During an interview with GameBusiness.jp, Sony's product planning division head honcho, Naoya Matsui, commented that Sony always had plans to go UMD-less, and that the PSP Go is the fruition of all that planning. "We'd planned to release a PSP model without a UMD drive since the very beginning," Matsui said. He further makes his case by stating, "But if we'd simply released the hardware, there wouldn't have been much for everyone to enjoy. We needed to prepare the right environment for it first - things like the transferral [sic] of content with the PS3 and PSN, and PC software to manage content like music and movies such as Media Go."

Matsui explains that part of the progression of the PSP to the PSP Go is that Sony had to wait until digital content was on par with physical media, and that the timing now is right. That's one of the reasons Sony is still selling the existing PSP alongside the Go. Well, that, and it's probably not a good idea to have a single handheld that costs as much as a Wii.

[Via Edge]

As PlayStation Portable morphs into the all-digital PSP Go system, many consumers might be wondering just how much space they will need to set aside for each future downloadable title. Sony representative Al de Leon spoke to Joystiq recently at an event in NYC about the storage issue, saying most titles will average around "600-800MB in size." This means, de Leon further added, that the PSP Go's 16GB capacity -- without any additional memory unit -- could hold up to an "average of 17-18 games." Considering the Go can handle an extra 16GB of M2 storage, the number of games could easily be doubled.

Although 700MB is the point we should be expecting most games to gravitate towards, there will still be other titles that will be far below this mark or even way above it. Smaller scale titles like Patapon 2 (which is less than 400MB) for example, could take as little as half the average footprint. Others, like the recently released PSOne classic Final Fantasy VII (takes up 1.3GB), could be nearly double this number.

Are you a fan of a) downloadable games, b) the Steam service and c) awesomely named action titles? If so, you're in luck -- Novalogic recently added 16 of its high-octane action games to the Steam service, and each one possesses a moniker more radical than the last: Armored Fist 3. Joint Operations: Typhoon Rising. Tachyon: The Fringe. Delta Force - Black Hawk Down: Team Sabre. Delta Force: Xtreme 2.

If you're looking to fill your computer with video games whose names have been injected with steroids, now's the time to do it. For the next week, Steam's slashed the prices of Novalogic's titles by one-tenth. You're getting 100 percent of the radness for 90 percent of the price! How can you pass that up?

Announced today and starting "this summer," Verizon will be offering "more than 1,400" PC games through its broadband service, for $9.99 per month. The service boasts a variety of games, ranging from Bejeweled to Splinter Cell, allowing customers to play the games over an internet connection or download the games directly to their computers -- provided the computer is connected to the internet, that is, presumably for license verification.

For now, the service is only going to be offered in Massachusetts, Rhode Island and New York, with no word on when other areas will be able to sign up. Between OnLive, Steam, GameTap, and now this, that digital download future we're all expecting seems to be more feasible every day. We've contacted Verizon for more information on the service and will update you accordingly as more news comes in.

Digital distribution retailer Direct2Drive is playing host to a pretty sweet deal for those who've been hesitant to pick up 2K's PC gaming offerings for reasons financial. D2D is offering a huge selection of their 2K Games catalog for half off until May 31. For just $9.95, you can nab Bioshock, Civilization IV, Serious Sam Gold, Prey and a few others -- or, for just $7.50, you can pick up the entire five-game X-Com series. That's $1.50 per game. If that doesn't blow your mind, you should really consider getting your frugality receptors examined.

[Via Big Download]

EA has been making a killing in the PC space (unlike its performance with music-based games), the company revealed during its recent financial earnings report. Shacknews reports that EA has seen profits from digital distribution on the PC platform double over last year to $80 million, whereas the company's digital distribution revenue on the whole has generated $400 million for the company this fiscal year.

CFO Eric Brown says EA's online business is growing at a phenomenal rate, "as much as 60% year over year." As such, EA says "the PC is becoming the largest gaming platform in the world," prompting the company to focus accordingly.

We're not exactly sure why Stardock CEO Brad Wardell is in the business of giving advice to retailers, considering his Impulse service is in direct competition with them. But that's exactly what he did when talking to GameBizBlog recently, saying that retailers a playing a dangerous game testing the digital distribution waters.

"Retailers need to be careful about this stuff," he said. "They're kind of signing their own death warrants once they push digital distribution at the store. Once you have the thing set up--once you've experienced how to purchase the game or deal with it online--why would I go back to the store for the next purchase? Especially if the store isn't providing added value. If you're a retailer, you're killing yourself."

... You know, on second reading, that kind of sounds like a threat. Hold on, let us check again. ... Yep, that's a threat.

[Via GoNintendo]

It's time to dust off your suit of hardened leather and that cutlass above the mantle ... oh, and wipe the cobwebs off that copy of Neverwinter Nights 2 while you're at it. Publisher Atari announced that it will release Mysteries of Westgate, the first 'adventure pack' for the nearly three-year old RPG, exclusively as a download on April 29.

