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"PlayStation Vita? What's That?"

If you bother to read the OP, it's more of a shot towards Sony rather than the Vita itself.
That, or just lamenting it's sorry state.

Though either a thread bashing it or a thread lamenting it isn't more appreciated, I guess there could be at least one of either each day.
I think it would have helped, I'm surprised they having pumped their chest about the remote play stuff more in general. Though at the same time, being an accessory to an already $400 machine is still not going to break out of a small niche.
Well, Wii U Game Pad it isn't. Wii U Game Pad seems like it'd work under most normal living conditions, but the remote play collapses on itself if you're playing in a tight area with enough wi-fi noise surrounding you, like apartments or (smaller?) townhouses. Hell, this affects the Wii U too, but at least then you could still use it within the same room typically so it serves its purpose for when the TV is occupied or needs to be off, or if it's in the bedroom.
 
Not surprising. Same situation with the Wii U. No one knows what that thing is.

Though I will say with the high popularity of the PS4, at least the Playstation brand is still relevant. With the Wii U, the Wii name is dead. Nintendo have to move on from it.

Also with everyone mistaking the Vita for a PSP, maybe they should have just called it PSP2, since apparently the PSP name is still relevant enough to stick in people's heads.
 
SCEA is just leaving the poor handheld die a slow death. I wonder what's the point of announcing 3 exclusives few weeks ago. Either the install base is profitable enough for those games and Sony just served their niche, or the new SCEA president preparing for a new strategy (hopefully) later this year.
 
As long as you don't hang out with anime fans, this might left people even more puzzled.

Nah, Persona isn't mainstream enough. FFX works because "it's a game you know is good, but on the go!".

Between them they're my two favorite games on Vita though. Probably throw in Danganronpa at third.

Haha, not necessarily talking about the best way to pitch it to others, just how I've personally used mine.
 
I personally think calling it the Vita was a very bad idea.

They had a bit of brand recognition with "PSP". The name was quite well known in the west.
Why change the name to a device in a niche market and make it even HARDER for people to pick one up? Stupid.

This coming from someone who paid $500 to get the Vita/ Uncharted/ memory card bundle early from Japan when it launched and still loves the system.
 
Why didn't they just call it the PSP2 or something? PSP had reasonable brand awareness at least.



Last week I broke my vita charger.

Called Eb games (Australia's Gamestop), and 5 other gaming stores and department stores. None of them had any in any of their stores and didn't know when they would be getting them it.

I thought this was really weird!

Ended up having to get one on eBay.

Surely a Vita charger shouldn't be that hard to find.


FYI, use a galaxy tab USB converter and you can charge your vita with a normal USB charger
 
tbh, the PSP->NGP->Vita thing was dumb. PSP2 should have just been the name, end of story. They had been successful with the PSX (then PS1) to PS2 to PS3 to now PS4... so why change things up on the portable side? :/
 
Not surprising. Same situation with the Wii U. No one knows what that thing is.
Fortunately Vita is a handheld platform. Even with such small install base, publishers and Sony themselves keep localized titles from Japan which means its probably big enough to recoup the costs. While Wii U being a Hd console doesnw have that luxury of cheap development cost.
 
Ah well, it's not like any amount of marketing is gonna save Vita, really.

The *biggest* problem for Vita and 3DS right now is the assault of the smartphones/tablets. So long as the general public still riding its wave, Vita and 3DS will have no chance.

Saddens me since I love traditional gaming way more than smartphone gaming, but eh, it is what it is :////////
 
Last week I broke my vita charger.

Called Eb games (Australia's Gamestop), and 5 other gaming stores and department stores. None of them had any in any of their stores and didn't know when they would be getting them it.

I thought this was really weird!

Ended up having to get one on eBay.

Surely a Vita charger shouldn't be that hard to find.

They're way too expensive here in New Zealand too, no wonder nobody buys them. I want one but I am not paying nearly double the price of a 2DS for one.

We haven't had an announcement for the LCD model either down here I don't think. Sony don't care.
 
Ah well, it's not like any amount of marketing is gonna save Vita, really.

The *biggest* problem for Vita and 3DS right now is the assault of the smartphones/tablets. So long as the general public still riding its wave, Vita and 3DS will have no chance.

Saddens me since I love traditional gaming way more than smartphone gaming, but eh, it is what it is :////////
Well, if people literally don't know it exists that doesn't help matters.

But then again part of that is needing to reach past a critical breaking point, and the tablet/smartphone explosion can be that kind of barrier, and Sony doesn't exactly have the power IPs Nintendo has to break through. Or the price point. And as noted it really should've been kept as PSP2; it may've waned in its later years, but I half expect it was more successful even at that low point than the Vita's ever been. Plus it'd been out on the market for, what, 7 years by the time the Vita hit? When it's secondary to console gaming for the hardcore ofcourse it was going to dwindle by then.
 
