So close, yet so far away.

Sony pushed back the Western PS Vita release date to 2012, but lucky gamers in Japan will be able to get their mitts on Sony's brand new handheld by year's end, as the system officially launches on December 17th in the region.

Sony unveiled the official launch date during their press conference at the Tokyo Game Show. There's much more exciting news to come from the event, so make sure to follow us on Twitter and like us on Facebook to stay up to date.

[source reuters.com]