Sony: 'There Isn't Much' For New Audiences In DSi

As the DSi launches in America, it's fielding new criticism from Sony, which claims Nintendo's new portable underserves its audience and lacks third-party suport compared to Sony's own PSP. "If Nintendo is really committed to reaching a broader, more diverse audience of gamers beyond the 'kids' market that they've always engaged, there isn't much new with the DSi to support that," SCEA director of hardware marketing John Koller said in a statement sent to media outlets including Engadget. "Significant gamer demographic groups are being ignored, and there continues to be limited opportunities for games from external publishers to do well on the DSi," Koller said. The statement conversely touted the PSP platform's "many blockbuster franchises" including Rock Band Unplugged, Assassin's Creed and Dissidia Final Fantasy, and ability to target "diverse demographics." As it claimed a 50 million PSP userbase, Sony recently unveiled its 2009 lineup for the handheld, including a line of casual Petz games from Ubisoft, a portable version of Media Molecule's PS3-exclusive LittleBigPlanet, and and a Hannah Montana bundle with lilac-colored hardware. UPDATE: In a statement to Gamasutra, Nintendo responds: "Nintendo has demonstrated with both Nintendo DS and Wii that we make games and experiences for everyone, regardless of age or gender. Nintendo DSi will have a full range of experiences available, so that everyone from 5 to 95 can enjoy themselves and have fun."