Hi Everyone, I’m happy to announce that we have an exciting lineup of downloadable content coming your way for PS Vita’s Augmented Reality brawler, Reality Fighters.

Starting today, you’ll be able to login to PSN and download the Weapons Pack featuring 15 new weapons including a smoke bomb, a jetpack, a cannon and more – absolutely free!

On May 15th you’ll also be able to download the new Soccer Pack which gives you access to the brand new soccer fighting style equipped with over a dozen unique battle moves for just $2.99.

Then, on May 22th, we’ll be delivering the Ghostbusters Pack which comes with two brand new costumes: the Ghostbusters uniform featuring goggles, a shirt, gloves, pants and boots, as well as the Stay Puft Marshmallow Man costume which includes the signature marshmallow head, body, hands, legs and feet. You’ll also pick up three new weapons with this pack including the Ghostbusters proton pack, the Ghostbusters ghost trap, and Ecto 1! You’ll get all of this for only $2.99 when you download the Ghostbusters Pack from the PlayStation Store.

Get ready to throw down anytime, anywhere — PS Vita’s augmented reality brawler Reality Fighters hits stores today! Reality Fighters uses PS Vita’s front and rear facing cameras to transform any surface into your own personal battle arena, delivering an action-packed portable fighting experience set in the real world. You’ll be able to see your showdowns come to life on everything from your front porch to your airplane tray table.

Reality Fighters lets you step into the fray by scanning your face onto a totally customizable fighter. Deck your fighter out using over 400 outrageous costume pieces, and then arm yourself using an arsenal of 40 wacky weapons. You even get to pick your own signature fighting style from techniques such as Wrestling, Muay Thai, Ballet, and even Zombie. Once you’ve fully customized your fighter, you can either learn from your mentor, Mr. Miyagi, and battle in the single-player Story mode or challenge a friend to ad-hoc and online multiplayer matches.

Click on the trailer above to see Reality Fighters in action. If you think that you’ve got what it takes to be the most epic Reality Fighter around, pick up the game today or check out the demo that’s currently available on PlayStation Store.

A few weeks back I shared the big news that you would soon have the chance to win your PlayStation Vita only at Taco Bell before it hits retail this February 22nd. Well, it’s official! Starting now through March 11th, PlayStation and Taco Bell are giving you three ways to win your PS Vita: Unlock the Box, Battle, and Boast. On average, one winner will be selected every 15 minutes through March, so there are a lot of chances to win! Here’s how:

Unlock the Box: Head to your local Taco Bell today to pick up a specially marked $5 Big Box – which includes a Cheesy Gordita Crunch, Crunchy Taco, Burrito Supreme and medium fountain drink. You’ll see a code printed on the top of the box; enter that code at unlock.tacobell.com for a chance to win your PS Vita!

Battle: We worked with Taco Bell to develop an exclusive Augmented Reality game based on the upcoming PS Vita game Reality Fighters. You can play Reality Fighters Dojo by downloading Taco Bell’s new mobile app for your Android or iOS device. Then pick up your specially marked Taco Bell $5 Buck Box, start Reality Fighters Dojo, point your device’s camera at the top of the box and get ready to battle. Here’s a quick look at what you can expect as you battle for a chance to win a PS Vita:

Boast: This one’s easy! Create a photo or video boasting about what you’d do to nab a PS Vita and submit it here. Submissions are already pouring in, so head to unlock.tacobell.com and click on “Boast” for more details on what you need to do to participate and how to vote for your favorite boast.

Prize Packs will include one PS Vita 3G/Wi-Fi system, one copy of the PS Vita-exclusive Little Deviants, one 4GB PS Vita Memory Card and your choice of one of the following: ModNation Racers: Road Trip, MLB 12 The Show or LittleBigPlanet. PS Vita winners will begin receiving their devices after February 8th and your selected game choice will be shipped on its respective launch date.

For additional details, information, and rules head to unlock.tacobell.com.

Good luck! If you won a PS Vita before it hit stores, what game would you most want to play? Let us know in the comments!

Providing the voice of Mr. Miyagi is Jim Ward, a prolific gaming voice actor who has also performed in Call of Duty, Ratchet & Clank, Metal Gear Solid and more. Here are a few words from Mitsuo Hirakawa of SCE XDev Studio on the thinking behind this special guest appearance.

Q: Why did you decide to include Mr. Miyagi in Reality Fighters?

A: Mitsuo Hirakawa, Producer, SCE XDev Studio: Reality Fighters is a new kind of fighting game. Not only does it introduce Augmented Reality elements that allow players to put themselves in the game and fight in real-world environments, but the game also uses many exclusive PS Vita features like the rear touchscreen, sixaxis motion sensors and more. In addition to introducing players to the new hardware and unique gameplay, we wanted to create a mechanism for players to learn and develop throughout the game.

Eventually we decided that this mechanism should be a character who acted as the player’s guide. We specifically chose Mr. Miyagi for several reasons. Firstly, we needed someone who was a true fighting master who could easily take on the best fighters from around the world, but was also wise, and capable of teaching the player. Plus we had to consider the tongue-in-cheek nature of the game; some of our fight styles include ballet and break dance, as well as some unusual weapons like a toilet plunger. We needed someone who was tough, but also had a softer, more humorous side.

Q:What is his role in the game?
A: He is the sensei and guides we all know. He’ll teach players how to set themselves up as a character in the game, choose clothing and costumes, learn special moves and more, as well as giving encouragement before a bout and wise words whether the player is victoriou…or not so lucky!

Q: Did you consider any other famous names for the role of guide?
A: Before we decided on Mr. Miyagi, we shortlisted various characters such as Jackie Chan, Bruce Lee, Chuck Norris, Jet Li and even Mike Myers! It became clear that Mr. Miyagi ticked all the boxes for us in terms of a true master who has a humorous side. The Karate Kid movie being a worldwide hit and a film that we were all huge fans of also helped a little …

Q:What is your favorite Mr. Miyagi moment?
A: Like many fans around the globe, I grew up watching The Karate Kid and I must have seen the film more than 10 times! There are so many memorable moments I can recall like the Halloween fight scene, the Cobra Kai dojo fight scene … but my personal favorite is the “Miyagi vs. Kreese” moment. Kreese goes crazy and he starts beating up Johnny in the car park. Mr. Miyagi intervenes and has a one-on-one against Kreese. After Miyagi forces Kreese to his knees he says “Mercy is for the weak… when man confronts you, he is enemy…enemy deserve no mercy.” The audience expects Miyagi to deliver a fatal blow but instead he brings his fist to Kreese’s nose…and honks it.

This scene is a great example of who Mr. Miyagi really is – tough, wise, playful – and this is the character we have tried to bring to life in Reality Fighters.

Q:Noriyuki “Pat” Morita, the actor who played Mr. Miyagi, sadly passed away in 2005. Who provided the voice for this latest incarnation of the karate master?
A: We went through an extensive casting process and after meeting dozens of applicants we unanimously agreed that American voice actor Jim Ward was the most suited to this role.

We weren’t aware of Jim’s previous voice acting background when we decided to go with him, but his knowledge of how the voice files are played in game (when, where, how) really made a positive impact on the recording sessions. Jim’s been one of the best voice-over talents I’ve worked with and he has great experience having worked on Call of Duty, Metal Gear Solid, Ratchet & Clank and many more great titles.

From the moment we briefed Jim, he instantly ‘got’ the role so recording went really well, allowing us to capture over 500 lines.