PSP digital game rental coming?

Source: See below. What we heard: Sony's decision to remove the UMD disc media reader from the PSP Go has provoked its fair share of controversy. On the one hand, by eliminating the UMD drive, Sony was able to substantially reduce the size of its device, as well as improve battery life, among...

Source: See below.

What we heard: Sony's decision to remove the UMD disc media reader from the PSP Go has provoked its fair share of controversy. On the one hand, by eliminating the UMD drive, Sony was able to substantially reduce the size of its device, as well as improve battery life, among other enhancements. However, without the drive, PSP Go purchasers will be unable to use their previously purchased PSP games, and they won't be able to rent new games, either.

While Sony has stated that it does not plan on offering a way for gamers to digitize their PSP libraries, the publisher may be cooking up a solution for those looking to rent PSP games. First spotted by gaming blog The Retail Gamer and confirmed by GameSpot, Sony has added "Starts," "Expires," and "Hours Left" options to the information pane within games (pictured, top).

Notably, Sony floated just such an idea earlier this year. In May, a confidential Web survey surfaced online indicating that Sony was considering a subscription service that would let gamers rent PSP games. "The service will enable you to download a fixed number of games during your subscription period...[which] might renew weekly, monthly, or for some other time period," read the document.

Further, the menu fields are identical to those found in PlayStation Store video content (pictured, bottom), which can be purchased or rented through the PlayStation Network. With video content rentals, the start date is generated at the time of purchase and gamers have two weeks to watch the content before it expires. However, once a piece of content is activated, gamers only have a 24-hour window before the content expires.

The official story: Sony had not responded to requests for comment as of press time.

Bogus or not bogus?: Looking not bogus.

142 Comments

  • necronaux

    Posted Oct 20, 2009 11:36 am GMT

    "IF" they figure out a way to 'rent' games where they expire, they better include a way to save progress and achievements.

  • abbnormmal

    Posted Oct 15, 2009 1:12 pm GMT

    I want 2 joysticks, so that the thing is actually playable. Of all the changes, how can this continue to be left out? Old games could continue to function the way they always have (or be patched) and new games could take advantage of the second stick. Seems like a no brainer to me.

  • KillerWabbit23

    Posted Oct 15, 2009 10:22 am GMT

    This will definitely soften the blow of no UMDs. Great idea, Sony.
    I hope.

  • Falkien123

    Posted Oct 13, 2009 1:39 pm GMT

    PSP digital rental? some ps1 games cost the same as rental

  • tidusjeff

    Posted Oct 12, 2009 6:24 pm GMT

    Would be interesting for some of the PSP games on the store, but I'm not sure how this will do for PSP game sales on the PSP games you can rent on PSN. Not that the playstation store has bad games either. But overtime this might benefit for the anti boys.

  • maverick_76

    Posted Oct 12, 2009 3:36 pm GMT

    Makes sense, I know Blockbuster is discontinuing the rentals for PSP so that is probably a sign of things to come.

  • darkhalo_666

    Posted Oct 8, 2009 6:30 pm GMT

    this would be cool if it were on the next psp aka psp2 or ds2 or ps3 or xbox

  • linkspetdragon

    Posted Oct 8, 2009 5:15 am GMT

    Gamefly is only a ripoff if you let it be. It's sort of like Netflix. It's only worth it if you make it worth it. It all depends on how many games/movies you go through in a months time. If you're the type of person that plays through games in just a few days and is ready to move on to the next, it is worth it. But if you keep a game forever before playing through it, you end up paying more and it's not worth it at all. It all depends on the individual.

  • LewisJ999

    Posted Oct 7, 2009 11:25 am GMT

    I'll probably never use it (except maybe for movies), but it's a pretty good idea.

  • acsam12304

    Posted Oct 7, 2009 9:55 am GMT

    gamefly is a rip off

  • acsam12304

    Posted Oct 7, 2009 9:54 am GMT

    well is they only make PSP games for rent then rental stores wont go out of business. i know a lot of rental stores that dont rent out PSP or DS games cuz of the size and easy to get lost. and its very easy for someone to just pay it later if they clam they "lost it"

  • kavadias1981

    Posted Oct 7, 2009 5:31 am GMT

    Could this be the end of game and video rental stores like Blockbuster? Makes me feel sorry for them actually.

  • austinite04

    Posted Oct 7, 2009 12:14 am GMT

    I can confirm that sony will have a psp Game rentl service, it will be only a pay per game thing. I wasn't told they charge a monthly fee like gamefly.com... This service should be on ps3 too, most game I buy sit and collect dust on my XMB. I want this to really come true. I got a SCEA survey a few months ago. and I think it would be wise to have a rental store just like the PSN store. SCEA needs to step up and release this rental store idea already. I want to see this confirmation on PS.BLOG.. I would like to rent a game for a week for instance.instead of just 24 hours, because THAT is not long enough!!

