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[DiscoJer]

The problem with the lineup is its overall appeal. What games are really popular in the West? FPSes, Western RPGs, and open world games (GTA and such).

With regard to those, the Vita is pretty much a disaster. You have two terrible FPSes, two lackluster loot games, and no open world games. It does have a couple third person shooters, but reviews are mixed. Uncharted is a draw for PS3 fans, but PS3 owners will probably stick to Uncharted on the PS3 long term, because there is no multiplayer.

At this point in its life the PSP had a GTA, SW Battlefront II (with better online than the Vita FPSes), a decent loot RPG at launch

Sure, if you like artsy-indie stuff and whatever Sony puts out it, the Vita is pretty good. It's okay if you like JRPGs with Persona 4 and Disgaea 3 (if you haven't played them already). What the Vita really needs are games that are huge time sinks. Games that people will play a long time, over and over and over. Whether because there is a grind factor or robust multiplayer.

 

[Metallix87]

Uncharted is a draw for PS3 fans, but PS3 owners will probably stick to Uncharted on the PS3 long term, because there is no multiplayer.

The biggest mistake Sony made was not calling it "Uncharted 0", IMO. Making it a numbered entry in the series would've improved sales, and also inspired confidence among consumers and developers with regards to Sony's support of Vita.

 

[Freshmaker]

Luigis mansion 2, monster hunter 3 ultimate, castlevania lords of shadow mirror of fate, fire emblem awakening, rune factory iv, smt: soul hackers, animal crossing New leaf, etc 3ds has quite a bit coming next year.

Nobody's hyped for that.

 

[jwhit28]

Nobody's hyped for that.

I am.

 

[SmokyDave]

I dunno, I feel like I've enjoyed more Vita games in this first year than any other first year I remember. I must be in a minority though because the numbers don't lie and they are poor indeed. It's a shame because the handheld does seem geared towards a certain demographic and I'd imagine the people in that demographic are having an absolute blast.

Tom Clancy’s Ghost Recon: Shadow Wars
Super Mario 3D Land

I cut all the guff from your list.

 

[Omikaru]

Between PS+ content trickling in, and the few upcoming games we know of right now (though I'm sure more are to come), I'm pretty happy as a PS Vita owner. P4 Golden alone has kept me busy for upwards of 80 hours, and I'm still not finished on my first playthrough. Soul Sacrifice and Tearaway for 2013 are all I'll want, when I consider PS+ too. But I will definitely be grabbing NGS2+ and DOA5+, because I haven't played either games yet and having them on the go is immensely appealing.

As far as the Vita vs. 3DS goes, I've enjoyed my Vita's first year much more than my 3DS's first year.

My Vita Year 1:
- MGS HD
- Persona 4 Golden
- Virtue's Last Reward
- Gravity Rush
- Tales from Space: Mutant Blobs Attack
- Lumines: Electronic Symphony.
- Jet Set Radio

My 3DS Year 1:
- The Legend of Zelda OOT 3D
- Super Mario 3D Land

And this year for 3DS has been a disaster for me (I understand there have been good games, especially in North America -- and I'd have got VLR on 3DS if I didn't have a Vita). I haven't bought a game for it since SM3DL, and if it wasn't for PLvsAA (probably) and AA5 (certainly) on their way, I'd have offloaded it a long time ago.

 

[Ruud_Luiten]

I love both the Vita and the 3DS.
These threads tend to get nasty by people saying 3DS is bad, Vita is doomed etc.

Love them both and both have excellent games, but to be fair the outlook of the 3DS is better.

 

[TheDanger]

Rockstar should make a GTA for it, or maybe even gta v.

 

[Famassu]

Op and I have very different ideas of the term "strong"...no offense

It's unarguable that Vita's line-up this Fall was strong. Sure, many were ports, but one of the great things about handhelds is that it lets you keep some games with you at all times. And Vita was great in this regards because most of the ports were great or at least decent, they weren't your usualy shit-handheld-ports that are unplayable or so inferior to the console brethren that they aren't even comparable as experiences.

 

[Claymores]

It's personally taste really Vita has 1 game I want to play Gravity rush game and 1 possible game in the release schedule I might pick up as an impluse buy, all the other games I would normally buy IE Persona 4, Disgaea 3 and the Atelier games I already own and finished so I really don't see the point in buying them again or a expensive Vita to play them on.

