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January 04, 2005
Handheld wars
Not that anyone really cares about my take on these things, but since I'm going to be working for the product department of a certain magazine, I figure I might as well give my thoughts on the whole DS vs. PSP thing.
This is the deal: By and large, I prefer Nintendo over Sony, company-wise. I'm just one of those people that would rather play a Mario game than a Final Fantasy game. I'd rather stick to tried-and-true favorites like Mario Kart than try the Johnny-come-latelies like Crash Bandicoot. I don't buy the idea that Mario is the "past" and that I have to "move on." Hey, I like these simple kinds of games. I don't want to play some highly involved game with high-falutin 3D-rendering and an orchestral soundtrack. Simple gameplay is the only thing I really care about, and the Nintendo gives me that satisfaction. Plus, Nintendo has this knack of churning out timeless characters like Mario and Zelda. I'm sure the Playstation have similar versions of them, but I just have this connection to Mario that I can't shake. So, as far as game choices go, I'd rather take Nintendo's side.
However, as much as I appreciate the dual-screen design of the DS, the PSP simply trumps the DS in terms of design. The DS looks bulky and awkward. The stylus-usage, while handy, still seems a little clumsy. Then again, the use of a stylus might give it an edge in FPS and RTS games (since it simulates the movements of a mouse cursor), so the stylus isn't completely horrible and does have actual gameplay value. But I'm not convinced that a stylus repeatedly stabbing at the screen won't cause some damage somehow. I think Nintendo missed the boat by trying to change the Gameboy into a pseudo-PDA.
And then there's the PSP. It's sexy. It's slender. It's curvy. It's glossy. It's sleek. It looks tactile and comfortable to hold. There's that beautiful screen with all those lovely colors. THIS is a portable gaming system. Not a PDA. Not a Sidekick-wannabe. It's a full-blown gaming device (that said, I'm sure some enterprising hackers will try to surf the web on the thing). The PSP guys got it. They knew that design is important when it comes to portable gaming devices. Why? Because you're going to be carrying this thing around with you. You want it to be thin, and light, and unobtrusive. And of course, you want it to look cool so that others will envy you. In the world of handheld gaming beauty contests, the PSP wins first prize.
But the game choices for the PSP are simply not interesting to me. Tony Hawk? Er, no. NFL Street? Heck no. Gran Tourismo? No again. It's a little upsetting. I like the PSP's design, but I prefer Nintendo games. In the end, I'm not motivated to get either of these devices. Someone suggested I simply get the Gameboy SP instead and just play the older games. And you know what? That probably is my best option at this point. Not until Nintendo and PSP suddenly join forces, which is highly unlikely.
PS. I'm not actually going to get the SP though. I waste enough time as it is, doing things like writing this blog entry. I don't need another time-sucking activity.
Posted by Nicole at January 4, 2005 06:27 AM
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Comments
when i was a teen, i thought i would never grow out of games
but i discovered something better: LIQUOR and other adult stuff like GIRLS and CRACK...
(just kidding about the crack)
Posted by: jack at January 6, 2005 10:20 AM