Oblivion coming to PS3 and...PSP? Source: A poster on the widely read Gaming Age forums.
The official story: See below.
What we heard: Though they recently underwent a facelift, the Gaming Age forums have long been a place where game-industry insiders go to exchange ideas. It's also a place where a lot of pranksters float rumors, and one doozy rose to the surface this week--and was reproduced in many more mainstream media outlets.
This morning, a thread began underneath the title "Oblivion to be PS3 launch title!...and a PSP version?" The poster claims to have received a "release list" from Bethesda Softworks, developer of Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion. Though the wildly popular role-playing game is currently only available for the Xbox 360 and PC, the poster claims the list ends with two new products: "PS3 Oblivion" and "PSP Oblivion," both due on November 6, 2006.
As one might expect, the post elicited a barrage of Nelson Munz-worthy "HA-HAs" from the anti-Microsoft crowd. Indeed, a PlayStation Portable and PlayStation 3 version of Oblivion would be a blow to the software giant, since the critically lauded title is seen as an Xbox 360 system-seller and has been a shot in the arm for PC-game sales.
But once the fanboyism subsided, serious debate began about whether or not the post was legit. Some dismissed it on the grounds that the PSP doesn't have the processing power to re-create Oblivion's massive, graphically intense environments. Others pointed out how Grand Theft Auto: Liberty City Stories managed to faithfully pack Grand Theft Auto III's sprawling metropolis onto a UMD--putting a very truncated version of Oblivion's Cyrodil within the realm of possibility.
A PSP Oblivion also wouldn't be the first time the traditionally Xbox and PC-focused Bethesda has published a portable Elder Scrolls. The Elder Scrolls Travels: Shadowkey shipped for the N-Gage in fall 2004, and The Elder Scrolls Travels: Stormhold and The Elder Scrolls Travels: Dawnstar were released for mobile phones in 2003 and 2004. Bethesda also already has plans to publish a PSP game, Star Trek: Tactical Assault, later this year.
So is a PS3 port and PSP spin-off of Oblivion in the works? For now, the answer is officially "no." "At present we have no announced plans to bring Oblivion to any other platforms than PC or Xbox 360," was the carefully worded response from Bethesda. "We'll certainly let folks know if that changes."
Bogus or not bogus?: Officially? Bogus for the time being. Unofficially? It's within the realm of possibility.
http://www.gaming-age.com/news/2006/4/25-51