 

[AniHawk]

I dunno, I feel like I've enjoyed more Vita games in this first year than any other first year I remember. I must be in a minority though because the numbers don't lie and they are poor indeed. It's a shame because the handheld does seem geared towards a certain demographic and I'd imagine the people in that demographic are having an absolute blast.


I cut all the guff from your list.

ghost recon was pretty good. seems like 3ds owners don't care though, especially now that it's no longer exclusive. i still think people should give it a shot anyway they can.

lots of ports and upgraded games for both systems in their first year. they might be really good, like oot3d or persona 4, but they do have a tendency to dilute the library a little. the 3ds will probably continue to get them if majora's mask gets a 3d remake (and i'm sure tww would follow). the vita is still getting ports of old games too, and that's never a good sign (getting atelier totori after ayesha is kinda like the wii getting the ps2 version of rygar half a decade later).

 

[dan2026]

So there is a ton a Vita stuff coming out in Japan.

Apart from Soul Sacrifice, how much of this will be localised?

 

[Phoenician_Viking]

I don't see much software support, especially by third parties, by this time next year.

Except the fact that 3-4 games have been announced for the past 3 weeks.

Every game released for the Vita is essentially losing money compared to if it could be on any other platform.

The fuck? Do you have evidence for this or are you talking out of your ass?

 

[highrider]

I dunno, I feel like I've enjoyed more Vita games in this first year than any other first year I remember. I must be in a minority though because the numbers don't lie and they are poor indeed. It's a shame because the handheld does seem geared towards a certain demographic and I'd imagine the people in that demographic are having an absolute blast.

this is how i look at it.

 

[matmanx1]

Every game released for the Vita is essentially losing money compared to if it could be on any other platform.

Really? Do you have figures to back this up or are you just pulling nonsense out of your rear end? The fact is that you have no idea what you are talking about because software performance is almost impossible to accurately predict even in the best of circumstances.

The only thing you can really say is that (and that's assuming you actually have hard sales numbers for a number of titles, which I bet you don't) certain games lost money or performed below expectations. We've been speculating on just such a situation with PSABR recently but only Sony really knows and they're so far not sharing.

More relevant to this topic at hand: I've played my Vita more than any other platform this year. It's been great for me and besides the couple of dead months in the middle of the year I've been satisfied with the software output. As long as 2013 has a similar number and quality of titles then I would qualify the Vita software situation as "satisfactory" if not "strong".

 

[Grakl]

Some of you really need to get Kid Icarus for the 3DS.

 

[Schobeleth]

So, I own the following games for Vita:

Gravity Rush (retail)
Rayman Origins (retail)
Little Big Planet Vita (retail)
Wipeout 2048 (retail)
Army Corps of Hell (retail)
Persona 4 Golden (retail)
Uncharted: Golden Abyss (retail)
Ragnarok Odyssey (limited mercenary edition)
Lumines Electronic Symphony (retail)
Need For Speed: Most Wanted (retail)
Little Deviants (retail)
Plants vs. Zombies (digital)
Super Stardust Delta (digital)
Playstation All-Stars (digital)
Motorstorm RC (digital)
Sine Mora (digital)
Retro City Rampage (digital)
Mutant Blobs Attack (digital)
Dokuro (digital)
Oddworld: Strangers Wrath (digital)

... and a buttload of minis and PS1 classics that I won't list just for the sake of this not being huge. The only game on that list that I got for free was Super Stardust Delta. I haven't even finished all of those games yet - and some, I haven't even started. To me, that's amazing that I already have such an awesome line up of games. I have a backlog for my handheld, when I was hoping I'd avoid that problem because my PS3 backlog is just enormous. To me, that says great things about the device as a gaming platform - there are tons of games and lots of games that I'm going to get, and lots that are coming out next year as well.

I just don't understand the constant need to question it's existence in the current market, to wonder if it'll survive. If you enjoy games, and you enjoy any of the games on the handheld, just play them and enjoy them. If you're on the fence because of the price point - I can't blame you, after Nintendo cut their price the Vita instantly became a lofty price point.

I know lots of people who are waiting for a price drop, and it definitely says something because everyone I know who tries the device or plays on it wants one, just not at it's current price. I even had a friend of mine, who basically went all PC gaming, recently got one and he loves it. I would argue with him over there being great games to play on the system, and he caved and got one.

