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DS Claims EU Dominance
Gamasutra reports that, at least in the EU, the Nintendo DS has the portable war pretty much locked up for the time being. 200,000 units of the DS Lite were sold in the ten days after its launch. From the article: "According to Nintendo of Europe, the Nintendo DS has now secured the lead in the handheld market in Europe, with sales of the format exceeding 5 million. No sales figures from Sony are available to compare directly, with only a "shipped" figure of almost 6 million for all territories bar North America and Japan." Interestingly, 136,500 units were sold in the United States in just the first two days after the handheld console's launch.
Didn't Sony claimed the PSP would destroy the DS? I wonder if this is a sign of their upcoming ill fate...
I have to say I'm impressed with the DS. It is the first portable console I have ever gotten and I am playing metroid constantly.
I've always had a bit of a nintendo bias, but these days I'm nearly becoming a fanboy. Something has really changed at the company. They seem to be making all the right moves.
They must all be playing brain training all the time. Their brains are way younger than those Sony execs...
Pablo
PSP looks nice and all, but they missed out the "gaming" part...
Interesting to see that considering, according to the related article posted above, that 12,000 of them were stolen that were supposed to make their way to europe. They were supposed to be part of the 200,000 DS Lites sold at launch.
But in the grand scheme of things, 12,000 does not make a dent in 5,000,000.
The DS even seems to be winning in the UK (source), where Nintendo has never done as well as on mainland Europe. It's been interesting watching the size of the DS section in shops grow, mostly at the expense of UMDs.
Here in Japan you see the PSP only in Ads and on television.
I have to say that I'm impressed in general with video game consumers. The most successful products are the consoles that treat their customers right. PS2 creamed the other consoles of its generation due to great games, an outstanding gamepad, an out-of-the-box DVD movie player, a low price, and backward compatibility. Even though the PS2 has the crappiest hardware of the 3 consoles it's still far and away the best seller.
It's especially fascinating to see Nintendo out-Sony Sony! The DS has great games with tiny load times, innovative display and control schemes, a low price, and backward compatibility. It's the big seller by an enormous margin even though the graphics pale in comparison to the very pretty PSP, which has loads of (severely locked-down) additional features, but I think people are much more comfortable carrying a clamshell portable game system than a scratch-prone beauty queen.
There are so many markets where the biggest names get the biggest sales, regardless of quality (fear not, I won't start my iPod rant). However, in the gaming world I feel fairly safe going with the crowd.
Big kudos to Nintendo for the DS. They've earned all the fanfare.
Another parallel can be drawn from this. Proof that (Speed & Power) != (Fun). Developers love programming for the DS, over the PSP. The games are simpler, and the focus is drawn more towards fun.
Perhaps the future of the console wars does not rely on power as much as everybody thinks. I wouldn't be suprised in the least to see the Wii take the #1 slot in the next gen market (Even if it is a Gamecube++).
Colonel Cranium this is Rectal Reconnaissance, we are on a collision course sir, Abort Abort!
The PSP destroyed the DS initially in America because of the massive hype for OMG PS2 HANDHELD and OMG MOVIES HANDHELD, while the DS was OMG KIDDIE TOY LOLS.
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According to Nintendo anyway. This means that if I got one I'd have to run multiple WiFi networks in my house which seems a bit too much like a pain in the neck for a games console.
Of course the GP2x has no built in WiFi at all, but it does seem like a missed opportunity for a product revision this late in the WEP-is-broken world.
Think of the Children; Sleep with your Sister
In other regionally-divided platforms, the European gamers often seem to get a raw deal, waiting ridiculous amounts of time for their version of things to be released. I think the fact that DS is region-free really helped cement them a top position in a market that's tired of waiting for stuff to find its way over there.
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With the success of the DS, will Nintendo finally retire the Gameboy?
Of course they sold more DS Lites in Europe. They get to buy a black one. Offer me a black, blue, or some other dark color of the DS Lite and I'll go out and buy it right now. It may seem silly but I can just imagine how tore up that shiney white finish will look after a month. Give me a black one too!
You ever got raped by Apple? Poor bastard. Nobody forces you to buy Apple's products, so "rape" is hardly the correct term.
Second, while Apple's computers and MP3 players aren't cheap, they simply do not cost more than comparable products.
Region Free is undoubtedly a big win (I almost, ALMOST picked up a black DS Lite when I was in europe).
The form factor is amazing: it really is pocket-comfortable.
The gameplay is innovative: The touchscreen is producing some very cool results, including a lot of non-gamer games
The price is good: About 150 euro after VAT
Battery life is better: no moving parts.
