New PSP has touch-sensitive controls
Sony showing games to publishers.
Sony's current vision for the next-generation PlayStation Portable is roughly the same size as the PSP-3000 and has touch controls on the reverse of the unit.
According to three separate development sources who have seen and used the new PSP, the screen is rich and detailed but the headline feature is the way games are controlled - by a touch-sensitive area on the back of the unit behind the screen.
Sony is showcasing the unfinished handheld to publishers at the moment using several first-party games and has already settled on its business model for the device, which was not shown to the public at gamescom this week.
One source told us he expects it to launch by the end of 2011, although another was less convinced, believing we won't see anything for at least a couple of years. Sony has not specified when it will release a successor to the current platform.
It's thought that Sony considered a disc-based storage solution for the new PSP, but has since decided against it following developer feedback. Flash media support, similar to the PSPgo, seems most likely.
Sony told Eurogamer it "does not comment on rumour and speculation".
You may also like...
-
Hirai: Sony could be facing "serious trouble"
-
THQ reveals plans for 1.4m unsold uDraw tablets
-
BioWare suggests keeping Mass Effect 3 saves
-
Skyrim PC Creation Kit release date announced
-
Redundancies confirmed at EA Canada
-
Cannon Fodder 3 is… well…
-
US lawmaker proposes 1% tax on violent video games
-
Official Uncharted: Golden Abyss Vita case announced
-
Sony on Vita sales: "we do not think we have any problems"
-
Namco Bandai enters SoulCalibur 5 DLC debate
-
Valve teases secret Team Fortress 2 project
-
Atari "dream team" reforms to make games for "the new arcade", iOS
-
The Last of Us: first in-game screenshots, new gameplay details
-
Mass Effect 3 Facebook app rewards Xbox 360 players
-
DoDonPachi: Blissful Death iOS release date announced
-
Assassin's Creed, Might and Magic, Settlers unplayable during Ubisoft server switch
-
THQ details full extent of uDraw disaster
-
BioWare: Mass Effect 3 ending will "make some people angry"
-
Sega financials reveal Mario & Sonic London Olympics sales
-
Starbreeze "in constant fear" Syndicate is too hard
-
Metro: Last Light delayed until 2013
-
SSF4 AE Ver. 2012 patch release date announced
-
Lolapps denies stealing Triple Town business plans
-
Lightning, Snow and Sazh FF 13-2 DLC episodes teased
-
No Online Pass for Syndicate, EA confirms









Comments (74) 4 months ago
Comments threads automatically close after 30 days, but please feel free to continue chatting on the forum!
Comment below viewing threshold Show
Edit: Cant see how thats gonna work, touch screen on the back? Hmmmm
Comment below viewing threshold Show
No sale right there. I don't want my purchasing limited to a monopoly that serves only to keep its prices static and above retail level for digital goods.
@cjb Grow up. Noone cares.
Comment below viewing threshold Show
And controls behind the device!? That sounds bizarre. I can’t visualise this.
Comment below viewing threshold Show
I remember when MGS: Peace Walker came out on the PSN. £30 for the digital copy or £14 in store. Why on Earth would I pay double?
Comment below viewing threshold Show
It's the closest you could get to a mouse on a handheld platform.
Comment below viewing threshold Show
Comment below viewing threshold Show
I don't know why they said "similar to the PSP Go". The Go only has Memory Stick support, but not for games (unless downloaded). On the other hand, this one sounds like it would have games being sold directly on memory sticks (or SD, hopefully).
Also, i would expect that Sony learned something from their flop, so yeah. I don't think that's possible.
Comment below viewing threshold Show
Not strictly true, but it is over here. In the US there is an Amazon PSN Store which sells codes for PSN games at any price they like.
Comment below viewing threshold Show
Comment below viewing threshold Show
Im all for digital distribution taking over in the future. But only if they sort their pricing out. MS, Sony, Nintendo & even Steam (apart from the sales) all charge far too much for games & they are too static with their pricing (even steam which has good sales, doesnt really permanently drop prices of really old games) .
I wont be taking up digital distribution until this is sorted. If it doesnt change, well I'll have to stop gaming. I can barely afford it as is.
Comment below viewing threshold Show
If the games are digital-only, there is more chance of them being fairly priced (although I'm not saying Sony would do this).
Comment below viewing threshold Show
Comment below viewing threshold Show
Comment below viewing threshold Show
Comment below viewing threshold Show
Odd.
Comment below viewing threshold Show
Comment below viewing threshold Show
ARGH MY BRAIN
Comment below viewing threshold Show
there's probably like 20 prototypes and someone heard about 1 and thought OMG! PSP2 is on the way.
