I just realized that it's been a little over three years since the DS and PSP launched. By this time in the GBA's life (which would be around mid-2004), the DS and PSP had been announced, displayed at E3, and were set to release in the next few months (though the PSP would be pushed back a bit for all but Japan). But now, there hasn't really been any talk about the next generation of handhelds.
I guess neither Sony or Nintendo really have all that much incentive to push a new handheld out the door. Sony's probably not eager to launch another system at the moment, what with their problems on the console side of things. On top of that, the PSP is still more expensive than the DS, and any upgrades a PSP2 might have would only make it more expensive. And I think that, with the PSP not taking off as they'd hoped and their problems with the PS3, they've realized that pricing is an important part of a system's success. And the PSP seems to be seeing some more interest with the recent price drops and bundles.
As for Nintendo, I think they're perfectly happy with the DS dominating the world right now.
I think the GBA's life was kinda cut off abruptly. Sony announced the PSP to combat the GBA, so Nintendo had to hurry and get the DS out there earlier than they were planning. Unless Microsoft announces a handheld, I don't think that'll happen again this gen. I think we still have at least two years of life left in the DS and PSP.
I expect we'll first see the DS2 and PSP2 in early 2010, and they'll launch later that year.
Nintendo's will probably be roughly the PSP's power, and they'll probably keep the two screens and touch screen and DS brand, and probably add some new little unexpected thing. I'm still hoping it'll be Gamecube-powered and play Gamecube games, but I think that's very unlikely. They'll probably stick to flash cartridge things for games, probably the same shape and size, too, so they can have DS backwards compatibility. And speaking of which, I think it's likely there won't be any GBA compatibility.
The PSP2 will probably make less of a leap in power, something more like the Gamecube to Wii, if even that. I expect they'll have a second analog nub as well... but then, I also expected they'd fix the PSP's nub when they redesigned the system, and they didn't, so who knows? It'll probably still use UMDs and be backwards compatible with PSP games, and have a bit of built-in storage. And I don't know about dual screens, but I'll be pretty surprised if it doesn't have a touch screen.
Personally, I'd be perfectly happy if we didn't get new handhelds until 2012. The ones that are out now are perfectly fine machines that complement each other nicely, and I think there's still a lot of life left in them. Besides, I've had a DS since launch and I just got a PSP, and it's really nice to be able to look at future handheld releases and know that I'll be able to play all of them regardless of the system it's on. I don't want to have to go through the whole, "Dammit, I wish I could afford both," thing again.
I guess neither Sony or Nintendo really have all that much incentive to push a new handheld out the door. Sony's probably not eager to launch another system at the moment, what with their problems on the console side of things. On top of that, the PSP is still more expensive than the DS, and any upgrades a PSP2 might have would only make it more expensive. And I think that, with the PSP not taking off as they'd hoped and their problems with the PS3, they've realized that pricing is an important part of a system's success. And the PSP seems to be seeing some more interest with the recent price drops and bundles.
As for Nintendo, I think they're perfectly happy with the DS dominating the world right now.
I think the GBA's life was kinda cut off abruptly. Sony announced the PSP to combat the GBA, so Nintendo had to hurry and get the DS out there earlier than they were planning. Unless Microsoft announces a handheld, I don't think that'll happen again this gen. I think we still have at least two years of life left in the DS and PSP.
I expect we'll first see the DS2 and PSP2 in early 2010, and they'll launch later that year.
Nintendo's will probably be roughly the PSP's power, and they'll probably keep the two screens and touch screen and DS brand, and probably add some new little unexpected thing. I'm still hoping it'll be Gamecube-powered and play Gamecube games, but I think that's very unlikely. They'll probably stick to flash cartridge things for games, probably the same shape and size, too, so they can have DS backwards compatibility. And speaking of which, I think it's likely there won't be any GBA compatibility.
The PSP2 will probably make less of a leap in power, something more like the Gamecube to Wii, if even that. I expect they'll have a second analog nub as well... but then, I also expected they'd fix the PSP's nub when they redesigned the system, and they didn't, so who knows? It'll probably still use UMDs and be backwards compatible with PSP games, and have a bit of built-in storage. And I don't know about dual screens, but I'll be pretty surprised if it doesn't have a touch screen.
Personally, I'd be perfectly happy if we didn't get new handhelds until 2012. The ones that are out now are perfectly fine machines that complement each other nicely, and I think there's still a lot of life left in them. Besides, I've had a DS since launch and I just got a PSP, and it's really nice to be able to look at future handheld releases and know that I'll be able to play all of them regardless of the system it's on. I don't want to have to go through the whole, "Dammit, I wish I could afford both," thing again.
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