Ready at Dawn: PSP "doomed" from day 1

By Fred Dutton Published 18 November, 2010

Not "a true portable gaming platform."

The developer behind the lauded PSP God of War games has claimed that Sony's handheld was doomed to failure from launch day.

CVG reports that Ready at Dawn co-founder Ru Weerasuriya told Edge magazine, "It's a good platform and you can make amazing things on it. I think that we've tried as much as possible to prove that in the last seven years.

"But it was doomed from the beginning, that's its biggest problem," he added. "It was doomed from the very get-go.

"There are some things which aren't conductive to calling it a true portable gaming platform and calling it a connective platform, although it has wi-fi.

"There's so many things that publishers and the manufacturer and Sony dropped the ball on - it's natural, it's the first one."

Weerasuriya didn't elaborate on what these "things" might be but he's looking for Sony's next handheld to make amends.

"That hope that you can have is that they learn from that experience when they make the next one, and that they solve the issues with the PSP and the PSPgo - and also that they learn from what the others are doing."

Ready at Dawn made the brilliant God of War: Chains of Olympus and the almost-as-good sequel, Ghost of Sparta. Both were published by Sony.

Didn't some wise old codger once advise against biting the hand that feeds?

Picture of Fred.

About Fred Dutton

Fred Dutton is Eurogamer's US news editor, based in Washington DC.

Read more articles from Fred by visiting the Fred Dutton archive page.

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Comments (38) Latest comment 2 years ago

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  • andromeda #1 2 years ago

    not doomed enough for you to squeeze some cash out of it though :)

  • witchdrash #2 2 years ago

    Possibly, but he has a point, Sony threw the kitchen sink at their handheld, some stuck, some didn't (pspgo definitely didn't!!), but they survived a long time with minor revisions, yes Nintendo crushed them (outside Japan) but they've been making handhelds since the 1980s, so it's not a big shock.

    I'm suspecting the PSP 2 will be a lot more successful from the lessons learnt, of course it could still bomb, but I think Sony have a more pragmatic view to hardware development over their PSP/PS3 eras

  • jesterabi #3 2 years ago

    After COO I seem to remember it was with some glee that they announced they were sending their psp dev kits back to Sony, only to make another excellent game a couple of years later. Curious that they pushed the platform so far, while at the same time are so frustrated with it.

  • makeamazing #4 2 years ago

    So doomed... that it sold many many millions of PSP's.... somehow he sounds like he is bitter because Sony are not funding any more PSP games with them or something.... dont know seems strange to make a game for a device which you consider a failure, very strange. I guess they could have turned down the work...

  • Rajin #5 2 years ago

    I disagree, and i wholehearthy disagree with people pointing out that the psp has ''no good games'' and can be considered a failure. It's actually my favorite protable device since the GBA! Loads of RPG's, some good action adventures+platformers. My catalogue has about 26 psp games and all of them are more or less gems in their own way:)

    Edited by Rajin at 18/11/10 @ 21:21

  • Beano #6 2 years ago

    PSP has sold aprox 62 million units worldwide... hardly a failure.

  • natashaspice #7 2 years ago

    Blame it on piracy. ISO rings a bell but don't think the psp is a failure In my opinion.

  • captain_Carl #8 2 years ago

    To be honest, for a market that nintendo has always dominated, i think Sony's first crack at the handheld market was pretty successful.

  • jackdoe #9 2 years ago

    Meh. Japanese developers certainly treated it as a portable. Capcom certainly didn't drop the ball on connectivity; their Monster Hunter series is testament to that.

  • Gaol #10 2 years ago

    'Doomed' more likely because they were up against a company with decades of experience making and selling portable videogames. And in any case the PSP did pretty well judged on it's own merits.

  • onyxbox #11 2 years ago

    I've enjoyed owning a PSP... I now use my iPhone to play games on the go but I struggle to enjoy most games on iPhone TBH... PSP had better games (if a bit pricey).

