PSP = $350

[Killtacular]

Well, Sony, gg. You're going to lose.

From Gamespot, which has since pulled the article due to NDA:

Today during an early-morning press conference, Sony finally revealed the price point and release date for its first portable gaming device, the PSP. The PSP will launch for a suggested retail value of 38,624 Yen, or 349.99 dollars in the USA.

Talk of a "competitive price point" quickly dissolved with news of this shocking price point. In its statement, Sony commented that the PSP is "not meant to compete directly with the market targeted by the Nintendo DS" and that it is "appropriately priced for its expectations and target demographic." Sony noted, however, that they hope to "bring new consumers into the world of portable gaming"...

[Funkatron]

Hot Dang. Sony is learning the fine art of "shootinyaselfindafoot-jitsu"

[Youko Recca]

Hahahaha! Watch someone rob a couple of convenience stores to get this.....

[Artemis]

Sony commented that the PSP is "not meant to compete directly with the market targeted by the Nintendo DS"
Can anyone say "cop-out"?

[HumanWormbaby]

Maybe it's just a typo. A really, really big typo. :sad:


Seriously, I've never questioned any of Sony's console decisions before, but this is crazy. I thought it was stated in another article that Sony would try to stay close (as in within 50, hell, even 100 dollars) to the DS's price.

[Zach Williams]

This was the one I wanted to buy, and the only thing leading me to the DS was the Bomberman game. I hope this is a typo.:sweat:

[Beat]

This had BETTER be a typo.

[HumanWormbaby]

Didn't some guy at Penny Arcade confirm this as a hoax?

[GWOtaku]

Talk of a "competitive price point" quickly dissolved with news of this shocking price point. In its statement, Sony commented that the PSP is "not meant to compete directly with the market targeted by the Nintendo DS"

Translation: "We can't beat Nintendo and don't intend to try."

and that it is "appropriately priced for its expectations and target demographic."

Translation: "The PSP will sell well among rich people who make too much money and like to waste it."

Sony noted, however, that they hope to "bring new consumers into the world of portable gaming"...

Translation: "Hey, there were people willing to buy the N-Gage."

:rolleyes:

Honestly, this is just stupid. Any remote chance I had of buying this went out the window. $350? That's what a home console is supposed to cost at Christmas. Its flat out ridiculous to expect people to shell out that much for a hand held system. Time and again people prefer affordability over special features or even incredible graphics, yet people keep trying to get into the portable gaming market with the same stupid approach. Game Gear failed, the N-Gage failed, and this will fail. And it'll go on until someone besides Nintendo manages to comprehend what people want.

Next they'll come out and say PSP games will cost $40 to $50. :rolleyes:

[William C. Maune]

Did the pulled article mention the release date?

[GWOtaku]

Yeah. I found the rest of it quoted elsewhere.

Also of importance during the press conference was the target release dates for Japan and USA.

Sony announced that it plans to launch in Japan on December 21st with "at least 12 games" and in the USA during the month of March, although it's interesting to note that they did not set a specific day for this event. The PSP is expected to launch with at least 8 games in the USA, but Sony says "it expects even more than twelve", including the new Need For Speed Underground A good four months later than the Nintendo DS' release in the U.S. And AFTER the holiday season.

Unreal. The PSP is already finished.

[Mog]

I guess I won't be buying the PSP. I'm not even going to think about buying it at that price. That's just stupid. $200 would have been good. $250 would have been reasonable.

But $350? Either that's a joke or the PSP's suicide note.

[True Noir]

Damn! I really wanted one too. So let's see how bad it does in the first week. Now, it has no chance against the DS. While DS is making millions of dollars on profit, PSP won't. I hope this price thing changes...fast.

[Shnay]

From Gamespot, which has since pulled the article due to NDA:
This is probably a dumb question, but what does NDA mean?

[Punisher]

Could Sony be Stupider?! Launching it at that price AFTER the holiday season is suicide. It could've sold in the holiday season, but not after! The DS will make millions of dollars during the holiday season, while psp waits. I don't know about you guys but my parents don't let me buy anything after christmas until may. PSP is screwed

[Artimus Gigan]

Looks like I'm going to wait until the price drop or until there is a killer app that justifies the purchase

However the DS was cheaper than I thought so it could even out with the few thousand I have saved...

however the games are the important part...

the inital wave of PSP games don't really catch my intrest, the DS does not to mention it's backwards compatibility

[SilverKnight]

Winner: Nintendo DS. Fatality.

