Mobile Gaming Didn't Kill The Vita -- Sony Did

[dharh]

AbbathTheGrim said:

- a reaction to Shuhei Yoshida statement that there is no climate for a successor of the Vita, thread:

http://gamrconnect.vgchartz.com/thread.php?id=208574&page=1

- Nintendo has sold over 50 million 3DSes without Minecraft

- in spite of the huge impact of mobile on the traditional videogame industry Sony is responsible for the performance of the Vita

- Here is a partial list of reasons the Vita has failed:

• Sony decided to gouge customers by forcing them to use proprietary memory cards, then jacking up the prices to obscene levels. (A 32GB Vita memory card retails for $100; standard 32GB SDHC memory cards cost $18.)
• Sony marketed the Vita as a portable system with “console-quality gaming,” then went on to pack it with shoddy spinoffs like Uncharted: Golden Abyss, Call of Duty: Declassified, and Resistance: Burning Skies.
  
• Despite all this, a subset of hardcore gamers quickly realized that the Vita was a fantastic machine for indies and niche Japanese games. So what did Sony do? They decided to pivot it as a portable accessory to the PS4—as if anyone would dish out an extra $250 to play Destiny on the toilet.
• Vita owners also realized that the machine is fantastic for playing old PS1 and PSP games. Sony saw how much money they could make there, and they immediately filled out the PlayStation Store, pleasing fans with truckloads of classic new games every week. Just kidding. They ignored it. Even today you need to use a silly shortcut just to get some old games working on your Vita.
• Remember the PS2? One of the most successful video game consoles in history? Chock full of great games that could be ported to the Vita in various ways? Someone should remind Sony.
• Remember BioShock Vita? lmao
• Sony has pretty much spent the past two years pretending the Vita doesn’t exist, ignoring it at every major trade show and convention. It’s embarrassing.
• Sony has publicly admitted that they are no longer making Vita games.

http://kotaku.com/mobile-gaming-didnt-kill-the-vita-sony-did-1733350950?

How much do you think it is Sony's responsibility for Vita underperforming?

It's half and half.  

Mobile gaming took a huge, major bite, out of the casual gaming market space.  There are multiple meanings by the word casual, ask and ill explain further, but let it suffice now in general casual refers to people who are first time potential buyers, IE have never owned a dedicated handheld before, or are too young to be making decisions on what games they play and how they play them.

Nintendo lost quite a bit, I don't think the 3DS and all its varients together will sell half as much as the DS and all its varients (including the DSi).

Sony lost alot and I _do_ attribute that to a lackluster 1st party push and mayhap a proper push to get more mainline 3rd party games like monster hunter.  Sony failed to capitalize on the PSP's momentum.  They launched late and they didn't put up and instead they shut up.  Sony does not have the will nor the vision to push a dedicated handheld in a shrinking market.

Nintendo will remain the king in dedicated handhelds, perhaps forever, despite it becoming more and more a niche thing.