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[OldJadedGamer]

The PSP's biggest enemy is all the Sony fanboys all over every message board pre-launch who wouldn't shut up about how it was going to dominate and kill the DS the second they hit retail shelves. How the DS was a "toy" and how all the games were "kiddy" and it was only a "gimmick". According to SDF (and there are tons of past threads to support this), the PSP was going to be a run away success leaving the DS in the dust.

The SDF pumped and hyped the system up sooo much above the DS pre-launch that there was no way in hell the unit could even come close to filling that hype no matter what happened. So by the standards the SDF put on it before it's release, it's a compelte failure.

To the real world, it's a moderate success with lots of room to grow as a platform.

 

[dark10x]

Stuff like LocoRoco and Lumines are really fun, perfect on the go, and use a fraction of the system's power.

Not that it matters in this case, but LocoRoco is actually one of the most technically impressive games on the system. It's doing some really impressive things, despite its simplistic appearance.

 

[Oni Jazar]

Not that it matters in this case, but LocoRoco is actually one of the most technically impressive games on the system. It's doing some really impressive things, despite its simplistic appearance.

I've been playing the hell out of Loco Roco. Don't know why it got any hate and it sucks that it didn't sell more.

 

[Beer Monkey]

The PSP is actually the most successful handheld ever (excluding Nintendo).

Has it sold more games, than say, the Game Gear?

The best measure of the success of a gaming platform is the total number of games sold.

 

[Gigglepoo]

Not that it matters in this case, but LocoRoco is actually one of the most technically impressive games on the system. It's doing some really impressive things, despite its simplistic appearance.

I stand by my comment, no matter how wrong it is.

 

[dairladada]

Both games were originally Japan approved. New stuff like these will no go through with Sony US in its current state. Again these are pure distribution deals so they are 'ok' with it.

 

[Frankfurter]

The PSP is actually the most successful handheld ever (excluding Nintendo).

"Excluding Nintendo" means to exclude every single handheld that had significant success (not counting PSP). It's comparable to "Linux and Mac OSX are actually the most successful OS' ever (excluding Windows)".

 

[Oblivion]

Like Lumines, Wipeout Pure, Daxter, Ultimate GnG, Ace Combat X, Syphon Filter: Dark Mirror, Pursuit Force, both Megamans, MGA2, Field Commander, Loco Roco, Monster Kingdom, Mercury Meltdown, Burnout Legends, Killzone Liberation, Medievil Ressurection LOLOLOLOL :lol :lol :lol :lol

HERE IS A LIST OF GAMES THAT I LIKE SEE I PROVED YOU WRONG


I think it's time to look at a few fallacies in this thread.

Fallacy 1: Sony wasn't trying to be "beat" Nintendo. I mean, HOW COULD THEY? Nintendo had a monopoly on the handheld market. I mean, it's not like a newcomer could come in and beat somebody with an established brand name and all that, etc.

Can't believe people are still trying to pull this card. Do I need to bring out quotes of "bringing handheld gaming out of the portable ghetto"? Or "DS is a kids toy"? Or "Walkman of the 21st century"?

Fallacy 2: PSP has great games that I love so it's doing great.

Er...yeah, like Nintendo fans who are happy with their Gamecubes. :lol

Fallacy 3: Sony might not be selling better, but they're doing just fine! Especially when you compare it to other non-Nintendo handhelds.

Wrong again! PSP may be selling decently, but the software sales are in the shitter, as proved in NPD and media create threads. Sony could be making profits on PSP, but the main source of revenue comes from software sales, which the PSP is unfortunately lacking a great deal.

 

[vitaflo]

I think there are several problems with the PSP. It's pricey for a portable. With that it also is extremely scratch prone (both system and discs) and and because of it's price you don't want to be throwing it into your bag and having it bounce around in there. Adding a case is fine, but that also adds to the size of it (which is already large for a portable). All of this (along with the cd drive and and screen sucking batteries, etc) just point out to me that this system just doesn't have a very good portability to it.

To me Nintendo has always gotten it in that regard. Make a system relatively small, make it cheap, make it hard as a rock, make the batteries last long. Do even three of those things and you have something. The PSP doesn't quite have this.

To me, the PSP isn't really a portable, it's simply a "handheld". I play it plugged in on my couch most of the time. My DS is in my bag all the time, I don't worry about it getting scratched up or running out of power or taking up a lot of room. It's just there.

It reminds me a lot of how I treated my Game Gear vs my Gameboy 15 years ago.

