PS Vita still selling quite well in North America!

[Hetz]

Per Sony's just released PR:

Sony Computer Entertainment Inc, today announced that the sales of the PlayStation®Vita (PS Vita) portable entertainment system reached over 1.2 million units worldwide as of February 26, 2012. PS Vita experienced an initial burst of momentum when it launched on December 17, 2011 in Japan followed by Hong Kong, Taiwan and South Korea. Newly launched in North and Latin America, Europe and PAL territories as well as in Singapore on February 22, 2012, sales have exceeded expectations surpassing over 1.2 million units worldwide, firmly establishing PS Vita as the must-have portable entertainment device across the world. Software sales across the globe have surpassed 2.0 million units at both retail and on PlayStation®Network.

“PS Vita was designed to deliver the ultimate portable entertainment experience, and we couldn’t be more thrilled with the reaction we’re seeing from consumers and the pace at which PS Vita is selling,” said Andrew House, President and Group CEO, Sony Computer Entertainment Inc. “The market has responded and there is clear demand for a mobile device capable of providing a revolutionary combination of rich gaming and social connectivity within a real world context. To sustain momentum, we’re working closely with 3rd party developers and publishers to ensure the best games and franchises possible will be available on PS Vita, and our software line up for the remainder of 2012 will have something for everyone across the globe.”

PS Vita introduces new ways to play, delivering deep and immersive gameplay experiences that have never been offered on any other handheld gaming device. Equipped with dual analog sticks, a vibrant 5-inch high definition OLED multi-touch screen, powerful quad core processor, six-axis motion sensing system, built in microphone, and front and rear cameras, PS Vita is the ultimate portable entertainment system. In addition to the ultimate portable gaming experience, by having both Wi-Fi and 3G network connectivity, together with various applications, PS Vita will enable infinite possibilities for users to “encounter,” “connect,” “discover,” “share” and “play” with friends wherever they are.

With more than 25 titles currently available in North and Latin America, Europe and the PAL territories and Japan* respectively including EA SPORTS FIFA Football, Ultimate Marvel vs Capcom®3 from Capcom, UNCHARTEDTM: Golden Abyss, WipEout® 2048 and Escape Plan from SCE Worldwide Studios, as well as over 70 titles in development, PS Vita is poised to drive continued momentum across the globe.

[Teggy]

Does this mean I'm not getting my free games?

[Ridah]

Launch periods are always good for sales, now we have to watch performance over the next 4-5 months until the Holiday shopping season rolls around.

I love my Vita, and it's cool that port jobs are being done right, but we need to start seeing more original content on the horizon.

[TiLT]

I love my Vita, and it's cool that port jobs are being done right, but we need to start seeing some original content soon.

If we're talking about what needs to happen for the Vita to succeed, I strongly disagree. Original content isn't what makes Nintendo's consoles a success. What the Vita needs is more stuff like Uncharted. With Killzone, Little Big Planet, Resistance and similar big-name titles on the way, the Vita's popularity may continue to rise. It's extremely hard for original content to turn into system sellers.

If you're talking about things you'd personally like to see, I agree however.

[Hetz]

I love my Vita, and it's cool that port jobs are being done right, but we need to start seeing some original content soon.

If we're talking about what needs to happen for the Vita to succeed, I strongly disagree. Original content isn't what makes Nintendo's consoles a success. What the Vita needs is more stuff like Uncharted. With Killzone, Little Big Planet, Resistance and similar big-name titles on the way, the Vita's popularity may continue to rise. It's extremely hard for original content to turn into system sellers.

If you're talking about things you'd personally like to see, I agree however.

Agreed. The 3DS was dead in the water until the Mario games came out a couple months ago. Now the system is selling well, primarily based on those games. Sure, the price drop helped....but the Mario games are what keeps the system selling beyond just bump in the month or two around the price drop. When a new Pokemon game comes out for the system, the same thing will happen.

Sony needs the same thing to happen. Call of Duty and Madden this Fall will be huge games for the system. Madden for the 3DS was a terrible piece of crap....but FIFA is incredible on the Vita. I am hoping that Madden turns out the same for the Vita and doesn't lay a turd like on the 3DS.

[Ridah]

I love my Vita, and it's cool that port jobs are being done right, but we need to start seeing some original content soon.

If we're talking about what needs to happen for the Vita to succeed, I strongly disagree. Original content isn't what makes Nintendo's consoles a success. What the Vita needs is more stuff like Uncharted. With Killzone, Little Big Planet, Resistance and similar big-name titles on the way, the Vita's popularity may continue to rise. It's extremely hard for original content to turn into system sellers.

If you're talking about things you'd personally like to see, I agree however.

