Sony Announces Over 20 New Games to be Demoed for Xperia Play at E3

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In the past E3 has belonged to the major video game companies, but as gaming is ramping up on phones and tablets, expect to see a lot more Android at the gaming conference in coming years. Case in point, Sony Ericsson has announced over twenty new games that will be coming to the Android, including ten that will be exclusive to their Xperia Play. Sony Ericsson says the games will be made available over the coming months, but many of them will be available to demo at their booth at E3.


The Xperia Play is obviously not your conventional phone. With a set of Playstation-style controls, the Xperia Play was a phone made for gaming, and with the entire Android Market at its disposal, its not short for content. Sony Ericsson, however, is working to make sure the Xperia Play is THE phone for gamers, with a slew of exclusive content.
Among the games Sony Ericsson will be making exclusive to the Play are the popular game Minecraft and a Tom Clancy game, Rainbow 6 Shadow Vanguard. We’ll have to see if any of these exclusive games ever make it to other devices, as many of them have been created with physical controls in mind, rather then the touch screen. Sony Ericsson gamers are the ones who will be buying this phone, and they seem to be committed to it. Be sure to stay tuned for coverage from E3 next week.

Atlanta, GA – June 2, 2011 – Today Sony Ericsson announces more than 20 new games, including 10 exclusive titles, optimized for Xperia™ PLAY. The new games, many of which will be showcased at the world’s leading games expo, E3, June 7-9, add to the more than 60 titles already available for Xperia™ PLAY.
The new titles offer broad appeal to different users and usage occasions from popular, innovative, massively multi-player online titles (MMO) to immersive titles and addictive graphically rich new casual content.
Amongst the titles announced today is Minecraft™, the much anticipated game from the Swedish indie developer Mojang, currently setting the industry alight. Minecraft™ is one of the fastest growing game franchises in history, with over eight million registered users announced to date and over 50,000 new players joining every day.
“As Xperia™ PLAY becomes available to Verizon Wireless customers in the U.S., the portfolio of great games continues to grow and we are delighted to announce 20 new games optimized for Xperia™ PLAY,” said Steve Walker, Head of Marketing at Sony Ericsson. “By building on the open Android ecosystem, we’re providing a brilliant opportunity for developers and game publishers to bring their best titles to new audiences and fantastic new experiences for Xperia™ PLAY owners. Keep watching this space.”
In addition to the new titles announced today, Sony Ericsson can confirm that new games from Sony Computer Entertainment’s stable of classic PlayStation 1 titles will be coming to Xperia™ PLAY shortly. More details will be shared imminently.
Sony Ericsson’s support for the Android ecosystem also includes its partnerships with key industry players, such as Unity and Havok, with whom it is working to build an ever growing ecosystem. Sony Ericsson is launching a programme to support and find new upcoming innovative developers called “Stand out from the crowd”, which enables game developers to become part of the Xperia™ PLAY story and get their games the profile they need.
Sony Ericsson will be present at E3 in Los Angeles, June 7-9, to offer first hands-on demos of Xperia™ PLAY and many of the new games in the Sony Ericsson booth 713.
New Android Games Exclusive on Xperia™ PLAY:
Minecraft™ by Mojang
Battlefield Bad Company 2 by Electronic Arts
Tom Clancy’s Rainbow 6 Shadow Vanguard by Gameloft
Desert Winds by Southend Interactive
Ruined by Bigpoint
Icebreaker™ by NaturalMotion
Sleepy Jack by SilverTree Media
Cracking Sands by Polarbit
Armageddon Squadron 2 by Polarbit
An unnamed fighting game from Khaeon Gamestudio
New Games coming soon on Xperia™ PLAY:
Pocket Legends by Spacetime Studios
Star Legends: The Black Star Chronicles by Spacetime Studios
Eternal Legacy by Gameloft
Guns ’n’Glory 2 by HandyGames
Dungeon Hunter 2 by Gameloft
Pocket RPG by Crescent Moon Games
D.A.R.K. developed by Gamelab
Samurai II: Vengeance by MADFINGER Games
Vendetta Online by Guild Software
Order & Chaos – Gameloft
Happy Vikings by Handy Games
A Ball Game by Trendy Entertainment
Lumines by Connect2Media
The new games announced today will be released in the coming months. More details regarding timing and exclusivity will be announced during E3 week and closer to launch.

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Xperia Play with HDMI out spotted in the Wild

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When the Xperia Play launched one of the features everyone wished they had was HDMI out. To be able to enjoy those amazing games over HDMI would really make the Play a true gaming phone. The Sony Ericsson Xperia Play did not ship with HDMI out, although devices like the Arc did so there must have been a reason behind this. You can see our very own unboxing and hands-on, HDMI out is missing sadly.


