E3 2009: Most anticipated Sony announcements

Sony has to come out swinging at E3 2009. It still lags behind the Xbox 360 and Wii even after having two and a half years to catch up. As the excitement for E3 started to build we started to see a renewed dedication to the PSP from Sony. Big titles including LittleBigPlanet, Rock Band Unplugged and Assassin’s Creed were announced for the handheld. We expect some big PSP announcements from Sony as well as some others that will guarantee Sony steals the show.

Let’s take a look at some of our most anticipated announcements from Sony at E3 2009.

PSP Go!

For several weeks rumors have been swirling constantly about a redesigned PSP. This new PSP would have more than just a brighter screen and a thinner frame – it would take the PSP in a whole new direction. The rumors say the PSP Go! will ditch the UMD drive in favor of internal storage in 8GB and 16GB flavors. Patapon 2 was recently released and it can only be downloaded online. Sony said it was a test to see how the public would respond. Shortly afterwards Unbound Saga was revealed to be released digitally as well. We expect Sony to finally use the full potential of the PSP to send it into direct competition with the DS(i) and iPhone. We also are anticipating a lot of original PSP Go! games that will take advantage of the new hardware. Maybe that game rental service will be mentioned as well.

PS3 Price Drop

It’s no secret that the PS3′s biggest disadvantage is its price. The Wii and Xbox 360 sit at price points below $300 but Sony continues to carry the $400 price tag. It can no longer hide behind the idea that it’s the cheapest Blu-ray player anymore because it isn’t. We expect Sony to announce a price drop between $50 and $100. Hopefully some new bundles will also accompany the price drop to make it more appealing to consumers that haven’t taken the plunge.

New Firmware Update

What’s a big Sony announcement without firmware? Every now and then Sony gives us a few neat features but they have never been as groundbreaking as the New Xbox Experience. In fact there are still some things the Xbox 360 can do that the PS3 can’t such as chatting across games. It’ll be great if during Sony’s press conference we’re told of exciting new firmware features and that it’s available to download at that very moment.

PS3 Slim

This just may be wishful thinking but we like to dream big. A little while ago images of what looked to be a slim version of the PS3 was leaked on the internet. Shortly after we all picked up on it cease – and – desist letters were sent out demanding the images be taken down. The PS2 didn’t see a redesign until its fourth year of existence and the PS3 has only been out for two and a half years. Again this is probably the least possible announcement we’ll hear but E3 always makes us expect the unexpected.

Unannounced Exclusive Games

A console is only as good as the games that are on it. This year Sony has some big guns with God of War 3 and Uncharted 2. These are games that can only be played on PS3 and Sony needs more of these. We’re expecting some big unannounced games to get their debut. Most notably Team ICO’s new game. If the leaked video of Project TRICO is true we just may hear more about what is has to offer at E3. Sony fans are also holding on to hope that Hideo Kojima’s next game is exclusive to the PS3.

E3 is a pretty big deal at Sony Headquarters this year and it desperately needs to gain sturdy ground moving into the holiday season. We’ll see how close we were when E3 kicks off next week (June 2-4, 2009).

Read [Gamertell]