Ben-DutkaThe PlayStation Vita isn't selling as well as expected and speculation is widespread: Why is Sony's new portable struggling at retail?
Well, it depends on your definition of "struggling," first of all. Sony has said they're not too far behind internal expectations for the time being, and the handheld did enjoy a solid Black Friday showing . But no matter how you slice it, the system could definitely be faring better.
For the most part, there are three common explanations: 1. Price, 2. Lack of compelling AAA software, and 3. The rapid expansion and proliferation of mobile gaming. The latter is a complex topic and extends beyond the realm of hardcore gamers, so we're going to stick with the first two possible explanations. Remember, this is a unit specifically designed for the avid gamer. So which is the culprit? Do you see the price as being formidable for too many consumers? Is the product simply not worth what it costs? Or is it the software? Some will say the system had a great launch in terms of solid titles, and that's a legitimate argument.
But since then, not much has arrived to help prove to gamers that the Vita is something they need to have. For instance, the two titles this holiday season that were supposed to boost hardware sales were Assassin's Creed III: Liberation and Call of Duty: Black Ops Declassified . One was abysmal and the other was good, but not great. Still, didn't they help Vita sales…? They did to some extent, right? So maybe it has more to do with secret explanation number three: The lack of promotion and heavy marketing. But wait…wasn't I constantly seeing ads for the Black Ops Declassified Vita bundle during November? I think I was.
What's your take on the issue?
Even on an ipod touch you can get only about 30 minutes of play on some games, so I don't understand your point Ishkur.
Last edited by pillz81 on 12/6/2012 11:53:25 AM
5-6 hours is good, that's like flying from west to east coast of the US nonstop.
I'm aware this isn't an issue for alot of people, but for me it isn't alright. It's not better than my psp, and I that just isn't enough for me. Each to his own I guess 🙂
That's fine, but remember the Vita is way more powerful than the PSP. So you are going to need more power which lessens the battery. For what you get with the Vita you have admit 5-6hours of gaming is pretty impressive.
Question, I have never owned the PSP, what is the battery life for it?
No, I agree with that, but I'm not impressed though. Batteries seem to be lagging behind when it comes to tech, and frankly, that's what you would want from a handheld, besides everything else, good battery life. I dno, I guess I'm just waiting on some hyper-core-battery invention.
The battery for my psp is around 5-6 hours, and pro-tip: its AWESOME for emulators! 😀
For me its the lack of a system seller. Sure if I had one there are a few games I'd get, but it really needs one or 2 great or amazing games. Problem is; devs won't make games for an low install base, potential customers won't buy it if there's no games and the cycle just repeats itself. The only real way out is if Sony bites the bullet and has a price drop asap! And they should also bitr the bullet and either make their own must have game or pay devs money to make games for it. Another problem is so far we get smaller versions of console games, what I want are new vita ips and a few original games from existing franchises, examples include: an infamous game, a final fantasy, a red dead, a GTA, a Bethesda game, a _____ souls game from from software, a mgs game.. even ports of existing games would be Ok, say fallout 3 port or skyrim, rdr, GTA 5 infamous 2, mgs ground zeros, and how about a ni no kuni port?.. and I'd kill for dark souls on the go. And for the love of god, JRPGs!
Long story short a price drop. The 3ds didn't take off until Nintendo dropped he price. When a potential handheld buyer goes to a store 9 times out of 10 a person is gonna get the 3ds, its cheaper and has imo better games.
~Wrote
Last edited by Wrote on 12/6/2012 7:33:31 AM
The Vita is priced right for the tech under the hood. There are plenty of great games. But killer games for me may not be killer games for other gamers.
I believe it's the price, maybe not the $250 price tag but the price of the memory cards. It's not mobile gaming because all you have to do is take one look at the 3DS sales figures which are amazing!
Cut the price of the memory cards in half and get a huge mainstream game on the Vita and it will take off. Monster Hunter, Final Fantasy or Resident Evil would do it. Here's the catch, these AAA games have to, HAVE TO be AAA quality games. I am thoroughly enjoying ACIIIL and think it's an impressive game on a handheld. So I think they did a great job with ACIIIL. There are a lot of critics that don't think they did a great job on ACIIIL. CoD, no, they failed miserably. If they would have given it to a proven studio and gave them another 6 months and actually called it BOII Declassified with Zombies the Vita would have exploded. Killzone Mercenary could be that killer game, but it is exclusive. They need a game that X360, Nintendo and Playstation gamers are hooked on. A multiplatform juggernaut that cannot be bought anywhere else. P4G is great but it also has been on a prior console.
I know it's a marathon not a sprint. But they need to take Vita games more seriously.
