Tretton: NGP to continue PlayStation's "rich history of redefining industry standards"

SCEA CEO Jack Tretton has written an open letter on the US PS Blog following this morning's reveal of a next-gen successor of PSP, saying the currently-codenamed NGP will continue the PlayStation brand's "rich history of redefining industry standards".

"When PSP first launched in 2005 in North America it changed the way people thought of portable gaming and raised expectations in regards to the variety and quality of games users expected to access while on the go," he wrote.

"It has since become the go-to handheld entertainment system for more than 64 million users who seek home entertainment quality games along with access to their music, movies, photos and more."

Tretton continued: "With NGP we carry on this rich history of redefining industry standards and raising the bar for consumer expectations for what portable gaming can deliver.

"Designed to blur the lines between interactive entertainment and reality, the NGP will offer Wi-Fi and 3G network connectivity. The 5-inch OLED front multi-touch display will bring brilliant images to life and the multi-touch pad on the rear will allow users to engage with the game and characters with a simple movement of their fingertips."

Tretton added: "While we here at PlayStation are thrilled to bring this cutting-edge technology to your fingertips, we all know that content is critical to the success for all of our platforms. I’m pleased to share that your favorite franchises will be coming to NGP, including Uncharted and Call of Duty.

"We are working with our extensive network of 3rd party developers and publishers as well as SCE Worldwide Studios to create experiences unlike anything else on the market."

The device will be out this holiday season in Japan. No western plans were confirmed by Sony at the press conference.