No plans for PSP successor?

[stof]

He isn't just saying they don't have plans for a PSP2. He's also slagging on the PSP one. How often does a company like to harp on their own product? He even says PSP game development is the last priority in his own company. That's not the kind of thing you want to tell people.

Anyways, at first I was quite surprised, but when you think about it, it's not that crazy a notion at all.

First off, lets look at the original promise and motivations for the PSP.

After two incredibly successful consoles, why not try your hand at the portable market. Sony must have thought that through a similar strategy, they could have similar success in a market that until now only ever had Nintendo's monopoly. A portable console following the same philosophy as the PS1 and 2 had enormous potential and could possibly even lead to burying Nintendo (remember this was pre-Wii).

But instead the PSP saw respectable but no where near phenomenal sales while the DS is on it's way to becoming the highest selling gaming system ever. If they couldn't do it with their first attempt, it's pretty clear Sony won't be able to replicate the Playstation magic on the handheld scene now that Nintendo is riding higher than ever in the hearts and minds of handheld gamers.

And at the same time, the Iphone (and Ipod touch) is making it's forray in to gaming, with every indicator that the ipod line will increasingly find itself more and more game friendly. That's a whole other competitor that already has huge brand recognition without even being in the videogame market yet. Suddenly the dream that is PS numbers in the handheld format just doesn't seem likely at all.

There's also the matter of UMD's. Sony had the chance to push an entire video format. Having the portable movie system push the portable format push other portable movie systems was potentially a lot of money for Sony. But it didn't take off, and it's highly unlikely that any other portable format Sony tries to push will take off either.

So UMD's failed, the PSP failed to replicate the consoles magic and the field will only get more crowded in the future. I wouldn't be surprised if Sony is more concerned about the storm clouds on the handheld horizon then they are of building off their current successes.