Submitted by MasonicGamer 482d ago | opinion piece

Why is the PS Vita Still Selling so Poorly?



« 1 2 »
SynGamer  +   482d ago


Ranma1  +   482d ago
2 words, Software & Price.

Needs more quality software
#1.1 (Edited 482d ago ) | Agree(13) | Disagree(15) | Report | Reply
crusadernm   482d ago | Spam
disturbing_flame  +   481d ago




hkgamer  +   481d ago


Godmars290  +   482d ago
Lack of advertising of good games you mean.

#1.2.1 (Edited 482d ago ) | Agree(9) | Disagree(5) | Report
SynGamer  +   482d ago
MikeMyers  +   482d ago
It could be multiple reasons.

A) Marketing
B) Price
C) Software
D) Competition
E) Desire and need
F) Identity crisis

#1.2.3 (Edited 482d ago ) | Agree(11) | Disagree(0) | Report
losyak  +   482d ago
ronin4life  +   482d ago


#1.3 (Edited 482d ago ) | Agree(3) | Disagree(2) | Report | Reply
Godmars290  +   482d ago
But that's after the fact of the 3DS's popularity.
#1.3.1 (Edited 482d ago ) | Agree(2) | Disagree(2) | Report
JoGam  +   482d ago
Cause Black Friday isn't here yet...
darthawesome90  +   482d ago


ATi_Elite  +   482d ago
Why is the PS Vita Still Selling so Poorly?
It doesn't have a Proper Phone app!

Give it Cell Phone Service and watch the sales take off!

porkChop  +   482d ago
hardcorehippiez  +   481d ago
ginsunuva  +   481d ago
One word: Battery life.
DarkBlood  +   482d ago
Godchild1020  +   482d ago
#2.1 (Edited 482d ago ) | Agree(6) | Disagree(1) | Report | Reply
DarkBlood  +   482d ago
porkChop  +   482d ago
Zodiac  +   482d ago

pinwheelherman  +   482d ago

shammgod  +   482d ago
It's a love fest between you and zodiac
joeorc  +   481d ago
its pretty clear where the PSVita is going


Sony's not going to pull the PSVita!

the reason is once again very simple:

WiiU is a connteted tablet controller to a game console Hub.

Microsoft surface is a tablet controller connected to a game Hub.



notice a freaking theme here people?



"Take Your Game on the Go"

cross play
cross buy
playstation Mobile

are people just not getting it?





#3.1.2 (Edited 481d ago ) | Agree(0) | Disagree(0) | Report
knifefight  +   482d ago

frjoethesecond  +   482d ago
#4 (Edited 482d ago ) | Agree(10) | Disagree(3) | Report | Reply
boybato  +   482d ago
Farsendor1  +   482d ago
boybato  +   482d ago

Of course. $35 for AAA titles.
frjoethesecond  +   481d ago




hkgamer  +   481d ago


heres a couple of examples comparing PSN to amazon...

COD... £44.99; £34.99
SFxT... £39.99; £29.99
AC... £39.99; £34.99
Fifa13... £39.99; £34.99
Modnation... £5.99; £15.66
Ben10.. £13.99; £19.95
f1... £15.99; £21.32
RR... £7.99; £7.00

Embeepee  +   482d ago


#5 (Edited 482d ago ) | Agree(5) | Disagree(23) | Report | Reply
boybato  +   482d ago
porkChop  +   482d ago
Nexy  +   482d ago
Just give me Lumines 1 and 2 on Vita and you have me sold, Sony.
#6 (Edited 482d ago ) | Agree(4) | Disagree(3) | Report | Reply
CalvinKlein  +   481d ago
well they already have a lumines game on the thing and its a rip off at 40$.

