Sony has launched its game download service for the PlayStation Portable that allows a choice of five classic PlayStation games to be purchased for download online and played on the PSP. Each title is priced at US$5.99, however the online store can only be accessed through the PS3. The current choice of games includes Cool Boarders, Crash Bandicoot, Hot Shots Golf 2, Syphon Filter and Tekken 2. Additional games will be added over time, with a second batch scheduled later this month.
As previously announced, only PSP owners who are lucky enough to own a PS3 will be able to take advantage of these downloadable game titles. However, while a PS3 is required to deliver the games to the PSP, it is not possible to play these game titles on the PS3 itself, at least at this time. According to this IGN article, another thing worth noting is that due to the lack of L2 and R2 buttons on the PSP (which the original PlayStation controller has), the user is given a choice of control schemes depending on the game to emulate the lack of these buttons, such as through the D-Pad or analogue stick. Finally, games are downloaded directly to the PSP, not temporarily on the PS3's hard drive as some may expect. Eeach game is also copy protected.