[True Noir]

Looks like I'm going to wait until the price drop or until there is a killer app that justifies the purchase

However the DS was cheaper than I thought so it could even out with the few thousand I have saved...

however the games are the important part...

the inital wave of PSP games don't really catch my intrest, the DS does not to mention it's backwards compatibilityDS was definately way cheaper than what I thought it was going to be which was $200-250. And you're right, the games are important part to what you choose. My choice was PSP because of the great games coming out. Advent Children, MGS, TOE, etc. I'm just going to wait now. THe only thing that caught my attention from DS was the double screen effect.

Right now, I can only immagine what fun and laughter NIntendo is having after hearing about this.

[Artimus Gigan]

DS was definately way cheaper than what I thought it was going to be which was $200-250. And you're right, the games are important part to what you choose. My choice was PSP because of the great games coming out. Advent Children, MGS, TOE, etc. I'm just going to wait now. THe only thing that caught my attention from DS was the double screen effect.

Right now, I can only immagine what fun and laughter NIntendo is having after hearing about this.Advent Children is a DVD movie, not a PSP game

[Kuja's Light]

$350 us too much for even a console at launch! $350 for a handheld at launch?! Ya know, it's as if Sony don't want to get a big market in the handheld area....

[Artimus Gigan]

Playstation Pocket didn't even come to the US and was only sold in Japan


it's only real effective use was getting the Moomba and Chocobo in FF8

other than that it had no other big title games that was made for it...

Prehaps they just want it to be similar to that instead of an actual Handheld System like the DS...it's just an acessory

[Tommy Lawson]

This is probably a dumb question, but what does NDA mean?That's what I'd like to know too, but the gist of it, from what Matt first posted, appears to be, "Due to heavy pressure on Gamespot from Sony Computer Entertainment of America (SCEA) issuing 'cease and desist" e-mails about the North American PSP price point, the article was removed."

Edit: Now I'm sure what it is. It's "non-disclosure agreement," but simplying seeing that article posted by Gamespot sure must have made SCEA angry.

I called it the last time I posted about the PSP. Initially, it is not trying to be a Game Boy competitor. It's an iPod competitor, trying to be the next great consumer electronics device, much like the Walkman was for Sony. I think the recent announcement of Sony finally joining mp3 support was indicative that they wanted the PSP to be an iPod competitor.

However, $350 is still too much, especially since so many consumers have the memories of the $299 price point of the original Playstation 2 etched firmly into their brains. That's the price I think it will be launched at in early 2005, at $299 in North America. It's still quite steep, but once Sony realizes the initial reaction here to a $350 price point, they better drop it.

Either way, with this news, it seems Sony has gotten the "first place" mentality Nintendo once had. Believing that it had a firm foothold on the video game industry, they let others get better and release products that while not necassarily more powerful, did sell well, and sell software, changing the video game landscape. By 2010, Sony may be looking back at 2005 as their worst year ever for expected versus actual sales.

[MJC]

Definitely out of my price range. And just about everybody else's.

[Batmex]

Quote from EGM:

"Nintendo has ruled the handheld market for more than 15 years and they know it better than anybody"


And it's true, they know when to make drastic changes to their products, it took them years to make a GB color, then a stronger GB, a few more with backlight and now the DS.

Gamegear tried to best the colorless GB with light screen and color handleld but technology was very limited and expesnive at the time, thus their Gamegear had fancy colors and all......but sucked 6 batteries like a Vampire.

Sega Nomad = That thing drained batteries in about 2 seconds

Neo Geo pocket sounded good, but SNK pulled the plug for unknown(to me) reasons.

N-Gage = no comment.

[Frank Castle]

Well I'm STILL getting a PSP.:)

[Sketch]

Well I'm STILL getting a PSP.:)Yeah, you have fun with that.

I could buy my quaterly college books for that much money and college books ain't cheap.

Sony never should have tried to get into the handheld market if this is their plan. After the holiday season? Now that is just stupid. They'd be better off waiting a year. Infact that's exactly what they should do. The graphic power of the PSP as well as the potential for graphic innovations is much higher than the DS. Sony should let the DS run it's course and bring out the PSP in Fall of 2005. At least then they'd have a chance.

DS has 2 pack in games and is less than half the price of the PSP... I don't care how popular Sony is with the gaming market these days the PSP's sales will be dismal at best (but they'll be better than the N-Gage).

[Beat]

They should wait a year, and get enough influx to drive the price down to at least $250.

That is, if they want this thing to be successful.

[Sigma]

Wow. $100 more then I expected, but I will still buy one on launch. At $350 and games will run about $50 this is going to be a huge gamble for Sony that I just don't see paying off. At $350 the majority of people buying will be hardcore gamers and people with the money to throw around. Your casual gamers will steer clear of it with a $350 price tag. I was thinking it would run about $250 which is still $100 more then the DS.

Sony = MORONS!

