Software
Now comes the part that actually moves units—games. As sleek and sexy as the NGP might be, without software support, it’s dead in the water. Sony’s confident that it has the support it needs, with a roster of 82 developers and publishers said to be currently working on the platform. Curiously, THQ and EA aren't on the list. Epic Games was among the heavy hitters in attendance, showing off a version of its Unreal 3 Engine running on the NGP.
Activision said that a Call of Duty was in the works for the system, though the company didn’t elaborate whether it was an all-new game or a port of an existing release. Konami showed off footage of Metal Gear Solid 4 on the NGP, but there wasn’t any official word on if it would be available on the platform or if the demonstration was merely a tech demo. Other game announcements included Resistance, LittleBigPlanet, Wipeout, Uncharted, and Killzone.

OK, you didn’t think we’d just mention Uncharted without a little more info, did you? Fine. Phil got his hands on the portable game, and he wrote up his impressions here. The game was definitely designed with the new hardware in mind, including touch-activated stealth kills and sections where you use the hardware’s gyroscope to line up rifle shots. As Phil says, it’s shaping up to be a great look at what this new hardware is capable of.

Phil also got to sample a game called Little Deviants, which he describes as feeling more like a tech demo than a full-on game at this point. It was a great way to put the rear-facing touch pad through its paces, however, including its multi-touch support.

If you’re a trophy collector, take note: The NGP will support those collectables.