PlayStation Vita Should Sprint to Success, Not Marathon to Failure

Wired:In a recent interview with IGN, Sony trotted out that old line about PlayStation Vita: “It’s a marathon, not a sprint. disagree. In this week’s episode of Game|Life Video, I attempt to make the case for why game consoles need to explode out of the gate if they’re going to run a winning race.

[LX-General-Kaos]

All thats needed is a price drop, some day that will be understood.

@Below
I dont think so miss...

[-Mika-]

Bundles are pricedrops...

[3-4-5]

for games you don't want.

[MasterCornholio]

So no one wants

1. Little Big Planet Vita
2. Call of Duty Declassified
3. Assasins Creed 3 Liberations

I can sort of understand not wanting Call of Duty since its being made by crap devs, but Little Big Planet (metacritic 88) and Assasins Creed 3 Revelations look excellent. So highly doubt that no one wants a Vita bundled with either of those 2 games.

If one of these bundles sell then your statement will be proven false which i know you want to be true but fat chance it isn't going to happen.

Deal with it.

[ABizzel1]

The Vita needs

1) Android Marketplace HD (which features HD content and generally the most quality games & apps). This would instantly give the Vita everything it needs to compete with tablets, while eliminating the mass of garbage on the Android Marketplace. Sony may not want the Vita to be compared to tablets and smartphones, but unfortunately that's it's competition as well as any other handheld, so they need to eliminate all advantages the competition has such as apps, cheap games (Free - $10 HD games), books, widgets, HD backgrounds, and more.

2) Price drop. The Vita is worth every bit of $250. But so is every tablet out there with a Tegra 3 Processor, 1GB of RAM, and 8GB of storage which are generally selling for $199. The Vita needs to sell out this year for $250, and next year it has to come down to $199. But that's not enough. They also need to keep game bundles year round at the $199 price along with at least a 4GB memory stick. They also need to cut the price of the memory sticks. $100 for a 32GB card is outrageous ($80 on amazon) i know that's equivalent to most phones and some tablets jumping from 16GB to 32GB, but it's still a huge turnoff and is the main reason why most people settle for the 16GB version, not to mention that the 16GB is part of the final pricing for the $199 device. Memory prices should be:

4GB: Discontinue and make free with every vita
8GB: $10
16GB: $20
32GB: $35
64GB: New $60 (with PS+ you'll need it)

3) A new model no later than 2014. I know the Vita just came out, but a new model is in needs as soon as possible. Not to boost sales, but to boost functionality. A 4G LTE PSVita that works on ALL CARRIERS would be a device you could carry at all times. Constant Internet, Netflix, Online gaming, and more all thanks to 4G. 4G would make the Vita a handheld gamers dream come true, and truly turn it into a PS3 in the palm of your hands. Add at least 16GB or internal storage to the device, better cameras, better face buttons, better analog sticks, and HDMI out and the Vita will fly off shelves like you want it to. It would be wise to keep the price at $199, but it's understandable if it goes up a bit, just be sure to drop the price of the original PSVita by an equal amount.

[ABizzel1]

4) Gaikai. Gaikai would do so much for the Vita if it gets a great library of games, moveis, and music day 1 (Gaikai can stream pretty much anything just in case some of you didn't know). PSMinis, PS1, PSP, PS2, and PS3 games should all be available via Gaikai Day 1 if possible. Movies, music, books, comics, and whatever else would turn the service into a iTunes competitor, and would be the final steps to take when filling up the service, however games should be the number one focus.

5) Marketing. There's little to no marketing for the Vita ever on TV. In general I see little marketing for gaming nowadays. Mostly Xbox 360 and 3DS commercials, then PS3, and that's it. If you don't have the budget that's fine, but market where it counts the most launch, summer, and holiday season. Summer was dead, and holiday season has practically started (October IMO) so where are the ads, commercials, and campaigns for the Vita or the remodeled PS3 or the Wii=U for the matter? The hardcore generally know about your device, the casual however, need to see it on TV, the internet, in stores, and wherever else so they find out more about, and eventually get one.

