• Posted December 30th, 2011 at 20:25 EDT by PSU Community
• 4 Comments

Year 2011 was a great year for PlayStation. Along with a hot E3 2011 conference, this year saw the release of hit titles like Dead Space 2, LittleBigPlanet 2, and Uncharted 3: Drake’s Deception. The price of the PlayStation 3 was lowered and the sequel to the PSP, the PS Vita, was officially announced.

Now at the end of 2011, we look forward to what 2012 may offer. 2011 was not a year without flaws, and thus we only hope that 2012 will address them. Here are some items that certainly need resolving regarding the PlayStation brand in 2012.

A Game Centered E3 Conference

PlayStation’s E3 2011 conference was good, but not great. The games showcased lacked variety and were not as numerous as past expos. Resistance 3 turned out to be a hit title, but where were the role-playing games, racers, and platformers? It also lacked a bit of the surprise element; sequels such as Uncharted 3: Drake’s Deception are very predictable when it comes to E3.

E3 2012, the gamers will expect more games spanning all genres. Shooters are wonderful, but give us some more action-adventure games and a dash of role-playing games. Surprise the viewers, announce more unexpected services or titles. The video games can be high definition remake collections such as a Kingdom Hearts 1 and 2 collection or they can be the beginning of a new series like the newly confirmed PS3 exclusive, The Last of Us. Don’t forget about sequels; Okami 2 is long overdue. Last but not least, tell us about the PS Vita. Are there more developers working with it? What kind of software can we expect; ports, new IPs, spinoffs? Tell us about the PlayStation Vita’s backward compatibility, and more about the Ambassador Program. Give us PS1, PS2, and PSP hits, but at a reasonable price. Also, adding as many PSP products as possible to the Ambassador Program at low prices will aid PSP owners transitioning to the PS Vita.

More PlayStation Plus Benefits

2011 saw a lot of subscribers of PlayStation Plus. However, a lot of those customers felt like PS Plus was a total rip off due to the lack of quality discounts and freebies. There were also limited options when getting PS Plus: you either got the three month or the yearly subscription. Don’t forget that there was a lack of additional content exclusive to PlayStation Plus.

In 2012, PS Plus subscribers want to see better bargain deals. Avatar bundles are an average deal at best; who wants to pay over a dollar for some plain pictures used in an account? Make the avatar bundles more tempting; throw in a matching background or theme with the art or even spice up the avatars a bit. Give us freebie titles like December 2011’s free Spyro Trilogy and PSN games as well. As far as PS Plus subscription options go, we need better options. Give gamers a middle option like 6 months for medium cost. Finally, trying out PS Plus for new or unfamiliar members would be great for newbies. The PS Plus free trial offered during the hacking of PSN was excellent; offering a free trial would let the fans see what PS Plus is about before dishing out cash for the service. Let first time users have a free trial of PlayStation Plus, a month would suffice.

Stronger PlayStation Move Support

PlayStation Move debuted years ago and still does not have adequate support. PlayStation’s motion gaming device lacks games, both for hardcore and casual audiences. Then there’s opportunities for the PS Move to take advantage of exercise gaming, or exergaming. Last, but not least, more games like Dead Space 2 need to be compatible with PS Move.

PlayStation consumers want to see titles developed only for PlayStation Move such as Sorcery, a game that was shown in a past E3 show. However, while Sorcery targets hardcore gamers, let’s not forget about the casual folks. These gamers prefer easier and light-hearted games like Sports Champions and Sony certainly can deliver them. Among the casual gamers are families and friends. Offer those gamers four player, competitive, and fun titles that breathe life into a party. Another thing PlayStation Move needs is involved gaming such as Sports Champions. Give fitness addicts a reason to ... (continued on next page)