Final PSP details confirmed: launch date, price, software and battery-life detailed inside!
Sony handheld will hit Japan this year
It’s been a long time coming, but Sony has finally confirmed those crucial details about the forthcoming PSP handheld. The first issue is: when can we get one? There has been much speculation as to when the PSP might be in shops, with many analysts predicted delays into next year, but Sony is sticking to its initial promise… and the PSP will be released in Japan on 12th December 2004. That’s official.
And the second big question on everyone’s lips – how much will it cost? In Japan, at least, it will retail for 20,790 Yen (approximately £105). Next to the loftier expectations some had predicted, this seems like a good value deal. Sony will also be releasing an extra value package; bundled with an AC adaptor, battery pack, 32 Mb Memory Stick Duo, remote control headphones, a soft case and a hand strap(not forgetting the console) for 26,040 – which works out a shade over £130.
There’s no official confirmation of PSP prices outside of Japan, but SPOnG believes that something around the £150 would be a sensible estimate over here in Blighty.
Sony has also addressed the crucial battery-life issue, which Nintendo was keen to suggest petered out after a couple of hours. Fortunately, that is not quite the case: according to the official press release the PSP has an “integrated high output lithium-ion battery that provides play time of between 4 and 6 hours for game titles and continuous 4 to 5 hours for video viewing.”
Interestingly, there’s still no concrete confirmation of what the launch line-up might be. Sony promises that there will be 21 games available in Japan before the end of the year, but which of these will be ready on December 12th will remain to be seen. Hot Shots Golf, Ridge Racer and Metal Gear Acid look to be some of the important titles for the Japanese launch; the full list is as follows.
Bandai – Lumines; The Legend of Heroes
Capcom – Vampire Chronicle: Chaos Tower
CyberFront Corporation - Kollon
EA. - Need for Speed Underground Rivals; Tiger Woods PGA Tour
FromSoftware – Armoured Core: Formula Front
Husdsonsoft - Rengoku: The Tower of Purgatory
KOEI. - Dynasty Warriors; Mahjong
Konami – Metal Gear Acid; Mahjong Fight Club
Marvelous Interactive Inc. - AI Go; Al Mahjong; Al Shogi
Namco - Kotoba No Puzzle Mojipittan Daijiten; Ridge Racer
SEGA - Puyo Pop Fever
Sony - Dokodemo Issyo; Hot Shots Golf
Taito – Puzzle Bobble Pocket
After Nintendo’s early volley of fire, detailing attractive DS related information, Sony has finally returned the shot: and the handheld war has truly begun. There’s still everything to play for, with the DS reaching the US before even Japan gets the PSP: but once these finished consoles are actually out there in the public domain, being pawed by real-life gamers, the competition is sure to heat up even further.
Expect much, much more on the ensuing handheld battle in the weeks to come.
And the second big question on everyone’s lips – how much will it cost? In Japan, at least, it will retail for 20,790 Yen (approximately £105). Next to the loftier expectations some had predicted, this seems like a good value deal. Sony will also be releasing an extra value package; bundled with an AC adaptor, battery pack, 32 Mb Memory Stick Duo, remote control headphones, a soft case and a hand strap(not forgetting the console) for 26,040 – which works out a shade over £130.
There’s no official confirmation of PSP prices outside of Japan, but SPOnG believes that something around the £150 would be a sensible estimate over here in Blighty.
Sony has also addressed the crucial battery-life issue, which Nintendo was keen to suggest petered out after a couple of hours. Fortunately, that is not quite the case: according to the official press release the PSP has an “integrated high output lithium-ion battery that provides play time of between 4 and 6 hours for game titles and continuous 4 to 5 hours for video viewing.”
Interestingly, there’s still no concrete confirmation of what the launch line-up might be. Sony promises that there will be 21 games available in Japan before the end of the year, but which of these will be ready on December 12th will remain to be seen. Hot Shots Golf, Ridge Racer and Metal Gear Acid look to be some of the important titles for the Japanese launch; the full list is as follows.
