The launch of Sony’s next PlayStation Portable, currently codenamed NGP, may not be a global affair this year, in part due to the massive Tōhoku earthquake and deadly tsunami that slammed Japan last month.
Sony Computer Entertainment America president Jack Tretton tells Bloomberg that the natural disasters may force Sony to launch the Next Generation Portable in “just one market by the end of the year”.
While not surprising – Sony committed only to the NGP “mak[ing]its debut at the end of the year 2011” when it was announced – it may be disappointing. But it’s not uncharacteristic for Sony, which first released the PSP in Japan in December 2004, staggering the system’s North American and European launches into the next year.
Tretton does not specify which region the NGP (or PSP2) would launch in this year, but given the PSP’s continued success in Japan, Sony’s home base seems like one of the best options.
Sony’s New PlayStation Portable May Be Delayed by Earthquake [Bloomberg]