Very true on your statement. The funny thing about it is that those few people that complain about pricing go out and buy and iPhone every year or an iPad. It is true that they have $1 games on those systems but they aren't very good. Also, others complaining about the lack of memory when the 3ds also comes with 4 gig memory card with the system. Just one is priced a bit higher, but you do get quality with the vita. I'm loving liberation it is a pretty good game :).
I agree with you. I always agree with you! LOL! I am loving ACIIIL but have stopped playing it as I fear the save game bug will hit me. Ubisoft is working on a patch so when that patch comes out I will finish it.
People don't say anything about the 3DS and their memory cards because they are cheaper and Nintendo already did a price cut. The 3DS isn't even worth $169.99. They really skimped on a lot of tech as they did with the WiiU. They had a chance to right the ship with the XL and failed with that as well. The big screen is awesome but why not incorporate the Circle Pad Pro into the 3DS XL and have twin sticks in non-awkward location!!!?
I kind of keep everything on the cloud with plus. So if for whatever reason it gets screwed up I'll just download my save from the cloud lol. Luckily enough I have yet to have that problem *knocks on wood*. I do enjoy the 3DS but not anywhere close to the vita. The lack of a few things missing from the system. I kept thinking that when the new revision was released that we were gonna have two analogs and yet it didn't happen. So you have to buy something extra and like you have said before not all games support it. It defeats the purpose in them trying to compete with the vita and both analogs.
Duuuhhh, LOL, I should do the same thing with ACIIIL! Obviously wasn't thinking about having my saves already on the cloud. Thanks for the tip as I am itching to play ACIIIL.
I know, the 3DS XL was such an exciting idea. I was like could Nintendo actually do it right this time. Unfortunately no. I am not a Nintendo hater, I just don't agree with the direction they have taken.
Handhelds just don't appeal to me to be honest. Vita had me intrigued though but the price is just too high for me. It would be justifiable if there were some good games and far more memory included. Yet with the lack of those essentials along with the price just further confirmed why I stay away from handhelds. Besides, money dropped on a Vita could be money I can put aside for a next gen console..
I hear this all the time. All I can say is if you buy a Vita Wifi bundle with a game and 4GB card for $250 you can make it work. You can even make a 4GB card work with the IGC! You just have to play one game at a time. Or if you are half way through a game and want to try Gravity Rush for instance, you can then just backup your saved games up to the cloud, delete the game and download the new game you are interested in. Every Vita game will fit on the 4GB memory card. Of course you have to be a PS+ member to utilize the cloud saves. But with all the free PS3 and Vita games Sony offers who isn't a PS+ member by now. Also, a lot of these bundles offer 3 months or a 1 year PS+ membership free. I can respect your opinion, just wanted to give you some more facts and information. It's really not as expensive as you think.
Last edited by CrusaderForever on 12/6/2012 10:09:39 AM
You know, I saw that on the PS Store when checking if any new games were available for Plus members. Think I saw about 5 free Vita downloads. I didn't check out the size of the download though. Sounds like you've been through the method you stated a few times. So I trust your opinion in regards to that.
Personally I just rather not do all of that just to continue to play. I also don't like deleting the free games I get from Plus either. Having a tough time doing that on my PS3 itself b/c I pretty much snag everything possible. Given what you said I guess it just comes down to price for me then. I'm weary of dropping $250 on a handheld when I know a new Xbox or PS4 will be releasing soon
Fair enough, some more information, not sure if you know this or not. You can pseudo download all PS3 and Vita IGC games without actually downloading them. Right before you actually download you cancel and the purchased Playstation red icon will appear next to it showing you now own that game as long as your a PS+ member.
For me in my current financial state, it's the price. Specifically the memory cards. After I'd buy a bundle plus the 32GB memory card I'm spending well over $300 on a new system.
Speaking for the majority, I think that it's a combination of all 3 of the reasons Ben listed. Specifically, I don't think there is a market for this type of product as big as Sony would like to think. It's marketed as "console-quality games on the go" but yet it's biggest holiday titles (AC Liberation and CoD Blops) are not even as good (and in CoD case, no where near as good) as their console counter parts. I think people are content paying LESS for a Xbox 360 or PS3 system than they are shelling out more for a portable system. I think Sony has done an awful job at marketing the Vita and estimating how the market would react to such a powerful piece of hardware.
Casual gamers aren't going to care much about what's under the hood of a Vita if the price was about the same for 360 and PS3 bundles this past Black Friday.
Add in the fact taht most people that play portable games just do it on their phones and you have a system that just might not do as well as expected.
Total agreement with you. I thought it was premature of Sony to come out with this device especially with their problems with the PSP. Mobile gaming is completely different than it was 5 years ago and the Vita hasn't factored this in.
I think its probably $50 more expensive than most people would consider and also the memory card <s>scam</s> prices are too high.
