jarrod said:
Actually, before PSP and DS launched, it was assumed by nearly all the industry that "it was only a matter of time" until Sony took over the handheld space like they did home consoles. Handsight's 20/20, but the truth is that going into last gen, DS and Wii were both by far the underdogs. |
It's quite hilarious that a PSP victory was predicted considering that the PSP's target audience (core male gamers) has never been that interested in handhelds in North America. Sure the PSP was beating the DS for some time early on but that's because the GBA was stealing some sales from the DS (plenty of parents probably bought the GBA instead for their kids because it was cheap and the GameBoy brand was more recognizable then). Overall, Nintendo was still winning the war. Once the DS Lite was released and given the $130 price point, it really hit its stride. From most male gamers I know in their twenties, few of them have any interest in handheld gaming because most of them drive a car during their commutes and when they are home it's PS3/Xbox 360 time. At home, few 15-34 year old male gamers would choose to play a handheld game before a PS3/360 game. There is a significant minority (usually gamers you find online in forums like this) of 15-34 year old male gamers that are keen on the DS and/or PSP library. But they are simply that, a minority.