Sorry, I should have clarified that I meant Vita-exclusive games like Uncharted: Golden Abyss, not original IPs.

[Canuck]

I think the price drop helped a lot (obviously the games played a big part too). I don't know if the situation is similar in the States but in Japan, a new 3DS is now cheaper than when the DS Lite came out in 2006 (and I assume cheaper than the original DS.  That is just crazy!

[Misguided]

Total of 1.2 million doesn't sound all that exciting. And an attach rate of less than two doesn't either.

[CeeKay]

'sales have exceeded expectations'.....  weren't those kind of low after the Japan launch?

* CeeKay ducks

on another note, how long before they decide to discount the First Edition bundles so they're $299?  marketing it as a 'free $50 value' might be a good selling point.

[Ridah]

The question that concerns me with the market rejecting the original price point of the 3DS and seemingly rejecting (or at least resisting) the price point of the Vita, is what is the market willing to pay for then? I'm not sure how much Sony is profiting off each system sold, my guess is not much or they are breaking even, but there's no way we could have gotten something as powerful and feature-rich as the Vita at under $200.

What irks me is the idea that, if people don't want to pay more than $150-200 for a portable gaming device, the message hardware makers will take from this is to make shittier hardware. I can't imagine Sony putting out anything less than what the Vita is in 2012.

Maybe the software is the problem. If Super Mario 3D Land came out at launch, and Mario Kart 7 came out 6 months later, Nintendo could have held on to the original price point. The Vita is also lacking a killer app; Uncharted doesn't fit the bill, especially in Japan.

[msduncan]

Total of 1.2 million doesn't sound all that exciting. And an attach rate of less than two doesn't either.

Clearly you are misguided.

[msduncan]

The question that concerns me with the market rejecting the original price point of the 3DS and seemingly rejecting (or at least resisting) the price point of the Vita, is what is the market willing to pay for then? I'm not sure how much Sony is profiting off each system sold, my guess is not much or they are breaking even, but there's no way we could have gotten something as powerful and feature-rich as the Vita at under $200.

What irks me is the idea that, if people don't want to pay more than $150-200 for a portable gaming device, the message hardware makers will take from this is to make shittier hardware. I can't imagine Sony putting out anything less than what the Vita is in 2012.

Maybe the software is the problem. If Super Mario 3D Land came out at launch, and Mario Kart 7 came out 6 months later, Nintendo could have held on to the original price point. The Vita is also lacking a killer app; Uncharted doesn't fit the bill, especially in Japan.

Rumors are that each system costs around $160 to manufacture.

[Zinfan]

I won't mind paying $300 for the Vita but the launch games don't grab me at all.  I'm not even sure what I'm looking for in a killer game for the system, certainly not Madden or Fifa nor even Call of Duty.  I suppose a RPG of some sort would be the ticket in but at the moment I stand on the sidelines and see what the future holds and I don't feel like I'm missing much.

[msduncan]

I won't mind paying $300 for the Vita but the launch games don't grab me at all.  I'm not even sure what I'm looking for in a killer game for the system, certainly not Madden or Fifa nor even Call of Duty.  I suppose a RPG of some sort would be the ticket in but at the moment I stand on the sidelines and see what the future holds and I don't feel like I'm missing much.

How about resistance?   Or Gravity Daze?

[Hetz]

I won't mind paying $300 for the Vita but the launch games don't grab me at all.  I'm not even sure what I'm looking for in a killer game for the system, certainly not Madden or Fifa nor even Call of Duty.  I suppose a RPG of some sort would be the ticket in but at the moment I stand on the sidelines and see what the future holds and I don't feel like I'm missing much.

An exclusive Elder Scrolls game would do nicely....come on E3!

Hell, I'd take being able to play Skyrim via Remote Play!

[Zinfan]

I won't mind paying $300 for the Vita but the launch games don't grab me at all.  I'm not even sure what I'm looking for in a killer game for the system, certainly not Madden or Fifa nor even Call of Duty.  I suppose a RPG of some sort would be the ticket in but at the moment I stand on the sidelines and see what the future holds and I don't feel like I'm missing much.

How about resistance?   Or Gravity Daze?

Maybe Resistance if reviews are great, don't know anything about Gravity Daze.

[Zinfan]

I won't mind paying $300 for the Vita but the launch games don't grab me at all.  I'm not even sure what I'm looking for in a killer game for the system, certainly not Madden or Fifa nor even Call of Duty.  I suppose a RPG of some sort would be the ticket in but at the moment I stand on the sidelines and see what the future holds and I don't feel like I'm missing much.

An exclusive Elder Scrolls game would do nicely....come on E3!