Bandai – Lumines; The Legend of Heroes
Capcom – Vampire Chronicle: Chaos Tower
CyberFront Corporation - Kollon
EA. - Need for Speed Underground Rivals; Tiger Woods PGA Tour
FromSoftware – Armoured Core: Formula Front
Husdsonsoft - Rengoku: The Tower of Purgatory
KOEI. - Dynasty Warriors; Mahjong
Konami – Metal Gear Acid; Mahjong Fight Club
Marvelous Interactive Inc. - AI Go; Al Mahjong; Al Shogi
Namco - Kotoba No Puzzle Mojipittan Daijiten; Ridge Racer
SEGA - Puyo Pop Fever
Sony - Dokodemo Issyo; Hot Shots Golf
Taito – Puzzle Bobble Pocket
After Nintendo’s early volley of fire, detailing attractive DS related information, Sony has finally returned the shot: and the handheld war has truly begun. There’s still everything to play for, with the DS reaching the US before even Japan gets the PSP: but once these finished consoles are actually out there in the public domain, being pawed by real-life gamers, the competition is sure to heat up even further.
Expect much, much more on the ensuing handheld battle in the weeks to come.
Companies:
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Comments
ohms 27 Oct 2004 10:09
1/20
As I suspected the 2 hour battery life scare stories were to soften the blow, so now 5-6 hours doesn't seem so bad, even though they said 10 hours at E3.
Not a bad price tho.
Not a bad price tho.
tyrion 27 Oct 2004 10:44
2/20
ohms wrote:
As I suspected the 2 hour battery life scare stories were to soften the blow, so now 5-6 hours doesn't seem so bad, even though they said 10 hours at E3.
Having seen the press release and the MCV story, the conditions attached to the battery life stipulate full brightness on the screen. I'll bet you could get closer to 10 hours with the backlight turned down. Probably not the full 10, but I'd have thought at least seven or eight.
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PresidentEvil 27 Oct 2004 10:50
3/20
I'm really not worried about battery life.
I only plan to own a PSP in order to carry it around with me, to show how afluent and cool I am.
Using it in "restricted utility" mode, with the power switch in the "off" position, turning it to on only briefly to impress memeber of the proler... prool... poor people who don't own a PSP, I expect to have significantly extended battery life.
I only plan to own a PSP in order to carry it around with me, to show how afluent and cool I am.
Using it in "restricted utility" mode, with the power switch in the "off" position, turning it to on only briefly to impress memeber of the proler... prool... poor people who don't own a PSP, I expect to have significantly extended battery life.
Funky 27 Oct 2004 11:28
4/20
Great news regarding the price and battery life. The only thing that can ruin this are lack of launch titles. For £130 I'd snap one up on launch, if it had the software to go with it... if not, I'll wait a while until the price drops and there's more software.
Kaxxx 27 Oct 2004 11:35
5/20
Thats alot of good promises and news from Sony. TBH im really glad to hear it as the PSP defintely has something more there for the older games such as myself.
Hopefully the price tag stays low for the UK but there is nothing to indicate that it wont. Good news indeed. :D
Hopefully the price tag stays low for the UK but there is nothing to indicate that it wont. Good news indeed. :D
Joji 27 Oct 2004 12:58
6/20
I'd buy one for that price, at least the feedback has paid off for all our rantings of PSP being over priced.
I'm getting both DS and PSP so this makes it easier for me.
The battery life issue is still problem for me, when you are playing a game 6 hours passes like 3 hours. Also the accessories will cause a problem. 6 hours will be like playing GG all over again, but if it can last longer then that's good.
Despite my pouring scorn on the Sony camp, I don't do it for the sake of it, and I suppose they haven't met all of their promises but meeting us half way will have to do.
I'm getting both DS and PSP so this makes it easier for me.
The battery life issue is still problem for me, when you are playing a game 6 hours passes like 3 hours. Also the accessories will cause a problem. 6 hours will be like playing GG all over again, but if it can last longer then that's good.
Despite my pouring scorn on the Sony camp, I don't do it for the sake of it, and I suppose they haven't met all of their promises but meeting us half way will have to do.
NiktheGreek 27 Oct 2004 13:10
7/20
5-6 hours of battery life seems reasonable enough, I guess. Certainly enough for the fabled "long car journey".
