$250 PSP price to stay for a long time to come

[quote name='gizmogc']PS2 is a console. Its attached to your TV, and will rarley move. Mom and Dads may not want to spend $250 for a small handheld system that can get stolen at school, or easily broken.[/QUOTE]

I am just saying that parents tend to spoil their kids. My logic may be flawed and I am completly wrong to say it will sell moderately well.

I am basing my opinion on people I know that have purchased the PSP. I knew one person who went so far as to trade in their Xbox and all of their accessories and games to purchase a PSP. I even saw a girl buy one for herself. I have seen very few girl gamers, so I was impressed that she had to have a PSP.

Again, you are correct, that the PSP could be easily stolen or broken, which would figure into a parents decision to purchase a PSP. Hell, I even went ape shit when my son took one of his toys to school and broke it.
 
[quote name='stocker08']exactally!! I will be waiting untill it drops in price. If i really wanted it i would have bought it at 250$ when it came out, whats going to cuase me to buy it at the same price in a few years?[/QUOTE]

The value changes due to a variation of what Bob Metcalfe dubbed 'the network effect.'

A fax machine at any price, low or high, is of limited value if only a few other fax machine exist. If none of those locations are places you need to send pages, then the value of the fax machine is nil for all practical purposes.

The number of existing locations that can send and receive fax are equivalent to a game system's software library. A game system that doesn't have a single game you wish to play is worthless whether it sells for $150 or $250. Owning a game system with no games of interest is as worthless as owning the only fax machine.

After that first desirable game appears the situation changes. It's no longer a matter of if but how much? For early adopters with faith that more good games will appear, that one item is enough to get them to buy in. Cha-ching! Other require more convincing. For them it isn't the price of the base hardware but the lack of choices. If enough desirable games are released and/or announced those people can be won over without cutting the hardware price. This isn't anything new. Plenty of people have bought past consoles well after their launch but before any price cuts because the software they wanted appeared. Sony is betting this will make all the difference for their pricey portable. That there is a strong base of consumers who have the funds and thinterest if the games are there.

Whether Sony will get the right games out is the real question. There are some promising items announced but the rate of such announcements is still on the slow side.
 
[quote name='gizmogc']Have you ever worked in retail? That is EXACTLY how it is.

Now if your an adult, maybe not. But if your a parent or a kid (and atleast in my 3+ years in Videogame retail thats really the case with the DS promotion), they will get whats A. Cheaper B. Free stuff. If a kid comes in with $300, you think he is gonna get the PSP and 1 game? Or is he going to get the DS with Mario for free, and 4-5 games (hell, maybe more)?. Hes going to go for the DS.

I remember all the great Holiday Xbox bundles. By Microsoft just including 2 free 'decent' games, they managed to sell WAY more Xboxs. Often customers would come in planning on getting a PS2, but when they saw Xbox has 2 free games, and won't need a memory card, they were sold.

I truley expect most stores to be sold out of DS' this week if they give Mario 64 away (retail copys). Otherwise, bundles (Mario 64 packed inside) will be sold out completly.[/QUOTE]

If the kid veiws the PSP and DS as different classes of product the lesser price of the DS isn't going to matter. If someone is really enamored of the PSP the trick isn't getting them to switch but to eventually own both. The two are so very different that a savvy retailer has a good shot of cultivating that in the long term.

A lot also hinges on who is holding the cash. If Sony's PSP fortunes are dependent on parental indulgence I don't see them doing well. Nor do they since their marketing for the PSP strikes me as strongly targeting late teen and young adults who make their own decesions about such purchases. If it were the Sega of the mid-90's buying the PR for the PSP we'd probably see a lot of sneering attack ads against Nintendo (such as comparing Sonic's gameplay to Mario Kart's title screen) and other ads suggesting ownership of a PSP will cause attractive women to become intensely interested in you.

The DS game bundle will help but I don't expect a major spike in sales. It will serve more to maintain sales momentum during the slowest hardware sales period of the year and have that much larger of a base for the big software releases later in the year.
 
[quote name='epobirs']

It's a running battle. When Sony offers a bunch of early titles as $20 GH versions that brings in a bunch of new hardware purcahses and sells a bunch to the existing base. That has been a major part of Playstation 1/2 success and should pay off for the PSP. (ROM based systems cannot match this without waiting for for major price drops in the cost of mask ROMs.) OTOH, someone new could jump into the handheld business with something that has comparable power but a more conservative design and a lower price point. It would be difficult to keep such a project secret and Sony would have plenty of time to devise their strategy before the product actually launched. Given enough time that strategy might even include a price cut but a strong software library, which is already a top ranking need, would probably be the foremost item with the addition of more funding for exclusives. Without a comparable platform vying for the same titles it doesn't matter but when that machine appears, if ever, it's time to start flashing the cash.

