Commuting: DS or PSP?
polycounter lvl 18
Ok, I know a few of you have a DS or PSP, or even both, and was wondering about your opinion on which is the better bang for the buck. The problem is that after taking the train for 6 months, the utility of my iPod shuffle is beginning to wear due to the limited amount of songs I like, plus the fact that I'm usually on the train for a total of an hour to an hour and a half per day (not including subway time).
Both the DS and PSP are about the same price, and the use-age is only different in that if I got the DS I'd also get Colors so I could use it as a portable digital sketchbook as well, where-as if I got the PSP I'd use it for watching movies/tv shows/video tutorials.
I'm also open to other suggestions of what to do to pass the time on the train from anyone else who may commute. The only thing is it needs to still be functional even if I'm in cramped sitting quarters, or standing if I don't get a seat. Plus I also commute with my laptop and its related gear as its my work computer, so...:poly134:
Both the DS and PSP are about the same price, and the use-age is only different in that if I got the DS I'd also get Colors so I could use it as a portable digital sketchbook as well, where-as if I got the PSP I'd use it for watching movies/tv shows/video tutorials.
I'm also open to other suggestions of what to do to pass the time on the train from anyone else who may commute. The only thing is it needs to still be functional even if I'm in cramped sitting quarters, or standing if I don't get a seat. Plus I also commute with my laptop and its related gear as its my work computer, so...:poly134:
Replies
Here's why you should get it for commutes:
Many PSP games take forever to boot, get a game started, etc. Many have cut scenes, areas where you can't save until you reach a certain point, etc. The DS lite is compact, has nice battery life, and most games will have you up and running in hardly any time. If you have to interrupt your play for a while, just close the DS and it goes into sleep mode. Open it back up and you're instantly in your game again. There are also plenty of satisfying, long, and deep games (but not as many as the PSP).
Plus it has Colors!
To be honest, you'll probably end up getting both eventually
ps- By flipping the power switch up quickly your psp will go into sleep mode currently pausing your current activity. If you hold it in the up position your system will power down.
whoops, nacire already said it.:)
plus the awesome and diverse games of which my top two are Patapon and God of War:Chains of Olympus
Read books!
As to your question I think you'd be best served by looking at the games and apps on each and deciding what appeals to you more. Personally I'd go for the PSP because it has more games that interest me and can play movies and tv.
But I know a lot of people who would be quite different and prefer the games on the DS, so you really need to look into the libraries of content out for each and decide based on that.
So when it really comes down to it though, it all depends on what you want, do you want to play games like you would just like at home on your playstation? Or do you want to have a more interesting experience by doing something new and interesting like playing on the Wii. For a commute you might want something more interesting and different, also like others have mentioned the PSP has a heavier load, I find it to be more slow and less stable than the DS so to speak, you might find yourself often frustrated and then out of something to do.
Overall, I find that nintendo likes to keep things simple, while at the same time making a game that might not look as pretty but can still be really fun, which could easily provide you with hours of fun.
On a commute tip note though I want to add to bring more than just one thing to keep you busy, just in case you get bored of one thing you can switch back and forth.
DS is dead.
Monster Hunters... everywhere...
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Monster Hunter Freedom 2
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Monster Hunter Freedom 2 G
But I myself mostly use the good ol sketchbook and practice
Failing that I watch movies on my nokia n95 8gb, this thing frikin rox!
The only games I really enjoy on the DS are the Ace Attorney ones, though, but the Advance Wars games have also brought me many hours of entertainment on the train.
But mostly I just use my iPod, loaded with audio books from Audible.
[Edit] Oh, and sometimes I talk to Flynny when we happen to be on the same train and cart. He mostly gets to endure me moaning about my pig flatmates.
That's awesome, if there is one game I've played a ton of since I got my psp a long time ago it's monster hunter freedom. It takes some time to get into but the sheer skill and patience for some of the missions will test even the most diligent player. I haven't played the second one, but I bet it's a lot of fun.
The only problem with the moleskine (as I have a few already, and have done it in the past) is that if I want to work in color I have to then lug around a bag full of colored pens and markers...which tends to get a bit haphazard on a train, plus sorta large storage-wise. I also have this strange quirk where if I'm working in a nice, elegantly bound sketchbook, I tend not to doodle because I feel what goes in has to look like it belongs in a bound, elegant sketchbook...but yes, I shall try this again, especially now since Polycount has that sketchbook section...:poly128:
...as for deciding based on games. I don't really know. I've never owned any of the Play Station line, and the only experience with the games I've had is the God of War series. Plus I've never owned a hand-held, so my only experience on the DS is with the old-school platformers that I've seen in their title line-up from Nintendo's yesteryear like Mario, Zelda, and MegaMan...and Pokemon. Which would probably be the kind of games I would get, aside from things like BrainAge, or homebrew old-school games.
But thats also the thing about the PSP. I'm not sure what games, and how many I will like since it doesn't seem to have as extensive a library as the DS. I'm also completely lacking in any sort of experience with PSN, so I don't know what games are available there, aside from the old Resident Evil series (which I've played on the Gamecube), flOw, and Echochrome. I tried Crisis Core in Best Buy, and while the gameplay was ok, the unskippable cutscenes left me watching the guy behind me play Guitar Hero while they just kept going...
...Disgaea has gotten favorable reviews, and it looks like the GTA series should be fun, along with the Jak & Daxter / Ratchet and Clank style games.
...so until further information is available, I'll probably be moleskining it for the next few weeks... :poly114:
http://www.gamasutra.com/php-bin/news_index.php?story=17764
hacking it and running games from memorystick makes life considerably easier tho.
i'd choose the psp over DS, a much better screen, higher production values on the games and less hassle with esoteric controls. plus nice movie playback and mp3 player functionality if required. and don't forget well working emulation of all kinds of consoles, arcade systems and stuff like scumm-vm. plays psx titles, too.
btw. do the newer (3.90+) homebrew firmwares fully support 8-gig sticks?
so which one are you, i go on the same train and probably by deduction work at the same studio...
your probably one of those fusion boys...... booo hisss
anyway not to derail the thread.
1-looking out of the window at the amazing world out there
2-talking to people
3-reading books
4-drawing
5-sleeping
6-DS
Seems more and more the trains are bloody delayed so my sketching has improved 10Xfold haha ;D but alas my patience has gone out the window ;p
Always found the train ride hard to play ds games that focus on the touch screen. Reading was something I did from time to time, I avoided talking to people. I don't like when strangers just start randomly talking to me. Sleeping on the train here is not a smart idea usually. I almost missed my stop a few times from being asleep (beer was partially to blame though)
I love that the DS consistently produces games in the style I grew up with. The SNES and Genesis are not quite dead these days, as they seem to live on in a somewhat evolved form on DS. Plus, 2D games are easy to play on bumpy trains.
I want to like the PSP but so much of what's on that system seems to be a bunch of sub par PSP ports of console games. Plus I don't like to deal with long load times (or really any load times for that matter) and short batt life with portables. But like I mentioned, I'd love to play Monster Hunter- it certainly looks like my cup of tea.