  • darc #12 2 years ago

    "But it was doomed from the beginning, that's its biggest problem"

    LOL quote of the century. I can see where being doomed from the beginning would be something of a problem, yes. Bigger than most.

    Actually I have some first-hand experience with this problem.

  • funkateer #13 2 years ago

    Sounds like a developer who's disappointed with the sales of his latest title (and rightfully so, because Ghost of Sparta is really quite good).

    I don't really see the point he's making though, but that's probably down to the article that's obviously just selectively quoting him.

    Sony did drop the ball with the PSPGo. It's a great idea but badly executed: Besides the bad pricing, many more games should have been on PSN.
    I personally never bought 1 UMD for my PSP and bought everything on PSN, but found the selection on PSN a bit lacking (for example where is FF Crisis Core?).

    And the whole concept of "Minis" is just stupid. I mean, what developer wants to market their game as a "mini"? It just screams "sub-par".

    Still, I like my PSP a lot: Flawed as it is, it's been a great companion in many long flights. Let's hope the PSP2 will iron out the kinks of the first PSP.

  • JBlokeUK #14 2 years ago

    @beano

    Do you have a source? 62 million worldwide is an impressive figure as you rightly point out. Have had a PSP since launch and while it has had periods of not being touched for a couple of months, I still enjoy a good session on games like Monster Hunter.

  • Arwin #15 2 years ago

    Hmm, I politely disagree. The PSP has been my sole portable gaming platform for many years. Nothing on Nintendo hardware could interest me enough to actually get one, even though I have been tempted several times (by stuff like Brain Training for instance). I still think it's rather good today - it has many games that just aren't available anywhere else, but are still ace. Now it's competing with iPhone which is great for some stuff (Angry Birds stands out), but try and play something like Tekken on that, which is almost perfect on the PSP ... or any racing game (Burnout, Wipeout, GT, etc), etc. Tonne of fantastic games that have no match anywhere else.

    And yeah, the sales numbers are nothing to be ashamed of either. But I'm guessing that software sales have been lacklustre, partly because the PSP is a great media device (still beats my iPhone for video by quite a bit thanks to its large display, even if that display is now 6 years old!) and partly because of piracy.
    Edited by Arwin at 18/11/10 @ 21:50

  • Byblos1 #16 2 years ago

    I got a PSP at launch and it's pretty telling that Lumines, a launch title, is comfortably the best PSP game for me. Developers created a lot of titles that were simply more fun to play on a console due to the PSPs long load times, poor battery life and the dreadful analog stick.

    The launch of the iPhone and iPod Touch also made the PSP seem pretty dated as a multimedia device, requiring Sony's proprietary memory stick duo and UMDs to do anything with it, the lack of always on Wifi hurt too.

    I'm sure Sony will do a decent job with the PSP 2 on the hardware side, but they really need to hit the ground running on the software side too. Drip feeding new features onto the console over a period of years just won't work in this day and age.

  • dirtysteve #17 2 years ago

    Have Sony mentioned anything about PSP 2 dates recently? It seems about time.

  • Pirotic #18 2 years ago

    Yet another problems solved by the incredible captain hindsight!

  • sfp_noodle #19 2 years ago

    I hardly find 62 million in 5 years a failure. It launched with a price not too far away from a 360 when that launched in 2005. Nearly 5 years on and the PSP has still sold around 15 million more at a similar price tag.

    I'm not bringing down the 360 in any way. I love it. But it makes the people calling the PSP a failure look rather stupid. Compared to the DS, yes it doesn't look so great. But considering it was Sony's first attempt at a portable console, and the fact they challenged Nintendo who at the time had market dominance and zero competition, I'd say it's been pretty fucking succesful. But the less said about the PSPGo the better.

  • HiddenAway #20 2 years ago

    @JBlokeUK

    From TGS 2010

  • dsmx #21 2 years ago

    PSP has nearly outsold the xbox 360 and ps3 combined I wouldn't call that a failure.

  • Collymilad #22 2 years ago

    The only reason people are calling it a failure is because it did nowhere near as well as the DS. As others have pointed out it sold a lot of units.