I've had to do without my consoles for several months due to moving into much smaller housing. The GBA and DS have been good to have but the recent addition of PSP has really made a difference. I don't feel quite as deprived when using the PSP. Given a bigger library and the eventual lower prices on older titles I might not miss my consoles at all. Even the TurboExpress never achieved that for me.[/QUOTE]

Good point...I could see how $20 GH titles could make the PSP look a lot more attractive. I would agree it helped the PS1 & 2. Again Nintendo was late to the game as we are finally seeing a $20 Zelda, Mario, and the like on the Cube.

I could see how the PSP would help you out being without your consoles. This is what drives me crazy about the PSP though. Being that the platforms are so similar do I sell off my PS2 and just buy games for my PSP? There is no real distinction as of yet between game formats. I'm not saying the PSP couldn't do well by sticking to Devil May Cry, Socom, GTA, and the all the other PS2 type games but I think some solid new exclusives could help the system distinguish itself.
 
[quote name='jkam']Good point...I could see how $20 GH titles could make the PSP look a lot more attractive. I would agree it helped the PS1 & 2. Again Nintendo was late to the game as we are finally seeing a $20 Zelda, Mario, and the like on the Cube.

I could see how the PSP would help you out being without your consoles. This is what drives me crazy about the PSP though. Being that the platforms are so similar do I sell off my PS2 and just buy games for my PSP? There is no real distinction as of yet between game formats. I'm not saying the PSP couldn't do well by sticking to Devil May Cry, Socom, GTA, and the all the other PS2 type games but I think some solid new exclusives could help the system distinguish itself.[/QUOTE]

(Grrrr... I hate having to share this computer with someone who cannot remember the difference between 'switch user' and 'log out.' I'm writing this reply for the second time.)

There is always a problem of 'what do you get the man who has everything' needing to be more than a portable version of something else he already has. The PSP needs to be more than a modern day TurboExpress. (For many years it seemed every limo driver in LA had a TurboExpress but that isn't a booming audience.)

The problem is not that far removed from the bulk of GBA detritus brought into existence solely to because there is a big PR campaign for the console versions, so there has to be a GBA game as well regardless of whether anyone has a good idea for a game using the same art assets. Some of them are good but all too often they're dragged into being for no better reason than complete platform coverage for the PR dollar. Assuming the associated console title isn't also awful, these things so often are generic side scrollers for lack of any ideas. Licenses and franchise spinoffs on GBA tend to be much better when they aren't bound to another game's schedule but instead stand on their own as qualifying their place on the store shelf.

On PSP they can keep the same gameplay but that doesn't do anything for those people looking for a reason to own both a PS2 and the PSP. Down the road the horsepower of the PS3 may make the division between it and the PSP seem like that between the GBA and current machines but that only helps a little.

I don't think it's going to be a major problem for long. When getting started on a new platform it's long been common for publishers to not bring much new IP to the table until their second generation titles. There is a reluctance to make that investment when the platform is still a training ground for the coders. I would expect any sane publisher to be thinking about ways to make consumers want both the console and portable version of the game. With WiFi and USB becoming universal on console connectivity to all versions of a multi-platform game won't be a problem, although we can be sure Sony will offer in centives to keep such things exclusive to PS3. I think we'll see a lot like what is being done with GTA. A game that stands on its own for newcomers to the franchise and also holds great attraction for players of the console game by tying into the continuity. Rather than just have clones of the PS2 game the PSP should be the Gaiden machine. The upcoming FFVII spinoff exploring the backstory of Vincent is a good example of this.

One title I have good hopes for is Daxter. While a port of Jak & Daxter would probably do a fair bit of business on the portable after it's become old enough to be unknown to much of the market, it is far better to have a spin-off to reach both those who've played the Jak games and those who haven't. If they can get back to the fun of the first game I definitely want that one. There is something to be said for an exclusive that plays off a popular series while being unique unto itself. And it helps keep Max Casella off the streets.

A lot of the old PS1 library could be effectively new to most of the market as well. I think I've mentioned before that I think the Jumping Flash series would make a great collection if given a facelift, sinc ethe original was primitve even for a PS1 game. Great game well suited to a portable but almost unknown to most people who weren't early PS1 adopters.

