At the top of the list was the entertainment behemoth's plans for a renaissance of the PlayStation Portable.

The PSP revival is being led by three key factors: A resurgence in developer interest in the portable, a push for more digital downloads, and rumors of a new, sleeker model of the device.

While about 50 million people worldwide own PlayStation Portables, the device has, until recently, had trouble attracting developers. Last year, there was a dearth of good titles to choose from for the portable gaming device.

That's because back in 2006, PlayStation Portable sales seemed to be bottoming out and a lot of developers decided to invest their money in other systems. But in 2007, with the release of a slimmer PSP model, PlayStation Portable sales started picking back up.

"When we met with developers in 2008, they wanted to know how they could get back into PSP development," said John Koller, Sony Computer Entertainment of America's director of hardware marketing.

Because games can take a year to a year and a half to create, that gap in development meant a dry year for PSP owners in 2008. But at the week-long Destination PlayStation gathering, Sony unveiled a slew of high-end games for the PSP set for release this year.

Among the list is a portable version of PlayStation 3's popular platformer LittleBigPlanet, a PSP version of Ubisoft's Assassin's Creed and a PSP version of the PS3's mud racer MotorStorm. And, Koller said, there are quite a few more big, exciting titles for the system that haven't been announced yet.

Sony is also in talks with developer Ready at Dawn, creator of the highest-rated game for the platform, about making a new game for the PSP.

"This is going to be the year of software for the PSP," he said.

Besides attracting new games to the platform, Sony is going back through their library of old games, all the way back to the original PlayStation, to see which titles they can bring to the PSP. The titles they select would most likely be sold on the PlayStation Network, allowing gamers to download the game and install it on the PSP.

"We are making a concerted effort for digital distribution," he said.

Most triple-A titles coming to the PSP still use the proprietary UMD disc, but it may not be long before we start seeing more games go directly to digital distribution.

If more games go to digital distribution, it might make sense for the PSP to be redesigned without a UMD drive, making the device less expensive, smaller and with a longer battery life.

While Koller says Sony remains committed to the UMD, at least one developer says he knows that Sony is working on a new PSP design that won't feature a UMD drive.

Acclaim's David Perry says the device is already having games developed for it.

Wedbush Morgan Securities analyst Michael Pachter thinks eventually ditching the UMD is a good idea, but says Sony is stubbornly committed to their proprietary formats.

"Is it really worth building a drive in the PSP?" Pachter said. "The answer is probably no. The device is bulkier, heavier, and has less battery life with it."

"They would be better off designing it with flash memory."

With the PSP about halfway through its life-cycle, it's probably about time for another major redesign.

Well Played is a weekly column about the big news of the week in the gaming industry and its bigger impact on things to come. Feel free to join in the discussion.

Talking to a gathering of retailers and developers at the annual Destination PlayStation event, Tretton called 2009's line up of games for both platforms unprecedented.

"With a year of record sales ushering us into the new year, we continue to raise the bar on providing consumers the deepest and broadest entertainment content for every member of the family to enjoy," said Jack Tretton, president and CEO, SCEA. "With new content being added every day to the PlayStation Network combined with an unmatched line up of exclusive titles on PSP, and the roll out of truly groundbreaking games such as Killzone 2 for PS3, we remain confident in our approach and strategy for another record year of growth and momentum."

SCEA previewed an impressive line-up of PlayStation 3 games for attendees including Killzone 2, inFamous, MLB '09: The Show, MAG, UNCHARTED 2: Among Thieves and God of War III. All of which are set to hit this fiscal year. That's fiscal, as in not calendar.

They also unveiled an impressive line up of new PSP titles including portable versions of LittleBigPlanet, Assassin's Creed, MotorStorm and Rock Band.

And they announced two new PSP packs, including one featuring a lilac PSP, coming out later this year.

So what do you think? Year of the PlayStation?

Rock Band Unplugged will include Wi-Fi support and a "fully-featured in-game store" for downloadable content in the North American and Europeans markets.

This fall will see the release of MotorStorm Arctic Edge and LittleBigPlanet for the PSP. These titles will be built from the ground up for PSP:

LittleBigPlanet — Developed in conjunction with MediaMolecule, the critically acclaimed game LittleBigPlanet makes its way to the PSP, offering new SackBoy adventures with the same play, create, share experience for gamers on-the-go, in addition to brand new levels and environments specifically created for the platform.

MotorStorm Arctic Edge — Developed by the award-winning Bigbig Studios, the team behind the best-selling Pursuit Force series, MotorStorm Arctic Edge sees the music, the festival and the brutal off-road racing arrive in the breathtaking yet lethal and unpredictable setting of Alaska. The game is also expected to hit the PlayStation 2 platform in Fall of 2009. Check out the trailer and screens here.

