Sony releases PSP Go – negative reviews incoming
The PSP Go is now available to buy in North America and Europe, with Japan and rest of the world having at least a month more to wait. The reviews are coming in thick and fast and are, to put it bluntly, very mixed. While most people think the actual hardware is a step up from previous models, the pricing strategy, the switch to downloaded games only, and a number of other factors mean many are advising sticking to the PSP 3000.
Hardware redesigns which provide only minor changes without improved graphics or any other improvements can go both ways. Nintendo seems to score a hit each time it redesigns its handheld consoles. More recently, the PS3 Slim, while not pleasing everybody, seems to have garnered favorable reviews and sales are up as a result. Can the PSP Go work similar magic for Sony?
No, in a word. At least if the early reviews of the hardware are anything to go by.
Let’s be clear here, the PSP Go offers no new features over the PSP 3000 or older iterations for that matter. What it does offer is a lighter and smaller version of the original PSP which, and here’s the killer, does away with the UMD drive entirely. There now isn’t any option for games apart from downloading them from the Playstation Store.
For new PSP owners this isn’t such a problem, although as Ars Technica and others have pointed out, the pricing of the digital download games currently doesn’t add up, with many more expensive than their physical brethren, especially when you factor in second hand titles. And for existing PSP owners? Well, that back catalog of games is now useless unless you keep a PSP 3000 in reserve. Which surely makes owning a PSP 3000 pointless.
I personally prefer the look and feel of the PSP 3000 over the PSP Go as well. OK, so it’s all more compact and self-contained, but the buttons now look a little tight and squeezed together for anyone with hands larger than a preteen’s. And all preteens surely own a Nintendo DS by now.
Other problems noted already are: crappy volume, expensive to buy, slow download times, no download in the background option, expensive and obscure memory upgrades, and many more small issues.
Is it worth buying a PSP Go? Possibly, if you have deep pockets, a need for all that is new and shiny, and are happy to only download games through Sony now rather than buying them from the retailer of your choice. Which I doubt is many people. A fail for Sony? Let us know what you think in the comments or on the Blorge Forums.
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37 Responses to “Sony releases PSP Go – negative reviews incoming”
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October 3rd, 2009
I’m just amazed at the amount of hate this thing is generating. All points are valed and really it has too many strikes againt it that you basically have to be rich to own this device. PSP 3000 all the way because if you buy this your going to need to hack this bastard so you can get some cheap or free downloads. Sony really knows how to shoot itself in the foot. With retailers fefusing it and the crazy price tag for nothing more then a redesign with no UMD and no extra features not even a camera or GPS or anything what is the point. Also that thumb pad I would love to see a picture of someone using it because it just looks awkward and out of place. This product is a for sure fail. I guess I have to go back and look at the DSI again vs 3000 but Microsoft did say that they do have a handheld and the Zune HD will also be a contender.
October 3rd, 2009
Hey i like the new layout.
October 3rd, 2009
Thanks, but it’s too buggy at the moment. Needs work.
October 3rd, 2009
Is this what all the hype was about??? A more expensive model which stops you from playing the games you already own??
Thats like bringing out the new ps3 slim without a disk drive. What a waste of money
October 3rd, 2009
Lack of a UMD support = Nail in coffin.
October 3rd, 2009
what layout?
October 3rd, 2009
George – not sure if this is relevant, but i wasn’t too keen about the menu down the right hand side of the screen, seemed to clutter the layout a bit.
Roca – It was a swish new Grey layout. Looked good. Made Blorge seem a swankier site. I like the layout now, but it just seems a bit … amateurish. the new one looked pro.
October 3rd, 2009
@CAD
@Jofa
@Kev
@Phranc
you guys wanted to see “in game” shots right?
well….here they are, it shows very clear one is superior than the other…take a look for your self
h**p://farm3.static.flickr.com/2480/3962248174_6a333aa2e0_o.jpg
October 3rd, 2009
Well, there are some points to be made by both sides:
Pro Forza Demo (brand new):
-Much Better Rearview mirror details.
-Better environment lighting (not cars, more on that ahead). The shine off the road looks more like how pavement looks with thousand of miles of rubber sliding around on it.
-The track, trees and rocks are more detailed than the trees and Hills GT5P
-More colorful.
Pro GT5P (a 2 year old “demo”)
-Shadows and general lighting are better, without a doubt.
-The actual car models are more detailed and the reflections/lighting on the vehicles is more realistic.
-Realistic interior, doesn’t look like a PC racing game interior from 2001.
-The grass and flowers are far more detailed and less pixellated.
-Less jaggies, probably due to higher native resolution, but definitely less of a need for AA in GT5p, although that is hard to judge without native resolution pictures. Personal experience with both lends credit to this point. FM is far more in need of AA.
Graphics alone, there is no doubt that GT5p is a better looking game (demo). Turn 10 should have spent more time on stuff that stays still while driving (the cars) and less work on making the environment shiny, which will blur past at speed anyhow. We’ll have to see how the comparison changes when the actual full games are both released.
October 3rd, 2009
Here is the layout on Green.Blorge. – http://green.blorge.com/
Let us know what you think on the Blorge Forums – http://www.blorge.net/viewtopic.php?f=9&t=125
October 3rd, 2009
Nice review Jofa, looks like you spent some time to look at all the details….
hows the driving physics though?
October 4th, 2009
Yeah my Ipod is evil… it doesn’t play CD’s.
