In 2005, a child was born to the videogame world. Its father? The music industry. The little bundle of joy would go on to be christened Guitar Hero. The inspiration of this would-be giant came from peripheral maker RedOctane, who had recently developed a guitar-shaped controller for Konami’s arcade game Guitar Freaks. It would go on to have an unbelievably large effect upon both of its parent industries.

The release of Guitar Hero is one of those events in videogame history that everyone remembers to some degree or another. “Cultural phenomenon” became the phrase to describe it; some journalists even went a step further to call it “one of the most influential products of the first decade of the 21st century.” Sound like a little much? It did to me at first, too – until I took a step back and realized what it had accomplished. Not only had GH single-handedly spawned an entire genre that raked in, literally, billions of dollars worldwide, it had also boosted sales of music globally – and not just new artists, but old ones, as well. As if that weren’t enough, here’s a piece of trivia that may surprise you: researchers at Johns Hopkins University have used Guitar Hero as treatment for amputee patients and those needing new prosthetic limbs. Additionally, the music and dexterity-based controllers are credited for helping stroke patients regain coordination.

And then there’s the franchise’s offspring. RedOctane had teamed with Harmonix Music Systems to make the first GH (which was then distributed by Activision), but RedOctane would go on to be purchased by Activision, and Harmonix – which was acquired by Viacom through its MTV Networks division – would strike out on their own to create Rock Band, a game which took the Guitar Hero concept by the hand and guided it a step further, adding more instruments, such as drums, vocals, and even (later on) keyboard. In this way, the two games are cousins… or step-brothers… or something like that.

The next six years would see Guitar Hero become an incredible success – such a success, in fact, that, by 2008, the market for the newly-dubbed rhythm genre was worth $1.4 billion. Activision would go on to pump out more then 15 different versions, expansions, and spin-offs (such as Band Hero and DJ Hero). All the while, its relative, Rock Band, was doing the same to a lesser degree. Some of the expansions were specific to certain bands, such as The Beatles and Metallica. Other sequels offered new graphics, modes, and other goodies. But things weren’t destined to stay so bright and sunny. In 2009, a new word was being used to describe the games that everyone had clamored to buy four years earlier: over-saturation.

So what did it? Was it Activision in the lounge with the lead pipe? Or perhaps it was recession in the library with the revolver? It’s no secret that Activision had received some criticism for making all the GH games virtually the same; several prominent journalists and analysts in the videogame community pointed out that it would have behooved the publisher to continue to innovate and find new ways to mix gaming and music. Instead, they flooded the market with the same game over and over again. Like any good fad, people continued to purchase the living daylights out of GH – until they caught on to what was happening, and then many turned their focus to Rock Band, which had at least innovated in the form of new instruments. Despite all the indications of impending doom, Activation continued with its blind strategy of pumping out more of the same.

But perhaps the company isn’t all to blame. They had a great concept with Guitar Hero. There’s the old saying: “If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it” – and the series wasn’t broken, per se. And goodness knows that the recession that hit our country in the latter half of the 2000s did its fair share of damage; there were virtually no industries anywhere in the United States that weren’t affected in some way by the sudden tightening of purse strings. There is, in fact, the going theory that, perhaps, if the recession hadn’t happened, Activision would have had more cash to pour into making something more out of GH then just the same old, same old. This is all speculation, of course, but well worth pondering.

Finally – and most sadly of all – maybe people were just over rhythm games. It’s a fact that Rock Band’s sales have also been down, so much so that 15% of Harmonix’s 250-person workforce has been laid off and MTV Games has been completely shut down for good. Not enough bad indicators? Then how about this: Viacom, who was so quick to buy Harmonix at the peak of their popularity for millions of dollars, just recently turned around and sold the company – back to their shareholders, which was the best deal they could find. (On the plus side, though, this transaction effectively makes Harmonix an independent developer again. And since they still hold the intellectual rights to both Rock Band and newly-released Dance Central, there just may be a silver lining in this gloomy cloud.)

With the fad of rhythm games coming to an end, we are left with those few, but faithful, fans that actually loved the genre for what it was, not just for the moment of glory that it had. The only problem here is that these fans aren’t enough to keep the genre going at the pace it was – but, to some of these diehards, that’s actually a good thing. Many people were upset by the previously mentioned lack of innovation, and more then one fan has commented to me, since starting this editorial, that they hope the demise of Guitar Hero would allow Harmonix to step back, reevaluate the situation, and come up with the Next Big Thing. It’s just sad to this writer that the catalyst of this possible change is the death of the entire original series, as well as that of RedOctane, the original brainchild, who was axed one year ago by parent company Activision (yes, they bought the peripheral manufacturer hand-in-hand with GH) when the market started to sour. They were 12-years-old.

So I leave it up to you, dear reader, to decide for yourself who killed this once-dominating giant. For one to climb so high and to fall so far is a sad thing to behold, but, more than anything, it should serve as an important lesson to the entire industry that innovation and change are key. One would like to think that Activision will, indeed, take this to heart, but, then again, I’ve often been accused of giving people too much credit. Or perhaps the morale of the story is that fads come and go with the tides. Or maybe – just maybe – the fault lies with the conservatives for causing the Great Recession. Just kidding! (Or am I?)

Whichever school of thought you subscribe to, however, I hope that you’ll give a moment of silence to our fallen comrade, Guitar Hero.

