DS Trampling PSP in Japan

[wraggster]

Via IGN (http://uk.psp.ign.com/articles/750/750197p1.html)

According to a new Famitsu Marketing survey, Sony's PlayStation Portable is getting walloped in Japan by Nintendo's DS. In November alone, the PSP sold a mere 86,000 units compared to nearly 550,000 DS Lites. More shocking are numbers for the first 11 months of the year, which show that Nintendo may have all but closed the door on PSP in Japan. The DS and DS Lite have sold more than 7.5 million units so far this year, with PSP selling just 1.6 million units.

Further troubling for Sony's portable system are its software sales in comparison to Nintendo. PSP has sold 2.8 million games to date this year, while Nintendo has sold 27 million games. This is what is referred to in business as a clobbering.

The battle is a bit closer in the U.S., though Nintendo retains a strong lead month-to-month. In November, likely the busiest sales month of the year, twice as many DS Lites were sold as PSPs.

Publicly, Sony has shown nothing but confidence for the future of the PSP. Despite having weaker sales numbers compared to DS, the PSP had a strong year in terms of quality software. Nine of the twelve PSP games to receive a 9.0 or higher from IGN were released in 2006.

[kiariki]

Via IGN (http://uk.psp.ign.com/articles/750/750197p1.html)
Publicly, Sony has shown nothing but confidence for the future of the PSP. Despite having weaker sales numbers compared to DS, the PSP had a strong year in terms of quality software. Nine of the twelve PSP games to receive a 9.0 or higher from IGN were released in 2006.

Nine of Twelve DS games were actually appealing. >_> I only have two PSP games: Metal Gear Ac!d and DarkStalkers (would've had MGA2, but dont have the money ;_;)

Either way, if anyone wants to feel better, the PSP might get a bump up with Final Fantasy VII: Crisis Core. >_>

[Basil Zero]

man, i have 29 psp games, and i can only see like 9 ds games which are worth buying

pffft, all the newbie gamers buy the ds cause its cheaper and the games are child targeted


the psp games are for mature gamers....though most of us mature gamers are broke..thats the problem...lol

[mr.psp]

name 9 psp games worth buying...

[C0R3F1GHT3R]

DS is for kids, which have parents, and these parents have the money. Most ppl also don't understand the psp and what it can do and thats why they think the price is ridiculous.

[masterpaul]

My ASS... DS is for eveyone.

[Cap'n 1time]

DS has better games in my opinion. and as masterpaul says, DS is for everyone.

[VampDude]

In November alone, the PSP sold a mere 86,000 units compared to nearly 550,000 DS Lites. More shocking are numbers for the first 11 months of the year, which show that Nintendo may have all but closed the door on PSP in Japan. The DS and DS Lite have sold more than 7.5 million units so far this year, with PSP selling just 1.6 million units.

PSP has sold 2.8 million games to date this year, while Nintendo has sold 27 million games.

550,000??? thats just over half a million, where exactly are all those DS units going???

the PSP has'nt sold as many games as the DS due to the vast majority of PSP users only playing homebrew and emulators, and the worse thing of all the availability of illegal full version games on the internet ready for download and play which affects sales!

[steve-b]

I agree with VampDude. There are plenty PSP owners out there, but most of them (that I know) run devhook or se-c for non homebrew reasons.

[VampDude]

I agree with VampDude. There are plenty PSP owners out there, but most of them (that I know) run devhook or se-c for non homebrew reasons.

DevHook is'nt exactly for homebrew thou, it's for loading both illegal and commercial games. SONY have a lot of play in the marketplace for the PSP, firstly they should consider a price cut to narrow the price margin of the DS and PSP which they should've cut the price a few months ago on the leadup to christmas!

[PSPFR3AK]

im sorry but PSP just entered the hadheld market
you cant denie that if PSP wasnt there ninty profits would be bigger from handheld part

[VampDude]

im sorry but PSP just entered the hadheld market
you cant denie that if PSP wasnt there ninty profits would be bigger from handheld part

the PSP has been in the market since late 2004 early 2005, Nintendo have the advantage of the handheld market because they've had 19 years with the GameBoy series and another few years on top of that with the Game&Watch series. Nintendo know only too well what they are doing in th market, and they also know when to lower prices on gaming units. oneday SONY will learn and catch up to Nintendo in this market!

