Third Parties Are Ditching the PSP

[DrunknMunky Veteran]

I don't think things are ever to late, especially not in the portable market while where there is competition, it's not really anything as fierce as the home console market.

Portable devices for a start probably all kick off selling at a profit, or at least will probably not make the losses in line with what consoles do.

It's a more relaxed market, two competitors both holding good audience bases.

The issue Sony have isn't that the platform is dying or slowing down as such, they're just need a kick up the arse in the software department.

A potential trojan will also be PS3 install base increasing which it is going to - The tie in between PSP-PS3 is far better than that of the DS-Wii. The PS3 isn't going anywhere soon, so that's a thought to keep in mind.

You get the PSN store on the PSP, coupled with a unified PSN list (not remote play, direct integration) and you bolster up the online side of things in terms of software, and that may be an area of market the DS won't be as fruitful in.

No not directly, but I think I wrote a fairly insightful comment on how Sony approaching something new on the device, can easily spark off interest from 3rd parties, those not willing to take the initial big risk.

Right, but the exact same thing could be said for other consoles (hand held or home) that if you spend more on first party then everyone is gonna take notice. That is not strictly true and 'x' console could still suffer a very slow release schedule / lineup. Again, just look at the Gamecube and Wii, it was flooded with 1st/2nd party games and it always came off as a last thought for 3rd party developers or multiplatform games.

PSP is in a position where it only has the DS to worry about, but boosting your 1st party titles will not always help bring more 3rd partys in. Some of them just genuinely don't want to go up against the DS and the piracy scene for obvious reasons. Also, I bet a good few of them ask, "why make a game for 41 million, when there is 78 million on the other console to potentially buy my game". 41 million isn't a small number by far, it's a great success for a first timer, but obviously devs aren't attracted to the PSP as much as you think. Otherwise, why are we even in this situation and talking about the poor support in the first place?

We've had some big name titles out on the PSP already, a good few of them with really nice review scores, and still, we don't see a huge rush to develop for the console. So what makes you think that it's really gonna help releasing an MMO add-on game? So infact, if you go back to page 1 of this topic, you'll see quite clearly that sales and interest is in decline for the PSP, not rising.

I'm not even gonna go into the PSP>PS3 connectivity, because that has even less to do with third party games. Sure the console will see a boost in sales when things really take off, but that's not really gonna happen if there is no games.

[+Audioboxer Subscriber²]

Right, but the exact same thing could be said for other consoles (hand held or home) that if you spend more on first party then everyone is gonna take notice. That is not strictly true and 'x' console could still suffer a very slow release schedule / lineup. Again, just look at the Gamecube and Wii, it was flooded with 1st/2nd party games and it was came off as a last thought for 3rd party developers or multiplatform games.

PSP is in a position where it only has the DS to worry about, but boosting your 1st party titles will not always help bring more 3rd partys in. Some of them just genuinely don't want to go up against the DS and the piracy scene for obvious reasons. Also, I bet a good few of them ask, "why make a game for 41 million, when there is 78 million on the other console to potentially buy my game". 41 million isn't a small number by far, it's a great success for a first timer, but obviously devs aren't attracted to the PSP as much as you think. Otherwise, why are we even in this situation and talking about the poor support in the first place?

We've had some big name titles out on the PSP already, a good few of them with really nice review scores, and still, we don't see a huge rush to develop for the console. So what makes you think that it's really gonna help releasing an MMO add-on game? So infact, if you go back to page 1 of this topic, you'll see quite clearly that sales and interest is in decline for the PSP, not rising.

I'm not even gonna go into the PSP>PS3 connectivity, because that has even less to do with third party games. Sure the console will see a boost in sales when things really take off, but that's not really gonna happen if there is no games.

It's not directly about spending more time on 1st party for Sony, it's about Sony going out and showing the PSP off as an attractive device for developers. Part of that may be Sony showing off 1st party games/genres selling well, yeah.

With these 1st party games if that means going out and trying something completely new like MMOs on the device, then give it a go!