We don’t know much more than the picture above shows. This may be development hardware or even just another version for another market. If you saw our unboxing video posted above, or even read our amazing Xperia Play Review you will see that the micro-usb for charging is in fact under the right joystick and nothing is under the left, on the Verizon version at least.
The source mentions it may be a micro-usb to hdmi converter but the usb port is not on that side, that also rules out MHL. So this could in fact be development hardware or possibly an updated version or second generation Play. We wont know more until more details surface so stay tuned and we will update you as we hear more.
[via SE-Xperia]

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HTC Desire S vs Sony Ericsson Xperia Arc

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This time the HTC Desire S takes on the Sony Ericsson Xperia Arc
We compare the HTC Desire S to Sony Ericsson’s Xperia Arc.
Form:
HTC Desire S - 115 x 59.8 x 11.6 mm, 130 g
Sony Ericsson Xperia Arc - 125 x 63 x 8.7 mm, 117 g
The HTC Desire S doesn’t really stand out that much in the current smartphone market. Nor does it look very different from the majority of other HTC handsets, but in each case this is not necessarily a bad thing.
There’s something to be said for the elegant simplicity of the Desire S, something HTC seem to consistently get right, with smartphones at least.
The Desire S is thin, sleek and professional-looking with that HTC minimalist style and slightly rounded (though not overdone) corners bucking the trend for the angular.
Sony’s device is a completely different ball game, like the rest of the Xperia range, each is different and distinguished from each other and they’re very much attention seekers in the wider world of mobile tech too.
The clue is in the name for the Arc, with the whole handset curving along its back panel in the palm of your hand.
At the front it’s very straight and angular and very clean looking, while the back is a peculiar but effective mix of curves and angles, there’s some chrome trim but it’s tastefully done and actually suits the overall bombastic visuals of the device quite well.
We think the silhouette of the Xperia Arc from any angle looks fantastic, it looks like it shouldn’t work but it simply does.
The Desire S looks average and ‘okay’, but the Xperia Arc really is something exceptional and very special indeed when it comes to design, if only all smartphones were so interesting to look at.
Winner – Sony Ericsson Xperia Arc
Display:
HTC has, funnily enough, opted for Sony technology for the Desire S’ display with a 3.7-inch S-LCD capacitive touchscreen which is reinforced with toughened Gorilla Glass.
The display comes in at a resolution of 480 x 800 pixels and 252 dots-per-inch (dpi). The Desire S has multi-touch input as well as an accelerometer and comes preloaded with the HTC Sense user interface (UI).
The Xperia Arc boasts a larger screen than the Desire S at 4.2-inches, it’s an LED-backlit LCD capacitive touchscreen at 480 x 854 pixels and 233 dpi.
The Arc’s display has a scratch-resistant surface and features multi-touch input and an accelerometer. This curved handset also has the Sony Mobile Bravia engine and Timescape UI pre-installed.
Quite a tricky one to call, we prefer the larger screen size of the Arc and it also has a slightly higher resolution. However, the Desire S has the upper hand with a higher dpi rating for a sharper picture and the S-LCD screen technology offering better power economy as well as enhanced brightness and colours.
We think the Desire S will offer the most satisfying display quality overall.
Winner – HTC Desire S
Storage:
Storage on the Desire S is not what we would describe as fantastic, it’s got 1.1 GB of ROM for internal capacity which is acceptable but nothing to write home about, meanwhile on the RAM side of things it has 768 MB, which is rather good. Micro SD is supported for cards up to 32 GB.
The Arc isn’t great in this area either with a mere 320 MB of onboard storage space, RAM is decent enough at 512 MB though it comes in behind the Desire S. Card support is the same as the HTC and the Arc includes an 8GB Micro SD card as part of the package.
Neither handset provides as much storage as we would like but of the two the Desire comes out better with more RAM and more internal memory for your contacts, apps and multimedia.
Winner – HTC Desire S


