The Future of Portable Gaming?

With the rumors and expectations of the next generation of portable gaming already on the table, or around the corner. I feel that the portable gaming machines are feeling a lot of heat from the smart phones on the market. People are playing games on those phones, maybe not as sophisticated but enough to explain the new innovations in technology by companies like Nintendo. I'm thinking this because of how the next generation of portable gaming systems are shaping the next portable gaming environment. It seems that they have to offer more than just a gaming machine. I really think that Sony and Nintendo are maybe feeling more competition from the smart phones than they are from each other. With the competition of the smart phones, I'm thinking that the gaming winds may be shifting a bit at some point. Which leads me to my questions. At what point do you think that Nintendo will feel the need to offer phone capabilities on a DS? And do you think Sony will lead the way in offering this feature? Are "game only" machines a thing of the past?

I'm thinking that it is a no brainer, that at some point soon, the portable market will have to embrace the phone technology, placing it into the gaming systems. This will solve the problem with digital downloads that may have hindered the PSP Go sales. It did for me and for a lot of gamers in my area. Online play will take a different turn, with a play anywhere. Just think, you can take out your 3DS II, do some texting, talk to a friend, and be playing a game with them that you both just downloaded. I think this kind of thing is closer than we think.

I don't know what to think anymore to be honest... before the PSP i used to think that gaming+commodities outside of gaming were not a good idea.. that consoles should be gaming only... but after my psp i am changing my opinion that these commodities really help out in the end.

Zidart said:

I don't know what to think anymore to be honest... before the PSP i used to think that gaming+commodities outside of gaming were not a good idea.. that consoles should be gaming only... but after my psp i am changing my opinion that these commodities really help out in the end.

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I know how you feel. I have always took the stand that a game console should be a game only system. I really feel that it is better to have that focus in a console for developers and for the 1st party manufacturers of that system. And I will have to admit, like you, my PSP did change my perception of portable gaming. Though I only use my PSP for gaming, I can easier accept the viewpoint of other gamers that differ.

Honestly... I'm not sure what way this will go. I originally thought handhelds would've been the all-in-one devices and consoles would've remained more towards just gaming.

I think both handhelds and consoles will end up mirroring each other for a few years and then... I'm not sure.

I predict everything will be controlled by smaller handhelds in the future. They need to become more powerful and storage needs to become faster and more robust. I predict handhelds will replace consoles. I also predict digital distribution movies and games will replace retail games to these smaller formats... and there will be no proprietary medium in the future. As much as I do not want this to happen... it will. It will also be more convenient... AND hopefully save us on cost. Though there will be many jobs lost (at least I think there will).

Honestly... I think portable gaming MAY be the only gamine in the future. IE wireless A/V methods to transmit to your TV. wireless connections for everything. But.. I think we'll have to wait and see how this turns out.

†B†V† :hat

Two words: Playstation Phone.

I'd seriously consider getting one, and I've never been a handheld gamer.

stealth toilet said:

Two words: Playstation Phone.

I'd seriously consider getting one, and I've never been a handheld gamer.

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Even though it won't really have the same games that PSP proper are going to have? Apparently, the rumor is that it will only have access to the android app store, which is where it will get its games.

I personally would not like having a phone play games. They're generally underpowered and are usually limited because developers have to take into account all the other phones they want to have their game on, so games cater to the lowest common denominator. The iPhone helped a bit, but not everyone uses one. And now that Android is out, more people are jumping ship.

Bluevoodu said:

Honestly... I'm not sure what way this will go. I originally thought handhelds would've been the all-in-one devices and consoles would've remained more towards just gaming.

I think both handhelds and consoles will end up mirroring each other for a few years and then... I'm not sure.

I predict everything will be controlled by smaller handhelds in the future. They need to become more powerful and storage needs to become faster and more robust. I predict handhelds will replace consoles. I also predict digital distribution movies and games will replace retail games to these smaller formats... and there will be no proprietary medium in the future. As much as I do not want this to happen... it will. It will also be more convenient... AND hopefully save us on cost. Though there will be many jobs lost (at least I think there will).

Honestly... I think portable gaming MAY be the only gamine in the future. IE wireless A/V methods to transmit to your TV. wireless connections for everything. But.. I think we'll have to wait and see how this turns out.

†B†V† :hat

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it is funny that you say that because for me handhelds and consoles have always been equal for me, even more so that my psp can be connected to my TV and i can play it like a console... I never really had much of a "preference" between the 2 so the fact that handhelds are turning more into consoles is not really changing much for me

I'd like for some kind of tethering to my phone for online games, kind of like what the GBC and Wonderswan got in Japan