European Toys R Us Catalog Missing PSP Go

Kris Erickson • Nov 6, 2009 • Comments (1)

Millions of kids all over Europe today received their mega holiday Toys R Us holiday catalogs in the mail. While flipping through its pages looking for items to fill out their wish lists to Santa, there is one thing they won't be able to do - find any information about Sony's PSP Go. We eagerly grabbed our catalog here in Spain when it arrived, and we noticed something strange in the video game section. While Sony has a lot of coverage, there is not a single mention of the new UMD-less handheld.

Sony has four full pages of the catalog dedicated to its systems and games. The aging PS2 console still gets some space, selling for 79.99 Euro bundled with a single DualShock controller. You can grab an old 80 GB PS3 for 269.99 Euros, or a brand new PS3 Slim bundled with PES 2010 and Metal Gear Solid 4 priced at 349 Euros. Singstar and DJ Hero for the PS3 are also heavily promoted in the catalog.

Nintendo's Wii and DS each get a full two-page spread. The DSi is listed alongside the regular DS Lite model for 169.99 Euros.

Oddly, there is not a single reference to Microsoft, the Xbox 360, or its games in the entire Spanish Toys R Us catalog. Unfortunately, the same goes for the PSP GO. There is a fill page devoted to the regular PSP 3000: an Invizimals bundle will sell for 199.99 Euros, and the Hannah Montana Lilac PSP is prominently advertised with the game bundled at 189.99 Euros.

Is Toys R Us Europe boycotting the PSP Go because, like other retailers, it is unhappy with the profit margins on the download-only device? Or has it simply buried the expensive sliding-screen handheld because it is not expected to entice budget-conscious parents this year?

Be sure to check out your local toy store catalogs as they arrive, and let us know what you find. Are retailers promoting the PSP Go, or pretending that it doesn't exist? We'd be especially curious to know what the American Toys R Us catalog looks like, and whether Sony has similar amounts of space devoted to its products in other retail catalogs.