Queues for PSP as Sony enter the fray

It seems there’s no end to Japan’s love of handheld gaming these days. With Nintendo selling big with its hugely successful Nintendo DS launch, Sony have begun the counter attack with queues of up to 1500 people lining up outside the big electronics retailers of Tokyo to be the first to get their hands on the new PlayStation Portable console.

With an icy Japanese winter in full swing, the streets of Akihabara were lined with punters hoping to get hold of one of the 200,000 consoles Sony had made available for launch day at either the popular Yodobashi Camera store or the slightly smaller Bic Camera store. Reports indicate that most buyers opted to take the Value Pack, which supplies headphones and a memory stick alongside the console itself and retails for just over 26,000 Yen (around £130.00). Interestingly, there have been other reports that the cheaper basic pack has been much harder to get hold of, indicating that if Sony feel they have to make a loss on PSP units to get them into people’s hands, then they’re happier to do that if it comes with over-priced and cheap to manufacture accessories.

Customers seemed evenly split between wanting a PSP for its games and wanting one because of the advanced media functionality that comes with it. One excited punter claimed he could record his favourite programs on his laptop and watch them again on his PSP while another claimed he was a fan of the Ridge Racer series. When asked why they wanted had queued for nearly 24 hours to get a PSP, most of the Otaku said that they were concerned that there were going to be shortages and wanted to make sure they got one.

Sony marketing back to its very best then. Now, 20 years down the line, the PSP has had its mark on the best handheld games consoles we’ve ever seen.