As 2008 draws to a close and 2009 ignites amidst a world dogged by a new global economic crisis, peak oil theories, the War on Terror leaving the front pages and a renewed hope in the next US presidential administration, a smaller-scale debate has taken place over what some might have seen as a crisis in itself. The state of Sony’s handheld system for the duration of the year had many feeling stranded; the apparent lack of software, the ever-present opinion of it still being a “port-machine” and detrimentally lacking dual analog control, amongst other things. The IGN PSP General Board hosted a thread to discuss what kind of year the machine really did have, comparisons to earlier years, software line-up – both past and present – and what the future might hold for a machine, now in its fifth year and third hardware revision.
This is an abridged version of the thread.
The round-table was conducted with a larger selection of commentators, but for the sake of being concise, those above have been shortlisted.
It cannot be denied that the PSP had a stunning start to the year. Chairslinger, the initiator of the discussion, believes this could have been better scheduled to lessen the so-called drought of the second half of 2008.
“It’s a year that may go down as the death knell for the PSP; software support reaching a Gamecube-esque level of woe, along with what some consider to be a very disappointing hardware revision. Or, perhaps the PSP will bounce back and a closer look will reveal it was really just more like a 6 month slump for the black beauty.”
The PSP 3000, or PSP Brite, was a contentious hardware revision. Adding a microphone and supposedly glare-resistant screen was offset by the apparently appalling scan-lines that appeared. Most agreed that the earlier model, the PSP 2000 or Slim, was the preferred purchase. However, not dwelling on the hardware – which has been selling increasingly well – a machine is nothing without software, which is the avenue of discussion. Chairslinger continues:
“…I am more on the positive side of things, but even I have to admit this is one of the most disappointing Fall/Winter periods I have had for a system. Times like these are usually relegated to moderately successful systems giving way to their successors. If not for the PSP’s unusual position, I would say it was a goner. But I don’t think any system has ever really done what the PSP has in Japan. Will we benefit from it’s success over there, or will we be stuck waiting for PSP2 with little game support here in NA, while Japan gets all the PSP goodies?”
“…2008 took on a dark tone for some PSP owners. But to me, 2008 seems more like a decent year, albeit one that was very top heavy. A decent, if sparse year, hurt a lot by bad timing. Looking back at the line-up, there really was enough quality software to give us 1 great title every other month, and almost 2 good titles a month the whole year. Damn your bad timing Sony, there was no need for 3 Game of The Months on IGN to be nothing at all!”
Interestingly, his concluding paragraph for the opening post was reassuring, as it does reflect what a powerful few months the PSP had, which in turn made the rest of the year look very depressing to many.
“…When all is said and done, 2008 may put more PSP games in my top 10 PSP games than any other year. I know I couldn’t make such a list without N+ or Crisis Core on it, and God of War would probably be in there too. We are ending it with Super Stardust and maybe, just maybe, Loco Roco 2, which is nice. So, does anyone agree with me, or do ya’ll think I am being way too lenient on a system wheezing it’s last, futile breaths?”
GigersALIEN found 2008 to be a year filled with few titles of any lasting credit; never a stranger to debate, he states that while the games released were good, he found himself digging through the PSP’s back catalogue, and finding solace in some critically-mauled releases.
“…Except for a few must have games such as Star Wars The Force Unleashed and…and…damn I can’t think of any 2008 releases! Not that there weren’t any, it’s just nothing much was memorable. 2008 is by far the worst year for the PSP. The only thing for me that kept me going was older titles. Many of which were rated poorly in the press but they turned out to be really awesome. Games like Metal Gear AC!D, Armored Core, Warriors Orochi and Rengoku II far exceeding my expectations based solely on their reviews.”
“I really think the PSP overall is an outstanding system with outstanding games that the gaming media loves to trash for what reason I just do not know. It really makes no sense how all these good games are getting poor reviews. Then the bad word of mouth spreads, not based on first hand playtime, but by bandwagoneers on internet sites who have nothing better to do but be negative.