And the number of games is impressive: backwards compatibility is a big win.
No wonder the DS is kicking the PSP's butt.
Test your net with Netalyzr
It sounds kinda goofy but the Mr Clean Magic Eraser works great at cleaning the DS. Though its too early in its lifecycle to be a problem yet, I am betting odds on NON-Acetone based nail polish remover working great at removing any future discolorations as well. I'd love to take credit, but both are tricks the Ipod and Ibook communities have found and use regularly.
Trauma center and kirby make good use of the touchcreen, Mario Kart makes no use of it at all, Metroid's controls are excellent, Brain training is not a simple IQ test.
It's not surprising that the DS is way more popular than the PSP. I personally hardly hear of people wanting/having PSPs, and i've even heard of people getting a PSP but not wanting it anymore because they like the DS better.
Good for Nintendo I say. People are obviously going to want something that costs less, is innovative, and has a load of games that they like. They only thing that might have discouraged some would have been the design, but obviously with the DS Lite, they've fixed that aswell.
To me, looks like it'll be going that way for the next load of consoles aswell. Wii = low cost, like the DS, innovative (controller etc.), and so on. PS3 = pretty much the opposite.
As far as the Nintendo / Apple comparisons go, I think it's safe to say that they are kindred spirits. While it's true that Apple lives off high-end high priced products, it's their quality, image, innovation, loyal customer base, appeal to the average user, and reputation for being worth it just for Apple's software alone that really make them successful. There are plenty of high-end computer makers out there, but none of them enjoy Apple's reputation.
Nintendo simply takes a different lane on the same road, one more appropriate (and more profitable) for their market. They do all the same things, except instead of producing high end high priced hardware they produce right down the middle. Apple could do the same thing if the computer industry only had 3 manufacturers and 2 of them were stupid enough to produce overly expensive boxes. The low end positions in the computer world are already taken, and require really high volume to maintain. So Apple naturally took the high end.
As for the DS, I'm not a fan of the direction handhelds are taking in general. Of course, I'm even less of a fan of the direction Sony is going so the DS is my natural favorite of the two. I'm honestly not sure how it has done as well as it has, other than relying on the reputation Sony got overnight when the Playstation became the "adult" that it is now forced to share with Microsoft (at least in the US).
The only thing that angers me is the color of the Lite. White sucks. There should be some sort of rule aginst only releasing one color (unless it's black).
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Ultimately, what keeps the games away from the PSP is that Sony didn't really understand what developers wanted when it came to handheld systems. Most existing handheld developers had been working on the GBA as their main platform and did not have the technological nor the financial resources needed to produce a PSP game; consider that you can make a GBA game for $250K-$500k whereas most PSP games require $2 Million or more to create the game. Constrast the PSP situation with the DS where Nintendo told developers they could continue to produce simple 2D games but Nintendo wanted developers to take advantage of both screens; this means that developers where given the choice whether to increase their costs or not.
The interesting thing to note is that both Nintendo and Sony are using the same strategies for their home console systems; one has to wonder what the outcome will be.
I paid 170 CAD for mine a week ago, at WalMart. 150 before tax, and I got a DS Lite. 150 euros is 215 CAD, so I'm basically saving 45 bucks.
Unlike the Nano (which picked up scratches just from sitting in my purse, it seems) the DS Lite is HIGHLY durable, buffable, and pretty, even in white.
Had I been given the choice in Japan's colors, I would've gone for the Ice Blue DS, but I'm not disappointed in the least with owning a white one.
The game where you're a lawyer and can literally yell objection.
Yoshi Touch and Go which requires heavy use of the stylus.
Meteos which would be a different game without a touch screen (the ability to "launch" blocks with the stylus is half the game).
The Pac Man game where the action is totally controlled by drawing.
Lost Magic the first RPG with immersive spell casting.
Trace Memory makes use of nearly every DS bit of functionality.
The Princess Peach game which has levels and a mini-game that require blowing into the mic. Sexual innuendo, a lot of DS games seem to require blowing.
The Bomberman game where, in multiplayer, you can set bombs or blow them up by yelling nonsense.
Of course Warioware which has tons of way to play with the stylus.
That's not to mention that the PS2 version of Liberty City Stories was at launch and continues to be cheaper than it's PSP counterpart.
People seem to be missing the fact that the DS Black was only available in Europe. So a lot of resellers probably pumped up the initial sales numbers.