 

[FairXchange]

Oddly enough, at a Christmas family party last night, out of about 15 people, there were 4 Vitas that people brought. I sorta got a kick out of that.

 

[zroid]

Oddly enough, at a Christmas family party last night, out of about 15 people, there were 4 Vitas that people brought. I sorta got a kick out of that.

I've still never seen another Vita in the wild

 

[KAL2006]

What's on the horizon

Soul Sacrifice
Sly
DOA5 Plus
Ninja Gaiden Sigma 2 Plus
Killzone Mercenery
Tearaway
Phantasy Star Online 2
Warrior's Lair
Dragon's Crown
Muramasa Samurai

Also hoping Bend are making another Uncharted, I loved the first one. Hopefully this time they can have multiplayer as well.

 

[BLACK AMERICAN PSYCHO]

And yet I still want a 64gig card.

This so fucking much. My 32 gb only has 3gb left. I'd even pay premium price for it.

 

[Noisepurge]

im waiting for Killzone next, and the inevitable Tekken Tag 2 announcement!

 

[BLACK AMERICAN PSYCHO]

The problem with the lineup is its overall appeal. What games are really popular in the West? FPSes, Western RPGs, and open world games (GTA and such).

With regard to those, the Vita is pretty much a disaster. You have two terrible FPSes, two lackluster loot games, and no open world games. It does have a couple third person shooters, but reviews are mixed. Uncharted is a draw for PS3 fans, but PS3 owners will probably stick to Uncharted on the PS3 long term, because there is no multiplayer.

At this point in its life the PSP had a GTA, SW Battlefront II (with better online than the Vita FPSes), a decent loot RPG at launch

Sure, if you like artsy-indie stuff and whatever Sony puts out it, the Vita is pretty good. It's okay if you like JRPGs with Persona 4 and Disgaea 3 (if you haven't played them already). What the Vita really needs are games that are huge time sinks. Games that people will play a long time, over and over and over. Whether because there is a grind factor or robust multiplayer.

I think this guy nailed it.

 

[Synless]

This "I wouldn't consider that a few strong months" stuff is bullshit. The bottom line is the system had a great fucking year. It may have been a bit loaded into the start and the finish, but it was still a fucking great year.

Mortal Kombat
Marvel vs Capcom 3
Wipeout 2048
Persona 4 Golden
Ragnarok Odyssey
Assassin's Creed Lib
Need for Speed
LittleBigPlanet
PlayStation All Stars
Gravity Rush
Uncharted
Jet Set Radio
Street Fighter X Tekken
Disgea 3
Sine Mora
Sound Shapes
Mod Nation Racers
Mutant Blobs Attack
Virtue's Last Reward
Silent Hill Book of Memories
Lumines
BlazBlue
Call of Duty (fuck you, its fun and gets undue shit)
Rayman Origins
Metal Gear Solid HD Collection
MLB 12 The Show

All of those are games that either reviewed well or in the case of COD, have a dedicated fan base. Not to mention that a few of the best ones are fucking FREE to PS Plus users.

All the backward compatibility with PSP games.
Remote play of Ico/Shadow of the Collosus (if you haven't played those yet, this is sweet)

I think its pretty hard to shit on the Vita after 10 months like that. Not too bad at all. If you want to insist there's nothing on the system that interests you, then take a walk out of this thread and go buy a fucking DS Lite.

The Vita had an awesome year and you even forgot one of the best games on the system, DJ Max.

 

[orioto]

Always the same thing at this point, on a side, Vita owners are saying how much they're happy with the games they had this year, on the other, people just don't buy it. Must be a problem somewhere.

 

[Derrick01]

Do you see those games selling to anything other than a small niche of gamers though?

So let's define what the goalposts are for sure right now before they get moved again. Are we talking about games or sales? Because the impression I got from the OP is we're talking about games.

 

[Toma]

Always the same thing at this point, on a side, Vita owners are saying how much they're happy with the games they had this year, on the other, people just don't buy it. Must be a problem somewhere.

Price and advertising currently, mostly price.

 

[theytookourjobz]

I kinda want a Vita now. I have some Amazon credit so if a ~200 bundle popped up soon, I'd probably bite. Playstation Plus definitely has something to do with it but I'm not sure it will be a good thing for the Vita in the long run. It might sell more systems but it might also keep people from buying games.

