What ever happened to the PSP?

[Alexander The So-so]

I'm a PSP guy, mostly because of the exclusive games on it that I really wanted. Metal Gear Solid: Portable Ops and Castlevania Dracula X Chronicles in particular (being able to play Symphony of the Night on a roadtrip or plane ride NEVER gets old).

It'd be best if Sony and other video game companies would quit overhyping these things as "Walkmen for the 21st Century" and whatnot, and keep the focus on what they're primarily selling: video games. That was the problem with the PS3; I don't really care about Blu-Ray capability, Internet connections, or whatever other embellishments they care to throw on. I want to play Metal Gear Solid, dangit! I have both Sony products, because I like the PSP and PS3's game selection better, but I can definitely see why casual gamers would opt for the Wii and DS; they're mainly looking to play some video games. They've got a whole bunch of other gadgets to listen to music or watch DVD's with.

[Hanzo]

Dec 30, 2008 5:09:26 GMT -5 Koda, Master Crunchyroller said:

The PSP is the first truly successful non-Nintendo handheld.

I'll always have a soft spot for the Game Gear. I carried that thing with me everywhere growing up. Sonic 2, Sonic Triple Trouble, Shinobi, Mortal Kombat II, Ax Battler, Joe Montana Football, Columns... That system was boss.

As for the PSP. It just doesn't have any games I want to play other than Daxter (which I beat using my friend's PSP) and Dissidia. I think it's a good system as far as the hardware goes. But it just lacks games that interest me.


And how 'bout those UMDs?

[teamjd]

I agree with Madman. I just want tom play games, and the PSP advertising makes it seem like that means the system isn't for me.

[VenomFang]

"Sigh." What ever happened to buying a gaming system for the games. I'm supposed to care that the PSP is a phone, a portable music player, a pocket-sized movie device, a mobile web browser and the DS isnt ? Yeah ok. The article made it sound like the PSP SHOULD be beating the DS because it does more things and it doesnt say whats most important is that DS is winning because it has more and better games.

Also the Game Gear wasnt a failure. Everyone says it was because it didnt beat GameBoy and it SHOULD have beaten GameBoy because it had the superior hardware right ? Ok sure. Games always trump hardware and the morons who say and write what I mentioned above know that but they dont say or print it.

[Koda, Master Crunchyroller]

Dec 30, 2008 10:07:37 GMT -5 Madman Szalinski said:

The new Kingdom Hearts game is PSP? We couldn't have gotten that one on another system?

Here's Sony's problem. Who wants to pay three or four hundred bucks for a big piece of hardware that supposedly does ten different things at once with mediocre performance? A video game system slash phone slash MP3 player slash portable movie player? Might as well get the juicer add-on so you can fresh squeeze your oranges while watching that PSP disc version of Spider-Man 3. If I can afford a PSP, I already have a phone that takes 2 megapixel video and pictures, I already have an MP3 player, and I have no need to watch movies on the go because everything I watch is streamed off YouTube or some bleep like that. If I can afford a PS3, I already have a computer for all my audio and video needs.

Nintendo's success comes from their hardware being built to do only one thing: play games. That's their strength, that's what they do. And they see no point to waste millions of dollars to make their software do all kinds of other stuff when all you wanna do is play a game. Lesson of the day: 'tis better to get one part of it down right, damn near perfect, then try to be a jack of all trades and a master of none.

Actually there are 3 new Kingdom Hearts games. None coming to home consoles. 1 is going to Japanese cellphones, one to the DS where you play as the members of Organization XIII, and the PSP game lets you play as the 3 Keyblade Knights seen in that cutscene in Kingdom Hearts 2.

Oh, and um....yeah...Nintendo isn't all about just games anymore now. Look at the Nintendo DSi. It can take pictures.

[Koda, Master Crunchyroller]

Dec 30, 2008 10:39:12 GMT -5 Hanzo said:

Dec 30, 2008 5:09:26 GMT -5 Koda, Master Crunchyroller said:

The PSP is the first truly successful non-Nintendo handheld.

I'll always have a soft spot for the Game Gear. I carried that thing with me everywhere growing up. Sonic 2, Sonic Triple Trouble, Shinobi, Mortal Kombat II, Ax Battler, Joe Montana Football, Columns... That system was boss.

As for the PSP. It just doesn't have any games I want to play other than Daxter (which I beat using my friend's PSP) and Dissidia. I think it's a good system as far as the hardware goes. But it just lacks games that interest me.


And how 'bout those UMDs?

Game Gear chewed up batteries left and right. At least the PSP's battery is rechargeable....