The big news here is the price. It's pretty impressive - Sony's going to be taking the fight to Nintendo on this battlefield. Personally, I wonder if Sony is losing money on this - and if it is, how much? Something tells me that Sony isn't going to be bothered by losing some money to completely corner the market for gaming systems. It's certainly the same tactic Microsoft used to get it's foothold in the console market, and could serve Sony well.
The race just got closer, and far more interesting.
The big news here is the price. It's pretty impressive - Sony's going to be taking the fight to Nintendo on this battlefield. Personally, I wonder if Sony is losing money on this - and if it is, how much? Something tells me that Sony isn't going to be bothered by losing some money to completely corner the market for gaming systems. It's certainly the same tactic Microsoft used to get it's foothold in the console market, and could serve Sony well.
The race just got closer, and far more interesting.
Joji 27 Oct 2004 13:24
8/20
I hear you, the price is better so at least they sorted that out.
Launch of PSP still creates probs for me. PSP 130-150 quid, Memory stick = 20-30 quid, and one or two games = 80 quid.
My wallet screams in pain, but that's only because I'm not currently working. The DS will have to come first then just on what I will be spending to get started.
Launch of PSP still creates probs for me. PSP 130-150 quid, Memory stick = 20-30 quid, and one or two games = 80 quid.
My wallet screams in pain, but that's only because I'm not currently working. The DS will have to come first then just on what I will be spending to get started.
The_Moss 27 Oct 2004 13:59
9/20
Anyone know if it's going to be region locked or not yet? That's always been the one of the most attractive attributes of the Game Boy family for me, and the DS is apparently not going to break with this honourable tradition
Mecha Ghandi 27 Oct 2004 14:09
10/20
Joji wrote:
Launch of PSP still creates probs for me. PSP 130-150 quid, Memory stick = 20-30 quid, and one or two games = 80 quid.
And you might even want to get an extra spare battery as well... they'll prolly work out at about £30 each.
DoctorDee 27 Oct 2004 14:41
11/20
The_Moss wrote:
Anyone know if it's going to be region locked or not yet?
Apparently so.
I only asked after I already had one in my basket at Lik Sang. But SPOnG bods Thwaite and Rox reckon it is, and their word is good enough for me!
Damn bad news though, I rilly rilly wanted one before Christmas, but I can't be bothered with all that game importing and guessing my way through Japanese user-interfaces crap.
The_Moss 27 Oct 2004 16:03
12/20
Hmm, I've heard rumours that that is the case also. But we were discussing it on a mailgroup here at work, and one of the programmers said there was no region lock on games, with a quiet yet secretive certainty that suggested he knew for sure.
I still doubt him though - Game Boys don't need regions cause they just play games, but cause of the other stuff PSPs do then they'll need some sort of OS, which would probably involve languages, and I'm sure Sony wouldn't have hung around getting all 600 European languages on it when they are hustling to get it out early in Japan. But then even if there did have to be a different machine for each region, that doesn't necessarily mean they couldn't play games from others. Though knowing Sony it probably would....
I still doubt him though - Game Boys don't need regions cause they just play games, but cause of the other stuff PSPs do then they'll need some sort of OS, which would probably involve languages, and I'm sure Sony wouldn't have hung around getting all 600 European languages on it when they are hustling to get it out early in Japan. But then even if there did have to be a different machine for each region, that doesn't necessarily mean they couldn't play games from others. Though knowing Sony it probably would....
fluffstardx 27 Oct 2004 17:13
13/20
Hello? This is SONY. It'll be region locked. You get nothing for free.
I have a feeling the battery life may be "varying"; that claim may not factor in loading etc. So games that load more, drain more.
And they could teach the damn thing to tap dance and i still wouldn't buy it. Why?
Memory Stick. The world's least reliable/stable/hard-wearing storage medium ever. They snap, they malfunction, they generally wear out. No thankyou.
I have a feeling the battery life may be "varying"; that claim may not factor in loading etc. So games that load more, drain more.
And they could teach the damn thing to tap dance and i still wouldn't buy it. Why?
Memory Stick. The world's least reliable/stable/hard-wearing storage medium ever. They snap, they malfunction, they generally wear out. No thankyou.
almondVanHelsing 27 Oct 2004 18:30
14/20
DoctorDee wrote:
Damn bad news though, I rilly rilly wanted one before Christmas, but I can't be bothered with all that game importing and guessing my way through Japanese user-interfaces crap.