6) Games. We know they're coming, just get them out. Assassin's Creed next year, a good Call of Duty, Gran Turismo, a great Fifa, Monster Hunter, Metal Gear Solid, Gran Theft Auto, and God of War are the heavy hitters the Vita needs to get those undecided gamers off the fence and buying Vita's by the millions. Once you have them then it's the time to focus on unique experiences like tearaway, puppeteer (should be on Vita as well), Rain (should be on Vita), and more via the Cross buy feature to push those unique experiences.

The Vita could easily be a 60M+ selling console, and should be more, but it's not getting the push it needs.

[profgerbik]

If the AC3 bundle isn't good enough I don't know what game bundled would ever be..

There is a CoD bundle and even a Madden 13 bundle. I know there are more in other places also other than EBgames/Gamestop.

It is always the people who don't own a Vita screaming price drop..

Price is fine, it is worth every penny and like Mika said there are a few bundles coming out that would be worth getting.

I am not a fan of CoD but I would not mind getting a free copy with the Vita or even AC3 Liberations. Like I said if you look around plenty of other bundled games come with the Vita at $249.

There was a bunch of Gravity Rush bundles, Little Big Planet bundles and some Little Deviant ones on Amazon as well.

Amazon always has different bundles. You can even find Vita's for $200 there or on Ebay brand new in box. If you expect it any cheaper than that you just don't know how well it is made.

It is worth the $300 price tag, let alone $250.. even $200 feels like a steal for such a device.. You people expect too much when it isn't necessary.

No one complains about buying a Wii U for $330 dollars that doesn't even have a multi-touch controller.. Or the fact everyone spent their money on iphone 5's..

I don't want to hear how you can't afford a Vita when it is a completely reasonable price for what it is.

[LX-General-Kaos]

I am not saying the Vita is expensive for me, I think the price is fine man. It just seems that the rest of the world does not feel the same way. After a short peep at the sales numbers it has become quite clear that the world is waiting for a price drop. They waited for Nintendo to drop the price of the Nintendo 3DS entertainment system at that price, and now they are waiting for the Vita. If the price was as great as you say it is for the consumer, then we would not be having this conversation.

As for the bundles.. we will see how good or poor they perform after this holiday season. If they sell good, then more power to them. If not, then a price drop is in store. The problem is if Nintendo shoots too much further ahead of them in the handheld realm, developers are not going to really show much support for the Vita. Especially at an install base similar to the one today. Do you remember the 3rd party support for the PS2 when compared to the competing platforms at the time?

The fact of the matter is, the Vita is not selling to expectations. Sony just released a new revised PS3, Microsoft is launching Halo 4 soon, another COD is coming out, and the Nintendo Wii U entertainment system launches November 18th. On top of that the Nintendo 3DS entertainment system is selling at a much faster rate. At that price point, it looks like it may become a hard sale for the Vita up against all of those odds.

Rated E For Everyone

[GraveLord]

Price Drop is pointless if there's no games on it people want to play. This holiday we're getting Assassin's Creed, Call of Duty...All-Stars etc. If that doesn't convince people to buy it, nothing will.

There's no point in the Vita getting a temporary sales increase and selling at a huge loss if it will just go back to selling horribly soon after.

What Sony is doing now is smart. Keep the price the way it is to maximize profits and add value in the form of bundles.

[GribbleGrunger]

And no doubt this nonsense will be piped through the new IGN App on 360s in the UK. I can see I'm going to have to put a lot of my 360 owner friends in the picture this Christmas.

[DivineAssault]

Sony will drop the price when they can produce it at cheaper costs.. Lookin like nx yr it will happen.. Im sure they dont want to have to pay off early adopters with free games too so they will do it when the time is right.. Vita is worth the money but ppl dont wana spend that much on a portable system & i dont blame em.. Thats a lot of cash but im happy i coughed it up cuz vita is a beautiful machine

[GreenRanger]

"game consoles need to
explode out of the gate if they’re going to run a winning race"
That's a load of nonsense.
The PS3 and 3DS had terrible launches and look at them now.
There are some amazing games coming out soon on the Vita, why the hell do these journalists keep ignoring them?

[shoddy]

Agree.
Sure they sprint and then they run out of exclusive games.
Then they start to recycle.

[FragGen]

Why do journalists ignore stuff and miss really obvious stuff? Because journalism as a profession is DEAD in the post internet world. For better or worse... mostly the latter probably.