 

[Oblivion]

I think the elephant in the room is that Sony didn't design PSP for the bread-and-butter of the handheld market: KIDS

In the past, handheld's primary function is a diversion on car rides in the back seat.

PSP, although more sturdy than most people think, is still not the tank Nintendo designed the DS to be.

Oooh, one more thing that I forgot. The "kiddies only buy handhelds" excuse. Funny cause I was having a chat about this with my friend the other day. If it was true that only kids buy handhelds, because they're cheaper and all that, then wouldn't the GC have been a success. Where were the missing 55 million or so kiddies on the GC then?

 

[Jokeropia]

It's all about perception. Sony wanted to get a piece of the handheld market. They've done that.

Uh, no. Sony wanted (and expected) to steamroll Nintendo in a similar manner as PS1 did N64.

Considering that Nintendo went from 100% of the handheld marketplace to significantly less than that, it's interesting that N fans are now declaring such a significant victory.

You realize that Nintendo are selling more handhelds now than ever before, do you?

Furthermore, PSP's biggest problem isn't the hardware sales, but the software sales.

 

[Pimpbaa]

The price of the system and games is the main barrier I see. Sony for some reason wants to switch focus of the playstation brand from affordable gaming to expensive luxury multimedia players. While I think the PS3 will sell well this xmas, it could possibly be in the same position as the psp if they don't drop the price next year. As to whether the psp can catch up to the ds, I doubt it. People confronted with the choice of what to buy have a choice between a cheaper system that alot of people I know already have (and to play multiplayer games with) or a much more expensive system to which I know far less people have. Basically Sony is out of touch with the common gamer right now.

 

[Deku]

This horse is already long dead and the corpse has rotted away.

The PSP has many problems and many mistakes were made. People can debate over
which points are more relevant or mitigate certian other points by classifying the market
as kids only, which begs the question why the apologists weren't up in arms at Sony for
entering the market to begin with when apparently its so obvious in hindsight.

In anycase, when its all said and done, its not the SDF making fools of themselves,
nor is it the apparent collapse of the PSP momentum in the past year worldwide, but
the really big news is, the PSP shows the limits of Sony's market power. The well
oiled marketing machine that vaulted PlayStation into a major global brand could only
make one gaffe after another, the new media format meant to create a tidal wave of network effects from movie releases could only sputter and die out, and the hardware itself followed the design mistakes of Game Gears and Lynx's of previous generations to a T. This is like the greatest hits of how not to build and market a product, there's not just one failure but multiple failures. The fact that it's doing so well relative to other dead portables is a testament to how well placed Sony was at the start. And its increasingly becoming apparent LTDs are unreliable in showing how successful the PSP is as its mostly frontloaded in the honeymoon period before the portable got into its current sales quagmire.


Last year, I made a point to say that Sony's hubris ruled the design of the PSP, and that is probably ultimate the cause of its demise. But the real
showstopper for future game historians is how Sony's invincibility was shattered here in this market so decisively, despite its apparently, overhwelming advantages.

This isn't Xbox market establishment, this is Sony being humiliated.

 

[Larry Bird]

This horse is already long dead and the corpse has rotted away.

The PSP has many problems and many mistakes were made. People can debate over
which points are more relevant or mitigate certian other points by classifying the market
as kids only, which begs the question why the apologists weren't up in arms at Sony for
entering the market to begin with when apparently its so obvious in hindsight.

In anycase, when its all said and done, its not the SDF making fools of themselves,
nor is it the apparent collapse of the PSP momentum in the past year worldwide, but
the really big news is, the PSP shows the limits of Sony's market power. The well
oiled marketing machine that vaulted PlayStation into a major global brand could only
make one gaffe after another, the new media format meant to create a tidal wave of network effects from movie releases could only sputter and die out, and the hardware itself followed the design mistakes of Game Gears and Lynx's of previous generations to a T. This is like the greatest hits of how not to build and market a product, there's not just one failure but multiple failures. The fact that it's doing so well relative to other dead portables is a testament to how well placed Sony was at the start. And its increasingly becoming apparent LTDs are unreliable in showing how successful the PSP is as its mostly frontloaded in the honeymoon period before the portable got into its current sales quagmire.


Last year, I made a point to say that Sony's hubris ruled the design of the PSP, and that is probably ultimate the cause of its demise. But the real
showstopper for future game historians is how Sony's invincibility was shattered here in this market so decisively, despite its apparently, overhwelming advantages.