Developed by Vancouver-based Ossian Studios, the download is set within the Forgotten Realms burg of Westgate where players will choose sides between warring factions squabbling over a "powerful but cursed treasure." Armchair adventurers can pick up Mysteries of Westgate from Atari's online store next week for $9.99, with Atari promising more than 15 hours of gameplay for their 10 platinum pieces.

DLC can expand a game in many ways. Not only can it expand the experience offered by a title, but it can also expand your wallet, take out your money, and place it in the hands of publishers and developers. And, by 2010, EEDAR predicts that "the average AAA title should be able to earn an additional 10% in revenue by releasing additional content through digital distribution."

It's not a hard pill to swallow; DLC packs such as The Lost and Damned and Call of Duty: World at War's Map Pack 1 have been selling like virtual hotcakes, and Sony has been milking LittleBigPlanet in all the appropriate ways. Also, let's not forget about Criterion Games, the company that has been adding value consistently to its Burnout Paradise game. Of course, gamers have been complaining about paid DLC just as consistently.

Focusing on riveting hot-button issues like "digital distribution, marketing, and in-game advertising," the MIT Sloan School of Management is kicking off its first ever "Business in Gaming " Conference (BiG) with BioShock magnate Ken Levine as inaugural keynote speaker.

We'll be there, Big Daddy statues and permanent markers in tow, and when we're not ogling KennyL we'll likely check out the panel featuring ex-Boston Red Soxer Curt Schilling of 38 Studios speaking about MMO business models. Hey, maybe he'll talk about that game his company's been making for three years! Code-named Copernicus? No? You don't remember that one? Yeah, neither do we.

With more and more people taking advantage of the convenience of downloadable content, some might assume that this new trend will start to take away from traditional brick-and-mortar retail. Not so, says Microsoft UK 's Neil Thompson, as he told MCV that there is "growth of the download and digital content market – but it is complementary to boxed content and services." He doesn't see the packaged good business declining at all.

Think of it as the peanut butter on that PB&J sandwich. It's essential, yet complimentary at the same time. And delicious.

Speaking to GI.biz, PopCap Games CEO Dave Roberts shared some thoughts about casual games, digital distribution and the importance of retail. In spite of the recent fervor over digital distribution, Roberts said that PopCap has actually been expanding its retail efforts, even going so far as to become one of the top twenty publishers in North America according to NPD. When asked about digital distribution -- something getting a lot of buzz at this year's GDC -- Roberts said that there is "comfort" in purchasing a retail disc, noting that a "a large percentage of Wal-Mart customers don't even have credit cards." Roberts also believes that brick-and-mortar retailers are looking for ways to expand into the online market. As a successful example of this, Roberts cited pre-paid subscription cards for World of Warcraft, a retail product that's only usable in an online space.

Regarding Apple's App Store, Roberts said that it may be getting too large for its own good, stating that Apple will have to "curate" the store in order to make things easier to find. He says that the App Store "will tip itself over if they don't figure that out."

Finally, Roberts discusses PopCap's Wii efforts -- the company does have something in the works -- and explains why PopCap games won't be appearing on Amazon's casual download service. Hit the source link for the full interview.

SCEA's John Koller acknowledges that simultaneous retail and digital release is the way Japan and Europe are going; however, it's not the direction North American is heading towards. Well, not now anyhow. Koller says that day-and-date UMD/digital launching is something that's a "mid-term" goal, not something SCEA is aiming for in the short-term and it could take up to five years before it becomes standard business

"In North America we haven't made a firm decision if and when we're going to launch day and date, retail and digital ... we're looking at the opportunity," said Koller in a GDC conference (via GamesIndustry.biz). The real question now is: Will the PSP be around that long for us to see this business model take flight? Perhaps, we'll have to wait for Sony's next portable gaming device.

Level-5 has announced that its ROID digital distribution service will launch in Japan on June 1, two months later than originally announced at TGS. The service's mobile game distribution service will be available first, with the PC-based service following soon after.

A Famitsu article about the service reveals one shockingly familiar-looking game. There's no information about what it actually is, but, as the caption asks, "could it be that RPG?" There's very little actual chance of it being Earthbound, but it is possible that Level-5 lured creator Shigesato Itoi into creating an unofficial sequel. Level-5 is full of surprises!

While many happy iPhone developers are eager to tout Apple's device as the hot ticket in video games, one Sony executive isn't worried. Peter Dille, Senior VP of Marketing, told GameDaily BIZ that he believes that the iPhone gaming market is "a separate business" from traditional handheld gaming.

"Consumers that want to carry a PSP are primarily gamers and I think there's a big difference in the types of games you can play on a PSP versus an iPhone," Dille said. "The iPhone games and apps are largely diversionary, whereas we're a gaming company and we make games for people who want to carry a gaming device and play a game that offers a satisfying 20+ hours of gameplay."

Dille also noted the PSP's reduced reliance on digital distribution, noting that the PSP is "a wi-fi device, not an always connected device. So there's going to be limitations based on the current technology in the PSP." He then added, " ... but you never say never, and as we roll out new products in the future we'll keep an eye on consumer trends as we always do," suggesting that one of the features that he had just mentioned as separating the two systems could go away.