Sony Interactive Entertainment

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File:Sony computer entertainment logo.jpg

Sony Computer Entertainment, officially abbreviated as SCE, is a publisher and manufacturer of home and handheld consoles such as the PlayStation, PlayStation 2, the PlayStation 3, the PlayStation 4, the PlayStation Portable, the PlayStation TV, and the PlayStation Vita. It is a subsidiary of Sony Corporation.

The PlayStation 4 (PS4) has been announced as the successor to the PlayStation 3 on 20 February 2013. The PS4 has been released by 15 November 2013 in North America, and was released on 29 November 2013 on PAL Regions, plus all of Latin America, along with many other countries by December 2013 along with Japan by 22 February 2014.

Sega began publishing Sonic games on Sony consoles in 2003.

Origins and History

The North American operations, Sony Computer Entertainment of America (SCEA), were established in May 1994 as a division of Sony Electronic Publishing. They were located in Foster City, California, and headed by Steve Race. In the months prior to the release of PlayStation in Western markets, the operations were restructured: All video game marketing from Sony Imagesoft was folded into SCEA in July 1995, with most affected employees transferred from Santa Monica to Foster City.

SCE originally designed the first PlayStation as a CD-ROM drive in Add-on for the Super Nintendo (in response to Sega's Mega-CD) while in early partnership with Nintendo. However, when the prospect of the add-on dissolved after they announced switch their parternship with Philips to develop the Philips CD-i, SCE redesigned it into an actual console.

The PlayStation became a best-seller thanks to it's first party developed games such as Twisted Metal, Gran Turismo, Crash Bandicoot, and Spyro. Unfortunately, only the former two still remain as 1st party while the later became 3rd party by the end of Naughty Dog's and Insomniac's 3 game deal.

PlayStation Now and Gaikai

File:PlayStation Now Logo.png

PlayStation Now Logo

On July 2012, Gaikai (外海, lit. "open sea"^?) was brought by Sony Computer Entertainment for US$380 Million. Before SCE brought the company, it was a startup company and it made partnerships with from numerous companies to stream high-end video games. As it was brought, SCE decided to make the next generation of Remote Play, which is transmit video and audio output to the PSP and the PSVita, by streaming all Playstation 4 Games to the PS Vita. With the PS4 incompatible with all PS1, PS2 and PS3 games, SCE announced that they are working with Gaikai to emulate all PS1, PS2, and PS3 games to the Playstation 4. On January 7, 2014, during Sony's Keynote at the Consumer Eletronics Show, they announced PlayStation Now months after Gaikai was brougth. PlayStation Now is a service that allows players to play PS3 games on the PlayStation 4, PS Vita, most Sony TVs, Smartphones and Tablets through a Dualshock 3 or the controls supplied from the PS4, PS Vita and PS3.  A closed Beta was opened on Jaunaury 28, 2014 on the PS3 along with the PS4 closed beta by May 20, 2014 and an Open beta will be opened by July 31, 2014 in the United States and Canada and it will offer up to 100+ games from first and third party gaming publishers, including SEGA. European PlayStation customers may get it by 2015. Sonic CD was part of the 100 games relased at the North American Open Beta launch becoming the first Sonic Game to be on PlayStation Now.

The PS Now service users a modified PS3 hardware in their data centers with the power of eight PS3s into a single motherboard within a slimline server cabinet, which can reduce eletricity costs, and reduce space. Players are required to have up to at least 5 Mb/s of internet in order to use.

Console Wars

During the fifth and sixth generations, Sony and Sega were publishing consoles at the same time. The consoles in their war included:

• PlayStation vs. Sega Saturn (fifth generation)
• PlayStation 2 vs. Sega Dreamcast (sixth generation)

During the fifth generation, the PlayStation ultimately beat out the Sega Saturn in sales, and during the sixth generation, Sega was forced to cancel production of the Dreamcast because the PlayStation 2 was beating it in sales. After that, Sega ultimately became a third-party publishing company.

Currently, Sony is currently rivaling with Nintendo and Microsoft on the Console War.

Consoles

Gallery
Playstation 2 Slim.jpg PS2 Slim PS3 (Original (Left) and Slim (Right) with controller) Playstation-Portable-PSP-console.jpg PSP Ps-vita22.jpg PS Vita PS4 Console with DS4.jpg PS4 with the Dualshock 4 The Dualshock 4 PlayStation (Vita) TV

References

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