    It's a great little machine imo. The reason it failed against the DS is because it only had great games (though less than it should have had), whereas the DS has great games and a load of shite you can sell to nan and mum - was bound to trounce it.

    Although the DS's success is impressive in any case, I would be interested to see how many people are playing videogames on it and how many are just playing stuff like brain training and the other "non-game" stuff you can do on it.
    Edited by Collymilad at 19/11/10 @ 02:19

  • ToAks #23 2 years ago

    i used to love and support the PSP, but somewhere down the line (in the end of 2008) i just stopped, still got over 100 boxed games for it and 2 units etc.

    i plan on getting the retail disc version of Ghost Of Sparta as i only have the psn version atm and i am too much of a GOD OF WAR fan to not have the boxed version.

  • GamesConnoisseur #24 2 years ago

    Certainly not as big a failure as the Dreamcast, even thing I never considered the Dreamcast a failure as people make it out so. Some of my favourite gaming memories were on the Dreamcast.

    PSP as a system, looking at portable processing power, as given in GOW, is unbelievably good, but WHY despite having a THIRD more platform than X360 globally it's doesn't register much on sales charts?!


    THAT is the definition of miserable failure, you cannot support PSP gaming without healthy sales to continue the PSP market.

    Simple as that.

    What killed the PSP market?

    Debate for another day!

  • drumbaby #25 2 years ago

    This guy makes great games, but shitty proclamations.

  • drumbaby #26 2 years ago

    I'd have thought having low battery life was a bad point, not a desired feature.

  • Centrifugal #27 2 years ago

    The PSP just needs better games. I can probably rattle at least 25 great DS games off the top of my head. With the PSP, I'd struggle to name 5.

    Edit: Okay, probably more than five. I have a PSP myself and I do enjoy playing it (having FFVII in the palm of your hand is great), but the DS does have a larger game library. Some of those games are utter tosh, but there are some inspired ones which make full use of the DS. Whereas a lot of the good games on the PSP are just ports or adaptations of PS2 games or PSOne games available for download.
    Edited by Centrifugal at 20/11/10 @ 12:30

  • ryandsimmons #28 2 years ago

    The PSP just needs better games. I can probably rattle at least 25 great DS games off the top of my head. With the PSP, I'd struggle to name 5

    God of War (x2)
    GTA (x3)
    Ratchett & Clank
    Daxter
    Puzzlequest
    Crisis Core
    Worms Open Warfare
    Everybodies Golf
    Final Fantasy 7,8,9 + all the other PSOne Classics...
    ...and so on.

    I admit theres not enough to justify 7 years of games, more like 3, but for anyone just getting into the PSP it's a fucking dream come true.

  • jonsaan #29 2 years ago

    The psp has been pretty successful. It's hardly been a failure. The GO yes but not the platform as a whole.

    @Biker Bob. Battery life and screen in sunlight issues are a thing of the past. The PHAT is in no way representative of where the psp is at today.Try a 3000. The DPAD is superb these days too.

    Wifi that is always on is a really bad idea too. The battery life would be pathetic. My ipod touch has an awful battery life unless I turn that off.
    Edited by jonsaan at 19/11/10 @ 10:11

  • speedjack #30 2 years ago

    From my experience you don't realise how poor a portable gaming platform is the PSP is until you buy a DS.

    Granted my opinion is based on my experience with the launch PSP, but off the top of my head...

    too big, nub was crap, d-pad was a joke, poor battery life, crappy disc based media, likley to get scratched etc.

    ... Launch line up was good, but once I owned Lumines, Hot Shots Golf and Wipeout I lost all interest.

  • Tinrib72 #31 2 years ago

    Still enjoying mine, though to be fair I only bought it second hand off a mate earlier in the year.

    @Centrifugal

    to add to ryandsimmons list...games I'm playing and enjoying very much at the mo'

    Outrun 2006
    Wipeout (x2)
    Every Extend Extra
    Test Drive Unlimited
    Ridge Racer 2
    Stardust Portable (Probably play this more than Geometry Wars on Xbox)
    Midnight Club LA remix
    and various minis

    and I've still yet to purchase:
    Gran Turismo PSP
    Motor Storm
    Loco Roco (and sequel)
    Patapoon (and sequels)
    Colin Mcrae
    Toca
    Dexter
    Little Big Planet
    and many more I cant remember for the time being..

    For me the games and controls and screen are far more attractive than a DS, regardless of battery life (which I get 3 hrs incidentally - more than enough for a spot of gameage at work or wherever).

  • Maledictus010 #32 2 years ago

    No matter what the game (portable: meaning playable in short bursts?), it has a beautiful pause/suspend mode that works perfectly. Besides, loads of people here only use the portable aspect by taking the PSP with them to their friends and play together on the couch. It's certainly portable enough for that. As far as I can tell it is indeed piracy that's killing the platform, at least over here. Several stores have stopped stocking and even selling PSP games, even bigger franchise stores. They all give the same reason when asked: people only buy memory cards and steal the games. Some stores actually sell on average 1 (!) PSP game per month, and it has been that way for quite some time. I have to get my games from overseas these days, the stuff on offer here is either disney level or nothing.
    p.s: 'here' means NL, europe.
    Edited by Maledictus010 at 19/11/10 @ 11:32

  • DirectAim #33 2 years ago

    Obviously it wasn't going to work, for a handheld console that wanted to attract the hardcore gamers it was stupid not to have two analog sticks

  • Makeem95 #34 2 years ago

    Haven't been interested at al with the games line-up in the UK PSN store, but the Japanese store has been providing some excellent games recently to play on my PSP3000. Parasite Eve 1&2, God Eater Burst, Tactics Ogre, it's all happening now in the Japanese store.

    Never been so happy that I own a PSP.
    Edited by Makeem95 at 19/11/10 @ 12:21

  • devrante #35 2 years ago

    From the licked pics of psp2 i doesnt seem that they learned much from mistakes like the pspgo. But its just pics and rumors so we can still hope..

  • FenderMaster #36 2 years ago

    to add to the defense, i love my PSP, brilliant exclusive games (especially this year) + excellent, cheap PSOne back catalogue my biggest issue is the lack of true wifi online, in favour of that messy PS3 ad hoc bullshit.

    it's just such a sexy handheld, i've had my PSP for a year, and still can't believe its beautiful screen at times!

    as for battery life, my PSP on highest brightness settings lasts about 4 hours, the same a my DSL on highest brightness settings, really pretty good imo.

  • Quak #37 2 years ago

    > Nintendo crushed them (outside Japan) but they've been making handhelds since the 1980s, so it's not a big shock.

    Go back and read the gaming press from 2004/5 when the PSP was released alongside the original DS and tell me the results aren't shocking. The whole world and his dog was laughing at the hideous, backwards monster that was the Nintendo machine and was predicting a cakewalk for Sony. Things changed when the Lite came out of course, but don't tell me your memory only goes that far back.
    Edited by Quak at 19/11/10 @ 21:41

  • Sevens #38 2 years ago

    Close to 70 million units sold; Portable Ops, Peace Walker, Daxter, God of War: Chains of Olympus and Ghost of Sparta, Crisis Core: Final Fantasy VII, Star Ocean 1 and 2, Final Fantasy 1 and 2 (remakes), Valkyrie Profile, Silent Hill, Castlevania, Little Big Planet, Patapon 1 and 2, Gran Turismo, Killzone, Resistance, GTA, Kingdom Hearts etc. ... and FF Agito XIII as well as (Parasite Eve:) The 3rd Birthday coming. - I wouldn't exactly call that doomed and/or a failure.


    P.S.:

    "LOL quote of the century. I can see where being doomed from the beginning would be something of a problem, yes. Bigger than most.

    Actually I have some first-hand experience with this problem."

    Hehe. Kudos.
    Edited by Sevens at 19/11/10 @ 22:54