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[KarishBHR]

So I have 350 bux to BB in Gift Certificates. So think about everything at best buy for now. Here are my questions:

-Is SpiderMan 2 still gonna come with my PSP?
-Whats the best PSP protection Best Buy has, and is there protection good enough to buy it there or should it be the one thing I buy somewhere else
-Is 512MB or 256MB enough to hold movies (not MP3s) and TV shows like 24/OC/exc?
-How long will the battery last, since I have about an 11 hour plane ride soon and would like to know
-How long does it take to charge, in case I find electric outlets at the airport
Here are the games I've narrowed it down to, help me pick 2 or 3:
Tiger Woods (Huge fan of the consoles)
FIFA (Got good review, and am a big fan of WE)
Lumines (All because of hype, Ive never really played puzzle games)
THUG2 (Seems like a pick up and play complete game, and THPS used to be one of my favorite games)
MLB (Only if MVP is going to not be as good)
NBA Street (I loved Street 2, but the reviews look sooo bad)

 

[mrklaw]

blimey!

Is SpiderMan 2 still gonna come with my PSP?
- probably not

Is 512MB or 256MB enough to hold movies (not MP3s) and TV shows like 24/OC/exc?
on my 1GB at good quality, I can get about 3-4 hours. So 512MB for a 2 hour movie. If you don't mind crappy realmedia style quality, then you can squeeze double that in.

How long will the battery last, since I have about an 11 hour plane ride soon and would like to know
- About 5 hours. see if the plane has onboard power, or buy another battery. Or watch a movie on the plane. 5 hours is probably enough for a flight that long.

How long does it take to charge, in case I find electric outlets at the airport
- 2-3 hours full charge

Here are the games I've narrowed it down to, help me pick 2 or 3:
Tiger Woods (Huge fan of the consoles)
- For me, hotshots is a better playing golf game, but not out in the US yet, so if you can't wait, Tiger is always reliable.

FIFA (Got good review, and am a big fan of WE)
- no. if you like WE this is not it, or a good conversion of the PS2 version. But if you like soccer a lot you could do worse.

Lumines (All because of hype, Ive never really played puzzle games)
- Skip for now, go with what you know if you are only buying a couple of games.
THUG2 (Seems like a pick up and play complete game, and THPS used to be one of my favorite games)

NBA Street (I loved Street 2, but the reviews look sooo bad)
- Supposed to be OK if you liked 2. If you liked 3 then its a step backwards (I loved 2 on the GC, so I'll probably pick this up)

 

[KarishBHR]

Thanks man, I have played FIFA for the consoles and like it for the record.

Is hot shots really that much better then TW?

 

[aoi tsuki]

THUG played well, but the audio issues killed it as a possible purchase for me. There's popping while the music plays, which is very noticeable with in-ear earphones.

i'm not a huge puzzle fan, but Lumines is the most addictive game i've played in some time. It took me a while to really get it, as i had to fight every bone in my body to stop playing it like Tetris, but it really grows on you. Some levels work better with different strategies (building towers to combo later vs. clearing small blocks) as you'll find out later. The combination of the simple gameplay with the music progression and trippy (sometimes annoying) graphics makes for a timeless game. Definitely one to play with earphones/headphones.

Edit: i don't know if PSP batteries are available outside of Sony and places like Lik-Sang, but companies like Pelican make power packs that can power the PSP, though they use AA batteries.

 

[Unison]

Tiger Woods is really not worth getting for the PSP, imo, due to the hideous load times. It loads several times each hole (e.g. it has to switch to a gray screen to show player reaction shots), killing the experience. Also, the analog nub is way too sensitive for its own good. The swing interface is such that it's hard to consistently hit a shot straight-on (the slant of the nub doesn't help).

Unless you're EXCEPTIONALLY tolerant of these flaws, it's nearly unplayable.

Also, it's $50 & HSG is $40.

 

[Lord Error]

>-Is SpiderMan 2 still gonna come with my PSP?
It might not. Even two weeks ago there was someone saying that he didn't get it (bought a PSP from 2nd shipment). Make sure it has a sidey 2 sticker on the box, shopping at Best Buy increases your chances I think. EB or Gamestop are probably all on their 2nd shipment at least.

>-Is 512MB or 256MB enough to hold movies (not MP3s) and TV shows like 24/OC/exc?
256 is certainly enough to hold 2 episodes of a show with decent compression quality, but for a movie with a quality compresion, you'll need 512.

-How long will the battery last, since I have about an 11 hour plane ride soon and would like to know
Depends on what you do. Video and gaming will drain it in 4-5-6 hours depending on the screen brightness level, what game you play, or whether you play a movie from a UMD or memory stick. MP3 listening with screen off goes up to 8-9 hours I think.

>-How long does it take to charge, in case I find electric outlets at the airport
Full charge takes some 2-3 hours. You can get a solid mileage even from 30 min charge though.

As for games I can only tell you what I've played and though was good.
Lumines is brilliant, perhaps the best PSP game, and best value/longevity/replayability for money.
THUG2 is a bit unpolished, but plays fine from my 15 minute session with it. Not a fan of the series, though.
NBA Street Showdown is about as entertaining and developed as NBA street 2 that I've played. The mini games that are exclusive to this version are really nice too. It's a pretty good game, IMO, I agree with IGN's 80%. I don't think FIFA got any better reviews, btw.