Processor:
Oddly enough, the Desire S and Xperia Arc use identical single core processor setups and pretty speedy ones at that.
In both cases it’s a 1GHz Qualcomm Scorpion running the MSM8255 Snapdragon chipset while graphical number-crunching comes from an Adreno 205 graphics processing unit (GPU).
There’s nothing to distinguish the two phones here. These are both very good single core offerings and the Qualcomm technology means performance is great, though they won’t keep up with all the dual core monsters roaming around freely these days.
Winner - Draw
Camera:
The Desire S has a nice enough primary camera at 5-megapixels, the resolution comes in at 2592 x 1944 pixels and video capture is 720p. There’s a secondary camera but it’s only VGA but the primary’s feature-list is decent with autofocus, LED flash, geo-tagging, touch focus and image stabilisation.
The camera setup really is one of the Xperia Arc’s most standout features with an 8-megapixel primary at 3264 x 2448 pixels with autofocus, LED flash, touch focus, image stabilisation, geo-tagging plus face and smile detection.
Video capture is at 720p and has a continuous autofocus mode and video light. This excellent setup had to compromise somewhere and the Arc has no secondary camera, but we feel it’s no great detraction.
There’s no doubt that while the Desire S’ camera is admirable the Xperia Arc is a much better offering and the clear winner of the two.
Winner – Sony Ericsson Xperia Arc
Operating System:
Both phones run on Android 2.3 Gingerbread, which is as good as it gets right now for Android on smartphones. It’s better than 2.2 Froyo, but not quite as good as what the tablets get on 3.0 Honeycomb.
It’s very fast, the multi-tasking is brilliant, the user interface is slick and responsive and the touch keyboard is a refreshing change from the treacle-y iterations of the past.
We wish the browsing was as good as Honeycomb, though. No contest here as they’re both on the same version.
Winner - Draw
Final Thoughts:
Neither handset is perfect but both have a lot of positives which make them rather endearing in their own right.
The Desire S has a slightly nicer screen and more storage and RAM to play with, though both phones are somewhat lacking on storage, it is the lesser of two evils in this case, and the Arc’s screen isn’t bad either truth be told.
The Arc excels in a couple of areas but neither of which are significant enough to make the phone particularly desirable for those reasons alone.
The first one is it’s visual design, which is just phenomenal, but buying your phones on looks alone is a quick way to accumulate a large but attractive paperweight collection. The other area is the camera which is a very high-end setup.
With the same processor and operating system these phones are more similar in terms of basic functionality than their vastly different looks would imply and there simply isn’t an obvious winner here.

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Star Battalion for Xperia PLAY Review

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This is a game that, if you’re a fan of either of the following games or series, you’re going to love the heck out of: StarFox 64 and Rogue Squadron for Gamecube. I know there’s games very similar to those two, but those are massively iconic and without a doubt they flew through your humble narrator’s mind the entire time he was playing the game we’re talking about right here right now. This is Star Battalion and it’s available now exclusively for Xperia PLAY - let’s play it!


This game is a starfighter game, one where you use your craft flying near giant bases and ships and alternating enemies and allies in missions against the enemy that will instantly bring your Rebellion against the Empire into your mind. That said, it’s got a storyline all its own and the game itself has taken this genre to a whole new level. This game takes the controls of the Xperia PLAY and puts them to a great set of uses, all of the buttons activating one function or another in a fantastic display of blasts, missiles and yes, barrel rolls.

Check out the rest of our Xperia PLAY App Review Series for more fun!
You’ll have to lock on to your opponents as they fly in 360 degrees in all directions, you smashing into them with every weapon you’ve got in an attempt to blast them into oblivion so that you’re able to fly through the dust cloud into the next dogfight. Destroy ships and destroy bits of the environment by yourself and with your ally ships that fly at your side and alternately around you using their own bionic brains.

This game is set to make you enjoy your Xperia PLAY from the moment you own it until the moment you cry because they’ve released some second edition of the handset – it’s a classic from start to finish. Play the heck out of it and use it to train your fingers for use of the controls in every other game you play on the platform. It’s diverse and you’re going to have a rock and roll party of a good time.


Also check out our full review of the Sony Ericsson Xperia PLAY from Verizon so you know what we’re dealing with here – ultra fun in a slide out bag o games!

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[Hands-On and Initial Review] Xperia Play: The PlayStation Phone Hits The U.S.

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Note: Most of the pictures in this hands-on were taken by a second Xperia Play unit, so you can use those to judge the quality of the camera.
The saga of the PlayStation phone has been a long one, but we finally have the device in our hands. Some I/O attendees received their own, but now Verizon customers can get the device for themselves. A full review will be available in the coming days, but for now, here are my initial thoughts on the Xperia Play.
First, a refresher on the specs:

• 4.0" LCD, 854 x 480 display
• Android 2.3.2
• 1 GHz Qualcomm MSM8255 Snapdragon processor
• 5 megapixel camera with flash
• Front-facing camera
• 512 MB RAM

The first thing I noticed when holding the phone was the thickness and weight. At its thickest point, it’s a huge 16 mm – even thicker than phones with slide-out keyboards like the Droid 2 and G2, which measure 13.7 and 14.1 mm, respectively. The weight, however, is kept down somewhat thanks to the mostly plastic build. And yes – that means your Play will be covered in fingerprints as soon as you take it out of the box.

 

Because the gamepad is the star of the show here (more on that later), the regular buttons and ports we find on the device have fairly awkward positions. The volume rocker is in the center of the right side (between the trigger buttons) and the microUSB port is on the lower left – a position that favors holding the device with the gamepad open. The headphone jack is on the top left, while the power button and the notification light on it rest at the top.

