State of Gaming on the PSP (My Take on it)

[kyyubidx]

Hi there folks,

I want to start a discussion on the state of gaming on the psp and hear opinions so I'm going to start by giving my take on it.

Its mid-2008 right now and I remember when I bought my PSP back in end 2006 I was hyped up about it. Today I feel shrouded in uncertainty. I have looked at almost all major gaming sites (IGN, GameSpot) and sites that make calculates average points for games (GameStats and MetaCritic) and I always see that the PSP has better rated titles than the DS though the PSP has much fewer games but still I have not had a game since Crisis Core that hooked me to my console (which, btw, I do not intend to get rid of ever). THe only games I have beat on the PSP are Crisis Core (love it or hate it, its the best FFVII spinoff), God Of War: CoO, both Budokai DBZ games, Daxter, MK: Unchained, and one or two more). But still I feel something's wrong...

I can tell what's wrong though... Apart from MK: Unchained all the games I beat on the PSP were originals. THe PSP lacks original games and this E3 didn't help much (one more LocoRoco, one more Patapon and a Resistance title) but those are only coming Spring 2009. From now until then what do we have? The usual anual rif-raff: Fifa 09, PES 09, NBA 09, Football Manager HH09, SD! vs. Raw 09, and one Star Ocean (which is a port, well a remake... my point is its not an original) and with luck we might get Dissidia: Final Fantasy by the end of the year (Squeenix did announce a few months back they were going to start releasing the games in all regions at the same time - we do know the game is coming this year still).

Were does this leave us? Is this enough? DS got Civilization: Revolution, Guitar Hero and others... Is the PSP dead as far as games are concerned? Or is this just a bad phase? I want to hear your opinions...

On a more positive note I am hyped up for Dissidia, KH: Birth ny Sleep, Resistance, LocoRoco 2 and Patapon 2...

(sorry for the long post but I'd like to hear opinions)

EDIT: thanks to jamotto for remembering me: Star Wars: Force Unleashed in September... Plus there's the MIA GT: Portable...

[wraggster]

moved to psp news forum thanks for the post

[Shadowblind]

Im looking forward to Resistance, Kingdom hearts, and Patapon 2. Other then that, I don't really see any other good games on the horizon. Loco Roco 2 maybe. Still, the PSP has potential, its just that nobobdy really wants to exploit it much.

[kyyubidx]

(thanks wraggster I am honored)

Shadowblind is right though... The potential is there but no one taps into it... Oh... I forgot that Valkyria Chronicles might also be an interesting title... Still... Spring 2009... But if you can make games the level of GoW and Crisis Core on the PSP you can do much more... Sony need to get its focus on games for the PSP... But they are only pulling for the PS3 =\

(i am currently following the UbiSoft conference should anything arive I'll post it here...)

EDIT: Conference is over and nothing for the PSP. Petz was announced for the DS though... I am wondering where are the half-dozen titles that they promised last month... CAPCOM's conference is at 4.30pm... Its my last hope though... Maybe an RE title, DMC or the localization of MOnster Hunter Freedom 2nd G

[uberjack]

There are lots of great games already on the PSP (I'm sure more are coming too). Super Mario Brothers, Sonic the Hedgehog, the original Metal Gear Seri... Wait a minute... You don't mean that the PSP actually has its own games, do you?

;)

[jamotto]

As long as the game is fun I could care less if it is original. I'm looking forward to N+, LEGO Batman: The Videogame, Pipe Mania, Air Conflicts, Destroy All Humans! Big Willy Unleashed, Star Wars: The Force Unleashed and Resistance looks intriguing. I sure hope though that they get around to making a Syphon Filter for the PSP as they need to finish the story!

[kyyubidx]

Now that you mention the original MGS, I remember when almost a year ago Sony promised over 1,000 PS1 games over PSN... I wondered where they ran to :P We barely have any on the US/EU PSN Store and even the JP Store doesn't have THAT many... Its just lazyness on Sony's part...

[texinick]

I think the problem with the PSP is on several fronts.

GAMES: Yes, too many ports. A lot of the games just don't work well on the PSP either. Medal Of Honor Heroes? I'm sure many like it, but I found it hard to try and set my sites on a couple of flashing pixels. These games just don't work on the portable platform (in my opinion). The DS has a heap of great puzzle games, and I think the PSP needs more of this type of genre to be useful. Most portable gamers have a short amount of time to play, and therefore don't want to get stuck into long levels, and big load times.

