PSP Longevity?

slowbiz

slowbiz

2[H]4U
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Aug 24, 2004
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I've been thinking about getting a PSP. One of the biggest things that holds me back is fear that it will become the next Atari Lynx. It's pretty clear that Nintendo has a firm hold on portable gaming (and as I loyal fan of nintendo, I hate to say I'd rather have a PSP than the alternative DS). What does everyone think about this? Is the PSP here to stay?
 
It's going to be a nitch in the market or go bad from the looks of it now.
 
Bad product placement. The high price and the fact that the new consoles are going to over shadow it, when it finally drops in price will most likely mean the PSP goes down the drain.
 
Donno, i personally atm see cobwebs... you have to buy movies made just for the damn thing and they started off rough with bad pixels and such.... then again,i'm a self proclaimed realist


 
I don't own one, but I see it here to stay. Sure, we have all this news of the next gen consoles, but the PSP has it's own market. The PSP will most likely go on strong due to the fact that a lot of gamers need that portability.

However, buying movies on dvd AND umd is rediciulous. I could definitely see that dying. I said to myself, "who in their right mind would pay $15-20 for a DVD, then another $15-20 for the same movie, just because of a format". I'm glad that I can freely convert DVD movies to my PDA to watch!

I could be wrong, but it'd be a shame if the PSP did die out.
 
The reasons why it might just be the system to totally dominate the handheld market:

Superior graphics and controls.
Wifi internet gaming.
Downloadable free, or cheap, games that are starting to come out on the web already.
MP3...
MP4... (I am watching an entire season of RvB on it this week).
Ad-hoc Wifi gaming on the go with friends or strangers... I have played with a friend on the bus many times. He and I have each flown once since we got them, and the guy in the row in front of me had one, and my friend actually played co-op with a stranger on the airplane.
Decent game lineup that looks to be improving even more soon.

Other things coming soon that should help:
Web browsing.
Cell phone.


Plus, I have never actually seen anyone playing a DS outside of a videogame store, and yet I run into people who have PSP's all the time, and tons of people ask me about mine.... People seem genuinely excited about it, which they never did with the DS that I could see.

Also last I heard the PSP was rapidly catching up to the DS in terms of total hardware sales.
 
You're wrong about that one. PSP has something like a 1:4 selling ratio with a DS.

And to rebut your claims that Sony is king of the planet

1) DS has/will have wifi games
2) DS most certainly has a better "controller" (if used properly, the touch screen)
3) V-Pocket/Play-Yan whatever you want to call it, = MP3/WMV/etc etc for GBA/DS
4) DS Also has system-to-system connection
5) Nintendo's PDA software will have web browsing... and currently, Wipeout's browser isn't exactly what I'd call "web browsing"
6) Who the hell wants a cell phone that big? Let alone having another cell phone...

Now let's not make this yet another flame war... the end.
I just think that the system will be the next game gear. Superior graphics, but couldn't match the superior execution that Nintendo had. There wasn't a lot of good reasons to own a Game Gear unless you wanted colour, or a 3-hour-long battery. I think it will be good competition, but will remain niche.
 
Well, I actually DO have one and I can honestly say that the BIGGEST problem right now is the price...for everything.

PSP $239.99 - $249.99
Games are $39.99 - $49.99.
Movies are $19.99 and up.

Next...the number of games and movies out for it...limited.

Next...screen protection / fingerprints. The screen scratches SUPER easy (using the wrong cloth scratched mine) and it gets dirty as hell after one use.

ALL of this could be overlooked if the PSP was $179.99
Games were $10 cheaper
Movies $5 cheaper

When I can buy a next-gen console for another $100 (estimating) or a current generation console for $100 cheaper (actual)...the PSP doesn't look so hot.

MP3 playback adds to its functionality, my son takes it to play / movies / tunes when we go for car rides...big bonus.

All around, though, price is the biggest issue with the whole package. If SOny would realize that they can sell more consoles for cheaper and make the same revenue as they do selling less consoles for more...the PSP would be "THE" thing to beat.
 
Oh yeah, and the UMD discs get CRAP stick inside the cases BAD. It is a pain in the ass trying to get dust etc out of those little cases too. Even canned air doesn't work that well.
 
