American PlayStation Vita launch lineup detailed

Sony announced Thursday on the official PlayStation Blog the full details of the PlayStation Vita's launch in the USA and Canada, including a list of launch titles and prices of games and accessories. The system and its launch titles will be available in those countries starting on February 22.

A total of 25 games will be available on the system at its launch, and Sony boasts that more than 100 games are currently in development. All software will be priced starting as low as $9.99 and as much as $49.99 and will be available at retail locations, digitally through the PlayStation Network or both.

Credit: Sony

The full list of 25 launch day titles is as follows (publishers in square brackets):

• Escape Plan (PSN Only) [Sony Computer Entertainment of America]
• Hot Shots Golf: World Invitational [Sony Computer Entertainment of America]
• Hustle Kings (PSN Only) [Sony Computer Entertainment of America]
• Little Deviants [Sony Computer Entertainment of America]
• ModNation Racers: Road Trip [Sony Computer Entertainment of America]
• Super StarDust Delta (PSN only) [Sony Computer Entertainment of America]
• UNCHARTED: Golden Abyss [Sony Computer Entertainment of America]
• wipEout 2048 [Sony Computer Entertainment of America]
• Army Corps of Hell [Square Enix, Inc.]
• Asphalt Injection [Ubisoft, Inc.]
• BEN10 GALACTIC RACING [D3 Publisher of America]
• Blazblue: Continuum Shift EXTEND [Aksys Games Localization, Inc.]
• Dungeon Hunter Alliance [Ubisoft, Inc.]
• Dynasty Warriors Next [Tecmo Koei America Corporation]
• F1 2011 [Codemasters]
• EA SPORTS FIFA Soccer [Electronic Arts, Inc.]
• Lumines Electronic Symphony [Ubisoft, Inc.]
• Michael Jackson The Experience [Ubisoft, Inc.]
• Plants vs. Zombies (PSN Only) [Sony Online Entertainment LLC]
• Rayman Origins [Ubisoft, Inc.]
• Shinobido 2: Revenge of Zen [Namco Bandai Games America Inc.]
• Tales of Space: Mutant Blobs (PSN Only) [Drinkbox Studios]
• Touch My Katamari [Namco Bandai Games America Inc.]
• Ultimate Marvel vs Capcom 3 [Capcom Entertainment, Inc.]
• Virtua Tennis 4: World Tour Edition [Sega of America]

Additionally, the following titles were listed as coming in the "launch window," which assumedly means they will be released within the first few weeks of the PlayStation Vita's debut:

• Gravity Rush [Sony Computer Entertainment of America]
• MLB 12 The Show [Sony Computer Entertainment of America]
• Reality Fighters [Sony Computer Entertainment of America]
• Unit 13 [Sony Computer Entertainment of America]
• LEGO Harry Potter: Years 5-7 [Warner Bros. Interactive Ent. Inc.]
• Disgaea 3: Absence of Detention [NIS America, Inc.]
• NINJA GAIDEN ∑ PLUS [Tecmo Koei America Corporation]
• Ridge Racer [Namco Bandai Games America Inc.]
• Silent Hill Book of Memories [Konami Digital Ent. America, Inc.]
• Supremacy MMA: Unrestricted [505 Games]

That's quite the software lineup, especially in comparison to the paltry nine retail titles available at the North American and European launches of rival Nintendo's 3DS handheld. Sony also revealed release dates and prices of the Vita's various accessories, including the cost of memory cards that gamers were anxious about. Turns out they're still pretty expensive, but not as bad as the rumors said.

The PlayStation Vita system itself will be available at $249.99 in a WiFi-only model, and $299.99 for a WiFi+3G model as revealed at E3 2011. There is also the First Edition Bundle for $349.99 that comes with accessories and a game, which will be available a week ahead of the official launch for super-early adopters.

Are any of our readers picking this up? The Vita is definitely an attractive piece of hardware and has a large software launch lineup to back it up, but I'm sure one of Sony's biggest challenges is the fact that most tech users don't have a strong desire for a dedicated portable handheld device in this current age of smartphone ubiquity and $0.99 apps.