Sony gives students portable fun
By Katie Pecci
The Collegian |
Yeah, I’m a golf master. I’m a force to be reckoned with on
the last nine holes of the Autumn Pagoda Golf Course. I’ve got these
cool plaid pants with a striped shirt and spiky bracelets; people fear
me when I step on the green.
Ok, ok, so it’s all on my new Sony PlayStation Portable and I’m
playing Hot Shots Golf Open Tee. But there is something about getting
the birdie on the 18th hole to win the tournament that just oozes triumph.
PlayStation Portable (PSP), which retails for $249.99, was released by
Sony in early 2005 and made its mark on the map by releasing “Spider-Man
2” the movie, with the first million units sold, said Sony. The
PSP came into a market that had been previously dominated by Nintendo
according to Gameworld Network, emphasis on previously.
Sony was waiting in the wings, letting Nintendo have its 15 minutes of
fame. All the while the Sony gears were turning and without warning, PSP
launches and changes the world of handheld game devices forever.
PSP decided to go with a new approach, bringing on a system that not only
allows the owner to play PlayStation games but also has a variety of other
entertainment features built in.
I can watch movies, listen to MP3s, view pictures and beat other golf
novices on the Internet.
Oh, hang on, it’s my shot.
Sony has given in to the world of multi-taskers. With all the things it
does, there is no need to buy the portable DVD player, iPod and a video
game device.
Sony has created the Universal Media Disc, or UMD. About a quarter the
size of a DVD, the UMD has caught Hollywood by storm. Most executives
in the movie business were hesitant to sign on with Sony and the UMD,
but Sony said over 5 million units have been sold since PSPs release and
the fact that UMD movies are flying off the shelves, movie makers have
seen the error of their ways, said Newsweek.
You could say if Hollywood were a golf course, big shot movie executives
would be asking for a Mulligan (that’s a do-over for you golf juniors).
All right so one not-so-hot thing is that if you already have a PlayStation,
you need to buy new games on the UMD format to play on PSP. But there
is always a silver lining; you didn’t think I’d go against
my own opinion did you?
All PSP games are the same quality as their home console counterparts,
but there is something different. Kind of like the Where’s Waldo
of the video game world. The scene is different. Hey, that’s a new
character. Her hair wasn’t pink in the original. These rules are
different. I don’t remember getting the silver sword that way before.
Something is different about all the games and not just something simple
you might skip over. Sony said this was done on purpose to encourage gamers
to get the PSP and all their favorite games. And are all the PlayStation
games now available for PSP? Yes, about 80 percent of the games thus far.
But not to worry, all games will be available by early 2006, Sony said.
In addition, all your favorite movies are either out or are on the way
to UMD format. Everything from “Dodge Ball” (a personal favorite)
to anime is available. Sony said companies like New Line and Universal
have jumped on the bandwagon to release upcoming flicks on DVD and UMD.
Pretty soon Sony is going to take over the world and I know for sure whoever
coined the term, “better than sliced bread” was anticipating
PSP. Eagle shot? No way, who’s taking over the world now?
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