 

[tangmaster96]

Most of it is because sony is not broadcasting the vita like they did the psp.

I have never seen a vita commercial on tv which i think would seriously help they're profits.

 

[clay_ghost]

Always the same thing at this point, on a side, Vita owners are saying how much they're happy with the games they had this year, on the other, people just don't buy it. Must be a problem somewhere.

I think vita owners who love the library are very vocal. I only brought the vita because of black Friday sales.Its all right , the games are ok(UC, gravity daze ,AC vita , PS smash bro , all the free ps plus games) noting really wow i buy a vita must play this.

The library is ok if you own a vita ,noting scream system seller. And noting i will miss outside of maybe gravity daze.

Keep in mind that uncharted for vita is the 1st uncharted game i played so i did not experience the other called better games.Uncharted vita is quite boring too, shoot dude, story set pieces , shoot dudes. Hopefully the ps3 ones are better since i am going to try uncharted 2 one day.

Am i happy with the games ? With the price i brought them( most come free withe the bundle and ps plus), yes.If the vita cost its usual price(especially here in Singapore) ,nope.


Still have to get persona 4(my main interest on vita in the 1st place) after i get crimson shroud for the 3ds.

 

[orioto]

Most of it is because sony is not broadcasting the vita like they did the psp.

I have never seen a vita commercial on tv which i think would seriously help they're profits.

In France you got a TON of Vita commercials, on tv, on theater, on walls...

The library is ok if you own a vita ,noting scream system seller. And noting i will miss outside of maybe gravity daze.

This indeed. There are lots of reason to be happy about a Vita, but nothing you would miss if Vita didn't existed. I have mine but i'm not an avid gamer and broke, so i didn't play a lot of things on it (shouldn't have bought it in first place of course). Only game i bought was Gravity Daze and i'm one of the few to actually not like it... My prefered experience on the thing was Motorstorm RC cause of the great community integration. But i stopped playing it cause at some point i needed 2 hours to beat a record

Oh yeah and with Gravity Daze, i bought also LBP after that and when i realized i would never been able to do an original level without years of studies, i was totally depressed about my Vita. Also Soundscape community kinda died pretty fast.

 

[f0rk]

Is FF X HD dead? No one seems to be mentioning it

 

[Derrick01]

Is FF X HD dead? No one seems to be mentioning it

They're supposedly going to work on it after that kingdom hearts collection is finished. It was another case of Squeenix announcing something far too early but it's still on track for both PS3 and Vita.

 

[BriBri]

They're supposedly going to work on it after that kingdom hearts collection is finished. It was another case of Squeenix announcing something far too early but it's still on track for both PS3 and Vita.

Supposedly AND still on track? Any sources for it still being on track?

 

[Delusibeta]

The problem with the lineup is its overall appeal. What games are really popular in the West? FPSes, Western RPGs, and open world games (GTA and such).

With regard to those, the Vita is pretty much a disaster. You have two terrible FPSes, two lackluster loot games, and no open world games. It does have a couple third person shooters, but reviews are mixed. Uncharted is a draw for PS3 fans, but PS3 owners will probably stick to Uncharted on the PS3 long term, because there is no multiplayer.

If we apply this argument to the 3DS, then we conclude that the 3DS is worse. AFAIK there's no FPSes, no WRPGs and no open world games for the system.

 

[orioto]

If we apply this argument to the 3DS, then we conclude that the 3DS is also an equally disastrous wasteland. AFAIK there's no FPSes, no WRPGs and no open world games for the system.

A market for this kind of thing on a portable doesn't exist actually.. anyway...

 

[Delusibeta]

A market for this kind of thing on a portable doesn't exist actually.. anyway...

Precisely. It's a silly argument, and the Vita's problems is probably closer to Sony attempting to compete against Apple and losing than anything else.

 

[SmokyDave]

A market for this kind of thing on a portable doesn't exist actually.. anyway...

It definitely exists. It isn't large enough to sustain a platform, perhaps, but it definitely exists.

Everyone getting googly over Wii-U off-TV play is in that market, even if they don't know it.

 

[Oshimai]

def looking fwd to Killzone Mercenary; Vita needs a strong FPS title.

 

[Canis lupus]

Snapshot and Guacamelee, can't wait for them to come out on Vita.