Ten years is a long time. To survive in a highly competitive environment, you need tenacity. Electronic Arts Redwood Shores (EARS, to some) has been producing games for ten years now in 2011, starting with James Bond 007: Agent under Fire. Their pedigree of games had been composed of licensed properties, including James Bond, Lord of the Rings, and The Simpsons. As is often the case with licensed properties in the realm of videogames, this safe – but uninspired – approach to game-making is often a necessary evil; licensed properties sell (keeping food on the table for the hard-working game-makers) but are characteristically meet with mediocre reviews and fade into the darker corridors of gaming history.

Then came a change in leadership at Electronic Arts: in February 2007, then-CEO Larry Probst stepped down, and his handpicked successor, John Riccitiello, took the reins. The games published by EA had been “under fire” for some time, many citing that they simply didn’t meet expected quality standards. The brand was in danger. Although it was in 2006 when EA announced it intended to produce more intellectual properties (IPs), the actualization of the promise would take time. One game – originally in development for the Xbox – would soon find itself at that mythic convergence of critical and commercial success… a game that would “make EA whole” in the eyes of action-horror enthusiasts.

In September 2007, Dead Space was announced. Shockingly dark and viciously bloody, the game hinted at a twisted future – one of terrors ripped from the annals of sci-fi horror classics such as Alien and Event Horizon. The game grew a following, and EA Redwood Shores fed their fans with a sophisticated pre-release multimedia marketing campaign, including six issues of a comic book mini-series and a website with supplemental content called “No Known Survivors.” However, in September 2008, Dead Space community manager Andrew Green claimed that the title had been completely banned in Germany, Japan, and China. This was a lie. Shortly after the announcement, it was revealed that this was merely a marketing ploy, intended to insinuate that the game was so truly horrifying, that it was simply “too much horror” for the aforementioned countries. This was to be the beginning of a darker legacy for EA Redwood Shores, one of artificially generated hype in the guise of an “attack” on their own product.

Dead Space was a success. With a Metascore of 89/88/86 (360/PS3/PC) and two million copies sold as of August 2010, it has thrived in the difficult gamescape of IPs, where balancing creativity and clever design with profitability can mean the difference between having a job tomorrow or not, especially at the time of the 2008 economic crisis. Like a modern-day David and Goliath story, DS had found itself a fervent following, and its team of hard-working developers must have been truly satisfied at their victory. One could almost hear “The Eye of the Tiger” playing somewhere distant…

This calls for a celebration – or a change in name, at least. The lengthy name of EA Redwood Shores would henceforth don the new mantle of “Visceral Games,” and, with it, a commitment to “action, intensity, [and] excellence.” Furthermore, they did not simply rest on their laurels; Visceral Games would continue to produce games in 2009, namely The Godfather II and Dead Space: Extraction. (Godfather II still managed to ruffle some feathers by its inclusion of brass knuckles sent to several members of the gaming press – an illegal item in some states.) While these games did not amount to the same caliber of success as DS, Visceral was about to unleash the floodgates of unparalleled graphic content and questionable taste with their “loose” adaptation of Dante’s Inferno in early 2010.

And yet, a significant amount of time prior to the launch of Inferno, a strange thing happened: around 20 protesters appeared at the Entertainment Electronic Expo event. Claiming to be from “a church” in Ventura County, these “protestors” decried the game as sacrilegious, even condemning EA as the anti-Christ. Unsurprisingly, many saw through this thinly-veiled hoax, perhaps because the game was still fairly unknown, making the protests more confusing than anything; shortly afterward, Electronic Arts spokeswoman Tammy Schachter confirmed the incident was a hoax. But Dante’s Inferno – and the extensive pre-release viral campaign that was to follow – was only getting warmed up…

Inferno seemed to positively revel in its own self-generated controversy – it was an example of a game determined to push buttons outside of its own context-sensitive environment. Electronic Arts partnered with GameStop for an event held on September 9th, 2009, offering customers who pre-ordered Dante’s Inferno a $6.66 discount. They even sent unsolicited checks to videogame reviewers of $200, with a note describing the nature of “greed”; should they redeem the check, their sin would have “consequences.” The International Nanny Association even attempted to (genuinely) boycott the game, due to the inclusion of an achievement earned for slaying numerous “child-like” demons, an achievement called “Bad Nanny.” Between these stunts, the websites featuring fake games and ads that would result in accusing the participant of various sins, and a quirky Super Bowl commercial featuring Bill Withers’s “Ain’t No Sunshine,” the marketing campaign surrounding Dante’s Inferno was reminiscent of a spoiled child “acting up,” and that old adage that “there’s no such thing as bad publicity” was becoming a new mantra for Visceral.

Inferno would score moderately amongst fans and critics both. Whether the games boundary-ravaging content was a factor to its benefit or detriment is difficult to pinpoint; it certainly faired well enough with regards to sales in its first month, though its legacy is a mixed one. Had Visceral gone too far? Was it trying to be the game whispered amongst parents, as they warned one another of its potential for corrupting their children? Was it coveting that role Grand Theft Auto (still) has in this capacity? It’s all conjecture, sure, but Visceral Games had made a bold decision that seemed to scoff in the face of anti-videogame legislative fear-mongers like Senator Leland Yee… or, regrettably, endow them with additional ammunition.

