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PSP at the top of handheld evolution


We know that the PSP is powerful. But how powerful is it compared to handhelds before it? A lot more, as seen by Pocket Gamer's recent analysis of handheld systems. PSP's 333MHz of processing power knocks makes the rest of the chart seem miniscule in comparison.

Pocket Gamer's feature is certainly an eye-opener. Of particular note is a fascinating diagram of screen sizes, overlaying each other. The PSP's wide screen LCD far exceeds the size of its nearest competitor, the Nomad. Even with such impressive statistics, the system remains one of the lightest handhelds created, and doesn't stand out as disproportionately larger than the others. This is a must-read feature for any PSP fan.

Final Fantasy remakes unconfirmed for UK; imports feature English option

Digg!

Unfortunately, it appears that the UK version of the Final Fantasy remakes are not yet confirmed for the UK, according to CVG. The title is currently "to be decided."

While we don't think Square Enix would miss an opportunity to milk Europeans for their money (look at the game's pricing), impatient gamers can import the Asian version of the classic RPGs. In an unexpected move, these UMDs feature both English and Japanese language options.

Those that have picked up an import copy seem to have high praise for the remakes. A Neo-Geo forum user notes that the CG intro "isn't all that," but the "game looks freakin' nice on the PSP screen ... [and] music and sound quality seem top end too."

Continue reading Final Fantasy remakes unconfirmed for UK; imports feature English option

PSP getting ports from new sources


It's no secret that the PSP (as with any system) gets ports of games from other consoles. Most of the ports to PSP logically come from the PlayStation 2. But all that is starting to change. With the PS3 on the rise and the PS2 on the decline, PSP is starting to get ports from some unexpected places.

The DS has many a game that it's shared with the GBA, but recently it seems like more and more GBA games are jumping over to Sony's portable. The most obvious of these are all of the recently announced Final Fantasy projects. From Final Fantasy Tactics to just plain ol' Final Fantasy, these GBA remakes are being remade again for the PSP. But it doesn't just end there, the PSP will also see a port of the GBA RPG title Riviera (which is great for me, since I never played that game).

Of course, while it seems like quite a few PSP games are from GBA land, that isn't the only system sending off titles to PSP's library. Xbox games like Xyanide and Painkiller: Hell Wars are reported to have versions coming out this year for PSP and the DS racer Asphalt Urban GT 2 will be out shortly. Even the PC isn't exempt as fantastic physics platformer Gish has a release date for our system of choice.

The future though seems to be the Wii and PSP connection. While Alien Syndrome is one of the only Wii/PSP games announced so far, the fact that Wii games have to be developed independently from the rest of the home consoles means many developers may be looking to PSP versions as another source of profit. Of course as with any business move, these ports will have to make money if this is to become a serious trend.

Square Enix surprise: its a PSP port of a GBA port of NES games


It looks like EGM's Rumor Mill is starting to develop into truth. "Square Enix is whipping up a wild lineup for PSP this year ... These guys are serious too! I'm talking new games, remakes of old classics, and an all-new, unexpected Final Fantasy spinoff that will make the fanboys flip."

Well, we can check off "remakes of old classics" off the list: Square Enix just announced their "20th Anniversary Series," which will be heading to PSP. First two games on the table? Final Fantasy Anniversary Edition and Final Fantasy II Anniversary Edition. Both games will feature the enhancements of the Nintendo-published Final Fantasy I & II Advance: Dawn of Souls, and also include new CG movies and "further enhancements."

While these aren't the games we've been clamoring for, I guess it's a step in the right direction. Any support from Square Enix is better than none, right? As it stands now, I'd much rather wait for Crisis Core than these remakes of remakes. Hopefully, we'll see the rest of the "wild lineup" that EGM hinted at.

[Thanks, zaki! Via The Magic Box]

[Update 1: Scans are available at Jeux-France.]

The possibilities of PS3-PSP connectivity [Update 1]


The PS3 and PSP are going to be great friends. Sure, they won't be able to play with each other when the PLAYSTATION 3 comes out, but they will in the future, and the possibilities are exciting. chubgians, IGN's ultimate PSP fanboy, recently wrote a massive essay on how PS3-PSP connecitivty can succeed where GCN-GBA has failed. Some of the key points to note:
  • The two systems were made to work with each other: look at the XMB. Also, there's no extra cables to buy: just use the PSP's wi-fi connection, or the USB cable that's connected to the controller.
  • Even without any software, you can access content on the PS3 from your PSP. With the Gamecube, your GBA cables were useless unless you had a game that supported it... and those were quite few in number.
  • Accessing the Friends feature of the PS3 from the PSP will be incredible: imagine, a universal play experience on your PS3 and PSP. It's starting with games like Cash Money Chaos.
You can read the rest of chubigan's lengthy postulations on his IGN blog.

See also:
The "PS3" tag on PSP Fanboy.

[Update 1: IGN has been playing with their retail unit of the system and revealed one tidbit we didn't know about before: when using Remote Play, your PS3 is forced into non-HD 480p mode. Boo!]

