Sony may be actively urging developers to design smaller, “non-retail” games and application for the PlayStation Portable, an undisclosed source told Destructoid. The “non-retail” games and applications would be priced significantly lower than UMDs and downloadable games via the PlayStation Network, and Destructoid’s source indicates a possible tiered pricing structure for the app-style software – $2 to $6 USD.
We know the PSP Go is losing the UMD drive, and Sony indicated at its press conference at E3 that it has a greater desire for more downloadable content through the PlayStation Network. These non-retail games and apps are said to be limited to 100 MB, with Sony encouraging “non-game apps” and 2D titles from developers.
“We are making a concerted push towards expanding the content available on the Store,” stated Sony Computer Entertainment America’s Al de Leon, “particularly with the demand for digital content that will spike when the PSP Go launches this fall. This push includes new titles that are also launching on UMD, PSP catalog titles, PSone classics – double to nearly 60 titles – and PSN exclusives.”
De Leon went on to state that PSP development tools have been reduced. He says the goal is to support the development of smaller titles from a greater range of developers and publishers.
It makes sense that with a digital-only PSP Go, we’ll likely see some sort of an app store in the near future. More on the PSP app store may be revealed at Gamescom, held this August in Cologne, Germany. We’ll keep you updated.