[TacoHunter]

I was expecting it to be $300. For the simple reason, that's the cheapest iPod. Not counting the minis. But $50 ain't too bad. I'm still not buying one. But it does seem reasonably priced.

Sony ISN'T trying to market it as a gaming machine. They're going to try and market it as...kind of a cheap laptop, minus all the versatility.

But it doesn't matter. I don't think the UMD's are write-able so its not like you can make your own music mix or put your own movies on them. But maybe those memory sticks will fix those problems.

Oh well, it should be interesting to see how this works.

[maximumzero]

Wow. Even more reason to choose the DS over the PSP.

Not that I really NEEDED anymore, but hey, Sony, thanks for offering.

[Evil Dr. Reef]

This is probably a dumb question, but what does NDA mean? "Non-Disclosure Agreement"

It means that Sony could tell Gamespot everything they'd ever need to know about the PSP today, but if they signed an NDA, they couldn't say jack until Sony gave them the go-ahead, or face legal action.

edit: hey hey, beaten like PSP's chances of being successful

[Chad Bonin]

Sony to Nintendo, as they hand them a silver platter-

"Hey, Nintendo! We thought you might like this. It's the latest in handheld console fights. Good luck, because we just shot ourselves in the foot."

[SirLemming]

I'll bet they're throwing riotous parties at Nintendo right about now.

Nintendo dominated the console world without question (Sega gave them a run for their money, but never quite took over)... until Sony released the Playstation.
Nintendo has dominated the handheld world for even longer, and beaten out even more companies there (Sega Game Gear & Nomad, the portable Turbografix, the Neo Geo Pocket, Wonderswan, game.com, and Nokia -- destined to be another "double header"). But if anyone could take them down, it's Sony. But now that ain't gonna happen.

[Juu-kuchi]

Hahaha.

[Frank Castle]

Yeah, you have fun with that.

I could buy my quaterly college books for that much money and college books ain't cheap.

It helps when you've got a little bit of money saved on the side. I'm only going to buy the PSP for MG Acid and Syphon Filter but it'll be worth it just wait and see.:)

[Lord Andy]

Wow, that's spendy. It's obvious the DS and the PSP are going after different specific crowds and shouldn't be compared after all. Which is a good thing for Sony. The DS has a lot going for it. Mostly my interest, because the two screen/touch pad/WiFi has got me interested. Sure, the PSP takes advantage of the fact that I'm a sucker for powerful and sleek hand held devices, but it's in the same bracket as the Tapwave Zodiac PDA - looks cool, does cool things, and costs more then my computer did.

I'll still need to see an official response for myself (sorry, it's the internet, what do you expect) but this one seems reasonable. The part I'm really surprised on is the date. Didn't know the thing was so near to launch! I was half expecting Christmas 2005, not the middle of nowhere special time. But that would be more of a Nintendo handheld move. They even pointed out once that they could've made the GBA several years ago, but they waited till it could be an affordable $99.

But really, when would be a good launch time for this thing? If they wait till they can afford to make it for a more reasonable $250, Nintendo could be revving up it's GBA2. Sony had a huge opportunity to really crunch down on Nintendo's fifteen year stronghold, instead they decided to exclude what I think is the handheld's biggest market (kids) and go for the richer adults. Who knows, maybe the DS scared them?

Sony Guy 1 - Okay, we're going to dethrone Nintendo's handhelds once and for all with a system as powerful as the Playstation all at an affordable price.

Sony Guy 2 - Oh oh, seems Nintendo is putting out another handheld with N64 power. Plus it's going to be different the then GBA so we'll have to be competing against TWO Nintendo handheld products.

Sony Guy 1 - Okay, plan B. We'll make one so freaking powerful it'll hypnotize gamers so much they'll buy it no matter what it costs!

All this really does is confirm that I can never afford this system. Besides, the DS is targeting people like me: someone who's looking forword to a different hand held system then simply just "more power".

[JetMaster5]

...The only way I can see PSP continue to be in the market is if the games cost $10-15...

But that won't ever happen, so PSP is dead.

[Dirtbag]

Nintendo's 15-year dominance of the handheld market is irrelavent. Remember, they also ruled the home console market with an iron fist for 15 years before the PS1 came along. It is doubtful the PSP's $350 price tag is going to unseat Nintendo, but that doesn't mean it can't happen someday.

[Sketch]

Someday indeed...

They lost the console market because they were stubborn and kept catrdiges and waited too long after the PSX to release the N64. The market was already tapped... Same with the PS2 to the Gamecube. Nintendo has been slipping in the console business for a longer time than Sony was in the game. More people bought the Genesis than the SNES for one thing but Sega wasn't content with that they had to try to take it further too soon and made a lot of bad decisions that kept Nintendo at the top for a while longer.