Sony have nothing to lose as such with experimenting, the device isn't going anywhere soon as long as it's selling hardware like it is, but it will be sad if games dwindle and it ends up being bought solely for homebrew/piracy.

The PSP was leading the 360 in US sales to date this year (it may have been overtaken in the last few months), I wouldn't say interest is declining, it's been pretty consistent. It had a long run leading Japan as well this year.

The decline has been from the developers - Now that will no doubt impact on a user decline eventually as well, if Sony don't get things back on track, because if you have no software coming, your buyers/current owners get turned off the device.

I don't think you can choose to ignore the connectivity, it will lead to PS3-PSP games being compatible, people buying PSP games directly through the PSN store, ect. Every little helps.

Maybe 3rd party developers will be more willing to take a boot with PSN store PSP games as DRM is hard to crack and you don't have the costs of manufacturing UMDs?

Who knows, everything Sony can do to boost the PSP image, the better things begin to look for developers.

The "dooms day" talk about the PSP is a little far fetched right now IMO (all the nothing can be done, PSP is finished, ect).

[DrunknMunky Veteran]

It's not directly about spending more time on 1st party for Sony, it's about Sony going out and showing the PSP off as an attractive device for developers. Part of that may be Sony showing off 1st party games/genres selling well, yeah.

With these 1st party games if that means going out and trying something completely new like MMOs on the device, then give it a go!

Sony have nothing to lose as such with experimenting, the device isn't going anywhere soon as long as it's selling hardware like it is, but it will be sad if games dwindle and it ends up being bought solely for homebrew/piracy.

The decline has been from the developers - Now that will no doubt impact on a user decline eventually as well, if Sony don't get things back on track, because if you have no software coming, your buyers/current owners get turned off the device.

Do Sony really need to go out and show off the PSP anymore? I don't think so, the device is well established in the hand held market, developers know what it's capable/incapable of. It's been around 3 years now, it's not some new undiscovered piece of hardware. It just reflects they aren't interested in it at the end of the day.

Also, Sony are in a position (well somewhat) to try things different on the handheld. Their bank balance has a hell of a lot more digits than what developers do, can you really persuade a 3rd party dev to drop a **** load of cash on something like an MMO which hasn't been done before on a hand held. I seriously doubt it. Such things are canned before we even hear of them. Not to mention that all the great MMO devs out there who would most likely make a good game are on the pc. MMO's haven't even landed on home consoles yet (or any notion of being successful) nevermind working on a handheld version. I know MMO's aren't the only possible route to go, but just for discussion wise based off that article..

Also the bolded part, that is what I mean by decline, probably didn't make that clear enough. That is the problem though, if developers aren't interested then gamers don't really have a say in the matter when their PSP goes unused and no games to buy.

[+Audioboxer Subscriber²]

Do Sony really need to go out and show off the PSP anymore? I don't think so, the device is well established in the hand held market, developers know what it's capable/incapable of. It's been around 3 years now, it's not some new undiscovered piece of hardware. It just reflects they aren't interested in it at the end of the day.

Also, Sony are in a position (well somewhat) to try things different on the handheld. Their bank balance has a hell of a lot more digits than what developers do, can you really persuade a 3rd party dev to drop a **** load of cash on something like an MMO which hasn't been done before on a hand held. I seriously doubt it. Such things are canned before we even hear of them. Not to mention that all the great MMO devs out there who would most likely make a good game are on the pc. MMO's haven't even landed on home consoles yet (or any notion of being successful) nevermind working on a handheld version. I know MMO's aren't the only possible route to go, but just for discussion wise based off that article..

Also the bolded part, that is what I mean by decline, probably didn't make that clear enough. That is the problem though, if developers aren't interested then gamers don't really have a say in the matter when their PSP goes unused and no games to buy.

I think if they can add substantial support for online/better PS3&PSN integration, a movie store, ect, then yes, go out and shout about it. Not doing so would be brainless marketing. All of that, aside from the movie store, could lead to more games being made.

