"PlayStation Boss Sees Limited Potential for Handheld Gaming" Tokyo Game Show interview

[Wavergray]

So I'm going to say something that many will not agree with, but the fact is that handheld gaming it's a novelty now.

 

The big problem that the vita had is that it was too good/powerful. I've talked to people who love the games on the vita, but would stop playing because they would go play a ps3 or ps4 version of the game.

 

In this day and age of 720-1080p games, after a while even if the handheld version is good most will drift to the console or PC version of a game.

 

I think this is because a lot of people are more comfortable playing games of a big screen with a controller than a small screen that had to be held close to your face.

 

In other words the higher the graphics are the more likely you are to not really want to play it on the handheld.

 

This is why the 3DS is still kind of successful. As nice as the graphics are compared to old Nintendo handhelds they still haven't crossed that certain level that makes it uncomfortable to play in your hands. And even then there are still some 3DS games that people would prefer to play on a console.

 

I would say the switch kind of back's this up because instead of being just a handheld it's a hybrid of both handheld and consoles gaming. Because of this if a game ever crosses that level where it becomes uncomfortable to play as  a handheld game you can just put the whole system down and play on a TV.

 

So really the reason the Vita failed is because of something as simple as it not being comfortable enough.

 

As gaming got more advanced the novelty of having a game that goes anywhere with you has died down considerably, when compared to 10-20 years ago. So when you ask the average gamer what they would prefer to play, most will prefer to play their brand new $60 game on their nice TV with a comfortable control over a small uncomfortable screen that can go anywhere with them.

Edited September 26, 2017 by soultaker655

[Bloodytears1666]

I dunno how is it in another countries, but Russland PS+ section hasn't been updated since august and there still remain games from previous months with a price to download. And I don't think that smartphones are the reason of this kind of support. I know, may be this region is the mess, that hard to control, but still possible to claim in 2 month with a wish to do so. There is a Vita today "for me".

Edited September 26, 2017 by Bloodytears1666

[starcrunch061]

21 hours ago, RedMustang72 said:

He's right.  There's no denying that Sony made a mess of the Vita themselves, but the mobile market really did eat into the handheld market.  Even the DS, albeit with good sales, saw a sizeable reduction in units shifted.

 

Exactly. A lot of people are saying that the DS is proof that smartphones aren't the cause of Sony's demise. This is specious. The handheld market is clearly smaller, and Nintendo's dominant market share and general reputation there will carry them with their ONE handheld. But this doesn't mean that Sony can ever break in again.

Edited September 27, 2017 by starcrunch061

[Satoshi Ookami]

And did you do anything to prevent it?

If Sony wasn't so PS4 obsessed, they didn't have to have split console base on Japan (Vita) and West (PS4).

[MosesRockefeller]

On ‎9‎/‎26‎/‎2017 at 2:16 PM, AndresLionheart said:

People who only play on phones are not the same kind of people who play on a dedicated gaming device.

I have played a few phone games and the experience is not even close to an actual game.

Phone only gamers play for a few minutes just to kill some time. For example my mother does play a bit on her phone but she would never buy an actual console. If phones didn't have the free games she plays, she just wouldn't play at all.

 

IMO, mobile games actually opened another revenue and advertising source for big gaming companies. They can put lite versions of their games in there with mobile style monetization systems while advertising the real deal on the real gaming devices.

 

I don't know a single person who stopped buying consoles because they can play games on their phones.

Interesting point. Business people always like to say "smartphones killed portable gaming" but what I really think they mean is that "smartphones brought in huge new revenue streams for us, making portable gaming comparatively a waste of development and marketing resources". It reminds me of the business push to only make games that get great reviews, like games with 85 Metacritic averages aren't worth developing. 

 

In regard to your statement about people playing on smartphones instead of consoles, I agree. I wonder though, how many people that played DS/3DS/PSP in the past now just use smartphones for mobile gaming? I think the overlap isn't that big. People play with their smartphones to dick around for 5 minutes here and there, or when they get sucked into things like Pokémon Go. But is anybody playing on their smartphones instead of playing a full-blown experience like Pokémon (not Go) or a JRPG? Doesn't seem likely. Maybe portable gaming is a novelty that has mostly worn off, but the Nintendo Switch's success shows that there is still a market for portable gaming. 

 

That said, I'm not surprised that Sony is seemingly not working on a Vita successor. They know there is much more money and recognition in the PS4 and PS5. 

 

I have been a big fan of portable gaming for the past 5 years or so. I'm glad that I have a big PSP/Vita backlog, and that Nintendo is still committed to the portable market. Even if it does dry up, I have plenty of games to keep me busy for the next decade or so. I play the Switch in handheld mode way more than docked, and when I'm home sitting in front of the TV, I sometimes play on one of my portable systems more than my consoles. It may be a gaming niche, but it's a very valuable one to me that has really expanded my gaming life. 

