PSP2's existence confirmed - Report

In addition to the apparently leaked pictures of the PlayStation Phone, rumors of the PSP2 have been percolating all year. This week, though, an executive at a major publisher appears to have let slip that the device does in fact exist--and that developers have already been exposed to it.

Yesterday, UK-based gaming site CVG released details from an interview with Patrick Soderlund, senior vice president of Electronic Arts' European operations. While chatting, the interviewer asked the executive whether or not EA had had any "exposure at all to the PSP2?"

"Well, obviously, as a developer we have had that," he admitted, referring to EA's myriad European studios. Then, he quickly added, "But I'm not allowed to talk about it." In September, an unconfirmed report in Develop magazine said that Sony has already widely distributed PSP2 development kits.

Rumors for the PSP2 have bounced around since early 2009, when reports of a new UMD-less device presaged the arrival of the PSP Go reveal at the Electronic Entertainment Expo. More recent reports have the device sporting a larger screen, dual analog sticks, a touch-sensitive pad on its rear, and indeed being UMD-free. Though Sony will not comment on any PSP2 reports, the aforementioned rumor has it arriving during the 2011 holiday season.