Screw the Games, it Washes Your Car!

It's almost as if Sony's given up trying to combat the DS in a traditional fashion. The Liepzieg Games Convention is going on as we speak and there were tons of PSP announcements from the Sony keynote. Nearly none however, were title announcements. That does not mean that they are any less than stellar though.

Through an upcoming firmware update the PSP will enable you to IM your friends via a new free service called Go! Messenger. While it is only confirmed PSP to PSP right now, there is no reason to believe a PS3 and desktop client will not be coming shortly after. This is what the PSP needed to make it's Wifi connected games work. It's nearly impossible to find friends online that are playing the game you want. At least now, you can find those that aren't and coerce them into swapping UMDs.


As if that weren't enough, Go! Messenger will be accompanied by the Go! Cam, the long time coming PSP camera attachment and headset. It will enable you to have voice and video chats, as well as leave messages for each other through the free VOIP service. If played right, this could develop into a genuine community platform with gamers actually interacting with eachother before and after games, a definite edge over the clumsy friend codes of the DS.

And while VOIP and messaging is all fine and dandy Sony really wants you to buy a PSP, so guess what; it has video on demand! It would appear Sony has finally realized no one likes UMD movies and is giving gamers the opportunity to pay for movies on the go, either through a Wifi connection of PC linkup. No pricing has been slated yet, but the service is brought to us as part of a collaboration between Sony and Sky, who promise (wholeheartedly) that there will be plenty of content to enjoy when the service starts next year. Movies on the fly, another thing the DS can't do.

However, what good is it to watch a movie and chat with your friends if you have no clue where you are? Go! Explore will also be launching next year, a GPS service that will provide both road and pedestrian routes for all your A to B needs. The service will also be free (apart from the initial receiver purchase) and will be able to tell you, where you are and where you are going.

That's a lot of add-ons for a system that was already billed as a multifunctional device. Even though the games library is rubbish it may be more worthwhile to pick up the PSP as an all-in-wonder rather than a games machine. Sony probably hadn't anticipated this, but it's working out nicely. The PSP could fill in the niche of the consumer friendly device that does it all, something that the market could sustain for quite a while if these improvements keep coming.