Hell, I'd take being able to play Skyrim via Remote Play!

Yep that would do it for sure!

[Ridah]

The best thing about Skyrim on Vita is that it might actually run better since the Vita has more system RAM than the PS3   

[Misguided]

Total of 1.2 million doesn't sound all that exciting. And an attach rate of less than two doesn't either.

Clearly you are misguided.

You honestly think that just over a million units for the entire planet seems like a big accomplishment? I hope they sell a heck of a lot more of them, but for goodness sakes, the 3DS sold three times that number of units during its launch window (a shorter time period).

If I could pop in my copy of Mass Effect 2 in my PS3 and remote play on the Vita I'd go buy one right now. But I don't think Sony understands what a great incentive that would be for many gamers and right now I think they are crowing about something that isn't a big deal.

[Hetz]

Total of 1.2 million doesn't sound all that exciting. And an attach rate of less than two doesn't either.

Clearly you are misguided.

You honestly think that just over a million units for the entire planet seems like a big accomplishment? I hope they sell a heck of a lot more of them, but for goodness sakes, the 3DS sold three times that number of units during its launch window (a shorter time period).

If I could pop in my copy of Mass Effect 2 in my PS3 and remote play on the Vita I'd go buy one right now. But I don't think Sony understands what a great incentive that would be for many gamers and right now I think they are crowing about something that isn't a big deal.

Actually, if you take out Japan.....the 3DS sold around 700k and the Vita sold around 600k. Not that big of a difference at all and a victory for Sony with everyone expecting a huge flop, based on it's sales in Japan.

[Purge]

... and the 3DS had dropped almost 40% in price due to lackluster sales.

I'm not sure that your comparison is making the point you intended.

The market entry point isn't bad, but it certainly isn't something to crow over ... yet. If they can climb in the charts (well above the 3DS's position) then they'll have something.

An attach rate of 2 games isn't horrible either, but it certainly isn't as great as it could be. The Vita is in its infancy, and I don't expect (perhaps other than some DL incentives) for Sony to budge on anything until after the 2012 Xmas season.

[TiLT]

... and the 3DS had dropped almost 40% in price due to lackluster sales.

I'm not sure that your comparison is making the point you intended.

No it hadn't. He's talking about the launch week for each console, not last week period.

I'm not sure that your mocking is making the point you intended.

[Bullwinkle]

... and the 3DS had dropped almost 40% in price due to lackluster sales.

I'm not sure that your comparison is making the point you intended.

No it hadn't. He's talking about the launch week for each console, not last week period.

I'm not sure that your mocking is making the point you intended.

I think his point was that the 3DS had to drop in price because its similar sales were not so good.

[Purge]

Yes.

Market entry, with a brand recognition like Sony or Nintendo, will bring out people regardless of market interest. It's the following weeks and months of sustained sales (or lack thereof) that determine if the product is too expensive, or not something that people are being drawn to.

Holding up Sony's numbers as being similar to Nintendo's, who experienced a market pinch and had to re-evaluate their consumer cost point, is not making a strong case for Sony when (in Japan) the trend of lackluster sales has followed suit.

The rest of the world is behind in that, and if the rest of the world is willing to pony up they have nothing to worry about. I'm kinda rootin' for it to need a price drop because I don't have the cash to get the new-shiny right now.

From a product perspective, I hope this trumps the 3DS and forces Nintendo to come out with a better 3DS (bigger screen, etc).

[Ridah]

I honestly thought the 3DS was dead in the water until the price drop turned things around. The combination of crummy 3D, lack of games, and the lack of a second analog stick seemed like it was a deal breaker.

I hope the Vita sees steady sales throughout the year until its components become cheaper and manufacturing costs drop allowing Sony to introduce a price cut in 2013.

[Misguided]

Just to clarify (though I think you guys get this already) I'm not trying to bash Sony's sales here. I just think those figures are kind of lukewarm.

I wonder if we will see better system integration between the Vita and the next Playstation? If they made it so that any PS4 game could be streamed or otherwise played on both, and you could use cloud saves, it would be fantastic.

[Canuck]

Also, does attach rate even mean anything anymore in this day and age with downloadable purchases becoming more and more prevalent?

[CeeKay]

Also, does attach rate even mean anything anymore in this day and age with downloadable purchases becoming more and more prevalent?

according to them their numbers do include those:

Software sales across the globe have surpassed 2.0 million units at both retail and on PlayStation®Network.

[Purge]

Also, does attach rate even mean anything anymore in this day and age with downloadable purchases becoming more and more prevalent?

...and since the big three get paid license for software on their platform (regardless of dist. method), it certainly means something to them.