Madden NFL 10 will enable NFL fans to build their own formations and plays from scratch on the PSP. Then, through connectivity with the PS3, the plays can be downloaded and perfected on the console. In addition, Madden NFL 10 will deliver a faster and more "PSP-friendly" gameplay experience to adapt to the PSP owner's lifestyle.

Tiger Woods PGA TOUR10 will allow gamers to experience the drama of major golf tournaments with revamped gameplay modes for on and offline play.

Square Enix's DISSIDIA FINAL FANTASY, which has sold 850,000 units since launching before the holidays in Japan, will make its way to North America this summer.

Ubisoft will also be dropping a line of Petz software on the PSP later this year. The Petz series allows young players to create and care for pets chosen from many different breeds of dogs, cats, horses, hamsters, dolphins, tigers and bunnies.

All we know about Assassin's Creed for the PSP is that Ubisoft will debut an exclusive installment of the franchise later this year and that there will be a new PlayStation Portable pack for the game.

[Pic]

It may be Sony's best bet in fending off Apple's iTunes for movie and television distribution. And it may be closer than we thought.

Sure, it's been a long time coming, with first reports of the digital download venture hitting in December of 2006, but Sony's been awfully quiet about when it's coming.

According to sources who attended the retailer and publisher focused Destination PlayStation conference last week in Scottsdale, Arizona, Sony showed off a portion of its video store. It reportedly uses the same SingStore-like interface we talked about in our PlayStation Store revamp post, something we hoped to capture in the mock-up of the video store above.

No specifics on launch date, pricing, digital rights management or integration with the redesigned PlayStation Store were provided, but we did hear that North America may be getting the service before anyone else. The only offerings we were told about were Sony Pictures owned. Word on who else might be licensing their content to the the store wasn't provided.

Sony's been very coy about discussing any aspect of the PlayStation video store with the press, but if its showing the service to publishers and retailers, we're hoping that means it's on the cusp of going prime time.

Details were light on the change, but beyond a coat of paint, word was that navigation would change to a series of icons running along the bottom of the interface. We don't have official confirmation on this one yet, so consider it rumor for now.

The bundle ships, as we said earlier, in June for $199.99. For a look at the reverse side, with a lovely Kratos silkscreen, keep on clickin'.

Oh, I'm absolutely bringing this thing to my next threesome. (Just kidding, honey!)

The God of War package will come bundled with God of War: Chains of Olympus, a UMD version of the hit comedy Superbad as well as a gift certificate for a PlayStation Store downloadable game. Pricing is said to be set at $199.

Note: The image shown was one we created and does not depict the final color of the PSP.
Note 2: Turns out we were pretty damn close, here's the first look at the new PSP.

Set to launch April 15th for $54.99, it's slated to coincide with the release of GT5 Prologue. Oh yes, feel those engines roar through your controller and make your SIXAXIS-wielding friends envious...like they're just playing a video game or something.

UPDATE: Sony has confirmed all of this information. Press release on the jump.

SONY COMPUTER ENTERTAINMENT AMERICA INTRODUCES METAL GEAR SOLID®4: GUNS OF THE PATRIOTS PS3 BUNDLE AVAILABLE IN LATE Q2 2008 IN NORTH AMERICA
Company Also Announces Limited-Edition God of War® PSP® Entertainment Pack and April Availability of DUALSHOCK®3 Wireless Controller for North America

SCOTTSDALE, Ariz., February 26, 2008 - At its annual retail and publisher conference Destination PlayStation, Sony Computer Entertainment America (SCEA) announced details of upcoming PLAYSTATION®3 (PS3™) and PSP® (PlayStation®Portable) (PSP-2000) hardware bundles with two of the most highly anticipated 2008 titles. The company also announced the April 2008 availability of DUALSHOCK®3 wireless controller in North America.

To coincide with the much-anticipated North American launch of Metal Gear Solid®4: Guns of the Patriots in late Q2 2008, SCEA will introduce a PS3 bundle, which will include an 80GB PS3, the upcoming blockbuster Metal Gear Solid®4: Guns of the Patriots and a DUALSHOCK 3 wireless controller for $499 (MSRP).

SCEA also announced the June 2008 availability of the limited-edition God of War® PSP Entertainment Pack for $199.99 (MSRP). The God of War Entertainment Pack will include a "Deep Red" PSP with God of War himself, Kratos, silk-screened on the back of the unit, a copy of the highly anticipated upcoming God of War: Chains of Olympus game for PSP, the hit comedy movie from Columbia Pictures, "Superbad™," on UMD™ (Universal Media Disc), and a PLAYSTATION®Network voucher to download Syphon Filter®: Combat Ops from PLAYSTATION®Store. The stand-alone version of God of War: Chains of Olympus launches on March 4, 2008.

