PSP = Projectile Shooting Playstation

January 13, 2005 5:58 PM

Thinking of buying a PSP anytime soon? Before spending up to $400 for an imported unit, check this out: Engadget, among others, reports that the new PlayStation Portable will eject the currently-playing disc if the device is twisted a certain way. And if you don't believe it, see it for yourself (avi & mpeg, last link NSFNintendoDS).
posted by armage (30 comments total)

Good thing my wife won't let me get one then, eh?
posted by fenriq at 6:06 PM on January 13, 2005

Is it just me or is the guy's left index finger bloody?
posted by TetrisKid at 6:07 PM on January 13, 2005

Not really on subject but I'd really like to see a picture of Asimo playing the PSP but it might make the human race irrelevant.
posted by fenriq at 6:15 PM on January 13, 2005

Wouldn't that be some sort of infinite loop? Computer playing computer playing computer.....
posted by TwelveTwo at 6:23 PM on January 13, 2005

Metafilter: Infinite loop
posted by alteredcarbon at 6:33 PM on January 13, 2005

Hope that PSP comes with protective eyewear for the death disks flying around the backseat of the car, or whatever.
posted by cosmonik at 6:35 PM on January 13, 2005

Metafilter: Infinite poop.
posted by rxrfrx at 6:43 PM on January 13, 2005

I considered importing a PSP. But then I looked at the games on it, and went, "bleah".

I have a Nintendo DS, and just picked up the new GBA Zelda game. Having a game system that has an extensive existing library, as well as new games that exploit its functionality is quite nice.
posted by benjh at 8:00 PM on January 13, 2005

Why does clicking on the photo in the engadget story take me to Microsoft... in Firefox for a PC?

Link target: http://http//www.gamesarefun.com/news.php?newsid=4010 (sic)

In Opera PC, it goes to http.com. In IE, it's an error message.
posted by ALongDecember at 9:19 PM on January 13, 2005

Whoa, whoa, whoa. The next EA football game won't be Madden? (from the link)
posted by xmutex at 10:16 PM on January 13, 2005

Yes this is happening to some of the launch PSP's. Still I think the system looks great, but I've learnt my lesson about buying launch systems.
posted by lucien at 10:26 PM on January 13, 2005

the video link is almost as good as the "defeat kryptonite lock with a bic" video from a few months back.
posted by pmbuko at 1:06 AM on January 14, 2005

The PSP's been out in Japan for almost a month and one friend of mine bought 8 units on the first day (insane!)

I've used both the DS and the PSP, and there's no comparison whatsoever. The PSP is so much sexier, it's not even a contest.

One time we had 8 people playing wireless "Ridge Racer" and it got a bit laggy with dropped packets, but nonetheless, it works.
posted by gen at 2:53 AM on January 14, 2005

From everything I've read and seen regarding this phenomena, it would take quite a forceful twist to pop the game out. Do you guys really play games by twisiting the hell out of the controller? I might be worried if my 8 year old were playing, but myself? I'm not too worried.

What I'm worried about is that the early batch of PSPs are using LCDs supplied by Sharp while later batches may be using Samsung. There a quite a few sites showing potential differences in quality. I stress the word potential.
posted by lyam at 5:22 AM on January 14, 2005

Yes this is happening to some of the launch PSP's. Still I think the system looks great, but I've learnt my lesson about buying launch systems.

Actually, it seems like it's a pretty good launch system.
posted by Bugbread at 5:38 AM on January 14, 2005

gen is a nerd.

And real men stick with the 2600. Dammit.
posted by bardic at 5:59 AM on January 14, 2005

I have a DS on hand right now and will likely also get a PSP when it comes out stateside. I may wait, though, because the launch games are kinda lagging (as are the DS's. There's only so much Mario I can take, esp. if I played said game a few years ago - I use mine to play more GBA games than anything).

When I have both the DS and PSP, I'll duct tape them together, forming some sort of mutant hybrid game player!
posted by robocop is bleeding at 6:33 AM on January 14, 2005

"The disc pops out when I twist it like this."

"So don't twist it like that."
posted by fungible at 7:28 AM on January 14, 2005

I'm amazed this video's still doing the rounds, to be honest - when the early-adopters were first receiving their consoles it was a major source of paranoia (along with misaligned Square buttons, dead pixels galore and the occasional hardware crash, all of which turned out to be real problems), but since people have actually held the units and noted a lack of projectile UMDs unless you're determined to twist and squeeze the hell out of the thing, it's really died down.

As for PSP vs. DS, I'm right in the middle of ordering a DS right now (no release in the UK 'til March - bad Nintendo!), and have (nearly) no doubts about whether I should be picking up a PSP instead - 'sexiness' aside, there are two (two!) quality, import-friendly launch titles available, in the form of Ridge Racers and Lumines. And then two more Japanese-heavy titles, in Metal Gear Acid and Armored Core: Formula Front, which'll inevitably be good when I can understand them. From there on in, it's golf games and bizarre mutant-cat simulators all the way. The DS has had a bit of a launch drought too, but with Catch! Touch! Yoshi and Meteos peeking around the corner (and Animal Crossing etc on the way before too long), it's certainly looking more promising right now. At least to me.
posted by terpsichoria at 9:35 AM on January 14, 2005

I'm not planning to buy either one, and being a reader of the Penny Arcade forums makes me hypersensitive to the inevitable fanboyfestivals that any discussion of platforms causes, but the other day I saw something that made me realize a potential problem with the DS that had never occured to me: there was a guy in the subway, standing up, playing something (I dunno, pictochat?) on a DS, holding it with one hand while holding the stylus with the other. The idea of holding something like that with one hand (unlike a PDA, where the whole thing sits in your hand, the DS, held by one hand while playing, basically entails holding only the left edge) seems like a recipe for droppage destruction disaster. With the GBA/GBASP/PSP, you're always holding both sides of the unit, making the droppage risk much lower, if not negligible.
posted by Bugbread at 9:47 AM on January 14, 2005

I would simply suggest to wait. Of course, those of you in the States have to anyway; I live in central Tokyo and I can't even get one here. I went just today to some electronics shops and no one had any in stock, and they all said the same thing: every couple of days about 20 or 30 units trickle in and the geeks that come by first get lucky.

