The Death of the PSP

Noriyuke127

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What is, What was, and What it should have been. I just saw on the news yesterday that its official that sony will stop producing the most current PSP console around and will cease producing them altogether. I bought one of these things when they first came out and i remember loving everything about it, even with a limited amount of release games and even smaller amount of original titles spewing forth for the console it was still an awesome time. I was given the ability to be able to play multiplayer games with friends of mine in a classroom and not have to be tangled with GBA Link Cables to try and be competitive around school. It was a great time for me and the few friends i had that all had them. Which mind you for the area i lived in there was a surprising amount of people who owned the console. The amount of time i played people on Twisted Metal Head on was literally absurd. I don't understand what made sony think that building another twisted metal game for the PS Vita would not have been necessary. With an awesome title already available, Twisted Metal Black, using that as a standard title for their Cross-Buy Platform, would have been a smart early move, or just creating Twisted Metal Head On 2 altogether would have been a good idea. The closest thing to a PS Vita Class Vehicle Brawler right now is Cel Damage, and with no multiplayer for the Vita its really just a bummer altogether.

Wipeout was not only beautiful and great on the PSP it made a good transition over to the Vita as well. Thats really not surprising even though i dont know if were going to see another wipeout later on or at all. But its a good time killer for the time being.

Who remembers or cares about Death Jr.? I bought it on release and it really liked the game, but it wasn't much. I remember the transition Death Jr. Made from the PSP to the Wii and now who knows where it will pop up next or if it will pop up at all.

A game I was very fond of that never really hit it off and had a very interesting level of viral marketing was Infected. Very fun game. Absolutely no story it and had an interesting multiplayer aspect that will later be seen in hundreds of other games later on down the road.

I just wanted to bring up some of things that made the PSP Great for me that ended up being disappointing when it came to the Vita and Vice Versa. If anyone wants to chime in on my run of sentences please by all means :)
 
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I always thought it was a great system and I'm sure a lot of others would agree. I could say this got a hell of a lot better games than the DS ever did. I think having too much propietary technology on the psp did them in, that and the fact that it was hella easy to put custom firmware on it.

I have a pretty big collection that I'm proud, at least 100 games.

 
There are hundreds of great games for the console. Many people don't know about. I'm gonna be using that first post as a landmark for a large article I I've been wanting to write.
 
Great handheld that sadly Sony learned very little from as they're making the same mistakes that caused consumers to lose interest in the PSP with the PS Vita again (ports!)

Though the PSP will always be remembered for having several great new IPs like Loco Roco, Patapon, etc. 

 
The psp was successful also because of custom firmwares and homebrews. Just like the nintendo ds, units sold like pancakes due to having that option for the system.
 
Old pic of my games.



The psp was successful also because of custom firmwares and homebrews. Just like the nintendo ds, units sold like pancakes due to having that option for the system.
A lot of people bought second hand, most of the people that bought new got it because it was on clearance. I'm not trying to knock the system, I'm just trying to show the support the system got from the mainstream which led it to it's demise. I wouldn't call custom fireware being a success for the system, look how much good that did for Sega and the Dreamcast.

 
PSP was the most successful handheld of all time not made by Nintendo, by a pretty wide margin at that. I still don't understand why people don't acknowledge that more often. Over 80 million in sales is nothing to scoff at, console or handheld, especially.

I really enjoyed my PSP and enjoy my Vita as well for the same reason, they offer a distinctly different experience than Nintendo's handhelds. It's the same reason I own a WiiU and a PS4, variety of experience.
 
PSP was the most successful handheld of all time not made by Nintendo, by a pretty wide margin at that. I still don't understand why people don't acknowledge that more often. Over 80 million in sales is nothing to scoff at, console or handheld, especially.

I really enjoyed my PSP and enjoy my Vita as well for the same reason, they offer a distinctly different experience than Nintendo's handhelds. It's the same reason I own a WiiU and a PS4, variety of experience.
Is that units worldwide or does that number include software as well? I was trying to look for something last night but I was half awake.

 
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Is that units worldwide or does that number include software as well? I was trying to look for something last night but I was half awake.
Wikipedia says 80 million units, I found some other articles, dated from a year or two ago that say 70 million units. It didn't light the world on fire in North America but the thing made a killing in other markets.
 
Well thats a lot of units regardless, it didnt do too bad altogether. I googled how much the dreamcast did and it was around 11 million units. So the PSP did a little over 3 times that. Awesome. It does have a huge amount of amazing software though. Huge library, i dont know i think a lot about the shitty games that will probably never make it to the next gen, but should.