Edited September 27, 2017 by MosesRockefeller

[yellowwindow7]

don't know if I have to agree or not, I was never a big fan of handheld gaming devices, the only handheld I ever bought was a Chinese made handheld console I believe it called something like (Digital MD) I believe I bought it way back in 2006 it came with a cartridge had 9 Sega Mega Drive games, it usess four aa batteries and dear god it eats them way too quick, played on it for like two monthes then put it on my shelf and never touch it ever again, don't even know if it still working after all these years, can't say the Vita is bad or anything since I never used one before. but it really have some games I wants to play that interest me.

 

it's price is also a "drive away" factor to me as well.

Edited September 29, 2017 by yellowwindow7

[ShadowStar83x]

If handhelds are dying, why is Switch doing so well? Yeah, it's a mobile/console hybrid, but it still counts!

 

Well, Vita didn't have much to offer for me and the memory cards were too damn much, so I use my 3DS and GBA SP for handheld gaming.

[Satoshi Ookami]

7 minutes ago, Chansey said:

why is Switch doing so well? Yeah, it's a mobile/console hybrid, but it still counts!

Because it's hybrid. If Vita was connectable to TV like she was supposed to, things would different.

[Zanreo]

Nah, the problem with the Vita was stuff like barely supporting it after just one year in and decisions like overpriced exclusive memory cards. Meanwhile, the 3DS did decently in the West. I love my Vita and its exclusives! Mobile would only be one part of the issue, handheld and mobile games aren't the same thing and have different audiences, and just control schemes alone (touch-based vs buttons) is a big difference. The audience for handheld consoles might be smaller, but it's still there!

 

Personally I'm a big fan of portable gaming and I love being able to take my games with me when and where I want, even at home I mostly play my Switch in handheld mode so I can play it where I want (in front of computer while looking up stuff, in bed before I go to sleep, ect.) instead of having to sit in front of the TV. Sure, phones can play games, but sometimes I want something that can be controlled with buttons.

 

Also, instead of first marketing "big AAA Western games... but as HANDHELD PORTS!", maybe focus more on handheld exclusives and games specifically meant for handheld? It would be hard to get the audience focused on those games over on handhelds that will never reach the same specs anyway when they run much better on console. That audience is unlikely to get into handhelds, at least for those types of games.

 

On 26.9.2017 at 8:16 PM, AndresLionheart said:

I don't know a single person who stopped buying consoles because they can play games on their phones.

This too - while mobile gaming have made more people start playing games, I've barely seen any dedicated handheld console gamers who actually DROPPED their (handheld) consoles to move over to mobile-only.

Edited September 28, 2017 by Zanreo

[Super-Fly Spider-Guy]

It's because people play their phones more now. 

 

It's not because they charged way too much for the thing, it's not because they charged a small fortune for a bloody memory card, it's not because after their first wave of games they pretty well dropped the thing, it's not because the 3DS was already there, it's not because digital games were way too big to get by with a small memory card, it's not because there was no real third party support after the first week of it, it's not because this, that, and the other.

 

It's because portable gaming isn't cool anymore, and people have their phones. 

 

Interesting how the Switch is kicking fucking ass, and that thing is about the biggest gamble a gamer could take right now as a consumer.

[damage_6-9]

On 27/09/2017 at 5:29 AM, Bloodytears1666 said:

I dunno how is it in another countries, but Russland PS+ section hasn't been updated since august and there still remain games from previous months with a price to download. 

 

Same in Australia, there has been no sign of the September PS+ games in the store on the Vita, still showing only the August games. 

[tpepper1985]

Makes me sad, Vita was my first handheld and if Sony ever made another handheld I would buy it, I like Trophy Hunting and being able to do that on the go is great. Nothing against Nintendo but I just don't like the style of games they mostly make the only console I ever had from Nintentdo was the GameCube and Mario/Zelda etc just doesn't do it for me - the only series that ever looked interesting to me was Fire Emblem

 

Having said that I have only finished 56 Vita Games, and the library on PSN has almost 1000 Vita games ... half of them are probably junk but that still leaves a huge library of games to play. As long as the store/servers are still running I can see myself using the Vita for another 5 years easily. I was already thinking about buying an LCD model because my OLED Vita is so old and I'd hate for it to die and later not be able to buy a replacement unit.

 

I don't think the handheld market is dead ... I tried playing games on mobile but they are all mostly terrible games with predatory microtransactions all over the place. I have not played a mobile game in at least 5 years ... (Since I got the Vita I think!) But at the same time Sony can't expect to sell 50 million units in this climate, I'd be pretty happy with how the Vita software is now, mostly ports from PC, indies and titles from Japan for me that's enough I have a home console for AAA games.

