PSP Touch On The Horizon?
Filed under the “Remote Possibility” subfolder of the “Rumors” category, PSP World speculates that the next model of PSP with a touch interface could be in the very near future.
Based on recent filings with the ESRB, Kris Erickson comes to the conclusion that some developers are preparing games for use with a touch interface. While he does mention that the games could be used with the standard PSP controls, his theory is that games such as a canoe paddling mini game and a tabletop baseball game would be ideal for finger flicking.
We commend Kris on his sleuth-like investigative work with the ESRB listings. However, we want to remind gamers that Sony has a long reputation of letting us down at E3 appearances. It would seem obvious that Sony would want a piece of Apple’s pie and are preparing something capable of touch games. But I’m concerned that if Sony focuses on the casual gamers that Apple caters to, the hardcore gamer may be forgotten. And if the PSP Go is any indication, Sony is aiming for the casual gamer in a big way.
Scoop via PSP World | photo from some guy in Sony’s Forums
PS – Don’t forget that Nintendo proved there was a market for touchscreen gaming LONG before Apple did.
DSi Game Makes Creates True 3D Illusion Using Face Tracking
Forget 3D on an IMAX screen. If you want True 3D, small IS better. Rittai Kakushi e Attakoreda uses the front camera on the DSi to track the location of your face and create a stereoscopic 3D view that is relative to where you would be looking if your DS was a diorama box.
Watch this video. It will blow your mind (unlike James Cameron with his fashionable 3D glasses).
via Giz.
Is the iPhone A Serious Gaming System?
I tend to agree with this post on CrunchGear about the iPhone being a major player in the gaming market. Such is the life of a “jack-of-all-trades, master of none” type of device. It’s a great overall device, but it doesn’t have a killer app.
Is it a great phone? And by phone I mean device for actually making and receiving calls? No way. Anything made by Nokia or Samsung is a superior calling experience for both you and the receiving party.
Is it a great camera-phone? Not really. There are many phones out there that have better camera properties: better megapixel counts, optical (or at least digital!) zoom, true flash, emulated flash, a REAL button for snapping the pics. Yeah, for taking pictures the iPhone is a poor, poor experience. (Now sharing those pictures on the other hand is actually pretty decent.)
Is it a great messaging and emailing device? Nope. Doesn’t even compare to Blackberry. (And I’m not just talking about the keyboard either.) Next.
Is it a great GPS unit? Not unless you’re willing to fork out an additional $99 for some real GPS software from a real GPS company. You have nothing more than a glorified, location-aware map with Google Maps. Garmin’s NUVO and Palm’s Pre are superior hardware competitors in this category. And I hear that on the Android platform Google is actually enabling turn-by-turn GPS features on their native Maps software.
Is it a great MP3 player? Maybe. While it may not produce the best sound quality (Sansa, Cowan, and yes, even Zune HD are said to have superior sound output), it at least has decent software for viewing songs, creating playlists, and playing songs. You also have some great streaming applications from Pandora, iMeem, Slacker, etc. which are really handy in a pinch. So I’ll give the iPhone some much due credit in this category.
Is it a great gaming system? This is what gets me. No, it is not. And I had such high hopes as a gamer. While it opens up many unique properties in gaming with multi-touch, accelerometers, and Facebook connect, it still does not compare with the big players in the portable gaming scene. If I want some Madden action, am I going to reach for my iPhone or my PSP? Exactly. What about a cart racer? I could play Crash Nitro Cart on the iPhone or Mario Kart on the DS. Don’t even get me started on platformers or RPGs. And the lack of buttons is the iPhones largest fatal flaw. How can you be a true gaming platform without dozens of buttons? (Or at least 2?) I’m sorry but pressing my fat-ass thumbs on a flat glass surface where buttons should logically be does not provide the tactile response that I need to serious about my gaming. I think the CrunchGear nails it:
The iPhone isn’t a gaming machine. It’s a smartphone. This produces limitations which are for some invigorating, and for some troublesome. For instance, you’ll never see a decent platformer on the iPhone. FPSes are awkward. RPGs take up too much space. You’re essentially limited to casual games and things like tilt-to-control racers.
I’ve owned an iPhone since the 3GS launch, and the most real gaming experience I’ve had so far would be Texas Hold’em Poker. Everything else has been sort of a big let down. I don’t think I’m going to go back to Blackberry, but the Android and the Linux OS based phones from Garmin and Nokia are looking sexier each passing day. Only problem is, those don’t have games either. 
What about you? Have you had a positive iPhone gaming experience? Or do you find yourself reaching for a PSP Go or a DSi when you need a gaming fix?
Revival… no. More like survival.
Hey folks! It’s time for my annual “ima gonna do better” post. As you all know and adore, I’m sure, I make a post about how I’d like to improve Portagame, increase posts, cover more topics, etc. Yup, all that. Here. Now.
And it’s all really gonna happen this time! Really!
Ok. I don’t believe it either. But I have a 24-to-71.5 hour burst of energy, so let’s see what happens this weekend.
For starters. I’m blogging. Not about PSPs or DSii or iPhones or games in any form. But it’s still a post so #quitchyerbitchin.
And I created a fan page today. Yup, that kind of fan page. What’s cool is I opened the Wall for anyone to leave comments on. I figured I’d let Facebook do the heaving lifting this time. Thanks Facebook!
Oh, and I tweeted. Sorry.
So join me in the quest for mediocrity! Be a fan with fellow portagamers. Fill your gamut of portable LCD screens with dur tweetie feeds. Be THAT guy!
