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PSP To Have PS2 Connectivity, No Shovelware Conversions?
Thanks to GamesIndustry.biz for its article discussing Sony's confirmation that its forthcoming PSP portable will feature connectivity with the PS2 home console. According to remarks from Sony's Fumiya Takeno: "This feature would allow games to be played on the home systems, with save games being moved to the PSP so that play could be continued on the handheld system - exploiting the fact that the PSP's hardware is broadly similar in specification to the PS2." Although "...it is known that porting code from the PS2 to the PSP is extremely easy", it's also been confirmed that Sony "..is placing a heavy emphasis on the development of new titles for the PSP, rather than the porting of existing PS2 software", meaning the company is likely to be harsh in the approval process regarding 'shovelware' PS2 conversions.
I know, why don't they make it so you can use the PSP as a controller for the PS2?
oh.
SURELY NOT!!!!!
by that time all the really good titles will already have been announced for PS3.
/. is overrun by bed-wetting elitist nerds
let it be known, for anything other than servers, a *nix OS sucks
Looks like the competition they'll be providing for the GBA is complete. The only thing the GBA did that the PSP didn't do was connectivity with another console.
Would a PS2 port automatically be considered shovelware? If it's a good game and the conversion to handheld is effective, isn't it just a port? The term "shovelware" implies that the end product is no good.
The main crux of this statement, for me is the heavy emphasis on developing new titles for PSP. I dont think Sony are ruling out some ports, as what would be the point in having memory cards/game-saves transferable to the PS2.
:) My preference for dark and disturbing games keeps me with PS2.
However, It is about time we saw more original and new games out there. I am of the Sony faithful crowd. But of late most games are NG ports of things that have come and gone before. To a certain extent this can be said for most consoles. Although stuff like monkey-ball shows the GameCube to be a ground for fresh ideas.But i shouldnt forget Socom and EyeToy
I think that its a good idea for Sony to push innovation card a bit more because the games/console market is getting saturated with half-assed ports released on all 3 consoles. Two's company, Three's a crowd so to speak! Id certainly like to see more single platform licenses out there. Right now there is little difference in any of the three consoles where new games are concerned. Its mainly brand loyalty that joe average uses to choose a console. Having a killer app/must have game available only on PSP, is the thing that will get those units sold en masse!
Nick
Electronic Music Made Using Linux http://soundcloud.com/polyp
Lets hope they make better use of connectivity then Nintendo seems to be doing. Even in games where connectivity is required for each player, it doesn't seemed used very well...you use the GBA to manage your items! Ooh! I'm sure the PSP/PS2 link will be more successful, as those systems are of comparable power, and the PSP could run ported games. However, you'd have to buy two copies of the same game, which people might not want to do.
I doubt its anything to get excited about, Nintendo already said games with better gfx isnt the future. I rememeber a few years ago when PcPoweplay was good, and 500mhz was front page material.. i really dont think shiney bump mapping does a whole lot for me. Add to that the fact that sony is always on the bottom in the grapics department makes me wonder why they dont try and make the psp a communal device like the big N wants to.
I like sony, my MD works great.
I just wonder whether the PSP is something that will ever have any must have games (Halo, Mario Kart, Goldeneye, HL type stuff).
Sounds to me like this is something designed mainly for the Oriental market, especially Japan and S. Korea. With the associated costs, and the release of PS3, few people are going to purchase a PSP without already having a PS2 (ie, for standalone use). And given the choice between a PSP/PS2 combo and a PS3 -- that's a no-brainer. (Despite the myriad possibilities presented by newer and better Tingle Tuners.)
So the only market I can see this really applying to is the gadget-crazy market -- like my roommate, God bless him, and the denizens of the Greater East Asia Co-Prosperity Sphere.
I'm sure Sony will stand by this principle and not release any of their more popular games as "shovelware". Not Sony.
In order to use this system, developers will have to write compatible games for both the PS2 and PSP, and it's unclear whether Sony is proposing that these titles should be sold separately or in a single package.
If the latter is true, that would be a major selling point of the PSP to me, buying a game and having the ability to play it at home or on the road without having to buy both PS2 and PSP versions.
So how would they give each player a secret mission? Ask the other 3 players to close their eyes? How would they give each player a different sub-screen and therefore different responsibilities in the dungeon? How would they allow 3 players to simultaneously restructure their command lists, while the 4th player moves the party, without cluttering the screen?
Go ahead, I want to hear this.
I can't imagine going to work with a handheld PS2. It's one thing to have 16bit quality mario games on gameboy advanced.
It's another to have a game of PS2 quality at work.
>> Remember: The old adage "fight fire with fire" does not apply to non-metaphorical fires.
This is inaccurate.
In the case of large-scale brush fires, a second fire will be intentionally set in the same area as the first to choke out the oxygen supply, thus canceling both fires.
I wonder how many of the people who said Nintendo's handheld to home-console connectivity ideas were bad and would never work will now be saying stuff along the lines of "That's a good idea.", and giving all the (undeserved) credit to Sony?