I would have bought one if I wanted it. I paid over $800 for my girlfriends iPad. If there was a reason to buy a Vita, I would have bought one. Although, the price of the memory does piss me off. Perhaps enough not to buy on principle, but there is still no reason to get a vita so even if they dropped the price of the memory sticks, I'm still not buying one.
There's no time when I would use a Vita. I wouldn't pull it out while waiting to be seated. I wouldn't pull it out in any scenario that I'd pull out my iPhone instead. Even on a plane I'd rather watch a movie on an iPad or play one of those silly games.
I wouldn't use a vita at home when I've got a PS3 and a TV.
There's just no point to the vita. In order for the vita to have been successful it would have needed to do something unique that you couldn't do anywhere else. Actually it would have needed to do everything that every other gadget can do plus do something that only it can do.
It would have been a good idea to treat it like apple treats their products too, like an accessory that people want to carry, even if they don't know why.
No reason to own a Vita? So you are not interested in playing Vita only games or franchise iterations of Gravity Rush, Uncharted Golden Abyss, Little Big Planet, Ragnarok Odyssey, Tear Away, Killzone Mercenary, Unit 13, Resistance Burning Skies, Silent Hill Book of Memories, Zero Escape, Dokuro, ACIIIL, Soul Sacrifice, Mutant Blob, Hot Shots Golf, Dynasty Warriors Next, Sumioni and Escape Plan? All of these games are Vita only. I mean for instance their stories, golf courses and race tracks are only on Vita. Also, PS1 and PSP games look way better on the Vita OLED.
Now if you are saying you just don't like handhelds then I can respect that. But saying there is no reason to buy a Vita doesn't make any sense.
iPad comparison is a bad one. You wouldn't have spent that $800 if you were buying it only for games. Nobody does that.
There is a point to the Vita, Monkeysnarf. You just don't see it. Just like I don't see a point to the ipad and its tablet ilk.
Why would I want to buy an $800 accessory? That is one expensive accessory, even with all the things it can do. I don't have that kind of money. That's why I have a Vita, even with a game price point of $30-$50.
The Vita is my accesory.
@CrusaderForever
For all those games you listed for Vita, there is a BETTER one on PS3. So, sitting at home, would we prefer to stare down at the Vita and play games or sit in front of the PS3+HDTV and play a comparable game? Remember, most people don't have the money to buy every game out there and have to make choices. So, AC3 or AC liberation? R3 or R:BS? Plus, almost all of those games has lower scores than their console counterparts.
MonkeyScarf is making a fair point. The average person will not see a need for a Vita. And we all know Sony (and everyone else) want's the casual gamer. That market has to be ceded to mobile gaming in my opinion. Now, if Sony wanted in with them, they should have made a cell phone that could do what the vita does. But, I think that is asking way to much. Can't be all things to all people. Vita is a fine piece of hardware. Like I said below, Sony needs to figure out who they want their market to be and then act accordingly.
Last edited by JoebooSauce on 12/6/2012 2:42:22 PM
Joeboo: Sony isn't going after the casual market with the Vita. They made that plain from the outset; they're targeting the hardcore gamer.
At the same time, it's a portable device. It's not supposed to compete with the PS3 for your play time; one is portable and one isn't. Of course few are going to opt to play the Vita when they've got the PS3 sitting there; they're at HOME. The Vita is for top-quality on-the-go gaming, a level that any other mobile gaming device cannot aspire to.
The vita is a hard core gaming device. When would I need a portable hard core gaming device? At work, gym, home? None of those places are good for hard core gaming. Work and the gym are out of the question, some times I can slip in some light gaming on my iPhone. At home then? Why would I need a portable hard core gaming device when I have non portable hard core gaming devices at home that do a better job.
I could see, maybe if I had a long commute to work (which I do) but I didn't have to drive myself (which is not the case). Then I could almost see a need for a hard core gaming device. But in that scenario, you're back to what everyone else said about there being no software to support it.
There's just no point to it. It's too big to accidentally take it everywhere. So you'll have to purposely make the decission to bring it with you, when you leave the house. It doesn't do anything cool other than play games, that every other portable device does better. It's not unique.
They really should have given it the ability to make calls, exclusively through a speaker phone or blue tooth. Plus they should have put a forward facing camera on it and made video calling the standard.
I have the first PSP and the PSP Go. Although I never used the PSP Go for anything. (I did take it out of the box though.) I used to use the psp to play games and watch movies on airplanes, but now there are better solutions for that. I haven't used an exclusively portable gaming device since sometime before 2008. I would have loved to buy a Vita, but since I never used the GO, I just couldn't see what I'd do with a Vita. There's just no point to them anymore.
… And this right here is what I talk about, Ben.
Monkeysnarf describes how he thinks as a consumer and a gamer. And this is how the vast majority of gamers think of the Vita today. There's just no room for it – not anymore.