Comment below viewing threshold Show
Good, I only download my games on my PSP anyway. Carrying discs around just makes things less portable and more of a hassle, and a disc drive makes things bigger and more vulnerable than necessary, so digital-only makes perfect sense.
However, it would be good if Sony could open up a little and allow some competition in the form of other online stores. For example I wouldn't mind being able to buy games on Amazon.
On the long run this would be better for sony too, I'm sure.
For example it could spread the necessary efforts in making the games available; after all Sony seems quite unable release their PSP catalog on the PS Store, especially in Europe.
Comment below viewing threshold Show
Comment below viewing threshold Show
As for digital distribution only - it's the future, so deal with it. Digital is in its infany and no one has worked out a truly successfull business modell- But give the guys a chance. It's naive to think that we'll see some kind of price monopoly with static prices and no sales. Just look at Steam - everything will eventually drop in price and I'm sure we'll see a variety of pricing models. Remember that DD requires no stock, no risk in of manufacturing physical things you can't move once it's stuck in the channel and on the whole, a greater oppertunity for risk-taking.
Comment below viewing threshold Show
Steam says hi!
Comment below viewing threshold Show
If it is card based like DS I imagine they would go for MS Pro rather than SD. I think Sony have lost their way with handheld a bit as they're not sure if they are competing with Apple, Nintendo or both. They need to be like Nintendo, create a product that solves a people problem not a market share problem.
Comment below viewing threshold Show
The only alternatives will be for Sony to sell PSP2 games on a disc format that will allow for transfer from a PC or Mac, or give retailers the opportunity to sell download games from their sites, or codes from their stores, and be competitive with their pricing.
Edit: In addition, I'd like to see the ability to resell your own digital media games. This could be possible by deactivating the licence, which would only run on one machine, and selling it on.
Comment below viewing threshold Show
Comment below viewing threshold Show
The back touch control idea has been around for well over 2 years
[link url=http://www.technovelgy.com/ct/Science-Fiction -News.asp?NewsNum=2064
]http://ww w.technovelgy.com/ct/Science-Fi...[/link]
In terms of physical media, I don't want carts or discs or even boxes, that's so last gen. I want reasonably priced download with a good backup and transfer service. Sony want to tie me to them like I'm tied to Xbox Live, they now have a perfect chance.
Comment below viewing threshold Show
Comment below viewing threshold Show
I genuinely don't understand.
Comment below viewing threshold Show
/fails
Comment below viewing threshold Show
As for digital,it will work but only for cheap games 1-10 euro just like iphone...£30 digital game is lol
Comment below viewing threshold Show
Retail stores are killing themselves with the pre-owned market, as they're driving down the sales of the products they're distributing by creating competition for it, so developers will eventually get tired of this and go for maximum sales through digital distribution. But I digress.
Look at the iPhone, it's all digital distribution, and providing it's the developer that sets the price point, the prices won't be sky high. Look at the cost of GTA Chinatown Wars on PSP, iPhone and DS, far cheaper on the digital distribution only iPhone.
People have to remember that PSP is now competing with the iPhone and similar devices, it's only the older versions of the PSP that are making the PSP Go so expensive, people aren't going to buy the physical disc versions of a game they can get for a lot less digitally from PSN. If this next PSP is a true successor and the games are only digital download then prices won't be as high as there won't be a physical alternative, and there'll be competition from other formats that'll mean PSP needs to stay inline, and as I said if developers/publishers set prices, then they'll be competing with each other on the same platform, so no-one will go expensive.
The home consoles will go this way next generation or the one after, it's pretty much guaranteed, but that's even better, as there are three different manufacturers set in stone and they'll want to draw you in with cheaper price points, third party devs on all platforms will help keep prices at a reasonable level too.
The internet is getting to levels now where downloading games isn't that big an ask anymore either, our networks are getting faster and faster with each year that passes, to the extent that a 6-10gb download doesn't take too long.
Comment below viewing threshold Show
Comment below viewing threshold Show
All the descriptions, pricing and form factors they gave were generally dreadful, but some of the permutations were interesting:
including 3G & wifi built in, 3d camera, phone functionality.
Comment below viewing threshold Show
Oh no wait, I don't.
Does spam like this ever actually work???
Comment below viewing threshold Show
Comment below viewing threshold Show
http://ww w.touchuserinterface.com/2010/0...
Comment below viewing threshold Show
Where's the tilt, 3D, regular touchscreen and right-analogue?
I'll wait and see, but I'm not excited.
Comment below viewing threshold Show
*sigh*
The controls sound interesting, I can see how it might work but suspect it would be one of those things you need to try.
Comment below viewing threshold Show
If true, this is an interesting development from Sony. Curious eyebrow raised.