I really shake my head at some of the pricing on the vita games. Its almost as if sony wants people to thnik its a horrible value compared to phone games or even ps3-psn, xBLA or steam when they look at some of those game's prices on the VITA store. Sony needs to keep up with their own MSRP better on the digital games and police third parties to make sure they are not overcharging for crap that should be $10/15 max.
Kamikaze135  +   482d ago
Too expensive and requires memory card since the Vita doesn't come with one and lacks internal memory. So it's going to cost you more than the initial $249.99.
rpd123  +   482d ago
Buy a bundle.
Kamikaze135  +   482d ago
Oh I'm not interested in the Vita. Also, Vita bundles weren't always available. I'm just posting the reason I think it may be doing bad in sales.
Sephiroushin  +   482d ago
What are you talking about ?
PSV bundles that include a memory card has been out since release date ...
Sephiroushin  +   482d ago
Seems some ppl are just dumb or something like that , also that probably do not even have a psv!
It was called "PSV First Edition Bundle" ( notice the word "bundle" in its name?!) it included a memory card so try harder!

#7.2.1 (Edited 482d ago ) | Agree(2) | Disagree(3) | Report
BigCojones  +   482d ago
The graph is kinda bad... What is the timeline?? Debut week of Vita?? Also it seems that console sales as a whole has gone down and vita's been about 10% since it was released.
TacoTaru  +   482d ago
When I see some strategy RPGs like Tactics Ogre and some big beautiful turn based RPGs I'll buy a second Vita. Don't like to jump around or shoot things and I want a good story. Persona 4 will hold me for a while but I don't know of anything coming after that.
profgerbik  +   482d ago
Because it's been not even a fucking year since the thing has been out.

How about we all focus on the fact the entire gaming industry is struggling and losing money right now, not just the Vita sure it's getting the shittier end of the stick but everyone is in the same boat.

Even Nintendo now believe it or not they are losing tons of money and I bet this year won't prove to be much more promising even with Wii U sales.

You can blame people for being so uneducated and being so obsessed with smart phone games and tablet games, cheap pathetic games people love so dearly.

Why do you think everyone has be focusing on competing with the smart phone and tablet market cause it's killing everyone in electronics right now, it really is.

That is all idiots care about is smart phones and tablets.. Oh IPAD 4 OMG!! What just released 7 months after the last one! Who gives a shit take my money Apple..!!

That is todays society, they could careless about what is actually the best as to why the Vita hurts so badly they only care about what is trendy and what everyone else has which are tablets and smart phones.
#10 (Edited 482d ago ) | Agree(5) | Disagree(4) | Report | Reply
JonnyBigBoss  +   482d ago
RickHiggity  +   482d ago
Lack of games. Knowing Sony though, that should change.
Kobe357  +   482d ago
It's competition is 80 dollars cheaper than it's entry model. That simple.
Rohered  +   482d ago
Why the Bad Selling?

Look at the line-up...

Where is the Japaneses Killer-aps?

The 3DS Winn the Japan Market With Capcom/Namco/Square

Monster Hunter exclusive, "Tales of" Best-of PS2-based in World release (the PS Vita as medium DS-based tales of
in Japan only release), Dragon Quest exclusive, Kingdom Heart exclusive, Bravely Defaut...All million-sellers.

Wheres is the Square Enix Games on Vita?

Where is EU/US Namco-RPG?

Where is monster Hunter?


Sony espect sell the PS-Vita in Japan with Crapy Activision-shooters?

Or peraps whith only RPG (good but no populars) made by NiS/Ghust?

Or Online based Games for use the PS-Vita only beside a modem? (3G is not usefull for online gaming).

Vita can Win With populares Japanese AAA, not with poor copy of PS/360 Online-Shooters.
#14 (Edited 482d ago ) | Agree(0) | Disagree(9) | Report | Reply
DiRtY  +   482d ago
Sony has no games for a portable system. It is that easy.

Uncharted, Resistance, Assassin's Creed, CoD are their big titles for the system and they were not able to sell hardware. Those are console games you play at home and not on the go.

