@Chark

You aren't really grasping just how tenuous the situation for the Vita really is at the moment. You do realize that after factoring in for market expansion in the intervening years. The Vita is actually performing just a little better then the Virtual Boy. Which was a console that lasted all of six months on the market. The market today is about three times larger then when the Virtual Boy entered the market, and it sold three quarters of a million units. You do the math for yourself.

Granted Nintendo is fast to abandon products that aren't doing well, but even Sega with its die hard support when it came to devices. Couldn't salvage a console in the form of the Dreamcast that sold basically on par with what the Vita has sold thus far. Once again adjusted for market expansion. The Game Gear probably performed better then the Vita when it was widely available, and that was an extremely expensive gadget for its time.

I won't even go into the horror stories of the consoles that weren't from major players that failed in less then a full year. The point is this the Vita is accounting for a little over one percent of current generation hardware sales. I think that adds up to justifying about one square foot of retail space. That just isn't enough to sell any gaming device out of, and anything trying to sell out of such a small space is bound to look severely unappealing.

If this isn't a recipe for falling out of the market. I want to hear your definition of what it would take.

Vita just had a pretty class week in japan shifted 50k units over there, something big launch there or so?

Hatsune Miku: Project Diva F (bundle included)

ah right, bloody class series from the original psp, and there are english patchs available for the first 2 games absolutely couldn't recommend enough people play those games.

@pezus, no idea what post you're on about, sorry mate.

after MH4 come out vita=dead

I understand the situation is dire, but that doesn't void the upcoming factors that will provide success in the coming months. Maybe after that, in February and beyond you can argue your theory. As for now LBP will start to warm the market up at the end of September, Assassins Creed 3: Liberation end of October, and PSASBR with Call of Duty for the knock out in Novemeber just in time for Black Friday and hoiday shopping. Don't forget PS Plus intergration and the PS Mobile launch as well as a reinvigorated advertising campaign. Coming up is the worst time for a business to decide to not sell Vitas. Depending on how the holidays do will determine the future of the system in the context you outlined. Even then I would hope PS Mobile and the already building early 2013 software line up would produce better sales than what it has experienced this year. Time will tell because business won't want to miss out on holiday spending.

In regards to your Virtual Boy comparison, larger markets don't raise the bar on bottom line sales requirements. 3x Virtual Boy's sales is still 3x Virtual boy sales. Market share is important, but not like that. Besides Vita holds 28% of the handheld market share in 2012. Also the one square foot equation is laughable.

today handheld market did not allow more than 1 dedicated gaming handheld to exist
so psvita must die
phone/tablet already eat large share on handheld market
come on nothing can save vita at this moment
psp/ds era already over

or you guys still hoping crappy cod vita will become savior?

When has there ever been a market equally divided in the handhelds? Gamegear was outsold 10 to 1 by the Gameboy and the DS outsold the psp 2 to 1 on hardware but 3 to 1 on hardware simply because so many psps were bought solely it's homebrew abilitys not to support the system. What mobile games devices were cutting into the market during the Gamegear era? or perhaps it's just a poorly supported handheld... this happens you know? things can fail on their own regardless of outside factors.

@Chark

Have you become utterly oblivious to what else is going to happen this holiday season. Nintendo is going to release a new console into the market. A successor to this generations best selling console, and a massive holiday success story. The Wii was virtually sold out for half a dozen months, and the next holiday season it sold out again. You have to know retailers are going to make a lot of space available for that console.

Microsoft is going to be releasing a numbered Halo game. That alone is going to generate massive software sales. Add to that the fact that it doesn't just sell itself. It sells a lot of systems, and it sells a lot of accessories. Retailers have made a lot of money off of Halo, and having enough space on the shelves for it, and the hardware it is going to sell. Even if you aren't going to accept that. You should at least acknowledge the Kinect as being a big holiday seller, and it is getting a main franchise title this holiday season.

Then you still have the fact that four other devices have been out selling the Vita all year long. Those being the three existing current gen consoles and the 3DS. Plus all four of them are selling more software then the Vita. To put it in other terms they carried their weight in the lean months, and based on their history they stand to be a lot more profitable for retailers then the Vita just based on the install bases alone.

Your talking as if the Vita is walking into a future filled with sunshine and lollipops. When what it is really going to be doing is walking into a fucking meat grinder. All the other hardware is going to place demands on retail space, and the big difference is they have a real case to make as to why they deserve that space. Worse for Vita it isn't going to be the new kid on the block anymore. The Wii U is going to really cut into that grace period.

What you have there is a holy trinity as far as holiday sales are concerned, and that is what the Vita is going to be up against. Think about that for a minute. You are arguing that this years worst selling hardware. Which is also this years worst selling platform. Is going to go all twelve rounds against these Juggernauts, and come out clean on the other side. Are you really sure you want to go this route?

Outside of Japan, the next one will be the first Xmas for PSV, this should play in its favour, if there will be enough games. How much it will help it is still unknown, though.