Digital-only PSP games

Stopdoor · Oct 10, 2020

With recent news there's a lot of hand-wringing, but seems like now's the time to plan. Tbh, I never had a PSP and have never been a huge Sony guy, but I go back to old games a lot and I know there's some good stuff there. There was one thread about "must have PS3 games", but it's kind of annoying because it's just throwing anything out there whether it's easy or hard to find or whatever. I want to know just what are some great digital-only PSP games, or possibly exceptionally hard to find physically, but ideally that doesn't mean everything slightly niche.

Anyone know of any good lists or resources?

Theswweet · Oct 10, 2020

Brandish: The Dark Revenant is a must-play.

ProstatePuncher · Oct 10, 2020

Despite it coming from a source many might consider unsavoury, this is pretty good. Might not find all these on the PS Store, though.

PlayStation Portable

"Come out and play." Sony's first handheld system. It was a major success in Japan, though Sony's strict localization policies stymied ability to competition with the Nintendo DS elsewhere. Despite that, its capability to natively emulate PSX titles and to run scaled down PS2 graphics has given...

vsrecommendedgames.fandom.com

emperor bohe · Oct 10, 2020

I just bought a Vita (don't own a PSP), so I would greatly appreciate this thread 🙏🙏

dallow_bg · Oct 10, 2020

Patchwork Heroes comes to mind but I know there's plenty others.

LewieP · Oct 10, 2020

Some from memory

Canabalt
Everyday Shooter
flOw
Where is my Heart?
Wizorb

KamenSenshi · Oct 10, 2020

There's a bunch but first thoughts are, Sweet Fuse and Motorstorm.

Oldmario · Oct 10, 2020

Trails in The sky 1 & 2, Corpse Party and the sequel (i think it's book of shadows), Black Rock Shooter, FF3 atleast in the west

Lowblood · Oct 10, 2020

If you like dungeon RPGs, there's Elminage Original, which has a legendarily bad translation but is otherwise a solid Wizardry-styled RPG, as well as Class of Heroes 2, a more anime-styled game which is also available on the PS3.

Summon Night 5 is also available, a tactics RPG with dating sim elements. Summon Night 5 and Class of Heroes 2 both had very limited physical releases through Gaijinworks's website (similar to what LRG does nowadays) but both of those are long-gone.

EDIT: Oh geez, yeah, Final Fantasy III. Can't forget that one. It's a port of the DS version but I prefer playing the PSP version. That's on mobile too, of course.

Warrior of Light · Oct 10, 2020

Lowblood said:
EDIT: Oh geez, yeah, Final Fantasy III. Can't forget that one. It's a port of the DS version but I prefer playing the PSP version. That's on mobile too, of course.

It got a physical release in Japan. Full English support!

manustany · Oct 10, 2020

dallow_bg said:
Patchwork Heroes comes to mind but I know there's plenty others.

This! A must have for the PSP

Joltik · Oct 10, 2020

Oldmario said:
Trails in The sky 1 & 2, Corpse Party and the sequel (i think it's book of shadows), Black Rock Shooter, FF3 atleast in the west

Not sure about the other titles, but Trails in the Sky 1 got a physical release in North America.

Lowblood · Oct 10, 2020

Yeah, the two PSP Corpse Parties were digital-only I believe, though the first did get a physical 3DS release and Blood Drive was physical on Vita.

(Sadly I only have Book of Shadows and Blood Drive, I doubt the PSP version of the original will see a sale any time soon)

Stopdoor · Oct 11, 2020

Gotta give this a few bumps, pretty meagre pickings mentioned so far.

SabinFigaro · Oct 12, 2020

Off the top of my head that haven't been mentioned:

Cladun: This is an RPG
Cladun X2
Fate/unlimited codes

There's likely quite a few more. I'm surprised there's no master list.

I have to echo the recommendation for Brandish. It's up there with my favorite releases on the system.

