An Indie Developer's Idea to Make the PSP Go Awesome

by Julian Kantor, COMMUNITY WRITER

Sunday, August 02, 2009

Editor's note: Julian makes the case for the PSP Go as an Apple App Store-like open platform, but he isn't just writing from the perspective of a gamer -- he also developed the indie Xbox Live game Groov. Makes sense, but is Sony forward-thinking enough to actually do it? -Demian

After listening to the Bitmob crew discuss the PSP Go on Mobcast 13, I couldn't help but notice that the guys sounded decidedly less than enthused. Sony is committed to re-launching the PSP brand this fall, but their plan doesn't fix many of the issues that have previously dogged the platform. My idea wouldn't address the device's exorbitant price or lack of a second analog stick, but it could very possibly invigorate its software sales and maybe even address its long-standing piracy woes.

The most exciting feature of the PSP Go is its emphasis on digital distribution. UMD has been a relatively useless format or a while, and since Sony has already announced the ability for users to transfer digital copies of the UMD games they already own to their PSP Go, those little disks really have no business hanging around anymore. The PSP Go's digital-only distribution model is a first for conventional game platforms, and could potentially signal even further innovations in the way that Sony delivers content to customers.

On the Mobcast, Shoe criticized Sony's attempts at mimicking the iPhone's distribution model without having the guts to take it all the way. This is right on the money: not only should Sony take Apple's notion of an open platform and run with it, they should take it further than Apple itself has. The iPhone is an awesome device and the App Store allows independent developers to deliver metric tons of original content directly to users. However, the device itself is limited in what kinds of experiences it can offer. If Sony opens its platform to huge publishers and small independents alike, it would take full advantage of its digital-only distribution model and give gamers a whole bunch of reasons to get excited about the PSP Go.

While I love really innovative games that take advantage of the iPhone hardware (Drop 7 is my latest addiction/background for podcast listening), I've yet to be convinced that even the simplest of traditional games, like the original Mario, could be implemented on the platform. Even The Secret of Monkey Island, a simple point-and-click adventure game, has frustrating control issues relating to the accuracy of the touch screen and accelerometers. While virtual gamepads have been implemented into some games with varying degrees of success, nothing beats the tactile feel of real buttons when you're craving a traditional gaming experience.

While the PSP Go's lack of a dual-stick analog setup may pose problems for more modern styles of gameplay, there is no doubt that deep, traditional gaming experiences can still be had on the device, far more so than on the iPhone.

Microsoft has made a similar foray into the realm of an open platform for indie developers: Xbox Live Indie Games (formerly Community Games). Having developed a game for the platform (Groov), I know firsthand the advantages and disadvantages of such a distribution model, on which I could write an entirely different article. However, Sony could learn from the mistakes that Microsoft has made by having large publishers like EA and Activision release their games in the same open marketplace that small indie developers do.

Microsoft has a segmented online marketplace, and Indie Games are at the bottom of the ladder. After retail releases and their accompanying DLC, the newly announced Games on Demand, and the ever-pricier Xbox Live Arcade, Indie Games occupy a space on Microsoft's agenda somewhere between themes and pants for your avatar (that's taking into account the recent price re-jiggering of Indie Games, of course). While Microsoft's approach works for them, and I'm extremely grateful that I was even able to create a game for a major console that anyone can buy, it does severely limit the visibility that small games can get on Xbox Live.

If every publisher or developer submitted their games to the same open PSP Go marketplace, the smaller indie titles would be given an enormous opportunity to rise to the top. Furthermore, if Sony followed Microsoft and Apple's lead by implementing a proprietary ratings system and a "hands off" approach to certification, the cost of entry would be significantly reduced for big publishers, and the exclusion of retailers from the equation would free up their pricing schemes as well, allowing them to really let loose and create games that would normally be too high-risk to get approved.

Of course, Sony would need to work out many details to get the experience right. "Web 2.0" functionality like tags, user ratings, comments, and social networking integration should be included in the marketplace, along with strong editorial content from Sony regarding interesting releases, and developer/publisher pages that would allow consumers to quickly find the next big thing from EA or the latest experiment from a well-regarded indie developer.

My plan definitely isn't without its faults, but a completely open traditional gaming platform is something that I'd at least begrudgingly pay $250 for, not only as a developer, but also as a gamer.

