'God Eater 2' to receive simultaneous-launch PS Vita port in Japan

The sequel to God Eater, the PSP action-adventure game originally announced this time last year as a big Tokyo Game Show reveal, is now going to get a simultaneous day-and-date release on the PS Vita.

Namco Bandai confirmed in this week's slate of Japanese video-game magazines that the sequel to God Eater, the PSP action-adventure game originally announced this time last year as a big Tokyo Game Show reveal, is now going to get a simultaneous day-and-date release on the PS Vita.

Set three years after the original title (released by D3 Publisher in America under the title Gods Eater Burst), the sequel will allow for multiplayer co-op between PSP and PS Vita users, no matter which hardware they're using. Vita gamers will be able to enjoy high-res visuals specially prepared for their systems, and the controls will also be rejiggered and optimized for the Vita version. (Save data can also be imported from Burst, no matter which console you use.)

God Eater didn't make much of a splash when released last year in the US, but the franchise — although sometimes derided as a copy of Capcom's Monster Hunter series — has found decent success in Japan. So far, Namco Bandai's series has spawned four different short-term manga series, three novels, a couple of soundtrack CDs, and a trading card game featuring the title's numerous divine-inspired enemies.

The sequel is due out sometime 2013 in Japan.