 
PSP owned it for RPGs, plain and simple. Great piece of hardware too, topped only by the Vita. I play the DS for the games (can't lie, they have some awesome ones) but my go to is the PSP/Vita because it's a complete experience.
 
Well someone I know who has a kid just bought one and my kmart is closing so I grabbed 2 games for his brithday. Fat princess fistful of cake and loco roco. Hopefully he'll like them.
 
PSP was the most successful handheld of all time not made by Nintendo,
This is what a lot of people forget. The PSP was a great system and had hardware sales to back it up. It's a shame Sony's last portable will probably be the Vita if sales figures have anything to do with it.

 
have around 300 psp games. what is sad  i just picked up another 10  PSP games  2 weeks back at  a yard sale.  for   2 bucks.  They were selling them for 25 cents each and could not even get 25 cents out of psp games.  most were crap  but   fight night rd 3 was one. Figured  paid 2 for that and  got the other 9 for free .  Friend came over the other week and saw my collection of around   300 psp games and  400 ds games and go 

DUDE YOU MUST  BEEN RICH BACK THEN.   I was like nope  there was so many trading places online years ago  i think i got most of them for free or dirt cheap  (trade a game for 30 to 40 points  and then pick up  games  when noone is buying for like 5 to 10 coins.  made a  4 to 1 flip easy back then)     Did  learn my lesson though   i probally only have   5 to 10   3ds and  Vita games i paid for  (even if that)  

love how people just try to dump crap  remember  2 years back  found   Ds games at a yard sale for  buck each  One was mario kart.  Got all of the games they had  for  5 bucks flipped them to  gamestop for around 50  they even sold me a   DSI with  ROCK BAND for  5 bucks.  Still using it for a back up system.

 
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Yeah, PSP was the bomb. I first owned a DS but then later caught on to the PSP. What sold me was seeing some guy playing FFVII in the palm of his hands flawlessly.

The PSP was my gateway to the Vita. I'm really happy I own both.

slidecage, I agree, FN Round 3 was one of the best PSP games on the system. I hope we see one on Vita!
 
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The PSP was a woefully inappropriate system riddled with all kinds of questionable decisions on the part of Sony. As a handheld system, it was a huge mistake.

That said, as a hardware platform and game system, it was actually pretty great! I would strongly recommend that any classic gamer pick one up. There are plenty of solid games for it, and right now in particular is the perfect time to get most of those games on the cheap. The option of purchasing most of those games either physically or digitally only sweetens the pot. I firmly hope that Sony continues maintaining legacy digital support for the PSP for as long as possible.

 
Bumpin this thread up. I remember when my dad picked up the grey PSP that was bundled with Ratchet and Clank and National Treasure movie. I didn't play too much games since I was just a kid back then, but it was a great system.

I'm thinking about pick up another one, which model is the best? I really don't care for emulation or anything, I just want to play the UMDs.

 
I'm thinking about pick up another one, which model is the best? I really don't care for emulation or anything, I just want to play the UMDs.
If emulation isn't an issue, than the PSP-3000 is most likely your best bet. The 2000 is commonly cited as the best for emulation, as it is slimmer than the 1000, has support for component-out video cables, and can still have custom firmware installed. But for what you're looking for, the 3000 will be just fine. It's likely the most common model at this point, and it will play your UMDs, no problem. It is also slimmer and lighter than either of the previous models.

The PSP-GO is pretty nifty too, but does not have a UMD drive, so it's digital-only releases for that.

 
I don't understand what made the 3000 model not good for emulation? 

Also, my PSP 3000 sometimes can't properly read my UMDs.  It will sometimes ask you if you want to quit the game, whenever the UMD is spinning.  Even though you didn't press anything like the PS button, but moved to readjust yourself.

It happens more often when I'm playing a game that requires several button pushes in rapid succession.  I sometimes have to discipline myself to sit still so not to trigger the message.  I stop moving and the game will resume on its own.

Annoying enough that I ripped all my UMD games to the memory stick.  Kind of wish the PS4 would let you play your PSP games, at least the digital ones from the PSN.

Anyway, on more topic.  The PSP isn't dead for me as I still have a backlog to play on this system.  I need to finish Kenko Bancho:Badass Rumble.

 
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The PSP was a woefully inappropriate system riddled with all kinds of questionable decisions on the part of Sony. As a handheld system, it was a huge mistake.

