Sony Needs to Release adhoc Party in North America

Sony released the beta version of adhoc Party for the PSP in November 6, 2008. Available from the Japanese Playstation Store of the Playstation 3, the application allows you to connect the PSP to the Playstation 3 in order to play local-only ad hoc games online with other adhoc Party users. Furthermore, you can also communicate with each other via text, video and voice chat. Despite being mildly successful in Japan, adhoc Party was never officially released in North America. Here are a few reasons why Sony should release adhoc Party on the North American Playstation Store of the Playstation 3.

Boost Hardware Sales
adhoc Party pushes hardware sales for Sony. This is because the application requires the PSP and Playstation 3 to use. Thus, you will need to own both systems to take advantage of the cool features. The adhoc Party is a cheap and effective method to advertise the PSP and Playstation 3, especially since both systems are the most expensive in their market.

The PSP and Playstation 3 are struggling so far when compared to the competition. While the PSP is trailing the Nintendo DS, the Playstation 3 is lagging behind the Nintendo Wii and Xbox 360. Thus, not releasing adhoc Party, even in beta form, in North America has been a big mistake for Sony so far.

Enhance PSP Games
The main purpose of adhoc Party is to connect ad hoc supported games to be played online. In Japan, the biggest game to take advantage of this feature is Monster Hunter Freedom Unite (also been known as Monster Hunter Portable 2nd G). The four-player cooperative game can only be played via local wireless in multiplayer mode. adhoc Party on the Playstation 3 automatically makes Monster Hunter Freedom Unite into an online multiplayer title and, as a result, adds a whole other dimension to the popular game.

Of course, Monster Hunter Freedom Unite isn't the only supported game on adhoc Party. The Playstation 3 application works with most of the ad hoc supported PSP games. Thus, it adds value to the titles.

Discourage Piracy
Finally, the PSP is one of the most pirated video game systems ever due to the relative ease of "soft-modding." Unfortunately, it has caused Sony a good chunk of software sales for the PSP. Sony could be able to use adhoc Party to stomp out piracy by disabling that feature on hacked PSP systems. It would also give incentives for users to switch hacked firmwares for the official ones. With adhoc Party, software sales should be improved on the PSP.