The team behind Shadow Hearts has become well regarded but how many remember their PS1 RPG Koudelka? Redoing it for the PSP, especially overhauling the battle system, and promoting the creative connection would likely sell more than the original.

So long as companies don't go overboard plumbing the past for title worthy of revival it can add a lot to the platform. By default, publishers will seek to get the most mileage out of their IP. It is up to Sony to press them for, if not entirely original material, original entries into properties from the console side.
 
The PSP is worth the money folks........I held off as long as I could and I am as impressed as I've ever been with a machine. The product is that good. I see a $200 price tag coming maybe at the hollidays, or $250 remaining but with different options. I am the most frugal person I know and I am just fine paying $250 for this system. Gaming, music, movies, pictures, and videos. And don't forget all the other things we'll get in the future. Emulators, datebooks(PLEASE!), and who knows what else we'll be able to download.

"I've been here since the beginning with intelivision and atari, and now I will be blessed with portable Katamari"-III
 
[quote name='epobirs']And it helps keep Max Casella off the streets.[/QUOTE]

Agreed. Anything that keeps Max Casella off the streets can't be all bad. I'm also hoping the PSP becomes a second home for enhanced ports of PS1 titles. There were some great games for that system that would sell very well optimized for the PSP and with a fresh coat of paint. There are so many RPGs, shooters and adventure games that could be "pick up and play" I'd be surprised if developers weren't working on them right now....
 
[quote name='epobirs'](Grrrr... I hate having to share this computer with someone who cannot remember the difference between 'switch user' and 'log out.' I'm writing this reply for the second time.)

There is always a problem of 'what do you get the man who has everything' needing to be more than a portable version of something else he already has. The PSP needs to be more than a modern day TurboExpress. (For many years it seemed every limo driver in LA had a TurboExpress but that isn't a booming audience.)

The problem is not that far removed from the bulk of GBA detritus brought into existence solely to because there is a big PR campaign for the console versions, so there has to be a GBA game as well regardless of whether anyone has a good idea for a game using the same art assets. Some of them are good but all too often they're dragged into being for no better reason than complete platform coverage for the PR dollar. Assuming the associated console title isn't also awful, these things so often are generic side scrollers for lack of any ideas. Licenses and franchise spinoffs on GBA tend to be much better when they aren't bound to another game's schedule but instead stand on their own as qualifying their place on the store shelf.

On PSP they can keep the same gameplay but that doesn't do anything for those people looking for a reason to own both a PS2 and the PSP. Down the road the horsepower of the PS3 may make the division between it and the PSP seem like that between the GBA and current machines but that only helps a little.

I don't think it's going to be a major problem for long. When getting started on a new platform it's long been common for publishers to not bring much new IP to the table until their second generation titles. There is a reluctance to make that investment when the platform is still a training ground for the coders. I would expect any sane publisher to be thinking about ways to make consumers want both the console and portable version of the game. With WiFi and USB becoming universal on console connectivity to all versions of a multi-platform game won't be a problem, although we can be sure Sony will offer in centives to keep such things exclusive to PS3. I think we'll see a lot like what is being done with GTA. A game that stands on its own for newcomers to the franchise and also holds great attraction for players of the console game by tying into the continuity. Rather than just have clones of the PS2 game the PSP should be the Gaiden machine. The upcoming FFVII spinoff exploring the backstory of Vincent is a good example of this.

One title I have good hopes for is Daxter. While a port of Jak & Daxter would probably do a fair bit of business on the portable after it's become old enough to be unknown to much of the market, it is far better to have a spin-off to reach both those who've played the Jak games and those who haven't. If they can get back to the fun of the first game I definitely want that one. There is something to be said for an exclusive that plays off a popular series while being unique unto itself. And it helps keep Max Casella off the streets.

A lot of the old PS1 library could be effectively new to most of the market as well. I think I've mentioned before that I think the Jumping Flash series would make a great collection if given a facelift, sinc ethe original was primitve even for a PS1 game. Great game well suited to a portable but almost unknown to most people who weren't early PS1 adopters.

The team behind Shadow Hearts has become well regarded but how many remember their PS1 RPG Koudelka? Redoing it for the PSP, especially overhauling the battle system, and promoting the creative connection would likely sell more than the original.

So long as companies don't go overboard plumbing the past for title worthy of revival it can add a lot to the platform. By default, publishers will seek to get the most mileage out of their IP. It is up to Sony to press them for, if not entirely original material, original entries into properties from the console side.[/QUOTE]

I do think the coming of the PS3 will help push the PSP into its own area for specs which is a good thing. This is still at least a year away though. I think games like Daxter and the FFVII spin-off are definitely a good way to go. This way it offers popular brands without beating them to death. It also helps people look at the system and see games that they can't play on their PS2 which in my opinion is the reason for owning any system (must have titles). I realize must-haves differ from person to person and some may grab the system on GTA alone.