This isn't Xbox market establishment, this is Sony being humiliated.

Damn, man.

 

[Shogmaster]

This horse is already long dead and the corpse has rotted away.

The PSP has many problems and many mistakes were made. People can debate over
which points are more relevant or mitigate certian other points by classifying the market
as kids only, which begs the question why the apologists weren't up in arms at Sony for
entering the market to begin with when apparently its so obvious in hindsight.

In anycase, when its all said and done, its not the SDF making fools of themselves,
nor is it the apparent collapse of the PSP momentum in the past year worldwide, but
the really big news is, the PSP shows the limits of Sony's market power. The well
oiled marketing machine that vaulted PlayStation into a major global brand could only
make one gaffe after another, the new media format meant to create a tidal wave of network effects from movie releases could only sputter and die out, and the hardware itself followed the design mistakes of Game Gears and Lynx's of previous generations to a T. This is like the greatest hits of how not to build and market a product, there's not just one failure but multiple failures. The fact that it's doing so well relative to other dead portables is a testament to how well placed Sony was at the start. And its increasingly becoming apparent LTDs are unreliable in showing how successful the PSP is as its mostly frontloaded in the honeymoon period before the portable got into its current sales quagmire.


Last year, I made a point to say that Sony's hubris ruled the design of the PSP, and that is probably ultimate the cause of its demise. But the real
showstopper for future game historians is how Sony's invincibility was shattered here in this market so decisively, despite its apparently, overhwelming advantages.

This isn't Xbox market establishment, this is Sony being humiliated.

Tell us how you really feel. :lol

 

[PhoenixDark]

The PSP's biggest enemy is all the Sony fanboys all over every message board pre-launch who wouldn't shut up about how it was going to dominate and kill the DS the second they hit retail shelves. How the DS was a "toy" and how all the games were "kiddy" and it was only a "gimmick". According to SDF (and there are tons of past threads to support this), the PSP was going to be a run away success leaving the DS in the dust.

The SDF pumped and hyped the system up sooo much above the DS pre-launch that there was no way in hell the unit could even come close to filling that hype no matter what happened. So by the standards the SDF put on it before it's release, it's a compelte failure.

To the real world, it's a moderate success with lots of room to grow as a platform.

And now they've all retracted on those comments and act like they never said them. "Of course the PSP was going to lose to the DS! I knew it all along":lol

 

[Sysgen]

Don't have time to read the whole thread. For me the control sucks. Terrible dpad (on launch units anyway) and I hate the imprecise nub. This is the only reason why I don't buy games for the thing and I only use it as a portable video player. The library is OK.

 

[PhoenixDark]

This horse is already long dead and the corpse has rotted away.

The PSP has many problems and many mistakes were made. People can debate over
which points are more relevant or mitigate certian other points by classifying the market
as kids only, which begs the question why the apologists weren't up in arms at Sony for
entering the market to begin with when apparently its so obvious in hindsight.

In anycase, when its all said and done, its not the SDF making fools of themselves,
nor is it the apparent collapse of the PSP momentum in the past year worldwide, but
the really big news is, the PSP shows the limits of Sony's market power. The well
oiled marketing machine that vaulted PlayStation into a major global brand could only
make one gaffe after another, the new media format meant to create a tidal wave of network effects from movie releases could only sputter and die out, and the hardware itself followed the design mistakes of Game Gears and Lynx's of previous generations to a T. This is like the greatest hits of how not to build and market a product, there's not just one failure but multiple failures. The fact that it's doing so well relative to other dead portables is a testament to how well placed Sony was at the start. And its increasingly becoming apparent LTDs are unreliable in showing how successful the PSP is as its mostly frontloaded in the honeymoon period before the portable got into its current sales quagmire.


Last year, I made a point to say that Sony's hubris ruled the design of the PSP, and that is probably ultimate the cause of its demise. But the real
showstopper for future game historians is how Sony's invincibility was shattered here in this market so decisively, despite its apparently, overhwelming advantages.

This isn't Xbox market establishment, this is Sony being humiliated.

 

[Deku]

What's bill clinton doing here

 

[kojacker]

What's bill clinton doing here

He's telling you how many PSP games he bought

 

[trancejeremy]

Wow, so much hate for Sony.

 

[chespace]

This horse is already long dead and the corpse has rotted away.