October 4th, 2009
@Bourne – Thanks for the ‘pro’ compliment. Unfortunately, we have a lot of information to put in a little space, so the sidebar on the right stays for now. We’re still in beta, as the theme hasn’t moved to the other sites, so everything is subject to change.
I’m always open to comments or suggestions, though.
October 4th, 2009
The article is squashed up the right side of the page for me.
Still, at least you can use the REALLY big Evony ads now, so we’ll get lots of cleavage on blorge.
October 4th, 2009
What browser are you using? version?
October 4th, 2009
Nevermind – I’ve been doing this long enough to know better. It’s probably Internet Explorer 6.0 or earlier.
October 4th, 2009
I really enjoyed my 10 minutes of playing Forza. I am waiting to play the full version, though, before I decide if it is going to compel me to purchase a 360. I will wait for GT5 to come out before I make any further comparisons between them. Demo-on-demo, GT5p felt better and more realistic to me.
Firefox 3.5.3 works great. I use a lot of plug ins for ad control, and java script, so it is nice that I didn’t have to set any exceptions to continue using the site (I had done this months ago with regards to PG2 and Noscript.)
October 4th, 2009
I am interested in PSPgo, but not strongly. Budget constraints mean I will have to chose between this and a 360 (or neither, hah) for around january.
October 4th, 2009
@George – Yeah I was at work so it was IE6.
Works fine here @ home in Firefox tho.
October 4th, 2009
@SW – it should look normal at work now.
October 5th, 2009
George Gardner,
can you put more articles inside the “recent stories” section…I use those as my quick links button to jump from one article to another. Maybe you can have only to reviews in the “recent reviews” section.
Thanks
October 5th, 2009
@Roca
Sure, I think we can try it out with 5; I don’t think any harm could come of that.
October 5th, 2009
that was fast! but thanks, a lot better now
October 5th, 2009
I wouldn’t buy a go until the price drops to $100 and it is hacked.
I knew DL only is going to be a big problem to allot of people.
And to the people that said it’s the future… HaHa
It will never be the future. I do pay for my games on the IPod but that’s different because they are $.99 or Free games and not $60. Id PSP games get to > $5 I’ll buy one. so FAT chance that will happen.
October 5th, 2009
$100 huh??? the PSP 2 will be out by that time
October 5th, 2009
“It will never be the future.”
Let’s talk again in ten years ncaissie. It will never be DL/online only across the board, but the majority of games stand a good chance of becoming this way due (I believe they are already, actually) to them getting a second chance they wouldn’t have with standard retail. For instance, Games on Demand selling over a million copies of older games in just a few weeks time. Not for $60, but between $20-$30. This is how it starts, and the revenue stream from DL only is already monumental.
October 5th, 2009
$20-$30? There is no way I would even buy a Disc for that much.
Unless it is a game I must have like Mortal Kombat vs. DC. Even then I purchased that game used for $25.
I’m sure they spend a lot to make these games but they are still not worth any more than $30 MAX.
If they sold games fir what they are worth then they would get more of my money and I’ll bet I’m not the only one.
I also read they removed the memory stick and replaced it with a new format? Also I read they changed the USB to a proprietary cable instead.
Sony really F@#d up on this one.
October 5th, 2009
And bringing back old games like the Wii and the PS1 games is ok for download.
I won’t buy them because they want to much but I’m sure other people will. But new games will not be DL only or they will be committing suicide.
October 5th, 2009
its kind of Hard to justice a $40 – $60 game and not getting a physical disc, even if it is just for looks/display/collecting purposes (I’m still kind of doubting my desicion of getting GT PSP through the PSN), but on the on the other hand I was more than happing getting PixelJunk Monster Deluxe (DL), mayb it was because its not available on UMD or mayb it was because it cost $19.99.
But I decided to jump on the DL (for PSP) early because the PSP 2 might DL-only, which means it wont be backwards compatible with my UMD games. so at least buying it digital ensures me I will be able to play them on the next PSP and I will be able to download them onto multple PSP. I already made $20 by downloading GT PSP to one of my friends PSP.
October 5th, 2009
So I know I already posted earlier
Why you would release a radically different iteration of a current generation system is beyond me. And then to ‘punish’ early adopters with higher prices too…
What the heck is with Sony sometimes.
October 5th, 2009
I agree SW. Same dam thing with the DSi.
I want next gen not better current gen.
October 5th, 2009
http://www.blorge.net/viewtopic.php?f=5&t=126
October 6th, 2009
They don’t want to punish early adopters, just milk them for all they are worth before dropping the price.
I agree ncaissie, they do charge way too much for games, which is why I rent as well. What I really look forward to is an online rental/buy service that provides as much value as Gamefly… like a GameTap/Steam but for consoles.
October 6th, 2009
They should give use a place where we can rent a game by downloading it and let us keep it on the PS3 until we delete it. (And at a far price “$10-$15″) Then I will rent. I don’t rent because I never get time to play. It takes me a month to finish a game. I have three kids and I have to take them out to things like swimming and gymnastics.
I would get a 2TB external for that and the largest internal I could find.
October 6th, 2009
ncaissie:
“I would get a 2TB external for that and the largest internal I could find.”
jaja you would just download the shit out the PSN right? lol
October 6th, 2009
Yes but PSN is soooo dam slow.
Like I said if it was a fare price I would.
October 7th, 2009
Hey Dave how about a Auto Section on Blorge.