DS VS PSP

For Christmas, I gave my mother a Nintendo DS.  She was interested in Brain Age, so I figured any chance to get one of my parents involved in video games was something I had to leap at.  So I went to GameStop and bought a combo pack that included Brain Age.

When I got my PSP, I debated over which portable system to get for nearly a month.  I compared the specs of the systems themselves.  The PSP had an immediate advantage for only having one screen.  The concept of looking at two screens made me dizzy, one screen was more familiar and comfortable.

The DS had the Phoenix Wright series which I hear nothing but good things about, as well as a couple RPG’s, which put the two on equal footing.  I had actually decided on the DS when I went to the store, but could find none of the games that I wanted.

I wandered over to the PSP aisle and found Valkyrie Profile and Final Fantasy Tactics, two of my favorite games that had been lost to the ages.  I picked up those games and bought them right there… even if I had to order a PSP because EVERY STORE IN CHICAGO was sold out.

I’ve done a lot of things with my PSP since I bought it.  I’ve played a lot of classic games, surfed the web, made phone calls with Skype, and played a load of music files while I was working the midnight shift earlier this year.  I spent a solid week trying out various methods of cracking the firmware so I can play emulated games on it, and succeeded after bricking the PSP twice.  The PSP has been a terrific system, falling just short of being a full fledged pocket computer because of no keyboard.

When I tried out my mother’s DS, I decided I wanted one of them as well.  Brain Age was a lot of fun, and the dual-screen was actually a lot more convenient than I thought it would be.  So when my stepmother called and asked if I wanted anything else for Christmas, I mentioned I was really liking the DS.

Sure enough, I had a DS on Christmas, which makes it the first year I gave the same present that  I received.  The day after, I picked up Brain Age, Lunar, FInal Fantasy III, and Final Fantasy IV.  Admittedly, being able to play a remastered version of FFIV is worth it by itself.

The real major difference between the PSP and the DS is that the PSP is a computer, whereas the DS is a console.  The PSP is made ot be an all-in-one system, whereas you would need various cartridges to do it with the DS.  I heard that there is a browser cartridge and chat cartridges, and even a RAM expansion cartridge. 

The other difference is the ease of multiplayer gaming.  Many games don’t even need multiple cartidges, so playing a game with your friends is much less expensive than would be otherwise.  So, the DS is the system you want if all you want is games, which is all it ever promised to be.  Add to that a price tag nearly half of the PSP… and it’s definitely a very good deal.

I’ve always gauged the value of a gaming system on the availability of quality RPG’s.  The PSP and the DS seem to be neck and neck in this department, both with a mix or original and remade classics.  If you’re just in it for the games, save some money and go for a DS.  If you want something more robust, and you don’t mind putting in the time to configure it (and hack it) properly, then pick up a PSP.

Zel-kun out.