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| Don't touch the Sad Face. |
The Vita was launched earlier this year to a mild and underwhelming fanfare. At a high-end price point, Vita was targeting the core gaming market with it's dual analogue sticks, top quality graphics, true online multiplayer and the ability to touch every screen possible. A few months and one E3 later the Vita is limping along with sales of 1.8 million to the end of May. The sales figures aren't what worry me most as a Vita fan but the lack of support from Sony is terrifying. Sony have targeted sales of 10 million in this financial year but who is going to buy one at its current price with the games lined up?
I have to admit upfront to being a Vita fan. I bought one on day one and have loved Uncharted, Rayman Origins, Everybody's Golf and I can't wait for Gravity Rush next week (the demo is great). With enough good games I could easily see the handheld become my primary game console with high quality games without the requirement to take over the lounge; something that is more and more important with a grown-up life.
We're in the early days of Vita's life but what worries me is the distinct lack of big name exclusive titles. Assassin's Creed Liberation and Call of Duty Declassified both look like big name potential system sellers and Playstation All Stars might sell consoles in the US where Super Smash Brothers is immensely popular. As a quick aside, it takes some skill to ignore Jack Tretton's gaff of describing COD as the first dual stick, online multiplayer game on a portable system which must have made Resistance Burning Skies developers, Nihilistic, cry in to their collective dinners.
Where though were the big name internal announcements for the handheld? Where was Gran Turismo, God of War or Killzone? We're left looking forward to spin-offs and remakes this year like Metal Gear Solid HD (a game released on other consoles months ago), a remake of Jet Set Radio, portable versions of Lego games and no doubt stripped down versions of a collection of EA sports games. Until Sony can build some confidence in the console by releasing games that sell what would make a Rockstar or Capcom release a decent, exclusive Grand Theft Auto, Resident Evil or Monster Hunter, a guaranteed system seller in Japan.
PS One Classics and PSP games, whilst a nice addition to current Vita owners, are simply not going to sell systems. I will download my already purchased Final Fantasy games and recently picked up the Persona games from PSP but this isn't going to get people buying the console in their masses. The fact that PS One Classics was a 'reveal' in the Sony conference is remarkable and I hope that Jack Tretton was embarrassed to announce it as a big deal.
What future for the Vita then? The sales, whilst slow, aren't significantly behind the sales of the DS and 3DS in their early days and both of those managed to catch up. With the Vita's links with the PS3 coming, it will be interesting if there is anything that can increase sales over the next year and in to the Wii U's life where the Vita has the potential to rival the tablet controller on Nintendo's next gen system and SmartGlass on the 360.
Despite a 50 euro price cut in France, Sony insist that they have no intention of cutting the price elsewhere. I can't help but feel the 10 million proposed sales is somewhat ambitious for a system that was outsold in weekly sales by the Wii at the end of May (and by the PSP in Europe and Japan). Unless Sony act now to save the Vita then it could be too late before they get off their behinds and do something about it.
A nice post, but I think there is a whole different side to the story.
ReplyDeleteI'm not by any stretch of the imagination convinced that the Vita is dead already. I know it seems like the first thing Vita fans say when defending it, but it really does have an excellent games lineup already, with some excellent titles to come.
I think the bigger issue is the state of the handheld games market - you only have to look at your phone to understand why. Last decade, if people wanted to play games on the go, then they pretty much had to buy a standalone console (gameboy, DS, PSP etc), and it was an expectation that they would need to spend a fair amount of money for the privilege. However, the mobile gaming model has changed significantly what with mainstream apps providing excellent entertainment on phones either for free or incredibly cheap - take how stupidly successful angry birds is for its 69p price tag. What's more is, people dont need to buy a piece of hardware just to play the game they really want - 9 times out of 10, they already own it.
It seems as though the Vita sits in a much more niche market compared to what the PSP had. People have a high price to pay to get the quality that is sure to be released over the next year or two. Games prices are high, but so is the production quality of those games. If prices slip, quality inevitably will follow - and can you imagine the uproar from Vita owners if they were getting smartphone style games (or even worse, smarphtone ported games) on their Vita after paying £200 for the hardware? Not good. Nothing short of a subsidy (perhaps from Sony) to reduce prices is going to change that.
In short, I don't think Sony is entirely to blame here - they're facing an extremely tough market situation, with added pressure from competition in the form of smartphones - something they have never had before. I think a certain amount of patience is required before condemning the Vita to a Dreamcast-esque future.
I hope you're right about patience being all that's needed as I think the Vita is a handheld that deserves to succeed. Interesting that you mention the Dreamcast though as that too was a system that deserved to succeed but was under supported by Sega and 3rd Party developers.
ReplyDeleteDoes cheap have to mean a reduction in quality though? I'm not talking 69p cheap like on iOS but perhaps Xbox Live Arcade and PSN cheap. Braid, Journey, Shadow Complex and Trials all show high quality for sub £15 region.
As someone who loves iPhone and hates iPhone gaming I would happily pay Vita prices to play top quality games. I'm just a bit concerned that top quality games aren't going to be there until market share rises and that market share won't rise until the games are there OR the system becomes more affordable. I think that you're spot on that Sony need to take a hit now and do two things: 1. subsidise the cost of the system more heavily and 2. make sure top quality first party and third party exclusives are being developed. People would buy a Vita for a new and exclusive Gran Turismo, Grand Theft Auto or Metal Gear Solid.
Thanks for the reply. Hope you come back.
I think the problem with is more than anything a lack of awareness. Sony poured massive amounts of money into marketing the PSP and PS3, and the few ads for the Vita have only shown the ability to continue your PS3 game on the go.
ReplyDeleteThat doesn't sell a system... People need to be shown first why the console is unique, why it's different, and what makes it special. They need to show off the dual analog sticks, the OLED screen, and the great first-party games available for it.
Frankly, only a few people I've met have actually even heard of the Vita.
A killer app couldn't hurt, either. For North America, it'd be GTA. Japan is worrisome, because the 3DS now has a Monster Hunter Game, and that game's fanbase will flock to the newest version of the game that is available there.
Of course, I can see Assassin's Creed being a bit of system seller, and Call of Duty could bring a few people over.
Nice to see an active blog, though. Something my blog can't claim. Readers couldn't help.
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