For the first time in a while, Sony opened things up with a complete shocker no one knew a thing about. This time, it was BEYOND: Two Souls, the upcoming game from Quantic Dream. With incredible visuals and Ellen Page as the lead character, the clip ended up leaving SO many questions unanswered, but that’s how David Cage wanted it. I did find it pretty amusing that after Cage touted how stunning Page’s performance was in the game, her digital character was mute for the bulk of the clip shown.till, it’s a must-buy I’ll be tracking until it’s released. God of War: Ascension finally got a live single player demo that showed fans really had nothing to fret about at all, as Kratos is as brutal as ever, the enemies are all deadly and the trademark QTE kills are even gorier than ever.  Pre-orders are already being taken for this one, even though it’s not in stores until March 2013, so make that a priority if you’re good about hanging onto receipts.

The Vita got some props with a few new titles announced and a bit of cross platform play from PlayStation All-Stars Battle Royale that was slick and flawless. While it looks like a TON of fun, I’m still not sold on the Super Smash Bros. influenced game completely, as I think not having old PS mascot stalwarts such as Crash Bandicoot and Spyro the Dragon (both owned by different publishers these days) makes for a lesser experience (Fat Princess? Really?). And where’s Solid Snake? Then again, Uncharted’s Nathan Drake and Big Daddy from BioShock will please some folks out there, as they were announced as new fighters in the game as part of a quick teaser.

Assassin’s Creed III is getting love on a few fronts, as Sony is getting an exclusive Vita game, Assassin’s Creed III: Liberation that features a female lead for the first time as well as open world gameplay and a story that’s completely different from the console version. There’s going to be a special white Vita bundle for the game and AC III is getting its own bundle as well, but with exclusive DLC. Additionally, owning the Vita game will unlock content in the PS3 game, a nice bonus for those fans who want more of this upcoming game. The console demo was a new sea battle stage that was great looking and dynamic, but perhaps a wee bit too much with those fast loading ship cannons and sense of speed that felt more car chase than tactical naval exercise. Nevertheless, the crowd absolutely ate it up, so it worked as intended.

In addition to the Vita FINALLY getting PS1 Classics (well, first Tomb Raider and FFVII this summer) Sony is also spreading out its wings onto mobile devices. New HTC phones will be the first non-Sony branded devices to carry the new PlayStation Mobile (formerly PlayStation Certified) tag, but I still feel that ANY device Sony makes with a screen  that can download content (from e-books to tablets) SHOULD be playing PlayStation games or be able to be connected to the PS3 and Vita at some point.It was noted that 80% of PS3’s and Vitas were online, but I think this it’s that 20% Sony NEEDS to address going forward. Note to Jack Tretton. If you simply ignore that 20% and never even ASK why they aren’t using PSN, then finding out HOW to get them connected (or get them those games they may want to play but can’t get), you’re never going to see any additional profit outside of what they spend or don’t spend (which isn’t as much as you’d like them to, I’d bet)…

The flab-filled portion to me was the announcement of Wonderbook, a new peripheral that turns storybooks into interactive experiences. The live demo was boring, which was a bit striking since it was for an all-new J.K. Rowling work based on learning and using magic spells found in the Harry Potter universe. I can see this tech going somewhere, but perhaps more mature fare would have been a better way to start. No, I don’t want to see a Wonderbook version of Fifty Shades of Grey (ha ha), but it might be cool to see something like an interactive murder mystery, sci-fi or horror work from a popular author. Yes, you can steal this idea, as I can see Wonderbook becoming the next  Sega Pico if the technology is ONLY used for one segment of the market…

There was some other stuff I took notes on, but after seeing the disturbingly great new gameplay footage from Naught Dog’s The Last of Us, my brain has that and BEYOND as key showpieces from the event. Sony’s connectivity news wasn’t as grand as Microsoft’s big Glass plans, but I think SCEA and Sony in general are still figuring out how to connect ALL their branches to support the company tree. Just do it, already, I say. All this indecision is hurting the games division as well as your bottom line. Unify the PC, PS3 and device divisions, get PlayStation content (and other popular casual titles not already on PSN) onto these platforms while adding new mobile partners and see what happens. As long as the first party games are keeping the home consoles going, there’s not so much need to worry about the competition. Er, provided there’s not another security incident (he said with crossed fingers and toes)…