Refreshing that old quantity versus quality debate

Perhaps a wet February afternoon doesn't strike you as a particularly significant time to muse the seemingly eternal debate between PSP and DS. Nevertheless, the releases during the next eight days do provide some interesting evidence.

No one could say any of the six PSP games and five DS below will rank as killer apps – the sort of titles people rush out to buy. Indeed, when it comes to the Sony side of the equation, The Warriors is a port of a previously released PlayStation 2 game while TOCA Race Driver 3 Challenge is an adaptation of another.

It's something that's often argued as the biggest disadvantage of the platform which shares much of its inner electronics with its home console cousin; if you've already played those games, why would you buy them again, especially on a device that's lacking what's now considered a full palette of control options? Conversely though, if you haven't played them, the PSP versions are all reckoned to be good ports, so why wouldn't you buy them to play them on move?

On DS, meanwhile, the trade-offs are different. All the games released this week are more or less original, but the only one to get excited about is Mario Slam Basketball. At best, the others are B- and C-list titles, lacking originality and innovation.

In that sense, the overall debate boils down to a device with a lot of good quality games you may have already played versus a device with a few great games you haven't. The choice, as they say, is yours.

Out Friday February 16th
Arthur and the Invisibles (PSP)
Chili Con Carnage (PSP)
Mario Slam Basketball (DS) (Or see our review)
TOCA Race Driver 3 Challenge (PSP)

Out Friday February 23rd
Ghost Rider (PSP)
Ghost Rider (GBA)
Fossil League: Dino Tournament Championship (DS)
Freedom Wings (DS)
My Frogger: Toy Trials (DS)
Rainbow Island Evolution (PSP)
Tennis Masters (DS)
The Warriors (PSP)