Shortly after Dante’s Inferno launched, Dead Space 2 was announced. It was heralded as one of the most highly anticipated titles at E3 2010. The technical prowess and design had truly evolved, with stylish zero-g combat, exciting new monsters, and highly polished environments and characters. The IP that had put Visceral Games on every core gamers’ radar was back. Visceral even created a downloadable game to flesh out “The Sprawl,” the location featured in DS2, called Dead Space: Ignition. Dead Space 2 was a game that was well-known to its fans months before launch, and would almost assuredly be a success. But that wasn’t enough.

“Your Mom Hates Dead Space 2.” Just when you thought it was safe to release a game without negative phantom-hype…

Possessed of questionable verisimilitude, “Your Mom Hates Dead Space 2” was a series of web and television advertisements for DS2, portraying a selection of roughly 200 women selected for their “conservative values and lack of familiarity with videogames”. They were exposed to some of the most graphic scenes in the game – without context, presumably – and their reactions were recorded. Expectedly, the “moms” reacted with disgust and shock. But the intention of the campaign – to drum up excitement over a product so horrifying that it must be cool, because mom hates it – backfired. The campaign was decried as sexist, ageist, and simply missing its mark. By suggesting that “moms” hate this game, it implies that the game’s audience must be of an age where mom’s approval matters; as a Mature-rated game (ages 17+), this seems wildly inappropriate, as the only people who should be playing this game should have little concern whether Mom hates the game or not. The portrayal of moms (read: older women) as being ignorant and/or judgmental of the content of the game as a whole based on limited exposure is also confusing. Mary Elizabeth Williams puts it succinctly: “The videogame’s campaign hinges on a unique premise – one that ignores how much the culture of gaming has changed.”

So what legend is it that Visceral Games is attempting to found? Surely their work speaks for itself. Dead Space is one of the premier IPs in the modern gamescape, and even Dante’s Inferno is a startling adventure game that forces its player to experience the horrors of Hell with its uncomfortable subject matter. And yet, their continued attempt to draw attention to their work through bizarre – and somewhat irresponsible – fabricated hype only seems to detract from their impressive catalog of games since they began to twinkle as a bright star in the world of game development with DS. Can Visceral learn to simply accept that their body of work is strong enough to stand on its own, or will they continue to degrade themselves by exploiting the popular animosity held that violent videogames are a “threat to our children”? To do this, they will have to be truly confident and assured in their amazing abilities as developers, and not fall prey to the sin of just being “cocky.”

It’s been one week since Sony officially unveiled the next-generation PlayStation Portable, an announcement marked, on the one hand, by familiarity – given that most of the new handheld’s capabilities had been leaked, in true Sony style, across the past several months – and, on the other, by surprise: the NGP? Why not the PSP2? And with all that high-falutin’ technology, just how much is this thing going to cost, anyway?

Such questions, of course, bring up even more queries, such as whether the first PSP was a success or a failure and just how in the world Sony plans on bringing down the DS platform – if they even consider it a threat. The TPS staff has had a full seven days to debate, prod, and eviscerate one another; this is their messy result.

And be sure to check out our expert panel’s take on the Next Generation Portable here.

Dan Hemsath
Features Freelancer
NGP. (I really hope that name doesn’t stick.)

I mean, whatever happened to creative names like “Saturn” or “Genesis”? Oh, yeah… they went out of the hardware-making business.

But back to the NGP: it’s not what I expected, primarily because it seems less “revolutionary” – when compared with the upcoming Nintendo 3DS, with regards to its “we did it first” touch screen and 3D capabilities. Instead, it seems like a more “advanced” gaming device than anything so far.

I spoke with a PlayStation representative yesterday who gave me the down-low about the NGP, and the first thing that I thought of was that it reminded me of a fusion between a PSP and a SixAxis controller. Apparently, the system will be motion sensitive, using SixAxis technology likely in the same ways the PS3 does. Now, all of those old commercials for videogames where the dudes on the couch are moving around with their controllers (or portables) somehow seem eerily more realistic.

When I asked about what all the “squares” and “triangles” on the back were, my representative told me that it was a “touch panel.” Moving your fingers on it would simulate different effects in games, such as pulling an object, sifting through sand, anything. (Interestingly, the front screen was also described as being a touch screen, as well. Hmm…)

There are several other features the NGP will have, she told me, but by this point, the dual analog and 3D had me dreaming about finally playing the ultimate game of Katamari Damacy, rolling up the world around me, using the touch panel for precision “princeliness.”

I think what will make the NGP stand out is what made the PS3 so sought after (Blu-ray aside): it is the culmination of every desirable feature portable gaming has to offer. Here’s hoping Sony markets this well to Western audiences, so that they understand what it is – and why it’s cool – before scanning price points first, and doing so later.

Kyle Heimbigner
News Editor
The “NGP” thing is just its codename.

Marc N. Kleinhenz
Features Editor
Yeah, but what are the chances that it’ll stick…?

Ryan Green
Reviews/Previews Editor
Well, did Project Natal stick? Project Dolphin?

Scott Rodgers
Sports Editor
Nintendo Revolution?

Nathan Tsui
Staff Writer
Katana?

Marc N. Kleinhenz
Features Editor
Of course the historical videogame landscape is filled with a litany of codenames, but, if memory serves right, this is the first time that Sony has done so. And the question then becomes, of course, why – especially when this is a continuation of a series of systems?

