14 DAY TRIAL // There has always been friction between Microsoft and Sony representatives when it came to who copies who, in a console war that often enough shifts to a war of statements. In the end, it appears the glass is neither half empty, nor half full, since both companies borrow ideas from one another. This time Sony marketing reached the conclusion that an online service similar to XBL Marketplace is also a good idea, thus a PSP download service has been announced, to launch with the upcoming PS3 release. The ability to download retro Sony games is brilliant, but as millions of XBL users already know, it has to come at the right expense.
We learn more details via NikkeiBP from Izumi Kawanishi, Sony's head of platform development in Japan. The upcoming PSP download service can operate via Wi-Fi-enabled PCs and - surprisingly enough - the PS3 can also work as a home server. If someone ever doubted the massive capabilities of the next-gen console, this just goes to prove them wrong. Starting this November, original PlayStation 1 games will be available for download as Kawanishi assures end users that the PSP has no issues properly running the titles: "As for emulation power there is no problem." He added that the games will suffer some minor changes since the handheld only has a single analog stick and fewer control buttons than the original PS1.
It's still unknown which titles will be available on PS3 launch, but Kawanishi mentioned how Amazon had a list of "all books," indicating that Sony intends to set up a good number of games on the service. With the standard's revival that seems to follow the consistent price reduction, UMD movies will also be featured via online distribution further increasing the format's reach. While Sony didn't turn the PSP in a dedicated device, focused on just one of its many capabilities, evolving the existing features might just be the winning formula.