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[big youth]

How much is Sony currently losing on the Vita and when do you expect retailers to start pulling it off shelves?

It's already started with smaller retailers, and larger retailers have been drastically reducing their Vita section, and in some cases relocating it to showcase other products that actually sell. it's a vicious cycle in which weak sales lead to weaker sales.

the other reason Vita will be discontinued is lack of support. a platform cannot survive off multiplats like Zombie Tycoon 2. I expect Vita will be quietly discontinued after the PS4 gets off the ground.

 

[BlackJace]

It's kind of sad seeing the article's comments. Most of them think this will translate directly over to the West's performance.

 

[Orayn]

As a reforming Vita doomsayer, I want to believe. A Vita with a price cut and a strong future software lineup is something that interests me greatly.

It's kind of sad seeing the article's comments. Most of them think this will translate directly over to the West's performance.

Yeah. We'll likely see a bump, but there's no way it would be comparable to this. It's the software, sadly.

 

[Yopis]

Then nothing but iOS threads as far as the GAF will go...

Have a feeling many in this thread dream of that moment.

 

[Napalm_Frank]

Tales of Hearts R is probably going to do more than Soul Sacrifice, honestly.

No way man. If that happens I'll laugh so hard.

 

[zeopower6]

It's already started with smaller retailers, and larger retailers have been drastically reducing their Vita section, and in some cases relocating it to showcase other products that actually sell. it's a vicious cycle in which weak sales lead to weaker sales.

the other reason Vita will be discontinued is lack of support. a platform cannot survive off multiplats like Zombie Tycoon 2. I expect Vita will be quietly discontinued after the PS4 gets off the ground.

They seem to have plans for Vita x PS4 compatibility so I don't think it's anywhere near in danger of being discontinued. The Vita will also be a part of that cloud gaming thing, won't it?

 

[Father_Brain]

Its stuff like this that really cracks me up in Vita threads. The fact that you guys have really convinced yourselves that the Vita is going to be off of retail shelves and discontinued by the end of the year is pretty mind boggling.

Not surprised by that reaction, since I get it all the time when I suggest this.

Let's put it this way: That Japanese price cut did not come cheap. Sony had to take a pretty steep markdown, particularly on the 3G model.

If cutting the price, and consequently taking a fairly significant financial hit, in the most viable market for dedicated handhelds doesn't result in any significant boost in the weekly baseline (which I expect to happen, given the release schedule after March 7), I have to imagine that SCE will be under increased pressure from investors (the very first few questions at Sony's last results briefing were about Vita) and the higher levels of Sony to cut their losses.

My prediction is what it's been since around last TGS: at the absolute latest, the axe will fall in early May of next year, when Sony reports its year-end results for the 2013 fiscal year.

 

[Herb Alpert]

More vita's is always better.


I don't see the appeal in the 3DS ( not into those "JRPG" and kids games) so I would HATE to see the handheld market be on the phone and Nintendo ( i also dont find the phone games fun)

On the vita, at least 6 different games I play consistently. Sure it can do with more games but I love it.

You're... serious?
I'm sorry If I missed the sarcasm...

 

[Ollie Pooch]

The Vita hate on Gaf is astounding.

I wouldn't call it hate, but like flies to shit the usual suspects are sure to come out of the woodwork to reiterate the same points from every Vita thread (In case anyone had forgotten them.)

 

[metalslimer]

And just so we're clear as to what Vita is dealing with

03/06 Switch Galaxy
03/19 Dead or Alive 5 Plus
04/30 Soul Sacrifice
06/25 Muramasa Rebirth
09/03 Valhalla Knights 3
09/17 Killzone: Mercenary
09/24 Ys: Memories of Celceta

is the lineup in America for the next 6 months. When was the last time Sony even announced a major 1st party game? GDC? It's pretty clear with the lack of a price cut in the west and no real attention payed to it outside of lip talk of the cloud what is going on.

Wonder how long the Wii U has till retailers start taking it off the shelves then.

If it sells like Vita after the big software drops? I think Nintendo will rush to end it themselves if they go through a massive price cut and nothing works. If they don't do a big pricecut that puts them in the red, they'll probably keep throwing software at it because at the very least Nintendo's 1st party software sells

 

[Mileena]

It's already started with smaller retailers, and larger retailers have been drastically reducing their Vita section, and in some cases relocating it to showcase other products that actually sell. it's a vicious cycle in which weak sales lead to weaker sales.

the other reason Vita will be discontinued is lack of support. a platform cannot survive off multiplats like Zombie Tycoon 2. I expect Vita will be quietly discontinued after the PS4 gets off the ground.

Wonder how long the Wii U has till retailers start taking it off the shelves then.

 

[sunnz]

You're... serious?
I'm sorry If I missed the sarcasm...

I'm sorry, are we not allowed opinions and different tastes?

I understand I am probably in the minority, but those games don't do it for me and I just dislike the vision of the 3ds( style of games)

To me the VITA is basically what i wanted in a handheld console ( sure it's not perfect) but does most of what I want.

It is just a good GTA game from being near perfect ( probably wont happen sadly)

 

[serplux]

No way man. If that happens I'll laugh so hard.

I'm serious. Soul Sacrifice has barely entered the preorder charts last week, while Tales of Hearts R has been there for a while. Even with all of the promotion that Sony has been doing, it doesn't seem to be connecting with the Japanese populace (new IP syndrome). I have my doubts that it'll reach over that 150k mark at most. We'll see next week, anyways, since Comgnet isn't the best for predicting sales.

 

[Glass Rebel]

Wonder how long the Wii U has till retailers start taking it off the shelves then.

Depends on Nintendo's ability to convince retailers that Mario Kart and Smash Bros. will sell gangbusters.

 

[Yopis]

I wouldn't call it hate, but like flies to shit the usual suspects are sure to come out of the woodwork to reiterate the same points from every Vita thread (In case anyone had forgotten them.)

So true lol. Funny how you see the same avatars in other threads pumping up their system of choice.

 

[Jaded Alyx]

I'm sorry, are we not allowed opinions and different tastes?

I understand I am probably in the minority, but those games don't do it for me and I just dislike the vision of the 3ds( style of games)

To me the VITA is basically what i wanted in a handheld console ( sure it's not perfect) but does most of what I want.

It is just a good GTA game from being near perfect ( probably wont happen sadly)

What are these kids games that you dislike from the 3DS library?

 

[noobasuar]

Some of you like to act like software is some magical thing that just falls out of the sky.

It's not hard to see that developers could care less for developing exclusive games for the Vita. Without software there's no where for it go but down.

 

[DaBoss]

And just so we're clear as to what Vita is dealing with

03/06 Switch Galaxy
03/19 Dead or Alive 5 Plus
04/30 Soul Sacrifice
06/25 Muramasa Rebirth
09/03 Valhalla Knights 3
09/17 Killzone: Mercenary
09/24 Ys: Memories of Celceta

is the lineup in America for the next 6 months. When was the last time Sony even announced a major 1st party game? GDC? It's pretty clear with the lack of a price cut in the west and no real attention payed to it outside of lip talk of the cloud what is going on.

Isn't Hotline Miami coming to it also? You listed Switch Galaxy which is a PSMoble game, so are you not including PSN games?

I'm sorry, are we not allowed opinions and different tastes?

I understand I am probably in the minority, but those games don't do it for me and I just dislike the vision of the 3ds( style of games)

To me the VITA is basically what i wanted in a handheld console ( sure it's not perfect) but does most of what I want.

It is just a good GTA game from being near perfect ( probably wont happen sadly)

I think the problem is the fact you said "kid games" which is a sweeping generalization and one that people are not fond of, including myself. It is very short-sighted.

 

[big youth]

They seem to have plans for Vita x PS4 compatibility so I don't think it's anywhere near in danger of being discontinued. The Vita will also be a part of that cloud gaming thing, won't it?

just like almost everyone here, I'm no expert on these matters, but just looking at the facts here:

abysmal sales worldwide
lack of interest from publishers
lack of system sellers after this week
retailer frusteration

outside of a decent advertising campaign late 2012, Sony has made almost no effort to save the Vita. Nintendo slashed the price, took pay cuts, announced new games and expedited MK and 3D Land, issued the ambassador program, apologized profusely, etc. All Sony has provided is generic PR talk about how Vita is still in their plans for the future. that it will be compatible with PS4 gives me only a glimmer of hope that they (think they) can keep it alive, amongst a sea of doubt. Ultimately it won't be up to Sony.

 

[serplux]

Wonder how long the Wii U has till retailers start taking it off the shelves then.

They survived the GameCube. They'll survive the Wii U even if it does sub-N64 levels.

 

[Pachterballs]

Your posts are mildly entertaining to read because I know you're being serious lol.

I'm not not serious about the future of vitaTM sonyTM.

 

[Tallshortman]

It was reportedly in Japan I believe, but anecdotally my local wal mart has reduced Vita to sharing one shelf with PS3 games. And that's not one glass case, it's a single shelf.

Wait, why are you switching from Japan to the west to japan with seemingly every other post? You posted something about the vita being pulled in a japanese sales thread then say you meant the west then throw out an uncited source saying retailers were not stocking vitas and then say those stores were in japan.

 

[Four_Chamber]

The Vita hate on Gaf is astounding.

This is always an interesting phenomenon- talking about the absolutely abysmal sales of the Vita is not hate. I don't know why people get so defensive when objective facts are stated about the Vita, but it seems to inspire a unique blend of emotion here.

Overall, the magnitude of the jump (especially relative to the 3DS) isn't exactly newsworthy. IGN's overly dramatic headline, though, is hilarious.

 

[zeopower6]

I'm serious. Soul Sacrifice has barely entered the preorder charts last week, while Tales of Hearts R has been there for a while. Even with all of the promotion that Sony has been doing, it doesn't seem to be connecting with the Japanese populace (new IP syndrome). I have my doubts that it'll reach over that 150k mark at most. We'll see next week, anyways, since Comgnet isn't the best for predicting sales.

Soul Sacrifice is doing rather well in the Amazon preorder charts despite first entering the charts there in early March. It's currently sitting at #3 overall games there.

This is always an interesting phenomenon- talking about the absolutely abysmal sales of the Vita is not hate. I don't know why people get so defensive when objective facts are stated about the Vita, but it seems to inspire a unique blend of emotion here.

The way it's talked about is pretty negative and hateful imo. Bringing up the fact that it probably won't maintain these sales isn't hate at all but essentially saying "Stop hoping, it's dead already. It's never going to recover." isn't really objective.

 

[big youth]

Wonder how long the Wii U has till retailers start taking it off the shelves then.

If any games had been released in the past month I would say it's probably already happening, as retailers would be ordering fewer copies.

but as you probably know, you're comparing apples to oranges. Wii U had strong holiday sales and is only suffering now due to a complete lack of new software. sales will pick up in the second half of the year. it's nothing like the situation Vita is in.

 

[Pachterballs]

Isn't Hotline Miami coming to it also? You listed Switch Galaxy which is a PSMoble game, so are you not including PSN games?

yes, its coming. and I loved HM so I'm buying this.

there is a huge list of indie games heading to the vita in one of the threads

 

[Folstern]

Well I'm picking up a Vita soon, so count me in for a western consumer +1. The negativity in these threads always make me lol.

 

[metalslimer]

Wait, why are you switching from Japan to the west to japan with seemingly every other post? You posted something about the vita being pulled in a japanese sales thread then say you meant the west then throw out an uncited source saying retailers were not stocking vitas and then say those stores were in japan.

I already explained this. This discussion became what we though of Vita's overall prospects which includes western sales. If you want to know what I think how things will play out in Japan, it probably won't be much different barring a miracle Soul Sacrifice explosion.

Soul Sacrifice is doing rather well in the Amazon preorder charts

These have unfortunately been even less reliable than Comg

 

[entremet]

Good news. Love portables. I'm waiting for the Western price drop.

 

[Glix]

And just so we're clear as to what Vita is dealing with

03/06 Switch Galaxy
03/19 Dead or Alive 5 Plus
04/30 Soul Sacrifice
06/25 Muramasa Rebirth
09/03 Valhalla Knights 3
09/17 Killzone: Mercenary
09/24 Ys: Memories of Celceta

is the lineup in America for the next 6 months. When was the last time Sony even announced a major 1st party game? GDC? It's pretty clear with the lack of a price cut in the west and no real attention payed to it outside of lip talk of the cloud what is going on.



If it sells like Vita after the big software drops? I think Nintendo will rush to end it themselves if they go through a massive price cut and nothing works. If they don't do a big pricecut that puts them in the red, they'll probably keep throwing software at it because at the very least Nintendo's 1st party software sells

Do we know when the papercraft game is coming out? Looks totally sweet.

If they get teh PS4 streaming working I don't give a fuck what the Vita software lineup is.

 

[test_account]

They survived the GameCube. They'll survive the Wii U even if it does sub-N64 levels.

Being pulled from retailer shelf is still possible. It depends on how each retailer sees the sales potential in something. Right now, i'd say that the WiiU and the Vita shares about the same chance of being pulled from the shelfs early, at least in Japan.

 

[Ollie Pooch]

This is always an interesting phenomenon- talking about the absolutely abysmal sales of the Vita is not hate. I don't know why people get so defensive when objective facts are stated about the Vita, but it seems to inspire a unique blend of emotion here.

It's probably the trend of every vita thread having the exact same posters saying the same shit. Every. Single. Time. Like an echo chamber.

The Vita is completely fucked no doubt but you'd be blind to not see particular posters with an axe to grind for whatever reason.

 

[serplux]

Being pulled from retailer shelf is still possible. It depends on how each retailer sees the sales potential in something. Right now, i'd say that the WiiU and the Vita shares about the same chance of being pulled from the shelfs early, at least in Japan.

Nah, the Vita's over a year old, the Wii U's 3 months old. The Wii U also has Nintendo games coming, while Sony seems completely uninterested in supporting the handheld with their own games. Only reason for the Wii U's struggle is the damn 1 game in 3 months symptom. That won't happen again.

 

[DaBoss]

yes, its coming. and I loved HM so I'm buying this.

there is a huge list of indie games heading to the vita in one of the threads

Though I don't think indie games will help get people to buy Vitas, but it will be good for existing Vita owners. Would you please post a link to said thread? Thanks in advance.

Why are we comparing Vita sales to Wii U sales anyway? Are they mutually exclusive fanbases? Is it kind of a dig at the other because one says the other is doing bad?

That is what some people seem to do and your reasoning seems to be right also.

 

[BronsonLee]

Why are we comparing Vita sales to Wii U sales anyway? Are they mutually exclusive fanbases? Is it kind of a dig at the other because one says the other is doing bad?

 

[zeopower6]

These have unfortunately been even less reliable than Comg

Reliable in what way? I was just responding to the statement that it was 'doing horribly on the preorder charts' when it's selling pretty well at least on Amazon.co.jp.

 

[Jaded Alyx]

Well I'm picking up a Vita soon, so count me in for a western consumer +1. The negativity in these threads always make me lol.

Is it not justified? What reason is there for lots of positivity?

It's like some people are oblivious to just how bad the Vita has been performing.

 

[ricen-beans]

Didnt the price cut officially happen on Friday last week? So essentially this is like 3 days of sales with the new price.

Also wasnt there sell outs at many retailers? Within hours? So maybe supply issues prevented Vita from selling more?

I saw in another thread amazon restocked on the colored vitas today and they sold out in hours also.

So maybe this week will be better for vita with a full 7 days of a new price. Soul Sacrifice. More bundles?

Or am I being too optimistic?

Spoiler

ive had a Vita since launch

 

[sunnz]

In that case I apologies for saying kids games.

My 12 year old cousin has a 3ds and I see a bunch of... "other" games that appeal to someone like her. Nothing wrong with it, just not to me liking.

 

[serplux]

Reliable in what way? I was just responding to the statement that it was 'doing horribly on the preorder charts' when it's selling pretty well at least on Amazon.co.jp.

You can't predict accurate sales from either chart. I just find it ominous when a game doesn't enter the charts at all until the week before release.

 

[Dantis]

Glad to see the Vita has sold something. I'm not convinced they can save it, so any small success is a success all the same.

Nah, the Vita's over a year old, the Wii U's 3 months old. The Wii U also has Nintendo games coming, while Sony seems completely uninterested in supporting the handheld with their own games. Only reason for the Wii U's struggle is the damn 1 game in 3 months symptom. That won't happen again.

They need to release some games first. And considering that the releases are even slimmer than the Vita's for goodness knows how long, I'm not optimistic.

 

[test_account]

I'm serious. Soul Sacrifice has barely entered the preorder charts last week, while Tales of Hearts R has been there for a while. Even with all of the promotion that Sony has been doing, it doesn't seem to be connecting with the Japanese populace (new IP syndrome). I have my doubts that it'll reach over that 150k mark at most. We'll see next week, anyways, since Comgnet isn't the best for predicting sales.

To put things in perspective, each Comgnet point indicates one pre-order if i'm not mistaken. Right now, Tales of Hears R has 58 pre-orders while Souls Sacrifice has 40 pre-orders. In this case, basically 18 more persons in Comgnet stores overall have pre-ordered Tales of Hearts R compared to Soul Sacrifice. Its kinda a shot in the dark to know if this is the general situation in Japan, just by looking at the Comgnet charts.

Comgnet can be interesting to look at, but i wouldnt read too much into it. Its not a huge store chain in Japan either. We could look at the Amazon best selling chart as well, it would kinda be the same thing eventhough that it doesnt say specifically how many pre-orders there is. Speaking of Amazon, if you look at the Amazon best selling charts, the situation is the other way around, Soul Sacrifice is charting well over Tales of Hearts R.

Nah, the Vita's over a year old, the Wii U's 3 months old. The Wii U also has Nintendo games coming, while Sony seems completely uninterested in supporting the handheld with their own games. Only reason for the Wii U's struggle is the damn 1 game in 3 months symptom. That won't happen again.

There is always the question exactly how much hardware those Nintendo games will move. In each console generation we have seen old series either rise or decrease in popularity (not just Nintendo, but gaming systems in general). There is also the question (which is often being mentioned in regards of the Vita) of whats coming after those Nintendo games to maintain hardware sales.

 

[Hattori]

This comes at the same time as a new, significant release for the PS Vita – Phantasy Star Online 2 – launched, selling 61,227 at retail alone

IGN taking away Senran Kagura's thunder...

 

[Father_Brain]

It's something of a straw man to suggest that retailers can only force the discontinuation of Vita hardware by eliminating all shelf space and refusing to stock it entirely.

All they need to do is to order hardware, software, and accessories in such limited quantities that the path to profitability becomes impossible for Sony due to the economy of scale, and keep doing that for long enough.

 

[serplux]

They need to release some games first. And considering that the releases are even slimmer than the Vita's for goodness knows how long, I'm not optimistic.

Japan's got Game and Wario and Dragon Quest X coming this month, so there's that. They also need to fit in Wii Fit U, Wii Party U, The Wonderful 101, Pikmin 3, and Lego City Undercover sometime between now and September in Japan.

There is always the question exactly how much hardware those Nintendo games will move. In each console generation we have seen old series either rise or decrease in popularity (not just Nintendo, but gaming systems in general). There is also the question (which is often being mentioned in regards of the Vita) of whats coming after those Nintendo games to maintain hardware sales.

They'll do a hell of a lot more than Sony's Vita games, that I can assure you.

 

[big youth]

To put things in perspective, each Comgnet point indicates one pre-order if i'm not mistaken. Right now, Tales of Hears R has 58 pre-orders while Souls Sacrifice has 40 pre-orders. In this case, basically 18 more persons in Comgnet stores overall have pre-ordered Tales of Hearts R compared to Soul Sacrifice. Its kinda a shot in the dark to know if this is the general situation in Japan, just by looking at the Comgnet charts. Comgnet can be interesting to look at, but i wouldnt read too much into it. If you look at the Amazon best selling charts, the situation is the other way around, Soul Sacrifice is charting well over Tales of Hearts R.



There is always the question exactly how much hardware those Nintendo games will move. There is also the question (which is often being mentioned in regards of the Vita) of whats coming after those Nintendo games to maintain hardware sales.

?? after those Nintendo games will be more Nintendo games. that's kinda what they do. they have a huge stable of games announced for the next 2 years (and Zelda in 2015), along with some unannounced games (Retro).

I think Soul Sacrifice will be quite successful in Japan. the game looks neat and got great reviews from Famitsu.

 

[mujun]

I'm was stating the fact that it was selling really well in comparison to another current gen system; much less a home console. and yet, people were saying its doomed.

Which is more "reaching", saying a system is doomed after many months of sub 10k sales per week or one week of 5 times Wii U sales?

 

[CosmicQueso]

The Vita's not going anywhere.

The PS4 announcement alone focused a ton on the Vita. Yep, it's struggling now in a huge way. But there will be repricing, additional features, etc.

Sure, it might not work. But some of you have some weird fascination and want to watch the corpse of this thing burn while dancing around with pitchforks. It's creepy.

It'll still be propped up for at least the next 2 years or so.

Two more years at least of this. Jesus.

 

[Folstern]

Is it not justified? What reason is there for lots of positivity?

It's like some people are oblivious to just how bad the Vita has been performing.

It isn't justified in this thread, considering the thread is discussing this weeks sales. But continue to invade Vita threads with doom and gloom.

 

[FoneBone]

The way it's talked about is pretty negative and hateful imo. Bringing up the fact that it probably won't maintain these sales isn't hate at all but essentially saying "Stop hoping, it's dead already. It's never going to recover." isn't really objective.

If someone cites facts to conclude that a recovery is unlikely at best, is that really "negative and hateful?" You need to drop the fanboy persecution complex.

It isn't justified in this thread, considering the thread is discussing this weeks sales. But continue to invade Vita threads with doom and gloom.

I was unaware that only this specific week, devoid of any larger context, was relevant to this thread, but thanks for the modding!