The PSP has many problems and many mistakes were made. People can debate over
which points are more relevant or mitigate certian other points by classifying the market
as kids only, which begs the question why the apologists weren't up in arms at Sony for
entering the market to begin with when apparently its so obvious in hindsight.

In anycase, when its all said and done, its not the SDF making fools of themselves,
nor is it the apparent collapse of the PSP momentum in the past year worldwide, but
the really big news is, the PSP shows the limits of Sony's market power. The well
oiled marketing machine that vaulted PlayStation into a major global brand could only
make one gaffe after another, the new media format meant to create a tidal wave of network effects from movie releases could only sputter and die out, and the hardware itself followed the design mistakes of Game Gears and Lynx's of previous generations to a T. This is like the greatest hits of how not to build and market a product, there's not just one failure but multiple failures. The fact that it's doing so well relative to other dead portables is a testament to how well placed Sony was at the start. And its increasingly becoming apparent LTDs are unreliable in showing how successful the PSP is as its mostly frontloaded in the honeymoon period before the portable got into its current sales quagmire.


Last year, I made a point to say that Sony's hubris ruled the design of the PSP, and that is probably ultimate the cause of its demise. But the real
showstopper for future game historians is how Sony's invincibility was shattered here in this market so decisively, despite its apparently, overhwelming advantages.

This isn't Xbox market establishment, this is Sony being humiliated.

</thread> right here.

But god bless Sony for their stupidity and hubris. Because I love my PSP.

 

[linsivvi]

</thread> right here.

But god bless Sony for their stupidity and hubris. Because I love my PSP.

Better worry about PS3 going along the same path of the PSP. They are bleeding money there by selling this beast.

 

[AniHawk]

It's really interesting. I've never actually seen a system go from being on top to suck in such a short span of time. The GC didn't do well from the get-go, so I was used to that not being the top dog. I was too young to remember Game Gear vs. Game Boy or any similar "war" (and the GG actually did compare to GB at least in one year during the mid 90s, perhaps the most applicable comparison available).

I dunno. ...Just weird. Not sure how it happened either. I think March 2006 was really the system's last hurrah considering it had so many games, yet was still equaled by the DS (which only had Metroid Prime Hunters). And the future looks so bleak. I don't even think Sony's got plans to revive the system at all. Probably just the usual price cuts and bundles if it doesn't do anything this holiday season. The PS3 is definitely their biggest focus too, and rightly so, as it's the future of their company.

 

[cvxfreak]

The people still stomping about that the PSP has some kind of amazing library really need to admit their position within a deeply engrained hardcore niche. The average person has very obviously declared that they give no **** about any of the PSP's games, and its continually lagging software sales in every territory (third and first party alike) ought to make that evident.

I'm not saying that PSP's poor conceptualization isn't part of the problem, it is. And I was one of the few on GAF pointing out a lot of these problems when the PSP was first revealed; while the majority here were sploojing over the idea of hardcore console games on-the-go, I was bemoaning the fact that development costs would be insane, that portable software design sensibility would be out the window, and that during its traction-gaining phase, the amount of investment publishers would have put in it would have distracted from their more lucrative, mature console outings.

But the games are still the core of the problem. Just like when I was getting laughed at for calling its line-up laughable over a year ago, I feel even more justified in doing so now. The only people who the PSP's lineup seems to appeal to are the people who grew up only playing their Game Boys/Gears/Coms/Lynxs in front of the TV and never out of the house. I was recently discussing among a group of devhook-savvy PSP owners who were all bitching that there wasn't even anything on the PSP coming out that was worth pirating.

Exactly. EVERY mainstream system that's been outsold still had a remarkable library of games (whether they're by one company or not), but it doesn't stop the things from being financial disappointments. Shooter and fighting game fans have got good things to say about the Saturn and Dreamcast and the N64 provided some of Nintendo's best games. It's no different with the PSP, although I don't exactly think the PSP is known for half the games people like to list here.

Even I'd go as far to say that the GC, while a disappointment, at the very least had dozens of million sellers and satisfied the likes of their traditional fanbase (the kids and Nintendo gamers). PlayStation 2 fans on the other hand aren't guaranteed to be happy with the PSP, much less people who loved their GBAs.

And the truth is, when the GC wasn't selling that well, Nintendo at least tried to do something logically about it. Bundling popular games and/or the Game Boy Player (bundling Loco Roco is like bundling the GC with Chibi Robo), releasing bonus discs and then a $99 price drop and cutting deals with Capcom/Namco/Sega/Kojima proved that Nintendo was at least trying, but Sony's efforts with lame bundles is comparatively tame. I'd really like to see what else they can do.