HARDWARE: I don't know about the US. But here in Australia, Sony don't seem to give a damn about the state of the PSP market. They release features that can't be used because required accessories can't be purchased. Is this really the way to do business? If you add a feature, make sure it's usable from day one. When Apple released the App Store a few days ago... we could all use it immediately. The video out cable for the PSP slim wasn't available for MONTHS after the release of the slim. So what was the point in people getting a slim? The Skype feature was added MONTHS ago. We still can't buy a headset for it here in Australia, Sony's reply... 'The SOCOM headset works'. Wacko! I don't want SOCOM thanks!. We're not likely to get the GPS add-on here, apparently the cost is likely to be too high. My suppliers don't even have the Go!Cam listed anymore. My suppliers don't do UMD's anymore either. The PSP, IMO, is not looking good in Australia.

FEATURES: Sony try and tell us this is the device that does everything, yet many of these features are missing key features. Call me petty, but when I listen to music, I want the screen OFF. If I turn it off, and then hit a shoulder button to skip a track, the screen comes back on. Why isn't there any form of automatically sleeping the PSP? What if I want to listen to music at night, and have the PSP go to sleep after x minutes? Stop adding more useless features (more musical visualisations) and start finishing off the existing features. I won't ever use my PSP for music, it just doesn't compete with an iPod. Maybe it's fine for other casual music listeners, but for those that listen to a LOT, it just doesn't cut it.

OTHER: My biggest problem with Sony is their COMPLETE omission of ANY Mac solutions. The PSN PC store, the new Video service in the UK. The Media Manager etc. NONE OF THIS works with a MAC.

I've had a PSP since it launched in Japan. And all I ever use it for is playing Sudoku!! Since the iTunes App Store launched, my PSP is now gathering dust, and I can't see me picking it up anytime soon.

Phew!! :^)

[kyyubidx]

If we were to talk about features there's a lot the PSP is missing that it could have that is actuallu useful... But yes, texinick is right the PSP is on too many fronts...

VIDEO: I gave up video on my PSP because its so incompatible that I can't even bother trying to convert a video that I'm going to delete 25min later...

MUSIC: More incompatibilty... If it wasn't for LightMP3 I wouldn't be able to use FLAC or OGG which (guess what Sony) are FREE! Stop visualizers... When I listen to music I don't look at the PSP for 5 minutes thinking "how beautiful" -_-

PICTURES: well... that one is useful... sort of... for changing wallpapers.. yay! -_-

Sony need to focus on gaming and gamers... Not trying to compete with Apple and Nintendo at the same time... And maybe Nokia too...

[wolfpack]

To me, the PSP was pulled out perfectly but needed more support and it was missing a few features but other than that, it was flawless.

To me this is what was needed or fixed:

It needs larger memory cards (im a memory hog, i cant help it)
More music support (though i never used Ogg or Flac, there are others that use it)
Better video support (c'mon, support avi's and wmv's without the hackers/homebrewers trying to do the work, youre the professionals!!!)
Make UMD Movies cheaper (i mean when the UMD format for movies was alive and kicking anyways, not now as they are dead), because i mean seriously, theres more movies on DVD and that tends to make more sales, if you curbed the prices a bit down more, it would be a heck of a lot better (5 - 10 dollars a movie)
And finally (this should be the first one on the list because it is a GAMING handheld)
MORE GAME SUPPORT FROM EVERYONE
Ubisoft? Square enix? That just doesnt cut it! We want lots of more developers tinkering with this handheld and harness the power of it. Rockstar did it with GTA. I know others can as well.

Thats just my list right there. The handheld itself is nearly flawless... The companies decisions and what they did with it... Far from it. I see more games and probably better games out in Japan, that dont get translated or even make it to the US or the UK. Japan has lots of support over there... Us... its a slowly dying handheld. The only thing thats saved it (and i guess in a way put it in a grave due to piracy) is the homebrew, the homebrew isnt illegal but how people download and play PSP games without paying for it kinda threw it down. If sony supported homebrew from day one, the psp couldve been saved by locking out any feature of ISO loading.

Thats my 2 cents.