My only answer is a hunch: Sony is taking this thing very seriously, a guess which is only reinforced by the fact that it took its damn time in even announcing the new handheld. I think they’ve thought long and hard about what they want to do, about what they have to do, and about what will put them in the best position to not only try and get a leg up on Nintendo and its DS dynasty, but also on how to best position itself against the mobile phone manufacturers, as well.

And, in all honesty, my suspicion is that Sony is much more concerned about the latter than the former. There’s no conceivable way that a $300-plus ($350 seems like a number that Sony would delude itself into thinking is feasible) system can take on the 3DS, even if that portable is ridiculously (and stupidly) priced itself. The addition of the PlayStation Suite, for my money, drives this particular point home. If Sony can’t beat Nintendo head-on in the specific gaming sector of the much bigger mobile market, then go for the bigger market; there’s more money to (potentially) be made there, anyway.

My initial response to the NGP – and, granted, this is not after much contemplation upon the matter – is that it will fall flat while the PSS will thrive, to one degree or another.

Agree? Disagree?

Scott Rodgers
Sports Editor
You mean like how the Sony Gem never became the Move, right?

Marc N. Kleinhenz
Features Editor
Gem was never publicly announced by Sony, and it was only one of, literally, several codenames throughout its long lifespan (others include, apparently – because these were never publicly released – Sphere and Arc).

Which takes us back ’round to the question: why? Why give this an official codename? Was Sony’s hand forced before it felt ready? And why not, of course, just PSP2?

Sir Gordon Wheelmeier
Gaming Guru
I’m guessing NGP is a codename in as much as it’s the best thing that Sony could come up with at the moment, and they’re going to see how the reaction to the name is. I haven’t seen too many complaints, so maybe it’ll stick. Remember that Xbox was a codename, but it became so synonymous with the project that it stayed. The same could happen here. Or they’ll just call it the PS3 Portable.

Whatever. The bigger topic is that Marc is right – this thing is going to be so prohibitively expensive that it won’t sell. Period. Sony is going to pitch its price against the iPad and iPhone and similar tech, but that won’t fly. The iPad is, for many people, a notebook replacement, so that $500 is actually on the cheap end of what it’s replacing. And almost no one pays full price for an iPhone or Android device – they’re almost all subsidized at $200.

The other problem is that the mobile landscape moves so fast these days that the NGP’s tech will likely be met or, even, perhaps exceeded sometime in the next 18 months by Apple and Android partners. Keeping in mind that the NGP isn’t shipping for, let’s say, nine months, that closes the gap considerably. When the phone in your pocket, that you’ve already paid for, looks as good as a device that runs $300+ and only plays games, then it’s going to seem much less desirable.

Yes, the tech is undeniably awesome. But the price is really scary.

Marc N. Kleinhenz
Features Editor
Is this why, do you think, that Sony simultaneously unveiled the PS Suite – to leverage the gap between it and the rest of the mobile market as a back-door or otherwise back-up plan?

Parjanya Holtz
Senior Editor
The answer is simple: the name “PSP” reminds the general public of the disaster that was the PSP, which is why Sony is trying to shift the focus on the “next generation-ness” of the new device. It’ll be called PSP2 at some point, unless Sony starts thinking that NGP isn’t so bad, after all, but I honestly doubt that. The brand name “PlayStation” needs to be on a Sony Computer Entertainment product for it to be recognized by the most uninformed of consumers.

The other reason may be due to the rumors and leaks that were around for a while before the “NGP” was announced. It’s Sony trying to regain control over what gets out when. Coming up with a codename no one has heard before is quite the smart move in order to capitalize on that urgently needed attention that you get when you surprise people.

Ryan Green
Reviews/Previews Editor
While I agree with your point about “damage control” in regards to calling it the PSP2, I don’t understand why such a notion exists. Given that the PSP wasn’t as successful by any means when compared to the Nintendo DS, it still sold well for Sony and for a launch handheld. On top of that, it had a strong selection of exclusive titles, and much of that exclusivity remains today. I don’t expect to see Disgaea 2 on 3DS anytime soon, especially after how the first one sold (hint: I saw them flooded in bargain bins).

It will most likely be the PSP2, and a later revision will likely be the PSP2 go. Let’s not kid ourselves; this is the PlayStation Portable.

Personally, I won’t buy it until it has a few revisions. That system size is way bigger than my PSP go, and I’m really unsure of how long that battery life is. Like Gordon said, that price point is key. If you remember what Sony actually mentioned so far about the NGP, you’ll notice all of the crazy hardware and some of the franchises that will appear early on. What you didn’t see – which, to me, is even more important than the price – is the battery life. Sony doesn’t get battery life. Nintendo has sacrificed a lot in the name of it, and, to this day, I haven’t needed to charge my Game Boy Advance SP more than 10 times. In the mobile market, three hours of usage is downright pathetic. While the only time I needed more than that with a portable is during a cross-country flight, it needs to be better.

It feels like Sony is going to tech-bomb this platform in the hopes that it will still be valid in a few years, so the investment to the consumers won’t be that difficult to handle. But a unit that bulky, however expensive, and lacking in battery life isn’t going to cut it.

