Next Generation PlayStation Portable
Sony just announced PSP2. Dubbed the Next Generation PlayStation Portable (NGP), it looks like a slightly-tweaked version of the original PSP design. The most obvious change is the inclusion of two analogue sticks — actual analogue sticks similar to the DualShock’s and not whatever nub thingy the original PSP had.
Additional specifications include 960×544 5-inch OLED (4 times the resolution of the PSP), 3G, Wi-Fi, GPS, front and rear cameras, front and rear touch pads, and accelerometers and gyroscopic sensors based on the PS3 Move. Games will be sold on flash-based storage cards and UMD is gone forever. RIP.
The rear touch pad is basically a touch screen behind the NGP but without the screen part. I can’t really imagine what that is good for. Maybe I am just not a huge fan of touch-based gaming.
Rear touch pad
The hardware sounds like it is basically capable of all the augmented reality, location-based, motion-controlled, social, networked multiplayer, touchscreen gaming any developer can ever come up with. Sounds quite insane frankly. Detailed specs here.
I wonder if the NGP will be breaking any new grounds for console launch prices…
Also, this crazy fusion of human interface technology will certainly make the NGP an enticing target for hardware hackers and homebrew developers.
According to MGS-creator Kojima, the NGP’s graphics are just as good as the PS3′s. Given that the screen size is smaller, I find this entirely plausible. He showcased MGS4 (which at the time was supposed to be the pinnacle of PS3′s HD graphics) running on the NGP.
Sony also brought in Capcom and Sega to show off NGP running Lost Planet 2 and Yakuza: Of The End that were originally developed for PS3. Joystiq quotes Capcom representation saying that the NGP can handle the “full specification” of the PS3, whatever that really means.
The game showcases demonstrating PS3 ports running on the NGP seem somewhat ambiguous as to whether they are merely demonstrating the fact that the NGP is capable of running PS3 games with minimum tweaking, or whether those ports represent actual commercial NGP releases that are in development.
Kojima sounds like he wants to make games that run exactly the same on the PS3 and NGP and can be played on either, but this does not appear to be the official purpose of the NGP. I suppose more will be revealed in the near future.
The NGP is only coming out at the end of the year, so it’s quite clear that Sony chose to unveil it now to steal some thunder from Nintendo 3DS’ impending release, as it had done in the past against the Dreamcast and the Xbox 360.
Frankly, I’ll buy whatever next/this-gen console that gets Valkyria Chronicles 4. Let’s just hope it’s not the original PSP. Come on Sega WOW!
And oh. Official PlayStation emulation is coming for Android. The PlayStation Suite support many mobile platforms, no doubt with the leaked Xperia Play as the flagship device.
It’s not clear what exactly are the titles supported. PS1 is a given, but apparently there will be PSP titles too. Is PS2 too much to hope for?
January 27th, 2011 at 5:48 pm
NeoGeo Pocket.
I really hope the NGP thing is a working acronym and not what they end up using. And if they get Valkyria 4 on this, with proper-sized levels and the PS3′s wonderful art style and maybe dual language if we’re lucky, then I’ll be all over it.
January 27th, 2011 at 6:15 pm
Yeah me too. I am actually curious why they decided not to use the obvious PSP2.
January 27th, 2011 at 10:03 pm
Maybe cuz they want to let us know that it’s not a mere psp2 it’s a NEXT gen psp2 :) This is why a new name will suit it better. It’s a promising product, just hope the support will be as promising as the specs are.
January 27th, 2011 at 11:18 pm
I was expecting them to name it the PlayStation 2 Portable, the PS2P.
January 28th, 2011 at 12:23 am
Now, if only they could model it after the PFP…
January 28th, 2011 at 4:05 am
Out of all the specs that make me excited, the one that does so the most is the OLED. :| About time a mainstream handheld console got one of those besides the ‘Gamewiz.’ XD
January 28th, 2011 at 11:58 am
this is a ds + iphone hybrid is my prediction. THE ANALOG STICK CHANGE….
is fucking awesome. I have the old psp which i hardly play…. I should have sold that thing ages ago… Anyways, the nub thing is really crappy and people never use it because it breaks easily. I have mine in nice casing so that hasn’t happened yet… also, I think the PSP2 should be a PS3 + ipod touch. Wait even better, PSP (subtext “h”)
Playstation Phone!!! They just make a deal with Skullcandy and walla you can make calls even in the middle of your game. Damn, just think of all the otakus that would buy that thing. This is basically the pfp except better. A keyboard is not practical considering how much space that keyboard would take that the game system itself needs. Having a touchpad solves it and allows a new way to play PS3 games. Fps games will never be the same. With motion detectors, OMG. I can no swing my PS3 around to move my camera instead!! JK that wouldn’t work because I my throw it accidentally and it would be very disorienting. However, a simple rolling ball into target hole in wooden maze app would be cool.
January 28th, 2011 at 9:45 pm
Thanks for the info. I am just hoping it will have phone features so my deliberation between this and Razer’s Switchblade will be settled. The best would be if they learnt a thing or two from the homebrew community of PSP1-3000 when they implement the software too!
January 29th, 2011 at 1:23 am
If the NGP is capable of producing PS3-level graphics and performance, I’d rather have SEGA WOW develop Valkyria Chronicles 4 on the PS3 instead. The main reason why the 2nd and 3rd game are on the PSP is because of the greatly reduced time and cost; the developers wanted to play it safe.
Of course, I don’t really know how costly developing a game for the NGP will be, but I can only wish that I’ll be able to play another VC game on the PS3! :P
January 29th, 2011 at 6:54 pm
You know… I just realized that the NGP’s operating system looks suspiciously like Android. And it will even support the new PlayStation Suite service that was announced for Android…
@exaltdragon You realize that the Switchblade is vapourware right? Razer calls it a “concept” and has made no statement that they will actually release it as a product.
January 30th, 2011 at 8:39 am
The NGP looks quite awesome indeed, except for the 3G thing (Sony mentioned there’d be a version that’s wifi-only) and I dread to think of the MSRP. The way Sony phrased how much it was going to cost sounded like “The hardware is awesome and you’ll pay appropriately for it.” :|
If it can maintain a price around $300 USD, I’d be all over it.
January 31st, 2011 at 1:09 pm
Any guesses on how long after it goes on sale before it gets cracked?
I’ll say a year…
…so the PS emulation can run on any android devices? that would mean future Blackberry phones can too!!!
*waits for the QNX BB OS…*
(check here for details…)