The handheld market is a different story though, at least a slightly different one. Nintendo seems to have an uncanny ability to pick "just the right time" do improve their handheld system. The GB had a VERY long life span and took down the Game Gear pretty easily. No matter how much more powerful any given system was the GB beat it out because it was user friendly and had great games. The Game Gear didn't have too many really great games for one thing... The NGP might have stood a chance if SNK didn't pull it so soon, but it too was getting stomped by the GB (the GBC to be exact). The Game.com and the N-Gage weren't even contenders as far as I'm concerned. I don't know what they're thinking with the N-Gage, it didn't work out the first time... what makes them think it will work this time?

Nintendo also made their handhelds the easiest system to get software for as well as reverse compatible. You can play any game from any country on the latest GB without any assistance from a cheating device or mod chip like you needed for consoles.

Nintendo will have to make some big mistakes to loose. I don't believe they are incapable to ruining the great thing they have going with handhelds but I also don't expect them to do it. They know exactly how to work the handheld market and as long as the continue to innovate the market and provide quality software for their system they should hold on to their top spot.

Though Sony could have put a much bigger dent if they had resonably priced the PSP.

[Kenshin]

ha ha! this is a kick in the face for playstation! Iv always thought they would do something like this, get head strong and think people will love them no matter what! im definetly getting a DS!

[Shnay]

I think it might be possible for Sony to do alright with this thing in Japan, and perhaps that's more where their focus is right now. I think it'll be extremely hard, and still won't match the DS, but I think they may be able to market it as the all-in-one gadget type with some success in Japan.

Edit: I wrote a big long rant on why I disagree with all those praising Nintendo's great business sense when it comes to handhelds, but I've decided to keep it short (lucky you). Basically, I think they've made a lot of mistakes recently, although the fans seem to overlook them. Stuff like the GBA SP fixing all the problems that shouldn't have been in the GBA in the first place, the mostly unsupported E-Reader, favoring ports over original games, and promising to support two handhelds at once all seem like mistakes to me.

There was a lot of unused potential in the GBA, and I'd have a lot more interest in the "innovative" DS if I saw some innovation during the life of the GBA. For every Wario Ware, there's about 20 Super Mario Advances.

[JDuncan]

I wouldn't be so quick to dismiss Sony, they didn't become number one by not knowing what they're doing. I wouldn't be too surprised to see the PSP still around when Nintendo stops supporting the DS to sell the next GBA.

[JohnCrichton]

Because of my fanboy ailment, I'm by no means a Sony fan, but even with this news I wouldn't count them out yet.

Something about this blunder just sounds far too obvious, and the Kings of the Console business would definately see this mistake if we're seeing it, so there's just got to be something else to it.

[Artimus Gigan]

Maybe it's 350 bucks with the PSP and 5 other games?


thatwould draw in a few people

[TacoHunter]

There IS no mistake. Sony has been saying, they're not competing with Nintendo. And they're not. They're competing with Apple.

iPods are currently priced from $300 to $400. So a machine that can do more then an iPod selling at $350 is very reasonable.

The thing is designed to be a portable movie, music, and game player. Not just a gaming machine. Its going to sell the same way the PS2 sold. And because Sony owns Columbia/Tristar, that guaranties royalty free movies. And Sony's music labels will provide royalty free songs as well. Now, that's a lot of competition Apple has to face.

As well as, this will help standardize Sony's UMDs. Which I imagine will work with the PS3 and the new line of Vivoes after the PSPs launch.

After looking at how the media seems to be more interested in the PSP then the DS, that just proves the hype will sell the PSP no matter what.

But I'm still buying a DS and not a PSP, just because, I don't like Sony. But I do know Sony is playing their cards right.

[Zero Kagayaki]

DS is 150 dollars

[Super Leviathan]

Sony's PSP = The NExt NGage.


The Ds is definately on MY Wishlist By Default, But Now I have even more reson to get it.

[True Noir]

Because of my fanboy ailment, I'm by no means a Sony fan, but even with this news I wouldn't count them out yet.

Something about this blunder just sounds far too obvious, and the Kings of the Console business would definately see this mistake if we're seeing it, so there's just got to be something else to it.
That's what I am thinking. There has to be at least one person that brought up an arguement when they were thinking of the price. It's just not normal to choose suicide over life and success.

[GWOtaku]

posted by TacoHunter:

The thing is designed to be a portable movie, music, and game player. Not just a gaming machine.
Sounds all too much like the N-Gage.