So, in part, that is where the Suite program comes into play. Sony acknowledges the growing mobile gaming market, one that was given new life, in no small part, because of Apple. Having developers jump on board with this new platform and revenue stream will help ensure a longer life for Sony devices and a newfound appreciation for their products. At the same time, it is a necessary means of dealing with those pirates (sorry, homebrewers) who think it is their inalienable right to hack the hardware they are basically licensing from Sony so they can license media to play on it. Now, if you want to develop for portable Sony devices, you have a new means of doing so, in a legally acceptable way.

Ultimately, this is all moot. We are getting more trophies, so everyone should pre-order ASAP! Let’s go, Paji!

Kyle Heimbigner
News Editor
The PSP wasn’t a disaster – it sold over 50 million units worldwide. That’s pretty successful.

Aram Lecis
Managing Editor
Kyle said what I wanted to say – I think it is perceived as a disaster. And as far as software sales go, it is a disaster, since piracy is so rampant. But hardware sales-wise, it was pretty damn successful, for sure.

Perception is important, though, one has to admit.

Sir Gordon Wheelmeier
Gaming Guru
Hardware sales aside, if the games didn’t sell (and they didn’t), then third-party publishers will be less likely to back the NGP with quality titles, and that’s a huge problem.

Remember that this thing will not be cheap to develop for. Outside of ports, it’s going to take a lot of manpower (read: cash loots) in order to develop quality titles for it. If publishers aren’t committed, those games aren’t going to come.

Ryan Green
Reviews/Previews Editor
Gordon is right. My joint venture with Sam, Greeshop Entertainment and Cleaning Service, dropped $20,000.00 to develop for the Mini Status, and we took several cycles to recoup that cost. And we didn’t factor in piracy at all, as it doesn’t exist in Game Dev Story.

It truly is the perfect gaming world. Too perfect.

I don’t think that piracy can be the primary source of blame here. Homebrew and old Nintendo ROMs ruled the roost. Piracy hurt, but, in the end, I put my money on people playing their favorite childhood games portably.

Again, this is where I think the Suite comes into play, as well as the 3G and trophy support. All of these are more diversions for people to not hack it and abuse the system. Give people more reasons to not hack your system, and the amount of piracy should drop. At least, that is what Sony is hoping for.

Aram Lecis
Managing Editor
Oh, I agree one hundred percent, Sir Gordon. But if the boys at Sony are telling the truth that it is a “one week” process to port a PS3 game to the NGP, that could be a huge boost. Or it could make gamers just go “meh.” But I think if Uncharted 3, Twisted Metal, and other AAA titles were released day-and-date on NGP and PS3, not to mention if they port past hits like LBP2, then people will have to take notice.

However, if the damn thing costs as much as my 3DO did on launch, then the whole system is DOA.

Marc N. Kleinhenz
Features Editor
For me, the most telling question is: has Sony learned from its past mistakes? Which leads to a bigger, much more systemic inquiry: can Sony learn from its missteps?

The PSP and PS3 both were literally crippled because of an unrestrained ego that said, “We can release whatever we want whenever we want at whatever cost we want, because we’re Sony – people will gladly pay for it and instantly beg for more.” And, obviously, this just wasn’t the case; finances (and software lineups, something which neither system had until well into their respective lifespans) trump brand loyalty, it turns out. That we went into the Great Recession almost immediately after the PS3’s release was just icing on a very bitter cake.

The simple truth is that we simply don’t know how Sony will respond to failure or other assorted forms of rejection, because the company didn’t start making mistakes of the egotistical kind until the PS2 days; almost literally every single thing the company did with the PSX was spot-on perfect in a way that was humbling to have witnessed and is depressing in its aftermath. Call it the Golden Age of Sony. What the latter half of the PS3’s lifecycle and the launch of the NGP will be called is very much up in the air. To whit:

If the answer to both questions is a resounding yes, then the NGP has, I think, a very good chance of not only imitating the PSP’s isolated, comparative success, but also expanding and expounding upon it, probably to a great degree. (There’s still no way in hell that it’ll best the 3DS, however, no matter what Sony throws at it.) But if the answer is no… then it’s going to be very, very interesting to see what form the PS4 will take next year.

Aram Lecis
Managing Editor
I was going to reply, but then when you said “to whit” instead of “to wit,” the whole thing lost all credence to me.

Sam Bishop
Editor-in-chief
Wait, what, Marc? Can they learn from their past mistakes? Uh, of course – what do you think the majority of this generation has been for Sony? It’s been a constant listening-and-response act from the company, adding nearly every single asked-for feature on the system save for cross-game voice chat and .mkv support.

It’s good to be critical where warranted, but the PSP launched at the exact same price as the 3DS did. Every Sony system, even ones from that Golden Age, takes about two years to really build up a head of steam on the software side, and I’ve little doubt it’ll be different for the PSP2.

If we’re going to sit here and reflect on the success (or supposed lack thereof) of the original PSP, we must take into account the situation on a global scale. Right now, in Japan, over five years after launch, the most successful game release so far this year was a PSP game that sold over three million copies when it hit, and has now sold over four million. There are hardware shortages of the PSP in Japan right now.
The situation might be bleak here for the system, but over there, it’s literally the best-selling hardware week after week – better than the Wii (which, incidentally, is also being outsold by the PS3), and better than even the DS. The PSP is not a failure; it was just never a good fit for Western audiences.

Here’s the thing, though: the PSP2 will be, and it’s because of just one little difference – the second analog stick. Mark my words, the PSP2/NGP/whatever-you-want-to-call-it will be a success – one that even the naysayers can’t try to paint as anything else.