  • JohnnyBiz

    Posted Oct 6, 2009 9:38 pm GMT

    I wish they had this for PS3 rather than PSP ... I would totally rent games.. but something tells me it wont really be worth it... GAMEFLY was pretty expensive last time I checked it out...

  • DiscGuru101

    Posted Oct 6, 2009 3:57 pm GMT

    Another great way for Sony to make money, and, provide almost nothing in exchange for it.

  • TBoogy

    Posted Oct 6, 2009 3:56 pm GMT

    Hmm. This is actually kinda hot. And I was gonna sell my PSP last week. I may be happy the deal fell through eventually.

  • justhat1

    Posted Oct 6, 2009 3:54 pm GMT

    everything is about choice sony made a mistake by not having umds and no second anlog stick on the psp go fine but if you feel the go is overpriced which it is and by the way why no price drop on the 3000 ? then dont buy it sony is going to realize the hard way that not every gamer is into downloading content plus why would pay 20-30$ for old ps1/2 games as rentals we all know sony tends to overcharge on the simple things choice!!!

  • K_A_R_X

    Posted Oct 6, 2009 2:54 pm GMT

    @-Celeste-
    Simply open any game manual and read:

    USE OF UNAUTHORIZED PRODUCT

    Unauthorized copying, reproduction, RENTAL, public performance or broadcast of this game is a violation of applicable laws. You see? UNAUTHORIZED!! I.e. UNAUTHORIZED RENTAL is a violation of applicable laws!!! Of course I do not want to get an Authorization for MY OWN BARTER-RENTAL business because I want to earn every single cent directly in MY pocket. So it's a risk to be in a prison cell But believe me it's a very profitable black-market business!

  • K_A_R_X

    Posted Oct 6, 2009 2:37 pm GMT

    @-Celeste-
    "You're assuming that people won't do the same thing you are doing" - I'm not doing that. This is an example.
    "If you buy the game for 30, whats preventing the other person from buying ..." - I bought it for 30 from my own friend, or it's my own game that i finished. The same place is my own house for example. The other person simply does not know where to buy for 30, except from me.
    "Why would he then sell it to you for half the price he bought it for knowing he can sell it for 40 like you sold it to him?" He does not know where to sell it at all! He also likes to buy used games from me because i have a lot of these games and can buy games back. If I buy it back for the same price I bought it, then it's not a profitable business
    "Unless you do what all the used retailers do...." Here in Russia THERE IS NO RETAILERS SELLING USED GAMES OFFICIALLY AT ALL! Because of lack of licensing for this kind of business. Some of them simply buy used games and then repacking it like a new one and then reselling it like a new for a RRP.
    "If you buy a car, and sell it to someone, GM/Ford/Honda whatever doesn't get a cut. If i buy a TV..." All of that will be sold not for the same price it bought of course, so it's not profitable
    "If i buy a movie/CD/" Stop! CD, DVD, Blu-ray - if they are not so dusty and scratch I can repack it and resell it like a new for example. So I really make money simply reselling the same CD, DVD, Blu-ray again, again and again until it scratched a lot

  • -Celeste-

    Posted Oct 6, 2009 1:45 pm GMT

    @K_A_R_X
    You're assuming that people won't do the same thing you are doing. If you buy the game for 30, whats preventing the other person from buying the same game from the same place for 30; in which case, why would he buy it for 40. Why would he then sell it to you for half the price he bought it for knowing he can sell it for 40 like you sold it to him?

    Unless you do what all the used retailers do, which is stupidly undercut the actual value of the game when you buy it off someone and then sell high, you will only be making trivial dollars over the coarse of the game. I'd like to see how much of a "living" you can make off doing this barter business. New flash, people sell to Gamestop for such low prices because its convenient. You think they will sell to you instead just to make 5$ more a game? If that was the case, eBay resales would be soaring and Gamestop would be dead.

    Lastly, this doesn't explain anything about Condelirios' post. He/she has a valid and truthful point. If you buy a car, and sell it to someone, GM/Ford/Honda whatever doesn't get a cut. If i buy a TV, then decide to buy a new one, and sell my old one, Samsung/Panasonic/Sony doesn't get a cut. If i buy a movie/CD//fridge/sofa whatever, no one but me profits. Publishers sell content to the store; the store doesn't need to sell it for the publisher to get paid. Everything that is sold in the store goes into the stores pocket. In this way, publishers are being greedy and double dipping.

  • K_A_R_X

    Posted Oct 6, 2009 1:04 pm GMT

    @condelirios
    I explain specially for You.

    For example. The RRP(recommended retail price) for a game is 60$. I am buying used ("second-hand") games for MY OWN money. I bought a used game for a 30$, then I sell it to the other gamer for 40$. ( So I get +10$) He finished this game and then sell ME it BACK for a half price (20$) for example. Then I sell the same game to the other gamer for 30$ ( so i get +20 i.e. 50$ in my pocket). And so on...You see? I am started at 30$ and now I have 50$!

    The more games in MY "exchange" collection - the more money will be in MY OWN pocket!

  • anotherone10

    Posted Oct 6, 2009 12:48 pm GMT

    Would be a nice addition to PSN

  • wwwgippal

    Posted Oct 6, 2009 12:42 pm GMT

    I could care less about this, I don't rent games anyway

  • bobdimstar

    Posted Oct 6, 2009 12:30 pm GMT

    forgive my words,not sony only,microsoft too

  • bobdimstar

    Posted Oct 6, 2009 12:27 pm GMT

    All this just to counter piracy...to be really honest,im a malaysian,i earn 2.5k RM a month and i buy ps3 n Xbox games for 150-200 each,to be fair,its costing me alot and more than usual,and as usual the sony and the japs are looking to sell their stuffs for US dollars,which is a reason why piracy is improving in my country and many other,instead of trying to rent or sell games,they can counter piracy by setting up networks in other countries which they didnt bother and by process and time will decrease the price of most thing,well what to do,a corporation always thinks(how to earn a million with a dollar)

  • Hvac0120

    Posted Oct 6, 2009 11:41 am GMT

    @condelirios UMD Maximum capacity: 1.80 GB (dual layer), 900 MB (single-layer)

    4.7GB is the size of a single-layer DVD.

    Also; there is some validity to the "developers don't get paid" argument for games re-sell. If 100 people buy a game and sell it to GameStop. Then 100 people buy the used version instead of the new, that means the developer theoretically lost 50% of it's possible sales.

    The reason this should concern you as a gamer is because sales feed back to the developer. If it's a good game, you want the new games sales to be much higher so that the developer has more money and better support from Publishers for future games and riskier projects like new IP's.

    In essence you are making the prices of new games go up and you are putting developers out of business when you buy and sell used games.

    With that said, most of my games are bought used and I have a sold and/or traded in a large amount of games. Therefore I am also a culprit.

    I also think that selling my old games gives me more money to spend on new games, hardware, and peripherals; which is good for the entire gaming industry.

    I see your point, but I also see theirs. The console manufacturers want developers to support their platform and go exclusive when possible. Digital content is just another incentive in a list of many that they use to attract partners.
    _

  • Lightsyde

    Posted Oct 6, 2009 11:25 am GMT

    @ hazuki Is that Death from 'Castlevania - Symphony Of The Night' I see as your avatar? Nice!! (^_^)

  • Ryguy4738

    Posted Oct 6, 2009 11:23 am GMT

    Wow, I bet they won't stick to this.

  • condelirios

    Posted Oct 6, 2009 11:15 am GMT

    I HATE the false argument that developers do not get paid when I re-sell or when someone rents a game. The developers get paid on initial sale.....JUST LIKE EVERY OTHER PRODUCT EVER INVENTED. They get paid fair market value at that point....and by SELLING the product...they give up the right to ANY FURTHER PAYMENT. Everyone who has ever sold any product knows this. Now, they of course want extra money for nothing....BUT THEY ARE NOT ENTITLED TO IT. Do not fall victim to the "Developers aren't paid" nonsensical argument. Sony's attempt to go fully digital is nothing more than a cash grab. Although, as long as they offer 5 copies for the same price as one UMD copy it is ok with me. Having children all able to have a copy of the same game on each PSP is very nice and easy.

    Another problem though... STORAGE CAPACITY. The stupid PSPgo only hold 16GB... A UMD holds 4.7GB... While most games aren't at capacity...Gran Turismo PSP takes up 1.5GB with free bonus car. Not much room if you add some music and movie or 2. I know... M2 cards... SMALL AND Expensive. PSPgo with 200GB Hard Disc is needed...

  • ranjeet_murba

    Posted Oct 6, 2009 10:50 am GMT

    sorry didnt read the whole thing....but i think it should be available for collection, for peoplewho would like to keep it with them as well

  • Get_Shorty

    Posted Oct 6, 2009 10:45 am GMT

    Wow that is not a bad idea. This could be the way renting games is going. Download, Play a game, Beat it, and then that's it! I don't need to keep every game I play. There is a lot of potential here.