That said, as a hardware platform and game system, it was actually pretty great! I would strongly recommend that any classic gamer pick one up. There are plenty of solid games for it, and right now in particular is the perfect time to get most of those games on the cheap. The option of purchasing most of those games either physically or digitally only sweetens the pot. I firmly hope that Sony continues maintaining legacy digital support for the PSP for as long as possible.
So I guess over 80 million customers made a mistake by purchasing one too, huh?
 
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Seriously, read past the first sentence.

Building a hand-held video game system that used an optical disc medium was a bad idea. Using a proprietary memory format for it was a bad idea. Packing it with "features" and releasing it at such a high price point as a consequence was a bad idea. The PSP was littered with bad ideas. And while Sony was able to sustain their hand-held longer than anyone else had against Nintendo, they never saw the kind of success and profit from it that they had hoped to. It was a bad idea.

The only reason it worked out for them at all was because of the unexpected success of one game from a third-party developer/publisher. If not for Capcom's Monster Hunter franchise, the PSP would have been even more disastrous. But that one franchise helped to bolster the PSP in Japan, and led to a lot of other Japanese developers supporting the troubled hand-held.

I never said that the PSP was a bad system, far from it. But it was a very troubled system, and most of its troubles stemmed from Sony's inability to understand the hand-held market. It was a rookie effort from a company inexperienced in the market they were venturing into.

Thankfully, the PSP was able to enjoy significant and longer-lived development support thanks to its success in Japan. This has made it a must-have collectible for any fans of anime and Japanese-styled games. (especially JRPGs) I own a PSP and more than 80 games for it. It is a solid system, and well worth owning and playing. It simply wasn't a well-thought-out hand-held.

 
[quote name="Yanksfan" post="12019442" timestamp="1408406190"]I don't know if you read his post thoroughly or not, but I don't think he inferred anyone that purchased one made a mistake.[/quote]
He said the console was a mistake. It sold over 80 million units. Give me a break.
 
He said the console was a mistake. It sold over 80 million units. Give me a break.
Give you a break? Give me a break. It's a gross oversimplification to conflate hardware sales with how well a system was designed.

The Playstation 1 and 2 were both two of the most commercially successful systems of all time. And neither one of them was designed very well. The quality of a system has almost nothing to do with that system's commercial success. This principle has held true for almost every home video console. Better designed and/or better performing systems do not necessarily win out in the marketplace.

And even if we take your flawed premise at face value, you are still ignoring the relative commercial success of the PSP's. It's closest direct competition at the time of its release was the Nintendo DS. How well did it fare compared to that system's sales? The PSP was notorious for being sold at a loss when it was introduced, despite it's $250 USD price tag. And it was also notorious for having one of the lowest software attach rates, thanks to rampant piracy on the system. Both of those factors are directly linked to Sony's decision to incorporate optical media into the hand-held.

"Mistake" is being generous. The PSP was a débâcle in the market. 80 million units or not. And the lack of success for Sony's hand-held line is only emphasized by the current struggles of the Vita. The Vita is arguably superior to its predecessor in every way, and yet it's still languishing.

 
The PSP came out when I was in high school and I was more into Nintendo at that time. I was able to pick one over the other since I didn't have much money back then (well...hardly any for that matter).

Now being an adult, I can shake off that whole "Console War" thing and since Gamestop has used PSP 3Ks for $70 (80 for refurbished but why would you do that?) I figured that it was time to dive into the world of PSP...

...And you guys are right; it's a beautiful world...especially when you can buy MicroSD to Memory Duo adapters, cheap cables, and rip the UMDs to the memory. Most PSP games are so cheap at Amazon and Gamestop I went on a frenzy with those Kongregate coupons and collected over 50 games in less than a month. Funny thing was I got a PSP 3K for $35 at a thrift shop shortly after buying one at GS. All the stuff I bought for my PSP (including the 2 PSPs) comes to about $300. 

I can now play Star Oceans 1 and 2, Valkyria Chronicles 2, Dissidia FF, Ace Combat X, oh the list goes on...

It may have taken nine years, but I don't care; just happy to have it before it all goes away and gets rare.

 
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hey, so I can tip my old PSP games and put them on the memory cards?  Can I do this and play the games on my Vita?

 
And here I am planning to buy myself a Vita. Hopefully Sony wouldn't kill Vita before I get tired of playing this console. 

