Slashdot Mirror
Kasavin Weighs In On PSP, DS Battle
Thanks to GameSpot for its Greg Kasavin-authored 'GameSpotting' editorial discussing comparisons between Sony's PSP and Nintendo's DS handheld systems, in a piece subtitled: "Five Capital Letters, Two Little Systems, One Big Bloodbath". Kasavin points out: "It's very, very easy to jump on Sony's bandwagon... it's also very, very easy to root for the relative underdog that Nintendo's lately turned into. But... neither of these companies expects your loyalty or necessarily deserves it. They're both these big, huge Japanese firms designed to pull a serious profit year in and year out." The piece continues: "There's a lot of evidence to suggest that the Nintendo DS is a reactionary device that lacks focus", although concedes: "To be fair, Sony has also done its fair share of double-talking with respect to the PSP", before marginally favoring the PSP, "designed with an 'if it ain't broke, don't fix it' mind-set." Elsewhere, Game Informer also weighs in, with a two-part series "analyzing the upcoming handhelds".
Greg acted like no games were made for DS functionality...yet he seemed to forget the Metroid game.
I'd have to say that being able to use a stylus to shoot at enemies on the new system would be making use of this new, interesting feature (not just using it to justify having it).
The stove didn't break, why did people invent something as unnecessary as the microwave?
(I thought this analogy is the best way to express my oppinion on the subject)
Justice is the sheep getting arrested while an impartial judge declares the vote void.
There seems to be a lot more consumer excitement about the Nintendo DS. It might be some sort of geek bias, since I'm going off what I've seen on internet forums, but I can see how the DS would be much more successful.
Obviously the big issue will be what games are available for each system. This remains to be seen, but the backwards compatibility seems like a very big advantage for the DS. The DS will have a massive previous-generation game library, just as the PS2 does. This is less of an issue as a system reaches maturity, but it's important for a newly-launched system.
The other major issue is the price of each system. The DS will cost (so we've been told) $150. That's only $50 more than a GBA SP. The PSP will be priced around $250, resulting in significantly slower consumer uptake. Combined with the earlier launch date of the DS, the PSP will have a difficult time breaking into the market.
I think Sony would have done better to create a PSone-sized machine capable of playing PS1 and PS2 games, as well as audio CDs and DVDs. Sure, it couldn't really be considered a handheld system any more, and you'd need a carrying case for it, but they're trying to market the PSP as an all-in-one media player/game system. Why not make something that actually plays your media? Creating a new disc format specific to the PSP and only allowing it to play Sony's DRM-encumbered music files seems like a mistake to me.
On a not entirely related note, how many of you have thought about the possibility of running Linux on the DS? The features seem perfect for it. We just need a port.
AEIOU: open-source anonymous internet currency
The PSP is not a machine made for children, with an estimated street price of $299, and sensitive movable parts (the drive mechanism).
As usual, Nintendo, whatever else you say about the DS, has made a cheaper, virtually indestructible game device for kids with solid state, virtually indestructible game carts. We can all moan about carts, but parents love the sturdiness of the Nintendo line.
And according to the folks developing the hardware, the LCD element of the display will wear out before the touch screen does.
Smart money is on the DS for games, and the PSP as a mobile entertainment system for adults.
Honestly, it's only amongst monied geeks that these two platforms are going to compete for sales.
What were you expecting?
There is room for two consoles, one high end and fragile, and one low end and durable. Nintendo has pulled out a very durable design setup with the SP/DS. The screens don't get scratched because of the folding nature (my GBA's screen cover got replaced twice), and they can take a fall easy. There's not much to break from a moderate drop. And the price is low enough that people don't get paranoid about them. Now take a PSP, nice large display, excellent graphics, but the design is more inherantly prone to have problems.
Personally, I'm looking forwards to both. My GBA and NGPC coexisted (and still do). I don't mind adding a PSP and DS to the mix. Probably won't happen because of the cost, but I'd like it.
There's a place for a Jeep Wrangler, and there's a place for a Chevrolet Corvette. One doesn't exactly take a signifigant number of sales away from the other.
If you think education is expensive, you should try ignorance -- Derek Bok, president of Harvard
Second, "PSP will have more games" seems like BS. Last I checked (and correct me if I'm wrong) there were about 100 third parties working on each system, and about equal number of third party games announced for each. (And then Nintendo wins the first party, of course).
Historically, poor battery life and high price is downright DEATH in the portable world. Other than Sony being stronger than Atari/Sega, what's different this time?
I'm going to paraphrase the analysis of a GameFAQs user (HoratioQHornblower) who owns a shop and so seems to know more about what will sell than I do. Here's the thing: handheld gaming is different than home console gaming. For instance, while racing games sell just fine on big consoles, they sell poorly on handelds. Who's going to buy the PSP version of GT4 when they can buy the PS2 version and play it properly on a big screen? Handheld gaming (according to him) is more centered around platformers (Marios, Metroids) and strategy games (Fire Emblem, FFTA). Roughly speaking, the list of DS games seem more suited to a handheld, whereas the PSP games are mostly scaled down console games, often literally ports of PS1 games.
Again, I'm not really doing HoratioQHornblower's argument justice, but his prediction for his store was that people woud buy the PSP first (better marketing) but return it after a couple of weeks when they find out Metal Gear Acid is a card RPG and the battery life is low. On the other hand, the DS, even ignoring the innovation, has a library which guarantees a certain level of success as a handheld, even if initial hype is lower.