 

[CorwinB]

Wow, what a load of crap.

First off, I disagree with the premise of this thread on it's face. "Product concept shortcomings?"

Tell me, what's wrong with these product concepts?


-What's wrong with the concept of being ambitious and entering a market even though you have a single dominant player as your main competition?

-What's wrong with the concept of recognizing your competition's dominance requires offering a totally different technical approach from that dominant player to try to carve out your own place in the market?

-What's wrong with going for a different market demographic and price structure than your competition in an attempt to make a new set of customers?


Those are, after all, the "product concepts" behind the PSP.

These three product concepts are the same concepts we all feel the need to praise in the Wii, yet we damn PSP for taking a similar approach?

Or are you suggesting that those three concepts are only valid when you offer less technology for a cheaper price? You have to aim lower than your competition, you can never aim higher?

Screw that.

Maybe you noticed, but the initial post mostly talked about execution failures, not the initial proposition behind the PSP... BTW, the whole point of the Wii is going for an untapped market by offering the combo of a novel, simpler game experience and lower cost HW (that Nintendo got greedy and tried to make some extra cash from its faithful fans and early adopters is beside the point or may constitute another execution failure). PSP is the polar opposite.

Trying to make way into a solidly held market by pricing yourself outside of the reach of the larger part of the existing audience is not exactly smart business practice. MS understood this quite well with their initial XBox pricing that they had to reduce mighty fast (when sales slowed down to a crawl after the initial honeymoon) even when it meant bleeding money.

The PSP is a great first effort, has sold millions even at a much higher price, and is easily the best non-Nintendo portable ever made.

Isn't it grand that expectations for Sony fans have been downscaled from "crushing the gimmicky waffle-maker out of the gate and making Nintendo go 3rd party" to "selling better than the Gamegear, the Lynx, and the Wonderswan". Remember we are talking about a product using the most successful videogame brand ever, here. Not exactly some newcomer.

What makes SDF's heads explode all over the world, though (not a problem, since an exploding head is just a minor flesh wound to fanboys as no major organ is hurt), is that most argument that the PSP is successful can also apply to the GameCube... "Oh, but Sony makes money on that so it can't be described as a failure", "Oh, but they have some market share and a very faithful following"...

I guess I'm old enough to remember that Nintendo's first forays into the portable space weren't perfect either. It took Nintendo a lot of evolutionary design and strange decisions to get it right.

I fail to see what was wrong about the GB for its time. Yes the screen was shitty, but at least you could play it outside and it didn't cost its own price in batteries every week... It was priced extremely well, and had an amazing selection of games.

You expected absolute perfection from Sony on the first try?

Well, I expected them to give us the Ipod killer, get portable gaming out of the ghetto, and not even having to enter Nintendo's format in their plannings since that comparison would not be fair. Also getting UMD price down to the point where I could get my newspapers on it.

More seriously, Sony did that to themselves. They tried to introduce console-level tech into the handheld space, and since they don't have access to future technology (although the 4D PS3 network may change that) compromises had to be made. Said compromises may be worth it in some cases or for some groups (nothing wrong with that), but they still exist and some of them (battery life, loading times, fragility...) go a long way into making a less than optimal handheld experience. To the contrary, the GB failings that you mention where done in order to ensure a better handheld gaming experience (system robustness, battery life, quick loadings).

Why? Are you crazy? Do you think they are so awesome they can't possibly have to do what everyone else does and learn over time?

Perhaps them and their fans should not have started out in such a cocky way to begin with. To keep things in perspective, they had most if not all the press (both specialized and mainstream) behind them. They had a price point that, while expensive, was described as a bargain for the included technology (if this reminds you of something, it should). They had incredible 3rd party support, with both western and japan developers firmly favoring their system. They came very strongly out of the gate with the PSP both introducing major sales records in nearly every region and beating the DS in sales early on. And they managed to botch that.

The current multitude of competing bundles for the PSP (new games bundles, old games bundles, various MS sizes bundles, UMD bundles...) is a proof of Sony's sales departments being in total disarray and just coming up with new "genius" bundles every couple of weeks in hope to find a formula that works. They don't want to actually cut the price of the unit probably because they have to keep at least the >200$ price point and bundle stuff up to increase the value because they would start bleeding cash again, which they can't with the PS3 ramping up.

