Sony's First-Party Line-Up Looks Eye-Wateringly Strong.

"Way to blow your load Sony," read most, insinuating that Sony's E3 surprises have been revealed prematurely. Some of the posters might have a point; Sony's been keen on turning E3 into an on-going season for some time. We've already seen announcements of Starhawk amongst others, and now the NGP's entire first-party line-up is on the front-page of websites worldwide.

For us, it's a cunning strategy. E3 is a noisy event, with publishers announcing megatons from every angle imaginable. While NGP is undoubtedly one of those megatons, Sony's just guaranteed primary placement on every enthusiast and technology website throughout the weekend. Why wait a couple of extra days?

But NGP's early announcement also signals something else. It feels like Sony's getting its first-party content out of the way, presumably in order to showcase those infinitely more important third-party titles at the big event itself. We're not devaluing the importance of first-party content at all, but good quality software from the platform holder is to be expected. We know Sony's first-party studios are going to push the potential of the NGP — it's a given.

What's less expected is good third-party support. PSP never really gained much traction from western developers, with the console being made to make-do with poorly optimised console cast-offs. It strikes us that Sony wants to make a point with its E3 briefing next week, putting aside the expected first-party content to really surprise people with a killer third-party offering. Call Of Duty is a given, but we wouldn't be surprised by some major left-field announcements. Don't be surprised if Epic has something big to showcase on Sony's handheld.

For now though, first-party content is the main port of discussion, and we've got growing array of reports to share with you. So let's break it down, shall we.

Announcements

Blow-Out Previews