Sony Sparks Gamers' Midnight Buys

First "Star Wars" movies, then Harry Potter books. Now, Sony Corp.'s new PlayStation Portable is getting the midnight-release treatment reserved for the most hyped of pop culture products.

What remains to be seen is whether the handheld entertainment system can live up to consumer expectations — and whether Sony has manufactured enough to meet demand.

Sony had stocked North American retailers with 1 million units for Thursday's launch, and many stores scheduled midnight hours to meet demand from gamers, the company said Wednesday.

Sony hopes the sleek, portable system — which allows users to play games, view movies and pictures and listen to digital audio — will transcend the traditional young, male gaming demographic.

Both storefront and online retailers have taken pre-orders for the system since it was announced in September. And Sony has sold more than 1.2 million units in Japan since the system's launch there on Dec. 12.

"We will have 1 million units on store shelves starting tonight at midnight, and expect them to sell those units very quickly," said Sony spokesman Patrick Seybold. "We have additional supplies, even if the initial units are sold out on the first day."

By the middle of the year, the company plans to increase production to 2 million units per month.

Retailers saw similar demand when Nintendo's $150 dual-screen handheld hit the U.S. market in November, selling out its initial 2 million units worldwide.

The PSP Value Pack will retail for a suggested price of $250. That buys the gaming unit, stereo headphones, a 32-megabyte Memory Stick Duo, battery and charger, a wrist strap, a soft carrying case and a Universal Media Disc featuring the movie "Spider-Man 2."

A library of about 17 games — down from the 24 originally promised — will be available at launch, with titles from developers Electronic Arts, Konami and others. Prices will be in the $40 range.

GameStop spokeswoman Lori Milovich said most of the chain's approximately 1,800 outlets were planning midnight launches or early openings. Best Buy stores nationwide were opening two hours early for the release, with plans to issue tickets to customers waiting in line to buy the new handheld system.