Together we will swarm the WiFi airwaves with our ability to suck! Not you, us.
What’s next for Portagame? Join our discussion on Facebook to find out!
DEALS: Rock Box Storage Ottoman at Amazon
Psst. I know it’s Saturday night and we all have lives…wait, no we don’t, we’re gamers. Amazon must have known this when they created this Gold Box deal. The Rock Box Ottoman that pops your Rock Band drum-set out like a jack-in-the-box, and happens to store your Rock Band instruments as well, is on sale.
[Amazon Gold Box (Product Page) via Imported Geek]
Hardcore Gamer Magazine Up for Sale
Man, I have all sorts of mixed feelings about this. Hardcore Gamer has placed their entire business, websites and printed mag, for sale on ebay with a starting bid of $42,000.
If I only had $42,000…
But honestly, is that the kind of shakeout that video game journalism is going through right now? A respected magazine with a popular website is placed for sale on ebay?
Honestly, if I wasn’t part of the credit-crunched masses of the U.S. economopocolypse, I would scramble to get a business loan together to jump on this opportunity. Of course, I also know that I’d have to drop my career and profession entirely and devout all my time and energy to this. For a man with a young family, that just isn’t an option. But for you aspiring entrepreneurs out there… this is a great opportunity.
Even if you drop the printed mag and go to digital distribution only, the website alone can easily grow to recoup the investment. The website is the hidden gem here. Advertising in the gamespace is still strong. It’s just the leadtime for a printed magazine is so long, that by the time news hits the actual “newstands”, its already old. But the online profits alone for this type of venture should make up for any overhead the magazine requires.
Back in the hayday of blogging in 2003-2005, I too had hopes of taking Portagame to print. I’m actually glad I didn’t, and that this has been able to return to its hobby roots from where it started. My stress levels are much lower now than during the rumor reporting pre-DS and pre-PSP launch days, and my marriage and health have been saved. If I had to do it all over again, I wouldn’t change anything. Those were great days, even with the stress they carried.
I often talk about moving forward with Portagame to make it more of a community. I’ve been contemplating turning it into a forum-based community. With all the flac that 1UP, EGM, and now Hardcore Gamer are taking on, this might just be the right move. A place for true handheld gaming fans to gather.
We’ll see. I have a feeling 2009 has some surprises for us yet.
Best of luck to the current AND future owners of Hardcore Gamer. I respect the position that both parties are/will be in.
Gameboy Pocket Mod [It's Never Too Late]
Bringing life, and light, back to the Gameboy Pocket, photobucket user TehBibin shows us that a good mod for a good system is sometimes worth the wait. The Gameboy Pocket is a fond memory for most handheld geeks as it was the first time Nintendo reintroduced the GB with a smaller, more sleek form-factor. The first of MANY re-introductions.
Of course, you could just go to eBay and find a Gameboy Pocket Light, but what fun would that be?
Gameboy Pocket Backlight
Gameboy Pocket Backlight Mod compared to iPhone
[Thanks Uber...]
Oppo Muse is Chinese MP3 Player with D-Pad, Games Emulator
We may have Apple, but the Chinese have something that we don’t: the Oppo line of MP3 players and PMPs. Oppo makes some very sexy players that are a class of their own. At the top of that class is the Oppo MUSE PMP.
The MUSE is a 4GB media player, with a swivel screen and a D-pad for navigation and game playing. Included in the OS is a set of game emulators for “classic gaming”. ReeeHaw!
Even without the game emulator, this would still be a kickass PMP player. So while I’d prefer to have the emulators intact (obviously), I would be very happy if an import company white-labeled this and shipped it to the US with a translated OS. However, if Oppo continues to evolve in its making of kickass media players, then I might go so far as loading up the Rosetta Stone and learning myself some Mandarin. English is overrated anyway.
More sexy pics at Gizmodo and PMP Today.
X-Play’s Handheld Game of the Year 2008
Congratulations to developers of The World Ends With You for the DS ($29.99 @ amazon). They conquered the much respected X-Play’s Best of 2008: Best Handheld Game.
Runners up:
- Chrono Trigger DS ($36.99 @ amazon)
- God of War PSP ($36.99 @ amazon)
- Patapon PSP ($19.99 @ amazon)
- Professor Layton DS ($29.99 @ amazon)
This Year’s Hottest Christmas Toy is the Nintendo DSi
Contrary to what you have heard, the hottest toy for gamers this year is NOT the Wii Fit. Nor is it the PS3 or those YALENDS (Yet Another Limited Edition Nintendo DS) that were released for black friday.
No, this years hottest game system is the Nintendo DSi. If you own the DSi, I guarantee you that you have the hottest and most exclusive toy of the season.
The DSi, for those who don’t know, is the next version of the Nintendo DS. The main feature that sets it apart is not one, but two onboard cameras. One is placed in the back of the unit, while the other is in the hinge of the front for games and applications that are built to take mug shots of the gamer. The other features are impressive but offen overlooked: larger screens, thinner case, an SD memory card slot, a built in web browser, and the ability to save and download games via WiFi from the new DSiWare Shop.
But, it is not available to consumers in the US. It is only released in Japan at the time being with no announced plans for the US. It is expected that Nintendo of America will eventually release the new DS here in the states, but no plans have been yet.
If you’ve been good and you want Santa to bring you a new Nintendo DSi this year, you’ll need to tell him to import it. That’s the only way you can get this years most exclusive gift (unless you live in Japan).
Buy the Black Nintendo DSi.
Buy the White Nintendo DSi.
