I wasn't going to, it was due to circumstances. I'm staying for four months in Spain and have been living in my uncle's unused flat. A couple of weeks ago my uncle's TV broke and he took the one in my flat.
So, unable to play my PS3, I decided to go ahead and buy a PSV, despite all the doom going around. I have U:GA and GR. Without further ado, my review of PSV:
This is home console gaming anywhere. I'm not going to debate whether that's a good strategy or not, but it works, and I love it. If you're one of those that thinks home console experiences don't belong in a handheld, then it's probably not for you. Though PSV is great for those too, there are peobably better/cheaper alternatives for you.
But I do enjoy what PSV offers. I enjoy playing Uncharted while waiting for my wife in the mall. It rocks. It's amazing. I don't want some minigame, I want this. If I have a spare 30 minutes, why not? I don't miss the big screen, because the screen is absolutely gorgeous and when you have the PSV that close to you you forget it's "tiny". Really. I forget I'm playing a handheld and I can get really invested in a game. Only I can do it anywhere. I might be in a minority, but for me it's great.
The HW is superb. Amazing graphics, amazing screen and very responsive. Having a secong analog stick makes a HUGE difference, it's the deal braker. PSP had the graphics but no the input capabilities. They take some getting used to, but after a couple of hours you forget that they're any different to your DS3 sticks.
The touch screen works perfectly well. The gyroscope is one of the best additions for me, it works great in Uncharted and Gravity Rush, it actually makes aiming more accurate than the stick for short movements. In Uncharted I can snipe all the enemies without even zooming, it's that accurate. It makes me want to have it in my PS3.
The rear touch pad is perhaps the least useful feature so far, although I love in FIFA (if you want to shoot to the upper right corner of the goal, you touch that area of the rear touch pad). I need to see more good uses for it.
Brief review of the games I got. U:GA and GR are very good. Uncharted feels like Uncharted. I was skeptic, because usually when you give an IP to another developer it's obvious, but ND must have been following the development very closely because it's a great Uncharted. Better than Drake's Fortune for me, for example. Gravity Rush is amazing so far, a solid 9/10, I'm addicted... I must emphasise that these feel like PS3 games. Uncharted has a bit more focus on exploration (hundreds of collectibles and secret paths), but that's it.
Now, on to non gaming aspects. It's of course a great multimedia device. If you have a smartphone then it's similar I guess. The browser works well but needs improvements IMO. You have Google Maps with your location, video and music playback, and all the typical stuff.
And you have Skype. You can use Skype to call anyone, and it works great. The people I talked to said the camera was kind of shitty though, especially the front one (which is the one you'll use if you want to see the other person...) but oh well, it's nice being able to make video calls if you want to. Of course, if someone has no constant access to Skype like you then they can't call you, so it's still not a phone substitute.
All in all, very solid piece of HW that needs some more SW. Personally, I'm getting more games for my PSV this year than for PS3 (Uncharted: Golden Abyss, Gravity Rush., Little Big Planet, FIFA 13, Persona 4 and Assassins Creed III: Liberation) but I can understand that until now it's been meh. I admit I don't know what's coming next year, but the second half of 2012 seems solid so I'm confident.
There seems to be a stigma is with the idea of console gaming on the go. I don't quite get it because many handhelds have been more or less exact replicas of home consoles games during the 2D era (GB & GBColor was like NES, GBA was like SNES). It's just that 3D games were never well replicated on hadhelds. Now, finally, they are.
I never though "I wish I was playing this on PS3", because I can't take my PS3 to the mall while I wait for my wife to check 1m things and buy none, or while I'm on holidays, or on the train, or whatever. Plus, if I want to play at home, I can and I never miss my PS3 because it's as good.
In short: if you like the idea of home console gaming (improved, even) on the go, the PSV is for you. The HW is great and SW pretty good at least for the next few months.
If you feel like you're OK with your smartphone bite sized gaming then it's not worth owning a Vita.
I don't know if Sony had the right strategy with PSV, but it does what it's meant to do amazingly well.
No troll is too much for me to handle. I rehabilitate trolls, I train people. I am the Troll Whisperer.
