Put down your pitchforks and hankerchiefs Nintendo DS owners. The fact that your beloved Chinatown Wars is headed PSP bound is not a reason to scream, cry and stamp your little feetsies. It's a reason to be happy for the future. here's why.

GTA: Chinatown Wars is two things: The most fun GTA game ever made, and a relatively poor seller. Now I'm often the first to point out that this game will keep on selling for a long time and be both profitable and successful, but there is a difference between a successful game and a REALLY successful game. And it looks like this is destined to be the former. Now when a game of that magnitude and franchise pedegree fails to ignite simillar sales to it's kin, this makes the notion of sequels unlikely. And before today, I'd have surmised that Chinatown wars might be the only GTA game the DS gets.

But then a PSP port was announced. And you know what, it'll sell well. Not as well as the Stories GTA games, but well along the lines of the DS version (most likely with much higher initial opening sales too) And suddenly, this DS franchise of mild success becomes a DS/PSP franchise of super happy fun time sales. The former was not likely to receive a sequel. The latter is. Much like Call of Duty now has a separate franchise in Modern Warfare, Rockstar can have two portable GTA franchises, PSP 3D and PSP/DS isometric.

This is a happy day for not just PSP owners, but DS owners as well. If it does well on PSP, Rockstar will want to make another top down view game, and it would be bad business to make that game PSP exclusive.

GTA:CW for PSP could be in full 3D like previous installments on platform. Actually that wolud be obvious choice to keep series in the same style and gameplay to guaratnee high sales. But we don't know how far R* will go in porting DS->PSP. If this's will be cheap port - don't expect smth extraordinary. Total overhaul is needed, but it probably would cost a lot of money compared to original budget... probably?

That's what's going to be interesting. How much are they going to change to make the PSP version.

If they made it a 3D full view game like previous 3D GTA games, then it would be a totally new game. It's going to be a top down game and if you've played the DS game you know that's not a bad thing, as it's a beautiful game that plays like butter. And that's why this is so great. It's like a totally new GTA franchise, so if it's hugely successful on the PSP, there's still a good reason to make the next one on the DS as well, since it'll be another top down view game.

The problem I foresee is that this game was far too optimized to the DS, and will frankly not be properly ported to the PSP. If a sequel arises, it will be created simultaneously for both, diluting the touch screen controls on the DS version in favor of comforming to the traditional controls of the PSP.

^^ Or both versions will get played up to their strengths, with everyone coming away happy. I'm going to be very optimistic on this and even call it the best thing to happen to the GTA franchise for gamers. The ensured continuation of the best GTA games on both handhelds.

I didn't say that's a bad thing. Personally I liked GTA:CW more than all previous portable GTAs combined (honestly, I'm not a fan of GTA at all =) but GTA:CW got me excited me more than usual GTA). The most unique thing that R* have done recently with franchise is to design a new installement for DS from ground, at the same time maybe that wasn't such a great idead sales wise. Experiments are dangerous for massive franchises like GTA, massive fanbase tend to be conservative. That's why spin-offs are better for new gameplay ideas and style.

I'm glad this is coming over to PSP since I don't have a DS. Im with you, stof. I think this could lead to more top down GTAs, which is good for the franchise IMO. The 3D formula started to feel stale in GTA4. Not having ever played Chinatown Wars, I'm hoping what's old feels new again.

The PSP doesn't have any strengths in regards to control in comparison to the DS. The DS has a D-Pad, four face buttons and two shoulder buttons, just like the PSP does. The only thing the PSP has in addition is the analog nub, and I don't see how that will make much of a difference. A future sequel has to figure out how to take what is on two different DS screens and conform that to a single PSP screen, plus find a way to make minigames fun both by traditional controls and touch controls.

I just don't see them being successful with both versions. One is going to turn out worse.

I mean what strengths do you feel the PSP has that a future game could get played up to?

The touch screen controls only served as an annoyance since the majority of the game is played with the D pad and you use the stylus to open your drug bag, search through trash etc.

I'm going to disagree with the OP and say that this is one of the worst GTA's I've ever played and is over hyped- pretty much like every M rated game to come out on a Nintendo console recently (Madworld I'm looking at you).