Nintendo and Sony are in a pickle. While they’ve both been milking their portable gaming lines over the last three years, Apple swooped in and changed the gaming market considerably, with a touchscreen-based iOS platform that has put thousands of games on the market at prices low enough to cause a gaming industry executive many sleepless nights.
Add to that the excellent web browsing, media playback and the otherwise jack-of-all-tradeness of iOS devices and it would seem silly for Sony and Nintendo to ignore the immediate need to co-opt iOS’s best qualities: one-stop digital downloads at a central marketplace, at a minimum.
Two years ago I even went so far as to suggest that Sony’s next PSP should simply be an iPhone with a nice dual-analogue gamepads. Interestingly, all the bullet-point requirements I suggested for the PSP2 then – GPS, cameras, touchscreens, accelerometers and compass, 3G, flash-memory based – are in the NGP/PSP2. I just had the form factor wrong.
And I’m glad Sony didn’t listen to me, because I think the PSP2 might be built perfectly for what it is meant to be: a portable gaming powerhouse.
Dual-analog control nubs. All the sensors and cameras and touchscreens. A by-all-reports gorgeous, high-resolution OLED screen. The PSP2 is going to be as close as we’ve ever seen to having a full-on console experience on the go.
It’s clear Sony sat down and said, “We can make the PSP2 a killer all-in-one device or a killer gaming device, but not both.” Two or three years ago when they were probably first sitting down to put together early designs, I wouldn’t be surprised if they made some prototypes that were much more iPhone-like. And if the leaked “PSP Phone” prototypes are any indication, I bet they realised they were sort of awful.
(I still think Sony could make a wonderful PSP Phone, but not until they finally put a bullet in the Sony Ericsson experiment. Maybe next generation.)
So instead Sony is going to launch a beast of a handheld device that will be able to do all sorts of things we expect a modern device to do—browse the web, play movies, etc – but will be first and foremost a gaming device. The PSP2 won’t need to fit in your pocket because it’s not trying to replace your phone. It’s not even exactly trying to replace your iPad. It’s simply trying to become the best portable gaming system on the planet. And if initial reports of the Nintendo 3DS’s three-dimensional screen and its attendant headaches are true, Sony may actually have a shot of becoming the market leader over Nintendo.
Now there are plenty of cards yet to be played. Sony could hurt initial uptake of the PSP2 if they decide to charge too much. (Anything over $US300, probably.) But if they can get it near the 3DS’s $US250 launch price, there’s a good chance that in a side-by-side comparison Nintendo’s unit will look anaemic or simply gimmicky. Nintendo has strong software, traditionally, especially in handheld. Sony’s portable software – especially first-party titles – has struggled at times.
Plus Apple will most likely continue to do tremendous unit sales, revenue, and software sales on iOS, so even if Sony can get on top of Nintendo in this generation of handheld gaming devices, Apple and its App Store partners may make more actual, you know, money.
Nevertheless, there’s something about seeing the PSP2 in corporeal form that makes it make sense in a way a list of rumoured or wished-for specs do not. Even the rear touchpad seems sort of intriguing!
Sony isn’t giving up on the dedicated, dare I say hardcore portable gaming market. And for as much as I like my iPhone and its games, something in my gut tells me that I’ll be buying a Sony PSP2 – and I might not be alone.
Steve
Sunday, January 30, 2011 at 6:44 PMThis is silly. The traditional game manufacturers’ bottom lines haven’t been hurting at all since the launch of iOS/Android.
These smart phone platforms are making casual gamers out of people who probably don’t know what a Game Boy is: NOT converting hardcore gamers with flimsy offerings like Angry Birds.
The traditional gaming market is still there, and has been thriving since the iPhone even existed. These gamers are the ones who still buy PC/Console games in the droves and will probably also buy into the 3DS/NGP.
That said, there are some smart phone innovations I’d like them to adopt as well. Eg feather-weight games (especially Puzzle) like Professor Leyton, with low replay value don’t need $70 price tags or a 1GB cartridge to themselves. Put these on the WiiWare/PSN markets.
Streetsy
Monday, January 31, 2011 at 10:58 AMIm not so sure. I have an xbox, ps3 and DS Lite. All which have stood collecting dust (Except the PS3 for BluRays), since I bought my iPad. I cant justify spending $100 on a game I may never finish, vs the $10 on iOS. Not to mention how easy it is to shop online for a game. The Apple store sucks, but there a few good review websites that pick out all the gems.
James
Monday, January 31, 2011 at 5:22 PMI agree Streetsy, I have an iPad and a PS3, 360, PSP, DS and a Wii. I play on my ipad a hell of a lot as having kids, wife and basic life crap get in the way, I can only do short bursts of gaming. The ipad compliments this perfectly. A quick shot of Angry Birds, PvZ or Dead Space (which is awesome by the way) is just the ticket. Im kinda bored by gaming in the last year or so…. nothing is really new or amazing anymore….. but the ipad is freaking sensational.
RK
Tuesday, February 1, 2011 at 1:17 AMI’ve hardly touched my PSP since I returned from travelling a year ago, and a fairly big reason for that is the increase in smartphone data allowances. At home I have PC and PS3 and no desire to focus on the little screen instead; while I’m out, I’m carrying the phone already, so the PSP would be extra (and is too big to carry easily in a pocket, unlike a smartphone). Smartphone stuff fills the vacant time travelling more easily than a handheld game system. For the same reason, I don’t see myself getting an iPad or other tablet UNLESS it becomes a working tool for me as well (I was one of those crushed by the cancellation of the MS Courier…).
I dunno, but I suspect that going for iPhone/iPad style gaming is the right move, and duplicating PS3-level games on a handheld is the wrong move. Who has the time and focus to spend on that type of game while using a handheld, besides people with epically long train trips or who get stood up on dates regularly?