake in the next-generation console race. Who that will be should be relatively obvious given that Nintendo already has the Wii U exposed and flashing its goods to the general public, and Microsoft’s leaked roadmap clearly shows another Windows 8-related Xbox in the works.

So who’s left? Why that would be Sony, the very company who earlier today admitted that it will not show the PlayStation 4 console this year at E3. Reports last week suggested that both Microsoft and Sony would offer a brief glimpse at their next-generation hardware, but Sony consumer products head Kaz Hirai stated during a CES 2012 roundtable that no console will make an appearance at the June convention. Consider the PS4/E3 2012 rumor officially nuked.

But Sony pulling out of the console race altogether? That’s seems a little far-fetched given that the company just churned out the touchy feely PlayStation Vita handheld console. Yet Nintendo and Microsoft clearly don’t seem to have any kind of departure in the works, so that leaves Sony as the #1 quitter.

“Not all of the current console makers will have one more generation,” Nanea Reeves, chief product officer for Gaikai, said during CES. “That will be the big news at E3.”

One factor to point out is Hirai’s comment about the PlayStation 3 and how it will have a ten-year lifespan. There’s a good chance Sony may not produce another console until the PlayStation 3 is close to near-death. By then, the Xbox 720/Next/Loop will likely be out on the market, and the Nintendo Wii U will be saturated with lame 3rd party titles similar to those gracing the current Wii console. Players may be looking for something new by then.

Yet maybe, just maybe, Sony has no plans to launch another console at all, but will release something entirely different that will play games, play movies, use apps, rely on the cloud, pull in live network television, clean the house, cook dinner, wash the dirty kids and more. Ok, perhaps that’s going a bit far, but you get the picture.

Sony may also fear Apple and its looming iTV mammoth, and plans to counter it with something that combines the best of consoles and smart TVs. This may be why Gaikai knows all about Sony’s plans, and made that indirect comment about a console manufacturer dropping out, because Sony plans to stream games directly to the product much like LG is doing with its 2012 Cinema 3D TVs.

Something to think about, anyway. Maybe that will be the big E3 news: a completely new game-related product from Sony.

Last week brought reports that Sony may offer a glimpse of the PlayStation 4 this June during E3 2012. However this week Sony is denying those reports, saying that it has no plans to make any console-related announcements during the show. In fact, Sony plans to ride out the 10-year life cycle of the current console, the PlayStation 3. which made its American debut back in 2006.

“I’ve always said a 10-year life cycle for PS3, and there is no reason to go away from that,” said Kaz Hirai, who oversees Sony’s gaming and consumer electronics division, during a roundtable event at this week’s Consumer Electronics Show.

For the record, that 10-year-cycle doesn’t mean Sony has no plans to release a new console before 2016. Just look at the relationship between the current generation, and the highly-successful PlayStation 2 which launched in 2000. The older, latter model seemed to handle itself just fine after the younger sibling hit the market, and continues to see new games despite the PS3′s growing momentum.

What’s more, waiting until 2016 may not be such a good idea. The Nintendo Wii U is slated to launch sometime towards the end of the year, and will be followed by Microsoft’s Xbox 720/Loop/Next console reportedly scheduled to make a 2013 appearance. If the company doesn’t want to get “left behind,” then it may need to at least offer some kind of glimpse this year.

A company job listing indicates that Microsoft wants to develop Xbox Live games that are cross-platform capable on Windows Phone, iOS and Android. Will they work on the console and Windows 8 too?

There’s speculation that Microsoft plans to launch Xbox Live-based games on enemy platforms like iOS and Android. They won’t be loaded with malware or anything else equally as sinister, but instead will be straight-up titles that are cross-platform capable across all three mobile environments — maybe even on Windows 8 and the Xbox 360 console. Read more…

While we’re currently obsessing over CES 2012, the rumor mill is also peering six months ahead to June where the Xbox 720 and PlayStation 4 will reportedly offer a small brief appearance.

The news arrives after Nintendo insiders claimed last week that Satoru Iwata & Co. is building Apple-like app and ebook stores for the upcoming Wii U console. There’s a strong possibility that these two features will be Nintendo’s big selling point during the gaming tradeshow this summer. There’s even talk that Nintendo will provide solid launch details, including a lineup of games available at day one.

But for the record, we actually expect to see some kind of hint about Microsoft’s console next week as the company talks about Windows 8 and likely Windows Phone 8. The CEA even hinted to this focus last month after Microsoft said that it was pulling out of the show, claiming that the Redmond company will focus “quite a bit on Windows Phone and its Xbox / entertainment story.”