ATM I see it as a little bit of a niche market, and I own one. I see a lot of people using third party programs to convert Video for on the go viewing but I do not see many people shelling out DVD dollars for a UMD Movie. I also do not see people seriously using it as an MP3 Player; it is too big, does not have the storage space out of the box, and is cost prohibitive. All three things have it sitting on the side lines while cheaper Players, such as the iPod Shuffle take the lead in the music area. As for the picture viewer, lets be honest who is going to seriously use it. I'm not talking, put a couple of pics on and run to your friends going "look what I can do" but seriously load up a couple dozen photos in order to let others see them.

All that aside, I think Sony could pull it out and make it a contender. They need to focus on the unit’s strengths, the fact that it has killer graphics and great games. Comparing the titles it has out at the moment versus what the DS has out, Sony wins. It has more games and a wider variety of games in different genres to appeal to pretty much anyone out there. Keep in mind; I'm not saying all the PSP launch titles are great. I'm just saying that Sony went the extra step of at least trying to get a little something for everyone.

In the end I see Sony doing what they did during the beginnings of the PS1 era and what Microsoft did during the beginnings of the Xbox era. If they want PSP to make it they are going to start throwing enough money at it to make it what the gamers want. Sony does have a track record of going up against Nintendo and winning.
 
The PSP aint going anyhwere... this board is made up of mostly DS !!!!!!s that without concern for reason MUST find some way to justify their own purchase.

Not necessary as both the DS and PSP are great products and neither needs unacurate representation.

Basically, the PSP is here to stay without question.

Anyone who would argue against that is not connected to reality.

Sony has spent far too many millions and way too many years on the PSP to allow it to just die out.

The Game Gear and Lynx died way back when because their parent companys sucked. Look at Atari and Sega, they're all but toast anyhow. Poor managment is what killed those consoles.

The fact remains quite simple. Take a look at the game lineup for the PSP... there are easily 50 titles coming by the end of the year, add that to the already 25 to 30 games out now and you have a solid console.

EA, Namco, 989, etc... those are all real companys making real games that are and will be putting more titles into the market.

Viewtiful Joe, Madden 06, Socom, MGA2, Burnout, Midnight Club 3... and let's not forget GTA:Liberty City Storys are all coming out within the next few months.

Along with that are another 20 or so simularly well branded titles. These games are in testing stage and will NOT be shelved. Too much already invested.

Does the PSP cost too much??? YES IT DOES!

But, the fact that Sony is behind it, the fact that it will talk DIRECTLY to the PS3 and play games through it, the fact that dozens of actual game companys are working on real titles, some exclusive titles means only ONE thing.

The PSP is here to stay.

Atleast for a few years... after that it will slowly die off as ALL consoles do eventually.

So, bottom line...

If you like the PSP and the games, buy one.

The problem you will ALWAYS run into when posting questions about the PSP on hardware sites is green eyed jealousy. The fact will remain many people are too young to have descrectionary income that allows the purchase of a $250 dollar handheld. And, as the cast majority of posters on todays message boards fit that bill, you will ALWAYS get a bias against the purchase of such an expensive item.

Remember, if you can convince yourself, and enough people along with you that a purchase you can't afford in the first place would in fact be a bad purchase if you could, then well, you have little to remain jealous over.

Again, if you like it, buy it, you have nothing to worry about.
 
steviep said:
You're wrong about that one. PSP has something like a 1:4 selling ratio with a DS.

And to rebut your claims that Sony is king of the planet

1) DS has/will have wifi games
2) DS most certainly has a better "controller" (if used properly, the touch screen)
3) V-Pocket/Play-Yan whatever you want to call it, = MP3/WMV/etc etc for GBA/DS
4) DS Also has system-to-system connection
5) Nintendo's PDA software will have web browsing... and currently, Wipeout's browser isn't exactly what I'd call "web browsing"
6) Who the hell wants a cell phone that big? Let alone having another cell phone...

.
Click to expand...

Link?

1. Not nearly as many.
2. Your opinion, not fact.
3. Not as many formats as the PSP.
4. True, not as many games though.
5. He didnt calls Wipeouts browser, "web browsig". He said web browsing will be a future feature, which it will be.
6. I wouldnt, and most wouldnt I dont think, but one more feature is always good.

The PSP is here to stay, plain and simple.
 
GRAFiZ said:
Sony has spent far too many millions and way too many years on the PSP to allow it to just die out.
Click to expand...

If you are trying to say that Sony would market something and then just not drop it like hooker in GTA3, I have a Sony HDD unit sitting on a shelf that I would like you to meet. :D

Steve said:
Oh yeah, and the UMD discs get CRAP stick inside the cases BAD. It is a pain in the ass trying to get dust etc out of those little cases too. Even canned air doesn't work that well.
Click to expand...