One of the best parts of the phone doesn’t even reveal itself until it’s powered on. Unlike international versions of the Play (and the edition given out at Google I/O), the Verizon version runs stock Android – 2.3.2. (Gingerbread), to be specific. It’s hard to get across exactly what a difference this makes. The phone is not bogged down by any terrible custom UIs, so even though it only has a single-core processor, it can fly through any task you throw at it easily. Bloatware apps are also kept to a minimum, and are mostly unnecessary Verizon services.

I don’t want to go too in-depth with this issue, but I do feel that it is very prominent to anybody wishing to purchase this device. There is no option to disable automatic brightness in the settings; while you can adjust the brightness yourself, the light sensor still has a say in how bright your screen actually is. I want to make it clear that this is not a hardware issue, and could possibly be fixed in a later update – the screen is more than capable of being just as bright as other phones, but in a regular room, it will appear rather dull. Hopefully Sony Ericsson will fix this issue soon.
The gamepad is where the phone really shines. I won’t go over the pre-loaded games here, but let me assure you: the regular old PlayStation controls have not lost their charm when scaled down and put into a phone. They’ve worked amazingly well for every game and emulator I’ve used them with. Again, I will go more in-depth in the review, but for now, here are some shots of the gamepad in all its glory:

 

 

At this point, I feel the Xperia Play is a very solid handset, barring the plastic construction and said screen issues. However, I still question the target demographic for the device and the usefulness of the gamepad. Stay tuned, as the full review will hit in the next couple days.

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Xperia Play finally lands at O2 UK, available in black or white

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It took a while, but that O2-exclusive white Xperia Play is finally with us. Earlier this month, the UK carrier had promised to deliver the Play in June, but evidently things have gone better than expected, as we now see "in stock" signage next to both the black and white models of Sony Ericsson's gaming phone. Pricing is identical for both color variants, starting at "free" when attached to expensive (£34 per month) two-year contracts and peaking at £430 ($702) on pre-pay deals. O2 also throws in a matching multimedia dock plus three bonus games to sweeten the deal. We're guessing that Android 2.3.3 update that Sony Ericsson just rolled out for the Xperia Play might finally have allayed O2's software concerns, which has allowed it to now start selling the device in earnest.  

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XPERIA Play and Arc Android 2.3.3 update released with Facebook Inside [Video]

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Sony Ericsson has begun pushing out its Android 2.3.3 update the the XPERIA Arc and XPERIA Play. The update includes the new Facebook Inside XPERIA functionality which Sony Ericsson debuted on the XPERIA min and mini pro.

That inserts deeper Facebook integration through the various preloaded apps, including the ability to “Like” the track you’re currently listening to in the media player, share updates more quickly, and pull Facebook events down into the phone’s calendar.
There’s also various other bugfixes and the like, along with Google’s own minor improvements in 2.3.3. It’s rolling out progressively across markets – no word on which is first at this stage – so don’t be surprised if the update doesn’t show up on your phone quite yet. Sony Ericsson has also confirmed that the Gingerbread update for the XPERIA X10 will include Facebook Inside XPERIA too.

• Battery performance
• General software stability
• Wi-Fi stability
• HD Video recording performance (Xperia arc)
• Touch responsiveness

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Raving Babies for Xperia PLAY Review

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Oh my goodness what kind of a weird game is this? It’s called Raving Babies, a game out exclusively on Sony Ericsson Xperia PLAY being released on Verizon Wireless. The gameplay is simple enough – walk sideways and shoot your gun, defeating the enemies. Just like Ninja Turtles, Simpsons, NARC, and every other game from the 1990s. The difference here is that you’ve got it on your little screen and you’re playing it with an Xperia PlayStation controller. Also the objective is to placate a bunch of hostile babies with your pacifier gun so that you can scoop them up and let them know how bad they’ve been with a time out!

This is definitely a game for people with newborns, as any other time in my life, the idea of playing this game would have seemed just silly to yours truly, but now it’s a hoot. My wife recently gave birth to our first child, and using a pacifier gun to launch babies into a state of insta-sleep is more than appreciated by mine eyes. That said, the game is pretty darn basic once you’ve gotten past the simple charm.



On the other hand, if you are looking for some nostalgia and would like to play a NEW game with babies in it instead of the Foot Clan, you’ll be in for a treat. I must also mention that I don’t believe that the developers of this game optimized the still-sitting graphics well enough because I can definitely pick out some big pixels sitting around the title screen and pause screens.
Kind of yuck.
The ideal price for this game would be $1.99, but it costs a bit more than that in the V Cast store. Buy it anyway, have a laugh or two.

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Xperia PLAY Comes with Screen Skin Protector Attached

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So you’re sitting there taking a look at your brand new Sony Ericsson Xperia PLAY from Verizon and you notice something strange. Something feels a little – off. You think, what could it be? Could this device be broken somehow, am I just losing my mind? No, wait, what’s that, is there an extra layer over the screen here that I forgot to take off? No way, man, can’t be. But sure as heck it is, a protective plastic sheet attached to the screen, not the same as the rest of the standard packaging safeguards, but one that’s meant to stay on for life.