[Deathnix]

Whats with the "DS is for kids!" Attitude that so many of you have?
DS is not for kids, it is just better then PSP for *real* games (AKA not homebrew or emulated games).
Only say DS is for kids, if you actualy own a DS, and if you own a DS, dont that make you a kid in your theory any way? :-p
With the Wii and DS against them, Sony dont stand a chance, no wonder they said there not planning on a playstation 4 happening.
Only thing sony has for them really is Square soft/enix/what ever's loyalty.

[PSPFR3AK]

Whats with the "DS is for kids!" Attitude that so many of you have?
DS is not for kids, it is just better then PSP for *real* games (AKA not homebrew or emulated games).
Only say DS is for kids, if you actualy own a DS, and if you own a DS, dont that make you a kid in your theory any way? :-p
With the Wii and DS against them, Sony dont stand a chance, no wonder they said there not planning on a playstation 4 happening.
Only thing sony has for them really is Square soft/enix/what ever's loyalty.

the whole nintendo games are for kids
are you embarrased to play them?
if no STFU

[masterpaul]

hmm... if the games for PSP sell so little, then 3rd party support will soon go away.

[F9zDark]

Anyone denying that Nintendo CATERS TO CHILDREN is really just fooling themself; it has been their practice since the dawn of time. N64 had a few good adult titles, but on the whole, Nintendo is widely regarded by just about everyone in the game industry as a business that produces games for kids and young teens.

Sure, Nintendogs looks fun, I'll admit that, but I have no desire to own a DS otherwise. But there is the crux of the issue, kid's games can apply to adults just as well.

However I believe that the Japanese like these types of games more oft than Americans. The PSP had a better track record in the US than the DS did in the past, according to this article (may be obsolete now, haven't found anything more recent):

http://www.joystiq.com/2006/01/19/psp-outsells-the-nintendo-ds-in-the-us-by-1-million/

[masterpaul]

/\ /\

That was long, long time ago.

[the_eternal_dark]

Anyone denying that Nintendo CATERS TO CHILDREN is really just fooling themself; it has been their practice since the dawn of time. N64 had a few good adult titles, but on the whole, Nintendo is widely regarded by just about everyone in the game industry as a business that produces games for kids and young teens.

Sure, Nintendogs looks fun, I'll admit that, but I have no desire to own a DS otherwise. But there is the crux of the issue, kid's games can apply to adults just as well.


It's just that Nintendo caters to children better than Sony. Also, why does everyone have any Nintendo emulator if they were not going to play the Mario series, or any other "kids" games. I think that statement is BS. Also, saying that PSP is for mature gamers is also BS. Most of those "mature" PSP users start these stupid arguments about PSP is better than DS because... or Nintendo sucks because... its just getting really old. Pick up a DS and make your own judgements not because someone else (or a group of someone elses) says something bad about it. I can say plenty of bad things about each one, but everyone already knows the +/- points of each, so it's really pointless. The main point is that Sony got in the market way too late and did poorly in marketing their product and that is why their sales are moot.

Nintendogs sucks. The games you should get/look for (if you ever plan on getting a DS/DSLite) are: Resident Evil: Deadly Silence, Metroid Prime: Hunters, The New Mario Bros, Mario 64 DS, Final Fantasy III, Wario Ware Touched, just to name a few.

[mikebeaver]

dont forget mario kart, with its wi-fi play its easily the best multi player game on a hand held, between friends or through the net.
I had a DS long before I got my PSP, it doesnt get used a lot at the moment coz im busy exploring my new hardware, but the original purchase was based on the games available for the system comercially, emultors and homebrew didnt come into the equastion.
All this "mines better than yours" is crap, just play games and enjoy them, who cares what system its on if its a good one.

[the_eternal_dark]

dont forget mario kart, with its wi-fi play its easily the best multi player game on a hand held, between friends or through the net.
I had a DS long before I got my PSP, it doesnt get used a lot at the moment coz im busy exploring my new hardware, but the original purchase was based on the games available for the system comercially, emultors and homebrew didnt come into the equastion.
All this "mines better than yours" is crap, just play games and enjoy them, who cares what system its on if its a good one.

Give that man a cigar! :thumbup:

Yeah, I completely forgot Mario Kart. I just bought it for my gf, thats why I don't see it much. I think I have too many games in my apartment sometimes.