  • bowlingotter

    Posted Oct 6, 2009 10:22 am GMT

    I still think the whole thing is ridiculous. By not offering a way for anyone to play their current PSP games on the PSP Go, Sony is banking on starting from scratch and has done nothing to accommodate those that have stuck with them.

  • mjk_1

    Posted Oct 6, 2009 10:05 am GMT

    @CorruptGamerGX
    umm yeah it is.. "in the longrun" indicates "the future"...eliminating umd is helluva good step for sony in the long run... sure it's risky because consumers are not happy now... but as for the evolution of gaming and gaming related business, thumbs up.

  • K_A_R_X

    Posted Oct 6, 2009 9:57 am GMT

    It is not bogus, definitely. There is no piracy on PS3. So if You a hardcore gamer wanting to save your money, you may buy " a second-hand", used game. You may barter your used game for a new one with a little additional payment ( in a secret place from a special person ). In such a way You can really earn a living On the other hand the developers and publishers do not get any cent from your "rental -barter" business. So, Digital Game Rental is really a good way out from this situation.

  • Rikuide_Furame

    Posted Oct 6, 2009 9:53 am GMT

    It's been some time since I actually rented a game, my local store has next to no selection, and I just don't like the online services. Should I purchase a PSP Go, I'll certainly look into this.

  • BlackTragedy

    Posted Oct 6, 2009 9:34 am GMT

    @ charlie why do ppl keep asking for a second stick. They wont add it cus then who who old psps play the games.

  • brendanhunt1

    Posted Oct 6, 2009 9:26 am GMT

    i never seem to rent games

  • hazuki

    Posted Oct 6, 2009 9:22 am GMT

    So, sony isn't worried about priacy of rented games but they are about the transfer of umds eh? HAHAHAHA, makes no sense.

  • CharlieFubar

    Posted Oct 6, 2009 9:06 am GMT

    250 bucks and theres still no 2nd analog stick.... and thats not a touch screen display either? wow sony.... you must be making up for all the other things you lose money on.... even custom firmware cant save this debacle.

  • enoslives7

    Posted Oct 6, 2009 8:49 am GMT

    This PSP deal is getting worse all the time. On the flipside, younger players don't seem to mind paying monthly fees to play video games....maybe it will go over.

  • Alphonse33

    Posted Oct 6, 2009 8:46 am GMT

    ghost120x you can re download the game whenever you want , it happened to me with patapon 2 i lost my memory stick , but in my purchased record i could download it again ...

  • aaronobst

    Posted Oct 6, 2009 8:43 am GMT

    @ Zerosumgame

    Mmmm... digital food OM NOM NOM NOM

  • jamesh-42

    Posted Oct 6, 2009 8:42 am GMT

    Apparently the reason for not having trophy support is that it would be too easy to manipulate via alternative firmware.

  • TripSe7en

    Posted Oct 6, 2009 8:42 am GMT

    The news of "rentals" is now, IMO, the only hope the PSPgo has of not becoming the next Ngage or Virtual Boy. I am all for digitial distribution, but I don't think SOny made the right move making a system that is only capable of such distribution. In 5 years I think this will be close to the norm, but not yet.

  • Hvac0120

    Posted Oct 6, 2009 8:41 am GMT

    @Ghost120x Your game downloads are tied to your PSN account. So as long as the games exist on the service, you can download them with your account. So if your PSP is stolen, you just download them again. I believe the Media Go software may be able to back up your games on a PC.

    ------------------------------------------------
    I like the idea of digital PSP game rentals. I also like the idea of PS3 digital game rentals. I've been asking for something like this for quite a while. As long as the prices are reasonable in comparison to in-store rentals.
    -------------------------------------------------
    I have a PSP-1000 and I won't get a Go. I can do everything the Go can do on my current PSP. If I was younger and didn't have a PSP already, the Go would be a more attractive buy to me. _

  • Zerosumgame

    Posted Oct 6, 2009 8:36 am GMT

    Everything is going to be digital, that is the future, if you don't want to live in the future, there is no point to live now, too bad you couldn't carry UMDs to the underworld either.

  • melty3219

    Posted Oct 6, 2009 8:34 am GMT

    LOL dont people just get the psp games for free anyways?

  • kamizuka

    Posted Oct 6, 2009 8:17 am GMT

    they didnt kill the UMD, the psp slim GT bundle proves it

  • Lightsyde

    Posted Oct 6, 2009 7:58 am GMT

    @BloodMist and your insult comes off as immature. I merely said I wouldn't argue.

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