PSP Vs DS Pre-Battle

Last week’s issue of Japanese weekly publication, Famitsu ran a feature in which they compared the specs of the Nintendo DS and the Sony PSP. The article covered the full range of each system’s known specifications ranging from buttons to battery life. Needless to say, both systems came out swinging.

Also featured in the special was feedback from readers. Of three hundred people who responded, 14.8% wanted a PSP, compared to only 11.8% who voted for wanting a DS. 13.3% stated that they’d wait to hear a price for the PSP before jumping on the bandwagon while 9.4% said they would wait for a price on the DS.
In another part of the special, industry “insiders” speculated that the PSP would fall within the expensive price range of 30,000 – 40,000+ yen. The reasoning for this is because since cell phones (which feature better specs than a Game Boy Advance system) cost over 30,000 yen, the PSP should as well.

The Nintendo DS was speculated to fall within the more reasonable 14,800 – 16,800 yen range. Also, it seems that nobody could conclude if the DS would actually ship on time, though a delay was not mentioned or predicted.

To end the article, Famitsu put the two portables through twelve rounds with seventy-six Japanese game developers as well as other members of the industry. The results are below:

Round 1: Which do you think will sell better?
PSP: 102, DS: 137, Split: 111

Round 2: Which will be cheaper?
PSP: 31, DS: 137, Split: 38

Round 3: Which will be released first?
PSP: 98, DS: 152, Split: 101

Round 4: Which will have more interesting software?
PSP: 66, DS: 172, Split: 111

Round 5: Which design do you like better?
PSP: 251, DS: 42, Split: 58

Round 6: Which one do you want to carry with you normally?
PSP: 134, DS: 69, Split: 147

Round 7: Which one do you want to play while on the train?
PSP: 140, DS: 91, Split: 119

Round 8: Which one makes a better present?
PSP: 104, DS: 89, Split: 154

Round 9: Which one has more appealing functionality?
PSP: 113, DS: 149, Split: 88

Round 10: Which will feature more fresh, new software?
PSP: 31, DS: 244, Split: 74

Round 11: Which one is easier to develop for?
PSP: 114, DS: 98, Split: 134

FINAL Round: Which do you want to be left standing in the end?
PSP: 84, DS: 156, Split: 112

So, after all the rounds, all the questions, and all the answers, the winner by two rounds and 360 votes:

NINTENDO DS

Well, so far, so good for the DS. It looks like developers like it and want to see it succeed. Good luck to both systems when they are released though, as they should offer unique experiences in the portable realm of gaming. saints row