 

[zroid]

If we apply this argument to the 3DS, then we conclude that the 3DS is worse. AFAIK there's no FPSes, no WRPGs and no open world games for the system.

Yes, but you don't have to apply that argument to the 3DS, because the 3DS has Nintendo games, which are popular enough in their own right, on consoles AND handhelds. Sony unfortunately doesn't really have any franchises with that kind of appeal.

To be completely honest, I don't think there IS a non-niche market for dedicated gaming handhelds in the West anymore. All that exists are a market for Nintendo games (which transcends handhelds vs. consoles), and a market for mobile games.

 

[maverick40]

Some of you really need to get Kid Icarus for the 3DS.

Why?

 

[QaaQer]

Some of you really need to get Kid Icarus for the 3DS.

just make sure your HMO has a good physio program.

 

[RedSwirl]

3DS has mostly been worth it for the eShop games, almost all of which are exclusive to it. I can kinda understand how someone could have the Vita as their preferred platform for indie/download-only games since it's the only handheld that can play games like Sine Mora or Retro City Rampage, but there's still not enough exclusive software to convince me to buy the platform.

I have a feeling that once the PS4 comes out the hardware gap will pretty much kill the whole "console in your hands" selling point that Sony just won't drop (it didn't work with the PSP). Hopefully, developers will then be compelled to just release original content on it. Most of those devs will probably be Japanese, and like the PSP before it, the Vita will become an new platform for niche Japanese games and whatnot. Hopefully a lot of them will be cross-buy or at least cross-play between PS3 and Vita.

Some good RPGs, SRPGs, and the like would really make the Vita a more appealing system to me. The hardware just seems perfect for the genre: buttons, touch screen, and high-def graphics.

 

[QaaQer]

& as far as all vita games losing money: Vita is being sold to people with a decent amount of disposable income, and those people are more likely to buy digital. Combined with the fact that sony's digital experience isn't as stupid as Nintendo's, and I wouldn't be surprised if most software (>50%) is downloaded.

So while I don't think Vita is in anyway a success, it might not be as big a failure as some people think because NPD #s aren't particularly relevant.

 

[mrklaw]

Persona 4 Golden, Assassin's Creed Liberation, CoD Declassified (yeah, yeah), LBP Vita, a strong NFS: Most Wanted port...it's actually been a great time to be a vita owner these past few months leading up to Christmas.

But what's next? Besides Soul Sacrifice and MLB 13 I can't think of anything coming out next year, and that doesn't bode well at all. Are we seeing the beginning of the end?

I really hope not. I think it's a great system, and I probably played it more than any other this year.

How is it any different to WiiU or to a degree PS3 and 360? Most publishers haven't revealed detailed release plans except for Q1.

So we don't know and cannot yet judge

 

[electroplankton]

I wouldn't call "very strong" the past few months Vita line-up. And I don't think 2013 line-up (at least what we know it's going to be released) is even on par of what Vita got in its first year. Tons of ports, multi with PS3, ultra-niche games and some promising titles that either must be proved to be good (Soul Sacrifice, Tearaway) or sequels that personally I'm not excited for (Killzone).

 

[BriBri]

I wouldn't be surprised if most software (>50%) is downloaded.

You don't think Sony would be shouting this from the rooftops if this was even close to being the case? Nintendo only ever shouted at Animal Crossing full game and Fire Emblem DLC so one can only assume the rest has under performed. I can't remember Sony shouting anything?

 

[sechsterangriff]

You don't think Sony would be shouting this from the rooftops if this was even close to being the case? Nintendo only ever shouted at Animal Crossing full game and Fire Emblem DLC so one can only assume the rest has under performed. I can't remember Sony shouting anything?

For what is worth, Yoshida did say did say digital downloads were well above expectations. I can only speak for myself but over half of my Vita library is DLC. I only buy physical if it's a really good deal. I buy tons of stuff from PSN and would also buy from eShop if it wasn't for the DRM.

 

[BLACK AMERICAN PSYCHO]

For what is worth, Yoshida did say did say digital downloads were well above expectations. I can only speak for myself but over half of my Vita library is DLC. I only buy physical if it's a really good deal. I buy tons of stuff from PSN and would also buy from eShop if it wasn't for the DRM.

Yup. I only have one physical game. All the rest are from psn.