[jamotto]

Call me petty, but when I listen to music, I want the screen OFF. If I turn it off, and then hit a shoulder button to skip a track, the screen comes back on.



If you tap the screen button until the screen shuts off it will stay off until you tap the screen button again.




Why isn't there any form of automatically sleeping the PSP?

Check out the Auto Sleep feature available in the power settings menu.

[anarkhy]

I would like to see virtua fighter and soul calibur on psp.

FPS games simple dont work for consoles, even less on a portable handheld. Also games on psp are usually a mess with the controls.

For games to work on a hand held they should be simple and fun.

Exit, loco roco, patapon, ghouls n ghosts, mk, tekken are good games.

I just buy my psp this week and i am starting to regret for doing it.

[pibs]

Last game I bought for the PSP was GOW other than that Ive had no interest in the PSP lineup.

Ive also noticed that less and less games are being released on the PSP, my guess is because people would just pirate them. I mean seriously I cant count how many times I come to DCEmu and see a Help CSO thread pop up(and actually gets replied with help).

The PSP is dead thanks to piracy. People just have the wrong mentality thinking "well im stickin it to the man and the devs still get paid" well sure but you are only screwing yourself because they will stop support for the device.

PSP owner since 05, and never regret it (because of homebrew)but the openness of the device came with a price.

[ricosuavez]

i hear this comment pretty often ...is the psp dead beacause of pirated games ...well the ds(even more pirated) and most consoles are(were) ...so why does it always comes down to cso and iso(pirate) that are responsible ...i think the psp is the most versatile handheld ...and the best for me

to bad you have to hack the psp to unleash its potentiel...sony did not do their part ...halfbaked solutions and a super lazy distribition network(no camera no gps in canada)...sometimes i wonder if they really care...about us
(retoric question)

there is no lack of games or things to do on the psp (emulators apps ...ect)...there is only lack of imagination ...if you only listen to music buy an ipod...but dont compare it with a psp please...

asta la vista

[jamotto]

The PSP is dead thanks to piracy.

In my opinion it's people's perceptions that are killing the PSP. It has been three years and people still perceive the PSP as a handheld with no games, feature lacking firmware and expect DS like battery life. The PSP has become the handheld everybody loves to hate.

[mikebeaver]

kyyubidx: Get a hold of "Brave story" me and a friend of mine found it to be a rather good and fullfilling RPG, much in the same vein as a traditional FF title, similar play mechanics and a rather good story to boot, if a little short (think I done it in around 20 or so hours).
There are some real gems out there, just seems that the DS gets more games due to it's gimmicky controls, the PSP is more like a home console on the move, and thus gets all the same stuff you would expect of it.

Mike..

[kyyubidx]

Well.. I just bought FF I&II for the PSP so i'm playing those right now... I might take a look at brave story after that, thanks mikebeaver ;)

I don't think you should compare games for the PSP with games for the DS. We've received some gems for our handeheld Crisis Core, GoW, Lumines, FF: Tactics and those are all mature gamer games... Whilst if you take a look at the DS the best rated games are Nintendogs (wtf?!) And Zelda: PH... THe rest are just kiddie games that are fun to play for 10min... (I'm quite frankly tired of pokemon games -_-)

EDIT: I forgot to mention... CAPCOM didn't announce anything last night -_- except for Sony itself, everyone forgot the PSP... BIG letdown... Maybe the Tokyo Game Show will spice things up a bit...

EDIT2: I actually think that piracy didn't kill the PSP... THe PSP isn't even dead yet... BUt if Sony doesn't give it a gaming route (which should be the number one objective right now) it is going to die soon... Unfortunately for us...
Other games I am hyped up for are Puzzle Quest: Galatrix and the PSN No Gravity

[crazyhare]

The PSP Is commercially dead, I've been saying it for months...

It started with Loco Roco, so far the only game (I've seen) that's used the ergonomics and display aspect of the psp to an advantage - and gone downhill from there.

As for the various ports of other console games - they tend to be rushed, with a microscopic budget - I really couldn't believe the comparison between Test Drive Unlimited on the psp, compared to that on the major consoles - even the ps2 version.

Unless Loco Roco II or Gran Turismo Mobile ever see the light of day, you might as well forget it...

[andwhyisit]

- Star Ocean: First Departure may be a remake of the snes original, but the snes release never left Japan and First Departure is practically remade from the ground up for the PSP release.