[mikebeaver]

as long as you have a copy of mario kart an 2 DS's you dont need any other games for a very long time :)

[Cap'n 1time]

I dont know about "kid" games, but they have "kid friendly" games.. and I happen to enjoy most of those games. Also you psp fanboys can kick and scream all you want, regardless the DS is still DOMINATING the handheld market.

The kid friendly aspect of the DS is actually partially to blame for its enormous success. Does that mean the games suck? Obviously not as magazines and many of our own users will gladly step in and exclaim. You know we wouldnt play it if it sucked (like the oodles and oodles psp games that we dont own) ;).

The bottem line is, whether you agree or not the DS has kicked the psp's ass and taken names in the game department. Home brew games and emulators do nothing to make sony feel any better about their failure (as of 04-06 at least) of a console. You dont have to buy a DS, but you cannot deny that nintendo has dominated in both the average rating of the games and in sales numbers.

[irongiant]

For god's sake get a life. The PSP is NOT a failure, can't you understand that.. in your twisted Nintendo coloured world is a handheld device selling 25,000 units a week in Japan alone a failure?

It is not in direct competition with the DS, Sony and Nintendo have both stated they're aiming for a different demographic. The PSP is more expensive for a start and is a handheld multi media device, gaming is just one of the features it offers. It's more targetted at people who play games on mobile phones or have iPods and other handheld gadgets.

Still banging on about the PSP having poor games is really sad and pathetic, in fact here's some facts for you that prove you're talking garbage. From Metacritic:

PSP games reviewed with score 80/100 or above = 38
DS games reviewed with score 80/100 or above = 32

[jairolas]

PSP games reviewed with score 80/100 or above = 38
DS games reviewed with score 80/100 or above = 32

say 10 really good games for psp.

[the_eternal_dark]

For god's sake get a life. The PSP is NOT a failure, can't you understand that.. in your twisted Nintendo coloured world is a handheld device selling 25,000 units a week in Japan alone a failure?

It is not in direct competition with the DS, Sony and Nintendo have both stated they're aiming for a different demographic. The PSP is more expensive for a start and is a handheld multi media device, gaming is just one of the features it offers. It's more targetted at people who play games on mobile phones or have iPods and other handheld gadgets.

Still banging on about the PSP having poor games is really sad and pathetic, in fact here's some facts for you that prove you're talking garbage. From Metacritic:

PSP games reviewed with score 80/100 or above = 38
DS games reviewed with score 80/100 or above = 32

So you're telling us it is failing in a wide range of target markets then.

And your “facts” are from one website. My personal opinion with games that were reviewed is, many times, opposite of what reviewers say. There are times I can agree with them, but not many.

PSP does have some good games, some I like only for online purposes, some are great as single player only games.

My list of favorites from PSP:
Socom FTB 1&2 – online only, 2 has some good single player missions though
Loco Roco – the most “kid” game out there for PSP
Me and My Katamari – the second most “kid” friendly game for PSP
Gun – what else can I say, great game
Star Wars Battle Front II – I don’t care what any of you say, this game is fun (I don’t use all the controls, but I also don’t need to)
Infected – a zombie game for PSP that is also fun online (really), except it has Slipknot in it which kills it a little for me
MGS: PO – a game you HAVE to get if you have a PSP
MGA 1&2 – a “tactical” card game, fun stuff
Lumines – Sony’s attempt at Tetris, almost, but not quite there, still fun though
Tokobot – addicting, kind of like Pikmin, but portable (I’d love to see PikminDS)
Syphon Filter: Dark Mirror – another game you have to have if you have a PSP
Killzone: Liberation – a great twist on a great game

I’m sure that there are maybe 2 or 3 more that I have forgot about, but I’m also at work.

There are many more good DS games out there as well, some are listed above in my other post.

[irongiant]

So you're telling us it is failing in a wide range of target markets then..

What's your point? Define failing.. the PSP is also selling strongly in Europe and the USA. It's not selling as well as the DS but then i really don't believe anyone thought it would. The DS is incredibly successful and far surpassed expectations on sales figures but that doesn't mean that another handheld device is a failure because it hasn't sold as many. Was the XBox regarded as a failure? No it has been a success and has become the platform for MS to release the XBox360 which will undoubtably overtake the sales of the XBox. The PSP is the beginning, it won't be long before MS introduce their portable gaming device and Sony too with PSP2 or whatever then it will be interesting to see what happens.