[randomguy]

Sounds all too much like the N-Gage.
Except the N-Gage was poorly designed and marketed in ways the PSP probably won't be. Sony has experience with portable electronics that Nokia didn't, and besides, they don't have to worry about the cell-phone functionality (which was what really doomed the N-Gage in the first place).

I don't think the comparison's fair. I think the PSP will be a tough sale, and the price tag is hardly ideal, but as an all-in-one multimedia device, there is a market for it. It's an uphill battle, and Sony will have to play their cards just right, but the PSP's success is hardly an impossibility.

[William C. Maune]

Sony going after the iPod market instead of the Gameboy market sounds reasonable, but then I think they should name it something other than the PSP. Even if they are targeting the iPod market, when the consumer hears "Playstation" or "PS" they are going to think video games and they are going to think video game competitor. The device may do a bunch of other things, but the video game aspect is going to overshadow the other features. They might have more luck with the iPod market if they picked a name that better promoted the iPod-like features.

It would be one thing if "Playstation" was Sony's only well known brand, but they have several. Drawing a name idea from the successful Walkman/Discman (Digiman? Multimediaman?) line might be more ideal here. Heck, the name "Sony" itself is a very well known brand if they wanted to come up with a whole new name.

[Beat]

One can only guess how much a PS3 will cost in comparison.

[SirLemming]

The bottom line is, whether Sony's dropping out of competition with Nintendo or setting themselves up to be beat by Nintendo, Nintendo's gotta be happy either way.

[Sketch]

I think it might be possible for Sony to do alright with this thing in Japan, and perhaps that's more where their focus is right now. I think it'll be extremely hard, and still won't match the DS, but I think they may be able to market it as the all-in-one gadget type with some success in Japan.

Edit: I wrote a big long rant on why I disagree with all those praising Nintendo's great business sense when it comes to handhelds, but I've decided to keep it short (lucky you). Basically, I think they've made a lot of mistakes recently, although the fans seem to overlook them. Stuff like the GBA SP fixing all the problems that shouldn't have been in the GBA in the first place, the mostly unsupported E-Reader, favoring ports over original games, and promising to support two handhelds at once all seem like mistakes to me.

There was a lot of unused potential in the GBA, and I'd have a lot more interest in the "innovative" DS if I saw some innovation during the life of the GBA. For every Wario Ware, there's about 20 Super Mario Advances.Well actually for every Wario Ware there were 4 Mario Advances.

I can agree with much of this despite being a self-righteous Nintendo fanboy. The E-reader deserved more support and the GBA is far from tapped. I don't have a problem with them not having the GBA perfect at first. It was still a much better device than previous Gameboys and is favored by some over SP simply because of the feeling in your hands. Some folks don't like the compact SP. I have big hands, but I like smaller controllers for the most part.

Nintendo has made many mistakes with the handheld market but none of which cost them the big bucks. They have almost supported their system (not specifically it's external hardware) with quality titles and given them a pretty long life span all things considered. They aren't without fault when it comes to the handheld market but they sure know how to work it to their advantage.

Going up against the iPod rather than the GBA:SP and NDS makes things a little different. But it still functions as a gaming device and it will surely be marketed as one.

[Daredevil_2003]

$350?! This thing had better cure cancer or serve me drinks or something. There's no way I'm paying that much for a handheld. My computer isn't even worth that much. :p Hey, I bough it 3 years ago, and it wasn't top of the line, then, mmmk? I wonder how many internal organs and mortgages they'll expect us to take out for the PS3? :o

[Nick Biped]

That's about $450 in Canadian dollars, so I don't think I'll be buying it. I can maybe see it doing well if they do a good job of marketing it as an all-in-one type of device. It'll be tough to get by the stigma of being called a "Playstaion" whatever, though, since it'll likely make people think that it's a portable game system at its core, with the rest of the peripherals just being slapped on. And if people think that, they might gravitate towards the Nintendo DS instead.

[guinaevere]

The price is high, but it's a heck of a piece of hardware. Or, will be. And yes, if it's marketed against the iPod/palm pilot types, it might do very well.

That said, I also know that among those in the industry, Sony is considered a rather arrogant vendor. And I see that price point and the official release (NDA or not) indicitive of this.

I found the rest of it quoted elsewhere.
Also of importance during the press conference was the target release dates for Japan and USA.

Sony announced that it plans to launch in Japan on December 21st with "at least 12 games" and in the USA during the month of March, although it's interesting to note that they did not set a specific day for this event. The PSP is expected to launch with at least 8 games in the USA, but Sony says "it expects even more than twelve", including the new Need For Speed Underground Twelve games?!?! What the heck? They're talking launch, and they're not confirming any number over 12? Wow.

[Lord Dalek]

At last Sony will learn that it isn't as immortal as it thought.

