actually it's about 5 years on the market.

when you consider PSP's sale by itself, it is certainly not bad... 50 millions units were sold. However, when you compare it to DS, it pales in comparison especially DS is still going strong right now.

EDIT: Software wise, PSP has no killer app outside Japan. MHP series made PSP big in Japan but no such effect outside Japan. On the other hand, most of Nintendo's big hits for DS in Japan also translate into success outside Japan.

PSP software sales have always been horrid outside of Japan. The hardware always sold pretty well until recently. Sony needs to cut the price on the PSP or it's finished.

Isn't the psp already dead outside Japan? The problem is the software, not hardware. I don't think we need a psp2, it's Sony that needs to encourage third party developers.

DS doesn't have the same problem because it has a bigger userbase and it's cheaper to develop, that's why it has more support.

As for the software sales , I don't have any thoughts. We can't say that the probem is piracy, even the DS has piracy. Perhaps the piracy is bigger on the PSP, but we can't be sure.

The big problem with the PSP is that 1) Western gamers don't want to play home console games on a handheld. Western gamers want to play different games on handhelds and Nintendo gets it. That's why the DS has it's own identity and offers a different experience. The PSP is like a "me too" system, trying to compete with home consoles but it can't. The DS is more of a complimentary thing. It doesn't compete with home consoles, it offers a different experience. If I wanted to play GTA, Ratchet & Clank, God of War, etc. I'd dig out the old PS2 or buy a PS3. The DS takes advantage of the stylus/touch screen and also goes for that retro/vintage edge.

And 2) the PSP's biggest advantage (great old-school jrpg/srpgs) is negated by the sheer size of the DS' jrpg/srpg library.

What else could they do though?  I mean last year it had a ton of support and some huge brands (GT, Tekken, FF, Rock Band, GTA, LBP, etc) and almost everything still bombed.  Hell, PSP in 2009 arguably had stronger 3rd party support than Wii even.  Something tells me this coming year won't be any better for it even though there's big things in the pipeline (MGS, KH, RE, more FF, etc).

I dunno, it really seems equal parts apathy and piracy at this point.  The platform's just poisoned, I don't think it can recover... and I think a lot of it's premier projects would've been better served elsewhere (Valkyria 2 on PS3, Soulcalibur BD on Wii, etc).

loves2splooge has a point.

Third....

The PSP is doing fine. Gamers need to stop thinking that this machine has to be compared to the DS. Most MP3 players are not compared to the iPod. Success is based on if it makes the company money. Does the PSP do this. Yes. Then it's a success. It's not a runaway hit like the DS, but why does it have to be?

So who's fault is it that the PSP is being compared to the DS. Reviewers and Sony fanbois. They assumed the same kind of market sweep as the PS and PS2. Heck we are seeing the same kind of behaviour with the PS3. groaning, bitching, whining and finally shutting up. Instead how about stop wasting time with bitching about it's success, but not good enough. And instead enjoy the games and features it offers.

So yeah, love2splooges points are right, but that doesn't take away from peoples enjoyment for those who want it. It's a niche product for a niche market. At least it's there to provide for the niche market.

Plus I hear Birth By Sleep is coming in summer?

Edit: I got my PSP-3000 on Sunday :P. I finally get to play Crisis Core and beat up my friend at Dissidia... As soon as I pick them up anyways :P

I agree, the PSP is doing fine in hardware sales (probably more than "fine"), it's not selling like the DS but 50M is already impressive for a handheld.

Yep, you make a great point. IMO, Sony's strategy isn't going to win them a handheld war. But if the PSP really is profitable, then good on Sony and that's not a bad thing. The PSP offers a more home console-esque experience on the go gaming-wise as well as multimedia functions to boot. There is a market for that. It's just a lot smaller than the market for Nintendo handhelds.

Also if I were to mention one real advantage to the PSP over the DS in western culture, it's that it's more socially acceptable for a grown man to be playing a PSP in public rather than a DS. I love my DS and I have used it a lot indoors (not that much lately though since my Xbox 360 is hogging most of my gaming time these days. That is until Feb 16th.. Ace Attorney Investigations baby! lulz) but I never use it in public (unless no one is there to watch me. lol) because it takes balls for a grown man to whip out a DS in public in North America. Heck I've seen people online say that if you see a grown man with a DS in public, he's probably a pedophile (a perception that I find very offensive. You can be a grown man and still find DS games to be fun. The DS has a number of fun point-and-click adventures, has some fun stylus-oriented games like Elite Beat Agents, NSMB, Mario Kart, jrpgs, srpgs, etc. I hate it when it gets branded with the kiddie label. People in the west are so out of touch with their inner-child and reject their inner-child so much that it is sad.)

I have considered buying a PSP before just so that I could get in some handheld gaming during my commute in a way that would make me seem like less of a total dork (the PSP's handheld jrpgs/srpgs would be perfect for commutes. And I've heard that you can continue where you left off after you power off your PSP. Instead of having to rely on quick saves or putting your system in sleep mode) But ultimately I've decided against that because the PSP is the system that I'm least interested in. I'd rather invest in a Wii since I want to play the Wii games a lot more. Whereas with PSP, my perception is that it has great games but I can't pump up myself to get excited about the jrpgs/srpgs on it when the DS has a gazillion of them.

I suspect that Sony envisioned the PSP as a device that would have the popularity of the iPod with the recurring revenue stream of the Gameboy Advance, and designed a device to suit both uses without any (real) consideration of how well it was suited to compete against each device on its own. Neither Apple nor Nintendo stood still, and when they both released devices which were dramatically different (and arguably dramatically better) than the device that the PSP was designed to compete against the PSP never found much of a market.

Certainly, the PSP sold a lot of units; but a lot of this was driven by people who never intended on buying a game or a UMD movie and this meant that the PSP couldn’t materialize as the product Sony envisioned it becoming. This is one of the main thing that makes me wonder whether Sony would bother with a PSP 2.