Sony loaning indies free Vita dev kits
"They've really got behind smaller devs."
Sony is encouraging indie developers to work on PlayStation Vita titles by lending out development kits for its new system free of charge, according to a Gamasutra report.
Independent studio Rubicon confirmed that Sony had loaned it a kit, allowing it to port its iOS title Great Little War Game to the new handheld.
According to a NeoGAF post by managing director Paul Johnson, Sony "sent us four kits. Gratis. Just like that."
"On the basis that you can't put the cat back in the bag, I can confirm that Sony was generous enough to loan us some kit, and that's one of the many reasons why I big them up every opportunity I get," he then clarified to Gamasutra.
"They really do seem to have gotten behind smaller developers, based on my own experience and from talking with other small devs, and I think they should be saluted for it."
"We're entering a new era in which digital downloads can be translated into mass market sales for smaller operators - once only the preserve of the big boys," he added.
It seems the kits are not for keeps though – Sony wants the tech back when Rubicon is done.
We're in touch with Sony now to find out more about the scale of the initiative.
Back in June, indie stalwarts Team Meat told Eurogamer that Nintendo is being less generous with 3DS dev kits, stating that its request for one is yet to bear fruit and that, to its knowledge, "not many people" are in ownership of the tech.