[Xof]

You're kidding, right? The PS3's slow start was devastating. It took six years to eclipse the 360 despite having a better library after two--and it still hasn't come close to the Wii.

And the 3DS is -still- facing stiff competition from the DS.

Slow launches and a lack of support early on are devastating. Yes, consoles can recover. The PS3 is proof of that. But it takes time--a lot of time. It took the PS3 more than three years to attain a modicum of respectability. How long will it take the Vita?

[TongkatAli]

No

[Xof]

If you're going to disagree, at least try and articulate a counter-argument.

The simple fact of the matter is that if a console does not get strong software support from the very start, it suffers.

[metroid32]

Yes but the ps3 still is a FAILURE end of m8 and the 360 to be on 65 million in 7 years is a joke the wii is just brimming 100 million and as a result the wiiu is born and has sold out worldwide on pre-orders so plenty of wiiu's will be in homes word of mouth will sell the rest,Sony will almost defo fail with the ps4 unless it offers the same functions as wiiu as the wiiu will be on an install base of around 25 million units if the ps4 comes out 1 and a half years later ?? there will be hundreds of wiiu games on the market by then and will have new services and functions and huge games around the corner like Smash bros/Zelda/F-Zero/Metroid/Mari o Kart/ect aswell as Retro studios and Moonlith soft games as well it will gain too much ground and my Guess is Nintendo will own at least 65%/70% of the market Nextgen which will make UE4 games ect and CE3 games get built on wiiu then ported to ps4/720 despite the power they get because devs wont all of a sudden turn there backs on a 25 million install base on a console that does DX/Opengl 4.1 graphics FINAL.

[fei-hung]

The N64 and GameCube were released earlier than the ps1 and ps2. It didn't help then and the ps1 was unknown when the N64 was released.

The ps3 is behind due to its cost on release and the amount of a thrashing it has recieved from journalists this gen. That coupled with MS's growing dominance and the Wii get huge boosts from soccer mom sales and bored house wives.

It is the number of combined variables that caused Sony to be 3rd this gen, not just being a late starter.

We will all have to wait and see how Nintendo does with the WiiU and how many units they have shipped for release to be sold out. We still need to see what processor it's packing along with what the other next gen consoles will offer.

[profgerbik]

How the hell is Sony going to fail unless they offer the same features as the Wii U?

Sony owns Gaikai and they made the Vita and PS3 combo a reality before the Wii U even existed. With Gaikai alone, Sony could do anything even more than the Wii U can and this is real talk. I am not trying to start a who copied who comment but Sony clearly doesn't need to copy anything Nintendo is doing.

Wii U will not even last, let alone be able to compete with even PC's let alone Consoles in a year and a half.

You are mad if you think so, I sound like a broken record but idiotic remarks like that make me repeat them. Supervision is the next HD, newer consoles will use it and your precious Wii U will be a thing of the past when it is stuck still using HD TV's.

Secondly the power gap between the systems in general is going to be pretty big based on how fast everything is developing already especially in the sense of CPU's and GPU's, even RAM is becoming even more powerful by the day.

What is with you brain washed Nintendo fans that think something that finally caught up to 7 year old systems would even compete with something that has been in the making probably that long. Supervision was out 2-3 years ago also..

You morons speak as if the PS4 is actually already made and you can compare the two. You can't compare the Wii U to a PS4 anyway..

The Wii U is only comparable to last generation consoles because that is what it is, a last generation console. I am glad Nintendo is able to fool you so easily but I know a last generation console when I see one especially when everything inside the console period is from last generation.

Do you know what kind of CPU's and GPU's we will have in a year? Ridiculous ones, 4GB GPU's now will be considered old news and cheap as hell.. even if the PS4 sported an old 4GB GPU it would still be miles away from the Wii U..

I am not even kissing Playstations ass about this, these are just the facts of reality and how it has been advancing lately.

There are cell phones just a powerful as the Wii U practically... To think anything made in a year and a half from now is still going to be the same it is now is literally stupid.

Everything is going to change, just like it always does every year. Thing is there has been a lot of dead time for new technology to appear while these consoles have been on hiatus.

I probably won't even buy a 720 but even I know it will be much more powerful than a Wii U simply because the time they have had to work on it let alone what amazing technology they will be working with in a year or already have been working with like Supervision.