Comment below viewing threshold Show
Digital distrubution has a future but only tied alongside retail. If retail is ever totally removed, I think the games industry will be dragging that suicide knife across its belly. Co-existence in various media options well for film tv, shows and music, so to cut that back to DLC only for game, in the name of more profits is dumb, but what do I know, I'm just a gamer.
Steam is positive, because ts possiblew for the ddeveloper of a game, to offer a digital and physical copy of a game, to the gamer. Many don't want to offer the physical, and that's treading a dangerous path, of fixed monopoly priced games, no imports and region locking etc. ActiBliz are already region locking StarCraft 2, so the play anyone globally aspect of PC games could eventually be cut down or in the long term disappear.
Imagine an industry that doesn't treasure its past anymore and thats the games industry. Pretty soon, you won't be able to get a physical game, and treasure the past. The arcades are more or less dead and disappearing, do we really want the same to happen to games.
But I digress. I'd like PSP2 to go a memory card media route. They are available large enough now, that developers can slap a game onto them. 2-4gb cards should be enough for such games. Should be interesting to see if it'll get the much desired dual analogue controls. I'd also like to see it get trophies support at last (possibly to our PSN accounts, which they can also push), so I can actually finish some PSP games. No much point in worrying about graphics as they're about to peak on handhelds anyway. Extra media support needs a boost, since my phone can even run a DivX file, but PSP still can't. I just hope Sony make the thing cheaper and more user friendly to develop for.
Comment below viewing threshold Show
Comment below viewing threshold Show
Well, its virtually a certainty that bricks and mortar games retail will be dead in the future. They just do not serve a purpose. Do you really think that the games industry will cease to exist after that? I can't imagine that.
Imagine an industry that doesn't treasure its past anymore and thats the games industry. Pretty soon, you won't be able to get a physical game, and treasure the past.
Digital distribution actually makes archiving of history much, much easier and allows it to be worthwhile financially, while keeping games as physical media means old games are often not worth the space they take up in stockrooms and bedrooms.
Find me a single disc copy of Helicopter sim Apache vs Havoc and I'll be impressed, but I could just go to Good Old Games and they are ready to distribute 10,000 copies today if they were needed.
Comment below viewing threshold Show
Comment below viewing threshold Show
Digital download with the PSP Go might not be perfect, but there is a great range of games (PSP Essentials) for 7.99 at the moment, and PSOne classisc for 5-10 Euro... not bad
Nobody complains about the IPHONE being digital download only, sure it's cheaper, but when Sony no longer have to keep prices up to prevent from offending high street stores, prices can go down, and lets not forget the introduction of Steam to Sony platforms...
this could be a very good thing...
Comment below viewing threshold Show
And the new PSP will have a long road ahead of it with both nintendo and idevices now both way ahead in terms of handheld gaming marketshare, iphone 4, ipad and 3DS FTW
Comment below viewing threshold Show
They're two different concepts. The iPhone completely lacks in physical buttons, and your hands obscure the screen. This seems like a novel workaround to the "how do we fit more analogue controls on this thing" problem.
Try, you know, actually putting a bit of thought into it next time.
Comment below viewing threshold Show
Comment below viewing threshold Show
Case to point, its for this reason that much arcade and 8-16 bit stuff has ended up on the net with emulators. Long after you Wii VC etc is dead or forgotten as gamers upgrade, all this stuff will survive because of the net, whic so far is the only true archive of past games.
A completely digital download games industry ain't going to happen (and has about as much chance as it happening for films and music, meaning never). And if by chance it does, I'll just be gaming a lot less and watch it die from the sidelines with my past consoles. The powers that be are thinking from too central a mindset. Prices will be kept high for the sake of it (apart from the odd sale), just as sometimes happens on Live or PSN already.
You know what, its almost as though the games industry is taking down the entry barriers of controllers with mo-cons, yet making access to DLC games via console more complicated. Do you really think all the casual majority are going to bite onto a DLC game future, when popping a dvd game into drive is so much easier?
Comment below viewing threshold Show
Hey, I know guys who are so incredibly annoyed just by having to get up and change from disk 1 to disk 2, so, who knows? I suppose that browsing through endless menus is more comfortable than getting up or *gasp!* going out to the store.
As far as the trackpad on the back, seems weird, but if I think back, ten years ago I just couldn't hold a game controller, fifteen years ago I didn't know what to do with a mouse, and twenty years ago I typed with one finger.
If it happens, I'm sure we'll get used to it.
Comment below viewing threshold Show
Comment below viewing threshold Show
Comment below viewing threshold Show
Comment below viewing threshold Show
Yeah, but iphone doesnt demand £30 per game, does it? It's all about proportion.
