The PSP put a home console in your pocket, with the UMD format and big hits: God of War Chains of Olympus, GTA Liberty City Stories, Monster Hunter, Persona 3 Portable. This Top 50 gathers the best of Sony's handheld, re-tested and re-ranked by RomWize, each title with its re-evaluated score, its versions, their rarity and their collector value.
"The XSEED American edition for Felghana, faithful to the Japanese with carefully crafted English. Adol and Dogi face the tyrant count with the same snap and the same rock score; perfect to discover the Ys peak in North America."
"Denam Pavel is torn between conviction and orders in Valeria's unforgettable civil war. Square Enix delivers an all-time tactical, the CHARIOT system rewinding time, multiple endings and Sakimoto's arranged score; simply essential."
"Gabe Logan dives into an inside-job betrayal, and Sony Bend adds underwater combat and a pleasant ad hoc co-op. The scenario grows in complexity, and Logan's Shadow stands as one of the PSP's major tactical shooters."
"Toni Cipriani returns from exile and Liberty City's underworld pulses exactly like it does in GTA III, on a PSP screen. Rockstar delivers an ambitious prequel, with a six-mode ad hoc multiplayer that genuinely shakes things up."
"The PSP's foundational title, where coloured blocks fall to the beat and every skin shifts everything, visuals and cadence alike. Q Entertainment crafts a hypnotic puzzle that no portable has truly matched since."
"Vice City under the 80s sun in hand is already huge, and the Empire Builder mode adds a delightful strategic layer. Vic Vance earns his stripes; Rockstar brushes excellence on PSP."
"The definitive cut of Final Fantasy Tactics with voiced cutscenes, two FFXII guest characters and a rebalanced ruleset. The grandeur of the Ivalice story has lost none of its bite; an all-time tactical landmark."
"Reid and Farah meet Meredy and set out to stop the Grand Dast Calamity between two planets. European Tales of Eternia on PSP remains an ideal doorway to the Tales saga, with Sakuraba's sublime score and a dense scenario."
"Ratchet and Clank face robots of every size on varied planets in a portable adventure surprisingly faithful to the console entries. High Impact Games delivers a genuinely successful 3D platformer; ideal for fans of the formula."
"OutRun 2006 in Ferraris along sunlit coastal roads; the arcade madeleine par excellence. Fifteen official Ferraris, adorably kitsch Heart Attack challenges, Kawaguchi's score; a sunlit Sega that fits the PSP perfectly."
"A live-photo group narrative that pulls the player into eight real hours of Shibuya and refuses to let go. The way the five protagonists' fates intertwine is written with rare precision; visual novel craft at its peak."
"Sackboy lands on PSP with a full level editor and online sharing; a small technical miracle. The side-scrolling felt-and-cardboard levels keep every ounce of charm, perfect for creative types on the go."
"The add-on disc that grafts Burst content onto the original God Eater, only useful for owners of the base game. Handy for day-one buyers, but newcomers are better off with the complete edition."
"A Joan of Arc as a light-warrior fighting demons; Level-5's narrative daring shines from the very first hours. The turn-based tactical is crystal clear and historical figures meet the magical with rare grace."
"Class Zero's student soldiers live through a war that erases the dead, and the melancholy hits hard. Real-time combat across fourteen leads, magic and summons, and Ishimoto's sublime score; an unsung narrative peak on PSP."
"The sequel expands the universe with fresh colourful biomes and Moja to take on, without losing any of the first game's magic. The songs stay spellbinding, the LocoRoco even more expressive; a generous, radiant follow-up."
"Daxter as a pest exterminator could have been a throwaway idea; it turns out to be one of the PSP's best platformers. The dreamlike minigames pay tribute to classic cinema and Josh Mancell's score is genuinely remarkable."
"A branching battle map with multiple routes and an aircraft customisation loop that gets seriously addictive. For a first PSP Ace Combat, the work Namco put in still impresses and the replay value holds up."
"The hunting game that long stood up to Monster Hunter on PSP, with hybrid God Arc weapons and monumental Aragami. Bandai Namco crafts a stylish post-apocalyptic tableau and the four-player co-op runs like a dream."
"The first two Ys remastered on a single UMD; a treasure for Falcom fans. Three sound arrangements to choose from, two graphics modes, expanded scenario; Ys I & II Chronicles offers a precious historic Japanese dive."