The disconnect between production shipments boldy heralded in press releases only a couple months ago, and actual sales data is becoming wider with each NPD and MC release and is reaching "ET the game" levels.

Another problem for Sony is that they tried at the same time to crush Nintendo in its strongest market, to introduce a so-called "Ipod killer" or "21th century walkman" and as such take their revenge on Apple, and introduce a new proprietary format (cleverly hiding it behind the word "Universal"), something that really, really succeeded them in the past.

Even the most insanely rabid Nintendo fanboy has to look into that deep, dark, truthful mirror and admit that the PSP has done nothing but good for Nintendo fans. Nintendo fans finally got a sleek design and a nice, finally-bright-enough screen, with beautiful color out of Nintendo--something we asked for and asked for and asked for, for years.

(snip)

People ridicule Sony for saying they'd take portable gaming out of the ghetto. Well, they did it. Perhaps not the way they intended, but they did it nonetheless. The PSP forced Nintendo to aspire to something better for a change and give us the DS Lite.

I've seen some stupid stuff on GAF over the years, but that takes the cake. Yeah, competition is good. Can't see why Sony fans were so eager to get Nintendo out of business, if it's the case... Anyway, your spin on "Sony making Nintendo get portable gaming out of the ghetto" is absolutely breathtaking. I'm sure you and the rest of the SDF meant just that back in Feb 2005... Am I rite ? And I'm sure Sony execs are currently helping themselves Champagne, now that their cunning plan to force Nintendo to release a sales juggernaut handheld with an incredible lineup of games is a proven success. Mission accomplished !

 

[Dilbert]

Anyone else get the feeling that Deku is like that ****ed-up monk from The DaVinci Code, kneeling naked in front of a picture of a DS and whipping himself, hoping to gain some kind of meaningful reward?

 

[Lyte Edge]

The PSP games didn't have a style of thier own.

GB had one. GBA had one. DS has some.

What "style?" Gameboy was a stripped down spinach-green portable NES. GBA was a souped-up portable SNES. DS certainly has its own style, but I don't think that the dual screens and touch screen are what's making for its high sales. Many of the top games barely make use of those functions.

Nintendo has a cheaper handheld device with some appealing titles that for the most part are the typical games you'd expect from them (and guaranteed successes). Cost is a big factor, so it's obvious that they'd come out on top, but some of you guys make it sound like the PSP is on its deathbed and has no software available for it, which is absolutely laughable. All handhelds have games that are better on the go than on consoles, and all handhelds have games that are exactly like console titles. It's not like the DS magically has games that are just PERFECT for portables and PSP is just a bunch of console games; where did this perception come from? You can't save anywhere in New Super Mario Bros. Games like Final Fantasy Advance/III and Pokemon are RPGs that take hours and hours to go through. Can you even play a full round of Brain Training in a few minutes (I've never played it before)?

PSP = port machine? good but not soo good graphics? nintendo emulator?

Er, there are PSP games that look like PS2 titles. PSP's graphics are the best ever seen on a handheld device, FACT. That's not even up for debate.

 

[MrSardonic]

Anyone else get the feeling that Deku is like that ****ed-up monk from The DaVinci Code, kneeling naked in front of a picture of a DS and whipping himself, hoping to gain some kind of meaningful reward?

:lol

 

[cvxfreak]

Lyte Edge, the Brain games make excellent uses of the DS touch screen. It's why people are all over that version and not any of the ones for PSP.

 

[Lyte Edge]

Lyte Edge, the Brain games make excellent uses of the DS touch screen. It's why people are all over that version and not any of the ones for PSP.

I know, that's why I said "many" instead of "all." But do you really think that's a big reason why those games are selling so well?

 

[Mar]

I'm finding it hard to talk about this more seeing as I've said my piece in about 4 other threads just like this on previous occasions. However I'll try and summarise.

I think the PSP is over complicated and over priced. It's fantastic at what it does. It's a portable media player and does a lot of things really well. But that sort of device is only attractive to the hardcore gamer, or the AV-phile. Everyone else just wants to pick up a little system and play great games (the DS).

The system as a gaming machine fails because it's not very 'pick up and play', and it hasn't been very well supported in the game library itself. In fact you could say it was badly designed as a games playing device. The d-pad is the worst I've ever used (it's even started creaking on me now while I'm trying to hit those ever so hard to hit diagonals), and the nub is horrible. The only thing the system does right for games is the glorious screen (although I've heard some complain about ghosting, I haven't seen these problems myself).

