Sony: Vita the "iPod of Handheld Gaming"

[StewShearerOld]

Sony: Vita the "iPod of Handheld Gaming"

PlayStation UK's Fergal Gara believes the Vita is well suited play "various roles" for diverse audiences.

We won't mince words: the Vita is a fine piece of gaming hardware. Sure, it's a bit on the pricier end when you consider things like proprietary memory cards and its software library is perhaps not as wide and varied as other platforms, but it's nonetheless a great machine that tends to enthrall people who actually own it. That being said, with the launch of the PS4 the landscape on which the Vita stands is shifting, leaving many to wonder about the fate of the system and if it can be maintained as a viable portable gaming system.

For Sony, however, there's no question that the Vita is here to stay, even as its position among its competitors changes. "I do actually think Vita has various roles it can play," said Fergal Gara, PlayStation UK's managing director. While he pointed to games like Killzone: Mercenary and Tearaway as evidence of the strength of its software, he also confessed that Sony had been eyeing the Vita as a companion piece for the PS4 for years. "[The] compatibility between the two was always designed into the Vita's system. By the time PS Vita development started we were well into the development path of the PlayStation 4, so things were very much designed to work together."

Some might wonder why Sony even bothers continuing to push a portable like the Vita when its consoles are doing well. The answer can probably be rooted in the fact that Vita owners tend to buy a lot of software. "Compared to PS3, Vita has had a higher percentage of games bought digitally since it was first launched," said Gara. "It demonstrates how many people look at it as the iPod of handheld gaming." In other words, it's in Sony's best interest to sell more Vitas and with PS4 remote play, last year's <a href=http://www.escapistmagazine.com/news/view/127038-Sony-Confirms-Vita-Price-Cut>price drop and PlayStation Now <a href=http://www.escapistmagazine.com/news/view/131089-PlayStation-Now-Streaming-Service-Unveiled-at-CES-2014>coming this summer, there arguably hasn't been a better time to snag one.

Source: VG247


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[Rabid_meese]

Thats not fair to the iPod - the iPod actually has good apps and uses.

The Vita is just a shinier PSP. There is literally 2 titles on the Vita worth playing.

 

[Dragonbums]

The Vita isn't even the "Ipod" of gaming either.

Because unlike it's real counterpart, the Vita still isn't making any money for Sony. Also, most people have an Ipod. Therefore the 3DS is more like the Ipod because they dominate the mp3 scene.

It would make more sense to equate the Vita to the Zune.

And another thing- the 3DS are very well made, and will last a very damn long time regardless (unless your really careless.)

 

[synobal]

I guess that is better than saying they want to be the Hitachi massaging wand of gaming. Though I'd argue people who got a Hitachi are more satisfied than those who got an ipod.

 

[GonzoGamer]

File under: I'll believe it when I see it.
They were saying that the psp and the ps3 were going to work together on so many levels but nothing happened. They just seemed to lose features.

 

[Roxas1359]

The Vita isn't the "iPod of gaming" Sony, not even close. If any music product were used to describe the Vita, it'd be this one:

They can still fix it however. One, drop the stupid proprietary memory card BS or drop the price of said cards as they cost way too much. Two, get Japan Studios cracking on games for it, I know you're making Gravity Rush 2, but we need a bit more. Three, advertise the damn thing. Either way the Vita is basically in the same situation the Wii U is, only it's in the handheld market.

 

[Sight Unseen]

Isn't the iPod the iPod of handheld gaming? Because, you know, it's an actual iPod and the app store is thriving?

 

[Casual Shinji]

"It's sucks as a gaming device, but it can still do all these other neat things. See?"

And isn't the iPod sorta extinct already?

Atleast it still has that hilariously ironic name.

 

[Dragonbums]

"It's sucks as a gaming device, but it can still do all these other neat things. See?"

And isn't the iPod sorta extinct already?

Atleast it still has that hilariously ironic name.

