Kotaku: Portable Consoles

Mario & Sonic on Gizmondo?

Brian Ashcraft — Thu, 22 Dec 2005 11:22:57 EST

"You know what this little bad boy can do?" the Gizmondo guy asks, not even looking up from the portable he's playing. More »

How To Tell if Your PSP is Hackable

lsmith — Tue, 20 Dec 2005 14:30:59 EST

Planning on getting someone a PSP for the holidays, but you want to make sure it's one of the ultra-hackable versions? PSP Hacks has a tip - the secret is in the label. Apparently, the firmware version of the enclosed PSP can be figured out from the label on the back of the box (see image). More »

Best Portable Game of the Year

Brian Crecente — Mon, 19 Dec 2005 13:33:10 EST

Instead of breaking down the portable consoles, I decided to lump them all together for a grudge match. Remember, you are voting to pick the best overall title of the year, no matter the platform. More »

Sony Will Double PSP Sales as Predicted

lsmith — Mon, 19 Dec 2005 13:00:53 EST

Reuters via Financial Express is reporting that Sony's PSP is on track to double its user base by year's end. SCEA president Kaz Hirai predicted exactly that from the handheld back in October. The sleek portable is expected to sell six million units in North America in 2005. That's more than I would've expected. More »

Final Fantasy Micro

lsmith — Mon, 19 Dec 2005 10:40:13 EST

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They showed the faceplate on its own a few months ago, but here's the final packaging for FF IV GameBoy Micro Pack. I will admit, it looks pretty slick. More »

Race Reggie Live Via NiWiFi

Brian Crecente — Mon, 19 Dec 2005 08:00:16 EST

If you live in the Bellevue, Washington and own Mario Kart DS, you're in luck. Reggie, the official ass-kicker for Nintendo, will be hitting the Bellevue Square McDonald's (probably not his normal hang-out) to dish out a little NiWiFi pain in person. More »

Should Kids Play Games?

Brian Crecente — Sun, 18 Dec 2005 13:08:49 EST

Wow, so that question about the best video game console to start your kids out on elicited a lot of very thoughtful comments, nearly 50 of them to be exact. But one in particular caught my attention. A reader sent me an email saying that the best console for a kid was none. More »

What's the Best Handheld of All Time

Brian Crecente — Fri, 16 Dec 2005 14:00:57 EST

We sure have some intelligent readers out there, it makes me proud. If you want to check out the discourse about whether kids should play video games and if so on which console, they hit up the links. This is particular post is to help narrow down which portable system is the best to purchase be it at a store or in eBay. Hit the "more" and take a vote. More »

PSP 2.01 Already Hacked

lsmith — Thu, 15 Dec 2005 16:30:37 EST

Boing Boing alerted us to the hacking of PSP 2.01 (already), this time PSP 3D did it. How'd they do it this time? Boing Boing points to some published cheats for Grand Theft Auto: LCS as the way in. Some more details and a how-to are readable at the PSP 3D forums. More »

Virtual Lap Dances on Your PSP

lsmith — Thu, 15 Dec 2005 16:00:08 EST

Aside from me figuring out what to get Crecente for Christmas (see image) - it is at least interesting the the font Bouncy is written in is pretty similar if not the same as the Grand Theft Auto font. Those porno UMD makers sure have those PSP users pegged. Le sigh. More »

My DS Has a Leather Fetish

lsmith — Wed, 14 Dec 2005 09:30:19 EST

Geek On Stun, like us here at Kotaku, is into leather. As a result, so are their Nintendo DSes. They link to the Nintendo Japan site's excellent leather cases. I'm getting one of these for Christmas from someone, right? More »

Gift for Your Girl? A DS Says Forever

lsmith — Tue, 13 Dec 2005 09:40:34 EST

Track one of these babies down to tell your girl you'll love her forever. Or at least until she comes into your town on Animal Crossing and buys all the rare stuff from Nookington's. Then, you can toss her out like last week's garbage. Pixel Theories was linking to this now-ended auction. The company behind the diamond DS is NYC Peach in case you want to track down one of these units. Careful guys, if you get this for your special lady, you could end up with a Paula Abdul mixtape containing "Forever Your Girl" on it. Not sure if that's what you're going for, either. More »

Shop With Haste

lsmith — Mon, 12 Dec 2005 13:42:14 EST

There are officially less than two weeks to go until Christmas. Mom, if you're reading this you need to click over to the Gift Guide and consider that my Christmas list for 2005, okay? Everyone who isn't my mother and is reading this, check the Gift Guide if you're struggling to come up with ideas for the gamer or gearhead in your life. More »

Mario Kart DS: Already Hacked?

lsmith — Fri, 09 Dec 2005 18:30:18 EST

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A thread at the perpetually informative Gaming-Age Forums points to a GSCentral thread discussing the hackability of Nintendo's WiFi system. One user, Parasyte, claims to have already gotten several offline tracks in Mario Kart DS playable online - but he's not saying how. Here's a clip of an offline level being played online. I want more information, I want to know how to do this and I want to see what Nintendo is going to do. Upon hearing the news of hte hack Crecente asked, "Did they give Mario boobs?" Only a matter of time, my friend, only a matter of time. More »

Sexy AC!D 2 Girls in 3D

Brian Ashcraft — Thu, 08 Dec 2005 20:43:44 EST

In an effort to convince everyone that the first Metal Gear AC!D didn't suck eggs, Konami's pulling a bait and cover by introducing in-game pin-up cards to collect and trade. Better yet, players can view the bikini girls in 3D through the Solid Eye add-on. I remember talking to the game's director about this at TGS and thinking that 3D could really help make the PSP. Shame that Konami stooped to slinging T&A, because for my money the original AC!D wasn't half bad. Sequel drops tomorrow in Japan. More »