Well put Steve. The one thing I got use to with my GBA:SP is that I can just leave the cartridges that I am not using out on the desk and not worry about them. With the UMD games I have to go and find the case and put it away if I'm at home. I have also found that the UMD demo disc that came with the PSP did not fair to well against Sammy, my ten month old son. I still have no idea how the little rug rat got ahold of that disc. :rolleyes:
 
saintrobyn said:
If you are trying to say that Sony would market something and then just not drop it like hooker in GTA3, I have a Sony HDD unit sitting on a shelf that I would like you to meet. :D



Well put Steve. The one thing I got use to with my GBA:SP is that I can just leave the cartridges that I am not using out on the desk and not worry about them. With the UMD games I have to go and find the case and put it away if I'm at home. I have also found that the UMD demo disc that came with the PSP did not fair to well against Sammy, my ten month old son. I still have no idea how the little rug rat got ahold of that disc. :rolleyes:
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There's a bit of difference between a hard drive and a handheld gaming console.

Any hard drive made today requires very little research to design. They just simply buy some platters, buy a head and some motors, slap it together and stick a pretty label on it.

Besides... the main reason for the PSP and for Sony's continual support is "global gaming domination."

Sony executives have already said they created the PSP because they feel Nintendo has held the market to long and they want in on the action... not to mention they feel as if they've been directly attacked by the success of the iPod. They market the PSP and the new version of the Walkman. They WANT to dominate both markets and knock Nintendo down a notch.

Will it work? I think it will... the DS has a huge market place and many loyal fans, however, you don't see many 25 year olds walking around with a DS, although I have seen many 12 and 13 year olds with it.

This is the direct difference... Nintendo knows, the 10 to 16 market is HUGE and full of money, but they also know those people generally need the help of their parents to fund such elaborate purchases.

Sony knows the 16 and up crowd... (their target is males, age 16 to 45) they know that market generally has a job and has ability to toss a few extra bucks around from month to month.

Before you try to kill me... let me mention, there is NOTHING wrong with a 25 year old playing the DS, hell, I've played with it before and it was fun as hell, however, the PSP is in place for an older more fiscally aware crowd. Plain and simple.
 
Gah I'm tired of this "mature games" macho e-penis crap. A fun game is a fun game is a fun game, whether there are tits or freaking fur. Some people need to look beyond the book's cover to realize its content.
 
steviep said:
Gah I'm tired of this "mature games" macho e-penis crap. A fun game is a fun game is a fun game, whether there are tits or freaking fur. Some people need to look beyond the book's cover to realize its content.
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You and I, along with all the others here may agree with that. However, board directors and CEO's need direction before they launch a product.

Everything created is tested and designed for a specific marketplace.

It's well known that Nintendo is designed and created for a younger audience, where as the Sony products are designed for an older audience.

Does that mean one group can't play the other??? Of course not. In fact, all the better for the product.

But, any good company sets a goal and strives to achieve it. They tackle segments instead of the whole field.

You and I are nothing but "units" to these people, if they sell to us, great, if they don't, then we're not part of their marketing strategy.
 
It is quite apparent that everyone here does NOT agree with that, and are obsessed with playing M-Rated games. Newsflash: I had a SHIT load more fun with Mario Kart than I did with GTA. Not to say GTA wasn't a fun game, it was... But after a week or 2, it started collecting proverbial dust. Mario Kart still gets play. Is Mario Kart "kiddy", or whatever? Sure... but that doesn't change the fact that it is a fantastic game. That's the kind of attitude I'm talking about. Where people see the bright colours and instantly are turned off. Mean while, GTA: SA goes to be one of the top selling games of all time. Personally I thought it was pretty bad. If I want to hear thugs talking about how cool they are, or how they have to "bust caps" in people's asses, I would go to my little brother's high school. Games should be played for their fun factor, not how much blood and breasts there are. /end rant
 
steviep said:
It is quite apparent that everyone here does NOT agree with that, and are obsessed with playing M-Rated games. Newsflash: I had a SHIT load more fun with Mario Kart than I did with GTA. Not to say GTA wasn't a fun game, it was... But after a week or 2, it started collecting proverbial dust. Mario Kart still gets play. Is Mario Kart "kiddy", or whatever? Sure... but that doesn't change the fact that it is a fantastic game. That's the kind of attitude I'm talking about. Where people see the bright colours and instantly are turned off. Mean while, GTA: SA goes to be one of the top selling games of all time. Personally I thought it was pretty bad. If I want to hear thugs talking about how cool they are, or how they have to "bust caps" in people's asses, I would go to my little brother's high school. Games should be played for their fun factor, not how much blood and breasts there are. /end rant
Click to expand...