And *that* is the core problem for Sony. Not the price, not the software.
Last edited by Beamboom on 12/7/2012 8:22:42 AM
I take mine everywhere. Always have a chance to play a quick game or so no matter what I am doing. A quick level in unit 13, a quick fight in all stars. So yes, people have their reasonings and to me it seems that you have outgrown that necessity to carry a portable device as well as a phone. There are so many games whether they are ports or not that I can't get anywhere else, that is what I enjoy. Sony has built a great machine and have advertised it well. Towards someone like myself. I know everyone has spoken about this to death but please play a few games on a vita and you'll be a convert. A lot of the flak I have seen around here about the vita comes with no actual experience with it.
I'd say that it's the price of the unit because of the lack of great titles. Because it doesn't a bunch of epic titles the price is just a little too high. I've had one and it's a great little unit. I got rid of mine because i honestly don't have enough time to play games on the go as much as i'd like to.
Off topic: One software I am waiting for with bated breath is Crackle. When the hell is that coming?
neither price nor the games lineup is doing the Vita any favors right now, but I lean towards the latter as the bigger issue. $250 for a REALLY nice handheld is not outrageous (I've seen $200 sales, with pack-ins, all over the place the last few weeks too) but since there are so many other, far more affordable options on mobile devices, Sony and their third party partners need to REALLY knock the lineup out of the park to get people on board with taking the plunge. Lower price will help, but God of War, Gran Turismo, Final Fantasy, etc. all need to make an appearance to really get the system any traction, as do unique franchises you can't find anywhere else that really show what the Vita can do.
I pulled the trigger on one for sh(*&ts and grins when the AC3 bundle hit Amazon for 179.00. Took me off the fence post because I REALLY dont need another system. The PS plus free games was another factor. I think we are going to see this little gem grow.You know how Sony goes. Not to be bias, but I own everything and I never put my hands on a Vita before I bought it. I am 100% happy with the purchase and will wait paitiently for titles to roll out.I will be very selective on what I buy.
I love my Vita. I am patient enough to wait for more games. This system beats anything else out there for mobility. I do believe that if storage card prices were lowered, it would sell better….but I am still buying games left and right. I know good stuff…and Vita is all that.
No open world games, nothing AAA.
Gravity rush and AC3 liberation say hi.
Sandboxes are a start but not a world.
Depends on what you mean by open world. Both sandbox and open world go hand in hand. Fallout 3 and AC3 liberation are considered open world. So is gta, any of them, but some people label it as sandbox. They both have their limitations and are still in the same general area.
Lack of upcoming quality titles?
Day one for me
http://blog.us.playstation.com/2012/12/03/ps-vitas-soul-sacrifice-leviathan-and-ghost-mode-revealed/
This will keep me busy for awhaile.
It's a bit of all three points. The mobile competition is big and I think such a platform should be geared toward the "hardcore gamer" before any mass market. Once it builds to a critical mass with hardcore support, then people start to take note and the mass market may opt in. Mobile gaming is good enough for most. Dedicated mobile gaming machines are not what most want to carry around. So they will stick to a home console.
I think the price would be fine if there were MUST HAVE games. I like uncharted but the game did not have that grab factor that #2 had. COD and AC? Need I say more?
Lower price if your games aren't able to draw people in. At that point, needs to be evaluated whether or not you should even produce such a product. Don't get me wrong, I like the Vita, but its not strong enough to get strong sales that Sony wants. And I won't get into overpriced memory cards while Sony wants to encourage digital games. How the hell did they come up with that failed strategy??? The average person does not want to cart around cartridges…
Off topic, but is this a record for the amount of comments made to an editorial by PSXE? 80+ and counting.
Comments have made it over a couple hundred before.
not sure if Sony did not sell 'a lot' of Vita units over the black Friday weekend, but all of the Target stores that carried the AC bundle with the limited white Vita were sold out of all of their stock in the entire SF Bay Area as of noon Saturday.
More AAA titles that offer cross play functionality with PS3 counterparts will definitely sell more units, as well as additional good third party games
The main reasons why I'm not getting a Vita are:
-Lack of UMD drive.
-No haptic feedback vibration.
-Way too f*n expensive proprietary memory cards.
-No damages resistant screen.
-No IrDA.
-No HDMI-out.
-Stupid CMA that won't let you transfer shit unless you're connected to Sony servers all the time.
Last edited by Josuemental on 12/10/2012 8:36:25 PM
I think that a lack of AAA titles is a major problem for the PS vita. Well, Sony got some pretty heavy hitter coming for the vita next year.
I say there is nothing wrong with a few ports. Until the AAA titles start rolling in.
Ninja Gaiden 2 sigma would be just what the doctor ordered.:)