PSP Comic Viewer Review
In hopes to turn the PSP into an all powerful super device, The PSP’s latest firmware has added a Digital Comic Book Viewer to the device along with a comic book section to the PSN Store. After you select the viewer from the new “Extras” section, you will have to download the viewer before you can start checking out the comics.
The main interface is simple and helpful allowing you to view your entire collection, just the new additions, or the comics you have yet to read; beyond that you can even sort by the comic series and genre. After you finally selected your comic, you get to the most important part: reading it. The comic viewers fuctions are actually quite impressive starting with the simple but nice ability to listen to the music on your PSP while you use the comic viewer. The best way to read the comic is using the “AutoFlow” fuction that with the click of the left and right direction button takes you smoothy throughout the panels so you read the story in the order. The Autoflow also allows for deeper story interactions then just reading the physical comic as it seperate different aspects of the panel or page as they should be viewed. During one comic, I clicked the right button and it zoomed on the panel to show the back of a rabbit standing in the snow, then the screen moved to show the rest of the panel and revealed the bunny was watching a man in the snow. Another good use of the “AutoFlow’ system happened later in the same comic in which a large explosion in the comic resulted in the page shaking on the screen. These simple tricks help create a great feel for the story.
While the AutoFlow is the best way to view the comic, some people may want to read it their own way and the Comic Viewer allows for that. You can zoom in and out using the left and right trigger as well as panning around the comic and the up and down direction buttons flip the page. This is helpful for when the Autoflow misses small parts of scenery when moving from speech bubble to speech bubble. Once you are done panning around, you can snap back to the panel with a tap of the triangle button.
How does it compare to actual comics books? The Digital Comics offer portability since you can store hundreds of comics on your PSP and take them wherever you go. The AutoFlaw definately adds to the story and allows you to focus on one panel at a time, but I noticed small areas that weren’t shown due to their lack of story aspects. The panning works but doesn’t compare to simply moving your eyes along a page. The most disappointing part of the Digital Comics comes from the buying side, with their current selection of comics being rather small and the average price at $1.99, saving you just a buck from buying the physical book. I like the viewer itself, but at that price I would only use for the free comics and special issues available only online.