Edited September 28, 2017 by tpepper1985

[charlijaen]

On 26/9/2017 at 6:39 PM, Undead Wolf said:

Already heard this a million times... 

 

 

Not true. If the Vita was a huge success in the west, you can bet western developers would have flocked to the system. They go where the money is. How did they ignore the PSP? There were a ton of games from western devs on there. The PSP even had stuff like GTA - the biggest IP in the west. Clearly Rockstar saw some value in handhelds.

 

They should have brought all 3 PSP games to the Vita with second joystick support and trophies

[Beyondthegrave07]

I hate mobile games because they are chalk full of ads and pay-to-win. It blows my mind that people would rather play on their phone than a handheld IMO. Maybe I am just too old fashioned...

[Kaiten_the_Hero]

I was one of the early adopters for the Vita when it first came out, but ended up selling it as soon as I was done with Uncharted: Golden Abyss. 
Boy have I regretted that since, so many great games on it now (hopefully getting one again soon).

I don't understand why Sony basically killed it themselves though, yeah it might not have been as popular as the 3DS but without the extra effort from Sony and the severe lack of marketing, it was doomed. 

 

I'd love for them to revisit the Handheld market at some point, but I'm not sure if they'd attempt after what has been said about the Vita etc.

[Satoshi Ookami]

3 hours ago, Beyondthegrave07 said:

It blows my mind that people would rather play on their phone than a handheld IMO

I already cleared all SAO games on handheld so I have to get my dose of SAO on mobile =D

Edited September 29, 2017 by Satoshi Ookami

[RadiantFlamberge]

On 9/28/2017 at 3:52 AM, Satoshi Ookami said:

Because it's hybrid. If Vita was connectable to TV like she was supposed to, things would different.

As much as I love the Vita, I'll admit this was one thing that knocked it down a notch. Vita should've had TV out and supported PS3/PS4 controllers similarly to Sony Xperia phones.  Just as Joco200 said, an HDMI port is all it'd take.

 

Also, the memory cards should not have been priced so ridiculously.  The card that used to go for $90 should've been the 64 GB one, not the 32 (What was the 64 GB card then, $160?).  Better still would've been allowing microSDXC cards, which wouldn't have cost nearly as much- right now a 64 GB mSDXC is as low as $22.  If it were like that, you'd buy more MCs for a reasonable price and Sony just might have made it up on more sales of PSN games.

[Bilpe]

I carry a phone to talk on and a Vita to play games on.  It would be nice to have a wider selection of games, but other than that, I'm loving my Vita.  I'm a gamer, after all, not a phoner.  I think Sony thought that the Vita was going to explode onto the market because of the success the DS/3DS was having, and when that didn't happen, they immediately jumped ship.

[Elvick_]

7 hours ago, Bilpe said:

I carry a phone to talk on and a Vita to play games on.  It would be nice to have a wider selection of games, but other than that, I'm loving my Vita.  I'm a gamer, after all, not a phoner.  I think Sony thought that the Vita was going to explode onto the market because of the success the DS/3DS was having, and when that didn't happen, they immediately jumped ship.

Ignoring the PSP... and the fact 3DS majorly stumbled out of the gate [$80 price cut in less than a year is unheard of] and had an objectively worse launch lineup than the Vita did. Funny how successful sales later can rewrite a launch lineup.

Sony saw what is actually happening. That no one (general consumer) wanted Vita. They actually did support it at first, but for their efforts they didn't gain traction so they threw in the towel early. Instead aiming down the sights on the PS4's launch and trying to push VR. Now, yes some of Sony's decisions contributed (unused TV out port, clearly that's what the port was going to be for), memory card pricing and bad commercials for it. But they did actually put a lot of developers onto it and put out to this day some of it's best games. And some quality ports too. Even though people like to act like every port is terrible. People just didn't bite. I don't think Vita would have turned out much differently if they had cheap memory cards, or better commercials. You can say a sea of great games would work, but it didn't help Dreamcast. And it didn't help Vita in it's first year either.

The only way that I could see Sony releasing another handheld is if it's got reduced R&D, and is basically Vita 2.0 and aimed entirely at a niche market. For people who want JRPGs on the go, Visual Novels, who want indies on the go, and LEGO ports and the odd mobile port with trophies. Just retool the Vita 2.0 a bit so it can have proper controls for every game, enough power to get easy ports, and make it easy to develop for so it's cheap as well. Then they can ride off Switch ports at a minimum, depending on tech, maybe even next gen. I'd say remove rear touch, but having b/c with Vita would be great incentive for an upgrade. Especially if they could somehow get the OS to remap controls for a lot of Vita games.

But I don't see them doing that. I'd buy it though.

Edited November 13, 2017 by Elvick_