A leaked Microsoft roadmap published back in October claims that Microsoft will release the Xbox SDK while announcing the 3rd generation Kinect titles during E3 2012. The third-generation Xbox console isn’t slated to make a full debut until E3 2013. With that in mind, consumers should expect a mere taste in June that will likely focus on gaming across the three Microsoft platforms, and a release of the next-gen Xbox SDK so that developers can get started. According to MCV, third-party publishing sources claim the firm had signaled to partners that it will detail its next-generation console plans during the show.

As for the PlayStation 4 news, Sony executives have reportedly made it clear to third parties that it will “not be left behind” in the new generation. Sony Computer Entertainment CEO Jim Ryan even previously admitted that he wants to avoid allowing Microsoft to get the jump on the PlayStation 4, indicating an eagerness within Sony to get the next console out ASAP.

Right now it’s just too early to tell what Microsoft and Sony plan to do in June. However the two Nintendo rivals will likely offer a few goodies to nibble on in order to steal some thunder away from the Wii U launch slated for the end of 2012.

Following reports that Nintendo is secretly building its own Apple-like app store for the upcoming Wii U console, there’s now chatter that the company will also launch an ebook store for distributing game guides, digital magazines and other content. The company is reportedly talking with publishers and developers now, and is even entertaining the notion of re-publishing digital versions of its back-catalog of out-of-print “Players Guides” in the supposed ebook store for free.

According to an iOS developer, content offered on Nintendo’s ebook store will not only include the free “Players Guides” for virtual console games, but downloadable instruction booklets and every back issue of Nintendo Power. Paid game-related content may be provided by Prima Games which currently publishes the official strategy guides. So far there’s no indication that this ebook store will be separate from the previously reported app store, or combined into one storefront like iTunes.

There’s certainly no question that Nintendo is appearing taking a “tablet” approach with the upcoming Wii U, but if the iOS source is correct, the console’s unique controller will seem even more tablet-like while users purchase non-gaming content from the ebook store. Nintendo is reportedly “actively seeking” partners among publishers to bring mainstream ebooks, magazines and newspapers to the Nintendo landscape.

Like Kindle and iBooks, virtual books will be synchronized between devices — meaning that the Nintendo 3DS will also have access — logged onto the same account. It’s presumed that consumers will have two options to pay, using credit cards or Wii/3DS Points. The iOS source also added that both the 3DS and Wii U controller will download newly released issues while its idle thanks to their active sleep system.

On Monday the unnamed iOS developer, based out of Los Angeles, claimed that Nintendo actually approached the studio and offered to assist in porting and publishing their iOS software to be played on the Wii U’s touchscreen controller (tablet). Previously Nintendo indicated that Apple and its iOS devices really aren’t a threat, yet here the company is gearing up to launch a tablet-like device that can read ebooks and possibly play Angry Birds. Meanwhile, Apple is gearing up to launch iTV…

To some degree, the current Nintendo Wii console already features an “app store” called the Wii Shop Channel. Console owners can browse, purchase, and download bite-sized games called WiiWare in addition to old classics (ROMS) from the Super Nintendo, Sega Genesis and TurboGrafix 16 days. On a more technical note, some of the main Wii applications like the Internet Channel and the Shop Channel are treated like apps, requiring users to download updates from time to time.

However, The Daily reports that Nintendo is secretly building a full-blown app store for the upcoming Wii U that is similar to Apple’s App Store. An unnamed source close to the matter claims that it will offer more than the “lite” weather and calculator applications seen on the Wii and DSi — it will be a fully-loaded store proffering a wider variety of apps. What these apps will be is still unknown at this point, but we know Netflix is a likely candidate given it’s already available on the Wii and 3DS, maybe even Facebook and Twitter.

“Wii U owners will be able to use apps that operate on the Wii U itself, such as MLB.TV, and others that run independently on the Wii U’s controller,” The Daily reports. “Given its tablet-like design and 6.2-inch screen, it’s not hard to imagine being able to check email, browse the Web, post to social networks and even get some gaming in.”

Nintendo’s Wii U is slated for the second half of 2012 and will feature a tablet-like controller containing a 6.2-inch FWVGA (854 x 480) resistive touchscreen. The controller will also contain a built-in 3-axis accelerometer, a 3-axis gyroscope, a front-facing camera, typical Nintendo controller buttons and a stylus. It’s speculated that the supposed Apple-like app store will cater more to the tablet itself, and could possibly even offer popular titles from Gameloft, Rovio, Electronics Arts and more.