I’ll be honest: I’ve got my own significant concerns about how well Sony’s new handheld will do when it launches. I think that the impact iOS and Android devices have had on the marketplace, coupled with Sony’s apparent focus on full console experiences, may conspire to make the Vita launch something of an anti climax and will almost certainly make for a tough road ahead for the platform.
That’s not to say I’m not looking forward to it personally, as I know a lot of our readers are. It will take more than just the buying power of us hardcore, early adopters to make the launch a success but with the inclusion of multimedia features, internet browser and – crucially – the PlayStation Suite which is also available for Android, it has a few bases covered.
I think Sony has built in some potential for diversification in the device that could save it but I don’t think it’s going to be an easy year for Vita.
I wouldn’t go as far as Lyle Hall and Matthew Seymour, of Heavy Iron Studios, though. They’re claiming, in an interview with GamesIndustry which we reported earlier, that the Vita launch is going to be a disaster.
“If people aren’t willing to pay $249 for a Nintendo 3DS why would they pay $299 for Vita?” said Hall. “People don’t want to carry more than one thing in their pocket, that’s why Android and iPhone have done so well, they are the devices of choice, they offer multiple functions outside of gaming.”
[drop]Which is a very valid argument, right up to the point where you realise that PS Vita isn’t necessarily a single function device.There is massive potential for applications to be published to the device – social networking, google chat (with video hangouts) and things like Shazam, FourSquare, GeoCaching, augmented reality encyclopaedias and location-based directories. Vita could, potentially, do everything that an iPod touch can, as well as pack buttons to play those larger-scale games that Sony has historically been fond of trying to get onto handhelds and give access to the PlayStation Network Store catalogue and distribution system.
So, I think Hall is correct as long as Sony ignore their new features and concentrate on the “updated PSP” aspects of the Vita. Will Sony do that? Only if they’re insane.
But wait. Seymour goes one step further into hyperbole:
With all due respects to Sony and Vita, it’s a car wreck. And how about Xperia Play? I’d love to pull up the numbers on that.
Now, that statement is also potentially true. If Sony aren’t careful, and missing holiday season 2011 in the west is potentially a big problem for them (as it was for Nintendo with the 3DS launch), the Vita launch might become messy and unable to capture the general buying public’s imagination. We’ll know that after the event, calling it a “car wreck” before the car has left the factory seems a bit premature.
Also, the Sony Ericsson Xperia Play does seem to have been an abject failure. It didn’t work very well, was mired in launch complications with key partners refusing to support it, and has failed to drive software sales in any meaningful way. Only months after its release, the price is tumbling faster than the 3DS’. But Seymour’s colleague just said that multifunction devices were the only way forward for mobile gaming, Xperia Play demonstrates that multifunction devices need to be properly managed in order to be a success. The Xperia Play was hugely overpriced and had very little clear global marketing behind it compared to what the 3DS or Vita will have.
[drop2]Perhaps the reason the 3DS has had a slow start isn’t simply because people don’t want to carry an extra device solely for playing games. Perhaps the reason for Nintendo’s refocussing on the marketing and price points for their handheld is that they recognised that the marketing and the pricing were what was causing the slow uptake outside of the hardcore, early adopters? So asserting that it’s functions and then demonstrating that it’s possibly not functions but marketing and pricing that make a device attractive to the marketplace.It’s a slightly different market but it might be wise to remember the PlayStation 3’s launch, with its feature packed advertising and slow arrival of software. That device didn’t sell spectacularly until Sony cut functions, cut the price and marketed it hard as gaming hardware – just as Nintendo are now doing with their 3DS.
The key point to remember about the PlayStation Vita is that there’s still time. Time to get it right, time to make sure it can be supported and time to watch and learn from competitors. I think it’s very difficult to argue with the idea that launching a “PSP2” would have been a difficult proposition, given the perceived failures of that platform and the general apathy towards it now. But the Vita is, as far as we can tell, so much more than the PSP.
It seems, and this is the smartest thing Sony could have done for the new handheld, to be taking the abilities and possibilities of the Android market and merging them with their pedigree in console gaming.
It would be madness to assume that the Vita will be a massive success and reassert Sony’s position in the handheld market overnight. It needs to be marketed, priced and supported in a very innovative and encompassing way in order for it to avoid the issues which clearly face mobile gaming in the aftermath of the AppStore price crash. But to ignore the potential that it holds, and the possibilities it presents, would be even more unhinged.
Michael
I hope Ansca make Corona work for Vita. That’ll save it, ‘cos Nofi and I will make awesome games for it!
Paranoimia
For me, the two clowns at Heavy Iron are missing one crucial point: The 3DS didn’t fail to sell because of the price, it failed to sell because there were no decent games available for it at launch, or for some time after. Some may even argue that there’s still little worth buying it for.
Some may also argue that what Nintendo saw as a ‘big selling point’ – the glasses-free 3D – is still seen by many (perhaps even a majority) as little more than a gimmick. Something Sony themselves are finding out with the relatively slow uptake of 3DTV.
Jaffa-the-Cake
I don’t know why we’re even bothering to debate what these two idiots who work for a studio that creates failures are saying. They first make a point that a sole gaming platform wont succeed and then say the Xperia play is also a failure. The Xperia Play does multifunction and so the fact is hasn’t done well shoots down the argument that pure gaming machines can’t do well in the marketplace. The reason 3DS has failed so far is the price Nintendo set without giving enough reasons for people to buy it. It was poorly supported at launch, like most nintendo consoles, and lacked basic features that are available in the cheapest phones, like an eshop. Sony wont make those mistakes and thats why i believe it wont go the way of the 3DS.
cc_star
Not really, Xperia Play suffered from old spec (some year old Droids had broadly the same spec, ridiculously expensive, poor reviews & the usual Sony post-release lack of support.