That's the reason Sony will pioneer something like MMOs first, and if they become hugely popular/generate cash, 3rd party devs will follow suit. Same with any new software venture, if it works, you'll gain attention. But to get there, you're most likely going to need to take the risk first, as the cash cow, or be in luck and have a 3rd party confident enough to take the risk.

Yes developers are on the decline, something Sony is trying to fix clearly. Best of luck to them. The RPG support in Japan will probably keep the PSP burning over there for years, but it needs to sell worldwide.

Sony: PSP Support Will Improve

On Tuesday, we published a report that PSP software support from third-parties has been on a steady decline since 2006, a trend that, if continued, would lead to the abandonment of the system entirely. To get Sony’s take on the data we spoke to SCEA director of hardware marketing John Koller, who explained what caused the decline and why it will reverse in 2009.

Koller acknowledged the reality of the situation. “On the software side we’ve been very open about the fact that there are fewer games this year,” he said, alluding to earlier comments made by Sony Worldwide Studios head Shuhei Yoshida. According to Koller, the major reason for 2008’s slow schedule comes down to the nature of the development cycle, relative to slower PSP hardware sales in 2006.

“Decisions made 20-22 months ago from a development cycle perspective are affecting the quantity of titles available today,” Koller explains. “20-22 months ago developers and publishers were looking at the PSP hardware and thinking ‘It’s not selling as well, maybe it’s time to move our resources elsewhere.’” Koller also mentions that publishers and developments were also measuring the viability of the then very new next generation consoles at the time.

Koller also stated that publishers were not familiar with how demographics were shifting on the PSP, leading to improperly targeted games that did not meet sales expectations. “When we launched the PSP it launched at a 28-year old, heavily male, New York subway [demographic], and that slowly trended down. Now we’re in the mid-teens with a lot of tracking even younger than that. Our research shows that in the next 12 months young moms actually are set to have the highest propensity to purchase the hardware and software for their young children.”

As a result, Koller says, “a lot of publishers that were making mature-rated games that were ports from console found they weren’t selling very well.” He calls the old PSP software release trend of ports a “failed strategy” in general.

In order to get third parties on the same page, Koller reveals that Sony has been on a six to nine month “road show.” Visiting all major publishers, this tour sought to “calibrate and educate” game makers on the PSP, where it’s headed, and Sony’s “recipe for success” for software on the system.

“The recipe for success on the PSP resides simply in providing franchise games that are strong brand names like on consoles, but have unique gameplay on the system,” Koller describes. “You cannot have ports. We used God of War: Chains of Olympus this year as an example of that, as well as Final Fantasy VII: Crisis Core, and Midnight Club, which is going to be launching in the next few weeks. Those three games are titles that have very strong brand names on console but are coming over with unique gameplay on the PSP.”

The other component is, of course, the PSP’s strong hardware sales. Koller points out that, “hardware sales were down in 2006, but they rebounded very strongly in the first half of 2007,” thanks in part to the price drop in April of that year. And sales have stayed strong as Sony has kept the hardware fresh with updates that helped to “excite the market.”

“We’ve gone to every publisher and they’ve been noticing the hardware is on fire,” he says.

So Sony has been working hard, and Koller things that the fruits of that labor will appear in 2009. “I think going into next year we’re going to see significant growth. We’re counseling retail to be ready for it. We have a number of very strong franchise games on the docket that will be launching next year. We haven’t gone public with those, and many third-parties have not yet either because they’re concentrating on holiday, but we have a number of very strong titles coming.”

Source: http://www.edge-online.com/news/sony-psp-s...rt-will-improve

[JustGeorge]

I think the PSP is a great system, except the lousy media they went with. The games are basically designed to break.

[DrunknMunky Veteran]

Source: http://www.edge-online.com/news/sony-psp-s...rt-will-improve

A good read and I hope it happens. That doesn't really help anything right now though which is pretty unfortunate. The same goes for the DS though imo, both have been pretty big sleepers this year on the games front and I've barely used either of them. Aside from my addiction to Space Invaders Extreme over the summer :wub: