Support NeoGAF

[patsu]

It's the drop off that got people talking. They only need to show increasing and sustaining sales, plus an interesting future for dedicated handheld gaming. The root problem is people can't imagine anything exciting beyond 3DS's price + library, and iOS/Android versatility and openess (in Android's case). Sony has to show them. The Vita hardware is sexy but the business model and games look samey. The good Vita features are not that obvious unless you have played with one in person.

EDIT:
It looks like 3DS failed to attract consumers based on innovation (3D screen), and fell back on the same old low price + popular franchises to save itself. It strikes a chord with its existing user base, and DS got cannibalized in the process. Originally 3DS was priced above DS to complement the latter. They have abandoned that line of thought.

On the iOS and Android side, they represent the insurgents with disruptive prices and unprecedented convenience + versatility.

Sony need to find a compelling and unique position to pin Vita down, and deliver the software/contents. Once consumers understand and appreciate the value, they should be ok.

 

[brotkasten]

It has to beat Nintendo's portable for a long stretch of time, ideally more than a few months in a row or something worldwide

Can't we exclude the weeks where a new Pokemon or Mario game comes out? Because that's not really fair.

 

[patsu]

I used to buy lots of Sony products from 1995-2001 but then other companies were offering more, longer lasting products for the same price.

My Sony devices last as long as Samsung, Apple, Toshiba, Sennheiser, etc.

They have SKUs that are in the same ballpark price, or more costly than the other devices you mentioned. You should shop around more.

 

[Opiate]

I don't know about "It's there for the taking", but I'd agree that I think Sony should be a one machine company in this business, like Xbox is. The handhelds have too many weaknesses and aspects that doesn't fit Sony's agenda.

I strongly disagree with this. What is your evidence that this doesn't fit Sony's agenda? Because I believe Sony's agenda is to create a highly successful, perhaps monopolistic convergence device -- a notion they explicitly alluded to less than a decade ago. The "trojan horse" that the PS2/PS3 were supposed to be. Do you disagree that this is their goal? Because if you agree, it seems very clear to me that the future of such devices is not in home consoles, and is instead in portable electronics. Virtually all evidence suggests consumer sentiment is heading in that direction. If Sony wants the convergence device of the future, they must go portable.

 

[Sammy Samusu]

Can't we exclude the weeks where a new Pokemon or Mario game comes out? Because that's not really fair.

That's competition dude.

And Vita does not need to sell more than the 3DS to be a success.

 

[cametall]

What the hell are people playing on their phones that replaces what dedicated handheld systems offer? I didn't think Angry Birds or Cut the Rope were that engaging.

Link and Ganon better watch out, they may get replaced by a bird and an egg stealing pig that cut ropes to get candy.

 

[charlequin]

I agree with this, but I also believe that there are a large number of people who will overlook the deficiencies of iOS gaming because of the fact they are getting complete multi-function devices instead of something dedicated only to gaming.

Well, right. That's exactly the reason that phones and tablets are an assault on the most casual, low-investment end of the gaming market. (The fact that the lion's share of phone/tablet games are casual or low-investment is a result of that.) Nintendo had a good thing going with the Nintendogs/Brain-Training/etc. casual software last gen and Apple singlehandedly obliterated it, and they're definitely encroaching further into territory that would have been identified as "real" gaming in the past.

What I disagree with is the way people take this information and map it to audiences. People describe that situation and then assert "well, that's everybody! 98% of portable gamers are going to notice the iPhone and drop their handhelds" as if there's a perfect overlap in purpose.

My personal assertion would be that iPhones are peeling off the downmarket casual throng from handhelds, as well as the people who always saw handhelds as purely fluffy compared to "real" games on PC/consoles, and some portion of other people who like handheld games just fine but now have less time to spend on them due to greater mobile distractions. iPhones are also dragging in a huge market of new people who previously weren't buying portable games of any type but now feel empowered to do so on the device they bought primarily for productivity/non-game-entertainment/style reasons. Meanwhile, a lot of handhelds' previous strongholds (children and teens, commuters, niche gamers and other gamer hobbyists whose interests don't fall along the increasingly polarized lines of HD console gaming, etc.) will likely stay interested and not drop portables just because the iPhone exists now.

(I do think it's very plausible that we'll see the handheld growth in the US reverse while handhelds remain king in Japan, though -- depends a lot on how much of the DS' success in America was now-inaccessible ultra-casuals vs. how much was markets whose needs aren't overlapped entirely by phones.)

 

[[Nintex]]

What the hell are people playing on their phones that replaces what dedicated handheld systems offer? I didn't think Angry Birds or Cut the Rope were that engaging.

Link and Ganon better watch out, they may get replaced by a bird and an egg stealing pig that cut ropes to get candy.

You can already play Dirt 3 on your Android phone using OnLive in certain regions:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ME1n_JTFye8&feature=related

This is the future we're heading towards.

 

[Raoh]

My Sony devices last as long as Samsung, Apple, Toshiba, Sennheiser, etc.

They have SKUs that are in the same ballpark price, or more costly than the other devices you mentioned. You should shop around more.

Same here. The thing is Sony makes devices to last.

If you have the money you can buy a Sony product at launch with future features included. Pricey yes but available and high tech. Sony was probably one of the first receivers in the 90's to have hdmi before hdmi products were out, useless at the time? sure, but when the HDMI products started to come out you had a receiver with an hdmi port without need to upgrade your receiver to a model that had one, that's how the cheaper products get you to upgrade often.

Spoiler

think hdmi-less 360

The other option if you want Sony is to wait for a price drop, by the time the price drops, the other manufacturers will have a similar product at the discounted Sony price.

Although Sony does need to step up their game, screw Samsung and the others, I'm hoping Vizio has more success and makes more products. When you consider their tv prices, sound bars, accessories, easy remotes and their Vizio Tablet.. They get it.. Vizio hits the mark with affordable price and reliable product.

I would probably by a first launch Vizio Game Console

 

[mujun]

What the hell are people playing on their phones that replaces what dedicated handheld systems offer? I didn't think Angry Birds or Cut the Rope were that engaging.

Link and Ganon better watch out, they may get replaced by a bird and an egg stealing pig that cut ropes to get candy.

Maybe they are getting their meaty gaming at home on a PC or console and then enjoying bite sized stuff on their phones.

 

[Plinko]

Any one week Vita > 3DS will do. I can't imagine what the thread will look like.
Nintendo sales age will be bait out or go mad by annoying.
If long term, MC thread will dying just like when PSP comeback. Looking forward to see the MC thread dying in one day.

I don't even know what this is supposed to be. Surely you're not implying that only Nintendo fans care about sales and are the only ones crapping up sales-age threads? From my viewpoint, it's been an equal-opportunity threadcrapping.

 

[Steve Youngblood]

What the hell are people playing on their phones that replaces what dedicated handheld systems offer? I didn't think Angry Birds or Cut the Rope were that engaging.

Link and Ganon better watch out, they may get replaced by a bird and an egg stealing pig that cut ropes to get candy.

Now -- and again, let me try to avoid doom and gloom hyperbole -- the concern isn't that Zelda fans who want Ocarina of Time on the go will suddenly decide to chuck their portable gaming system in droves now that Angry Birds is the new hotness. However, it should be somewhat disconcerting that there are a lot of people who may think that Angry Birds-esque games are "good enough" for what they're looking for in mobile gaming. As of yet, phones and other similar iOS-type platforms aren't spending big money on killer apps, instead focusing on ports and short, low-budget diversions. So, the consumer looking for portable Metal Gear, and Uncharted, and Mario, and Pokemon (and there are a lot of these people) still need dedicated gaming devices.

But, before we arrogantly conclude that this ensures that these platforms are invincible and have nothing to fear from the iOS baby games, remember that a growing number of consumers aren't you.

 

[SmokyDave]

What the hell are people playing on their phones that replaces what dedicated handheld systems offer? I didn't think Angry Birds or Cut the Rope were that engaging.

Link and Ganon better watch out, they may get replaced by a bird and an egg stealing pig that cut ropes to get candy.

Have you thought about browsing one of the app stores to see what's on offer? There's a whole lot more than Angry Birds & Cut the Rope, I can tell you. That might help you.

Bear in mind too, not everyone uses portable games in the same way. You may well drool over that 50 hour JRPG but that's not the sort of thing that many consider a 'portable' game.

 

[patsu]

What the hell are people playing on their phones that replaces what dedicated handheld systems offer? I didn't think Angry Birds or Cut the Rope were that engaging.

Link and Ganon better watch out, they may get replaced by a bird and an egg stealing pig that cut ropes to get candy.

On iOS/Android, there are a lot of interesting, easy-to-get-into games that satisfy consumers' entertainment needs.

Games like Uncharted are more for a long, sit-down play session. However, I have seen people play the same mini-game on iPad/iPhone for hours and hours (because they are very addictive).

I don't know what Sony has in mind for Vita's future, but I suspect they have to weave Vita into people's existing gaming patterns. Ideally, if consumers play Angry Bird, Cut-the-Rope, Sony should work with the developers to complement, or offer an even better experiences on Vita at the same price (e.g., free/$0.99, plus say... MP Angry Bird with iOS/Android clients even). Then bring other traditional games over, including Free-to-Play MMOs, OnLive server games, dual stick games or even PC games.

There are of course other approaches. Sony will have to bring out the big guns because PS4/5/6/... will have the same challenges.

 

[Azih]

My personal assertion would be that iPhones are peeling off the downmarket casual throng from handhelds, as well as the people who always saw handhelds as purely fluffy compared to "real" games on PC/consoles, and some portion of other people who like handheld games just fine but now have less time to spend on them due to greater mobile distractions. iPhones are also dragging in a huge market of new people who previously weren't buying portable games of any type but now feel empowered to do so on the device they bought primarily for productivity/non-game-entertainment/style reasons. Meanwhile, a lot of handhelds' previous strongholds (children and teens, commuters, niche gamers and other gamer hobbyists whose interests don't fall along the increasingly polarized lines of HD console gaming, etc.) will likely stay interested and not drop portables just because the iPhone exists now.

That makes sense but I would argue that the children and teens demographic (who aren't niche gamers or game hobbysists) has been co-opted by the cool factor of having an Iphone or Android and those devices or a 7" tablet or an e-reader make far more sense for a 'commuter' crowd than a Vita does. Niche gamers, hobbyists and especially the subset of those that are commuters will definitely be interested in the device but how big is that market? The Vita has the same strengths this generation that the PSP had in its time but it's competing in a much more crowded 'handheld device' space.

A question I have is how many consumers are willing to buy multiple hand held devices now? For consumers that aren't the smartphone has to be the primary choice.

 

[Alrus]

Any one week Vita > 3DS will do. I can't imagine what the thread will look like.
Nintendo sales age will be bait out or go mad by annoying.
If long term, MC thread will dying just like when PSP comeback. Looking forward to see the MC thread dying in one day.

Again with this bullshit?

The game...sure. But there is no PSP game that has kids wearing the T-shirt, the shoes, the lunch box, toys, etc etc.

Those guys are selling merchandising, not a game. It's a good representation of how phones can "destroy" dedicated game machines.

Nintendo has tons of merchandising and there's a ton of people wearing Nintendo related products too you know...

 

[Burai]

What the hell are people playing on their phones that replaces what dedicated handheld systems offer? I didn't think Angry Birds or Cut the Rope were that engaging.

Link and Ganon better watch out, they may get replaced by a bird and an egg stealing pig that cut ropes to get candy.

That would suggest that people were buying those fully-fledged games for their handhelds in the first place.

Remember all those massive PSP smash hits dominating the NPDs before the smartphone boom? Exactly. There never was a market for those games and there still isn't. Whatever Apple do is neither here nor there because they aren't competing and never were. Japan is different due to their shunning of the HD consoles, but in the west it's a different story.

Sony are chasing the same phantom market they failed to capture last time and they won't even have piracy as an excuse to fall back on this time around.

 

[Azih]

Sony are chasing the same phantom market they failed to capture last time and they won't even have piracy as an excuse to fall back on this time around.

I agree, plus they're competing directly in the 'game dedicated handheld' market with an incredibly aggressive Nintendo. Iwata doesn't like fighting in a red sea but he's shown he's capable of going for the throat when forced into that reality.

 

[Giraffetastic]

Well, I get where you're going with this, and I kind of agree. I'm not on board with the kneejerk hyperbole often employed by people looking to make day trading a thrilling roller coaster ride, but I do agree that a growing number of people content to game on their phones as opposed to carrying another device around on their person should be seen as disconcerting to proponents of the traditional handheld gaming market.

However, though I think a gradually whittling away of the userbase for dedicated machines may in fact be slowly happening, I do think there's a saving grace for the dedicated machines that will keep them relevant for the foreseeable future: big event games. That's not to say that targeting this market doesn't have its own set of problems -- as studio closure after studio closure in the AAA console realm can demonstrate -- but there is still big, big money in making something like a Pokemon, or Mario Kart, or Monster Hunter, or what have you.

And the new platforms haven't demonstrated that they're mature enough to support heavy development resources being thrown at development of any one title. Sure, we can play Final Fantasy and GTA ports, which are real games, but there's no powerhouse title that has people pumped that next Tuesday is the big day for the release of a brand new, fully-fleshed out $30 title for my phone.

The market for these titles may be affected by phones (I don't know), but it's still huge and worth catering to. I don't think dedicated gaming portables really have to worry about going the way of the dodo until the phone hardware makers really decide to target this market. The success of Angry Birds isn't a legitimate threat to the marquis handheld franchises.

I would certainly agree that - so far - there haven't been any marquee smartphone releases that have had people whipped into a frenzy of pre-release hype, but that doesn't mean that there never will be any. We've seen a few "companion"- style games, linked to more popular siblings, which complement these larger titles. Perhaps the balance of power might shift towards the smartphone variants, as and when developers become more comfortable with the hardware and the expectations of the public. Isn't this what Sony have done with the Vita, porting (not very) cut-down versions of Uncharted, LittleBigPlanet, Wipeout? Who's to say, in the next generation, that LBP3 won't be iOS and Android only?

I would also agree that these marquee games help to drive sales of dedicated hardware, but there's a limit to that kind of pull, and considering the direction I think dedicated handheld hardware is going in, it won't be enough to sustain a whole handheld platform.

 

[Majine]

I strongly disagree with this. What is your evidence that this doesn't fit Sony's agenda? Because I believe Sony's agenda is to create a highly successful, perhaps monopolistic convergence device -- a notion they explicitly alluded to less than a decade ago. The "trojan horse" that the PS2/PS3 were supposed to be. Do you disagree that this is their goal? Because if you agree, it seems very clear to me that the future of such devices is not in home consoles, and is instead in portable electronics. Virtually all evidence suggests consumer sentiment is heading in that direction. If Sony wants the convergence device of the future, they must go portable.

It's much harder to be a trojan horse in the handheld business because it's moving way too fast. I'm saying that the agenda of Playstation (I agree with you) better fits the home console business, where there are fewer players, slower progress in tech and a bigger pull for the brand.

But too late now. If Vita sells half the units that 3DS does during the generation and have some software on the saleslists at the end, I'd consider it a success.

 

[Zoe]

What the hell are people playing on their phones that replaces what dedicated handheld systems offer? I didn't think Angry Birds or Cut the Rope were that engaging.

Link and Ganon better watch out, they may get replaced by a bird and an egg stealing pig that cut ropes to get candy.

Phones don't have to replicate the experience, they just have to take up your time.

I probably play more Bejeweled Blitz on average these days than any "proper" game.

 

[Opiate]

It's much harder to be a trojan horse in the handheld business because it's moving way too fast. I'm saying that the agenda of Playstation (I agree with you) better fits the home console business, where there are fewer players, slower progress in tech and a bigger pull for the brand.

But too late now.

Yes, I agree that the competition is more fierce in the portable/handheld electronic business right now -- precisely because the portable market is making actual progress towards this convergence device future in the form of phones and tablets.

So if Sony want to create the convergence device they've talked about strategically for years, then focusing on home consoles no longer makes much sense. It absolutely made sense to focus on consoles even 3 or 4 years ago (let alone 5-10), when consoles-as-convergence seemed much more likely; but as you say, it's too late now. Apple and Google seemingly swooped in from nowhere and stole the prize.

I think Sony should either 1) focus on portable electronics to continue their search for convergence device supremacy, as Apple and Google's thrones are still marginally open to usupation, or 2) give up their convergence device goals, find a new purpose for the Playstation brand (which may mean more emphasis on consoles), and focus on that. Either/or, but not both.

 

[disco]

Again with this bullshit?



Nintendo has tons of merchandising and there's a ton of people wearing Nintendo related products too you know...

Exactly, I fail to see this 'Angry birds' merchandising phenomenon. Okay - my friends have the game on their phones but the merchandise is hardly their main reason for success. I see Angry Birds merchandise as much as I see Nintendo merchandise, which isn't that often... In fact, H&M and Topshop have had Nintendo licensed t-shirts for years and still have it today. I bought a Mario t-shirt the other month.

If Nintendo wanted to, they could push their own merchandise much stronger than Angry Birds. I guarantee it would be far more receptive with the market.

 

[Eric C]

So are all those DS/PSP units sold in the U.S. owned by children

Spoiler

and man-children

then? Has there ever been a time pre-smartphones when dedicated handhelds were played often in public places in NA?

If anything, it shows that a lot of dedicated handheld owners here play them at home moreso than on the go. Which to me, makes the "omg people only carry one device with them at a time" argument as a way to support the death of dedicated handhelds a flimsy one at best.

I'm in the US but even when I was in elementary school during the Gameboy, and Game Gear generation KIDS didn't even take or play them outside of the house much. Game Gear especially, but that was probably due to battery issues as well. Sometimes people would bring the Gameboy into school though, but mostly my friends and the kids at school just seemed to play the portables almost exclusively at home.

So as an adult playing a portable exclusively at home is not because of some social stigma. Playing a portable at home is both what the people I grew up with did, and what I've always done.

Of course what people did with portable systems probably varied by region/community, because I know lots of people in the US have said they use to take and play the Gameboy everywhere as a kid.

 

[RPGCrazied]

I'll buy one for $99. Same with the 3DS. If that ever happens, we shall see.

 

[Exterminieren]

If Nintendo wanted to, they could push their own merchandise much stronger than Angry Birds. I guarantee it would be far more receptive with the market.

And they do; you only need to look at Pokemon with the Pokemon Company for that. That franchise has an unbelievable amount of tat pumped out for it, and it sells, and sells big.

Rovio dream of getting a fraction of that Pokemon merchandising cash.

 

[GodofWine]

My opinion on this, and I'm likely not.unique in this...is that if.I'm buying a $50 AAA title I darn well want to play it on my big screen, in comfort, with external speakers etc....alsoo, faced with life in my mid 30's which includes kids and a mortgage , if I need to budget where I spend my money, id much rather wait on a Ps4 for my AAA titles, and fill in myportable needs for $1 or free in many cases on devices I already own and use for 100 other purposes.

Sony should make and market the "PS TABLET", if it could do what my fire.does, and have a little more gaming ooomph, for $50-$100 more than a fire and offer android store access plus PS store access, id have bought it.

 

[Alrus]

I'm in the US but even when I was in elementary school during the Gameboy, and Game Gear generation KIDS didn't even take or play them outside of the house much. Game Gear especially, but that was probably due to battery issues as well. Sometimes people would bring the Gameboy into school though, but mostly my friends and the kids at school just seemed to play the portables almost exclusively at home.

So as an adult playing a portable exclusively at home is not because of some social stigma. Playing a portable at home is both what the people I grew up with did, and what I've always done.

Of course what people did with portable systems probably varied by region/community, because I know lots of people in the US have said they use to take and play the Gameboy everywhere as a kid.

Yeah that's the opposite of my experience in elementary school, tons of people brought their gameboys and played it during recess (with 3 other kids watching). It got especially big when Pokemon came out.

Contrast to my high school year where any mention of gaming was "shunned". (in belgium that is, when I went the US, a lot of people played their DS in school and talked about how hyped they were for the next Halo/Smash bros).

It totally depends on the region you're in I guess.

 

[Opus Angelorum]

I think Sony should either 1) focus on portable electronics to continue their search for convergence device supremacy, or 2) give up their convergence device goals, find a new purpose for the Playstation brand, and focus on that. Either/or, but not both.

I agree.

Why could the PSVita not be more like the DS, focus entirely on the gaming experience. Forgot about additional functionality, just create a pure gaming device.

It would remove all the issues people have with the current design:

1. Cheaper to produce
2. Have much better battery life
3. And most importantly, have a very clear selling point

 

[Jim E. Rossler]

;33854930]You can already play Dirt 3 on your Android phone using OnLive in certain regions:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ME1n_...eature=related

This is the future we're heading towards.

That game seems to have about 500ms ping
I couldn't play that.

 

[abasm]

I was kind of hoping that the Vita would be a "bridge" device--something you can plug into a TV and play like a PS3, then unplug and keep playing on the go. The shorter battery life wouldn't be as much of an issue if the system had TV out and Bluetooth support, since you'd only be using the battery on the go.

 

[patsu]

I agree.

Why could the PSVita not be more like the DS, focus entirely on the gaming experience. Forgot about additional functionality, just create a pure gaming device.

It would remove all the issues people have with the current design:

1. Cheaper to produce
2. Have much better battery life
3. And most importantly, have a very clear selling point

If they take that approach, it'd be a head-on against DS and 3DS. Nintendo's franchises will likely triumph Sony because they already own a huge mobile gamer user base, plus Nintendo has more cash to cut price to match Sony's price.

 

[Emitan]

I agree.

Why could the PSVita not be more like the DS, focus entirely on the gaming experience. Forgot about additional functionality, just create a pure gaming device.

It would remove all the issues people have with the current design:

1. Cheaper to produce
2. Have much better battery life
3. And most importantly, have a very clear selling point

But that has nothing to do with those 3 problems.

 

[Majine]

I agree.

Why could the PSVita not be more like the DS, focus entirely on the gaming experience. Forgot about additional functionality, just create a pure gaming device.

It would remove all the issues people have with the current design:

1. Cheaper to produce
2. Have much better battery life
3. And most importantly, have a very clear selling point

I think Nintendo are really good at this: As much as I find cheap gimmicks kinda lame, it is a good way to distance yourself from both your home consoles, and competing handheld systems. DS and 3DS has that, PSP and Vita does not.

 

[-WindYoshi-]

Sony in heaping big trouble.

 

[Opus Angelorum]

If they take that approach, it'd be a head-on against DS and 3DS.

That is a good thing, it removes the other (Smartphone) competition entirely. Stop trying to be a 'it only does everything' device, do one thing amazingly.

 

[patsu]

That is a good thing, it removes the other (Smartphone) competition entirely. Stop trying to be a 'it only does everything' device, do one thing amazingly.

It would be Red Ocean. Two people stuck in the same pool, instead of growing the user base (3DS is eating DS's lunch now as we speak). The so-called other competition (iOS/Android) will eventually take their battle to Sony and Nintendo anyway. Might as well stake your claim while they are still young.

Also, Vita has not promised "it does everything". It only focuses on entertainment where Sony Pictures and Music should benefit too. And consumers' digital entertainment needs have indeed broadened.

I remember seeing some surveys that say people spend more time outside their home now (Got to work more !).

 

[Sho_Nuff82]

How much does Vita need to sell to be a success?

It needs to sell enough so that Sony can eventually profit off of the hardware after the initial loss-leading period and in the face of price drops. The original Xbox and the PS3 have not sold enough in this regard.

It needs to sell enough so that the average developer doesn't lose their shirt making multi platform or exclusive games for it. The gamecube, the PSP in the West, and the 360 in Japan fit here.

 

[Eric C]

Yeah that's the opposite of my experience in elementary school, tons of people brought their gameboys and played it during recess (with 3 other kids watching). It got especially big when Pokemon came out.

Contrast to my high school year where any mention of gaming was "shunned". (in belgium that is, when I went the US, a lot of people played their DS in school and talked about how hyped they were for the next Halo/Smash bros).

It totally depends on the region you're in I guess.

Just looked up when the first Pokemon game was released in North America, I was in highschool when it first came out here. Probably why I never really played it much. Portable gaming was shunned in highschool, people instead played the Playstation, and later on the PS2, but even the Dreamcast had lots of positive buzz.

I think part of the reason portables weren't played outside a lot might have been the prices of the portable systems in the early 90s vs the late 90s, but I don't remember what the prices were. In the early 90s parents might've been more afraid of their kids dropping or breaking their "expensive" new toy, but after prices dropped in the late 90s they might not have cared as much.

 

[Opus Angelorum]

And consumers' digital entertainment needs have indeed broadened.

The problem is the tablet has 'portable' entertainment covered. And for a truly portable media experience, the smartphone has that covered.

You see the problem? Why would I buy a PSVita as an inferior entertainment device.

If I'm buying it, it's to play games.

 

[Carlisle]

Wow, I didn't expect sales to fall so precipitously from one week to the next like that. I kinda thought they'd be stronger for a while longer and taper off slowly, save for the occasional bump when a decent game is released.

I still don't see where the market is for Vita the way its being handled now. Sony is trying to appeal to console gamers with the dual sticks and high end graphics, and to smartphone gamers with the touches and gyros and accelos. So, trying to a little bit of everything and spreading itself so thin that neither group can really identify with it, at least not for $250, which is its other problem.

If Sony were to focus its attention on one or the other, it could strip the Vita down and reduce its price significantly, making it more worthwhile for them. As it stands, there's really nothing new in Vita: you can already play high end console games and simple touch based games with hardware you've already had for years. Why do you need to pay another $250 for something that does both at the same time, and not as well (e.g. consoles still look better and smartphones are still more convenient/easier to carry around)?

Sony's problems with the Vita, assuming there are any and the sale drop wasn't a fluke of course, are the same as the PS3. It focuses too much on getting every fancy new feature competitors are doing and putting it one machine, pushing the price up well beyond what many people are willing to part with. Smartphones are already playing the all-in-one device game much better than Sony can.

They need to realize it's impossible to please everyone, pick one area to excel at that isn't being done elsewhere, and excel the fuck out of it.

 

[Azih]

So if Sony want to create the convergence device they've talked about strategically for years, then focusing on home consoles no longer makes much sense.... I think Sony should either 1) focus on portable electronics to continue their search for convergence device supremacy,

I think the problem with Sony back during the Kutaragi era was they completely failed to recognize that a convergence device would require absolutely amazing software and network components (i.e: Software as a service) and not just great hardware.

The problem with Sony now is that not only are they playing catchup with Apple, Google, and even Microsoft where once they had the brand name and market penetration edge but also that they just don't have the expertise in Software and software as service that their competitors do.

