PSP versions of GTA and Midnight Club 3 confirmed

A new Grand Theft Auto title set in Liberty City is on its way to the PlayStation Portable, Rockstar announced today, along with what sounds like a fairly straight port of Midnight Club 3: DUB Edition, the company's customisation-heavy street racing title. Both titles are expected to be available "near" the launch date of the PSP in the US and Europe, which Sony reckons will be some time in March on both continents.

Both games are being developed by Rockstar Leeds - formerly Mobius, the outfit responsible for the underrated GBA version of Max Payne - in concert with Rockstar North and Rockstar San Diego, the respective developers of the home console versions of GTA and Midnight Club.

The publisher hasn't released any specific details on either title, but Rockstar Leeds president Gordon Hall says the team is working "very closely" with colleagues at Rockstar North and San Diego "to ensure that both Grand Theft Auto and Midnight Club 3: DUB Edition remain faithful to the initial vision of these respective franchises."

The implication, then, is that GTA, the higher profile and more technically demanding of the two titles, will be in 3D - if so, it'd be the series' first 3D outing on a handheld. We reckon Midnight Club 3 will definitely mimic its home console parent very closely - as Namco's Ridge Racers has already proven how well the PSP can handle 3D racing games of its ilk.

In the absence of any solid details, though, we'll leave the final word for Rockstar Games president Sam Houser, who had some glowing comments to make about the PSP itself. "Sony's extremely impressive technology has allowed Rockstar Leeds to do more on a handheld machine than we could have ever imagined," Houser said today. "We are very excited for gamers to experience these two genre-defining franchises in a fashion that could have never before been possible on a portable system."