Now to compare the two devices is very very hard. Neither is perfect especially if you own both and can see where the other device is just so much better.
First off the oh so important size. The PSP has often been called huge and it is. But the regular DS is in fact even bigger. The DS Lite is almost exactly the same size but 3cm shorter. It tells you a lot about fanboys that during the original launch the Nintendo fanboys called the PSP large. The truth is both devices are HUGE larger then a PDA. Fashionable people might not have the storage space.
Weight is something else. The PSP weighs a ton and that is not good. It will really pull your pants down. This despite the similar size makes it harder to carry around.
The PSP is open with the screen seemingly unprotected. Both DS versions of course are a clamshell design and this makes them very safe from scratching. Except that my PSP so far has not been scratched. This is not an iPod and sony seems to have found a pretty good screen material. Gameplay wise it makes no difference.
Battery time is hard to judge and also depends on the game. Can you really compare a game like say Advance Wars Dual Strike with Grand Theft Auto Liberty City? Maybe the PSP battery will be drained faster but I will have played more intensly in that time. Basically bring extra power if you are really going to need them because both will run out before you know it.
Power saving. Now here the DS Lite takes a nose dive. Compared to the PSP Nintendo's designers just don't seem to have a clue. In the game animal crossing you are told of for switching of the game without saving. Cute but then don't put the goddamn power switch in such a lousy spot. It is on the side, sticks out and is a slide switch with a spring, you slide it up and that causes the device to switch off or on and then it slides back. This easily happens in your pocket and the DS had not "lock" option.
The PSP buton works the same but puts the device in power save mode meaning if you accidently switch off you can almost instantly switch on again and resume where you left off. This helps mitigate a stupid design they made by combining the power and lock switch. Unlocking it will frequently cause the switch to overshoot and put the device in power save mode. But since you can resume easily this is only a nuisance.
The DS however will just loose all your progress. If you judged the DS on its own it would not be so bad but compared to the PSP this really is a very stupid design choice.
Part of the DS charm is being able to play all your old GBA games. Except that in the DS Lite the catridge doesn't fit. This not only looks ugly it also makes even the DS lite bigger then the PSP. Nintendo fanboys eat your heart out.
Ah but sony can screw up too. The screen on the PSP is beautifull oh those damn pixel problems. Everyone I know with a PSP has some problems, nobody I know with a DS (either version) has any. Or for that matter with the GBA not even idiots like me who installed an afterburner. There is also a ghosting problem.
The dual screen? Well it is a nice touch but 99% of the time you only look at one of them, it is rare to find a game where the action happens on both screens at once. The PSP screen contains a lot more action and some games do look damn impressive. There are plenty of times I would with the DS had more screen real estate. In practice however I can't compare them because the games I play on them are just to different.
So wich is better? Well frankly both are flawed devices. Neither company has an excuse for the mistakes made. Nintendo should have done a better job with the powerswitch and Sony should really have handled the screen better. Both have plenty of experience with small devices after all.
Gaming wise
MMO Quests are like orgasms:
You may solo them, I prefer them in a group.
My kid has Nintendogs and he loves it. The concept probably isn't much different than Tamagotchi, but the game makes use of the internal microphone so you can train the dogs with your voice, whistle for them, etc.
the good ground has been paved over by suicidal maniacs
No real suprises here, after Nintendo's dominance with the Game Boy for so long they had basic plans on what to do and they knew that if they kept their product cheap and innovative they would grab a large share of the market. Sony jumped into the portable market with a high-end machine in comparison and have experienced a few problems straight off the bat (not being able to compete on price, benchmark games like GT4 mobile being delayed, UMD becoming unpopular). I think Nintendo will continue to have the market share, but Sony's sales will stay strong as they continue to improve their game lineup and attract those who are willing to pay more.
Business Voyeur
"The most successful products are the consoles that treat their customers right. PS2 creamed the other consoles of its generation due to great games, an outstanding gamepad, an out-of-the-box DVD movie player, a low price, and backward compatibility. Even though the PS2 has the crappiest hardware of the 3 consoles it's still far and away the best seller"
But the Xbox where cheaper than a PS2 in the later part wasn't it? And it had a better DVD-player, xbox live, a harddrive, better hardware.
The gamecube also had better hardware, it to has a nice gamepad, it have the lowest price, and it didn't sold well.
So doesn't make sense to me, except that PS2 had most games, but that's what happen when you sell most consoles i suppose.
PSP sold 185,000 in the first two days in the UK alone.
I don't think Europe is as sewn up as Nintendo fans would like you to believe.