Come on, Dave, you know the story in the NA. So last month it was maybe 20k, and the month before that around 14k. Does it really change anything? Is Sony doing just fine marketing this thing?

Edited my post for precision anyways ;)
Dude, I'm not bashing you, I'm just saying it's interesting that it sold 10k in one month and now 'it sells 10k a month' which implies an ongoing state. The truth isn't all that much better (between 15 and 20k in the US usually).


I don't live in the US so I don't know how well or badly SCEA is marketing the Vita. I know Sony sponsored The Simpsons over here in the UK for a while and it still sells like shit, so I don't want to necessarily assume the marketing is at fault.

I think it's a bit like the Wii U. Sure, there are plenty of people that don't know what it is. Those people don't really care though, and they aren't going to run out and buy one just because you put it under their nose.

That said, I've sold a few Vitas in my circle, so you never know ;)
 
Meanwhile, they're 249 NZD here with a 16GB card and a bunch of Lego games (although ironically PSP ones). Some places even chucked in Tearaway. Selling like hotcakes. I was quite surprised. I wonder if it's just stock clearing to make way for the 2000. Either way, Vita gets more love than the 3DS.

Sometimes I feel like I live in Backwardsland.

Also, yes, anecdotal. So take it as commentary only on my city and not the whole place.

Still, Backwardsland.
 
Last week I broke my vita charger.

Called Eb games (Australia's Gamestop), and 5 other gaming stores and department stores. None of them had any in any of their stores and didn't know when they would be getting them it.

I thought this was really weird!

Ended up having to get one on eBay.

Surely a Vita charger shouldn't be that hard to find.

At least yours still seem to have a dedicated Vita something. My GameStop just has it in the same small shelf as the PSP. 5 different new retail titles and 10 used Vita games total (I counted!). I'm not even sure if you can buy a new Vita there. I only saw some used ones on the shelf.

WiiU at least still has its own shelf dedicated to it, with the Premium Bundles prominently displayed. Actually it had as much shelf space as the PS4 and more than the Xbox One.
 
Meanwhile, they're 249 NZD here with a 16GB card and a bunch of Lego games (although ironically PSP ones). Some places even chucked in Tearaway. Selling like hotcakes. I was quite surprised. I wonder if it's just stock clearing to make way for the 2000. Either way, Vita gets more love than the 3DS.

Sometimes I feel like I live in Backwardsland.

Also, yes, anecdotal. So take it as commentary only on my city and not the whole place.

Still, Backwardsland.

Where!? $249 and I'd jump on one. Warehouse has them for $329 still, no way I am paying that.
 
Dude, I'm not bashing you, I'm just saying it's interesting that it sold 10k in one month and now 'it sells 10k a month' which implies an ongoing state. The truth isn't all that much better (between 15 and 20k in the US usually).


I don't live in the US so I don't know how well or badly SCEA is marketing the Vita. I know Sony sponsored The Simpsons over here in the UK for a while and it still sells like shit, so I don't want to necessarily assume the marketing is at fault.

I think it's a bit like the Wii U. Sure, there are plenty of people that don't know what it is. Those people don't really care though, and they aren't going to run out and buy one just because you put it under their nose.

That said, I've sold a few Vitas in my circle, so you never know ;)

I don't know if I've ever seen a commercial here in NA for the Vita. Maybe when it launched but I don't remember. Meanwhile at least the squirrel, and 'lifestyle' ads were somewhat memorable.
 
Haven't read all the posts (being honest) EDIT: Now I have.

But these threads got annoying with the Wii U. It's annoying with the Vita too.
It's not the beginning of these two systems' lives anymroe, their fate is pretty much sealed...

That said, I've sold a few Vitas in my circle, so you never know ;)

I hope Sony's compensated you for increasing monthly sales by 340%.

jk
 
Dude, I'm not bashing you, I'm just saying it's interesting that it sold 10k in one month and now 'it sells 10k a month' which implies an ongoing state. The truth isn't all that much better (between 15 and 20k in the US usually).


I don't live in the US so I don't know how well or badly SCEA is marketing the Vita. I know Sony sponsored The Simpsons over here in the UK for a while and it still sells like shit, so I don't want to necessarily assume the marketing is at fault.

I think it's a bit like the Wii U. Sure, there are plenty of people that don't know what it is. Those people don't really care though, and they aren't going to run out and buy one just because you put it under their nose.

