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[Bending_Unit_22]

Shall we ignore the fact 360 had a years head start with no competition and PS3 launched alongside the fastest selling console ever yet still managed to pretty much get within 2% of it's sales?

The 360 only sells well in North America and the UK while being completely comatose in Japan, so the PS3 only narrowly losing to it is no great victory and is yet something else the PS3 has on the Vita (which has a direct competitor everywhere). As for the launch advantage the 3DS got more out of it than the 360 which had to be channel stuffed to high heaven to reach its lowish sales estimates.

 

[Metallix87]

because they started later - they are closer now then when they launched so have sold more than X360...but as stated the margins are too small it's really a tie

Microsoft is basically running on two regions, against Sony's three, and still coming out on top by several million units, though.

 

[Urvan]

You know what will revitalize the Vita Sales ? a new Dissidia game with online functionality. and superior graphics.

 

[commish]

Microsoft is basically running on two regions, against Sony's three, and still coming out on top by several million units, though.

Yeah but that's not by choice.

Btw, not to turn this into a sales thread, but do we have current console sales figures?

 

[Metallix87]

You know what will revitalize the Vita Sales ? a new Dissidia game with online functionality. and superior graphics.

Square-Enix doesn't even seem to want to touch the Vita anymore. The port of Lord of Apocalypse seems to have scared them away from that market. I wouldn't be surprised if the Final Fantasy X HD port / remake / whatever is their next and last release for the system, and that's if it's even released for Vita.

 

[Afrikan]

Maybe if Sony made half an effort to let people know the vita even exists, they would sell more.

I still have people walk up to me and ask me "what is that?"

 

[Kacho]

You know what will revitalize the Vita Sales ? a new Dissidia game with online functionality. and superior graphics.

LUCAS, believe!

 

[SmokedMeat]

It will take a herculean, though not impossible, effort to turn the ship around. Sony is uninterested in doing that.

That's my beef with Sony; they seem to not give a shit. Thankfully I never bought a Move, but you can see right there how Sony can talk something up, release it, and then let it wither as the competition stomps it into the ground.

My faith in Sony has really nosedived these last few years.

 

[Delusibeta]

So, a quick run-down of ten of Vita's problems in my opinion, in no particular order:

1) Hasn't shifted the stigma in the West of having failed with the PSP, and the Vita being a PSP2.
2) Advertising, broadly speaking, has been poor. Having demo units in every large video game specialist? Excellent idea, however they're all gone and Sony hasn't done anything since, really.
3) Having too many games lined up for day 1. The Vita is conclusive proof that it's possible to have a launch lineup that's too good. The traditional barren six-to-nine months every console launch has (which we're still in) is emphasised further. Had half of the games that was released in day one been convinced to be released in the following six months, the "vita haz no gaems" stigma wouldn't have taken root as hard.
4) Sony of America is doing everything in its power to not sell the Vita outside of outright sabotage. It's probably the worst performance in selling a console by an American arm since the Sega Saturn.
5) No UMD support, while understandable, has harmed its chances in Japan.
6) Japanese developers being really slow to transition from the PSP to the Vita, and may instead transition towards the 3DS and reuse their PSP assets.
7) Letting the 3DS position itself as the PSP2 in Japan, especially with regard to Monster Hunter sequels.
8) Still no PS1 support.
9) Playstation Mobile is still in gestation, and more than likely will be dead on arrival.
10) Sony of America's focus on straight ports and letting previously Vita exclusive games get ported onto the PS3 is an extremely bad idea (see also 4).

 

[PopcornMegaphone]

nm

 

[Bending_Unit_22]

3DS only started selling well due to price drop - and that's off the back of the most successful handhelds ever sold

And like with the PS3 the Vita has absolutely none of the advantages the 3DS had in spades so I am yet again wonderring how this supports a Vita turnaround story.

Microsoft is basically running on two regions, against Sony's three, and still coming out on top by several million units, though.

Well, more like 1.5 regions.

 

[Canis lupus]

But how? How do you turn it around? I think they need some uber exclusives, like, FF-level exclusives. Not another Uncharted or a PS3 port.

They really started relying on 1st parties only since this gen, itll take time to establish big IPs, a lot will be put away like Socom.

I always viewed the decline of Sony as the decline of Japan, things have changed in the consumer electronics business as Korean firms are bigger now. Western games are bigger than Japanese games now.

 

[PopcornMegaphone]

I still have people walk up to me and ask me "what is that?"

It's a boring system that doesn't have any buzz worthy features or games. Marketing can't save that.

 

[Road]

The bulk of those were on the PS2.

Do you have the sales breakdown?

 

[Father_Brain]

Square-Enix doesn't even seem to want to touch the Vita anymore. The port of Lord of Apocalypse seems to have scared them away from that market. I wouldn't be surprised if the Final Fantasy X HD port / remake / whatever is their next and last release for the system, and that's if it's even released for Vita.

They still have that Unity-based PS3/Vita ARPG coming. Or at least, they did as of last December.

 

[Metallix87]

They really started relying on 1st parties only since this gen, itll take time to establish big IPs, a lot will be put away like Socom.