Jakenbakin · Oct 12, 2020

Locoroco Midnight Carnival is very different than the first two games, but just as good (better, really, depending on what you want from a game). Highly recommend.

... And I guess I need to buy it, too! I don't remember what account I had it on so many years ago but it was either my British or old American account, so I should purchase it on my current/permanent account.

Edit: holy crap it's only $6, too. That's awesome, I think the game launched at like 15 or 20.

Stopdoor · Oct 14, 2020

If I can trust the store filters, there's actually not as many digital-only games as I expected. Most of the ones mentioned in this thread do seem to be the stand outs.

Official PlayStation™Store US

Maybe there's DLC for existing games that may also be annoying to procure? That may be harder to find a comprehensive list.

Gio · Oct 14, 2020

You're better off saving your money on the Trails games and just buying them on Steam tbh, unless you really like portability. The PSP versions are blurry and sluggish, and the PC versions run on pretty much any old laptop.

krae_man · Oct 14, 2020

I believe LocoRoco Midnight Carnival is download only.

Serule · Oct 14, 2020

Stopdoor said:
If I can trust the store filters, there's actually not as many digital-only games as I expected. Most of the ones mentioned in this thread do seem to be the stand outs.

Official PlayStation™Store US

Maybe there's DLC for existing games that may also be annoying to procure? That may be harder to find a comprehensive list.

List seems to be missing all the minis (although they are all cross-plat with PS3); i liked:
Blast Off
Monsters (Probably) Stole My Princess!
And there was a decent Tetris

JaseC64 · Oct 14, 2020

Shame Sony gave up psp and vita game sales on psn. Way to screw over the remaining fans interested in the system. I can imagine in perfect world having a huge psp and vita digital collection from sales over the years similar to what we saw on ps4. I hate Sony sometimes.

asmith906 · Oct 14, 2020

Stopdoor said:
If I can trust the store filters, there's actually not as many digital-only games as I expected. Most of the ones mentioned in this thread do seem to be the stand outs.

Official PlayStation™Store US

Maybe there's DLC for existing games that may also be annoying to procure? That may be harder to find a comprehensive list.

There's actually tons of psp games that never made it to the the store. Sony only really started taking digital seriously with the vita and ps4.

Qwark · Oct 14, 2020

Was Half-Minute Hero digital only? That game was great. Oh and the Badman games!

Stopdoor · Oct 14, 2020

Serule said:
List seems to be missing all the minis (although they are all cross-plat with PS3); i liked:
Blast Off
Monsters (Probably) Stole My Princess!
And there was a decent Tetris

Are minis something still up? I don't know my Sony that well, I vaguely thought those had been taken down years ago?

Qwark · Oct 14, 2020

Stopdoor said:
Are minis something still up? I don't know my Sony that well, I vaguely thought those had been taken down years ago?

You're thinking of Playstation Mobile. Minis are still up afaik.

Stopdoor · Oct 14, 2020

Qwark said:
You're thinking of Playstation Mobile. Minis are still up afaik.

What even are "Minis"?

PianoBlack · Oct 14, 2020

Stopdoor said:
What even are "Minis"?

Iirc, sort of mobile games on PSP, brought over with a more accessible dev environment. Jetpack Joyride, Age of Zombies, etc.

PSP was such a weird time. Started physical only, then by the end of the gen smartphones/mobile had taken off and they were trying to catch its tailwind.

Lowblood · Oct 14, 2020

asmith906 said:
There's actually tons of psp games that never made it to the the store. Sony only really started taking digital seriously with the vita and ps4.

I'm still annoyed Square never released FF1 and FF2 digitally in the US. I think Europe got them, somehow.

Qwark said:
Was Half-Minute Hero digital only? That game was great. Oh and the Badman games!

Nope, there's a physical for Half Minute Hero, I've got it. Sequel was PC only though.

Qwark · Oct 14, 2020

Stopdoor said:
What even are "Minis"?

They're smaller indie style games that you could play on PSP or PS3. They were normal PSN games, unlike PSMobile (Vita/Android/was it on ios?) which were kept on different servers for some reason.

