I tried out the PSP this week: REVIEW

[Fycus]

So....this friend of mine who goes to my school imported a PSP from Japan about a month back, but I have not heard about it until the beginning of this week. So he brings the thing in, busts it out, and the whole male portion of the class goes insane! I nearly fainted when I saw the PSP just chillen right next to me. I immediately asked him a bunch of questions about it and decided to take a tour of the buttons and setup.

Background
Above you can see the actual image of the PSP similar to what I held. The thing is a tad bigger than half of the nintendo DS when it is opened up, so it is by no means a huge piece of hardware, but the screen is fairly large compared to the two puny DS screens. The buttons are all placed perfectly throughout the PSP, with the exception of the home, volume, select, and start buttons. I noticed that mid game if I wanted to adjust the volume I was forced to look down in order to press those buttons. Now, normally this wouldnt be a huge problem but it did take away from the overall gaming experience.
Specs
On a more positive note, the PSP weighs near nothing compared to how much it seems to weigh. I haven't compared the weight of the DS and the PSP side by side, but I can tell you that the PSP is definitely light, and its weight was never a problem during gameplay. The screen is amazingly large on the PSP.....I can't even explain how big it is and how convient the widescreen is for the games. The contrast on the screen is equal to that of an extremely expensive computer monitor, except without any ghosting or any similar problems. Underneath the directional keys, there is a small analog joystick that moves very smoothly and seems to be very useful for games that might use it. On the top, there are two clear shoulder buttons that make an affirmative click when pressed. These shoulder buttons are better than any of a previous console because they are slightly larger, and easier to notice if you are touching them. As for the four buttons (Square, triangle, X, Circle) they work well, but I would have liked to see Sony use some evolution in the architecture of the buttons by changing their style just a tad. As for the rumors saying the square button sticks, that is completely a rumor and should outright be disregarded if you are considering buying the PSP. The UMD slot is very useful, and I also had zero problems with it ejecting randomly while I was playing a game.
Games
Of the many launch titles coming out for the PSP, I managed to try out Armored Core and Lumines. I only played Armored Core for about 10 minutes or so because I had a hard time understanding what to do because the game was mainly in Japanese, so I moved on to Lumines. Lumines is an extremely unique puzzle game similar to that of Tetris, but with a whole new concept. Instead of getting blocks to line up in a row, you are forced to get the blocks in groups of four and in the same color, while an elimination line destroys the squares as it moves accross the screen every few seconds. Sounds confusing? Head over to gamespot and stream some movies and maybe you'll understand what I mean. Once the blocks pile up and you cannot get anymore 4-block combos, you get a gameover and can restart the stage. The game is much more complex than just a simple challenge mode, though, as it has wireless multiplayer, unique puzzle stages, and vs. challenge mode. After playing this game for roughly an hour, I came to the conclusion that Lumines is easily a good reason to consider buying a PSP.
Features
The PSP really has no apparent lack of features. With standard gaming, file storage, photo storage, UMD reader, Memory stick reader, and possible web browsing in the future, the PSP may actually be worth its weight in money. If you were to buy a external harddrive, game console, media player, mp3 player, or photo viewer (iPOD photo) you would be spending well over $500 U.S. dollars. With the PSP, you get tons of useful features plus some extras that may be useful in the future, for tons less.

Rating(out of 10) (+ Positive, - Negative)
Style: 9
+ Very streamlined, innovative, nice looking screen, and a good choice of console colors
- Too big to fit in pocket (doh!), buttons could use some innovation
Features: 10
+ Comes with tons of 'stuff' out of the box like mp3 player, game player, movie viewer, and harddrive
-None
Games 9.5
+ With Lumines, Untold Legends, and Metal Gear Acid as release titles- why wouldn't you be excited about the PSP?
- Some extremely good games are not coming out on launch date, and their release dates are still mysteries
Hardware 9.5
+ Easily crushes the Nintendo DS in terms of its raw power and capabilities
- I am concerned about the life of the UMD reader... will a cd drive that small last that long?
Overall 9.5/10
+ An extremely advanced, innovative, and just plain cool gaming handheld!
- Lack of innovation in button design, and lack of major A list titles on release date bring the PSP down slightly from perfection

Bottom Line
If you were dissapointed by the Nintendo DS or you are looking for the new 'it' tech device, look no further. The PSP will truly be a milestone in handheld gaming history.

[hulabaleet]

awesome review... under 2 circumstances
1. that screenshot is showing actual in game graphics on the psp
and 2. those aren't your hands. (jk)

[Fycus]

The screenshot was an example pointing out the visible features of the PSP. No, those are not my hands and I do not know if those are actual game graphics, but I know it is GT4....

[Ark-Angel-04]

;) i got to says some things about the psp are really good
but graphics r better than the ds which aint quite as good as the n64

and the psp aint quite as good as the ps2 in graphics and the ps2 got crap grahics anyway.

well so does the n64 lol

games wise well the ds wins hands down who wants to play a roloplaying metalgear
the psp got good games though vampire stalker granturismo 4 wipeout pure thats about it if any 1 can think of any more then please tell me im not sure what to get at the mo i want a ds and psp but ill only get 1

[KamisoriX]

I wanted to get it but I wait for a revised version. Everyone who got it knows the button issue. :dennis:

Originally posted by KamisoriX@Mar 19 2005, 12:56 PM
I wanted to get it but I wait for a revised version. Everyone who got it knows the button issue. :dennis:

Same as :thumbup:

[Fycus]

I covered the button issue in my review. there are absolutely no problems with the layout of the buttons, and the square one does not stick...Do not pass on the PSP for this reason, as there are no problems with it at all...

[Akherousin]

Originally posted by Fycus@Mar 19 2005, 07:31 PM
I covered the button issue in my review. there are absolutely no problems with the layout of the buttons, and the square one does not stick...Do not pass on the PSP for this reason, as there are no problems with it at all...

Well, there are, but not with all PSP's. I read about 2% of all having this issue.

[fitzy]

but doze n e 1 know when it will be released in australia?

[jammin]

scanned through the review and i've got one question: when playing multiplayer using wifi, how long does the battery last before running out? i'm told it's less than an hour.