This is silly, then, since none of the IPs they've created this gen have reached the level of sales potential they need in order to self-sustain their platforms. The closest has been Uncharted, I guess, and I imagine it'll join Gran Turismo and Ratchet and (possibly) God of War in the group I call "the keepers", i.e. the Sony franchises that will come back on PS4.

A lot of the IPs that Sony created this gen seemed almost reactionary to what was popular, instead of making strides to try and create the next big thing. That's another issue Sony needs to deal with.

 

[Colonel Mustard]

It's a boring system that doesn't have any buzz worthy features or games. Marketing can't save that.

No need to do this. You know how they'll react.

 

[goonergaz]

Let's face it, when all is said and done the Vita was always going to come 2nd best to 3DS - Nintendo is handheld gaming.

Sony made a good attempted but messed up in some key areas - advertising (or lack of) and price (inc accessories being expensive proprietry) and finally closing up any other openess we've enjoyed with PS3 (game sharing/multi accounts etc).

However it's still early days and 'success' doesn't always mean first - look at X360 - people call that a success and it's only sold about the same as PS3.

 

[BLACK AMERICAN PSYCHO]

Like I said before, having better power & graphics alone never sells home gaming consoles or dedicated portable handhelds to the masses. It's been proven over & over again.



And lost a lot of billions as a result of that & constantly lowering the PS3's prices since launch just to get more PS3's to sell.

nope form factor and battery life are important too. build quality is also important. 3ds sucks at these things

 

[PopcornMegaphone]

No need to do this. You know how they'll react.

I know, I know, but the Vita is a system that's impossible to troll because it's full of horrible truths.

 

[lunchwithyuzo]

I always viewed the decline of Sony as the decline of Japan, things have changed in the consumer electronics business as Korean firms are bigger now. Western games are bigger than Japanese games now.

The president of Square Enix doesn't even consider Sony a Japanese hardware maker anymore, Wada said Nintendo was the last one.

 

[AwRy108]

Maybe if Sony made half an effort to let people know the vita even exists, they would sell more.

First post nails it, as usual.

 

[arimanius]

Grownups with jobs don't have time with a Vita and they get their fix on their smartphone with $1-10 games.

I'm a grownup with a job and a 19 month old kid and I play my Vita the most.

Being able to stop and resume a game in the middle is so huge for me, specially if I have to chase my kiddo around.

I also have a bunch of games on my Iphone as well, but honestly I only play them for a couple of mins at a time and see them more of a stop gap solution to my gaming needs till I can break out the Vita.

 

[Metallix87]

nope form factor and battery life are important too. build quality is also important. 3ds sucks at these things

I'm sorry, but don't Vita and 3DS have roughly the same battery life? So if the 3DS's battery life sucks, then the Vita's sucks, too.

 

[BLACK AMERICAN PSYCHO]

I think if Revelations gets ported, it'll be to consoles. Vita's market can't properly support it, iOS/Android interfaces can't properly support it.

Lolwut? how much did revelations sell? I think if vita was little bit healthier it would have done better on vita than 3ds. infact wasn't revelations a complete bomb?

 

[PopcornMegaphone]

Let's face it, when all is said and done the Vita was always going to come 2nd best to 3DS - Nintendo is handheld gaming.

Sony made a good attempted but messed up in some key areas - advertising (or lack of) and price (inc accessories being expensive proprietry) and finally closing up any other openess we've enjoyed with PS3 (game sharing/multi accounts etc).

However it's still early days and 'success' doesn't always mean first - look at X360 - people call that a success and it's only sold about the same as PS3.

I think the 360 is a success because it is important to Microsoft's overall future plans. Purely from an ROI perspective, the 360 hasn't been great, but better than the PS3, obviously.

 

[Kacho]

Lolwut? how much did revelations sell? I think if vita was little bit healthier it would have done better on vita than 3ds. infact wasn't revelations a complete bomb?

Uh, what?

 

[BLACK AMERICAN PSYCHO]

Marketing can't save a poorly positioned product with a crappy value proposition.

And you know why your friends haven't heard of Vita? It's a forgettable gaming machine that no one is talking about.

I know it sounds like I'm trolling, but the Vita is one of the most misguided gaming products I've ever seen. I mean, what was Sony thinking?

yeah you definitely are trolling with that one

 

[Metallix87]

Lolwut? how much did revelations sell? I think if vita was little bit healthier it would have done better on vita than 3ds. infact wasn't revelations a complete bomb?

You're bordering on ridiculous now. Nothing is selling on the Vita. Nothing. RE:R would've bombed hard on Vita, as opposed to doing decent on 3DS.

 

[goonergaz]

I'm sorry, but don't Vita and 3DS have roughly the same battery life? So if the 3DS's battery life sucks, then the Vita's sucks, too.

I believe the Vita can get more life in general...I think it was about 5 hrs for Uncharted? I remember seeing some write-up comparing batt life and Vita won (if only by a small margin)

 

[PopcornMegaphone]

yeah you definitely are trolling with that one

Well if it's not true, than why are the sales so horrible?

Marketing is just an excuse to justify a product you like but general consumers do not.

