PSP Stumbles as DS Soars
Sony's new portable is suffering from a lack of new game releases in Japan, while the puppies make sure the same fate doesn't befall the DS.
While Europeans sit patiently awaiting the arrival of the PSP later this year (those that haven't already imported one, that is), Japanese gamers are already in the post-honeymoon phase with little in the way of new games coming out for Sony's six-month-old handheld.
How can you say no to a face like that?A look at Japanese sales charts shows the grim visage of apathy as only a handful of PSP games sit in the top 50, and even then only at the lower tiers.
Meanwhile, the DS, which launched in Japan days before the PSP, is doing well, with Media Create's most recent top 20 chart populated by no less than six games for the dual-screen portable.
Bolstered by the success of Shigeru Miyamoto's new Tamagotchi-like dog simulator Nintendogs, DS hardware sales have managed to consistently outpace those of the PSP in Japan, lately outselling even the mighty PlayStation 2.
Nintendogs, together with music experience Electroplankton, forms the core of the new genre of "non-games" that Nintendo is trying to push.
These have been a success in Japan, where Nintendogs has sold around 400,000 copies, but the real test is whether that same lightning can strike in Europe and North America too.
Nintendogs will be out in Europe in the beginning of October, just after the PSP hits stores on 1 September.
Alex Wollenschlaeger
Editor, Kikizo Games
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