Tags: iPhone, sony, Mobcast, PSP Go

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Jon X. Porter

July 28, 2009

So basically Sony should do the app store in such a way so that I don't need to use Twitter to find out about the best releases? Sounds like a good idea to me. Honestly I think the omission of a second analogue stick is the best thing Sony's done with the PSP Go. Does anyone out there honestly want to play complex 3D action games on a portable device? Personally I prefer simpler 2D games on my PSP. Gameplay where it doesn't matter if I get distracted by something on the bus, and graphics that are easy to keep track of on a small screen (though maybe that's just my poor eyesight talking). If games are cheaper as a result of this then horray for me, (and the rest of gamekind I guess).

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Toby Davis

July 28, 2009

I still am looking forward to the PSP Go no matter what anyone else says.

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Frank Anderson

August 03, 2009

What I see from the PSP working retail is that it is the system that 12 year old's ask for as a gift because they have gotten to the point that they think they are too grown up for a DS. After their parents buy them the system and a copy of one of the GTA games and one of the Need for Speed games, the system sits on a shelf unused until they bring it to our stores and trade it in. The ones that don't get traded in I suspect get broken... just judging from the condition of 90% of the systems I see being brought in for trade in. I am not saying there is no base that would have, and possibly still would buy PSP games, but at this point I do not have any faith that Sony can make a significant enough re-launch to energize that group, and the high price will drive away just as many consumers as the new form factor and large HD will attract. I suspect the system will sell pretty well for the first two months and then taper off... unless Sony creates a false extended demand period by putting fewer of the units out there for sale (like Nintendo did with the Wii). I truly love so much that Sony is attempting right now, but it truly seems to be three steps forward and then three steps back with them. They cannot maintain a consistent strategy or sales pitch and their plans take too long to come to fruition.

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Matthew Herrin

August 03, 2009

I think a "hands off" certification approach on a completely open platform could lend itself to some problems. The creation of malicious code, "adult" programs and the like.

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Michael Burridge

August 03, 2009

Cool, you made Groov? I bought, and enjoyed that game! Will you sign my copy, umm, wait, never mind. Damned digital-distribution!

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Christopher Quach

August 03, 2009

I totally agree! for certain consumers, money spent goes beyond the gaming experience, its about supporting a product that you believe will push the industry. I believe Indie games are what leads bigger developers to invest in new IP's. Without the brave who dares to be different, we won't have anything new. I hope Sony will be brave so that indie developers like yourself and do what's best, create something new! :)

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Dan "Shoe" Hsu

August 04, 2009

[quote]I think a "hands off" certification approach on a completely open platform could lend itself to some problems. The creation of malicious code, "adult" programs and the like.[/quote] I think the trade-off (the freedom allowed) is well worth it, though.

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Patrick Williams

August 04, 2009

I agree with Julian's post. I think that Sony needs to do something to make the PSP Go! more competitive and to make it stand out from the crowd of other portable game systems. I don't believe Sony will do this though. Historically, they're a pretty conservative company so I don't see them pushing boundaries. The whole indie games trend is much more of a western phenomenon than a Japanese phenomenon. This is a slightly different point, but bear with me, I think its pertinent. On a different forum, I remember when a Chrono Trigger mod was cancelled because Square Enix hit them with a Cease and Desist order. All the forum goers were up in arms saying it had been done in other gamers like BG2, but they didn't realize something basic. Talking about modding in BG2 is pointless because its pretty likely that almost no one at SE even knows what BG2 is. Bringing modding to SE is like bringing capitalism to Cuba. As it stands, Japanese studios are trying to emulate the way western studios work because the corporate architecture of each is completely different. This is pertinent to the discussion because we're talking about what Sony should accept to allow on the PSN, which is a tacit approval of how Sony accepts game design should work. If Sony doesn't understand the cultural aspect of small scale game design, kind of like SE doesn't understand modding, then this is not going to happen.

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Camille Lake

August 04, 2009

I agree, I agree, I agree. But they won't do it. Nope. (And with out starting some fanboy war) The problem with Sony has always been -- they do things half-assed, charge too much money for it, then get bored, and finally drop the project all together. THAT has been a consistent pattern of theirs for decades. Sony only wants to do the minimal amount of effort, for the maximum amount of money. They are such a large company, that it going to be extremely hard, to break way from that modus operandi. The times are changing, and Sony really seems unwilling to change with the times.