Good for you. I had more fun playing Forza Motorsport/Gran Turismo 4, which had appeal to all audiences instead of a fraction of it.

Anyone who says Nintendo isn't in the market of mainly producing cartoony, unrealistic games is in denial.
 
Forza/GT4 appeal to all audiences? Distorted your perception is. Cars everyone does not like!
 
WickedAngel said:
Good for you. I had more fun playing Forza Motorsport/Gran Turismo 4, which had appeal to all audiences instead of a fraction of it.

Anyone who says Nintendo isn't in the market of mainly producing cartoony, unrealistic games is in denial.
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um arent all games unlrealistic? and i know plenty of older guys who watch cartoons. can you say adult swim???? and guess what, they play smash bros. way too much, but they play it.
 
Long live Family Guy! Wait, that's a cartoon! OMG! :eek:
Better stop watching it.
 
ryanrule said:
um arent all games unlrealistic? and i know plenty of older guys who watch cartoons. can you say adult swim???? and guess what, they play smash bros. way too much, but they play it.
Click to expand...

...don't be an idiot. If you can't tell that some games are more realistic than others then you have some seriously distorted perception.

Small test for you;

Which is more realistic...Mario Kart or Gran Turismo 4?

steviep said:
Long live Family Guy! Wait, that's a cartoon! OMG!
Better stop watching it.
Click to expand...

A cartoon with mature jokes and adult themes.

Nice try at sarcasm though. Keep trying; one day you might actually do it right.
 
steviep said:
GT4. That doesn't make it the better game.
Click to expand...

It makes it more accessible to everyone, not just children who are won over by bright colors and pastel-esque backgrounds.

Simulation gameplay and sleek technology for adults; Arcade mode for children who just want to race.
 
No it doesn't. My little brother, who is 16 now, couldn't give less of a shit whether the game looks like photorealism, or like a page from an 80's cartoon (Viewtiful Joe, anyone?), as long as he can pick it up, play it, and have shitloads of fun.

When was the last time I saw my female 22 year old cousin playing GT4? Never. But she loves Mario Kart.

And my girlfriend can play Mario Party with me hours on end. But when her brothers play PS2 with its Killzone and GT4, she stays far far away.
 
Personally


It was my belief that the only thing that could save the PSP was if the PS3 had built in UMD capabilities, to watch on your TV UMD movies and maybe even play the UMD games [ Think the Gameboy player for SNES/Gamecube ]



It does not seem sony is going to include that, So not only is their propriatory DVD technology not going to see widespread use, it will affect sales for the PSP to.
 
steviep said:
No it doesn't. My little brother, who is 16 now, couldn't give less of a shit whether the game looks like photorealism, or like a page from an 80's cartoon (Viewtiful Joe, anyone?), as long as he can pick it up, play it, and have shitloads of fun.

When was the last time I saw my female 22 year old cousin playing GT4? Never. But she loves Mario Kart.

And my girlfriend can play Mario Party with me hours on end. But when her brothers play PS2 with its Killzone and GT4, she stays far far away.
Click to expand...

Whatever guy; you're in denial. Eventually you will wake up and see that Nintendo is repeating itself every single year.
 
You have no good comeback to that one? I'm citing you real life examples of how Nintendo certainly covers a much more broad audience with its cartoony fun games, and you reply with "Whatever guy"? C'mon WickedAngel, you can do better than that! :p
 
steviep said:
You have no good comeback to that one? I'm citing you real life examples of how Nintendo certainly covers a much more broad audience with its cartoony fun games, and you reply with "Whatever guy"? C'mon WickedAngel, you can do better than that! :p
Click to expand...

I could simply cite how PS2/Xbox software and consoles consistantly outsell the Gamecube (Which would show how they appeal to a broader audience) but what is the point? We all know it. Some of us are just better at admitting it than others.
 
WickedAngel said:
I could simply cite how PS2/Xbox software and consoles consistantly outsell the Gamecube (Which would show how they appeal to a broader audience) but what is the point? We all know it. Some of us are just better at admitting it than others.
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Haven't you really realized that nintendo makes the most profit on all their systems than anyone else. Sony and microsoft are losing money on their systems while nintendo is making money on both games and consoles. They are rich and gold still. They won't be leaving anytime soon.
 