I do almost feel like saying I love my PSP. Ultimate Ghosts n Goblins is the best handheld game I've ever played. But in actuality I love the game, not the system I'm playing it on. I'm happy Sony gave me the chance to play it for what it is. It couldn't have been what it is on any other system. But in the end I really don't like the PSP itself.

This would of course all change if there was more than 1 game that I could fall in love with on the system. If the PSP had a vast library of games, the enjoyment I'd get from those would over shadow the design problems of the system. But I see nothing coming out in the future that I'm even remotely considering buying. And I don't use my PSP as a media device. So once I'm finished UGnG on Ultimate mode (1 more ring to get, I'll be finished by the weekend), I'm worried my PSP will gather dust.

Conclusion: Games are lacking, and the system is targetted to a niche audience.

 

[cvxfreak]

I know, that's why I said "many" instead of "all." But do you really think that's a big reason why those games are selling so well?

Big reason, definitely. It tests how much you know from your head rather than seeing available options and then guessing. The touch screen also tests reflex that a normal button layout would fail to emulate.

For Animal Crossing, some people just like controlling the game with the stylus. If half the Japanese owners played it that way, that would be 1.6 million people right there on top of the Brain Age people.

 

[Jokeropia]

DS certainly has its own style, but I don't think that the dual screens and touch screen are what's making for its high sales. Many of the top games barely make use of those functions.

Nintendogs and Brain Trainings say hi. The former is the best selling video game in several years and single-handedly turned the tide of the handheld wars in favor of the DS in all three major territories. I assume I don't need to tell you what the latter franchise has done in Japan.

 

[Mar]

Nintendogs and Brain Trainings say hi. The former is the best selling video game in several years and single-handedly turned the tide of the handheld wars in favor of the DS in all three major territories. I assume I don't need to tell you what the latter franchise has done in Japan.

I'd also like to add New Super Mario Bros.

Too many people don't realise how much of an impact the mini games have in the sales for this game. My wife absolutely loves this game, but she's only played less than half of the single player element. She constantly plays the mini games, which are all touch screen controlled.

I'd bet most of the amazing sales in Japan are related to people playing multiplayer mini games.

 

[Jokeropia]

I love the mini games in NSMB, as well.

 

[Deku]

I'd also like to add New Super Mario Bros.

Too many people don't realise how much of an impact the mini games have in the sales for this game. My wife absolutely loves this game, but she's only played less than half of the single player element. She constantly plays the mini games, which are all touch screen controlled.

I'd bet most of the amazing sales in Japan are related to people playing multiplayer mini games.

I wouldn't doubt it.

 

[gutter_trash]

PSP's biggest enemy is the PS2

just like UMD movies' biggest enemy are home DVDs

 

[Methodis]

This isn't Xbox market establishment, this is Sony being humiliated.

So Nintendo wasn't feeling humiliated when Sony was whipping the DS's ass in America pre- DS Lite? It took a whole hardware revision for the DS to finally outsell the PSP in America. I guess Sony is the only one who can be humiliated and that Nintendo is prone to humiliation, regardless of the fact that they're entering a new generation of consoles being the dead last two generations in a row. I'm sorry, but that's humiliation, not the PSP "failing" (which is absolutely did not, seeming that it's sold up to 5 million units), but Nintendo's lack of sales pre hardware revision.


You need to take off those Nintendo ga-ga go-go glasses.

 

[Deku]

So Nintendo wasn't feeling humiliated when Sony was wiping the DS's ass in America pre- DS Lite? It took a whole hardware revision for the DS to finally outsell the PSP in America. I guess Sony is the only one who can be humiliated and that Nintendo is prone to humiliation, regardless of the fact that they're entering a new generation of consoles being the dead last two generations in a row.

You need to take off those Nintendo ga-ga go-go glasses.

I recommend you re-read what I typed rather than quote something and get in a huff about it. Don't be like Jinx, there's no FUD at work here.

Certainly you're classifying this argument as Sony v Nintendo tells me volumes about your goggles.

 

[Methodis]

I recommedn you re-read what I typed rather than quote something and get in a huff about it. Don't be like Jinx, there's no FUD at work here, just logic. And yes I can gloat a little because I was right about this.

No, you're not right about this. You called Sony humiliation for not being able to sell 10000000000000000 million units based on name power. But you're wrong. The PSP DID OUTSELL the DS. It took a hardware revision for Nintendo to finally come on top. Could you please tell me how you saying the PSP failed because it sold 5 million units a failure as "logic"? To me, it's coming more as fanboyism and ignorant.