I believe also that the PSP is a success in all territories and is not on its last legs. It’s here to stay. I’m happy with the games I have and the few I’m interested in the future.”
Steele311, keeper of the well-known IGN PSP Board “List”, came to the table with a string of titles that were released in 2008, many of which came out in the first quarter of the year.
“…God of War Chains of Olympus, Hot Shots Golf Open Tee 2, N+, Patapon, Wipeout Pulse, Echochrome, and Midnight Club LA Remix have kept me quite happy throughout a very slow and disappointing 2008. Good thing these games are all so badass though or else I’d have something to complain about…”
Which again raises the idea of the PSP being a machine that has more quality than quantity – a concept in contrast to many views held by detractors, claiming it is nothing more than a graveyard for shallow ports.
“…We also got stuff like MLB08, Crisis Core, Williams Pinball Collection, SNK Arcade Classics, Atari Classics Evolved, NBA09 The Inside, Space Invaders Extreme, Downstream Panic! and Star Ocean, which kind of goes to show just how good the year was, all considering… So when it comes down to the question “Was 2008 really all that bad for the PSP?”, I think, depending on what you played, you can go either way. For me, it’s been great, for others, maybe not so much…”
The PSP has an undeniably solid library of games behind it; with the apparent drought causing consternation amongst gamers and many declaring it dead in the water, did many people feel obliged to dig into the backlog and find the time to try out those titles that were never played upon release in prior quarters and/or years? Chairslinger replies:
“…This year never really forced me into digging into my backlog, but I have spent quite a bit of time with old games. The beauty of the PSP is that you can put games on the memory stick, so you don’t have to worry about carrying a bunch of discs around. I probably still wouldn’t be playing WipEout Pure and HSG:OT if it weren’t for the fact that they always there on my MS whenever I get a free moment.
I’ve dug into a few older games, but not too much. I generally play games on a slower pace then a lot of people around here, so Crisis Core at the beginning of the year was enough to give me a good full month of play time without really needing anything else. N+ and God of War have done the same.
“It seems like the people that are the most disappointed with the PSP this year are people who expect it to be like a console, where they can get 20 AAA games a year. If you are going to enjoy the PSP, or even the DS because handhelds just aren’t as prolific in releasing huge blockbuster games at a fast pace, you need to enjoy the smaller, niche titles like Downstream Panic, N+, and Space Invaders Extreme.
“I think Sony is making a few good moves already. John Koller has talked about how they are trying to convince third parties to make original content for the PSP, but to stick with big name franchises while doing it. Some might not like that, but to me it’s a good middle ground for fans (getting original content) and publishers (the PSP isn’t exactly the safest place to be making games for nowadays).”
2008 was the beginning of these events taking place; the big names announcing a portable offshoot. Will it be enough in the new year to garner the attention of the console-only gamer?
“Also, as much as I hate to say it because I am a PS2 fan, not a PS3 fan, I think moving on to making versions of PS3 specific franchises, rather then going with older PS2 specific franchises, is a good idea. PS2 is in the past, and courting new PSP owners is a lot easier when you say “You like Resistance, Motorstorm, and Little Big Planet on the PS3? How about taking them all on the go”. Pains me to say it, because we will probably never get our Sly Cooper Portable now, but it’s probably for the best.
Of course that is mostly about selling software and how to get much needed game support back. As far as hardware sales, Sony still seems pretty strong here. They seem to be selling 200-250k per month, which is not bad for a system. Especially considering that when you cut right through the bundle shuffling, the PSP has only had one legitimate price drop of 30 bucks in the past 4 years! I think it’s a good strategy by Sony. For a system that is hampered by poor software sales due to piracy, why not make as much as you can on the hardware? Also, instead of price drops, why not keep throwing bundles out there. The bundles tend to be pretty damn good deals when you look at them….but it’s probably mostly because Sony figures they will get an extra 30 bucks off you for a game that you might otherwise be pirating anyway.