Should we feel happy because now we don’t have to install a screen protector ourselves, or should we be disturbed that Sony Ericsson or Verizon thought it necessary to add an element to the screen before they approved it? More than likely we should just be satisfied, says I, as you can just remove the plastic if you have sharp enough fingernails and nerves of steel (seriously, this thing is installed WELL.) Also the screen looks fine once you’ve gotten going with it, but if you take a peek here, you might startle, so watch out!

Also lemme take this opportunity to let you know that we’re going to go through a big batch of the Xperia PLAY specific games available via Verizon and they’ll all be up on Android Community over the next few days (and perhaps even weeks!) Let me and us know what you’d like to see us play, and let us know what you’d like to KNOW as well because we’ve got to review this mother!
Preview: it’s good. This has been my initial review.

Protective Skin Removed, Flash Photo and No Flash Photo (for brightness comparison)

Also here’s how the phone looks with the layer attached still, for reference. This will drive you nuts!

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Gun Bros for Xperia PLAY App Review

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We’re about to go through a big fat marathon of reviews of the Sony Ericsson Xperia PLAY’s device-specific games here and we’ve decided to start with one that’s been out for a few months but seems custom-tailored to be played with the knobs this device offers. Where before we were stuck with placing thumbs on the screen to control the two virtual joysticks this game requires, we’re now allowed to use the two much more responsive (mostly due to placement) joysticks provided by PlayStation. Is it enough to make us want to move to Xperia PLAY to continue our game?

We learned about this game in earnest back at Mobile World Congress 2011 and have been enthralled ever since. It was free back then, now it’ll cost you a few bucks via V Cast Apps. It is through V Cast Apps that you’ll have to purchase this version of the game, this being a fine system since we’re not going to be able to work with it without PlayStations controls anyway. The same is true of all other Xperia PLAY-specific apps thus far. Once downloaded, you do have to go through an extra download step to get the necessary MBs of game from GLU, the developers who bring you the game.
This may result in you pulling your hair out in anticipation, so beware.



Once you’re in the game it’s basically exactly the same experience as you’ve had thus far with Gun Bros original save for the fact that you’re allowed to work with the PlayStation selection of buttons. It is with these buttons set aside from the screen that you’ll actually be able to win without missing enemies because they’re under your thumb hiding. If you’ve got big thumbs, this has been a problem for you thus far almost certainly.
What you’ve got now is a game that works slick as ever, feels completely natural being played with these wild new joysticks from Sony Ericsson, and the game feels brand new. Well done!
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Xperia PLAY only $99 at Amazon [CHEEP!]

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Oh my goodness Amazon, you are the king of deals. This device, the PlayStation phone, aka the Sony Ericsson Xperia PLAY, is listed at $599.99, but can be yours for a mere $149.99 if you’re upgrading your existing Verizon account, or just $99.99 if you’re signing up for a new 2-year contract. Does that sound like a pretty good and deep and fabulous discount to you? Only thing that’s negative here is that the device is back-ordered, which means you’ll be waiting 8 or 9 days before it’ll be shipped.

We’ve been anxiously waiting for this device for months (and years – perhaps our whole lives!) and now it’s coming to America. As you may well know, the fabled PlayStation phone here was sent out to the entirety of the rest of the world before it came the USA – why, you may ask? We think it’s sort of like the keeping a line outside of a club concept where we want it more now because we couldn’t have it. The more plausible idea is that there was just a slightly longer approval line waiting in the USA that the PLAY had to get through before it could come out fully.

Remember when we got to see the device back at CTIA? Things have certainly changed since then:


We’re calling upon our man in Europe at this very moment to give us the full lo-down on the device as he was certainly one of the first people in the entire world to have a real good look at it. Check out his well mannered look and dive into the device and report back with your findings.
Also – are you going to be purchasing this device? If so, let us know where you buy it, gotta know which method is best! You can purchase the Sony Ericsson Xperia PLAY right this moment over on [Amazon]
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Sony Ericsson Xperia Play Review