I just get a little aggravated when I read about Marvel Nemesis: Rise of the Imperfects and they tell me that the 2 games (PS2+PSP) are basically the same except for a few characters. If I didn't own a PS2 I would probably buy the game but is my $50 worth a couple of extra characters? My answer would be NO.

I'm a little confused by your PS1 statement because I know where you stand with the Revolution on old-school downloads. I remember you saying that they wouldn't be a big draw for people to buy the system. Why would PS1 ports help the PSP? I realize that the PS1 catalog is big enough that not everyone played every game but the same could be said for Nintendo's back catalog then.

I'm not a complete dullard I realize that the PSP needs to use some familiar games to help launch the system and to get games onto the shelves. I would really just like to see some differences as time moves on. As it is right now with the upcoming games list and E3 I don't see too many.
 
Although I want to buy a PSP, I've been holding off. Not because of price but because the quality of the current system is something I don't want to deal with. When I got my SP a couple of years ago, it had the dust in the screen problem and I ended up having to return it for a new one which was a total pain in the ass. When Sony starts consistantly producing PSP's that don't have dead pixels then I wil take the plunge and get one. I'm not ragging on Sony about quality but really the whole industry, it seems that when ever new hardware comes out seems like they do enough testing and quality control any more to make release dates and cut cost on the system. Both my SNES and Genesis bought around their launch dates still work perfectly to this very day. I don't think any of my current systems will last that long.
 
im waiting for games i want to play. If sony came out tomorrow with 5 games that i must own and most coming in a few months i would be more then happy to toss 250 at this system. I even almost got it last weekend when Best buy was doing 2 years interest free on anything 299 or higher.

no games i want to play so i dont buy one. I already got a 150 buck paper weight (My ds) sitting on my desk and dont need another one
 
[quote name='jkam']I do think the coming of the PS3 will help push the PSP into its own area for specs which is a good thing. This is still at least a year away though. I think games like Daxter and the FFVII spin-off are definitely a good way to go. This way it offers popular brands without beating them to death. It also helps people look at the system and see games that they can't play on their PS2 which in my opinion is the reason for owning any system (must have titles). I realize must-haves differ from person to person and some may grab the system on GTA alone.

I just get a little aggravated when I read about Marvel Nemesis: Rise of the Imperfects and they tell me that the 2 games (PS2+PSP) are basically the same except for a few characters. If I didn't own a PS2 I would probably buy the game but is my $50 worth a couple of extra characters? My answer would be NO.

I'm a little confused by your PS1 statement because I know where you stand with the Revolution on old-school downloads. I remember you saying that they wouldn't be a big draw for people to buy the system. Why would PS1 ports help the PSP? I realize that the PS1 catalog is big enough that not everyone played every game but the same could be said for Nintendo's back catalog then.

I'm not a complete dullard I realize that the PSP needs to use some familiar games to help launch the system and to get games onto the shelves. I would really just like to see some differences as time moves on. As it is right now with the upcoming games list and E3 I don't see too many.[/QUOTE]

My disagreement on the Revolution virtual library was that many were treating it as a killer feature. I believe the appeal on a console is far less since people can already ontain most of those games cheaply and that they have far more impact in becoming portable. How many people would have cared if the NES and SNES Mario games were released individually on the GameCube with little or no upgrades at a price of $20 each? (I'm knocking $10 off the GBA price for the cheaper media.) Damned few is my estimate. Even kids who weren't born when those games first appeared have seen old Nintendo hardware and games at garage sales and know they could just have the original, hardware and all, for very little money. The quick download convenience of Revolution virtual library offers some appeal for letting people indulge whims and not eat up a lot of space in their home but I think there will be very people who view it as sufficient reason alone to buy the machine.

Taking an old game portable changes things. How many of us GBA/DS owners have happily bought reworked SNES games we owned in the original release? Quite a lot of us, it seems. (I did draw the line at buying the NES Marios individually but might have been on the lookout for a bargain if they'd ported them collectively as Mario All-Stars.) Those games compared very well to newly create material on that platform. Despite all the time that had passed SNES games were again commerically viable when you put them in the context of a sub-$100 portable. Unlike playing them on a console, it didn't feel like a pure nostalgia exercise. On a GBA these were competitive products for the gamer's money.

