The obvious answer would be a simple “No”. If that were the case here, however, there would be no wall of text following these two sentences. There is no denying that the PS Vita did not achieve quite the success Sony were expecting, especially when compared to the sales of the competing 3DS. Nintendo’s first party exclusives have a certain magic about them that often manages to compensate for a somewhat lesser hardware. That, however, isn’t the only reason why Sony’s handheld struggles.
Handhelds vs. mobile.
Both PS Vita and 3DS launched in 2011, at the dawn of a rapidly expanding mobile market. Phones and tablets were developing hardware-wise, with screens increasing in size and specs gradually resembling those found on low-end computers. The overall utility of a phone was also not playing in favour of a dedicated handheld console. By being a family friendly platform, Nintendo have drawn audiences in, while also offering a variety of unique first party games – the one thing mobile devices didn’t really have. With many games suitable for short gameplay sessions, it was enough to reel in casual gamers, and exclusive titles, such as Mario and Zelda, convinced them that the 3DS had much more to offer than a regular phone, while at the same time catering to the hardcore audience. That is not to say Nintendo did not make mistakes. Having a proprietary charger and not bundling it with the actual console, or concealing an SD card slot behind a plate on a revised model, is something that only the gurus at the big N will ever understand. Thankfully, these minor hiccups did not seem to affect sales. Sony, on the other hand, were not so lucky with their decisions.
What about Sony?
Unlike their main competitor, Sony marketed their new handheld device mostly towards the hardcore audience. Towards gamers, who were eager to experience home console gaming on the go. After all, its predecessor, the PSP, did great for its time and built up an excellent library, but the handheld itself was released at a time when mobile devices were not really gaming capable. During the years following launch, the Vita was supported with highly regarded first party exclusives, such as Little Big Planet, Killzone Mercenary and Wipeout 2048. These games demonstrated the full potential of the new hardware, and were at times almost on par with their home console counterparts. Contrary to popular belief, the Vita has a vast library of great games. Depending on one’s preference, it could very well surpass that of the 3DS. And, even though completely neglected by Sony recently, the platform is still receiving new releases from renowned third party developers like Nippon Ichi.
What went wrong.
It wasn’t the lack of quality games that detrimentally affected its sales. The Vita was more expensive upon launch than the 3DS, and any potential buyer would also be intimidated by the requirement to purchase a proprietary memory card which, regardless of the size, was greatly overpriced. There also wasn’t a big enough amount of games targeting casual gamers, and the games aimed at the hardcore community were often marred by unnecessary inclusions of touch-based controls and use of the camera. Adding to everything else, it turned out that there just weren’t that many gamers interested in a pocket-sized home console. In 2013, Sony released a revised version of the Vita – the PS Vita Slim. The new model was lighter, thinner, and overall sleeker. Other selling points included an improved battery duration and a built-in 1GB storage. At that point, however, Nintendo had a much bigger install base and the market was largely dominated by mobile games.
So is it basically a “No”?
Though, in truth, highly unlikely, a new handheld from Sony is not entirely out of the question. Considering the current success of the PS4, the company’s overall ambitiousness and experience in the handheld market it is, in fact, possible. Provided they learn from their mistakes and build upon feedback. Which, among other things, would include abandoning the proprietary memory card, getting rid of the gimmicky controls and simply creating a powerful portable system for gamers, similar to what they have done with the PS4.
Some will say: “Wishful thinking”, I say: “We will see”.