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If you’ve been keeping up with Android news and release dates, you would know that the release of the Sony Xperia Play for Verizon is fast approaching us (May 26th to be exact). While attending Google I/O last week I was actually one of the lucky few who walked away with an Xperia Play. Since then, I’ve been getting loads of messages asking if the phone is worthy of a purchase and/or upgrade. After messing around with the device for about a week now, I am excited to finally bring you my review on Sony’s first gaming smartphone.
I have to say, I haven’t really heard too much buzz about the device other than the fabled PSP Phone that was rumored since before there was an actual PSP. But maybe it has something to do with the fact that the handset is not yet available in the U.S., or possibly because most of the uber-techie Android snobs already have their sights locked on some of the many dual-core options coming out later this year. I have to admit, I was on that boat as well. Don’t let the fact that the Xperia Play comes with a single-core processor dissuade you. I found it snappy and more than capable of handling all the 3D games from the Android Market I could throw at it. Not only that, in the UK version I’m reviewing, Sony’s Timescape UI thrown on top does nothing but enhance the user experience (note- the Verizon version delivers a stock, plain, vanilla Android Google experience). One thing you should know about me, I’ve always preferred the super, chunky monkey, rocky road, chocolate fudge brownie UI’s like that of HTC’s Sense with all the polish and added functionality that comes along with it.
Alright, before we jump into the video, lets start by listing off some quick specs of the phone for those that are curious (and for others to scoff at). It comes pretty much standard with what you expect from a mid-level-ish handset these days. A 4-inch, 800×480 Super LCD display is found on top along with a VGA front facing camera. On the back you have a 5MP camera that focuses and adjusts exposure during the LED flash and delivers perfectly exposed and clear photo snapping. Was very impressed.
Just underneath the handset’s “L and R” gaming buttons, there are 2 stereo speakers tucked away out of sight. Don’t forget the noise cancelling microphone on the back that lets you know Sony Ericsson didn’t cut any corners when it came to features on the device . Inside we find a 1GHz, 2nd generation Snapdragon processor that seems to be aging rather gracefully and a 1500mAh battery that delivers easily 9 hours+ of juice even with light gaming.
On the software side, we see that the handset is running the latest version of Android (for smartphones) 2.3.2 Gingerbread. Sony has also gone on the record as saying their Xperia line of phones will come with easily unlocked bootloaders and even provided links on their website for those that like to tinker around with that kind of stuff. I should also note that although generous of Sony Ericsson to include some free games pre-installed on the device, they CANNOT be uninstalled. This results in far less internal memory on the device for your own apps and games. Couple this with Verizon’s own bloatware and we’re talking maybe about 226MB of internal storage in the end making rooting of the device almost a necessity.
So, for the main event, lets just jump straight into my video review to see how I really felt about the world’s first Android gaming smartphone. Will it be another mid-level snoozer? Or will Sony’s latest offering turn out to be something truly unique in a world of smartphones not suitable for the gaming enthusiast?

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Backbreaker Football 2 an Xperia Play Exclusive now Available

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Backbreaker Football by NaturalMotionGames is a very popular arcade style Football game for all those Football fans. Things are about to get even better, mainly for those that own the Xperia Play already or have pre-ordered with Verizon and that is because they have just announced Backbreaker Football 2:

Vengeance


Backbreaker 2 is available in the Android Market now, launching for the Xperia Play exclusively and you can get it now by clicking here. They have listened to the fans and added the few things that would make a great game and I can’t wait to get the Tegra optimized version of Backbreaker 2.

The million-selling Backbreaker Football is back with a vengeance – and this time YOU tackle! Backbreaker 2 again raises the bar for graphics, physical animation and pure fun. You spoke, we listened: tackling, trucking, jumping – it’s all here! Take down the ball carrier in Vengeance Mode, or fight your way to the endzone in the classic Tackle Alley mode. Whatever you do – this is the best Backbreaker yet, so enjoy the ride!

The biggest change and most notable new feature is the ability to tackle. It was a great game but was arcade style offensive running only, no actual offensive plays and no defense whatsoever. Things are about to change and we are all in for some exciting Football. Being able to juke and spin around defenders, then switch it to Vengeance mode and start tackling should make for hours of fun. I personally loved the first one and can’t wait to try out Backbreaker Football 2.

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Sony Ericsson Xperia PLAY for Verizon available for pre-order now

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We told you about Verizon finally getting the Xperia PLAY on their network on May 26th, and now you can beat the line (and possibly stock) by ordering it online now until May 26th for $199.99 on a two year term. It comes with 7 pre-installed PlayStation titles to get you gaming as soon as you turn it on. The titles include;

• Madden NFL 11
• Bruce Lee Dragon Warrior
• Asphalt 6: Adrenaline
• The Sims 3
• Star Battalion
• Crash Bandicoot
• Tetris

Game on!

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Sony Ericsson Porting its Android UI Skin to Two New Feature Phones

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Sony Ericsson is going to be releasing two new feature phones in the new feature which utilize their custom UI from the Xperia Mini. The phones, the rumored to be called “txt pro” and “Mix Walkman,” both feature touch screens, and the txt pro, a slide out QWERTY keyboard. The two feature phones are set to be released sometime in the coming months as part of a competition on SE’s Facebook page which will feature the winners reviewing the phones.

While neither phone is going to be running Android, it is difficult to tell given the similarity of their UIs to Sony Ericsson’s other midrange offerings. This is hardly the first time we’ve seen manufacturers porting their Android UI skins to non Android platforms. At CES this year we saw HTC announce it’s Brew based Freestyle that dances on the line between feature and smartphone, but still offered users the HTC “Sense experience.”