-- I like the cut of your thinking, young man. - me.
Interestingly, 136,500 units were sold in the United States in just the first two days after the handheld console's launch.
Yeah, it's not like European's had any other distractions at this time... Oh yeah, World Cup.
How does this "pretty much lock up" the handheld 'war' in Europe. I know the Lite sold well, but most new system sell well (excluding N-Gage). The lead there has been fluctuating for a few months and by all means could just as easily go back the other way, of course unless Sony does something stupid like not lower the price of the PSP.
I was just in my local game store today (a GameStop, to be specific) to pick up a WiFi USB Connector for the DS, and a copy of Metroid Prime: Hunters (the DS doesn't like my college's WiFi, especially the WPA authentication). I noticed that the DS stuff was off in a corner of the store, took up maybe 4 racks (all about 2 feet wide and vertical to each other), nowhere near the front. However, the PSP games were all right in the front, with signifcantly larger racks. They even had the audacity to fill out the DS racks with the cases for used games mixed in with the new games. The biggest thing to take away from this is that the DS games were all the way in the back, almost like they were trying to hide them, mixed in with the near-absent PC, GameCube, and Xbox 1 games, and not one game was tilted so that you could see the front art (all were arranged so that you could read the spine). The PSP games, on the other hand, were in the very front of the store, each arranged so that someone walking by outside would be able to see the cover art clearly. Yeah, this is off-topic, but I think Sony pays GameStop good money to have Nintendo's stuff all the way in the back and their PSP stuff put in the front.
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Nintendogs, which turns your DS into a $150 digital pet? Can you say Tamagotchi?
Nothing at all like Sony's $600 virtual pet.
Adding to 7Prime's answer:
For me, the last decade has been a "dark age" for gaming. Ever since the PlayStation became the biggest brand in console gaming, games have been more and more about awesome graphics and "adult-targeted" franchises. Me, I prefer fun little games I can play with my friends in our living room. There are these games, too. There's Super Monkey Ball, Mario Kart, Mario Tennis, Sega's soccer game, the Mario Soccer game, the Donkey Konga games (which are incredibly funny if you're drunk). Sometimes, I take the Dreamcast out of the closet to play a bit of Powerstone with a few pals.
But if I go to our local games store to get a new game in that vein, I see a wall filled with WWII first person shooters and realistic racing games. I have nothing against these games. I don't usually play FPS, but there are some awesome racers out. The problem is, there simply aren't a lot of fun little party games anymore. There doesn't seem to be a big market for these on Sony's and Microsoft's consoles, and Nintendo's Gamecube never got enough market share to gain significant third-party support.
The Wii could change that.
If the Wii becomes successfull, there will be a lot more games that I want to buy because a lot more companies will make "Nintendo-style" fun party games for the Wii than for any other console.
It's quite simple, really. I want the Wii to win because that means that I will get a lot more games that I actually like.
Have you ever seen a Gamecube in action? If so, are you insane?
Compare Resident Evil 4 on the Cube and the PS2. Nuff said.
Constrast the PSP situation with the DS where Nintendo told developers they could continue to produce simple 2D games but Nintendo wanted developers to take advantage of both screens; this means that developers where given the choice whether to increase their costs or not. Um, developers have the same choice (to make simple 2d games on PSP), I for one own a couple simple 2d PSP games
I own a PSP, too. I would really love to know where you buy your games. As far as I can tell, there are four interesting games out for the PSP:
That's it. Two quirky single-player games, two somewhat generic (but fun) puzzlers. If you know of any other quirky, fun PSP games, please let me know.
On the DS, on the other hand, I have literaly dozens of fun, quirky games. It's simply no contest. There simply does not seem to be a real market for these games on Sony consoles.
Yeah, great argument. You truly sound like a Sony fanboy. "We got Katamari! Your friends are stupid because they don't want to learn car tuning before having fun! Any you don't need fun games, anyway, you loser, your life should be fun without them!" Okay, thanks, you really convinced me there.
So basically, you've run out of arguments. I'm still waiting for your list of all those fun, quirky PSP games, by the way. Yeah, yeah, I know, Katamari. As I said: that's exactly the reason why people care about the "console war." I don't want another console where a game like Katamari Part III is the single biggest example of a fun, innovative game. But that's exactly what will happen if Sony "wins."
I own Animal Crossing, and it works for me (obviously, the time keeps running, but the DS seems to sleep alright). Although clearly, the game does have an influence on sleeping: Some Mario games yell "Goodbye" if you close the DS (and something similar if you open it again).