[Dogbert]

I don't think it will do well against the iPod crowd. The iPod is for playing music, mostly MP3 format. I don't have one, nor do I know a lot about them, but I'm almost sure they have several GBs of storage for 1,000's of songs. PSP will not have any storage other than flash memory. Right now even 500 MB of flash would be very expensive. Therefore, the people who buy iPods would not get a PSP as far as I can see.

Now, if this is targeted not as an alternative to the iPod, but rather as something an iPod owner might buy also, it may stand a chance.

[Killtacular]

Well I'm not buying either handheld until both burn up and start selling for cheap.

I know people hate it when I say "video game crash", but handhelds are potentially the first to fall. Look at the factors.. the GBA2 is likely going to have Gamecube-level power to it, because Nintendo will have to one-up Sony. Otherwise they'd have no reason to be making a new system, since GBA's limitations are not exactly holding any company back except in the 3D department. Since the GBA2 will be more powerful than the DS, the DS will be discontinued. Since the GBA2 will likely have a $300+ price tag, noone's going to buy it OR the PSP.

May be the first time in handheld history where NOONE wins. IMO I hope that doesn't happen since the handheld market is the only thing holding Nintendo together at this point and if they lose that, then they lose everything.

[Dirtbag]

Stuff like the GBA SP fixing all the problems that shouldn't have been in the GBA in the first place, the mostly unsupported E-Reader, favoring ports over original games, and promising to support two handhelds at once all seem like mistakes to me. I agree with most of that, but I really have no problems with all the ports. Most of said ports are ports of SNES games. In the heyday of the SNES I was about twelve, and needless to say I didn't have a very large cash flow at the time, so I missed out on a lot of great games. With Nintendo and third-party developers re-releasing games on the GBA it's a great way for those of us who couldn't play a lot of older games to get a chance to try them.

[Znath]

Gee 350? I know it's been said but, why not play a safer game of Russian Roulette

So all our fears are confirmed
(large screen + compact laser system) / size = $$$

It looks like the classic "pulling a Sega" of too much too fast.
Sure some rich kids will get some off their parents like the Ngage
and a couple bored high paid newly grads will pick up one. Truth is that
the every day pay-by-allowance kid isn't gonna afford that.

Well at least they tried here I was thinking 250 was too much
I think.... maybe.... I'd rather pay half that for a good console
or maybe i dunno... about 8 or 10 good games???

[RAINMAN]

You mean to tell me y`all did not see this coming? Sony has always charge high for their gaming systems. This is no different. :sweat:

[Invader_Spooch]

You mean to tell me y`all did not see this coming? Sony has always charge high for their gaming systems. This is no different. :sweat:
Oh come on, Rainman. You can't blame Sony for charging a bit more than Nintendo for their consoles when they do more than play video games (seeing as the PS2 plays music CDs and DVDs). The only reason Nintendo systems are cheaper than Sony's or Microsoft's is because they don't do anything else outside of play games. The PSP is reasonably priced considering what it can do (I don't see how you can complain about it's price when it plays MP3s and movie discs).

Quit jumping on the N fanboy "Let's hate on some Sony products" bandwagon. Just accept the fact that some people will like the PSP, but it isn't a threat to your precious, holy Nintendo.

[RAINMAN]

Oh come on, Rainman. You can't blame Sony for charging a bit more than Nintendo for their consoles when they do more than play video games (seeing as the PS2 plays music CDs and DVDs). The only reason Nintendo systems are cheaper than Sony's or Microsoft's is because they don't do anything else outside of play games. The PSP is reasonably priced considering what it can do (I don't see how you can complain about it's price when it plays MP3s and movie discs).

Quit jumping on the N fanboy "Let's hate on some Sony products" bandwagon. Just accept the fact that some people will like the PSP, but it isn't a threat to your precious, holy Nintendo.


While maybe if sony would stop adding useless stuff they would not need to charge so much for their systems. What wrong whit making a normal gaming system? Do they fear if they made a normal gaming system it would not be on the level of a N made system?

[Killtacular]

It's a threat to Nintendo, but indirectly. It's a threat to their future. Should Nintendo try to one-up the PSP when they work on the GBA2, they'd basically be digging their own grave. And I don't see why they'd even be making a GBA2 if that wasn't their agenda.

The PSP will most likely fail but it could easily bring down Nintendo with it.

[Mog]

It's a threat to Nintendo, but indirectly. It's a threat to their future. Should Nintendo try to one-up the PSP when they work on the GBA2, they'd basically be digging their own grave. And I don't see why they'd even be making a GBA2 if that wasn't their agenda.