 

[michael000]

So I have 350 bux to BB in Gift Certificates. So think about everything at best buy for now. Here are my questions:

-Is SpiderMan 2 still gonna come with my PSP?
-Whats the best PSP protection Best Buy has, and is there protection good enough to buy it there or should it be the one thing I buy somewhere else
-Is 512MB or 256MB enough to hold movies (not MP3s) and TV shows like 24/OC/exc?
-How long will the battery last, since I have about an 11 hour plane ride soon and would like to know
-How long does it take to charge, in case I find electric outlets at the airport
Here are the games I've narrowed it down to, help me pick 2 or 3:
Tiger Woods (Huge fan of the consoles)
FIFA (Got good review, and am a big fan of WE)
Lumines (All because of hype, Ive never really played puzzle games)
THUG2 (Seems like a pick up and play complete game, and THPS used to be one of my favorite games)
MLB (Only if MVP is going to not be as good)
NBA Street (I loved Street 2, but the reviews look sooo bad)

-No
-Only 1 and it's a replacement plan (i've heard good and bad about it, i have the plan myself so i'm hoping should the need arise to use it it'll be good lol)
-Don't do much encoding myself but from what i've heard you can get an hour to around 150-175 MB with very watchable quality. Mileage will vary though as there's not cookie cutter way of encoding
-Expect 3.5 - 4 hours at the bare minimum
-Lowest my battery has ever been is 15-20%, i didn't time it but it was sitting on my desk and the charging light was off between 1:30-1:45

None of those sports games interested me personally so i have no first hand experience with any of them. From what i've heard though TW is pretty solid even with the load times (they're bearable but also notable from what i hear). I'm also going the HSG route, TW games are more realistic, physics, etc. blah blah, HSG games are more "fun" oriented imo. Lumines is the only game i own (till HSG next week) and it took me over a month to get bored (hit a scoring wall lol) with it. Although if puzzle games aren't your thing i wouldn't recommend it, it's good enough to keep anyone occupied for a little bit but if you're not into puzzlers it may end up just collecting dust after the novelty wears off.

 

[ZeMMiK]

I´m a right that there is no region protection on Games?? but only on movies??
My shop tells me that the European version als gets region protection for games.

 

[KarishBHR]

When I said protection I mean case, exc.

 

[michael000]

I´m a right that there is no region protection on Games?? but only on movies??
My shop tells me that the European version als gets region protection for games.

For the billionth time there's no region coding for games. Sony has even come out and said that a game has to be region free to meet criteria to be released.

 

[truffleshuffle83]

you should get spiderman2 with the package, most bestbuys have even sold out of their initial shipment. plus the first million units got the movie, they havnt sold close to that yet

 

[The Faceless Master]

if there's a sticker on the corner of the box that says "INCLUDES SPIDER-MAN 2 MOVIE" then it's in there...

 

[KarishBHR]

heres am interesting question:

Do I want the Spiderman ones? I mean, the odds that I watch the actual movie are slim, and wont new shipments have less chances of dead pixels, exc?

 

[Dez]

heres am interesting question:

Do I want the Spiderman ones? I mean, the odds that I watch the actual movie are slim, and wont new shipments have less chances of dead pixels, exc?

I doubt it.. I just returned my first unit to BB and got a new one from a later shipment - this one has 2 dead pixels.. (my first unit had 1 stuck pixel, and eventually got a particle under the screen - i returned it because of that)

 

[cubicle47b]

Hot Shots Golf is out on Tuesday (if it hasn't already been mentioned in this thread).

 

[The Faceless Master]

heres am interesting question:

Do I want the Spiderman ones? I mean, the odds that I watch the actual movie are slim, and wont new shipments have less chances of dead pixels, exc?

the chances of dead pixels are exactly the same for every unit, but spidey2 being free is only in some!

 

[Mrbob]

you should get spiderman2 with the package, most bestbuys have even sold out of their initial shipment. plus the first million units got the movie, they havnt sold close to that yet

Depends on where you live. Sony has shipped 1.5 million PSPs to NA so far. Only the first million had the Spiderman 2 bundle. I know the non spiderman bundle is out there because my local stores actually have both in stock now. PSPs with Spiderman 2 and PSPs without. I live in a relatively small town too so if you live in a bigger city the spiderman 2 bundles may be gone.

It'll say "Includes Spiderman 2 movie" sticker on the box.

 

[KarishBHR]

After calling 4 BBs, the last one had it in stock, so I went there, and got a PSP (with SP2) and FIFA. I called the local Gamestop, they got a shipment of... one logitech case, so I went there and got Lumines for 35 (used) and the case for 20. I havent turned on the PSP, but the case it alirght... its bulky as anything! Sturdy as hell though. I gotta get a screen protector too.

Ill post updates on games when its done charging. How do I know when its done anyway?

 

[Mrbob]

But...but...but.. every Best Buy has PSP systems in stock!

Wait for the orange charging light to turn off. Then it is done charging.