[Eel Snave]

I played a Vita the other day. I definitely dug the gigantic screen, but personally it's too expensive and there's not enough for me to want to pick one up.

However, it doesn't surprise me that it's doing well. It's a good piece of tech, no doubt.

[Misguided]

I played a Vita the other day. I definitely dug the gigantic screen, but personally it's too expensive and there's not enough for me to want to pick one up.

However, it doesn't surprise me that it's doing well. It's a good piece of tech, no doubt.

The original PSP was sexy as hell for the time, and had a nice software lineup at the start. Sony needs to keep the titles coming and I think it will do just fine. Software support for the PSP was woefully poor.

[Ridah]

Sony is holding a Vita event on March 9th where they will be announcing new titles and details on upcoming titles. Hopefully there are some nice surprises in store.

[Devil]

NHL 13

[Misguided]

Got some hands on time with system at GameStop today for the first time and am just as blown away by the Vita as I was the original PSP. Uncharted and especially Wipeout were absolutely gorgeous!

It wouldn't surprise me at all if I were to pick one up eventually. But even when I had one before, and had games I really liked, I never used it much for some reason. And that was before I had a DS (which I barely use anymore because of the iPad). I'm afraid if I bought one now it would collect dust with my 3DS. Things might be different now, though, with the ability to download games and keep multiple titles on the system.

[Ridah]

Got some hands on time with system at GameStop today for the first time and am just as blown away by the Vita as I was the original PSP. Uncharted and especially Wipeout were absolutely gorgeous!

It wouldn't surprise me at all if I were to pick one up eventually. But even when I had one before, and had games I really liked, I never used it much for some reason. And that was before I had a DS (which I barely use anymore because of the iPad). I'm afraid if I bought one now it would collect dust with my 3DS. Things might be different now, though, with the ability to download games and keep multiple titles on the system.

I dunno... My 3DS didn't take long to start collecting dust and the sparse releases make me play it for a week or two and then I don't touch it anymore. The Vita feels so much livelier, so much more interesting. Between the full-priced games, the smaller downloadable games, PSP games, and the apps, I end up using this thing everyday.

[Hetz]

Got some hands on time with system at GameStop today for the first time and am just as blown away by the Vita as I was the original PSP. Uncharted and especially Wipeout were absolutely gorgeous!

It wouldn't surprise me at all if I were to pick one up eventually. But even when I had one before, and had games I really liked, I never used it much for some reason. And that was before I had a DS (which I barely use anymore because of the iPad). I'm afraid if I bought one now it would collect dust with my 3DS. Things might be different now, though, with the ability to download games and keep multiple titles on the system.

I dunno... My 3DS didn't take long to start collecting dust and the sparse releases make me play it for a week or two and then I don't touch it anymore. The Vita feels so much livelier, so much more interesting. Between the full-priced games, the smaller downloadable games, PSP games, and the apps, I end up using this thing everyday.

Same here. The Vita's robust online and trophy support make it a "come back everyday" thing for me. On the 3DS it's like you are playing on a baren wasteland. Xbox Live and PSN support make games much more interesting and social, IMO....even if they have no multiplayer. Nearly all games have global leaderboards of somesort and of course achievements/trophies.

[msduncan]

I agree with the others.  I've been averaging at least an hour per day on it...sometimes several hours.

[TiLT]

As for myself, every single evening since I bought the Vita has seen me completely absorbed in it for multiple hours. This is the first handheld that feels like a real console in your hands.

[Gratch]

I'm certainly still playing it every day, but that has little to do with the social aspects (i.e. near, trophies, leaderboards, etc.)...those things mean squat to me.  I'm pleasantly surprised that some of the games are far more compelling than I expected.  While I'm kinda underwhelmed by Uncharted's gameplay (even though it's a technical marvel), I can't seem to tear myself away from Hot Shots Golf.  Grabbing Wipeout this afternoon, and am anticipating it will take up my entire 4 hour flight tomorrow.

That said, when I spend $250+ on a console, I better want to spend time with it every day! 

[Misguided]

I think for me the reason the PSP collected dust is because I felt like I needed to have dedicated time set aside in order to play on it, much like a console. I don't generally sit down and play on a console for a few minutes at a time. The DS I could just flip open and play, for 5 minutes or 5 hours. The system was great, and I had games I really enjoyed, yet the system went largely unplayed.

These days, I carry the iPad all over the house with me and even the DS collects dust most days (heck, I've put more time into two download titles than into any cart). I'm simply afraid the Vita would suffer the same fate.

Now if I could pop Mass Effect 2, Dragon Age, or Shadow of the Colossus into the PS3 and stream to the Vita, that would alleviate my concerns dramatically.