Loose Threads: Which handheld has the brightest future?

[Fraser]

Skip back a few years and everyone was laughing at the fugly DS phat and it's mishmash of inputs while simultaneously fawning over the PSP's devastating good looks and promises of PS2 quality games in the palm of your hand. Obviously, though both consoles have both since proved themselves successful, things didn't turn out as many might have predicted - it's a funny old world.

And now there's the ever improving and expanding world of mobile games, the iPhone, the N-Gage and Google's Android all vying for pocket space and thumb time too. So the burning question is, which console is set to conquer over the next few years?

Has the DS had its day? Is iPhone gaming a flash in the pan? Will the N-Gage pull away as it's library builds? Will the PSP make a dramatic comeback and beat the DS in 2009?

This is the mother of all pocket gaming debates so the gloves are off. DING DING!

[danskmacabre]

Hmm, It seems that Nintendo just keeps getting it right over the last few years. So I'm betting whilst the DSi won't be as successful as the DS lite, it will still knock the socks off the PSP. Strange really, as I feel the PSP appeals to a different gaming audience really, but maybe it's because the DS has such a WIDE audience.
It comes back to the same thing, the Gameboy's success was it's simplicity and battery life and lots of games. Sure it was technically inferior to other handhelds, but the price was right the batteries lasted for ages and the games were ok.
Sony however went to really nice technical specs and as a result higher prices, but that shrinks your audience to those who are will to fork out more money.

I think even though in many ways the PSP is better (although no touchscreen is a real drawback for me) the DS, gameboy, well they were just more accessible convenient and affordable and that's what it's all about really for handhelds.
As to the Iphone, well if I was gonna spend lots of money on a contract or phone and wanted to test, I suppose I'd get an Iphone, but I wouldn't be getting it for the games.
I think the iphone and DS can coexist quite happily, they are quite different markets.
I reckon the PSP is stuck out in the cold though.

[hunter_alien]

To be honest I believe that neither at this point. Both the DS and the PSP are out for almost 4 years now, worldwide, so they will probably be in the center stage for one more year before rumors of successors will start to pour the internet. True, in my opinion we still have to wait at least until Q4 2010 ( more likely 2011 and even that for Japan) until we can get the PSP2/DS2. But lets be honest, most systems get their biggest bangs during their first 4-5 years, so IMO both the DS and PSP will reach their popularity peak next year, and Im not talking about hardware sales, because those will more then likely drop ( if a price drop wont come ) I mean the user base.

Which has the most still going for it? Well the DS will no doubt get tons more games, then the PSP, but to be honest I dont want that type of games for myself ( read: showelware). So it will be a close race. For me the PSP can have a great year even if it only has just 3 great exclusives ( like Patapon, GoW and CC ) so if by the side of Retribution/Patapon2/Locoroco 2 we can get 2 or 3 other higher qulity games for it, then for me the PSP has a much brighter future. But then there is a chance that there will be even less support, in contrary to Sonys expectations, and then the DS will trump it easily with a more solid 1st party lineup...

The remaining 2 years are still up for the grab IMO, and no, I havent forgotten the Iphone, but I still dont look at it as a worthy hand-held contender... at least not as a hardcore one So which has a brighter future? Its impossible to tell.

[Accelorata Jengold]

I'm going to go out on a limb and plump for the iPhone. Why? Because the device is selling by the truck load, it's cheap to develop for and the App Store might be one of the most ground breaking quiet revolutions in gaming's history. If you think about it, it's a direct cross between the PSP and the DS, it's super sex, pushes great visuals and has a touchscreen - what more could we want?

[SetsFireToPoshHammer]

I'll tell you what I want. Some tripple A games please! Ok the iPhone is great in many ways and plenty of the games for it are pretty decent but where's the iPhone's New Super Mario Bros or Wipeout Pure? Apple lack of gaming focus is telling on the iPhone front and though the third-party companies are doing a good job of holding their own on the platform, a leading light for development has not emerged yet.

That said, I reckon when the DS coughs its last within the eighteen months or so, the iPhone could be set to swoop in and gobble up some market. Then again, by that time the next gen-handhelds from Sony and Nintendo should be well on their way and the iPhone might end up being simply and Appendix to this generation of hardware. Mind you, Apple might think about updating its hardware around that time too, so who knows.

You're getting nothing concrete out of me today.

[superbungalow]

I think the obvious answer to that question would be the iPhone. Apple will keep updating it, and it will keep selling faster than any other mobile phone out there. However, that's taking the question literally, as it does have the brightest future, but to answer "Which handheld has the brightest future in the gaming market?" is a bit trickier. This is mainly because we don't know what these companies are going to do next. I personally believe that the iPhone and iPod touch will seriously take away the DS' market, because the DS is a casual gaming device, and so is the iPhone. But games consoles are normally second on peoples wish list when buying gadgets. More people have a phone or an iPod than have a portable games console, so people will be buying and iPhone or iPod touch before buying a DS, and will probably realise that the graphics a better, the games are cheaper, and they don't really need a DS, as their iPhone takes care of casual gaming. I personally believe the PSP will not suffer as a result of the iPhone's dominance (although possibly because it's really shitty), because they target difrferent people. The iPhone, at least at the moment, doesn't cut it as a hardcore gaming device, mainly because of the lack of buttons. This is a drawback, but I don't expect them to add buttons just for gaming, because, like I said, it's a casual gaming device. So there's my 2 cents.

[luo717ge]

hard to predict...

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