Look, I am a hardcore Halo fan, but even I would not like the idea of having Halo on my portable device. On my portable devices I play games like Angry Birds, Ninja Chicken or Diversion. When I am home, I will play Halo 4, Gears of War or Skyrim. So even I as a hardcore gamer don't want a hardcore experience on the go.

Nintendo has Pokemon, Mario, Mario Kart, Nintendogs and a couple of other games you can jump in, play and turn them off 5 minutes later.

Combine that with the rise of smartphones, the rise of tablets and the price tag and you get an idea, why the PS Vita is selling shitty. It is a huge failure and probably dead in the next 12 months or Sony needs to accept major losses with it.
will_c_75  +   482d ago
I would like to know why Gameloft isn't all over the Vita. Their Modern Combat series could utilize the analog sticks. Even though they are knockoff masters, some of their titles are pretty to look at, and could use real controls.
tubers  +   482d ago
I'm an advocate for that.

MC3FN looks better than COD and IMO has better campaign.. not to mention MP for 12! for 5 DOLLARS!

Even if they charge 20 bucks on the VITA I bet it would still sell well.

Have you seen Modern Combat 4?!

It's not like the hardware's completely different too.. Isn't the VITA an ARM device with similar specs to the ipad 2-3 (albeit slower clockspeed from the rumors)?
Smashbro29  +   482d ago
I blame memory card prices. They really need to get that shit together.
izumo_lee  +   482d ago
Hmmm could it be possible that all these negative 'doom & gloom' articles are actually being a detriment to consumers. We have the regular casual consumer looking at websites for knowledge of what the Vita is & can do. However when they see all these articles they think the system is bad & not worth it.

We know that hardcore gamers like many of us are really do not need any extra info but casuals will need that extra 'homework' by going to websites to justify a viable purchase.

I have not seen many sites really informing consumers what the system can do & the many games it already has. Where are all the articles about the PS suite games available currently?, there are a lot of high quality games (yes not as popular as Nintendo's 1st party games) but there are very good games available.

Look is it really what everyone wants is to have Nintendo the ONLY option in the handheld market? Does it not everyone say that competition is good for the market & industry when talking about consoles but when it comes to the handheld market it doesn't matter?
TronEOL  +   482d ago
Give the Vita on-board memory with 16GB, 32GB & 64GB models and keep the ability to buy external memory with lower memory card prices. That alone would make more gamers buy into it since they know they don't have to spend over $250 just to buy a Vita.

As for most other casual gamers, they'd see it as a plus since they have the choice of the 3DS, multipurpose Tablets and cell phones which most come with memory built in.

The Vita is definitely my favorite handheld gaming device, but I can see very clearly why it isn't doing very well.
#19 (Edited 482d ago ) | Agree(3) | Disagree(2) | Report | Reply
tubers  +   482d ago
I'd jizz my pants with internal memory for (16 GB for 200 bucks).. but how will that work with Sony's DRM (locking accounts with storage)?
TronEOL  +   481d ago
Well the fantastic part would be that they could allow for multiple accounts on the Vita with this, like the PS3.

And they could give you the option to lock account information to external storage for security, or to free up space on the main internal storage.

I think the next iteration of the Vita needs to have this. Which I'm sure we'll see in the next year or two (just like the PSP or PS3).
Nickthedrummer  +   482d ago
Many people just don't feel like having one is necessary.
WeskerChildReborned  +   482d ago
Simple, their's barely any great games for it.
jjb1981  +   482d ago
It needs a full-scale final fantasy game!!!!
Ricdog  +   482d ago
Don't want to cost hate, but could it just possibly be crazy to say that the Vita doesn't sell because hardcore gamers don't like it?

I hate portables, all the hardcore friends I know do to, and pretty much I never see hardcore "looking" gamers walk around with a psp/vita. The DS is the only portable I sometimes see, and its mostly used by casuals from what I see.