Marc N. Kleinhenz
Features Editor
This is just for Aram.

=)

Aram Lecis
Managing Editor
I thought for sure that link was going to tell me that I was the one who had it wrong, and I was scared to click on it… thank God I didn’t have to deal with that sort of thing – it shatters my giant ego!

The Xbox 360, it goes without saying, is my default system of choice in the current generation. It was the first 256-bit console to launch, it offers superlative online services, and, for at least the first few years of its release, it offered better versions of multi-platform releases (particularly in regards to anything from Electronic Arts, which mainly amounted to The Orange Box in my non-sports gaming collection) – all reasons which made the decision an obvious one, a literal no-brainer.

Which is not to say, of course, that I have ignored the PS3’s software – Uncharted is easily one of the best games to arrive this generation, as are the ingenious LittleBigPlanet and the masterpiece Heavy Rain – or ever failed to rave about the big black box’s absolutely stellar downloadable library, which includes the likes of Echochrome, Pain, and Everyday Shooter (if Halo Wars is the game that I literally have not been able to put down this generation, then ES would easily be my wife’s. We have an affliction, I know). I have always, since my youngest days as a gamer, deliberately collected every (major) console to have access to its roster of exclusives, even going so far as to beg, plead, and torture my parents to purchase the Sega CD for the (now-dubious) likes of Sewer Shark and Night Trap; it’s strictly in the confines of multi-system titles that I’ve favored, usually irrevocably so, one of my babies over the other(s), not unlike Jehovah with Cain and Able.

But something strange has been happening over the past year-and-a-half or so, starting slowly at first but now quickening at an almost exponential rate: I am buying the PS3 version of games, when and where applicable, over the 360. For Batman: Arkham Asylum (August 2009), it was the exclusive downloadable content; for Assassin’s Creed II (November ‘09) and Brotherhood (November ‘10), it was the ability to connect to the PSP game and previous console entry, respectively; for Dead Space 2 (January ‘11), it was the inclusion of a better-looking and -playing version of Extraction (September ‘09), a game I already own on the Wii; and for the upcoming Portal 2 (April ’11), it’s unquestionably the Steam support, something that Microsoft could never allow with its current configuration of Xbox Live. At this rate, I have little doubt that at this year’s E3 presser, Sony will provide me with another two or three games I’ll have to scratch off of the Xbox list and hastily scribble in under the PlayStation column.

Despite my parents having always told me, at every available opportunity, that I was a special boy growing up (the last time, in fact, was just last week), I have to imagine that there are scores of gamers out there that are just like me, that, though it would be near-impossible to make them flip their default settings, they can certainly be motivated to deviate from it, and deviate from it quite often. Though it’s still unlikely that the PS3 will be able to out-sell the 360’s install base by generation’s end next year, there is certainly the very real possibility that Sony will be able to steadily and diligently chip away at Microsoft’s lead, eroding its foundation and doing much to level the playing field at the start of the 512-bit cycle of consoles. Then again, maybe not – I am that sick gamer, after all, who just has to buy the collector’s edition of a title whenever it’s available, whether it may contain a statuette of in-game characters or a deluxe art book or just some fancy packaging. (I’m doubly afflicted, I know.)

There’s also the small problem of MS seeing both revenue and gamer chic slipping through their fingers, one digital drop at a time. Announcing that all Call of Duty DLC would be timed-exclusive to the 360 was a significant step in the right direction – of getting the exclusives pendulum that Sony openly mocked at the beginning of this generation and now has fully embraced to swing back in its direction. Although Sony will shortly have the entirely new venue of NGP-PS3/PS4 connectivity available to it, building upon Ubisoft’s AC example (and, of course, Nintendo’s – with the Game Boy and numerous home consoles – before that), it should be battening down the hatches in anticipation of Microsoft’s inevitable counterstrike.

Although this current generation may be (finally) starting to cool down, the larger battle is just warming up.

Yes, contrary to popular belief, the TotalPlayStation staff does own systems other than the PS2, PS3, and PSP (well, in the interests of full disclosure, Marc doesn’t have a PlayStation Portable, but he thinks that’s an eminently understandable decision) – and, what’s more, they actively play and even enjoy quite a few games on them, as well (except for Ryan, that is; he suffers from quite a bad bout of acute Fanboyitis. Yes, our prayers are also with him).

Sharp-eyed readers will notice some fancy new titles for some of us editors. No, they’re not typos; this is all part of refining our editorial structure, which is part of refining TPS, which is part of – ultimately – the grand site redesign that has been in the works for the past several months.

Consider it a little sampling of 2011 while we digest the best of 2010…

Shaun Mason
TPS Mascot
Now that we’re at the end of January, it’s definitely time to take a look back at 2010 and see which games held our attention, kept us up late at night, and constantly amazed us with their awesomeness. However, instead of the traditional formula, let’s not focus on the sweetness of the PlayStation from last year (blasphemy, you say?!). Instead, what non-PlayStation games were at the top of your list? Was Epic Mickey full of awesomesauce? Did Fable III romance and entertain you? Did you max out your vocabulary with Super Scribblenauts?

