2009 is year of PSP not Xbox 360 or PS3: new lineup to have GTA and Oblivion?

There are many gamers going around the Web indicating that 2009 is the year of the PS3 or Xbox 360. However, another platform that many gamers have undermined may be picking up steam to take over 2009. According to reports PSP may have an awesome lineup in store for 2009 with unrevealed titles as well as existing franchises.

The PSP is one platform that many gamers overlook as a contender in the gaming device arena. The PSP truly is a portable multimedia device considering you can play games, watch movies and listen to music all from a single device. However, gamers have been complaining about the lackluster lineup in 2008. The PSP lineup did start spectacularly with titles such as Final Fantasy
VII: Crisis Core and God of War: Chains of Olympus, but quickly died down near the last quarter.

Sony execs have admitted that the game release pacing for the PSP in 2008 was poorly planned and promised that the lineup will be three times better in 2009. According to John Koller, Sony’s director of hardware marketing, 2008 was the best year for the PSP. Apparently the PSP sold 31 percent more year-over-year. However, something tells me Final Fantasy and God of War really deserve the credit for this sales boost.

It seems like the brains at Sony got together 16 months ago to try to resolve the PSP game lineup issue. Koller stated, “We talked with each of our internal developers and looked at all of our franchises and asked: How can you create them for PSP?” The games that resulted from the meeting so far include: Resistance: Retribution, MotorStorm Arctic Edge and a portable LittleBigPlanet.

It seems like third party publishers have jumped on board, taking advantage of the PSP as well. There is a new Assassin’s Creed and Rock Band game planned for the PSP this year. Monster Hunter Portable is slated to hit the US sometime this year as well. The game that I am still waiting for is Elder Scroll Travels: Oblivion for the PSP. It doesn’t seem like the game is canceled but it has been two years since anything has been announced. Metacritic recently updated the release date for the game to November 2009, so it doesn’t look like its completely canceled.

Koller also indicated that the lineup for 2009 could be 50 percent more than that of 2008. He also teased that there are major franchises yet to be announced. I recently talked about a new rumor pointing to a new Grand Theft Auto game for the PSP. It seems like this could become a reality with Sony hinting at a few unannounced big franchises coming this summer. Make sure to keep your ear to the ground for more information on upcoming games.