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David Matos

August 04, 2009

I think this is a good idea. I know Sony has got a lot of flack this generation and I don't consider myself a Sony fanboy (I hope I'm not!) however I think the move to digital distribution is a good thing. I do agree with some of the hard copy people, but overall, a good move in my eyes. A lot of people have already discounted the PSPgo, I had two PSPs when they first came out, played Valkyrie Profile, Megaman and some other games. However there wasn't enough to keep the damn thing. Now a few years have passed and there are a few more titles I would like to play, plus I no longer have to deal with those silly UMDs. This isn't directed to any one person but let Sony release PSPgo and give it a shot, if it fails utterly then everyone can bitch and riot around Sony headquarters. I think people should give companies more slack when they try to buck the trend (in this case goign digital distribution).

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Camille Lake

August 04, 2009

@David Hey. No, I don't find you to be fanboyish at all -- you're being polite. Yes, I too have a PSP and I hate UMDs. I thought they were stupid from the beginning. But here we are. I would like to get a PSPgo -- it's smaller, lighter. But, would it really have killed them to place a second analog stick on there? I mean, really? Other then the price, which is TOO HIGH. I have the money, but I already have a PSP, I need an incentive to buy a second one --- like a second analog stick. I don't mean to sound like MANY a broken record. But, the most basic reason is... [b]The camera LIVES on the second analog stick.[/b] WE are used to it being on the second analog stick. This is NOT rocket science? Making developers have to waste time re-maping basic game controls to the L+R shoulder buttons is ridiculous. That is a waste of time, money, man power, and probably the main reason WHY the PSP hasn't been doing so well (with developers, and doing very well with hackers). Sony is determent to do it regardless, so here we are. Why is this simple fact so hard to understand? [b]The basic camera controls that I, and many others have been weened on for a decade, is MISSING.[/b] As a player and a consumer, "I" cannot and will not play any real games on the PSP. When I want to really play -- I goto my PS3 or my Xbox, why? Because there is a camera control, second analog stick on the freaking controller -- Because I want to PLAY GAMES, not screw-around. The PSP games I have are as followed: Final Fantasy 1 & 2 Lumines 1 & 2 Sudoku Exit Cake Mania etc. My bigger machines have REAL games.

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David Matos

August 04, 2009

@Camille I do agree a second analog stick would be nice and logical at this point and the price is a little out there. I will be buying a PSPgo when the price drops a bit. Here's hoping Sony surprises us all before it launches with a second analog stick ;) "My bigger machines have REAL games." I chuckled when I read that.

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Josh Schultheiss

August 04, 2009

To be fair indie content (particularly any content in a "hands off" certification process) probably [i]needs[/i] to be segmented to some degree just to make it palatable to publishers, and to a lesser degree, consumers. Sony's efforts to foster new development on the system would have hit more hurdles if publishers thought they'd have to fight through the sort of noise you see in the App Store. Aren't people already complaining about XBLA being overly cluttered? Injecting every Tom, Dick, and Harry's game into the midst of that would make PSN even more untenable. "Web 2.0" style filtering wouldn't completely ameliorate the problem either. Take LittleBigPlanet and YouTube for example. Each uses "Web 2.0" techniques to help users sift through the morass of content but unless a number of users have already played/viewed that content and rated it most consumers will just skip past it for the more popular content. That's for content that only requires a small investment of time. Just how many fart apps are people going to pay for before they stop sifting through the noise and stick to popularity listings? Lets not also forget that something like the App Store would likely devalue downloadable content in consumers eyes as well. Publishers like to be able to charge consumers top dollar for DLC or full game downloads. Put their downloads next to indie content and suddenly consumers are asking why that DLC pack is so expensive. Again Sony needed to court publishers and this would only push them away from the platform. Or at least push their full retail products to a competing platform. The idea isn't a bad one but this isn't the right time for Sony to execute it. Ideally a service much like you describe will be launched for the [url=http://www.gamasutra.com/php-bin/news_index.php?story=24221]expanded PSN[/url]. A PSN that's cross compatible between Sony's wide range of products is where I'd rather see this new type of 'App Store' launch.