That said, I've sold a few Vitas in my circle, so you never know ;)


hehe

Well, in Europe, for a long time - I don't really know if it's the case anymore - they used to run lengthy Vita commercials during Champion's League matches etc. I don't know if that's part of the reason it's doing a bit better over here. On the other hand the only Game store in the second biggest country in Norway doesn't even have Vita's on display in store anymore :/

Maybe we (as in I) overestimate the importance of marketing. The right product sells itself.
 
Where!? $249 and I'd jump on one. Warehouse has them for $329 still, no way I am paying that.

EB, JB HiFi, and Noel Leeming. The latter doesn't have it on their site, but I saw it today when I picked up BF4. I was surprised. EB Cuba Mall was sold out though. No idea about JB.
 
At least yours still seem to have a dedicated Vita something. My GameStop just has it in the same small shelf as the PSP. 5 different new retail titles and 10 used Vita games total (I counted!). I'm not even sure if you can buy a new Vita there. I only saw some used ones on the shelves.

WiiU at least still has its own shelf dedicated to it, with the Premium Bundles prominently displayed. Actually it had as much shelf space as the PS4 and more than the Xbox One.

Germany? sounds about right :P
 
hehe

Well, in Europe, for a long time - I don't really know if it's the case anymore - they used to run lengthy Vita commercials during Champion's League matches etc. I don't know if that's part of the reason it's doing a bit better over here.

Maybe we (as in I) overestimate the importance of marketing. The right product sells itself.

Has been replaced by PS4 for a long while, even before it launched.
 
If Sony would have bundle the Vita with the PS4, the install base would at least double for the Vita during Nov-Dec.

Then again, they still have time!
Do it Sony, and pull the trigger.
 
I like how one month at 10k has become 10k a month. Just shows important perception is.

even if it was selling more than 10k a month, it sold a total of about 440k-450k in the us in 2013. you want to compare it to anything, the closest you'll get is the sega genesis in 1997. and now it's selling worse in 2014 than even that. those are sega saturn in 1998 numbers. those are actual dead/discontinued system numbers.
 
I'm just getting around to giving my PSP the attention it deserves, I'll jump aboard this "Vita" train or whatever it's called in about 5 years

Nah, I'll pick up a 2k on Black Friday. If Sony starts bundling it with the PS4, then I'm sold even harder
 
Vita's kind of a weird name. Whenever someone sees mine they usually say they didn't know a new PSP had been released.

Edit: The name "PlayStation VITA TV" is goddamn marketing nightmare. Try saying that more than once in a 30 second commercial without sounding like a complete asshole.
 
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guess it depends who is asking
 
America's obsession with tablets really crippled this device.

I love my Vita to pieces, but Sony doesn't have the advertising muscle to fight apple, Google, and Samsung in the US.

Even Nintendo isn't seeing the results it had in the US with the DS. I think it's wise for them to keep targeting Japan, as that's the only location non independent handheld games are being made in, and scrape by with the high attach rates on software.

I don't think a non incremental piece of mobile hardware can flourish in the US anymore.
 
Not long after the release of the Wii U, my brother brought a friend from school over.

His friend saw my gamepad sitting in its charging cradle and said "Wow! Is that Sony's new console?"

Score one for the Vita. :p
 
Is there anyone who isn't completely baffled by the choice to name the thing "Vita"?

I guess they wanted the casuals.


kid20rc1z.gif


guess it depends who is asking

How often do you hang around with japanese boys?

They could jack up the price a little, plus it will make the vita more widespread.

Haven't they got ps4+camera bundles? Why not the vita.

Jacking up the price makes the PS4 less desirable.
 
America's obsession with tablets really crippled this device.

I love my Vita to pieces, but Sony doesn't have the advertising muscle to fight apple, Google, and Samsung in the US.

Even Nintendo isn't seeing the results it had in the US with the DS. I think it's wise for them to keep targeting Japan, as that's the only location non independent handheld games are being made in, and scrape by with the high attach rates on software.

I don't think a non incremental piece of mobile hardware can flourish in the US anymore.

I know they're competing with Google/Apple/Samsung for marketshare, but their marketing of the Vita should not be trying to take on tablets, or present the Vita as an alternative. That's just an automatic losing position.
 
I know they're competing with Google/Apple/Samsung for marketshare, but their marketing of the Vita should not be trying tot take on tablets, or present the Vita as an alternative. That's just an automatic losing position.

And yet for some reason they insist on pushing more half-baked smartphone functionality on to the Vita. Does anyone use the Calendar or Email apps?
 
Not that long ago I was going through my drawer and I located my old PSP. I honestly didn't recognise it since it was so long since I saw it. I was just accustomed to the vita's design and thought the PSP looked very old fashioned, lol.

Thing is I now own a vita 2000 and I'm starting to think the same about dat OLED vita!

Well it still looks nice but damn vita 2k is more pretty ;).
 
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