PSP Go Debuts, Disappoints 258
Sony has now officially launched the new version of their portable game console, the PSP Go, and the Opposable Thumbs blog took it for a spin to see how they liked it. Their impressions of the new hardware are almost entirely negative, despite being fans of the original PSP. One major point of contention was Sony's removal of the UMD drive in this revision, making it so you need to access the PlayStation Store to buy games. This kills price competition and used game sales in one fell swoop, while also making owners of any original PSP games unable to play them on the new hardware. The review says the new device looks sleek, but the dimensions make it somewhat cramped and awkward to use unless you have small hands. They also decry the switch to proprietary cables, and sum up their opinion by saying, "When your older, cheaper hardware is better and more able than your new offering, you need to fire some designers."
Re:Not exactly... (Score:3, Interesting)
Well if you are mid 40 have a wife and a few kids, then I wonder if you still speak out and loose your job.
Its easier to do that if you donÂt have anything to loose anymore than if people you dearly love depend on you for their survival. That is one of the reasons btw. why usually revolutions erupt over bad economy and hunger, than over a political system, as long as the majority has something to loose they stay calm even if things are not perfect.
Re:But is it dead, or is this mutated mitosis? (Score:2, Interesting)
They didn't kill the previous model, though, did they? This is just another model.
For now. Sony won't keep both models running forever.
*snicker* To bring in all the "OMG THE PIRATES ARE COSTING JOBS OF HONEST CITIZENS!" excuse the industries batted around a while back, I can't help but laugh at them all running to download only where possible. One of the "main jobs" affected by "piracy" they cried, were drivers in the transport industry who would not have as much product to deliver and thus would lose their jobs!
Let's see, removal of ALL game deliveries certainly affects the transportation industry a hell of a lot more than a few less of each particular game. ;)
Also, regarding the tougher design point - you had better hope it's more durable. Kid drops it, breaks it, and the entire library of games is ruined with it. Rather than just the system + 1 game in the drive.
PSN ToS unacceptable (Score:3, Interesting)
To me, anyway -- the complete and (in some versions of the document -- there's more than one!) exclusive worldwide rights to any "user created content" -- any data you ever upload through the service -- are too much. I do not trust Sony on the other hand of an agreement like that. Conclusion: No PSN for me. Thus, no games for the PSP Go. Idiots.
Re:This is getting borring (Score:3, Interesting)
When Nintendo releases DSi without previous gen games compatibility (unlike DS) it's the best hardware ever made.
It's not the best hardware ever, but it is an improvement over the DS Lite in enough ways to justify its existence. More storage, SD card slot, cameras, etc. It can't play GBA games, which were obsolete years ago. Oh noes!
Proprietary cable for on iPod? It's Apple, stupid!
First, the cables aren't proprietary. They're standard USB cables with one proprietary connector. The other connector will work with any standard USB port. Second, no one praises Apple for doing this, it's just that the benefits of the iPod outweigh the drawback of needing a special connector for it.
Downloadable games - all kosher for Apple, Microsoft and Nintendo.
I can still play disc-based games on my 360 and Wii, and I can still play DS games in my DSi. As for my iPod, there were never physical media games for it otherwise, so who the fuck cares? The issue isn't downloadable games, it's having to pay to download games you already bought for the previous iteration if you want to play them on the new one. So far, I haven't had to re-buy any games for my iPod Touch or 360.
Sony, on the other hand cannot do anything right - UMD is lame, no UMD is atrocious. What do you want,a 8" floppy? A DVD? Does your Zune come with one? Your DS? Your iPhone?
If you want to play games from UMDs why do you buy PSP go? You don't buy an iPhone to play your Appple ][ floppies. You don't buy Zune to play MSX carts.
That's a red herring.
I'd rather buy downloadable games for PSP since I can install them on multiple PSPs and PS3s than buy multiple UMDs to play multiplayer but I must be a crazy one.
If you sincerely want to to that, knock yourself out. You are one of the rare few with an interest in the PSP Go who isn't getting shafted by it by making you have to re-buy your games if you want to play them on it. By all means, enjoy your handheld that costs more than a brand new console.
Re:Sony phailed (Score:5, Interesting)
Betamax, for all of its faults, was actually successful for a number of years
Yeah. 2. Two years. Once RCA got permission from Matsushita to produce 4-hour-capable VHS recorders (1976), the Betamax 1-hour limit looked like a joke to consumers. VHS quickly became the number one brand. By 1980 Betamax barely held 1/5th of the market.
Minidisc is only "popular outside the U.S." if you define popular as holding 10% of the market, which I consider to be a flop (along with Super CD and DVD Audio). The only formats Sony has successfully parleyed as the dominant standards of their time - Umatic (for professionals), Betacam (pro), Compact Disc, and Playstation 1 and 2.
Inevitable. (Score:3, Interesting)
I'm convinced the single largest mistake Sony made with the PSP Go was charging too much for it. If it had cost roughly as much as a regular PSP people would be complaining less about the other changes. I realize, however, that the new form factor has likely added to the price of this thing, but then therein lies the source of this problem.
What Sony should have done was offer an updated PSP in the same form factor as the original, but simply eliminate the UMD drive and then promote the functionality they're currently pushing with the Go. This would ensure costs stay down, and in fact, probably give Sony the opportunity to charge even less for this new PSP. Additionally, it wouldn't make existing PSP owners feel like they're being left behind.
While I prefer owning physical copies of my games, going to a download only model doesn't bother me. I personally think not being able to purchase used games is a non-issue because I never do so. I feel that, with the exclusion of buying from an individual, the used games market is a scam anyway. You're not paying much less than full price for a used game. I can go online, and sometimes retailers like Target, and find new games for the same or less than what places like Gamestop are charging for a used game.
And that's where the problem lies. With the PSP Go will we only be able to buy games via Sony? This pretty much ensures Sony has complete control over pricing. In the very least, I expect downloadable games to cost $5 to $10 less than an actual physical copy. And will games be discounted as they age and decline in popularity? I should hope so.
Unfortunately, I think this is the way of the future. It's already starting and Sony was simply the first to take such a bold step in that direction. Too many people have grown comfortable with micro-payments and overpaying for products and services. It's going to be next to impossible to stop this tide. The PSP Go might flop simply because it entered the market a bit too soon.
Re:Not exactly... (Score:3, Interesting)
Many times it simply is not worth it to quit a job over a lousy project. I did 1-2 times myself, and I once refused a job offer because it was in the weapons industry. But many times it simply is not worth it, but I never stay calm, and start to make protocols so that the situation is clear who is to blame once the shit hits the fan internally.
The thing is sometimes the impossible is wanted and you can say what you want to your boss, he does not want to listen, so keep protocols protocols protocols, and if a scapegoat has to be found you have to be in the clear on this one that you acted responsible by always telling the truth regarding it but you were ignored!