Comment below viewing threshold Show
Comment below viewing threshold Show
Yes you are right, the idea is not novel - both Apple and Microsoft both have patents in this area from circa. 2007... in fact Microsoft even went as far as to publicly demonstrate prototypes, create a brand name and demonstrate an example of it controlling a game!
[link url=http://www.engadget.com/2009/04 /20/video-nanotouch-spotted-doing-a-little-gaming/
]http://ww w.engadget.com/2009/04/20/video...[/link]
[link url=http://www.enga dget.com/2008/12/19/nanotouch-like-your-parents-lucidtouch-b ut-now-with-more-nano/
]http://ww w.engadget.com/2008/12/19/nanot...[/link]
http://ww w.engadget.com/2007/08/24/micro...
Comment below viewing threshold Show
But Im not sure if i will get this. I am a huge gaming fan but I just sold off my psp to get an ipod touch. Thing is its smaller than the psp, has touch screen controls and a great screen and the games are just as addictive and so much cheaper.
Yes the psp2 will have more core games, and better graphics but I have a ps3 for that. And as the ipod touches/iphones become more powerful its going to catch up with the psp. Then people will realise this tiny thing is a phone too and is all they need in their pocket.
Good luck sony. As much as I will miss socom online when Im not with my ps3, the best game for me was worms and its on itunes for a measly £3...
Comment below viewing threshold Show
fail.
Comment below viewing threshold Show
But I digress again. Iphone is different with what it does. Having people do the same for home systems will be tricky, and yes perhaps we are going down that route already with Live. I still think MS etc hugely underestimate the consumer wanting to own physical games, which could in turn could see many exit as users.
DRM (and DLC too) is getting ever crazier, that we potentially can't use some games ten or twenty years after their release. If games are too tied to devices as downloads only, how on earth do we preserve past efforts for future generations? Perhaps those pushing games don't really care about that, which is a huge mistake on their part, if they want gamers to be inspired enough to enter the industry. When publishers start offering a copy as a standard back up to DLC (I heard someone does, but not everyone), only then will we fix this problem.
On top of all that, the removal (PS3) or backseat (360) of backwards compatibility, is already on a slippery slope of certainty per generation. What are we to do without preservation? Some might say used games play a part in this, which could be valid, but with the greedy monsters trying to kill that, and there's no back up plan, like GOG, for consoles (except the back alleys of piracy). Games on Demand on 360 is a step there, but like we said earlier, the prices on Live are not in tune with the physical market forces of retail, thus few sales. The introduction of larger hard drives on 360 is no doubt to also stealthyly propogate and push such sales, but Games on Demand is still a poor substitute for users, one I would hate to see as the norm option one day.
One sale a year, no extras or manuals and huge monopoly to one company. Oh yeah, pass the salt and pepper, please....not!
Comment below viewing threshold Show
AddictIVE. Addicting isn't a word.
Comment below viewing threshold Show
Comment below viewing threshold Show
Do I want to be paying £40 for a two year old game because there is no second hand market and no cost reduction? Hell no.
Comment below viewing threshold Show
(For example, playing a game like Elite Beat Agents for DS will not be possible with a touchpad on the back)
In any case, it could be a major improvement in precision for PSP controls. Let's hope they'll get it right. =)
Comment below viewing threshold Show
Comment below viewing threshold Show
Comment below viewing threshold Show
Comment below viewing threshold Show
Good.
In related news, from 09.08.10 - 15.08.10, PSPGo sold 608 units, PSP 35.734 (Japan, Media Create).
Comment below viewing threshold Show
Well said. We're very much in danger of being unable to play vast swathes of games in the future thanks to DRM and hardware failures (I've also seen stories that DVDs won't last forever and will eventually decay to the point where the data is unreadable). Emulators aren't very accurate either, and who's going to want to write a Dreamcast emulator for Windows 37 in twenty years time?
I've still got my NES set up and as long as the hardware doesn't fail I'm certain I'll still be able to play it in 20 years. Can anyone see a PS2 or Xbox 360 still working in 2030? And even if you find a working system, Xbox Live certainly won't work, assuming you can still get an IPv4 device to work over the internet. A future without Vice City, Mass Effect 2, Shadow Complex, etc is not one I care to contemplate!
Comment below viewing threshold Show
Guess it's meant for analog and trackball controls, not tapping on things. Could work out but I'm not sure about the finger dexterity needed, especially since your index finger is going to be on the shoulder button so you'd have to use your middle finger.
Comment below viewing threshold Show
Comment below viewing threshold Show
Outcast is still up there, at an amazing $5.99
Splendid game
Comment below viewing threshold Show
Comment below viewing threshold Show
Comment below viewing threshold Show
Comment below viewing threshold Show