And your “facts” are from one website. My personal opinion with games that were reviewed is, many times, opposite of what reviewers say. There are times I can agree with them, but not many.

Nope, their taken from Metacritic who add up the scores from all media reviews to come up with an average for each game. I'll take the views of 20 or 30 games reviewers over your opinion anyday. So based on your logic of not agreeing then most of the DS reviews are off the mark too then?


There are many more good DS games out there as well, some are listed above in my other post.

Nobody has said there aren't plenty of good games but based on the views of the gaming press, which strangely enough does hold some credibility, the PSP has a higher quality library of games currently available. Get over it and enjoy your games, i'm sure Nintendo couldn't care less with all the money they're making.

[F9zDark]

I believe Microshit stopped making a handheld gaming device and opted for the Zune instead. Makes sense too, Microshit has the power to go 'all Apple' on an MP3 player and offer native support and first party programs that work in Windows to jump on the bandwagon.

And ipods are far more popular than DS and PSP combined, if Microsoft can steal even a quarter of the ipod's market share, they have succeeded.

[irongiant]

No they definitely haven't stopped plans for a handheld gaming device, the Zune is a taster of whats to come as it already interracts with the 360. They're starting with an MP3 player then adding more products including a gaming device later on. MS want to dominate the handheld market from MP3 to gaming to Phones. They have the resources and money to do it as well.

[PSPFR3AK]

as long as you have a copy of mario kart an 2 DS's you dont need any other games for a very long time :)as long as i already played mario kart a long time on snes and N64 there is no reason to play it again

[the_eternal_dark]

1. What's your point? Define failing.. the PSP is also selling strongly in Europe and the USA. It's not selling as well as the DS but then i really don't believe anyone thought it would. The DS is incredibly successful and far surpassed expectations on sales figures but that doesn't mean that another handheld device is a failure because it hasn't sold as many. Was the XBox regarded as a failure? No it has been a success and has become the platform for MS to release the XBox360 which will undoubtably overtake the sales of the XBox. The PSP is the beginning, it won't be long before MS introduce their portable gaming device and Sony too with PSP2 or whatever then it will be interesting to see what happens.



2. Nope, their taken from Metacritic who add up the scores from all media reviews to come up with an average for each game. I'll take the views of 20 or 30 games reviewers over your opinion anyday. So based on your logic of not agreeing then most of the DS reviews are off the mark too then?



3. Nobody has said there aren't plenty of good games but based on the views of the gaming press, which strangely enough does hold some credibility, the PSP has a higher quality library of games currently available. Get over it and enjoy your games, i'm sure Nintendo couldn't care less with all the money they're making.

1. Failing - not doing as well as Sony had hoped in the beginning. As a multimedia device, it's not touching much of the portable media player market (iPod video, portable DVD players, etc). As a gaming device, its far more expensive than its competitor, the DS/DSLite, has few "great" games that stand out, and suffers from long load times, all of which can damage interest in the PSP. Most PDA's and Cell phones can play music, videos (although not as long or of a good quality), and surf the internet, but one up the PSP because it is useful in everyday life as well (you can't really call anyone with a PSP to set up meetings and text messaging is good for in class (college) communication (cheating).

If Microsoft does introduce a handheld, it won't do well as it will be competing with 2 veterans in the handheld business. PSP2 had better get a better design; hand cramps are apparantly common with the current PSP if you don't know how to hold it right.

Xbox compared to the Gamecube: success. Xbox compared to PS2: it was owned, up until its last few moments as a console. I think it had to do something with the size, noise, or the random overheating/crashing reports of some Xboxes. Microsoft had it easy with their console, they only had to beat another console to get their name in the door, and it just happened to be Nintendo's Gamecube (Nintendo was the old timer in the biz, good job for a newb console).

2. Like I said, it should be up to your own opinion, not anyone elses. People are easily swayed by money, free stuff, lapdances, etc and people are gamers/reviewers too. Personally, I could care less if anyone liked my opinions, but there is one thing I know: I like doing my own reviews.

3. Keywords - some credibility. Higher quality, maybe in graphics, but not very many "fun" games though. That again is just my personal opinion, as was your answer was apparantly yours. I'm sure Nintendo, Microsoft, nor Sony care what we really think of them, but only that we buy their products to keep their wallets fat, which I contribute more than enough of my money to all 3 companies for first and third party software titles. I'll have fun any way I can, regardless of reviews by others.

