Satisfaction with the Sony PSP — short for Playstation Portable — seems to depend on what one is looking for in a portable game system.

Released in North America less than two weeks ago, the PSP is Sony’s first foray into the portable video game market.

According to a Sony press release, the PSP is “the first-ever integrated portable entertainment system designed to provide consumers with a comprehensive entertainment experience including games, music, movies, communication and wireless networking.”

Because of the versatile functionality of the PSP, its suggested retail price is $249.99, making it the most expensive game system on the market.

Chris Johnson, store manager of Hastings, 620 Lincoln Way, says price is the main issue with the PSP.

“On the PSP launch night, it was pretty quiet,” Johnson says. “There was about six people. I think people really are going to look at the price first over the features of the system.”

So far, Johnson says the PSP has been a steady seller.

“It’s been selling better than the Nintendo DS,” Johnson says. “And all the PSP games have sold very well.”

Although the price might deter some, Mark Klein, senior in computer engineering, was one of the early adopters of the system.

“I went to Hastings at the midnight launch of the PSP,” Klein says. “There weren’t as many people there compared to when the [Playstation 2] was launched, but I think that might have to do with the timing of the release. The PS2 was available around Christmas time.”

Klein says he did believe the price of the PSP was “a bit steep.”

“Actually, a lot of my friends are waiting for a price drop,” he says. “Most of them are waiting for it to drop down to around $200.”

Despite the price, Klein says he was convinced to buy a PSP because of the system’s versatility and “amazing screen.”

“I think the first thing I noticed with the PSP was the screen,” he says. “It’s huge — and clear. The graphics are amazing, close to PS2-level. Also, there’s a lot you can do with this system. Besides playing games, you can listen to MP3s and watch converted video files.”

Packed in with the first million launch systems was a copy of the 2004 film “Spider-Man 2” on UMD — short for Universal Media Disc — PSP’s main storage medium. Klein says he was impressed with the movie.

“The movie really showed off the screen quality — I think it was pretty much equal to DVD,” Klein says.

Nothing is perfect, however — three main complaints have been levied against the PSP: dead pixels in the screen, button problems and low battery life. Johnson says there has been a problem of several people with dead pixels on their systems.

Klein says his system is problem-free.

“The system did take a bit getting used to,” he says.

“Mainly, the size and the sharp corners on the back. Really, though, I don’t have any major gripes with the system. People do complain about the battery life, but I don’t have any problem with it — although, it would be nice if there was some sort of warning telling me the battery is low. I’d be playing a game and all of a sudden the system switches to standby mode.”

Klein says because of Sony’s past success in the game console market, they also have a decent chance at cracking the portable market.

“Sony came out of nowhere and now they’re leading in the console market,” Klein says.