Let's examine your individual premises before we even give your question consideration...
| spurgeonryan said: 1. The PS3 was not some huge sales beast |
1. Really? I mean, it was downhill from the PS2, but it still outsold the 360 in a year's less time. It's a sales beast, though all three consoles in seventh gen were. The PS3 is the only one with substantial legs, though.
2. Sort of, but that's unimportant. PSPgo isn't an entire system of its own. It was a spin-off model of the PSP. It's failure does not impact the PSP's success as a whole. It quite possibly didn't even represent any sort of loss to Sony, as they cut off production and sold the rest of the PSPgos out there... And those people who did buy them went on to buy games.
3. Which brings us to this... The PSP is one of the most successful handhelds in history and allowed Sony to be the first serious direct handheld rival for Nintendo. The PSP is the ninth best selling gaming device of all time, and it sold roughly equally in all regions (NA, EU, Japan, Rest of World). Not only was the PSP a huge success, but it was indeed a success in the US.
4. The Vita has had a much harder time than the PSP, probably due to a combination of the dramatically reduced handheld gaming market (3DS trajectory is decimated by the DS, as well) and bad naming/marketing (mainstream consumers don't know what a "Vita" is, and the advertising focused too much on things that phones do better anyway). Whether or not the Vita's struggles will stop them from making a second PSP successor is yet to be seen (I hope they make one, as I love both of their handhelds). However, the Vita is still supported and regularly sells out of its low production capacity. It has turned out to be an instrumental piece of Sony's push for a "PlayStation ecosystem," integrating really well with their entire device and service lineup. "Failed" is untrue, as a failure dies without support. Poor? Certainly. Although, calling it mediocre in Japan is a bit of a joke, as it's a huge success there. It only trends behind the 3DS over there, and it even gives that system a regular run for its money. The Vita doesn't have to be #1 to avoid being "mediocre."
5. Define "huge," because the PSTV isn't an entirely independent system (though it can function that way, especially for lower-income people). It's a bit like a more-successful PSPgo, in that it's a variation on the already existing PS Vita. And like the Vita, part of its purpose is to complement the PS experience as a whole. PSTV sales generate game sales, help to influence future PS4/Vita purchases, get people on PS Now, increase Sony's dominant slice of the Netflix marketshare, etc. The PSTV is not expected to be the new PS4.
6. lol Hardly. I think it's too far back to show up in the rearview mirror any longer. Maybe in the US, but the fact that the huge Xbox advantage in the US hasn't put the Xbone ahead in the US is pretty crazy.
Your premises are all weak, so your question doesn't deserve any serious analysis. The PS4's success is bigger than generally anticipated, but it is part of a brand that has been a remarkable success as a whole. Failure was never projected except by fools. Thus, even if it did well instead of insanely well, the overall company would still be focused on the exact same cuts, changes, restructuring, etc. that they are using now. The PS4 just speeds up the process by funneling in revenue and boosting Sony's service side.
