I am thinking about getting a handheld upgrade and was wondering which one would be the better investment. However, I don't like the PSP's over-priced minidisc format and I haven't seen anything that jumps out on me on the DS. So help me out and convince me I should get one or the other.

The DS is an excellent system. You can buy it and 2-3 games for the price of just the PSP. The dual screen works really well. It's great during a game to be going through a level and be able to look down at a map.

 

What kind of games are you into. There are some very solid games on DS with the Kirby game, Advance Wars DS and Mario DS. Mario DS at first seems like a rehash but they've added so much to the game it's worth replaying.

So, does no one here have these portables or do you just not give a fuck about my topic ?

Right now, I think a lot of us aren't really in the market for a handheld system because we're too busy putting our cash to somewhere else. Also, it doesn't help that I don't think anybody has both of them - I know teke has a PSP and Danny has a DS, but that's about it.

 

Personally, I'd lean a little bit towards the DS, just because of the huge price difference. The game libraries are very comparable (you take your Advance Wars and Mario 64, I'll take my Twisted Metal, Hot Shots Golf, and Metal Gear Acid), but the PSP price tag is just a little overwhelming.

I went with PSP. I've had one since the Japanese release, and it's great. Not only is there cool software (Lumines, WipeOut, Burnout, GTA...), but the memory stick functionality adds tons to it. I've spent most of my time with it watching MMA on there. And that's the advantage for me - its functionality. Plus you can emulate on it, so that expands its library thousandfold.

 

I'm amused that there is no 'they both rule' option. Quite pessimistic, no?

Depends what you want to do with it.

 

 

A DS will play Gameboy, Gameboy Color, Gameboy Advance, AND Gameboy DS games.

 

Of those, though, the only three DS games I own are Advance Wars Dual Strike (Da fuckin' BOMB!), Space Invaders Revolution (sucker for classic arcade gaming), and some puzzle game I got for $10 from Kay Bee (Polarium).

 

 

I'm going to have to wait on that last one until I can find a goddamn stylus for my DS, as I lost the one that had been hooked to my machine.

 

 

 

As for PSP, the lineup of PSP games themselves is a bit underwhelming. I've got 6 of them and, frankly, only two have gotten a lot of playtime.

 

Lumines (puzzle game) and Metal Gear Acid (Metal Gear as a Collectable Card Game (CCG)) were GREAT and I spent a lot of time playing them.

 

Archer MacLean's Mercury (puzzle game), Twisted Metal: Head On (driving shooter), and Namco Museum Battle Collection (classic arcade games) didn't hold my attention as long.

 

I also have Spiderman 2 but, like Polarium, I just picked it up from Kay-Bee for $10 and haven't had a chance to play it yet.

 

 

 

The real plus on the PSP, *IF you have the right firmware version*, is that you can put software on your Memory Stick Duo and play it.

 

Specifically, I have an 8-bit Nintendo emulator, a Gameboy emulator, a Sega Genesis emulator, and an adventure game emulator (SCUMM: Script Creation Utility for Maniac Mansion) on there.

 

 

That's been the bigger selling point for me because I've been playing emulated NES games like Dragon Warrior 4 and Mike Tyson's Punch-Out on there, which I haven't been able to do on my NES for a long time due to space constraints, and haven't been able to do *well* on my PC due to controller issues.

 

 

You can also download comic books and videos to the memory stick, as one site has issues of the Sin City comic book available that have been converted to a PSP-compatible graphics format.

 

 

 

 

The only problem is that only early firmware versions of PSPs (basically ones from the US launch date and a few months after) have the ability to do this.

 

Any new PSP you buy now either won't have this or will have a limited selection of software.

Is there a site out there that keeps a repository of downloads for the different versions of PSP firmware, or is there only one place (through Sony, presumably) where you can download the firmware updates?

 

Game-wise, the race seems to be getting a little bit hotter. The DS has cranked out Nintendogs, Castlevania: Dawn of Sorrow, and Trauma Center: Under the Knife in recent months, but the PSP has countered with GTA: Liberty City Stories and SSX On Tour.

I voted "they both suck." I've never seen the appeal in portables. When I play games, I usually have friends over to do so. Otherwise, it's not really a lot of fun.

Is there a site out there that keeps a repository of downloads for the different versions of PSP firmware, or is there only one place (through Sony, presumably) where you can download the firmware updates?

I don't think the firmware downloads are especially 'official', so I doubt Sony will be offering them. PSP Updates was a good site the last time I checked, but seems to be under new management.