The NES Classics didn't do as well. For the SRP these weren't good values. On a portable with much greater strength than the NES I can't see the point of paying for the NES approximations of arcade titles instead of near perfect versions making full use of the GBA. Especially when, like Donkey Kong, a big chunk of the game is missing. An entire level in that case. Even the old B&W GB Donkey Kong had all of the arcade levels plus dozens of new levels. It wasn't about poer but the cost of ROM for the early NES era. A used copy of the B&W Donkey Kong is a better buy than the NES CLassic for anyone more concerned with gameplay than nostalgia. For other games that were NES originals the sheer ugliness can be a bit much. Mario All-Stars showed that a good game could be brought forward without spending a lot, just a little work and cheap storage makes it palatable.

In the Revolution's Virtual Library we'll be getting a lot of games that I'd be more interested in seeing as portable with the Mario All-Stars treatment and I think that has greater mainstream appeal. The same good game design with reduced compromises rather than the same old flicker fest.

Like the GBA, there should be lots of money in reviving good old games for the PSP in addition to original products. But some things are just to ugly to dump on the system as is under a PS1 emulator. In some cases a good game design was underappreciated because in those days when few programmers were yet to be comfortable with 3D resulted in something that was pretty ugly even then. Many people bemoaned the lack of new 2D games because the 3D stuff was often so unappealing once the novelty of 3D itself faded. We're long since past that point. If Sony wants to build up the PSP library quickly one way to get there is to take some of those old ugly but good games and release a nice looking PSP version. Having an already complete design cuts a big chunk off the development cycles as well as reducing cost quite a lot. Bringing that cost reduction to the consumer in the form of $30-$35 (or even down around $20 if the game is a particularly easy port) games would be a good added benefit.

Here is quick list of old titles I think would be worth it to their publishers to revive as PSP games, especially at lower SRPs:

From the Saturn:
Panzer Dragoon Saga
Panzer Dragoon I & II (with an entirely new entry later on)
Bug and Bug Too
Burning Rangers
Clockwork Knight I & II
Shining Force III Complete
Shining the Holy Ark
Sonic R

PS1:
Crash Bandicoot series
Gex series collected
Jet Moto series
Jumping Fash collected
King's Field I & II
Klonoa
Magic Carpet (with wireless multiplayer)
Oddworld I & II
Omega Boost
Return Fire
Roll Cage I & II
Spyro series
Suikoden I & II
Valkyrie Profile
Vandal Hearts I & II
Warhawk (just in time to complement the new PS3 sequel)
Wild Arms 2 (Wild Arms is already gettting PS2 remake but probably would have been more beneficial on the PSP.)

Just to name a few. There would be several that would be workable for the DS in addition to N64 library choices. There is a lot of material to draw on that would have greater renewed value in portable form than emulated on a console.
 
[quote name='epobirs']There is a lot of material to draw on that would have greater renewed value in portable form than emulated on a console.[/QUOTE]

If only everyone thought this way. It is so painfully obvious to port/upgrade PS1 and Saturn/Dreamcast games to PSP... where are all the announcements?????
 
[quote name='epobirs'] Here is quick list of old titles I think would be worth it to their publishers to revive as PSP games, especially at lower SRPs:

From the Saturn:
Panzer Dragoon Saga
Panzer Dragoon I & II (with an entirely new entry later on)
Bug and Bug Too
Burning Rangers
Clockwork Knight I & II
Shining Force III Complete
Shining the Holy Ark
Sonic R
[/QUOTE]

Anybody want to start a petition? I've been PRAYING that Sega would have released Xbox versions of these games forever now, since they did say they would revive old Saturn games and DC games on the PS2 and Xbox (as can be seen in Xbox's Rent-a-hero No. 1 and PS2's Dragon Force...which damn well better make it to the states, and soon).
 
[quote name='rodeojones903']But with every ipod thats smaller, you are getting less for less money. So with that argument Sony would have to take features out of the psp or include less in the package for a price drop. I agree that they should offer a non value pack, but that would essentially be the same thing apple does (give you less for less money).[/QUOTE]

Well the ipod mini is also...smaller.

And newer models of ipods with larger hardrives are coming...with almost guaranteed price drops for the current models.
 
Ipods have already reached the "stupidly large" stage already.....I dont know anyone with enough CD's to fill up the current large IPODS.....besides, there is also something comical about someone who does have all those cd's, and has to haev EVERY TRACK of EVERY CD with them...NOW...at any moment :D

Its like "yeesh, get a life, listen to the world around you for a change!".
 
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