The PSP will most likely fail but it could easily bring down Nintendo with it.
Thus allowing Microsoft to create yet another monopoly. It makes total sense now.

[Duke]

It's a threat to Nintendo, but indirectly. It's a threat to their future. Should Nintendo try to one-up the PSP when they work on the GBA2, they'd basically be digging their own grave. And I don't see why they'd even be making a GBA2 if that wasn't their agenda.

The PSP will most likely fail but it could easily bring down Nintendo with it.
Somehow I doubt the next GBA will be over $200. Price has always been one of Nintendo's focal points, and it would be very...weird...to see them stop using it now.

[Killtacular]

Somehow I doubt the next GBA will be over $200. Price has always been one of Nintendo's focal points, and it would be very...weird...to see them stop using it now.
It will be over $200. The GBA2 is guaranteed to be more powerful than the DS, like a mini-Gamecube. Those parts will not come cheap. It's a lose lose situation. If they charge it for cheap, they will lose horrendous amounts of money, if they charge it the same as PSP, they will not get many people buying the systems, which would result in huge losses.

And if the GBA2 is not more powerful than the DS, people will ask "Why should I buy that when the DS is more powerful and is 3D and stuff?" Of course the DS would be discontinued to force people to buy the GBA2, though that wouldn't be a successful strategy.

[mikestorm]

Hmm...I still want one, but I'm a patient person. I think I'll wait for the first price drop before I get one. If two christmases go by with no price drop, I know when I'm beat and will just bite the bullet.

[GWOtaku]

Is this GBA 2 even officially confirmed?

Also why would they feel a great need go all out to one-up the PSP when the DS is going to do that easily due to the PSP's outrageous price and the fact that the DS has a good four months to establish a base?

[Killtacular]

Is this GBA 2 even officially confirmed?
Nintendo has already said that the DS is not the successor to the Game Boy Advance and that the true successor will go into development in the future.

[Artimus Gigan]

The GBA still has untapped power, if you can get games like Metroid Zero Mission, Final Fantasy tactics, and Golden Sun 2 to look great on a small screen they could do more things with it.

It just feels too soon for somthing like the Nintendo DS, the original GB went on for 12 years before GBC, I should expect double or triple that time witht he GBA

[SirLemming]

I've heard rumors that the PSP's battery life for movies is 2.5 hours.

So did they make these before the LotR trilogy came out or what?

[William C. Maune]

Unless they are planning to rush the GBA2 to the market, I don't see any problems with cost. The technology will be cheaper in due time.

[The Koopinator]

Well Sony, WHAT THE CRAP. $350 is not in my price range. DS all the way, but I'll wait until the price drops a little. A LITTLE.

[GWOtaku]

posted by Matt Wilson:

Nintendo has already said that the DS is not the successor to the Game Boy Advance and that the true successor will go into development in the future. Right...so it could or could not be next year and we're not sure?

If its later rather than sooner (i.e. March when the PSP is launching) that's sufficent time for the DS to be scaled back in price and for the GBA 2 to be more reasonably priced. About a year from now or sooner the DS would be around $100, whereas the GBA 2 would probably be no more than $200, maybe less.

[Mynd Hed]

Unless they are planning to rush the GBA2 to the market, I don't see any problems with cost. The technology will be cheaper in due time.

Exactly-- Nintendo has certainly made its mistakes in the past, but rushing their systems to market before their time has, historically, never been one of them. In my experience, they're far more likely to err in the other direction and let the competitors scoop them, which let the Genesis get enough of a foothold to stay in the market (although never to dominate it) and, along with their foolish insistence on sticking with cartridges, played a BIG part in the emergence of the original Playstation as a force to be reckoned with in the first place.

[William C. Maune]

Yeah, if anything, Nintendo is the king of delaying system launches. I don't remember the details on all the past launches, but the DS may actually be the first system to lauch on schedule.

[Invader_Spooch]

While maybe if sony would stop adding useless stuff they would not need to charge so much for their systems. What wrong whit making a normal gaming system? Do they fear if they made a normal gaming system it would not be on the level of a N made system?
You are officially branded an unreasonable fanboy. :shrug:
There is no chance of a reasonable discussion with you. Good day to you, sir.