[comicgeek]

Sony should find a way to reduce the prices of the games... The price of the games are so expensive for a handheld... The DS i think has much more buyers since the games are cheaper and the unit itself is cheap. So no matter how you say your product is so innovative on many things that wont incline anybody to buy your product because of its too steep price. Add to the fact that Sony tries to control the usage of their products. Like **** man I bought this shit so this is mine I can do what I want with it - I'm gonna hack it. I never heard of Nintendo complaining about Flashcarts, roms and others on the GBA, DS and others.

[belialone]

hmm nintendo DS sells more
whats the problem you judge a system just because of the sales
me personally i give a s**t if a system sells or not
i bought a PC when everybody around me was playing PS2
then i learned about the PSP (great device:D )
i studied the handheld market properly before i went to a store to buy a system
DS was one option. PDA,Portable Video Player where the others
i wanted a device thats capable to do different things like video & mp3 playback, games all sorts of things
so i looked carefully and decided to buy a PSP
the Play Station Portable won for me because it had everything in it
games video mp3 usbstorage
after i bought the PSP i learned about homebrew and it convinced me in my decision to buy one
now im using the 1.5 fw and all the great brews out there
IR SHELL 3.0 KICKS ASS by the way
i think its up to you which system you buy

and pleeze no fanboyism

[LoveMeLoveMe]

The psp can probably emulate the nintendo ds sooner or later. OMG, you don't get touchscreen with psp!!! Who cares!!! You can't emulate shit with the nintendo crap ds. While, the psp you can emulate alot. I thought the japanese were smart, why would you buy a nintendo ds? Are japanese people rich or something? To throw money away, instead of playing homebrew

[number1jagsfan]

Maybe its because they want to play new games, instead of old games they maybe already own on the original systems.

[nhlhockey]

If I was 10 years old I would prefer a nintendo DS.

[comicgeek]

Japan is the second richest in the World... do japs throw money arround? yes!

[the_eternal_dark]

hmm nintendo DS sells more
whats the problem you judge a system just because of the sales
me personally i give a s**t if a system sells or not
i bought a PC when everybody around me was playing PS2
then i learned about the PSP (great device:D )
i studied the handheld market properly before i went to a store to buy a system
DS was one option. PDA,Portable Video Player where the others
i wanted a device thats capable to do different things like video & mp3 playback, games all sorts of things
so i looked carefully and decided to buy a PSP
the Play Station Portable won for me because it had everything in it
games video mp3 usbstorage
after i bought the PSP i learned about homebrew and it convinced me in my decision to buy one
now im using the 1.5 fw and all the great brews out there
IR SHELL 3.0 KICKS ASS by the way
i think its up to you which system you buy

and pleeze no fanboyism

Actually, I own a DSLite and a load of games. So I don't judge based on sales, I judge from personal experience. PSP is just an iPod video that can play games and uses proprietary media instead of a hard drive and has good graphics capability. As a gaming device, it's not as good. Short battery life is one of the hurtful points of the PSP.


The psp can probably emulate the nintendo ds sooner or later. OMG, you don't get touchscreen with psp!!! Who cares!!! You can't emulate shit with the nintendo crap ds. While, the psp you can emulate alot. I thought the japanese were smart, why would you buy a nintendo ds? Are japanese people rich or something? To throw money away, instead of playing homebrew

I beg to differ. SNES is coming along nicely, NES is pretty much perfect, it has Doom with online capability (yes online/multiplayer) and tons of homebrew. You have to try before you judge.

[shadyhomie]

It's my first post in awhile. And I don't see a reason to post this in a PSP forum. And people saying that the DS line-up is crap that's bull. Name a PSP game that's gotten a perfect score from Famitsu? The PSP is what I like to call. The Playstation Potential. It's a system that's capable. Just not being taken advantage of because the focus it seems is how exact to the console version can we get this game to look. You guys are comparing the DS and the PSP out of the fact of MP3 and Video playback as well. If the the DS had video and MP3 playback out of the box I'd understand. But the comparing is ridiculous. Honestly. I like both consoles. I like the PSP's multimeda. I mean c'mon. You can spend hours screwing with features in the XMB. And with the DS you can play Mario Kart or Meteos til' you realized you are dying and that you never got laid.