[The Lunch Break Kid]

Atari Lynx ftw

You could play it upside down

[VenomFang]

Dec 30, 2008 11:20:03 GMT -5 Koda, Master Crunchyroller said:

Dec 30, 2008 10:39:12 GMT -5 Hanzo said:

I'll always have a soft spot for the Game Gear. I carried that thing with me everywhere growing up. Sonic 2, Sonic Triple Trouble, Shinobi, Mortal Kombat II, Ax Battler, Joe Montana Football, Columns... That system was boss.

As for the PSP. It just doesn't have any games I want to play other than Daxter (which I beat using my friend's PSP) and Dissidia. I think it's a good system as far as the hardware goes. But it just lacks games that interest me.


And how 'bout those UMDs?

Game Gear chewed up batteries left and right. At least the PSP's battery is rechargeable....

I always played Game Gear plugged into the wall. No big deal.

[Hanzo]

Dec 30, 2008 11:20:03 GMT -5 Koda, Master Crunchyroller said:

Game Gear chewed up batteries left and right. At least the PSP's battery is rechargeable....

You could just use the AC Adapter or a rechargable battery pack. That's what I did.

You're right, tough. That thing went through batteries like Tommy Dreamer's head through a classroom ceiling.

[Loki]

It's not fair ripping into Game Gear for it being more hungry for battery than Ozzy was for drugs in the 80s...

The project was ambitious, just the technology wasn't ready for a system with such power thirst.
Hell, how long has it taken to get decent batteries for mobile phones?

To me the success of GameBoy over GG is a mystery to this very day. Gameboy had the graphic of those cheap Tiger Electronics handheld games. No wonder the battery lasted longer than the one on Game Gear, that was basically a portable Sega Master System.

Games may have been "better" (but that's a matter of personal tastes), but man, the green-gray thing was unbearable

[domrep]

I always thought the PSP was basically for people who didn't want to play the PS 2, but didn't have enough to get a PS 3, so they treated the PSP as like a bridge between those two game consoles.

[AFN: Judge Shred]

The PSP is selling more systems than ever. The game well is a bit dry though. It has a pretty awesome library now days.

I have one and a PS3, but I barely ever use them together, and most folks I know with a PSP do not have a PS3. In fact most folks I know bought it to use as a movie player.

I do like how Sony is planning to start offering more PSP games to download on PSN. That is cool.

[kitsunestar]

Dec 30, 2008 10:07:37 GMT -5 Madman Szalinski said:

three or four hundred bucks

$400? You could probably get between 15-20 games along WITH a PSP for that much.

The PSP hasn't ever cost $400 on its own, as far as I'm aware.

Anyway, there are plenty of games I'd play on the PSP, and I had one once, but can't really find a point in the near future where I'd have the $160 free to get one again, that I wouldn't rather use that $160 for something else.

[andrew8798]

Dec 30, 2008 19:45:49 GMT -5 @kitsunestar said:

Dec 30, 2008 10:07:37 GMT -5 Madman Szalinski said:

three or four hundred bucks

$400? You could probably get between 15-20 games along WITH a PSP for that much.

The PSP hasn't ever cost $400 on its own, as far as I'm aware.

Anyway, there are plenty of games I'd play on the PSP, and I had one once, but can't really find a point in the near future where I'd have the $160 free to get one again, that I wouldn't rather use that $160 for something else.

The highest that the PSP has ever cost was when it first launch at $250

[Jay Peas 42]

Well, it's like it says in the Good Book; "The race does not always go to the swift, nor battle to the strong." Sony may have had a perfect system. A lot of companies thought they did.

Yeah, Sony's ambitions far exceeded their reach this time around. They couldn't keep up with Apple on the Media player front, and they couldn't match Nintendo on the gaming front. The funny thing is, both Apple and Nintendo were pronounced dead ten years ago, and it looked like Sony, a truely massive company, would dominate video games and music distribution. The wheel turns...

[VenomFang]

I think another thing thats hurting the PSP is piracy and that a lot of people are hacking it. I went on a PSP board once and it seemed that there was a lot more discussion there about hacking than discussing the actual PSP games.

[Mattification]

Dec 30, 2008 22:01:57 GMT -5 VenomFang said:

I think another thing thats hurting the PSP is that a lot of people are hacking it.

Well that actually worked in the original Playstation`s favour as alot of people bought it because they could get games for much much less than on N64 through less than legal means.

I`ve heard the DS is pretty easy to hack too. Not sure how common it is though.

[VenomFang]

From what Ive read it seems that the PSP is being hacked a lot more than the DS. I was on a DS board and there was a lot of discussion about the actual games going on where it seems PSP people care more about the hacking than playing the PSP games. It just seems like the #1 reason people buy the PSP is so they can hack it.