A number of independant developers who've found success on the iPhone App Store have commented that they don't think the PSPgo will be able to compete with Apple and that Sony isn't going to be able to get enough indie developers on the platform.
Sony the new PSPgo App Store a little while back, revealing that some popular iPhone developers like Subatomic Studios (Fieldrunners) were on board with the project and that the cost of development kits had been cut by a whopping 80 percent in an attempt to entice smaller developers.
According to Firemint (Flight Control and Real Racing) CEO Robert Murray that may not be enough - the PSP development kit still costs $1,500 USD even with the reduction. Apple meanwhile only levy a one-time $99 USD publishing fee, which Murray reckons will make the iPhone a more attractive platform to small studios.
"You can build iPhone apps just as long as you have a Mac for no additional cost. You don't even need an iPhone or iPod to start out - I think this has given a lot of individuals absolutely no barrier of entry to development," agreed developers from Johnny Two Shoes (The Heist) in an interview with GI.biz.
"The cost is also a factor for development time, you don't need months or years to build great iPhone applications," he added.
The worries were echoed by Normalware's (BeBot) Russell Black, who said he wasn't sure that the PSPgo was going to take off as well as Sony expected and that, since the platform has zero owners at the moment, he'd be reluctant to take the plunge until the platform had grown.
"If Sony's App Store also let you sell games to people with a regular, existing PSP model, that would be a much more attractive prospect," he said.
"There are nearly 50 million of those out there already. Even if you only sold to a fraction of one percent of those people, it's a significant number of sales. And even if the PSPgo sells great from day one, it's going to take a long time before it starts getting anywhere near those numbers."
What do you think of the PSPgo? Let us know your thoughts in the forums.
Sony the new PSPgo App Store a little while back, revealing that some popular iPhone developers like Subatomic Studios (Fieldrunners) were on board with the project and that the cost of development kits had been cut by a whopping 80 percent in an attempt to entice smaller developers.
According to Firemint (Flight Control and Real Racing) CEO Robert Murray that may not be enough - the PSP development kit still costs $1,500 USD even with the reduction. Apple meanwhile only levy a one-time $99 USD publishing fee, which Murray reckons will make the iPhone a more attractive platform to small studios.
"You can build iPhone apps just as long as you have a Mac for no additional cost. You don't even need an iPhone or iPod to start out - I think this has given a lot of individuals absolutely no barrier of entry to development," agreed developers from Johnny Two Shoes (The Heist) in an interview with GI.biz.
"The cost is also a factor for development time, you don't need months or years to build great iPhone applications," he added.
The worries were echoed by Normalware's (BeBot) Russell Black, who said he wasn't sure that the PSPgo was going to take off as well as Sony expected and that, since the platform has zero owners at the moment, he'd be reluctant to take the plunge until the platform had grown.
"If Sony's App Store also let you sell games to people with a regular, existing PSP model, that would be a much more attractive prospect," he said.
"There are nearly 50 million of those out there already. Even if you only sold to a fraction of one percent of those people, it's a significant number of sales. And even if the PSPgo sells great from day one, it's going to take a long time before it starts getting anywhere near those numbers."
What do you think of the PSPgo? Let us know your thoughts in the forums.
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