Probably a good strategy for them at this point, and while it’s not really conductive to raising hardware sales(a real price drop to $129 would be best for that) it’s probably a good strategy for them at this point. So yeah, it may sound funny, but the strategy that has them selling less hardware right now, may be the better one for them in the long run…”
Jikkle01 jumped into the fray at this point and gave an insight into just what the system needs to return that spark we’ve seen in prior years.
“…2008 was a pretty slim year for the PSP but it did have a few solid releases so I hardly think this is the end of the system or anything like that. But I do think the system can do a few things to improve.
Sony for one still seems half hearted when it comes to marketing the thing. Most ads you see for the PSP market it as a multimedia device rather than a gaming machine with multimedia capabilities. Putting a focus on it gaming abilities rather than it multimedia capabilities would be a help to the system.
The other issue I think the PSP has is it needs to get away from making the console gaming experience portable and focus on making the PSP it’s own unique gaming experience. I personally think PSP is at it’s best when it’s pumping out unique projects like Patapon and not trying to be the PS2 on the go. One of the reasons the DS is so successful is the fact that you’re getting a gaming experience that you won’t get from the current consoles and PSP needs more of that mentality rather than shrinking all its major franchise onto the PSP.
Overall I think 09 should be a good year regardless for the PSP as long as nothing gets delayed as it seems more games are being made for it rather than less…”
Victinvic had more positive things to say in terms of the games released for the PSP during 2008. Again an argument for quality over quantity.
“…Not sure why people are writing off all of 2008 for the PSP. We had Wipeout Pulse, Patapon, FF7:Crisis Core, Hot Shots Golf Open Tee 2, and of course, God of War:Chains of Olympus all released this year.
Yes, the PSP has had a terrible lineup for Fall/Winter but there were a ton of quality games that came out in the beginning of the year. The PSP was on fire earlier in the year. I’m surprised people here are just shrugging those games off.”
EarlBoykins reinforced that sentiment and simply stated the few games to his interest release in 2008 were simply enough.
“…in regards to 2008 and the PSP, I have managed to find a few gems like Crisis Core, MLB 08, Hot Shots Golf Open Tee 2 and NBA 09 The Inside. These have kept me busy, plus I’m not one that needs a ton of games, I’m pretty happy having 3 or 4 games in my PSP rotation and these should hold me over ’til Resistance Retribution…”
Chairslinger came back with a view in regards to genres the PSP excels at. While many falsely view the machine to do little more than house a transferred PS2 library, from the very beginning, certain genres have boomed quietly on the handheld.
“…Sports are often forgotten (I don’t really play them myself) as a throw away genre. They are the background noise of the game world, what with so many of them just being yearly releases of slightly modified formulas. But I’ll tell you, anyone who has ever played sports games on handhelds should know just how much credit the PSP deserves in this area. Certain sports like Football and Basketball have never been done well on handhelds because of hardware limitations. Ever. It’s great to see the PSP do these things with console-like quality. Throw in really good renditions of Baseball, Soccer, Golf, and even with a sparse year like 2008 the PSP was still probably better for a sports fan then the DS was. Over it’s lifetime, it’s not even close. Even without having the 2k basketball series
Racing is another obviously huge genre for the PSP. Not surprising considering there were two great racers on it at launch! WipEout Pure, and Ridge Racer. Then Burnout Legends, Midnight Club, and Need for Speed later in ‘05. Then in ‘06 we got Outrun, Racer Driver ‘06, and ATV Offroad Fury. ‘07 had Test Drive, Burnout Dominator, and Sega Rally Revo. Throw in Pulse, LA Mix, and FlatOut this year, and that’s a pretty strong genre. I even left out some decent titles when making that list…..a sign of a strong genre
I would say that Puzzle games are very strong on the PSP as well. It’s also a genre that has a surprisingly large amount of very good original games/franchises for a system that is heavy on console franchises. Probably due to the fact that the Puzzle genre was nearly dead on consoles when the PSP came out. Funny that so many of them ended up actually coming to consoles. Anywho, yeah, the Puzzle genre is very strong on the PSP with games like Games like Mercury and Mercury Meltdown, Lumines and Lumines II, Patapon(though I dunno if it’s precisely a puzzler), Puzzle Quest, Echochrome, Crush, Downstream Panic, Exit, the PQ games, Capcom Puzzle World, the PSP’s own renditions of Bomberman, Lemmings, Puyopop, and Bust-a-move. The Luxor games scored horribly, but I can you from first hand experience that they are actually pretty damn good.
