'PlayStation Certified' Games Coming to Android Devices, And More

'PlayStation Certified' games are coming to non-Sony devices, according to Kaz Hirai, who insists that the project is not just for company products, with other devices soon to offer PS certified games.

Only two Sony tablets and the Sony Ericsson Xperia Play have carried the PlayStation certified branding to date, but this could soon change, offering PlayStation games on Android tablets and smartphones.

Hirai, who is the executive deputy president of Sony, said: "It is not the case where we want to keep it in the Sony family. We are in discussions with non-Sony makers. This is not just for Sony devices."

With iOS and Android, gaming on smartphones poses a threat to purpose-built gaming devices such as the upcoming PlayStation Vita; Hirai said: "iPods, iPad or any Android based smartphones...have had an impact on traditional video games. Now some of that is positive in that a lot of people may buy traditional non-gaming device to play games."

Hirai continued to explain how the gaming industry gains customers who try games on smartphones for the first time: "Some were gamers before, and anecdotally got a smartphone tried the game app and thought 'this was pretty good, this was pretty fun' so the games industry gains a customer.

"The original PlayStation games run on Android devices and we have set up a program where we are going to encourage software developers to use the PlayStation suite which runs on Android smartphones."

The PlayStation Vita will be available in time for Christmas in Japan, and in February for the rest of the world, and despite being a dedicated gaming device and not a smartphone, Hirai remains confident: "It does a host of other things as well, but the primary purpose is to offer a really immersive gameplay experience."