GDW1017

@MystcLazrDragon what Doki said, Sony confirmed that PSP game purchases over PSN would be backwards compatible, just not UMD titles (for obvious reasons). Not sure about the "looking better" part, but definitely supports backwards compatibility.

Makes sense.

Gives Sony the chance to do a huge parade at TGS '11 to build hype for it both in Japan and elsewhere, then pump it out for an October release!

Besides that, Sony knows they shouldn't/can't let the 3DS have a holiday alone, especially now. Plus, this is their chance to ride on two huge sales waves, their launch wave (always a huge sales period for hardware) and the holiday present buying wave (the hugest consumer sales period). To let such a ripe opportunity slip would be a shame for them, especially when this is the time of year when people are most likely to ignore price tags and just get what they want.

Either way, I'm psyched! If the new iPhone rumors are true and we see it this September, then this in October, I'll be one happy hardware junky! :D

@OrangeGamer

Agreed, though I don't think EGM takes it far enough. Personally, I'd rather they ditched the previews section and just focus on more on op-eds/features and maybe even try to perform some investigative journalism. I mean, they used to have Quarter man or w/e the name of the rumors guy was so why can't they just take that idea a step further and investigate issues surrounding games, games development, culture, gamers themselves, etc.

So, to say this shift GamePro is taking is pleasing to me is to put it mildly. :)

@zlickrick But that's the point, it'd be a shift away from pure games coverage and into other fields.

Besides, it isn't the 80's, 90's, or even 00's anymore. There are gamers who are now old enough to enjoy higher level games journalism. The average age of gamers is in the 30's and you expect me not to believe there isn't a crowd hungry for this type of writing? There's a hundred sites doing what IGN, Kotaku, or even Joystiq do on a daily basis yet only a handful of people doing meaningful writing beyond "Game X's Booze-Gun is so awesome, and here's a paraphrased press release to tell you why!"

While podcasts have helped combat this stagnation, there's still a huge need to diversify within the press. In fact, the new format of the Joystiq podcast is a perfect example of the type of diversification the enthusiast press needs!

As a supporter and subscriber or mags, as an enthusiast gamer, as a gamer whose concerned with the culture and industry just as much as the games themselves, this sounds like a huge step forward both fro GamePro and games media in general.

If GamePro can take this extra time to expand on the op-eds, cultural pieces, industry talk, and even do some investigative journalism, then I'd not only pay a premium but also look forward to reading it from cover to cover!

Personally, I've always felt the current mags have been straddling this line between coverage and larger interests. EGM does it too. But no one does it all the way and they suffer for it, in my opinion. Heck, the whole American games media suffers for it. I mean, it's pretty sad when I need to look towards importing magazines or purchasing expensive designer mags (puns... haha) to get the quality of writing and journalism I not only crave, but expect!

So, while I know this is also reason for concern over GamePro's financial health, I'm more than willing to take this road with these guys if they're willing to go the distance.

Also, please get rid of this cheapo print and upgrade to at least EGM quality! EGM's may get mini tears and creases, but GamePro's are the only ones that fully rip or get bent out of shape. I mean, that's reasonable for $10, yes? ;)

@Fuzunga They're still working on getting the EGMi Application up on iTunes. In the most recent issue (Prototype 2 cover) the letters section addressed the question, saying that it should be along some time "after reading this". Of course, they say that almost every issue. So, it's one of those things that just comes when it comes. I'm hope sooner than later, especially when I bought my iPad for games/EGMi back in 2010. :X

Anyways, huge props to the Area5 guys! Not only an accomplishment from a project standpoint but also a competitive one, what with beating EGMi to the punch. I'm sure this will light a fire under Steve Harris's trousers, what with Area5 originally doing a lot of content work for EGMi back when it began.

I expect this will lead to bigger and better things in the future, so I'll be waiting to see how these guys trump this awesome! :)