Sony to Con PSPs

Though several fighting games are already out for the PSP, October will see an all-new brawler step into the portable ring, Sony Computer Entertainment America announced today. Called The Con, the game is being developed at SCEA's Santa Monica studio, and it has not yet been rated or priced.

As described in GameSpot's hands-on preview of the game, The Con puts a gritty spin on the fighting genre. It's set in an underworld of no-holds-barred bouts and high-stakes gambling. Players will create a fighter who will specialize in one of five combat styles: boxing, wrestling, kickboxing, tae kwon do, or jeet kune do.

In the game's story mode, players will train their fighters solo or in a team of three, which increases the game's strategic element. Players can also engage in straight head-to-head matches in ad hoc multiplayer, which will support up to two players.

The Con also has several features not found in most other fighting games. First is the addition of gambling, which will let players bet on their own fights--fights they can then deliberately lose to win big. The game also sports an "image import" feature that will let players import photos from a PC (via the PSP's Memory Stick Duo) to add to their in-game characters.

For more on The Con and the latest batch of first-party Sony games, check out GameSpot's complete coverage of SCEA's Pre-E3 Event.