I’ll kick it off with a game that was so excellent, that PS users will be able to experience it in the first weeks of 2011. Mass Effect 2 was a great game, which took much of the original and improved on many of the gameplay mechanics and storyline to create an engaging adventure in the cold recesses of space. Thankfully, the horrible driving on planets was jettisoned in favor of planet scanning (which again is a questionable feature, but more controllable). But the commander and his ragtag group of soldiers, scientists, and misfits still manage to get the job done in the end, and the option to have many decisions that were made from the first game impact the sequel was fantastic. I’m looking forward to taking on the third chapter this holiday season eagerly.

So, how about it – what games fired you up from last year?

Marc N. Kleinhenz
Features Editor
Let’s get the elephant in the room out of the way first, shall we? I really enjoyed Halo: Reach (as did Dave Clayman, whom I interviewed on the subject), even though I felt some of its narrative components were a bit on the flaccid end of the spectrum.

On the flip side, I thought Alan Wake was a blast in terms of story but predictable in the gameplay department.

Super Meat Boy and Limbo were terrific in fundamentally different ways, GoldenEye – or what little I played of it – was all right, and Kirby’s Epic Yarn was like my first girlfriend: cute and fun but shallow.

Oh – and I can’t seem to put Halo: Wars down no matter what I do…

Aram Lecis
Managing Editor
There was a pair of games on the Xbox 360 that resonated with me this year. Both Deadly Premonition and, as Marc already mentioned, Alan Wake paid homage to one of my favorite television programs of all time, Twin Peaks (especially DP). Both games contained myriad gameplay “quirks,” for lack of a more graceful word (especially DP), but also deep, rich, and – yes – quirky stories (especially DP, naturally). I loved the atmosphere and emotion in the two towns that are central to each game, and if it wasn’t for this pair of offbeat adventures (and Limbo, of course), I might not have turned my Xbox on this year. I know Deadly Premonition had its share of detractors out there, but I can overlook the tepid-at-best combat system for Swery’s smart, witty, and borderline-actionable David Lynch tribute.

Andy Curtiss
Staff Writer
I have to say that my loyalty to PlayStation is pretty solid – so much so, that I don’t always get a chance to play other games for other systems. The consequences of this are that I don’t often “discover” games for other systems until they’ve already been out for a disturbing period of time. That being said, and I know Aram already mentioned it, but Limbo really got my attention. The atmosphere in that game was amazing, which is funny to say because of its understated graphics and simplicity. But despite being black-and-white and 2D, Limbo managed to create enough atmosphere that, at certain points, you really didn’t want to move forward anymore – there was a genuine pang of fear there.

On a more whimsical note, I personally discovered Pokemon at the beginning of last year. Yes… I already hear most of you groaning. But it’s addictive. And that’s, perhaps, the most fascinating part. Think about it: the premise behind the game is flimsy at best, but you can’t help yourself from wanting to catch, train, and breed these cute little monsters. And with the new Pokemon game on its way out (both the Black and White versions), I can’t help but be excited despite my fanboy-esque devotion to PlayStation.

Ryan Green
Reviews/Previews Editor
The only non-Sony game I even got this year that was any good was Halo: Reach. It probably stands out so much because it is the only good Halo game that came out since the original. A Halo game with an (overall) good story? Containing (something close to) character development? Show Spartans as vulnerable people and not super apes? The game runs well and is the best game Bungie has ever released. It is a shame it is wasted on the Xbox community.

But, really, what else came out that was good? Everything else mentioned so far didn’t do it for me, especially Limbo (not to call you out, Andy; I mean to call you out, Marc). Of all of the non-Sony-exclusives, the really good ones were third-party titles, so I can’t really count them. That and I didn’t play too many games on the other platforms.

I guess if I had to pick it, it would be StarCraft II. It turns out I really don’t like StarCraft games anymore, but it was all right. It took too long to get into the story, and the multiplayer is at a level where you have to care to enjoy it (so that is out). Did the iPhone version of CivRev come out in 2010? That game rules all y’all fools.

Sir Gordon Wheelmeier
Gaming Guru
I think that what we’re seeing this year is a bunch of great stuff that didn’t release in 2010 because MS and Sony were so involved in getting the Move and Kinect to market. If that’s true – that is, great non-motion-centric games were scheduled for 2011 early on from a marketing standpoint to leave room for the motion titles, thereby giving them extra development time – then we’d actually owe a bit of 2011‘s awesomeness to last year’s (boring) motion control battles.

Or it could simply be because Sony tends to give its development houses the time they need to make great games rather than rush them to market, and they just all happened to be ready this year.

I’m actually inclined to believe it’s a little bit of both columns…

Dan Hemsath
Features Freelancer
I could go on about the awesome multi-console releases I enjoyed (*cough, cough* Red Dead Redemption, Assassin’s Creed: Brotherhood, Castlevania: Lords of Shadow *cough, cough*), but in the spirit of non-PS fare, here goes.

Top of my list: Mass Effect 2. This game has the best narrative structure I’ve played in any videogame I can recall (though I look back fondly on MGS3’s). Aside from the game’s many amazing features (near-perfect fusion of quality gameplay/graphics, interactive character development/customization, and rich and multi-faceted story), it is constructed in highly-manageable mission chunks with consistent rising action-climax-descending action – a formula often used for character missions, I noticed – making each sit-down with the game memorable, fun, and exciting. Scanning planets got old, to be fair, but hearing Mordin sing Gilbert and Sullivan ranks among my “best moments of 2010″ – worth the price of admission.