As you know, PS2 is outselling the shit out of the other 2. But the GBA is outselling the PS2. What does that say? What kind of games is the GBA full of?

Do you also know that kids (especially male kids) nowadays are obsessed graphics whores who like killing more than they like women? Mommy buys their 13 year old M-Rated GTA and they are king. Daddy purchases Halo 2 for little 15 year old Timmy, and he goes on XBLive and shouts 'fuck you, i'll kill you all' to everyone, and that's what's popular nowadays. Well, me personally, I shit on that attitude. Citing GTA as an example, I find it much MUCH less fun than a game of Mario Party? Am I in the minority? Probably. But I certainly stand by my opinion.
 
Conker said:
Haven't you really realized that nintendo makes the most profit on all their systems than anyone else. Sony and microsoft are losing money on their systems while nintendo is making money on both games and consoles. They are rich and gold still. They won't be leaving anytime soon.
Click to expand...

Nintendo has posted losses on the Gamecube since the first price drop.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/business/3166940.stm

http://www.dreamstation.cc/news/video_games/id1995

steviep said:
As you know, PS2 is outselling the shit out of the other 2. But the GBA is outselling the PS2. What does that say? What kind of games is the GBA full of?
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Apples. Oranges. The handheld market has been famous for 2D gaming for quite some time. The Gameboy price wasn't even comparable to consoles when it was released.
 
Someone mentioned that you have to be careful with what cloth you wipe the screen with since it'll scratch it. To that poster, you might want to try using a microfiber cloth. I love using them for wiping my glasses, LCD screens, guitars, ect. They are used also to clean cars since they won't scratch.
 
They are still here so thats all that matters. No consoles failed yet. They are here to stay because of their hardcore fan base. All these negative comments are getting you nowhere. Not like it's going to make anyone quit or anything. If you played nintendo since the beginning of 8bit then you would think differently.
 
Conker said:
They are still here so thats all that matters. No consoles failed yet. They are here to stay because of their hardcore fan base. All these negative comments are getting you nowhere. Not like it's going to make anyone quit or anything. If you played nintendo since the beginning of 8bit then you would think differently.
Click to expand...

...considering the first game that I ever played was Contra (Followed by Castlevania, Megaman, and Metal Gear Solid)...

I have been with Nintendo since the beginning of 8-bit. That's the problem. I've seen them make sequels to the same three franchises over and over again while claiming innovation and originality.
 
my goodness, such !!!!!!izm....

do you guys remember a system called the "Turbo Express"? (or PC Engine GT)
PSP will go out the same way. Price is what killed it, and the PSP will meet the same fate.

The Turbo Express was $299 when it came out, which made it the most expensive "console" at the time. (not counting the CD system addon for the TG16... $399!!)

its a fact that when there is cheaper consoles that are much more stronger than the portable, the portable dies. as you can see GBAs are what, 79 bux? the cheapest "console" out.

last weeks figures will show you.
The DS was the most sold system last week, with 66,000 units sold.
The PSP sold 2,000 units. The PSone outsold the PSP by 3X that week.

When they start selling less than 500-750 units a week, they will probably kill this system.
Its is true they made a niche market, but for the price, its not enough to sustain the system for more than 2 years, at most.
 
Remember that Sony has a long history of product failures, and they never seem to learn from them.

Betamax - No doubt superior to VHS, but they never opened the format to other manfacturors and it died out.

Minidisc - A decent format to carry around music with, but again they never opened the format and it's pretty much dead now.

Memory stick - The next failure. They decided to make their own flash format instead of using a standard one like every other manfacturor. I won't buy anything that supports memory stick sicne I'm sure it will fail in the future.


I'm sure there are others in there as well I haven't listed. It will be interesting to see what happens with the PSP. It does have nice graphics, but graphics alone don't make a game, or a system.

While the PS1 was a runaway success, remember that it was original developed as the cd-system addon for the SNES. I'm not sure how much of a role Nintendo played in development of it, but I'm sure they had some role.
 
I've been playing around with my Sony PSP for over the last 3 weeks and all I can say is if Sony keeps up the support on it....it will stay for a long time. I've been playing MLB and for a portable gaming system the graphics are great and I been making my own videos, ripping my DVD movie collection and putting them in MP4 format then putting them on my 1 gig pro memory stick. I don't consider this is copyright infringement for I own the DVD and I have to right to "Fair Use" of this movie. The video quality is good considering the size of the PSP, but my only complaint of the PSP system is Sony didn't design/make it loud enough. This goes also for playing games on it too.
 
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