The Platformer genre isn’t exactly jam packed, but then again the Platformer genre ain’t really what it used to be anywhere. I’ll take the Platformer genre on PSP over most other systems(I’m looking at you Xbox 360…). Size Matters, Daxter, SAC, Loco Roco(like Patapon, kind of hard to catogorize), N+, Megaman Powered Up, MMMHX, both PoP games, Ultimate Ghouls & Ghosts, Ape Escape: OtL, Tokobot, and the two Death Jr. games.
The PSP also takes a lot of **** for having a lot of RPG’s, but not having too many great ones, but it’s still not a bad list. In fact, it’s probably it’s best genre next to the four I already mentioned. Though I guess it depends if you count traditional RPG, hack & slash, and action RPG as all one genre. The Untold Legend games, Dungeon Siege, X-men Legends, JLH, and MUA for H&S. Brave Story, Star Ocean, VP: Lenneth, FF1&2, Tales of the World, The Legend of Heroes games, Popolocrois, and Ape Quest for more traditional RPG. Then Crisis Core, Monster Hunter 1&2, and Kingdom of Paradise for ARPG.
What are the other big genres? Adventure, Shooter, FPS, Fighter, and maybe Survival Horror? None of those are really prolific on the PSP, but quite a few of them are well represented with one or two great games at least.”
Another development during 2008 was the launch of the PSP PSN Store. Prior to its debut, all demos and purchases had to be either downloaded as zip files (in regards to many demos) or via the PC PSN store, both needing a transfer via USB to the machine itself. With the release of the PSN on PSP, trialling demos and purchasing titles could be done via wi-fi. This has lead to the idea that most titles in the future will be direct-download, rather than physical media. It is a contentious issue, but Mo1518 is adamant it is the way of the future.
“…Digital distribution is the future. I love it, personally, and other than the lack of resale options, I can’t see a single flaw in the process. Also, with the PS3 as an example, some really interesting, unique things are happening in small scale “experiences” and games. My PS3’s HD is chock full of PSN games, which I play far more often than I do disc games. Games like the pixeljunk series, pain and SSHD – they’re pretty, they’re unique, they load quick and no disc swapping.
I think this is what could make the PSP the handheld to beat, if they could port that UMD-less experience over. I should have been playing wipeout, puzzle quest, Super Stardust, and the pixeljunk games on my PSP from day 1, rather than a boatload of over-ambitious PS2/Wii ports. Man – I’d take The Last Guy on PSP any day, and long before I’d drop $50 on the latest Madden shovelware….”
It was an interesting discussion that provided an insight into the past, present and future of the PSP. The IGN PSP General Board boasts a small fraternity of discerning gamers, and none are pure brand-driven fans – thus the arguments and opinions of the board are usually well-centered and cited. The year of 2009 has only just begun, with the future of the PSP essentially like everything else within the gaming realm: Very Interesting.
Thanks to: Chairslinger, GigersALIEN, Steele311, EarlBoykins, Mo1518, Victinvic and Jikkle01.
I was on Yahoo and found your blog. Read a few of your other posts. Good work. I am looking forward to reading more from you in the future.
Tom Stanley
Was linked to your blog from a friend. That was a very informative article that really puts the PSP into perspective. I’ve owned the PSP since Launch so I am a fan. And even though 2008 seemed like a dry spell this article with all the games listed make 2008 look pretty full. Very well written. I enjoyed it.
Thanks guys, appreciate you stopping by and reading. Hope you enjoy all the articles!
What a great article! Very insightful, if I do say so myself…