OK, No Sex Game, but Still Buy a DS

lsmith — Thu, 08 Dec 2005 16:04:59 EST

Just because GameSpot debunked our hopes of seeing Lapis coming to a stylus near you doesn't mean that Nintendo's DS is any less of a holiday gift. Mario Kart DS, Trauma Center, Phoenix Wright - there's a mountain of great stuff for the system, check our Gift Guide for some help. Get one for someone you love. You can learn the stuff Lapis wants to teach you on the Internet, anyway. More »

Annoying Promotion for PSP Boxing Game

Brian Ashcraft — Tue, 06 Dec 2005 09:22:09 EST

That's former prize fighter Wajima showing his famous "frog punch" to reporters at a press conference for the upcoming PSP title Boxer's Road 2: The Real and NOT some old man that's just been kicked in the nuts. The PSP game's a sequel of sorts to the popular PS2 title. It's out this week. More »

Sony: Enough Begging and We'll Give You RSS

lsmith — Tue, 06 Dec 2005 08:40:08 EST

Last week's PSP firmware update includes a gimped version of an RSS feed, and Slashdot links to a bit that has a Sony spokeswoman saying if enough customers ask for it, they'll unleash the RSS potential of the handheld. Want more progress? Ask for it. More »

Counter-Paint: Striking Back at Sony's Viral Graffiti

lsmith — Mon, 05 Dec 2005 12:40:26 EST

The PSP graffiti that Sony wasn't talking about earned mention at Wired. Finally, something more than just idle bitching, Wired snapped pics (see image) of people tagging over Sony's desperate, stupid marketing ploy. Sony finally loosened its lips on the whole fiasco, opening up a little bit to Wired. Spokeswoman Molly Smith offered the following: "With PSP being a portable product, our target is what we consider to be urban nomads, people who are on the go constantly." More »

Rio After Kasumi's Crown

Brian Ashcraft — Mon, 05 Dec 2005 08:22:30 EST

For gamers, Tecmo's got Kasumi. For gamblers, they've got Rio. Even though Miss Rio has her own DS game, PS2 game and pachi-slots, she's nothing but a pretty face. I really wish Tecmo or Team Ninja would provide some half-assed rational for this flat-out sexploitation. More »

EZ-Mode Video for Your PSP

lsmith — Sat, 03 Dec 2005 17:00:49 EST

The best part about iTunes, is how simple it is to get songs to your iPod. It's pretty brainless. The second worst thing about the PSP (the worst being Sony's relationship with hackers, is that there is no easy way to get TV and movies on your PSP. Well, there wasn't at least. Gadget Madness points at the Neuros MPEG-4 Video Recorder 2 as the $150 solution to the problem. The Neuros will take video and audio from any source with an RCA and convert it to a watchable format on your PSP. It gets no easier, I want one. More »

Sony Hates Hackers When They Should Love Them

lsmith — Sat, 03 Dec 2005 15:00:55 EST

Citing both the PlayStation 2's ability to be soft-modded to play burnt games, and the Xbox's ability to just flat-out be modded, an article at Insert 25 stresses what we all know - Sony must stop trying to ostracize PSP hackers. Anytime there is a breakthrough in hacking the PSP a new piece of firmware seems to come out. Sure, the updates offer morsels of utility, but they also keep sending the hack/homebrew community back to square one. Sony is isolating a large group of potential sales by constantly trying to squash the homebrew market. How much longer till they realize that? More »

Gift Ideas for the Gamer Who Has It All

kourosh — Thu, 01 Dec 2005 13:04:21 EST

Sure, you, your friends and your family got the Xbox 360 the week it came out (no mere mortals are Kotaku readers). But now comes the hard part: figuring out what games, gadgets and accessories to buy to pimp out your next-gen console. More »

Investigating the Homebrew Market

lsmith — Thu, 01 Dec 2005 12:40:08 EST

Cathode Tan directs readers to a Business Week feature on hacking the PSP. The piece focuses on Auri Rahimzadeh, author of the upcoming book, Hacking the PSP, and the tug of war between Sony's scrambling firmware updates and the homebrew/hack culture surrounding the hardware. I wish Sony would stop messing around with people improving their tech. More »

Konami Christmas Gift Goodness

Brian Ashcraft — Thu, 01 Dec 2005 08:23:54 EST

Just in time for the holidays and our Gift Guide, Konami is expanding their online store to the U.S. by launching an American KonamiStyle site. So far, it looks like they're selling software mainly, but big man willing, we'll be seeing t-shirts and toys before you can say Metal Gear Solid 3 Snake Eater three times straight. More »

Animal Crossing DS Smashes Sales Records in Japan

Brian Crecente — Thu, 01 Dec 2005 08:00:10 EST

It looks like the Nintendo DS has its second official smash hit on its hands. In the first week of sales in Japan, Animal Crossing: Wild Word sold 325,466 copies. Keep in mind that the unbelievably successful Nintendogs only sold 168,000 copies in its first week in Japan. The game isn't just the top selling game in Japan right now, it's almost out-selling the second, third and fourth place games on the sales list for the week as well. More »

Kewl EXIT TV Spot

Brian Ashcraft — Mon, 28 Nov 2005 17:20:31 EST

Exit is a PSP title to get excited about. I've had several hands on with the software on different occasions, and I've always walked away from the game with a silly smirk on me face. Exit offers pleasantly simple thrills and good fun. While it sometimes seems that Sony's PSP commercials are better than the software, the Exit advert actually has a promising game behind it. More »