And it's not like they can just poach a few people and shore up that weakness. I have no idea how Sony can make itself stronger in that space frankly. They may have to just give in on that and jump on the Android bandwagon.

 

[NHDave]

I still have it pre-ordered......I might get a PS3 instead.....

 

[patsu]

The problem is the tablet has 'portable' entertainment covered. And for a truly portable mdeia experience, my smartphone has that covered.

You see the problem? Why would I buy a PSVita as an inferior entertainment device.

If I'm buying it, it's to play games.

... and 3DS/DS/PSP has portable gaming covered (as low as $99). Vita, 3DS, tablets are all some form of portable entertainment. What Sony needs to do is to differentiate from the competition. If you want to play games, you can do so on any of the 3. It depends on the games you want to play. It doesn't depend on whether a device is single purpose or multi-purpose.

It is indeed easier to execute if Sony focuses on only one thing, but it doesn't necessarily mean it's the best strategy for Sony in the long run.

 

[Chris R]

I wonder whether they will get rid of the 3g model, and revise the vita to save money. Remove the touchpad, cheaper screen etc.

Why would they remove the touchpad? The other things I can see, but if games already support the touchpad, removing it would cause more problems.

 

[Tobor]

That is a good thing, it removes the other (Smartphone) competition entirely. Stop trying to be a 'it only does everything' device, do one thing amazingly.

That doesn't remove the smartphone as competition, though.

What they need to do, and they are taking steps towards this, is follow the old adage, "if you can't beat them, join them".

They should have put far more effort into the Xperia, and made that the new PSP, officially. They can still release a non-smartphone version, but it should be the same hardware otherwise.

Playstation Suite and PSP phones should be their entire focus, not a side project.

 

[The Abominable Snowman]

Your ignorance is fascinating. Hopefully, Sony researched the "non-obvious" competition extensively.

Check these games out: (FYI, You can use PS3, Wii joypads on Android)

8MM
GTA 3
SummitX snowboarding
World of Goo
DeadSpace
Minecraft
ROC
Sleepy Jack
Cody
Sonic CD
Chu Chu Rocket
Need for speed
Real Racing

Without heavy modding, some of those games on that list don't support PS3/Wii joypads

and 3 of those game are horrible...

 

[soundahfekz]

They should be pushing this thing also as a multimedia device and highlighting other features beyond gaming. Playstation is a brand synonymous with gaming, so a little light on non gaming potential wouldn't hurt them at all IMO.

Skype, Facebook, whatever else it has. push that shit in a commercial so that people know it can be more then just a dedicated gaming device. What's the situation with the Android Suite it was going to have? Market that shit too. They can't spar with Nintendo on price. Nintendo prices to profit out of the gate immediately.

 

[patsu]

That doesn't remove the smartphone as competition, though.

What they need to do, and they are taking steps towards this, is follow the old adage, "if you can't beat them, join them".

Yes, one way is to join them, and twist the plumbings and funnels towards your own properties.

They should have put far more effort into the Xperia, and made that the new PSP, officially. They can still release a non-smartphone version, but it should be the same hardware otherwise.

Playstation Suite and PSP phones should be their entire focus, not a side project.

Playstation Suite seems strategic. And yes, they need a killer device for PS Suite to fly though. Unless Sony jumpstart the PS Suite footprint by spreading its own devices (Vita or Xperia or Bravia or PS3), no one would want to license PS Suite.

 

[Tobor]

They should be pushing this thing also as a multimedia device and highlighting other features beyond gaming. Playstation is a brand synonymous with gaming, so a little light on non gaming potential wouldn't hurt them at all IMO.

Skype, Facebook, whatever else it has. push that shit in a commercial so that people know it can be more then just a dedicated gaming device. What's the situation with the Android Suite it was going to have? Market that shit too. They can't spar with Nintendo on price. Nintendo prices to profit out of the gate immediately.

Nintendo is the "rock", what you're describing is the "hard place".