 
I've got two PSPs right now, with a third stranded in Michigan. For the record, I LOVE this system... it was much better supported than the Vita, and I think history will be much kinder to it. The fact that it's so easily hacked also works in its favor. It doesn't just play its own library of excellent games; it can also play games for the Genesis, Super NES, Playstation, and at least a half dozen other consoles and handhelds.

 
I love my PSP as well, and I love the Vita too.

Got my first Vita new for Christmas the year they had the Star Wars - Vader Edition white unit out, which is sadly a model 2000. It died three months later and had to be sent in to Sony for warranty repair, which ened up being a warranty exchange. Still have it, but the UMD lid sensor switch ended up becoming finicky and the system would at random register that the UMD drive had been opened, which was annoying.

Around that time I got a model 300 used, which is still working to this day. Also have a model 1000 that I picked up super cheap used which is also working great.

A close friend also got a Vita model 2000 not long after I got my initial unit and the Wi-Fi transmitter in his failed less than a year later. I swear the model 2000 is cursed or something.

Phantasy Star Portable 1 & 2, Valkyrie Chronicles 2, Personas 1 - 3, Fate/Extra, just to name some of the ones that drained the bulk of my time are all fantastic games on the system.

 
I love my PSP as well, and I love the Vita too.

Got my first Vita new for Christmas the year they had the Star Wars - Vader Edition white unit out, which is sadly a model 2000. It died three months later and had to be sent in to Sony for warranty repair, which ened up being a warranty exchange. Still have it, but the UMD lid sensor switch ended up becoming finicky and the system would at random register that the UMD drive had been opened, which was annoying.

Around that time I got a model 300 used, which is still working to this day. Also have a model 1000 that I picked up super cheap used which is also working great.

A close friend also got a Vita model 2000 not long after I got my initial unit and the Wi-Fi transmitter in his failed less than a year later. I swear the model 2000 is cursed or something.

Phantasy Star Portable 1 & 2, Valkyrie Chronicles 2, Personas 1 - 3, Fate/Extra, just to name some of the ones that drained the bulk of my time are all fantastic games on the system.
I was never a fan of the 2000 because it's much lighter weight and rounder edges made it feel more like a flimsy plastic toy to me... but if it is indeed less reliable as well, then, yeah I'm never getting one.

How is the 3000 in that regard? The design aesthetics definitely look like a step up from the 2000. I've never had a chance to try one though.. does it have that solid, well-built feel of the 1000?

 
The PSP is a beautiful handheld, it's got so many obscure games on it to, sequels and spinoff games of many popular franchises that it's gotta have something to appeal to everyone.  I was talking to a girl at work who is big into Playstation and she didn't even hear of it!  I brought mine in and convinced her to buy one.  I'm not big into RPG's but there are a ton of them.  

Also the Vita is great just to play PS1 games on, I absolutely love that feature, not only can you buy some expensive PS1 games cheap, they come with the manuals as scans!  I play resident evil games in my bed because it's scary at night, and no I'm not kidding.  

Just a side question, does anyone have experience downloading saves off gamefaqs?  I started playing Mega Man Powered up and there's all this free DLC but I'm not sure if you can download it from the website, can't even check because I can not connect to wifi, but somebody has a save up where you can download there save with all that content, not sure what I need as far as a USB, if someone can provide me with a link to one on ebay or something I would be thankful.  

 
To the post above. Use youtube.. I was able to patch a few Japanese games to English with the help of youtube.
 
[quote name="jputahraptor" post="12962936" timestamp="1444529948"]The PSP is a beautiful handheld, it's got so many obscure games on it to, sequels and spinoff games of many popular franchises that it's gotta have something to appeal to everyone. I was talking to a girl at work who is big into Playstation and she didn't even hear of it! I brought mine in and convinced her to buy one. I'm not big into RPG's but there are a ton of them.

Also the Vita is great just to play PS1 games on, I absolutely love that feature, not only can you buy some expensive PS1 games cheap, they come with the manuals as scans! I play resident evil games in my bed because it's scary at night, and no I'm not kidding.

Just a side question, does anyone have experience downloading saves off gamefaqs? I started playing Mega Man Powered up and there's all this free DLC but I'm not sure if you can download it from the website, can't even check because I can not connect to wifi, but somebody has a save up where you can download there save with all that content, not sure what I need as far as a USB, if someone can provide me with a link to one on ebay or something I would be thankful. [/quote]
A regular USB to Mini USB is all you need I'm pretty sure. I'm stupid broke, but I have a broken vita I will be fixing up in the next few weeks.
 
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