 

[Delusibeta]

Well, more like 1.5 regions.

I'd probably say it's closer to three countries myself.

 

[Deleted member 17706]

It's really unfortunate. I like the Vita as a piece of hardware. I liked what I saw of it in person, too. I want to want one. There's just not enough compelling software for it, and the impression I get from Sony is just that they don't care. I don't want to drop $300 on the thing and some games only to find out that Sony cancels/pulls support on the thing. That's the worry I have right now.

 

[Vermillion]

But we would get phones with controllers.
it's a win win!

Sony Xperia play 2 please.

My man.

 

[ohlawd]

The Vita has Persona 4: Golden. I will do my utmost to keep it alive until then.

 

[BLACK AMERICAN PSYCHO]

Square-Enix doesn't even seem to want to touch the Vita anymore. The port of Lord of Apocalypse seems to have scared them away from that market. I wouldn't be surprised if the Final Fantasy X HD port / remake / whatever is their next and last release for the system, and that's if it's even released for Vita.

I think it would be wise to wait until tgs before making such statements

 

[lunchwithyuzo]

Lolwut? how much did revelations sell? I think if vita was little bit healthier it would have done better on vita than 3ds. infact wasn't revelations a complete bomb?

It did around 250k Japan, around 150k USA iirc. So roughly on par with Uncharted GA in those regions (around 100k Japan, over 200k USA).

Game easily would've bombed harder on Vita I think.

 

[Metallix87]

I think it would be wise to wait until tgs before making such statements

Ah, yes, the latest goal after E3 ended up being a bust.

Tell me, if TGS proves to offer little hope for Vita, what then?

 

[LuuKyK]

The Vita has Persona 4: Golden. I will do my utmost to keep it alive until then.

Pretty much. Square just need to give me a new Dissidia after Golden, and you don't even need to launch new games on Vita Sony. It's that easy.

 

[Colonel Mustard]

Lolwut? how much did revelations sell? I think if vita was little bit healthier it would have done better on vita than 3ds. infact wasn't revelations a complete bomb?

"If people actually wanted the Vita and would buy games for it, Revelations would have sold."

What kind of nonsensical situation is this?

Edit: What I'm implying is that userbase has nothing to do with RE's situation. (Which due to Capcom's inability to give even the least bit of exposure to the title, would have assured its mediocre sales anywhere it went.)

 

[Urvan]

You know when you can say the PS Vita is a toast ? when you see the next Dissidia made for 3DS, which will let Nintendo control the handheld market.

 

[alfredofroylan]

Lolwut? how much did revelations sell? I think if vita was little bit healthier it would have done better on vita than 3ds. infact wasn't revelations a complete bomb?

We had that discussion before with other game.

It didn't work

 

[BLACK AMERICAN PSYCHO]

I'm sorry, but don't Vita and 3DS have roughly the same battery life? So if the 3DS's battery life sucks, then the Vita's sucks, too.

vitas battery life is slightly longer (but with a quad core CPU/GPU and massive 5 inch oled screen. vitas battery life SHOULD NOT BE EQUAL let alone slightly longer.) in my experience. It last around 8 hours when playing a PSP game and 3ds is around 6 for me when playing a ds game. ( despite vita being pure software emulation.)

 

[Urvan]

vitas battery life is slightly longer (but with a quad core CPU/GPU and massive 5 inch oled screen. vitas battery life SHOULD NOT BE EQUAL let alone slightly longer.) in my experience. It last around 8 hours when playing a PSP game and 3ds is around 6 for me when playing a ds game. ( despite vita being pure software emulation.)

actually it was proven otherwise. And don't forget 3DS XL is made for the battery life.

 

[Canis lupus]

The president of Square Enix doesn't even consider Sony a Japanese hardware maker anymore, Wada said Nintendo was the last one.

Japan should broaden their horizons just like Kojima said. Even if we fans may hate what SE is trying to do, they're doing it to survive and stay relevant.

 

[Afrikan]

I know, I know, but the Vita is a system that's impossible to troll because it's full of horrible truths.

but if that wasn't the case in your mind, you'd happily troll it correct?

surprised you have lasted this long around here.....shouldn't be that much longer however. Don't hold back now though.

boring system? haha.

 

[Bending_Unit_22]

I'd probably say it's closer to three countries myself.

True but for a time last gen those 3 countries were something like the 1st, 2nd, and 6th or 7th largest console markets. So to be fair I'd round that to 1.5, though if you want to be precise maybe 1.25 or 1.3.

 

[Urvan]

I would love to roll the Vita but tbh I feel sorry for it, and here I was going to buy it when a good title like Dissidia come for it.

 

[Pixel_boy]

They need hand-hold games for the Vita not water down ports I own a ps3 already

 

[BLACK AMERICAN PSYCHO]

It did around 250k Japan, around 150k USA iirc. So roughly on par with Uncharted GA in those regions (around 100k Japan, over 200k USA).

Game easily would've bombed harder on Vita I think.

resident evil revelations had commercials so the fact that it sold on par with uncharted GA is disturbing. I don't think the 3ds audience is interested in any rated M game let alone resident evil. Revelations would have been a perfect fit for vita