Sony had a hand-held that connected to the PSX back in the 90's. It was pretty much the same thing as the Dreamcast VMU, except it came out before and had a lil' screen protector.
It wasn't much, but its not like this is their first time, and Nintendo didn't do it before them.
You can't take the sky from me...
At Disney's shareholders meeting in Philadelphia today (at about 3hrs 10mins through 3hours 15mins into the meeting for those of you who want to listen at Disney Investors) they announced that Kingdom Hearts 2 is coming in 2005 for the PS2 and a version of Kingdom Hearts for Gameboy coming out later this year. No mention of a version for PSP or PS3.
"Shovelware" does not mean "hastily ported software". I don't know where you got that impression but it is entirely incorrect. Shovelware is software (or media) included on a CD or DVD-ROM in order to use up some of that extra space. Typically it consists of demos for other like content, or related software. For example the shovelware on a driver disk for a USB camera might include webcam and photo retouching software, plus a slide show maker that puts your pictures on a cube or something, and costs $39.99 to register. On a clip art disc about cars there are probably clip art samplers of houses and pets or something. That is shovelware. A crappy port is only shovelware if it's thrown in with some other software, just because it would fit on the disc.
"You're right," Fisheye says. "I should have set it on 'whip' or 'chop.'"
And another thing. The whole goddamn point of having a map on the GBA is to get it off the goddamn screen. No need to pause to see the map. No map covering up a corner of your view. No clutter. It's there on the GBA, always on, always useful. When I played Splinter Cell and Wind Waker, it was an incredible help.
Why in the world would you be against something like that?
company is likely to be harsh in the approval process regarding 'shovelware' PS2 conversions.
Um, no offense here, but Sony is the king of Shovelware. Half of the PS2 library falls under that classification and honestly, it is one of the reasons that they lead the console market. People are more likely to buy a system with a bazillion titles no matter if the quality of 6 kajillion of them is akin to single-ply recyled orphanage-grade toliet paper. I think this is one of those cases that the slashdot readership forgets that it is in general a little more tech-savvie than the average Joe/Joanne.
On Wall Street they say "buy low, sell high" On the pad we say, "buy high, sell high" Isn't that somehow better?
What? Playing FF:CC w/o the GBA connectivity would be awful.
It would take 5 times as long to set up your command list at the start of a dungeon(there always seems to be that one guy who takes twice as long to do it), you'd have to pause whenever you wanted to swap things out, drop things, or restructure your command list.
The secret missions would no longer be reveal at your own option. The cooperative aspect of play(each person has a different map) would be gone. Plus you'd have to pause whenever you wanted to check the map. That sucks.
Shopping in towns would be a PITA and take 5 times as long.
It would(and does in D&D) make the game crawl in comparison.
You obviously have never actually played FF:CC.
The key to the enjoyment of pop music is to replace any instance of "love" with "C.H.U.D."
Yeah, if the PSP was really PS2-like hardware, where would they get the juice to power the vacuum cleaner fan?
(Yes, I have a PS2, and a Gamecube. Guess which I prefer from the hardware point of view?)
GCHQ Quantum Insert installed. If only our tongues were made of glass, how much more careful we would be when we speak
"Product Name SCPH-4000
"PocketStation(TM)"
Release Date December 23, 1998
The Dreamcast was released in 1999."
You are quite correct in saying that the Dreamcast was released in 1999 - but this was only in the United States and Europe. The Dreamcast was released in 1998 in Japan, on November 27th. As is customary in the games industry, all the hardware (including the VMU's) had been announced and shown some time before that.
Furthermore, the VMU's were available to purchase some three or four months prior to the console. This was done in order to promote one of the Japanese launch games - a Godzilla title - and to build hype for the Dreamcast itself. Green-coloured Godzilla-branded VMU's (which came with a Godzilla virtual pet pre-installed) were sold in Japanese cinemas, during the run of a Godzilla movie that was out at the time.
It's actually very well-known that Sony based the PocketStation on Sega's Visual Memory Units (or Visual Memory System, as they were known in Japan).
What about 'shovelware' from other systems? I know Nintendo and Microsoft would guard their franchises by locking them in the closet or by throwing money at them, but what about PC shovelware and Xbox/Gamecube games made by third party developers?
EA... well I don't think anything needs to be said about them. Konami will probably jump on with the proper incentive (a handheld Contra?) SquareEnix might join, but thats doubtful unless Sony starts shipping them packages of money. Chances are we'll see SOME kind of 'shovelware', even if it isn't from the PS2 library.
Or Sony could be an ass and start making 'shovelware' PS1 games saying "well we said no PS2 shovelware, but we didn't say anything about PS1 shovelware."
The Dreamcast was released in 1998 in Japan, on November 27th.
Back that up.
You can't take the sky from me...
"Back that up."
Ok. Take a look here, here, here, here, here, here, here, and here. And for more plenty more links to back it up, Google has you covered. Hope that helps.
I stand corrected, 1998 it is. I was sure it had been released in early 99 in japan and of course, on 9/9/99 in NA, that date is easy to remember : )
You can't take the sky from me...