It ‘failed’ for different reasons than people not wanting convergence
Rabid-Coot
I’ve been in a car wreck and it looked nothing like the Vita.
linkavich
very good article again cb, a bit of a grey area with handhelds at the moment but to say that people don’t want to carry around more than one device is a bit of a stretch considering many people still hawill buy a dedicated camera even though many phones have a great camera on them, I used to always carry round my ds when I knew I’d be wanting a game on the move . I don’t know if the guy realises that most people carry this wondrful item called a bag it just seems to me that his comments are valid in one sense but totally disregarding that fact that people will find ways to get round having to carry more t
colmshan1990
This is not a Gameboy
This is not a Portable Playstation.
This is not a Dual Screen Nintendo console.
This is Playstation. This is life.
That’s how marketing should go, anyway. Apps would drive sales up.
But what is failure? Hyperbole. The PSP was, and is, a massive success, except in the eyes of the media.
http://www.thesixthaxis.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/02/LifetimeSales2010-12.png
Looks like the 360 and PS3 failed, then.
And people, the 3DS hasn’t failed yet. It’s not even a year old.
I’d hate to see your parenting skills if you think it’s failed in it’s purpose already.
colmshan1990
Oh, and look at the sales figures of the DS.
What else did the DS do, other than portable gaming? And it’s still selling strongly.
So shut up and game. Because portable consoles aren’t going to die out soon.
TSBonyman
And add this…” It’s the only DS you’ll need – Dual Sticks!”
Workshed
I don’t think Hall would argue with you when you say that “PS Vita isn’t necessarily a single function device” however I think what he actually means by his argument of “devices of choice, they offer multiple functions” is that you’re already carrying them with you. These days you need a phone with you just like you need your wallet and keys with you but that simply isn’t true of the PS Vita. To me that’s the key point of his argument.
I really hope it’s not a car wreck but i can totally see Hall’s reasoning.
colossalblue
absolutely, I see the reasoning too. I just think it’s way to early to make those statements and their eventual truth relies so heavily on so many variables all being handles quite badly from Sony’s end.
teflon
People don’t want to carry more than one thing? Then why is it that anecdotal evidence points to large numbers of people having an Android phone and an iPod Touch at the same time? Naturally the convenience of having one device that does everything is great, but so is the convenience of having one account that crosses devices and offers you stuff elsewhere.
Say, for example, that someone buys an Android phone with PS Suite on it. They buy Angry Birds and similar touch games through it, and play them on the go. They see that the Vita can also play all of these games, just as well if not better than their phone and that’s another checkbox ticked for them.
If Sony can absolutely 100% nail the usability and multi-functionality of the device, then it could get a foothold. To do that they’ll need to get the marketing absolutely spot on. However, they will be hindered a little bit by the fact that it is a gaming machine with buttons and a design based around that.
I think that Sony could do well if they released a really strong competitor to the iPod Touch, though. Have a rock solid Android implementation, and just remove all the crap and hassle that makes it a rather obtuse experience for some people. No 3G in it, just WiFi and simplicity. They could draw people into the PS Suite ecosystem that way.
igotmy9milli
I don’t think Vita will do very well sales wise…
Totodile
I have to disagree with you, I know a LOAD of friends, that are ready to buy this on launch.
Voganlight
I really don’t think the Vita and the 3DS can be compared. Everyone seems to think the 3DS is just an updated version of the DS – like the DSi. That isn’t the case with the Vita. If Sony market it well, and that’s a big if, I can see it becoming quite successful.
colossalblue
“Everyone seems to think…” is the key phrase here. The fact is: the 3DS is a different console. It has backward compatibility with DS titles but it is a new hardware platform. As you (I believe) rightly point out, lots of people perceive it to just be an iterative update.
That’s why Sony didn’t name the Vita “PSP2” – because the PSP brand isn’t conducive to selling handheld devices (in spite of decent sales figures, software sales are atrocious – hardware has sold because pirates allow free access to software libraries). So a “PSP2” would make people think of that PSP they have that hasn’t seen a decent new game in months… The 3DS made people think of the DS they’ve already got and at that price point, it’s not worth upgrading just for 3D visuals. So, the branding is probably off target and the pricing is discouraging and the marketing focussed on the silly gimmick rather than the actual strong selling points of the device.
The PS Vita has everything else in place but it needs to be pitched perfectly to make an impact on the current market which, whether people want to believe it or not, has been changed by iOS and the AppStore (and particularly by the rush to base-prices).
As you say, the Vita might be successful – if the marketing is done right.
Voganlight
The problem is that Sony’s marketing record isn’t exactly perfect. And yes, that is what I mean, the general opinion is that the 3DS is just a minor upgrade.
Another thing you mention is Playstation Suite. While that is a somewhat good point, Sony needs to get it out there first. I currently own the Galaxy SII which is the most powerful Android phone right now, a phone which is definitely able to run Playstation Suite, yet it’s nowhere to be seen. It seems like classic Sony to me, great ideas yet the execution is rather flawed.
I don’t think I’ve ever heard the term Playstation Suite being mentioned anywhere but on gaming websites.
Deathbrin
Hmm. I am facing the exact opposite thing, people jump on the 3DS cause it’s something new and very different, and i struggle to tell myself any more that it’s just a sllghtly bigger DS.