Video Games

Sony's handheld PSP seemed like a great idea.

A powerful portable console with an exquisite widescreen display, Wi-Fi connectivity and flash memory storage was the sledgehammer that everyone thought would blast Nintendo's underpowered DS into little pieces.

Well, it didn't turn out that way.

The PSP has done OK, but it isn't the juggernaut that everyone thought it would be, while the DS is raking in money for Nintendo.

While the biggest problem with PSP is that it's become a dumping ground for mediocre games and franchise titles people would prefer to play on a big-screen TV (like Madden), Sony also failed to get the hardware right.

But don't worry, Sony. I'm here to help.

Here's how I would fix the PSP.

These mini-DVDs are cumbersome, power-hungry and incredibly slow. There's a reason Apple made the iPod hard-drive-based, and the PSP should follow suit.

Once you do that, all sorts of other possibilities open up.

For example, with a built-in hard drive and the existing Wi-Fi connection, you could access a wireless network and buy and download games right to your PSP from Sony's servers. If the drive on your PSP gets full, you could copy the games onto your computer or just delete the games and re-download them later.

Removable storage is great if you want to pop music and movies onto your portable system.

But Sony's proprietary Memory Sticks are too expensive and would be unnecessary if you had a hard drive.

Sony wants to make the PSP a destination for first-person shooters (FPS) and other 3-D action games, but there's a reason all modern home-console controllers have two control sticks.

One stick is for moving through a level, and the other is for looking around.

With just one stick on the PSP, FPS games are almost always clunky.

This is such an obvious flaw that Sony must have considered adding another stick and decided against it for some reason. Whatever that reason is, though, it wasn't good enough.

Granted, that's a lot harder than it sounds. But if Sony wants the PSP to succeed, it's critical.

While there's no magic formula for good games, I think Sony would be well-served to prohibit game companies from publishing PSP games based on existing home-console franchises.

I don't want Madden or Tomb Raider or Metal Gear Solid on the PSP. I've already got all those games on my PS2 or PS3, and I'm not buying them again in a smaller format.

Instead, focus on developing great PSP-only franchises. If a cool game is only available on the PSP, then gamers will flock to it.

Anyway, that's my list. If all those rumors about a redesign for the PSP ever come true, and any of my suggestions just happen to make the cut, I'm taking full credit.