But if you buy one before EU or US launch, that's all the games you will have to choose from, even if it is region-unlocked.
config 27 Oct 2004 18:50
15/20
fluffstardx wrote:
Hello? This is SONY. It'll be region locked. You get nothing for free.
The original JP release of PS2 had region free DVD playback.
Of course, this was changed for the western territories, but my point is that one shouldn't take it for granted that PSP will be completely locked down.
Perhaps region encoding will be at the discretion of the developer/publisher, as region encoding on DVD video software is.
Anyway, Da Moss is close to sources at a pretty well known publisher/developer, so I'm certainly not discarding what he's been told.
DoctorDee 27 Oct 2004 19:42
16/20
almondVanHelsing wrote:
But if you buy one before EU or US launch, that's all the games you will have to choose from, even if it is region-unlocked.
I think you are missing my point.
If PSP is non-region-coded, and I buy a Japanese one asap, I will have an item to fetishise, and to stroke, which will later become a useful toy.
It it IS region coded, it will never be more than an techs-object.
Mecha Ghandi 27 Oct 2004 21:28
17/20
The_Moss wrote:
I'm sure Sony wouldn't have hung around getting all 600 European languages on it when they are hustling to get it out early in Japan.
I was just about to write a flippant response to that, pointing to the fact that GT4 will apparently take 4 months to translate into 13 of Europe's finest languages (that's the official reason for the delay)... when I remembered a funny thing Sony brought up back in July...
http://news.spong.com/x?art=7126
Sony has language translator software for the PSP. And just as was being discussed back in July - that could have important repercussions for localisation and universalityation.
And mysteriously, this hasn't been mentioned since, and 'Talkman' hasn't appeared on the software lists. So, I'm going out on a limb here, but maybe that software has been built into the PSP?
Previously I had assumed there would be regional locking just because that's what I thought... but on reflection, I'm not so sure...
1. Nintendo (the most successful ever handheld manufacturer of all time ever) never used regional locking on handhelds.
2. There's no TV signal PAL/NTSC issue on a handheld.
3. Basic economies of scale dictate that one hardware variation would be preferable.
4. Sony is a truly global company, why not try a truly golobal product.
5. The regionally defined limited roll-out we're seeing would be the only one possible anyway (not long ago analysts were banging on about screen shortages and subsequent supply constraints)
6. The PSP might have built-in translator software...
And then the bonus ball... someone who might well know that sort of thing hints that it might not have regional locking...
Hmmmmmmmmmmmmm...
Pandaman 27 Oct 2004 21:51
18/20
Even if I had a money for two handhelds, the problem for me is the software.
What's the deal with these games? They're exactly the same shovelware found on the PS2, just smaller. I think I can find a cheaper way to play Tiger Woods games, considering they're already on five other platformers (soon to be six) outside of this one.
What's the deal with these games? They're exactly the same shovelware found on the PS2, just smaller. I think I can find a cheaper way to play Tiger Woods games, considering they're already on five other platformers (soon to be six) outside of this one.
SPInGSPOnG 28 Oct 2004 07:56
19/20
Mecha Ghandi wrote:
3. Basic economies of scale dictate that one hardware variation would be preferable.
Dude, They could/would have one hardware variation. Region locking could be in firmware.
Mecha Ghandi wrote:
4. Sony is a truly global company, why not try a truly golobal product.
Because globality is something used for their benefit, not ours. Companies are global so they can deflect their profits to off-shore tax havens, and have their production done by 12-year olds earning cents a day - not so people in London can pay the same software prices as in Singapore, or get the same release dates as New York.
Mecha Ghandi wrote:
6. The PSP might have built-in translator software...
And a "cure cancer" button. D'ya think? Do ya, Barbie?
Kaxxx 28 Oct 2004 11:50
20/20
So far for me the DS wins hand down when it comes to software. Metal Gear Solid should be a superb title but ive seen so little of the PSP to date to make any firm judgement on it as a whole.
One thing that is worrying me is the sudden release of the dates for it. Im may be rushed out for competition.
One thing that is worrying me is the sudden release of the dates for it. Im may be rushed out for competition.