Handheld history reveals PSP's slim figure [Update 1]


Joystiq, the attention-craving parent site to PSP Fanboy, recently compared the sizes of history's greatest handhelds. When looking at the handhelds in size order, one can see that the PSP sits smack in the middle.
  • Game Boy micro: 5.6 cubic inches
  • Game Boy Advance SP: 9.81 cubic inches
  • DS Lite: 12.96 cubic inches
  • Wonderswan: 13.33 cubic inches
  • Wonderswan Color: 14.1 cubic inches
  • Wonderswan Crystals: 14.68 cubic inches
  • Neo Geo Pocket Color: 17.35 cubic inches
  • Sony PSP: 17.52 cubic inches
  • Game Boy Advance: 17.64 cubic inches
  • GP2X: 19.61 cubic inches
  • DS Phat: 22.01 cubic inches
  • Game Boy: 26.39 cubic inches
  • Gamepark 32: 26.83 cubic inches
  • Sega Nomad: 49.36 cubic inches
  • Game Gear: 50.86 cubic inches
  • Atari Lynx: 68.53 cubic inches
We should be thankful that the PSP is no monstrosity like the Game Gear... Then again, I did love my Game Gear (pictured).
[Thanks, Zebulunite!]

[Update 1: Whoa, how did that HTML glitch happen? It totally wasn't like that when I typed it. Anyways, fixed.]

Japanese hardware sales, Oct. 9-15: The gap closes

Japanese hardware sales, Oct. 9-15: The gap closesIf there's one thing I can say about the PSP's sales, is they've been holding steady at right around 20,000-25,000 each week for a good while now.

However, the DS Lite couldn't maintain its massive sales numbers it accumulated a few weeks ago when it sold nearly 275,000 units, which had more to do with Pokemon than anything else.

- DS Lite: 104,487 19,650 (15.83%)
- PS2: 24,727 3,537 (12.51%)
- PSP: 21,603 553 (2.63%)
- GBA SP: 2,299767 (50.07%)
- Xbox 360: 1,743 358 (17.04%)
- Game Boy Micro: 1,714 441 (34.64%)
- Gamecube: 653 165 (33.81%)
- DS Phat: 273 13 (5.00%)
- GBA: 37 25 (208.33%)
- Xbox: 3 5 (62.5%)

The PSP doesn't have too many more releases this month with only Shinobido, Hot Shots Golf for GPS, Lost Regnum and Heaven's Will. It will be interesting to see if any of those games, especially Hot Shots, helps raise PSP sales the next couple weeks.

[Source: Media Create]

Japanese hardware sale chart - Sept. 4 - 10, the war in percentages

Japanese hardware sale chart - Sept. 4 - 10, the war in percentagesWell, look how the mighty have fallen. The Nintendo DS Lite, which is the PSP's biggest competitor, saw a 50-percent decline in hardware sales last week. Never mind sales numbers ... who cares about those anyway? It's all about percentages, baby.

The PSP surged on with a six-percent jump in sales that can most likely be attributed to Tales of Phantasia Full Voice Edition's total domination in the software sales chart.

- DS Lite: 113,831 115,108 (50.28%)
- PSP: 29,141 1,642 (5.97%)
- PS2: 19,882 2,821 (12.43%)
- GBA SP: 2,104 647 (23.52%)
- Game Boy Micro: 1,801 10 (0.56%)
- Xbox 360: 1,094 156 (12.48%)
- DS Phat: 1,058 738 (230.63%)
- Gamecube: 696 159 (18.60%)
- GBA: 13 9 (40.91%)
- Xbox: 5 5 (infinite%)
- Wii: 0 0 (0%)

The PSP needs to keep looking in its rear-view mirror, however, because the DS Phat also saw a big spike in its percentages with a whopping 230-percent increase. But, I expect this to be short lived due to its "teh suck."

Also, look at how crappy the Wii is selling. Hah hah, it's being outsold by the original Xbox and hasn't even sold a single unit! Those percentages look pretty bad.

(Via Joystiq)

Creator of GBA emulator speaks out


Many of you seem very interested in homebrew lately. With the release of a super-easy way to downgrade firmware, it seems like many of you are ready to experiment with homebrew. While I prefer to support original endeavors, it's pretty obvious that the greatest lure for homebrew is piracy emulation. Exophase is a relatively new coder to the PSP homebrew scene, but he's already come out with a full speed Game Boy Advance emulator for the system. In an interview with DCEmu, he reveales some interesting info about his work.

DCEmu: The release of this emulator has been compared to the shock of Ultrahle and Bleem, emulators that werent thought possible until they were released, are you proud that your the first to get a decentplayable GBA Emulator out there ?
Exophase: Heh, well, I'm just glad that at least some people can play some games well. I know it was nice being able to play Castlevania: Circle of the Moon for a while when I had nothing else to do.

You can check out the rest of the interview at DCEmu.

See also:
More interviews with more homebrewers
Commodore64 emulator for PSP
Wonderswan emulator for PSP




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