Super Stardust Delta should feel instantly familiar to anyone who’s experienced Super Stardust HD on PS3. But it’s important to note – Delta is not a port of that 2007 classic. It’s an entirely new game.

We sampled the traditional Arcade Mode, and got a feel for two new weapons, the Laser Melter and Ice Laser (names not final). Unlike SSHD’s singular, screen-clearing smart bomb, each primary weapon comes with its own secondary attack that you activate with a touch of the screen. The Laser Melter drops a black hole that sucks everything in – including your ship, if you’re not careful. The Ice Laser shoots out a huge swarm of missiles that home in on targets.

The only thing that’s really needed to make a good portable Super Stardust are two analogs (check) and a pretty display (check), Delta features an intuitively implemented use of the six axis gyros; you tilt the NGP to see what blast-able fodder is lurking just over the planet’s horizon. There’s also a devastating Shockwave attack that you activate with a quick, light shake of the device.

However, if all you wanna do is shoot like you’re used to, developer Housemarque is working on a “purist mode,” which will more closely mirror the controls in the PS3 version.

Super Stardust Delta looks awesome at this pre-alpha stage – possibly even better than Super Stardust HD. That 5” OLED screen certainly doesn’t hurt. The hardware handles the debris-filled landscape with ease, even when you start shattering asteroids into ever-smaller particles. Delta also features a vibrant color palette; this is especially obvious with the Laser Melter weapon, which pulses with an eye-searing glow.

The team promises online play (details TBD) as well as some new special play modes that make heavier use of the touch controls. But ultimately, that’s icing on the cake. This is the Super Stardust you know and love, and finally playable as it’s meant to be played on the go.

But in playing Hustle Kings for NGP, I was struck by how much more satisfying the pool hall action becomes with the integration of touchscreen controls. After choosing my game type and table, I used a combo of touch- and analog stick-controls to set my shot using a customizable guide-line. Then I pulled the cue stick back with my index finger on the screen and fired. The result: a straight, solid shot with a satisfying “clack!” I did it again and again. Sure, you can use the analog stick to shoot, but touch is the way to go with the NGP version of Hustle Kings. It makes the game more immersive, and, dare I say, a lot more fun.

The difficulty of taking a shot is widely variable. You can set a guide that will tell you exactly where your ball will go, or just eyeball it. Cueing methods vary from a pinball-like pull-and-release motion to the traditional poolhall motion. But Hustle Kings NGP takes advantage of more than just the NGP’s touch screen. On the PS3 you can chalk your cue by shaking the DualShock 3. Here you can apply chalk by “rubbing the cue” via the backtouch panel. Instead of selecting a pre-made avatar, you can snap a photo of yourself using the built-in camera. Other functionality abounds: You can use your NGP’s screen as a window into the pool hall by rotating around the ball with the six axis motion sensing, and chat in-game using the NGP’s built-in microphone.

Things get even more creative on the multiplayer side. Yes, you can compete live via Wifi against other NGP-equipped players. Hustle Kings also features interoperable cross-play with the PS3 version of the game, ensuring plenty of built-in competition on day one. None of your friends online right now? Here’s something I think you’ll see a lot of moving forward: asynchronous multiplayer. You take your shots, then the NGP messages your friend. When they pick up the game next, they view your last turn, then take their shots. It’s kind of like playing via text message, or Words With Friends on a smartphone.

I was also informed that all DLC presently available for Hustle Kings PS3 (like the ever-popular snooker) will be made available on NGP as well. I thought I knew what to expect before going hands-on with Hustle Kings NGP, but I didn’t expect to enjoy it as much as I did. A new interface can make a big difference.

Augmented reality is a concept that’s starting to get a lot of buzz so we wanted to take a minute to break down our history with the technology and provide a sneak peak at what could be next. There’s a popular misconception that augmented reality is just “kid’s stuff,” but with more than eight years of experience under our belt, we’ve found there’s a wide variety of compelling and cool AR experiences that everyone can enjoy. We spoke to some of our resident experts from Sony Computer Entertainment R&D and Product Development to get their take on augmented reality through our platforms.

Back in 2003, when smartphones, tablet PCs, and even decent webcams were far from mainstream, we launched EyeToy on PlayStation 2, which included our first foray into augmented reality. Back then it was the only way to see yourself on-screen interacting with virtual objects in real-time. We then brought that unique experience to a portable level on PSP. With games such as Invizimals or EyePet , mobility was a key element as the PSP camera turned the entire world around you into a game.

PlayStation 3 gave us a significant leap in image processing and, coupled with PlayStation Eye, enabled AR games such as The Eye of Judgment. Last year’s launch of PlayStation Move on PS3 brought titles like EyePet and Start the Party, which added ultra-precise movement recognition to the augmented reality experience, enabling you to interact with virtual objects on-screen using the PS Move motion controller.

We’re no stranger to innovation and every so often we’re able to create an experience that changes the way you think about games. At this year’s Game Developers Conference , we showed off demos of augmented reality on NGP—our Next Generation Portable device . NGP builds on our experience with augmented reality over the years with PlayStation 2/EyeToy, PSP, and PS3/PlayStation Move. With front and rear cameras that combine real-time images of you and your environment, a brilliant 5-inch multi-touch OLED screen and rear multi-touch pad, internal motion sensors, and dual analog sticks, NGP offers new ways to interact that will change the way you think about augmented reality games… and possibly even change the way you think about reality.

What do you think about augmented reality? Do you have an idea for the next killer app for augmented reality? Let us know your thoughts in the comments below.

]]> http://blog.us.playstation.com/2011/04/08/from-eyetoy-to-ngp-playstations-augmented-reality-legacy-2/feed/ 89 http://blog.us.playstation.com/wp-content/blogs.dir/1/files/2011/04/AG-Lead-Image1.jpg 4.63Sr. PR Manager, SCEA 89 5