If you happen to be a user with an Android device who has stayed loyal to Sony’s PlayStation platform, then you might be happy to learn the recent news that came out this week. Sony said a while back that they would open up a web store for PlayStation, and it is available in select nations for now. Of these include the United States, France, Italy, Japan (of course) and Australia. Other markets are expected to be open in the future.
The store is officially called PlayStation Mobile, and it is exclusive to devices that are PlayStation Certified. There are some considerations about the new store that should be known to incoming buyers. For one, PlayStation Mobile is a store that needs to be installed independently rather than from a platform like Google Play.
There are a number of HTC smartphones that are certified for download from the store such as phones from the One series, including V, S and X. There have been reports already today that the store is not accessible to HTC devices, but work is being done to alleviate the issue.
Other certified devices would of course include Sony’s Xperia devices, which admittedly is quite an extensive list. According to Tech Radar, the number of certified gadgets are in the two dozen range.
As one might expect, the kind of games that are available on PlayStation Mobile are, well, mobile-friendly. These does not include any high-graphic games, but rather simpler games that one might expect on PSP. The games can be played on the PlayStation Vita, as well as the Android devices once they are ready to go with their on-screen controls.
The amount of games currently available in the store (for those who can access it so far) looks to be about twenty overall. Such titles would include “Wipe!”, “Loot the Land” and “Magic Arrows”. The prices of the games are pretty cheap, and might equal that to what you might spend in any app store for a simple game.
The highest priced game that was seen on the list totals to be $7.99, while the cheapest was fifty cents. The range is pretty wide, and I’m not sure what it is about some of the games that make them the price that they are, but people will buy if they wish .
This is a big move for Android, and the continuous takeover of online app stores. This PlayStation Mobile add-on is important, but minisculecompared to the AMD/BlueStacks deal that occurred last week. Thanks to this new deal, over half a million Android apps will be available on future Windows 8 devices. This basically secures Android’s place in Windows 8 for while, with the operating system expected to be released at the end of the month.
If you have an Android device that is certified for the PlayStation Mobile store, share what the experience has been with it. There have been some reports about problems with access and installation. Sony might want to make the fixes soon for the HTC devices if the store is going to be successful. Between HTC and Sony devices, the former would certainly make up the majority of potential users of the store.
About the Author: Sophia Lirendo is a blogger in tech, science and entertainment for DirecTV Texas.
