Vita launches in the west

Sony's new handheld, PS Vita, has launched in North America and Europe.

First in line at Game's flagship store on London's Oxford Street was Zohaib Ali, 21, who had been waiting outside the store since Sunday.

"No sleep," he told VG247. "Tonight I'm just going to play Vita all night. I've stayed awake all night. I've already played it - it's really good! I love games, I love technology - I just want my Vita."

Also on hand was Michael Denny, SVP of Worldwide Studios Europe, who said: "Personally I think in terms of launches it's the strongest line-up we've had. Not just in terms of quantity - we have 50 announced titles which is fantastic in itself - but in terms of quality and the mix of big franchises that have almost been reinvented for Vita.

"I think we have something for everybody - it's really strong, really exciting. You look at the catalogue we have and there are some titles that are broader based that can appeal to more casual gamers, even at launch. We'll be adding to that catalogue and I'm sure the demographic will be broadening very quickly."

While it says more about Game Group's woes than interest in Vita, only two of the chain's stores were open for midnight last night. By comparison, 482 flung open their doors at midnight when 3DS launched, and even Gran Turismo 5 launched at 93 midnight openings across the country.

Game won't be stocking Ubisoft's launch titles either - so it's perhaps just as well that all the launch games are available as digital downloads from the PlayStation Store.

Source: VG247