Portables seem rather "weak" when i think about them. Whenever i'm on the move and need video games, theres my Iphone and laptop. And of course my laptop beats the living crap outta every game the vita has.
Kratoscar2008  +   481d ago
Maybe lack of UMD port? This is the reason i dont get a Vita because i dont feel like spending extra money for games i already own. The natural step would be upgrade to Vita but the lack of this port makes people reluctant to get one.

My two cents aniways.
izumo_lee  +   481d ago
It could be the case but i read that a program to transfer UMD games is impossible due to the many loop-holes & licensing problems that said system will have. If you have seen in Japan when Sony had this program to transfer games the list of games available were pretty poor cause of 3rd party not willing to commit to transfer their games in digital form from UMD.

Sony can do it for their first party games but eventually people will complain that 3rd party games are not available. Still since the piracy killed the support on the PSP there weren't a lot of 1st party games on the system. Even Sony admitted for not supporting the PSP as well as they should have.

Also the use of UMDs were a poor choice in the first place by Sony, but i understand the reason they tried that format. The possibility of a higher storage medium for larger games & a cheaper format was at the time the right choice. If the PSP were to use solid state format like SD cards than this wouldn't be an issue.

I still stand by my argument is that the Vita is being unfairly treated by the gaming media.
#24.1 (Edited 481d ago ) | Agree(5) | Disagree(0) | Report | Reply
dorron  +   481d ago
The only two things I dislike of Vita is those expensive memory cards and how nasty it is to copy content with CMA, changing cards, account locks, etc. It's just a pain in the ass...

Apart from that Vita is an amazing device.
tiffac008  +   481d ago
Not having a free memory card (even the smallest capacity one) can put a possible customer off. The memory card is an important piece of the device needing to put out extra cash just to have one can be seen as a hidden cost. I think a lot of people can forgive the price of the Vita right now since everyone knows that in the console industry the price goes down eventually but buying a memory card instead of an extra. That can be a turn off.

Also the sales of the Vita in Japan seems to be worse than in the west this is because Sony is still supporting the PSP in the Land of the Rising Sun. So the 3rd party developers does not have any incentives to move their games to the newer device. The Vita does not even have any multiplatform games that is popular in Japan but the PSP still has them. Sony should just really come out and stop supporting the PSP because its clearly hurting the Vita.

As long as Sony cannot sell the Vita in the number 1 market for mobile gaming devices then its going to struggle. The ball is in Sony's court the gamers are just waiting for them to make the right move.
Indo  +   481d ago
Its simple. ..we slash the prices
tubers  +   481d ago
I don't mean to sound like a fanboy and I never owned any N systems other than the family computer and GBA.. but here's another answer to the article's question:

Because 3DS has better value.. in the eyes of majority of the consumers.
NeoTribe  +   481d ago
Anwser is quite simple. There's hardly any demand for it.
PirateThom  +   481d ago
It never ceases to amaze me how, pre-launch, the price tag was being lauded as amazing due to being the same price as the 3DS and then, once Nintendo dropped the price of the 3DS, the Vita suddenly became overpriced.... I mean, what sense does that make?
tubers  +   481d ago
I think that people see both having almost the same entertainment value, so they go with the significantly cheaper platform.

(Imagine something similar; the Nexus 7 undercutting almost anything near it of similar Android devices)

I'm afraid that even if they drop the price to 179.99 for the core system itself, people'd still be complaining about the cards.

It's an uphill battle for Sony right now.
#30.1 (Edited 481d ago ) | Agree(0) | Disagree(0) | Report | Reply
« 1 2 »

Add comment

New stories

RT Podcast #262

19m ago - RT Partycasts with Onnit and Joe Rogan | Tech

Recap for the Week of March 3rd, 2014


Let's Play Minecraft - Episode 94 - UnMonuments Men


Fails of the Weak Volume 182


Castlevania: Lords of Shadow 2 Review


Bungie Weekly Update - 03/14/2014