Or after seeing this, maybe not so lucky. Next month they're releasing a lot more units, so I may pick one up then. Only problem though is a lack of titles, only 10 at the most, and a lot don't seem to utilize the full power of the system. (That one game looks like Tetris, fer Crissake's). Later models will be in different colors, too.

And as far as the DS goes, fugedaboudit. It's for little girls and old laides. Maybe there's more games but PSP will catch up this year I"m sure.
posted by zardoz at 1:48 AM on January 16, 2005

The Tetris one is by the folks who made Rez, so you might want to give it more of a benefit of the doubt.

And "The DS is for little girls and old ladies"? This is not GameFAQs. Keep the level of discussion above the usual fanboy fare, please.
posted by Bugbread at 2:38 AM on January 16, 2005

A fan of the DS, bugbread,? My comments very well may be juvenile but yours betray unmitigated snobbery. In the future I can mature, but you'll still be a snob. You'll notice I avoided invoking Godwin's Law, but it was hard not to.

BTW, I've played the Tetris-like game (don't know its name), and it in fact underutilizes the power of the PSP. So there.
posted by zardoz at 5:19 AM on January 16, 2005

Uh, zardoz, I have no intention of buying either a PSP or a DS. I've never even owned a portable gaming system (Gameboy, Lynx, whathaveyou). I'm not sure what kind of snobbery I'm guilty of.

And all I said was to give the Tetris-like game (I don't know the name either) the benefit of the doubt. If you've played it and it does in fact underutilize the power of the PSP, then say that, instead of just implying that looking like Tetris is intrinsically underutilizing its power. I'm certainly not telling you to like the game.
posted by Bugbread at 5:55 AM on January 16, 2005

I'm not sure what kind of snobbery I'm guilty of.

Really? Re-read your first post. Then read this:

If you've played it and it does in fact underutilize the power of the PSP, then say that,...

You're telling me what to write? Giving me orders through this blog about my blog posts? If you think my writing is bad, that's fine, but hell, man, don't tell me how to write and what not to write. If you don't see the arrogance in that...
posted by zardoz at 11:42 AM on January 16, 2005

Arrogance, yeah. I suppose I've got some arrogance. Sorry. I tend to define arrogance and snobbery differently, so I didn't pick up on what you were getting at with the snobbery comment. Apologies.

But do understand that, as a member of this site, I have a vested interest in keeping the level of the site above GameFAQs, just as you have a vested interest in writing what you want. So we're at an impasse.
posted by Bugbread at 12:08 PM on January 16, 2005

Fine. But how am I supposed to know what is at the "GameFAQ" level and what is an acceptable MeFi comment? I don't know how long you've been reading this blog, but I can assure you, lots of posts are on a level far more juvenile than what I said.

I said the DS is for little girls and old ladies. It was a (lame) attempt at humor, but highlights the difference between the DS and the PSP. Nintendo has always targeted their systems to younger players.

Am I to run by all my comments to you first before posting? I'm serious; your criticism of my writing "level" (hence the "snobbery" comment) negates the point of this blog, it seems to me. It's a free country, so to speak, and if I'm not being outright offensive--racist, sexist, etc.--or sending spam or whatnot, then what is my crime? I should turn the tables--also as a member of this site, I feel I should be able to say whatever silly thing I want, as long as it's not in violation of what I listed before.

Again, how do I know what's acceptable for you? I'd not hesitate to post exactly what I said again. You think I should be banned?
posted by zardoz at 12:57 PM on January 16, 2005

Zardoz:

I dunno if you read any gaming sites. If you don't, then please accept my apology.

If you don't read many gaming forums, the problem here is just that my "common sense" is perhaps not so common, and has been shaped by gaming sites. Gaming sites are rife with console wars (think Mac vs. Windows vs. Linux, but infinitely stupider). It results in all kinds of asshattery, like insults about the PissStation 2, the M$Box, the Gaycube. It results in tons of posts about how all GC games are for "queers and babies", how all PS2 games are for "wannabe gangsters", and how all XBox games are for "dumbass fucktards".

As such, a kind of gentleman's agreement has come about, that when pointing out the bad aspects of a system, you avoid insulting the user base, extreme exaggerations, etc., because it just makes you sound like a fanboy, and brings the other fanboys out. The stigma about it is somewhere between the ideas of Godwin's law and not feeding trolls.

However, on reflection, I realize I'm bringing this value system into Mefi, where it doesn't necessarily apply. If you were on a gaming forum, I'd expect you to know those taboos, but this isn't a gaming forum, and the same taboos do not necessarily apply. I let habit get the best of me.

So, apologies.

And, finally:
You think I should be banned?

What the hell? Where did that come from?
posted by Bugbread at 1:14 PM on January 16, 2005

Thanks. My point was simply that my comment was completely innocuous, whether it be fanboy-esqe or not.

/buys bugbread a virtual beer
posted by zardoz at 2:30 PM on January 16, 2005

Cheers, zardoz, in both the American and British senses.
posted by Bugbread at 2:52 PM on January 16, 2005