[Nin-Nin69]

Heh, this makes N-Gage QD a bargain. :D

[Dr Crocodile]

You are officially branded an unreasonable fanboy. :shrug:
There is no chance of a reasonable discussion with you. Good day to you, sir.Or maybe he just fails to see the appeal in the PSP's other features. Is that a crime? I can dig the whole MP3 player thing. I can dig it quite a bit. But perhaps you can explain to me why someone would want to watch movies on a 5 inch screen (I can't remember the exact length but it certainly isn't mind blowing) using a propeity movie format whose disks will likely cost between $10 and $20 when they could watch in on a DVD which is a near universal format, can be watched on any TV/computer with a big screen and whose disks cost between $10 and $20? Now you could always say, "oh what if someone wants to watch a moive on the go like they would want to play a game on the go?" However, many handheld games are structured differently from console games and take advantage of their portability with quick + easy multiplayer or quick sessions of play. The experince is often genuinely different. Whereas with movies, you're just watching a movie in worse conditions. Alas I suppose it is just my opinion that the movie playback seems silly. But at least recognize it as a difference in opinion instead of attacking.

[Invader_Spooch]

Or maybe he just fails to see the appeal in the PSP's other features. Is that a crime? I can dig the whole MP3 player thing. I can dig it quite a bit. But perhaps you can explain to me why someone would want to watch movies on a 5 inch screen (I can't remember the exact length but it certainly isn't mind blowing) using a propeity movie format whose disks will likely cost between $10 and $20 when they could watch in on a DVD which is a near universal format, can be watched on any TV/computer with a big screen and whose disks cost between $10 and $20? Now you could always say, "oh what if someone wants to watch a moive on the go like they would want to play a game on the go?" However, many handheld games are structured differently from console games and take advantage of their portability with quick + easy multiplayer or quick sessions of play. The experince is often genuinely different. Whereas with movies, you're just watching a movie in worse conditions. Alas I suppose it is just my opinion that the movie playback seems silly. But at least recognize it as a difference in opinion instead of attacking.I am very well aware (and respectful) of the fact that it is a difference of opinion. You obviously haven't been around for many of Rainman's posts. That "attack" was based more on his overall bias towards anything Nintendo, to the point of bashing anything that isn't, seeing it as a threat. He doesn't have to like it, but he tends to do nothing but petty trash talk when it comes to Sony.

I just demand the same respect towards my tastes that I show his (I dislike Nintendo, but don't post hateful, pointless comments in every Nintendo related thread).

I just wish people would back off on the whole console hating (on all sides). They all have good qualities, and it just shows how petty and biased you can be (to the point of no longer being able to discuss topics rationally) when things like this are posted;

While maybe if sony would stop adding useless stuff they would not need to charge so much for their systems. What wrong whit making a normal gaming system? Do they fear if they made a normal gaming system it would not be on the level of a N made system?

I mean, come on. What does this contribute to the discussion? All it does is show people you can't talk about this issue (or anything related to X system/company you don't like) without getting really defensive and personal.

I feel that (reguardless of where you stand on favorite console company) that a certain level of repect needs to be shown to those who may favor the system/company that is the object of your unsurpassed hate. You may not like it, but respect the fact that others may.

[William C. Maune]

I am very well aware (and respectful) of the fact that it is a difference of opinion. You obviously haven't been around for many of Rainman's posts. That "attack" was based more on his overall bias towards anything Nintendo, to the point of bashing anything that isn't, seeing it as a threat. He doesn't have to like it, but he tends to do nothing but petty trash talk when it comes to Sony.

His initial post that you responded to didn't even mention Nintendo and it didn't ever really attack Sony. Regardless of his other posts, there is no reason to jump on him. If its a problem, the mods can handle it. There are a heck of a lot worse posts in this thread than the first post Rainman made.

[guinaevere]

Right...so it could or could not be next year and we're not sure? For the GBA2? Oh heavens! No no no!! It's pretty far off.


Please folks, remember speculation, no matter how enlightened you may be, is speculation. Unless you're working for the companies in question, ya might not want to go telling folks what is or is not in the works. And if you do work for the companies in question, it would be highly unlikely that you'd be telling company secrets on a board such as this. :D

[Zechs]

I could buy my quaterly college books for that much money and college books ain't cheap.


Ditto, $350 this thing had better the holy grail of hand helds. I can't even afford a used PS2 from a pawn shop so there's no way I can afford a PSP. Also can some one tell me the price of the DS. As for the PS3 I heard it was giong to be $500, but don't quote me on that. Looks like I won't be getting a PSP for a loooong while.

[Duke]

Ditto, $350 this thing had better the holy grail of hand helds. I can't even afford a used PS2 from a pawn shop so there's no way I can afford a PSP. Also can some one tell me the price of the DS. As for the PS3 I heard it was giong to be $500, but don't quote me on that. Looks like I won't be getting a PSP for a loooong while.
DS is $150, I believe. Dunno if it's gonna come with anything other than the system, though.

[Killtacular]

DS is $150, I believe. Dunno if it's gonna come with anything other than the system, though.
It comes with PictoChat (built into the system apparently) and a demo of Metroid that includes a couple of single player missions and multiplayer mode.