Certainly you're classifying this argument as Sony v Nintendo tells me volumes about your goggles.

They seem to be the only two players in the handheld business at this point.

People buy DS's. People also buy PSP's. You saying the PSP is dead is straight up bullshit and shows that you're oblivious to the fact that -Hey!- the PSP sold more then the DS at one point. If I went back Pre-DS Lite and said, "The DS is like other dead portable consoles" you wouldn't be calling it a dead console, you'd be singing a different tune (likely of how it's a niche system that only F-Chans appreciate and it's undersales aren't warrant of it's great potential) regardless of the fact that it was selling worse then the PSP, not that the PSP was selling bad at all.

 

[rod]

wow, methodis really, really likes sony

 

[Methodis]

wow, methodis really, really likes sony

No, I don't really, really like Sony. I just hate all these people who claim the PSP is "dead" yet forget that it took a whole hardware revision for the DS to finally catch up in America. I also hate people who say it doesn't have any games. I also happen to have had the pleasure of owning both systems (Although currently only own a PSP) and appreciated both of them. I just wish the DS had a better lineup when I owned one as the only games I got to play where Nintendogs, Super Mario 64DS, and Asphault Urban GT. My PSP is my playground for gPSP, Lumines, MLB 06: The Show, X-Men Legends 2, and DJ Portable Max. MGSO and GTA:VCS will be joining the family very soon.

 

[Derps]

Games saved the DS not a stupid redesign. PSP needs to follow suit

 

[Methodis]

Games saved the DS not a stupid redesign. PSP needs to follow suit

Try again. If it was "games" then why didn't the DS outsell the PSP when all these so far stated "games" came out? When the DS Lite came out, it outsold the PSP. Not when Nintendogs came out, not when Mario Kart came out, when the system came out. New Super Mario Brothers didn't make it outsell it.

 

[rod]

wow dude, you HATE, i mean, thats a pretty strong word, but you HATE people who think psp doesnt have any good games? wow just wow

 

[Derps]

Try again. If it was "games" then why didn't the DS outsell the PSP when all these so far stated "games" came out? When the DS Lite came out, it outsold the PSP. Not when Nintendogs came out, not when Mario Kart came out, when the system came out. New Super Mario Brothers didn't make it outsell it.

You still talkin bouts America? Cuz well they care about image way too much over there so I don't give a

 

[thorsilver]

I see two main issues at play with this handheld war:

1) On the hardware side, I think people (particularly Sony) underestimated the positive effect of the touchscreen on the casual gamer types. My mum picked one up in anticipation of Nintendogs, having loved all the preview press for it, and got Yoshi Touch & Go with it as a beginning title; she found the touch-screen so much more intuitive for her that she quickly became a DS virtuoso. Since then she's razzed through Kirby, Trauma Centre, New Super Mario Bros (her first major foray into using buttons), and Meteos... and after my ravings she picked up Ouendan and is has made it all the way to RSG on extra-hard cheergirls mode! This is a 50-year-old woman who never was a gamer, but she LOVES that touchscreen, and I'm willing to bet a substantial sum that many, many others feel the same about it.

The PSP, by contrast, is more complex and appeals to the hardcore, which is great for GAF, but not so great for the mums and the kiddies.

2) A bit obtuse, but on the software side, Nintendo has a tremendous advantage in that their major franchises can have portable outings without any sacrifices in gameplay. For example, a race in Mario Kart only takes a couple of minutes, whether it's SNES, N64, or DS; Mario levels take only a few minutes, regardless of platform, etc. This is in contrast to PSP, where games like GTA often have to take major hits in story complexity, level design, and controls to make the handheld jump. A minor point, perhaps, but nonetheless an advantage for Nintendo for that pick-up-and-play factor without losing anything in the translation.

 

[Methodis]

You still talkin bouts America? Cuz well they care about image way too much over there so I don't give a

Yes Japan is a lost cause for Sony. America, not so much. There's still the potential there for the PSP to outsell the DS again.

 

[gutter_trash]

wow dude, you HATE, i mean, thats a pretty strong word, but you HATE people who think psp doesnt have any good games? wow just wow

there is justifiable hate, this is just

I enjoy my 8 PSP games way more then my mere 2 DS games

add Capcom Classics Reloaded, Vice City Stories, Every Extend Extra and Metal Gear Solid Portable Ops for my upcomming Q4 PSP games