Focus on the console aspect all you want. The proof is all around us that technology is not slowing down anytime soon.

[mcstorm]

@fei-hung you are wrong about the N64 and Gamecube being out before the PS1 and PS2 the sony consoles were out 1st.

Sonys biggest problem with the PSV is the market they are going for. The core market is small and even smaller on hand held. They need some games like Nintendogs and to push them as the console is lacking pickup and play games.

I have the PSV and love it just finished LBP but I can see where Sony are going wrong.

[Blankman85]

Both had sooner than expected price drops due to pressure from low sales.

[MattS]

Ok, so this author is commenting on a business strategy, and is actually claiming that short term gains are more important than long term value?

This, ladies and gents, is why games journalists should probably take a business degree before thinking they're qualified to comment on the games industry. Armchair experts everywhere.

[Tetsujin]

I vote to lose their right to blog, and to block the site so they can't post dumb articles like this in the future.

[ForRealz17]

Here, here!

[sashimi]

Hey they're blogging on the net and pandering to the fanboys for hits in exchange for money! so he must know something about business! /s

But dignity, respect, integrity, factual evidence is pretty much nonexistence in the face of them having to make rent off of ads for their crappy sites.

[kreate]

Its a business

[InsaneChronos]

No, we need a platform for a decade, not a year. Wired knows nothing about video game industry. Look at the Wii. While the PS3 is still alive and supported by developers, the Wii is dead for a year. What we gamers have from such sprint? Nothing except need to spend 300 dollars for a new console.

[NovusTerminus]

Funny... I remember E3 announcing a $250 price tag and people being happy. Some of us (myself included) expected a higher price then what we got.

Now, with no change in anything, everyone is complaining... The Vita does not "need" a price cut. Yes, it would help, anything that gets a price cut helps sales... Even a companies DVD players see a boost in sales when the price is cut.

Mostly what the Vita needs is games, which are coming. It is a slower process, and not one everyone has patience for. But with Gravity Rush, AC:L, P4G and cross buy on ASBR, it will pick up steam a little bit. The JRPG's are starting to pile up in Japan.

And with sleeper hits already coming out, like Ragnarok Odyssey I think the Vita will do just fine. But it is, like most Sony systems, a slow start.

[tubers]

I was ok with the core system price but not the MMC w/c is pretty mandatory of the system.

[smashcrashbash]

I don't get his logic either.What makes you think that every product sprints out of he gate the moment it is released? Many times it needs more time to get started. I don't understand people's belief that if something doesn't fly into people's hand the moment you let it out that you should drop it or not try to make it work. That is why I am glad people on these sites and here on N4G don't run businesses.The kind business sense people seem to have would bankrupt them in few months. It's the same belief people have about gaming. If the game doesn't sell ten million units and above it is a failure.

[CLOUD1983]

"It's the same belief people have about gaming. If the game doesn't sell ten million units and above it is a failure."

Actually it's not gamers who think that way but greedy game companies that cant be satisfied with anything, take for example CRAPCOM although all the old school RE sold 5-6 millions each it wasn't enough for them, they wanted CoD sales numbers so what they did? they turn RE6 into CoD gr8 way of thinking eh?

I wish to all the companies who follow this methods & forsake their core fans to cater to either casuals or CoD fans in hope to increase their sales to go bankrupt & disappear from the game industry for good.

[megamanX2]

"You're kidding, right? The PS3's slow start was devastating. It took six years to eclipse the 360 despite having a better library after two--and it still hasn't come close to the Wii."

how is a last place system eclipsing anything?

[smashcrashbash]

I am sorry drama queen. The PS3's slow start was DEVASTATING? How so? Did it sell 5 million units? Was it tossed aside prematurely? Did a ton of developers ignore it? Is it being passed on by the entertainment apps or by indie developers? Are people not buying it any more? Don't we have most of third parties on the PS3 instead of Microsoft hoarding them for themselves like they were trying to do before? Didn't the system out sell the 360 worldwide for a long time despite it being the more expensive console? The PS3 isn't Sony's best system ever but I can't see how it was devastating. If you want to talk about devastating the poor handling of the Dreamcast was devastating. Nintendo refusing to use a disc format was devastating to them and their consoles. How is not having the best system once in a gen devastating? Nintendo did it for two whole gens and they are still here.

