The PSP has been under-supported as of late, with hardly any notable titles in the past few months and an extremely anemic “Coming Soon” list. Some have wondered if the end was nigh for the handheld, but Sony has been promising that they will continue to support the PSP. Well, it looks like they’re putting their money where their mouth is. A ton of PSP news is on the PlayStation blog today, so I’m just going to bullet the finer aspects for you:

•    LittleBigPlanet, Rock Band, Assassin’s Creed, and MotorStorm will all be getting PSP installments this year.
•    Dissidia: Final Fantasy has sold 850,000 units in Japan since launching over the holidays, and will be available in North America this summer.
•    SCEA is trying to appeal to the “tween girl” market as well, with a Hannah Montana lilac PSP bundle and Ubisoft’s Petz series.
•    The phrase “tween girl market” makes me throw up in my mouth a little bit. I know that’s not news, but seriously, anyone who says that should be shot.
•    There will also be an Assassin’s Creed bundle, but the system will be the standard piano black.
•    Madden NFL 10 on the handheld will deliver a “PSP-friendly” gaming experience. Expect other EA Sports games to follow suit.

Okay, now let’s discuss the good and the bad. First off, the lilac PSP isn’t bad-looking (okay, I’ll admit it, it’s pretty), but who the hell is going to pay $200 for a Hannah Montana bundle? You can already get way too many of those games on the less-expensive DS. The same can be said about the scourge of my existence Petz games. While we’re bitching (maybe you’re not, but I am), Rock Band on the PSP sounds like a terrible idea. Terrible. And I freaking love Rock Band. Why is this necessary? I expect this kind of thing from Activision and Guitar Hero, but why, Harmonix? WHY?

On the flip side, LittleBigPlanet on the PSP could be really freaking awesome, and if Media Molecule does as good a job as they did with the PS3 one I will most definitely pick it up. Assassin’s Creed and MotorStorm certainly sound promising on the PSP as well. Time will tell whether these handheld installments are genuinely good games, or mediocre ways to exploit franchises; I’m hoping for the former. Overall, I’m pleased that there may soon be a lot of reasons to turn on my PSP again. It’s certainly been awhile.

Check out the (very long) press release below for the finer details Sony had to offer.

SCOTTSDALE, Ariz., February 24, 2009 – At its annual retail and publisher conference Destination PlayStation®, Sony Computer Entertainment America (SCEA) announced its unprecedented line up for PSP®(PlayStation®Portable), including a new hardware offering that extends the PSP market to young female gamers, the debut of blockbuster franchises MotorStorm® and LittleBigPlanet™ on the platform, and major software support from Disney Interactive, Electronic Arts, MTV Games, Square Enix, Ubisoft, and other publishing partners.

“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 also previewed its deepest and broadest content line up for the PS3 system, including groundbreaking exclusives such as Killzone® 2, inFamous, MLB®’09: The Show™, MAG, UNCHARTED 2: Among Thieves and God of War® III to hit throughout the fiscal year. Promising to be a blockbuster hit, Killzone 2’s immersive and sensory gameplay sets the stage for PlayStation’s continued momentum on the PS3 this year, accompanied by truly innovative and genre-defying content such as MAG, the industry’s first online shooter to allow up to 256 players, combined with artistic and niche games like Flower™ and Ragdoll Kung Fu™: Fists of Plastic on PlayStation®Network.

With a rapidly growing install base, the PSP platform is riding a wave of momentum that will be paired with a new hardware offering and its best software line up to date, demonstrating significant support from SCEA’s publishing partners. Two new limited-edition PSP Entertainment Packs will be available in 2009, bundling everything consumers need to jump onto the PSP platform, from the hardware to games, videos, and other content – all for $199.99 (MSRP).

• Hannah Montana PSP Entertainment Pack – As part of a new focus on expanding the PSP market to female gamers, SCEA will launch this new bundle in July. The pack includes the introduction of the “Lilac” PSP system, Disney Interactive’s Hannah Montana PSP game (an exclusive dancing and rhythm action game for gamers to design the show and go on tour as the teen icon), a selection episodes from the Hannah Montana TV series on UMD, a 2GB Memory Stick PRO Duo, and stickers to customize the PSP.
• Assassin’s Creed™ PSP Entertainment Pack – Ubisoft will debut an exclusive installment of the popular Assassin’s Creed franchise on PSP later this year. To commemorate this highly anticipated title, SCEA will launch a new bundle that includes the game, a “Piano Black” PSP, and other content that will be announced later.

SCEA’s push toward teen and “tween” girl gamers will also be supported by Ubisoft’s Petz® software line, which will make its debut on PSP with new, unique titles later this year. The Petz series allows young players to create and care for cute, furry pets chosen from many different breeds of dogs, cats, horses, hamsters, dolphins, tigers and bunnies.

Publisher support for the PSP system will continue throughout the year with Rock Band Unplugged™, launching exclusively on PSP. MTV Games and Harmonix announced separately that gamers will be able to take Rock Band Unplugged on the road with the first ever portable version of the popular music and gaming experience. Rock Band Unplugged will take center stage as it leverages the PSP system’s Wi-Fi capabilities and becomes the first PSP game to include a fully-featured in-game store for downloadable content in the North American and Europeans markets.

The third party support for PSP will continue throughout the year with a stellar line up of titles from EA SPORTS. 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. And for the golf fans out there, Tiger Woods PGA TOUR® 10 will allow gamers to experience the drama of major golf tournaments with revamped gameplay modes for on and offline play. Look for more EA SPORTS titles to be announced for the PSP this year.

Rounding out the unprecedented publisher support, 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.

From a first party perspective, SCEA will bring its biggest franchises from the PS3 to the PSP this year, starting with MotorStorm® Arctic Edge and LittleBigPlanet™ in Fall 2009. These titles will be built from the ground up for PSP, offering users a unique portable experience based on the critically acclaimed franchises. Following are details for each game:

• 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.

As the connective tissue of the PlayStation experience across the PS3 and PSP systems, SCEA announced continued PlayStation Network content from new movie releases through the video delivery service and new game spaces for PlayStation®Home. Launching this week, the new “Warhawk™ Command Center” space makes its way into PlayStation Home offering Warhawk fans a new place to socialize and strategize featuring the sand table. PlayStation Home is the ultimate social community gathering gamers via a rich, 3D high-definition environment and will continue to expand overtime.

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