I wouldn't say it's extinct, but perhaps Apple's stupid business strategy of releasing a new one every damn year with nothing to differentiate them but larger memory space is finally biting them in the ass.

I mean, I have a gen 2 8GB Ipod, and I still have 5 GB of space to go before I fill it up. I've had this thing for almost 7 years now.

 

[Eldritch Warlord]

I agree with everyone. Vita is much more like Zune than iPod. I don't mean to insult the Vita, I had a Zune and I liked it. If dedicated mp3 players were still popular I'm sure the Zune brand would still be around.

Of course Zunes were also a little cheaper than comparable iPods, so I guess the Vita doesn't fit the analogy exactly.

 

[Roxas1359]

And isn't the iPod sorta extinct already?

Atleast it still has that hilariously ironic name.

Pretty much yeah. iPhones and iPads killed the regular iPods and the iPhone killed the Touch. I mean they still sell them, but most people end up going for the phone or pad. Although I think the Nanos are still popular because of their convenient size.
*is currently typing this from a 3rd Gen iPod Touch*

 

[Megacherv]

Some might wonder why Sony even bothers continuing to push a portable like the Vita when its consoles are doing well.

So that they have a player in the handheld market? That's like saying 'Why are Apple selling the iPhone when the Macs are doing so well?'

At least this article has a positive spin on things, and the PS Store is such a nice convenience during the January sales (Fuck yeah Rayman Legends! )

The Vita is just a shinier PSP. There is literally 2 titles on the Vita worth playing.

Come now, isn't that being a tad facetious?

 

[loa]

People bought music digitally on their i-pods?
Who even does that?
I just slapped my mp3s that I already had on the thing and I was golden.
Now if I could just slap games on the vita making it useful without me having to spend extra cash, maybe he would have had a point but that thing is so hilariously closed, it even uses proprietary memory cards.

 

[weirdee]

ppppppretty sure the ipod is the ipod of handheld gaming

maybe you should set your sights a bit higher, vita?

i feel like even though tearaway is a good game that maybe sony lucked out there and that it isn't an indication of a greater trend

 

[ckam]

The vita's a pretty nice system. I mean, I haven't used much of its online capabilities, but? Yeah, I like it.

 

[Andy Shandy]

Yeah...no. If anything, it's the Wii U of handheld gaming.

I mean, it's a nice system, but there's not a huge amount on it that I would consider making the purchase worth it.

If you're going to stick to music players comparisons, then I agree with the Zune comparison that plenty have made as well.

 

[TheEvilCheese]

As a Vita owner, it's my console of choice for pretty much anything. The hardware is just that nice. While I would say it isn't lacking in games, that's mostly because I never owned a PS2 and the ports are amazing, not to mention the massive volume of stuff that a decade ago would never leave japan. But I like JRPGs and portability. That said, the 3ds has Fire Emblem and Monster hunter. Sony must have been so annoyed when they designed a MH system and Nintendo cosied up to Capcom.

 

[Hairless Mammoth]

"It's sucks as a gaming device, but it can still do all these other neat things. See?"

And isn't the iPod sorta extinct already?

Atleast it still has that hilariously ironic name.

I wouldn't say it's extinct, but perhaps Apple's stupid business strategy of releasing a new one every damn year with nothing to differentiate them but larger memory space is finally biting them in the ass.

I mean, I have a gen 2 8GB Ipod, and I still have 5 GB of space to go before I fill it up. I've had this thing for almost 7 years now.

It probably also hurts them that they have have a price premium and redesign a few of the newer models so some of the also expensive accessories no longer work with the new model.

OT: Yeah, the psv is more like the ipod touch: expensive compared to other options, has a touch screen that really doesn't add to the experience but adds to the cost, has almost no game worth buying, and larger storage is overpriced.

 

[Malevolentcafe]

The vita is the iPod of handheld gaming. Except for the part of actually selling...

 

[shintakie10]

The Vita isn't even the Zune of handheld gaming because the Zune was dirt cheap to buy.