The "Four Corners" UI skin, as seen on the Xperia Mini Pro

While I’m much more of a stock Android guy, this could become an increasing trend as OEMs seek ways to make users want a Sony Ericsson phone, or an HTC phone rather than simply an Android phone. Android may be the majority now for smartphone’s in the U.S., but Apple still has more than twice the market share of the any one Android hardware manufacturer. While this is very similar to the situation in the PC market, we’re seeing smartphone manufacturers resist being seen as just a means to the ends of Android, much more heavily than you see in the personal computer space. Interesting stuff, but nothing wrong with a little free market competition (as long as you leave my bootloader unlockable that is… )

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Sony Ericsson Xperia Play, and Arc getting Android 2.3.4 next week, Facebook included

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From the looks of things the Sony Ericsson Xperia Play and Xperia Arc are both set to be receiving the latest and greatest in Android and that is 2.3.4 They mention not only will many bug fixes be included, but what they are calling “Facebook inside Xperia” will be included as well. We are not sure what markets that have the Xperia Play will be getting the update, or if all will be getting it. The Xperia Play was originally considered Google’s Gingerbread HERO phone, but the Nexus S is what got first dibs on Gingerbread instead.

Sony worked closely with Google on Android 2.3 for the Play so that explains why they will be getting the jump to Android 2.3.4 so fast. According to Recombu the update to 2.3.4 should start showing up as early as next week for both the Play, and the Arc. We are not sure if the Xperia Play launching on Verizon today will get it next week or not.
The Facebook inside Xperia is something new that a lot of people are looking forward to. The updates with Facebook will add a handful of features, some I would use but many I probably would not. Things like updating your Facebook page with whatever music you have playing on your device. Photo’s can be uploaded and downloaded right to your Xperia device. Your Calander and Contacts will be deeply integrated more than before, and your Facebook calander will sync with your Google Calander so you’ll never miss a friends birthday because you didn’t get on Facebook for a day or 3.
Calum MacDougall, Head of Web Service Partnerships at Sony Ericsson mentions that Facebook inside Xperia was not about making a ”Facebook phone” but “enriching the experience” of using the phone alongside Facebook’s features. I myself am not huge on Facebook, but for those daily or hourly users this should be a great addition to the Xperia line.

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XPERIA Play heist was fake confesses Vodafone New Zealand

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Vodafone New Zealand has admitted that it faked the entire “stolen XPERIA Play shipment” story, now confirmed to be a promotional campaign designed to mark the launch of the Sony Ericsson gaming smartphone. Doubts arose after Vodafone released “security camera footage” of the theft, which failed to convince viewers.

Company spokesperson Matthew East confirmed to The Australian that the announcement had, in fact, been a marketing stunt rather than a legitimate crime. It’s unclear when, exactly, the phone will launch.
Would-be XPERIA Play owners in New Zealand can find out more about the carrier’s competition here. The rest of us can sleep easily in our beds tonight, knowing that there aren’t rogue Sony Ericsson handsets roaming the streets, flaunting their illicit IMEIs and generally being rowdy.

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Verizon XPERIA Play arrives May 19 with seven game bundle

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Verizon Wireless has confirmed launch details for the Sony Ericsson XPERIA Play, which will drop on May 19. Priced at $199.99 with a new, two-year agreement, the Android smartphone will be pre-loaded with seven bundled games.

They will consist of Madden NFL 11 (EA Sports), Bruce Lee Dragon Warrior (Digital Legends), Asphalt 6: Adrenaline (Gameloft), The Sims 3 (EA), Star Battalion (Gameloft), Crash Bandicoot (Sony Playstation) and Tetris. There’ll be a further fifty titles available in the V CAST Apps store for download.
Online availability will kick off on May 19, while the Play will arrive in Verizon stores on May 26.
Press Release:

