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View Full Version : PSP with a right analog stick



Mr Buckshot
June 9th, 2007, 05:02 PM
Here's the crude version where a stick was torn out of a PS2 gamepad and connected via external wires (oh, and it's quite ugly)

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Here's a later, more sophisticated mod where the user drilled and cut part of his PSP to install a second analog nub (ripped from a second PSP) on the right

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These analog sticks are actually soldered to connectors for other buttons (i.e. the face buttons) to emulate those buttons. So in, say, Medal of Honor, which uses the face buttons to aim, the analog stick will take over the face buttons for aiming. While it's still digital and not as precise as a real stick, it does make diagonal movements easier, so 8-way aiming is more possible with the mod.

In a game such as MGS portable OPs, the analog stick would be soldered to the D-pad connectors (although I have no idea whether the wires can reach that far if the stick is on the right), and controlling the camera and moving at the same time would be possible.

Neither of these "dual analog stick" mods will work well with everything, since they essentially take over the functions of buttons already on the PSP. But you gotta admit, aiming with a stick sure beats aiming with the face buttons (I experienced that on my N64 emulator where I used my X360 gamepad to control the action. Aiming with the right stick was not as smooth as with true right-stick aiming but it beat the C-buttons for sure)

In some articles I read, they said that "power connectors" or something meant there wouldn't be room for a second analog nub. Wrong answer, guys - look at the second Youtube video - plenty of space there. Even if that were the case, the PSP's not meant to actually go into most pockets, so adding a few millimeters to the length wouldn't hurt.

Let's hope that when Sony releases the next PSP, they will either shift the stick to the right, or better yet, give us two sticks to play with. It's only a minor difference, but I believe it could have helped PSP sales tremendously. The PSP's raw processing power is perfectly suited for action games, but the control setup is just not good at all. On my friend's PSP, I tried games like GTA, SOCOM, and Medal of Honor, and they were good games, but I could never get used to the poor camera/aiming control. Good controls don't make a good game, but a good game needs good controls.

Mr Buckshot
June 9th, 2007, 06:44 PM
Anyway, I've just heard a rumour that Sony is releasing a revamped PSP with a better battery and 8 GB of flash memory (goodbye, memory stick) plus a smaller form factor (just like the DS Lite's changes).

There's no word on control changes, but if there are, I think it'll improve the D-pad, since it's not going to be a "PSP 2", and therefore a second analog nub cannot be added since the old PSP lacks one (unless, of course, Sony releases an official analog stick peripheral that connects via USB...)

Pope
June 9th, 2007, 08:17 PM
You've just been to psp-hacks.com recently?

For any Homebrew user this is old news but never the less it's a good read. I've also tried playing PSP games with a controller through other means and I have to say I was disappointed in the results. Then again though I realize the games aren't meant for it. I think PSPv2 won't have any 2nd analog stick for multiple reasons.

Btw hacking my PSP (legally mind you) was the best thing I have ever done.

Mr Buckshot
June 9th, 2007, 08:57 PM
Well, my friend lent me his PSP and a few games for the weekend so I decided to see what it could do. I won't attempt to mod anything on his PSP otherwise I owe him $300 Canadian should the system get damaged, but I've realized that the PSP is quite mod-friendly, even more so than the DS. The psp-hacks website is awesome!

I'm playing MGS Portable Ops, and it's my favorite PSP game so far. Also, I have to say that the PSP is more comfortable to hold if I'm using both hands thanks to the curvy (and sexy) side grips. I usually hold the DS with one hand (the other hand holds a stylus) for most games but when I use two hands I can feel a little stiff at times. The PS1 emulator (friend dl'ed the games from the Playstation 3 Network) is awesome too, but L2 and R2 have to be assigned to the analog nub, which is quite clunky.

Yeah, PSPv2 or whatever the redesigned PSP is named probably will lack a second stick, but if Sony releases a second, different portable (the real PS2-P) it'll likely have the second stick since so many fans have been screaming at Sony about it.