"Working closely with our retail and publishing partners and sharing our hardware and software roadmaps at Destination PlayStation gives us a great opportunity to outline some key milestones for the year. In response to incredible demand, we will be manufacturing more 80GB PS3s for North America and the Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots 80GB PS3 bundle is an ideal way to offer that continued value to our consumers," said Jack Tretton, president and CEO, SCEA. "With Blu-ray having won the format war, our stellar software line-up and a broad product portfolio, we will continue to drive the incredible momentum we've been generating since last fall."

SCEA will introduce the DUALSHOCK 3 wireless controller for the first time in North America in April 2008 for $54.95 (MSRP). DUALSHOCK 3, which incorporates both rumble and motion sensing SIXAXIS™ technologies, maintains the award-winning design and precise, responsive features of PlayStation controllers. The added rumble feature, combined with the SIXAXIS system, enhances the gamer experience with more interactive, intuitive and immersive game play experience and will work with more than 100 current PS3 titles.

In additional news coming from Destination PlayStation, SCEA announced Metal Gear Solid®4: Guns of the Patriots will be available in North America in late Q2 2008. A Metal Gear Online "Starter Pack" will also be launched to support online game play. Gamers can select a single player experience or take the action online with up to 16 players and battle it out using the latest weapons and stealth techniques. For those eager to take on Solid Snake's nemesis, Liquid Ocelot, a nationwide pre-sell promotion will enable gamers to pre-order Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots and be guaranteed access to a multiplayer beta test for Metal Gear Online scheduled for late April.

We're checking with Konami for official word on the matter and will update with additional information soon.

Update: It's official, hit the jump for the full release, plus tons of other confirmations of news we broke.

SONY COMPUTER ENTERTAINMENT AMERICA INTRODUCES METAL GEAR SOLID®4: GUNS OF THE PATRIOTS PS3 BUNDLE AVAILABLE IN LATE Q2 2008 IN NORTH AMERICA
Company Also Announces Limited-Edition God of War® PSP® Entertainment Pack and April Availability of DUALSHOCK®3 Wireless Controller for North America

SCOTTSDALE, Ariz., February 26, 2008 - At its annual retail and publisher conference Destination PlayStation, Sony Computer Entertainment America (SCEA) announced details of upcoming PLAYSTATION®3 (PS3™) and PSP® (PlayStation®Portable) (PSP-2000) hardware bundles with two of the most highly anticipated 2008 titles. The company also announced the April 2008 availability of DUALSHOCK®3 wireless controller in North America.

To coincide with the much-anticipated North American launch of Metal Gear Solid®4: Guns of the Patriots in late Q2 2008, SCEA will introduce a PS3 bundle, which will include an 80GB PS3, the upcoming blockbuster Metal Gear Solid®4: Guns of the Patriots and a DUALSHOCK 3 wireless controller for $499 (MSRP).

SCEA also announced the June 2008 availability of the limited-edition God of War® PSP Entertainment Pack for $199.99 (MSRP). The God of War Entertainment Pack will include a "Deep Red" PSP with God of War himself, Kratos, silk-screened on the back of the unit, a copy of the highly anticipated upcoming God of War: Chains of Olympus game for PSP, the hit comedy movie from Columbia Pictures, "Superbad™," on UMD™ (Universal Media Disc), and a PLAYSTATION®Network voucher to download Syphon Filter®: Combat Ops from PLAYSTATION®Store. The stand-alone version of God of War: Chains of Olympus launches on March 4, 2008.

"Working closely with our retail and publishing partners and sharing our hardware and software roadmaps at Destination PlayStation gives us a great opportunity to outline some key milestones for the year. In response to incredible demand, we will be manufacturing more 80GB PS3s for North America and the Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots 80GB PS3 bundle is an ideal way to offer that continued value to our consumers," said Jack Tretton, president and CEO, SCEA. "With Blu-ray having won the format war, our stellar software line-up and a broad product portfolio, we will continue to drive the incredible momentum we've been generating since last fall."

SCEA will introduce the DUALSHOCK 3 wireless controller for the first time in North America in April 2008 for $54.95 (MSRP). DUALSHOCK 3, which incorporates both rumble and motion sensing SIXAXIS™ technologies, maintains the award-winning design and precise, responsive features of PlayStation controllers. The added rumble feature, combined with the SIXAXIS system, enhances the gamer experience with more interactive, intuitive and immersive game play experience and will work with more than 100 current PS3 titles.

In additional news coming from Destination PlayStation, SCEA announced Metal Gear Solid®4: Guns of the Patriots will be available in North America in late Q2 2008. A Metal Gear Online "Starter Pack" will also be launched to support online game play. Gamers can select a single player experience or take the action online with up to 16 players and battle it out using the latest weapons and stealth techniques. For those eager to take on Solid Snake's nemesis, Liquid Ocelot, a nationwide pre-sell promotion will enable gamers to pre-order Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots and be guaranteed access to a multiplayer beta test for Metal Gear Online scheduled for late April.