[Blankman85]

Devastating because in one generation PS3 ate up all the profit SONY made in the last 2 generations combined and still hasn't recouped all the billions in losses.
Devastating because SONY went from first to last.
Devastating because Nintendo and Microsoft quadrupled and tripled their market share from last gen while SONY halved theirs.

[XabiDaChosenOne]

@Ndivhu
"Devastating because in one generation PS3 ate up all the profit SONY made in the last 2 generations combined and still hasn't recouped all the billions in losses."
I need links to take anything you just said seriously.
I'm not sure how moving first to last is devastating when your console is still successful.
I'm also not sure that your comparison adds in all the variables. Xbox tripled their market share and Sony almost halved theirs yet they are still struggling to keep a lead on the PS3? What is that really saying about who?

[Silly gameAr]

These articles are getting worst everyday.

[metroid32]

Look dress it up as much as you like 2 million worldwide is extreme poor at best,which ever way you look at it i'm surprised games are even getting developed for such a joke of a handheld,no 1 wants vita period 2 million to almost 20 million ??? Work it out guys its a fail if it continues they will have to pull it off the shelves.

[Veneno]

I have to agree with the article. The Vita is awesome but Sony needs to change its practices. If companies like Apple and Samsung sell millions and millions of devices out of the gate then how does Sony plan to catch up?

Sonys strategy is to slowly and steadily release games because the Vvita hardware needs to last for many years until the next one comes out. While phone and tablet makers come out with hardware each year and games everyday and that system works better.

So in my eyes Sony needs to do 2 things. Either adopt the hardware strategydone by Apple and other tech companies or cut the price and be cheaper because when you compare the features of the Vita and say, a 7 inch Samsung tablet which is the same price, the tablet does more things for the money, butnof course gaming is done best on the dedicated gaming design ofnthe vita. It worked for Nintendo, it would work for sony.

[Bathyj]

All "that old line" means is Sony doesnt give up on a platform just because its doesnt become market leader in the first 6 months. They keep supporting it till it gets better.

Dont people realise consoles are never at their strongest at launch? They always get better the longer they've been out. More games, price drops, devs get more proficient. Why does everyone think it wont?

And lets face it, any handheld that doesnt have a Mario game on it is always fighting an uphill battle. Its Nintendos playground. Sony are just playing there. They've done pretty good I think.

[Veneno]

Iphone and android don't have Mario, but they do have Angry Birds, and thousands of other hit games, and that seems to serve them quite well.

Don't you believe, even a little, that Sony needs to adapt to the smartphone/tablet takeover? I always admire that Sony marches to its own beat but that doesntmean hey cant take inspiration from other areas.

[tiffac008]

I definitely believe Sony should start having the 4GB memory card automatically bundled with every purchased Vita. At least its a start, not having an important piece to the device can easily turn off potential buyers, as they will see it as hidden cost. Let the consumer buy the bigger card as an option down the line but let them have something to begin with.

I'd also love for Sony to push the 3rd party devs in Japan to focus on the Vita because right now they are still supporting the PSP. I still do not see why the Vita should be second fiddle to older brother, when its suppose to be the future handheld device for Sony. Yes, it may be a marathon but you do not want to be lagging behind too much.

As for the price drop, that should happen eventually. As it is the nature of the business.

[DivineAssault]

when nintendo peaks with zelda & metroid, its game over.. They never release sequels to mario kart on there.. Maybe zelda like the DS did but still.. After all that is pumped out, whats next? not like they very much AAA 3rd party games (that interest me) anyway.. Sorry, im not into animal crossing, professor layton, or Phoenix wright stuff.. But the thing does sell like crazy so im the minority here.. Vita is where i will get the handheld titles i like to play.. M rated greatness... I like some T & E games too but theres only so much of that rainbow n sunshine crap i can take..

[bigcupofSTFU]

mem cards, thats the deciding factor, so far ive convinced 2 people to purchase a vita. but there were a couple who saw the mem card prices and said "fuck that" .

Remember the average consumer does not care about memory card read/write speeds.

All they see is GB and price.

One guy said. "couldnt i just put an SD card on there? its way cheaper. you know what, i think ill just wait till the price goes down"

all sony needs to do is drop the price on the memory cards.