Verizon Wireless And Sony Ericsson Take Mobile Gaming To The Next Level With The Sony Ericsson Xperia™ PLAY
The World’s First PlayStation® Certified Smartphone Combines PlayStation®-Quality Gaming Experience with the Latest Android Smartphone Technology
05/17/2011
BASKING RIDGE, NJ — Take conference calls, send emails and win football’s biggest game, all on one device. The Sony Ericsson Xperia™ PLAY, exclusive for a limited time for Verizon Wireless, redefines mobile gaming by combining all the features customers expect from a fully-featured smartphone with the ultimate gaming experience.
Powered by Android 2.3, Gingerbread, the Sony Ericsson Xperia™ PLAY will come pre-loaded with seven game titles including, Madden NFL 11 (EA Sports), Bruce Lee Dragon Warrior (Digital Legends), Asphalt 6: Adrenaline (Gameloft), The Sims 3 (EA), Star Battalion (Gameloft), Crash Bandicoot (Sony Playstation) and Tetris. Customers can expand their video game library with more than 50 game titles available at launch for download via V CAST Apps. Customers easily become gamers with the slide out game pad revealing a directional keypad, dual analog touch joystick, two shoulder buttons and the four iconic PlayStation® symbol keys: circle, X, square and triangle.
Additional Features:
1 GHz Qualcomm® Snapdragon® II processor with Adreno 205 GPU
Adobe Flash Player
4-inch multi-touch display
5-megapixel rear-facing camera
VGA front-facing camera for still shots and video chatting
Support for Google Mobile Services including Gmail™, YouTube™, Google Talk, Google Search, Google Maps and access to more than 200,000 apps available to download from Android Market™
Mobile hotspot capability- share 3G connection with up to five Wi-Fi-enabled devices
Pricing and Availability
The Sony Ericsson Xperia™ PLAY will be available for pre-order online at www.verizonwireless.com beginning May 19, and in stores on May 26 for $199.99 with a new two-year customer agreement.
Sony Ericsson Xperia™ Play customers will need to subscribe to a Verizon Wireless Nationwide Talk plan and a smartphone data package. Nationwide Talk plans begin at $39.99 for monthly access and an unlimited smartphone data plan is $29.99 for monthly access.
Game Developers
The gaming experience can only get better as additional games are being created. Developers have the flexibility to focus on content and not worry about binary file sizes when submitting apps to V CAST Apps. Developers can visit http://developer.verizon.com/play for additional information about game development for the Sony Ericsson Xperia™ PLAY.
For more information on Verizon Wireless products and services, visit a Verizon Wireless Communications Store, call 1-800-2 JOIN IN or go to www.verizonwireless.com. To learn more about the Sony Ericsson Xperia™ PLAY, visit www.sonyericsson.com.

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Sony Ericsson ST18i and CK15i leak

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What could be Sony Ericsson’s replacement to the XPERIA X8 has apparently leaked, under the codename the Sony Ericsson ST18i “Asuza”, along with another new touchscreen/QWERTY handset, the CK15i. Similar in appearance to the new XPERIA mini, the ST18i is tipped to have a 3.3-inch display and run Android 2.3 Gingerbread; the CK15i is believed to be launching as the Sony Ericsson txt pro, and have a slide-out keyboard like the new XPERIA mini pro.

The ST18i has twin cameras – front and back – with the rear one having an LED flash. Inside is believed to be an unspecified ARM Cortex A8 processor; this probably won’t be a high-end device, but instead positioned in the mid-range for those who want a bigger display than the compact XPERIA mini but not something quite as big as the Arc. As for the CK15i, that looks to have the same 3.3-inch display size – said to be running at 240 x 400.
An official launch for the ST18i could be as early as later in May 2011, though that’s obviously not confirmed at this stage. We’re guessing Sony Ericsson will also include its new Facebook Inside XPERIA system.

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Sony Ericsson defends sluggish XPERIA Play PSOne game sales

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Sony Ericsson has dismissed suggestions that poor sales of its PSOne classic games available for the XPERIA Play are a cause for concern, arguing that it’s a matter of awareness rather than lack of appeal. PlayStation LifeStyle [article offline at time of writing] spotted that Sony Ericsson’s five PSOne launch titles had all been downloaded less than 1,000 times, suggesting adoption by XPERIA Play owners was less than impressive.

Of the five, Destruction Derby managed the most downloads (500-1,000) while Cool Boarders 2, MediEvil and Syphon Filter all sputtered to 100-500. Jumping Flash came in last with an unimpressive 50-100.
According to Head of Market Development at Sony Ericsson, Dominic Neil-Dwyer, this isn’t a bad start:

“I think there’s also an awareness thing for people that are getting their hands on the device and where they are choosing to purchase games. There’s only a few, at the minute, PlayStation One titles there, and there’s more coming on a regular basis, and there’s the whole PlayStation as a content provider exclusive to the device, the story about that, that will emerge and people will see.
So, there’s no concerns, it’s a revolutionary device, it’s shaking up the market, we’re very pleased with it. In terms of getting the PlayStation Certified program out, generally, we’re very happy. I think we’ll make a full assessment of if it has achieved our expectations fully, further down the line, so we’re very happy.
We know there’s a lot more to come that we’re not, obviously, releasing yet. We’re releasing as we go, rather than telling everyone the full story, and I think everyone appreciates that you have a good line-up at the start of selling a device, because it is a smartphone and it has a good line-up – and that line-up will grow – and the feedback we got on that line-up is that it is a good line-up, so we’re very happy where we are.”

As we warned in our review of the XPERIA Play over at SlashGear, the boost in gaming titles for Sony Ericsson’s platform that’s expected when the NGP arrives later in 2011 (and, we now know, which the S1 and S2 tablets will support) may come too late for the smartphone. By then, a single-core handset – even one with dedicated gaming controls – may be looking distinctly old-hat.

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