Sony has announced that, as of February, PSN account holders will instead be “Sony Entertainment Network account” holders.

“On February 8, 2012, your “PlayStation Network account” will be renamed a “Sony Entertainment Network account” or a “SEN account” in conjunction with Sony Computer Entertainment’s PlayStation 3 system software and PlayStation Vita system software updates,” explained Sony in an email to customers this weekend.

Other than the name though, PSN users needn’t worry about any further alterations to the service. “For general purposes, this account change is a change in name only. Your username or password will not change, nor are we asking you to change them,” stresses Sony.

“This transition is based on Sony’s goal to enhance its unique digital entertainment offering. As a series of these activities Sony started last September, PlayStation Network will be aligned with Sony Entertainment Network. This helps us get closer to our goal of establishing a global comprehensive network platform of services across games, movies, music and more, all accessible from one convenient account.”

It also isn’t a complete rebrand – the PSN name will remain, it seems. No alarm bells needed.

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Japan’s electronics giant Sony vice president and Sony Computer Entertainment president Kazuo Hirai claps his hands in Tokyo on April 26, 2011. Sony is warning that hackers stole password, birthday and other data about users of its PlayStation Network that connected PlayStation 3 (PS3) consoles to online games, films and more. AFP PHOTO / Yoshikazu TSUNO (Photo credit should read YOSHIKAZU TSUNO/AFP/Getty Images)

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The Sony Playstation Vita could have you ditching your Nintendo 3DS and leaving your smart phone in your pocket, as it launches in the UK on February 22, 2012.

The nicely designed piece of kit has an astoundingly rich five inch OLED touch screen which makes trial games like Uncharted Golden Abyss look phenomenally detailed.

Its minimal grey and black look with translucent grey buttons right and left makes it at equally at home in the hands of men, women and very lucky kids – there’s no gender play here, unlike in some colourful handhelds.

The machine is heavier than your smart phone, which makes it feel worth the extra dosh (compared to Nintendo 3DS).

Though the size means it won’t fit in any but a large coat pocket, which on a positive note means your pen protector and smart phone will have uninterrupted pocket space.

Beyond looks and dimensions, the fact that this kind of power can be contained in a handheld is astonishing. There’s a quad core processor back there, along with the now standard accelerometer and gyroscope, 3G mobile and Wi-Fi connectivity, front and back cameras and Bluetooth®.

The cross-play stuff with the PS3 is also very PHWOAR, and something we now come to expect with TV. Start playing on your PS3, and pick up where you left off on the PS Vita. Clever.

Some say the design forgets to be fun. And indeed, the grey and black make it look like a serious gaming device to be fun. But it’s hard not to love it when the screen and power of the machine give you so much.

The detail in the test kit of Uncharted Golden Abyss and Reality Fighters were impressive. Since you can use the Vita to play your PS3 games remotely, that should make playing majorly detailed games like Skyrim rewarding rather than frustrating.

The Vita will live and die by its games. Nintendo, which recently forecast record losses has failed to keep up with releases on Wii, and has had to slash prices on 3DS to keep sales up.

Playstation should work with developers to build a steady supply of games that make full use of the rear touch pads, the hyper-rich screen and remote play.

We weren’t supplied with Fifa, Skyrim or Modern Warfare for Vita, but these games could all be exciting on Vita. The Playstation store was also not available in our region.

Pre-order

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Sony has closed down UK-based developer Bigbig as part of a ‘restructuring’ effort.

The firm has also downsized its Cambridge division, putting employees that remain to work with Guerilla Games on Killzone titles for Vita.

It’s unclear how many redundancies have occurred as a result of the changes.

“It was felt that by focusing on other Studios that are currently working on exciting new projects, we would be in a stronger position to offer the best possible content for our consumers,” Sony told Develop, confirming its actions.

“We have reviewed and assessed all current projects and plans for the short and medium term and have decided to make some changes to European studios. As a result of this, there will be a realignment of resource within the studio to ensure that the studio is in the best position to achieve this,” it added.

Bigbig recently wrapped up work on Vita launch game, Little Deviants, which will sit on shelves alongside Vita on February 22.

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