Sony asked for developer input on NGP

Evolution Studios seems pretty pleased with what Sony has done with NGP, especially because it specifically asked developers what should go into the handheld.

Speaking with NowGamer, studio director Matt Southern said Sony even took into consideration its suggestion to add the trackpad.

"We’ve all been looking at odd-looking devices with wires sticking out them since an early date, because with the commencement of research on NGP, Sony really changed its approach so that it was much more developer-driven," said Southern.

"Instead of Sony handing hardware to developers and saying, ‘here’s our next device, make something cool’, it set about asking developers what they thought should go into the device, and what they thought would be cool.

"Literally saying, ‘we’re thinking of a rear touch pad, what could you do with that?’ BigBig came up with Little Deviants, which I think is going to be one of the killer apps," said Southern. "So it’s almost kind of weird to be asked what I think of it because I told Sony what I think of it and, as a result, that’s reflected in the hardware.

"That’s happened right across, Japan, Asia, Europe and America, so in terms of first-party development it’s the machine we all wanted, and I think that’s starting to show in the games. It’s going to be a tremendous console for gamers, whether they’re core or hardcore."

Sony has not provided a date for NGP yet, but it is expected sometime this year.