PianoBlack · Oct 14, 2020

Some others I believe are digital only:

- Super Stardust Portable (I think it might have some exclusive modes compared to PS3 like Impulse, great game to have in your pocket regardless)
- Beats (fun little rhythm game)
- Echochrome (digital-only in North America)
- Pinball Heroes
- Probably a bunch of DLC songs for Rock Band Unplugged
- All of the PS1 classics, of course, which are amazing. Huge selection of great titles.

If you've never had a PSP, the physical-only games are overall probably more interesting and worth tracking down.

KamenSenshi said:
There's a bunch but first thoughts are, Sweet Fuse and Motorstorm.

Motorstorm had a physical release, at least in North America.

MotorStorm: Arctic Edge (Sony PSP, 2009) for sale online | eBay

Find many great new & used options and get the best deals for MotorStorm: Arctic Edge (Sony PSP, 2009) at the best online prices at eBay! Free shipping for many products!

www.ebay.com

Stopdoor · Oct 14, 2020

PianoBlack said:
Some others I believe are digital only:

- Super Stardust Portable (I think it might have some exclusive modes compared to PS3 like Impulse, great game to have in your pocket regardless)
- Beats (fun little rhythm game)
- Echochrome (digital-only in North America)
- Pinball Heroes
- Probably a bunch of DLC songs for Rock Band Unplugged
- All of the PS1 classics, of course, which are amazing. Huge selection of great titles.

If you've never had a PSP, the physical-only games are overall probably more interesting and worth tracking down.

Motorstorm had a physical release, at least in North America.

MotorStorm: Arctic Edge (Sony PSP, 2009) for sale online | eBay

Find many great new & used options and get the best deals for MotorStorm: Arctic Edge (Sony PSP, 2009) at the best online prices at eBay! Free shipping for many products!

www.ebay.com

Does any DLC for other titles come to mind as stand-outs?

Deleted member 11413 · Oct 15, 2020

Theswweet said:
Brandish: The Dark Revenant is a must-play.

Yup, everyone needs to get this game.

PianoBlack · Oct 15, 2020

Stopdoor said:
Does any DLC for other titles come to mind as stand-outs?

Eh... There's a mission pack for Valkyria Chronicles 2, probably the most interesting. Pinball Heroes which I mentioned has different table packs, I actually liked the game (you can turn the PSP vertical to play by seeing the whole table) and bought them. LittleBigPlanet has a ton but it's mostly just costumes, and the servers for the game are shut down now anyway. A single car pack for Gran Turismo PSP.

Edit: If you're interested in playing Super Stardust Portable, be sure to buy the "solo pack" DLC to unlock all modes.

Nothing much else comes to mind but if there are games that you are looking forward to playing and that are from 2008 or later, might be worth checking out whether they have anything to download.

Edit 2: For example I was thinking of late gen titles after writing this and remembered Patapon 3, went and looked and sure enough it has a couple mission packs listed. There are probably others I don't know about.

TheKid · Oct 15, 2020

Didn't patapon 2 have a physical release but there was only a download code in it?

1upsuper · Oct 15, 2020

Brandish is essential.

chrominance · Oct 15, 2020

TheKid said:
Didn't patapon 2 have a physical release but there was only a download code in it?

I wanna say that was 3. I definitely have a physical UMD copy of 2, and it's the only game in the series I don't own on PSN.

Serule · Oct 15, 2020

Qwark said:
They're smaller indie style games that you could play on PSP or PS3. They were normal PSN games, unlike PSMobile (Vita/Android/was it on ios?) which were kept on different servers for some reason.

This. They were limited to 100MB and compiled with some library that made them work on both PSP and PS3.There are a few gems. Velocity is super good (although I played the Vita native version). SNK put out a handful of their arcade games as minis too.

