Video games are ready to escape the confines of the living room. For years, Nintendo's toy-like Game Boy has had the handheld gaming console market to itself, seeing off challengers that include Sega's Game Gear, Bandai's Wonder Swan and Atari's Lynx. But, fuelled by a conviction within the games industry that mobile gaming is beginning to explode, a new generation of portable consoles is about to go on sale.
However, the likes of Sony's PlayStation Portable, the British-designed Tiger Telematics Gizmondo and Tapwave's Zodiac 2 will first have to contend with a new machine from Nintendo - the innovative, dual-screen DS.
Every one of the new generation of handheld consoles boasts the ability to display 3D graphics and run games on a par with modern (if not the latest generation of) full-blown consoles. But can they all succeed in such a notoriously competitive marketplace?
Time will tell, but there is no doubt about which of the contenders is the most fancied. Nintendo dominates the handheld market - over 14 years, the various incarnations of the Game Boy have collectively sold a staggering 160m units. The DS looks certain to carry on that success. Its clamshell design (hiding a screen in each half) resembles a Game Boy Advance SP with middle-age spread. But while it may be ugly, it is robust.
The DS's bottom screen is touch-sensitive, which opens the door for innovative control systems. It has a proprietary version of Bluetooth for close-proximity wireless multiplay, a text-and-drawing chat program called PictoChat, which should be popular on the school bus, and is even Wi-Fi-ready.
Unfortunately, at launch, its selection of games is a bit patchy - the highlight is a beautifully reworked take on Super Mario 64, backed up by a free demo version of Metroid Prime. But by the time it reaches the UK in March - it is launching on November 21 in the US and December 2 in Japan - a larger portfolio of games including the mighty WarioWare Inc should be available.
While it is difficult to visualise the DS flopping, question marks remain, even at this late stage, over Sony's PSP. It is a sexy gadget with a huge, impressive screen, and can play DVDs (albeit on a proprietary format called UMD). It also has a lot of number-crunching power. But it is delicate, doubts remain over its battery life (Sony is quoting a possibly optimistic four to six hours' gameplay), and its complexity means it will lack original titles for a long period after launch.
It will go on sale in Japan on December 12, at around £100 - a price that surely represents a willingness to have a loss-leader to generate market share, and that may rise as the PSP crosses the Pacific. It will undoubtedly appeal to the sort of consumer who must have the latest iPod, though.
Tiger Telematics' Gizmondo is an intriguing machine. It has a camera, GPS satellite tracking, GPRS mobile communications and is the first machine to use the new nVidia mobile 3D graphics chip. It is on sale now, for £229, in John Lewis and Toys R Us. It plays back MP3s and MPeg4 video, and Tiger Telematics promises that users will be able to use it to send ultracheap text messages or even use it as a car satellite navigation unit. But its initial selection of games is unconvincing. Tiger Telematics is, however, gaining support from publishers such as SCi and Electronic Arts, and claims that its innovative system of push advertising coupled with redeemable digital vouchers, enabled by the GPS and GPRS chips, will enable it to drop its price quickly. Gizmondo could prove a slow burner.
Tapwave's Zodiac 2 is also available in the UK now, notably from Dixons. Essentially a Palm Pilot designed to play games (it runs the Palm OS), it has a great touch-sensitive screen and plenty of processing power, but lacks game support and is way too pricey at £329.99. But it shows how the next generation of handheld videogame consoles aim to be aspirational multimedia gadgets, rather than mere toys.
