PlayStation Vita owners can look forward to a trio of free applications to help you make the most of the handheld console’s unique features, the first of which will be available to download this week, on 18 April.

Turning the PS Vita‘s impressive 5″OLED screen into a sketch pad, Paint Park is fun for beginners and expert artists alike. Using PS Vita’s touchscreen to make and share drawings; you can doodle, sketch and scribble quickly and easily with the virtual markers and on-screen colour palette. The PS Vita’s front and rear cameras can play a part too, as you can take pictures and add your own creative imaginings to them.

Simple and fun Paint Park can also be a socially rewarding as users can share their work and even compete with up to five friends in the online multiplayer via the Ad Hoc mode.

This summer we’ll be releasing Treasure Park, an application that allows you to create your own puzzles to challenge your friends with. It’s a great way to connect with friends and other PS Vita users, as you can use the near application and 3G to find puzzles to play and share your own, wherever you are.

And finally, Wake-up Club will also be available this summer. This application turns your PS Vita into an alarm clock that can sync up with other PS Vita users who set their alarm for the same time.

We hope that PS Vita owners will check out these new, free applications, starting with Paint Park on 18 April.

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Fingers crossed the term above has no impending underground or urban double-meaning.

Either way, if you are not modding you should be. It’s a lot of fun! “Adults” can deny all they’d like, yet creating your own personal Mods in ModNation Racers: Road Trip (Vita) takes us back to those memorable, endless days of playing with our action figures and figurettes (some still do? oops, my bad).

Enjoy this very informative tutorial to help you create that ultimate Mod you have been dreaming of…

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Today, Escape Plan owners will be happy to see new content popping up on their PS Vitas for download. The first DLC pack, Bakuki’s Lair, is a FREE level pack that adds 19 prequel-puzzle rooms to the adventures of Lil and Laarg.

Bakuki ‘s Lair Now Live!

Fans of Escape Plan have helped make the game one of the best selling PSN titles worldwide, and so we’re happy to report that we are improving the experience with a handful of adjustments that were requested directly from gamers.

Don’t Hurt ‘em!

Players can now squeeze Lil while swiping, front and back taps are more precise, earning stars is just based on time and there are some more hints in sticky situations.

A Minion Gets Toasted

Our plan for Escape Plan is to continue supporting fans and community worldwide by growing the game and updating the title with new features.

If you haven’t yet picked up Escape Plan, it’s available now on PSN for €12.99/£9.99.

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Update: PS Vita system software update 1.66 is now available for download.

PS Vita system software update 1.65 has been taken down temporarily due to a technical fault. For any customers who may have already downloaded the firmware, they can continue as normal. We will notify you once the latest system software update is available to download again.

A new PlayStation Vita System Software update will be released on 3 April 2012. It will make a few changes to the user interface. You can update your PS Vita System Software using Wi-Fi, PC or a PlayStation 3 system; please refer to this guide if you need help performing the update.

System Software Update 1.65 features include:

• You can now disable the notification alert messages that indicate when friends sign in, messages are received and other activities. To disable these alerts, got to [Settings] > [Sound & Display] > check/uncheck [Notification Alerts]. Additionally, Notification alerts will now display for five seconds instead of three seconds
• ‘After 10 Minutes’ has been added as an option in [Power Save Settings] > [Auto Standby]
• An arrow will indicate when new activities are available in LiveArea
• Caps Lock is now supported by the on-screen keyboard. Simply double-tap the Shift key to enable it

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On April 10th, Escape Plan owners will receive Bakuki’s Lair, the first DLC Pack for Escape Plan, via download of Patch 1.01. This FREE DLC Pack adds 19 prequel-Puzzle Rooms to the adventures of Lil and Laarg.

Our hapless heroes’ journey begins anew with Lil and Laarg trapped in a hazardous sausage factory, where they will become bratwurst if they don’t bail. Players will need to swipe for their life through a handful of dastardly designed puzzles in this latest update.

Lil is doomed, unless Laarg can figure out how this machine works

Bakuki’s Lair is just one of the benefits of the upcoming patch. Escape Plan Patch 1.01 is a meaty new addition, with a host of tweaks and improvements based on player feedback. Patch 1.01 allows for more pin-point accuracy on tap blocks, as well as an adjustment to the game’s Star Rating system. We are also laying the foundation for a lot of exciting updates for Lil and Laarg in the future.

Laarg is definitely not in a safe spot

Finally, be sure to check out the five brand new Escape Plan avatars we’re releasing on the PlayStation Store with this week’s publish. For you lucky PS Plus subscribers, these avatars will be free for a limited time, so grab them quickly!

We’re happy that fans are responding well to Escape Plan and we look forward to updating you all with more Lil and Laarg adventures in the near future.

Lil stops short of being blasted by a sausage

If you haven’t yet picked up Escape Plan, it’s available now on PSN for PS Vita.

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