I've personally played:

A Space Shooter for Two Bucks
Blast Off
Bloons (meh)
Dracula: Undead Awakening
Echoes
Monsters (Probably) Stole My Princess
OMG-Z
Pac-Man Championship Edition
Pix'N Love Rush
Tetris
Who's That Flying?!
Zombie Tycoon (meh)

Some (Dracula, Pac-Man, Tetris) are no longer available.

I have heard good things about Coconut Dodge, Fieldrunners, Mad Blocker Alpha, Mighty Flip Champs, and Where is My Heart, but have not played them.

Official PlayStation™Store US

Since they tend to be smaller games, i don't know how many can qualify as "must haves" but i enjoyed most of the ones I tried. Conversely, if you have a few 100mb free and a few dollars, it's easy to pick up a few.

TheKid · Oct 15, 2020

monsters probably stole my princess was rad

Sumio Mondo · Oct 15, 2020

Black Rock Shooter and Generation of Chaos: Pandora's Reflection are both underrated gems.

zenosparadox · Oct 15, 2020

TheKid said:
Didn't patapon 2 have a physical release but there was only a download code in it?

I believe the first release was just a code in the box, but they did release version with an actual UMD inside the box, too.

Memory Pak · Oct 15, 2020

LewieP said:
flOw

PianoBlack said:
- Beats (fun little rhythm game)

Looks like there are physical versions of these two, so they're not entirely lost to time when the PSP store becomes difficult to access. Both FlOw and Beats were included on a single UMD in the three-pack PlayStation Network Collection: Power Pack. Also includes Syphon Filter: Command Ops, although I think that was an online multiplayer game, so maybe it only works through ad-hoc now?

Seems there was a second collection like this too, PlayStation Network Collection: Puzzle Pack, which includes Go! Sudoku!, a version of Lemmings, and Go! Puzzle!

LewieP · Oct 15, 2020

Oh yeah. I did know about that, but forgot.

Technically flow has a PS3 and PS4 version too anyway.

PianoBlack · Oct 15, 2020

Memory Pak said:
Looks like there are physical versions of these two, so they're not entirely lost to time when the PSP store becomes difficult to access. Both FlOw and Beats were included on a single UMD in the three-pack PlayStation Network Collection: Power Pack. Also includes Syphon Filter: Command Ops, although I think that was an online multiplayer game, so maybe it only works through ad-hoc now?

Seems there was a second collection like this too, PlayStation Network Collection: Puzzle Pack, which includes Go! Sudoku!, a version of Lemmings, and Go! Puzzle!

Interesting, maybe Europe only? I'm in the US.

Warrior of Light · Oct 15, 2020

Are there any notable PSP games (and/or DLC) that don't show up on the Vita store?

Glitter · Oct 15, 2020

Breath of Fire III was digital-only in NA. (Possible to get a PAL UMD though.)

And I believe Metal Gear Solid and Silent Hill are prominent titles (there may be others) that can't be bought on Vita but work as PSP PS classics.

J-Skee · Oct 15, 2020

The PSTV can still access PSP games, right?

xir · Oct 15, 2020

were any of the silent hill games on the store?
can you buy psp games via the ps3, right?

Serule · Oct 16, 2020

Warrior of Light said:
Are there ok any notable PSP games (and/or DLC) that don't show up on the Vita store?

Do you mean download-only or any PSP game?
for physical games:
* some are on the store and vita compatible
* some are on the store but are NOT vita comptible (Wipeout Pure, Ratchet & Clank, many others)
* some were never put on the store (Tony Hawk, Final Fantasy I&II, many others)
And then there are games that *were* available but have since been delisted.

Warrior of Light · Oct 16, 2020

Mostly games that were digital only for PSP (and Vita too, if you happen to know any) that are somehow not on the Vita store.

spineduke · Oct 16, 2020

Another vote for Patchwork Heroes - it plays like a modern Dig-Dug.

Digital-only PSP games

RPG Site

Unshakable Resolve

Master of Balan Wonderworld

Enlightened

User requested account closure

Sky Van Gogh

The Wise Ones