Apple claims 50 percent of portable gaming market, iPod touch ‘outsells Nintendo and Sony combined’

Nintendo famously called Apple the enemy of the future in the video gaming space, and by golly, it looks like the Japanese giant was right; Steve Jobs just told an audience that the iPod touch alone outsells Nintendo's DS and Sony's PlayStation Portable combined, worldwide. How many games iPod touch users actually play and for how long wasn't discussed, but Jobs said 1.5 billion "games and entertainment" apps have been downloaded -- again, on the iPod touch alone, never mind all those iPhones.

Check out our liveblog of the keynote event right here!

Apple claims 50 percent of portable gaming market, iPod touch 'outsells Nintendo and Sony combined' originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 01 Sep 2010 13:26:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Kingdom Hearts: Birth By Sleep Review (PSP)

Kingdom Hearts: Birth By Sleep transports the familiar Disney-inspired RPG franchise exclusively to PSP. You take turns to play as three protagonists, each on a quest to locate a Keyblade master and fend of evil creatures spread throughout familiar Disney worlds. Stephen Ebert gives his verdict…

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The basics
Kingdom Hearts: Birth By Sleep sees you take control of three characters: Terra, Aqua and Ventus – each with their own storyline as they enter some of the same fantastical worlds seen in several well known Disney films such as Cinderella, Snow White and more. The result is almost three separate games: only by clearing the game with each character can players get the whole story, lending some serious longevity to Birth By Sleep.

The good
If you’re not a fan of turn-based combat, but love RPGs you’ll find plenty to love here. Birth By Sleep does away with turn-based attacking for more conventional button tapping, combined with one and multiple button-activated magic spells. RPG games can be intimidating to newcomers, but Birth By Sleep’s gameplay is instantly accessible, and made easier to understand thanks to neat tutorials and instructions throughout.

New to Birth By Sleep is the ability to customise what’s called a ‘Command Deck’ giving you the chance to create and alter your abilities combinations at will. Magic abilities are listed on-screen, activating them is as easy as pressing a button. Adding further depth to combat are ‘D-Link’ attacks that let you use the abilities of characters you’ve met throughout to keep combat fresh and exiting.

The bad
Because you’ll need to clear the game with each of the three characters, there’s plenty of Birth By Sleep gameplay to be had, but some of the earlier levels are aren’t exactly complex, and a little on the easy side.

The bottom line
Kingdom Hearts: Birth By Sleep is a thoroughly playable RPG with fun gameplay, diverse combat and a well executed story with many hours of gameplay to make it well worth adding to your PSP collection.
Read Kingdom Hearts: Birth By Sleep Review (PSP) on FiveFWD

Trapped Chilean Miners Get PSPs [Chile]

There are 33 miners stuck 2,300 feet underground. It could be Christmas before the escape shaft is finished. How to pass the time? PlayStation Portables. More »

Next gen PSP to have touch controls — on the wrong side?

Touchscreen controls are nice for some applications but, until someone invents transparent fingers, they're a real bother for gaming. Many, including Apple, have toyed with the idea of putting the touch sensitive sections on the back of the device, and we have strong rumors coming out of Gamescom this week that this is the path Sony is taking for its next-generation PSP. Now, we've been hearing various rumors about this thing for just about as long as we've known about the first-gen PSP, but Sony is said to be quietly showing off a prototype unit about the size of a PSP-3000. While everyone agrees about the touch-sensitive portion 'round the back, it's unknown what (if any) physical controls will go along with it. A release date for the thing is also unclear, with some saying next year and others saying it'll be later than that. Whenever it ships we hope it'll do the right thing and finally put the UMD format out of its misery.

Next gen PSP to have touch controls -- on the wrong side? originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 19 Aug 2010 09:09:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Rumor: Next PSP to Have Touch-Controls on Back? [PSP]

There's a rumor floating around Gamescom in Cologne, Germany this week, that selected VIPs are supposedly getting hands-on with the next PSP, which apparently features touch-controls on the back of the device for added gameplay input. More »

Rumor: Next PSP to Have Touch-Controls on Back? [PSP]

There's a rumor floating around Gamescom in Cologne, Germany this week, that selected VIPs are supposedly getting hands-on with the next PSP, which apparently features touch-controls on the back of the device for added gameplay input. More »

Sony takes aim at iPhone gaming in new PSP ad

Continue reading Sony takes aim at iPhone gaming in new PSP ad

Sony takes aim at iPhone gaming in new PSP ad originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 17 Aug 2010 11:51:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Sony PSP Ad Mocks Apple iPhone Gaming [Trash Talk]

Apple has taken shots at the DS and PSP. The iPhone has more games, they say. Sony fires back with this ad, basically saying, yeah, but our games are better. More »

Sony PSPGo Android phone rumoured

A new hybrid gaming phone, combining Sony Ericsson and PSPGo smarts and running Android has been lighting up the web today.

Rumours of a PSP phone have been doing the rounds since the PSP popped into existence, but new rumours unearthed by Engadget suggest that a tie-in with Android could finally make the ultimate gaming phone a reality.

Another “trusted source” has spilled to the website that there’s a phone in the pipeline that takes the form of a landscape slider (much like the PSP) compete with a QWERTY keyboard and a touchpad for analogue game controls. There may also be the same shoulder buttons as the PSP. Other specs rumoured include a screen size between 3.7 and 4.1 inches, a 1GHz processor and a 5 megapixel camera.

Perhaps the most exciting news, however, is that the PSP phone may come toting Android 3.0 Gingerbread. The rumour is that Android Market will expand to include a dedicated area for games, with big-name titles such as LittleBigPlanet and Modern Warfare said to be on the cards.

There’s no official word on this fantasy handset yet, but some say that it could appear around the same time as the mooted Android Gingerbread release – which is in October.

What do you think? Would you buy into this handset or is it just a fanboy’s daydream? Let us know in the comments section below…

Read Sony PSPGo Android phone rumoured on FiveFWD

Sony Ericsson Readying an Android 3.0 PlayStation Phone? [Unconfirmed]

Engadget's reporting that Sony Ericsson, who hasn't been quickest on the draw with Android devices, is in the "late stages of planning" for an Android 3.0 smartphone with sliding gaming controls and an accompanying gaming platform. More »

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