PSP Shows Its True Colors – Part I (Digital Comics)

I am going to write another post focusing on the games that helped me pass the time during my recent trip to Scotland. Yes, PSP and gaming have been a long time coming. Before I get to that article, I thought I would post a quick update about the PSP Digital Comics Store (and reader).

Prior to my trip, I downloaded a handful of free comics – nothing really special, and no big name super hero comics. I would rather read Spiderman, Captain America, Batman, and Green Lantern instead of free copies of what was being offered in the store. There were no DC titles on offer, and I thought the Marvel collection was really limited. No current titles, very little of any series runs from my youth, and pretty much nothing that I wanted to throw money at before I determined the usefulness of the PSP Digital Comics reader. So I went with the 20 or so free titles on offer.

Archie and Donald Duck and a handful of other titles were not too exciting. I suppose these were on offer to have something available for everyone.

I was impressed with The Ghoul, which while not great, was at least entertaining. I am undecided if I want to pick up the rest of the story; probably will look towards some reviews first. Atomic Robo was also a title that I enjoyed, maybe even enough to complete a run if the title ever goes on sale. Cages, NeoZoic, and Snake Woman were decent, entertaining reads, but I doubt that I will move past the initial free titles unless I just have money to burn, which is not likely to happen any time soon.

Being a Star Trek fan, I really enjoyed Mirror Images; I think it was my favorite of the free titles. I never got into Star Trek titles even when my comic reading and collecting was at a fevered pitch. I’ll pick up the rest of the series at some point down the road.

The actual PSP Digital Comics Reader is a surprisingly good tool for reading comics. It is simple to use, the auto navigate tool is well done, and at any point you can zoom in and out as necessary. Sony just released a new version, with some minor features and enhancements. If you have not tried this feature out, it is worth your time (assuming you are a comics fan or have been one at someone point in the past), and the free comics mean that you are not really committed.

Yesterday Sony had an exciting announcement for the PSP Comics Store – DC titles have landed. I say finally, and thank you! Before my trip I wrote that it was just a matter of time with DC Universe in the works. Thankfully a nice initial offering has been provided, along with a free preview of Superman #700.

I have not done a lot of research on the PSP digital comic format; I assume is proprietary, which may be the only thing that holds me back from really throwing some money towards some titles. That and the lack of some of the titles and issues that I would actually like to buy/read. I wonder how long Sony is going to be in the PSP market. There is a lot of talk about the PSP2, but who wants to throw money at digital comics on a dead platform? Not that the PSP is going anywhere, but if the digital comic format is not portable to a current (thinking iTouch) or future (obviously PSP2) device, it would be hard for me to invest any significant money into PSP digital comics.

The summary is that I am pleased with the PSP Digital Comics reader, but uncertain of the longevity of the format. I think caution is the watch word; I’ll proceed carefully with a few purchases and some more research.

Share

Leave a Reply