Alan Wake surprised me; it somehow managed to captivate my attention above that of Red Dead Redemption at launch, primarily because of its success at embracing its subject matter in an earnest, multimedia-oriented fashion, which – for lack of a better reference – reminded me of Enter the Matrix. I remember watching the “Bright Falls” viral videos – painfully released only one at a time – hoping, like Twin Peaks, to gain some insight into the mystery of Alan Wake, even before the game came out. And the collector’s edition; frankly, if you didn’t get this, you missed out, for no better reason than the amazing Alan Wake Files work of fiction-within-fiction. This rare work of love is a hardcover book (roughly 144 pages) written in the voice of a fictional author, documenting the last known whereabouts of the titular character, one of his pursuers, and the mystery behind the town of Bright Falls itself. All of these elements merge into one overarching saga that expands beyond the sum of its parts, and – like every great mystery – leaves you desperate for answers you’ll never get.

I would certainly acknowledge Limbo and Super Meat Boy as achievements (no pun intended) for the well-structured gaming service that Xbox Live Arcade is. The games ooze nostalgia but wear it with pride. Limbo brought back to mind that silent protagonists – I think of Gordon Freeman here – can be effective at allowing the player to project his/her emotions into the scene, rather than being JRPG-born, ellipsis-churning mannequins; for a game primarily concerned with creeping you out, it is eerily effective in this capacity. And Super Meat Boy has become my addiction these cold winter nights, its manic levels haunting me, evoking a mantra of “I know I can beat this level!” as it hones my reflexes bit by barely noticeable bit.

Lastly, I would be remiss to neglect a sweet little B-lister that captivated my heart with its unabashedly Japanese sensibilities: Deathsmiles. Aksys games – whom I would consider the second coming of Working Designs, for their love of sweet “omake” – even released the game with its fantastic soundtrack and a (now-defunct) Xbox 360 faceplate, featuring the darling gothic lolis. But even with all the sweet swag packed in, the game is an excellent and challenging shmup, reminiscent of those quarter-gobbling arcade games that made pizza places have to stock up on extra change back in the ‘90s. It’s cute, packed with great music and level design, and just good-natured fun.

Kyle Heimbigner
News Editor
The first big game of 2010 for me was Mass Effect 2. It was a big improvement in every way over the first game, and I am really looking forward to Mass Effect 3. All of the DLC that BioWare created for it was also amazing and added a lot of extra hours to an already long and rich game. I liked the way the character interaction worked, and the more streamlined RPG and combat systems were very well-done; it felt like an improvement over the original while not dumbing it down, which is what a lot of sequels end up doing.

Red Dead Redemption was the second big game of the year for me. The huge, wide-open game world was beautiful – easily one of the best-looking console games to date. And although I had a lot of complaints about the reliability of the multiplayer component, the single player was top notch; it had a very long storyline that covered most of the game world and offered plenty to do in-between, as well. It didn’t at all feel like Grand Theft Auto in the Wild West, which I really appreciated.

StarCraft II was the biggest out of everything this year. This game is absolutely perfect, and Blizzard again proves that they are grandmasters at their craft: stunning graphics, amazing single-player campaign, and multiplayer that doesn’t get any more perfect. It’s a very well-balanced and competitive game. I almost enjoy watching StarCraft II more then I enjoy playing it; the tournaments that take place worldwide are something else to watch. The professionals that have made a living out of playing StarCraft have proven that this is the best real-time strategy game, and nothing else can even come close to matching its complexity and depth.

If I can be different for a minute, I would also like to talk about a game that caused a lot of disappointment, too. I had been waiting over four years for Final Fantasy XIII, and while I put over 90 hours into the game, I still left it feeling very unsatisfied. The incoherent storyline; awful dialogue; simplified, dumbed-down combat system; lackluster upgrade system; pointless grinding; and a terrible balance left this game feeling like it was an experiment gone horribly wrong. It was also the start of a bigger problem, what I feel is the downfall of Square Enix in terms of quality control. They used to release some fantastic games, but, in the last two years or so, they have just continually dropped the ball. FFXIII really failed to please a lot of fans – and let’s not even get into Final Fantasy XIV.

Shaun Mason
TPS Mascot
There were two games that have already been mentioned that also stood out to me – while StarCraft II seemed to take forever to come out, I found it to be worth the wait. Like Kyle, I liked the single-player story a lot, and, like Ryan, I found the multiplayer to be where the majority of my time was spent once the single-player experience was long gone. I also found Super Meat Boy to be lots of fun in a fast-twitch, perfect-timing sort of way.

But that kind of highlights much of my focus this past year – I dove back into PC gaming wholeheartedly. It wasn’t hard to see why, given this past year, either, but I’ll mention a few fun highlights: the release of a new Sid Meier’s Civilization game is practically a holiday for my wife and me, and Civ V was no exception. I probably played it for two weeks straight, creating every strategy that I could imagine to dominate the world.

As much as I kept telling myself that I wouldn’t do it, I also found myself diving into Puzzle Quest 2 once again and getting stuck in the Bejeweled-style gameplay. Then again, I could say the same thing when Bejeweled 3 came out – yeah, yeah, I know, they’ve got casual gameplay that isn’t necessarily as involved as a shooter or strategy game, but considering that one of the RTS games that I had been waiting for was a huge disappointment (C&C4 and EA, I’m talking to you – that was a horrible ending to a great franchise), I’d rather spend the time with a casual game than get let down again.