- The psp has already been through the bad patch and already the number of upcoming games are slowly increasing. The main problem with the psp that got it to that state was that SCEA made no effort to support the system. The fact that Sony is willing to make an effort with the psp this time round is music to my ears.

- And LocoRoco 2 will be translated, else they wouldn't have announced it.

- The PSP has already started on the "gaming route".

- Piracy is not the reason for the lack of releases. I already went though this on pspfanboy and can't be bothered doing it again here.

- Yeah its true, they still call it a ps2 port box even though Sony put a stop to the shoddy PS2 ports years ago.

- You missed a few titles.

- Only one good psp game? I have a good collection of quality psp games at home. Shows what you know.

- Stop listing off features, we are supposed to be talking about the "state of gaming on PSP"

[kyyubidx]

@andwhyisit

No need to flame me for my opinion... But I'll humour you and debate your points

- Star Ocean: First Departure is still a remake any way you put it... THey didn't want to waste time thinking of something new and/or original so its just shows they don't care THAT much... Squeenix is happy while people buy the crappy DS games they've been doing lately...

- Are they really increasing? Its been month and a half since Crisis Core and only 5 games have been released in the US/EU tops.

- Its obvious they will translate LocoRoco 2 and I never said they wouldn't... Heck, if it is like the first you can import from Japan when its released and it'll have English.

- Last thing Sony announced for the PSP is pay-per-viewish system to watch vid on you PSP (Go!View) you call that gaming?

- I said piracy wasn't the reason PSP is having problems...

- THankfully they stopped the ports... It was terrible to have the feeling of deja-vu...

- I might have missed a view titles... Why criticize me for it? Do I have to know everything? Instead of criticizing you could add games to your post to tell people, couldn't you?

- I listed features to strengthen the point of the canadian poster... Nothing else... I didn't touch it again... Would you please be productive instead of over-critical?

[jamotto]

- Are they really increasing? Its been month and a half since Crisis Core and only 5 games have been released in the US/EU tops.


In August eight games are to be released and in September eleven.

[kyyubidx]

In August eight games are to be released and in September eleven.

COuld you please name some? I know Star Ocean is coming Sept 11

[jamotto]

COuld you please name some? I know Star Ocean is coming Sept 11

If you mean Star Ocean: First Departure that got pushed back to October 21. As the list stands now.

August:
Fading Shadows
Brave: A Warrior's Tale
Madden NFL 09
N+
DT Racer Refueled
Pilot Academy
Tiger Woods PGA Tour 09
Guitar Hits

September:
LEGO Batman: The Videogame
Pipe Mania
Cabela's Legendary Adventures
Air Conflicts
Destroy All Humans! Big Willy Unleashed
Star Wars: The Force Unleashed
Yggdra Union
Buzz! Master Quiz
My Spanish Coach (ok, not really a game )
NBA Live 09
Valhalla Knights 2

[kyyubidx]

Fading Shadows is out since may in the EU since May I think...

More LEGO games... Those can be fun... N+ is good... Star Wars seem awesome, Yggdra Union has been hyped up a lot... Buzz! is on my wishlist, Valhalla KNights 2 seems a big mistake... Guitar Hits and Destroy All HUmans are something i want to wait and see...

[jamotto]

See not as dire as you think it is. ;)

October looks like it might shape up as a good month as well with perhaps as many as ten games coming.

I myself am looking forward also to the flight sims; Air Conflicts and Pilot Academy

[trafony]

The problem with any portable gaming system is no one wants to make a masterpiece and stick it on a portable system. If it's going to be great, they want it to sell well and be on a big screen.

So they make masterpieces on the PS3 and then a spinoff that's unimportant for the PSP. I'd do the same thing.

[kyyubidx]

@trafony

I don't know about that... Jeanne D'Arc was a really good game for example and it was a PSP exclusive. Metal Gear Solid, Crisis Core and GoW are also really good games...

[Seker]

well i think there are some good games...
and i hope there come more

(loco roco,patapon,GOD:coo,MGS:PO(+),rengoku2,FF:CC
and i like the tekken 5 port more then the ps2 version...yeah on ps2 it SUCKS)


oh and on a sidenote:
the thing with piracy....they see it wrong
like me (and i guess a lot of other people) the prices for the games are too high.....

maybe think about that ;)