Sources close to Sony appear to have revealed that the company"s big announcement at this years E3 in July could be a true successor to the PlayStation Portable. Meanwhile, a tweet from a British TV show host appears to suggest that the PlayStation Move could arrive in September - a whole month before Microsoft"s Project Natal which has been confirmed for October.
Industry magazine MCV reports that it was informed of an increase in marketing spend by two major publishers for Q4 2010, which is bizarre at a time when PSP sales are low, with the last major revision, the PSPGo, doing little to help. The speculation of course is that the two publishers are gearing up for another major revision of Sony"s handheld games console. With another publisher reportedly waiting for a "specific announcement from the platform holder" before it can reveal a number of unnamed future PSP titles, it is easy to see where the speculation comes from.
Sony"s PlayStation Portable, which was released in 2004, has had few changes since its release. The only exception being the PSPGo which did away with physical media entirely, supporting digital downloads only - something which didn"t seem to go down well, with sales numbers apparently very low across all major markets. With a successor to Nintendo"s DS handheld console expected later this year, and growing competition from other mobile devices such as Apple"s iPhone, a new PSP could be just what Sony are looking for.
However, until an official announcement this is just speculation. A spokesperson for Sony told MCV that there are currently no plans for a new PSP.
For another Sony related rumour, a tweet from channel Five"s "The Gadget Show" presenter Jason Bradbury, suggests that the PlayStation Move motion controller could come in September. The tweet which Neowin discovered via 1UP reads, "another thing I was meaning to say. Sept for Playstation Move!!! I’m sure of it. Can’t say why. Just.. September 2010."
If true, that would mean that it comes a month ahead of Microsoft"s motion-sensing camera for the Xbox 360, Project Natal, which was confirmed for an October release in an interview on Saudi Arabian television with a Microsoft Saudi marketing manager.