Topic: Is the PS Vita in trouble?

@Waltz: Well when I read your posts, 90% of the time they either have a negative slant toward Nintendo or a positive slant toward Apple. Almost never is it the other way around. Just an observation and I stick by it.

Ever consider because Apple's business is harder to criticise than Nintendo (especially the last six months)?

That's not being a fanboy. That's being realistic.

And for the record I've also been called a Kindle fanboy, a Sony fanboy, a Microsoft fanboy (despite the fact that Microsoft is the only company I don't support), and even a Nintendo fanboy on this forum.

Here's the reality: I am actually neutral.

Oh come on. I've read a lot of what you've had to say the last couple years and you are NOT neutral. I don't believe for a second that you don't favor Apple and Sony over Nintendo. Siding with whoever is fine but at least be honest about it.

Waltz was call nintendo fanboy

I don't believe that last one. Pics or it didn't happen.

While normally I disagree with most of Waltz's posts, everyone is entitled to be a critic if they want. I'm sure most of you wouldn't get mad if he bashes Sony.

Speaking of which, I do agree with the demographic post. 3DS and Vita are going for different audiences, though I do like the idea of Vita and 3DS competing to keep Sony and Nintendo on their toes

This thread has finally been justified.

I've spent more money on Nintendo 3DS games than any other console since it launched. I have bought one PSP game, one iPad game, two PS3 games and 8 3DS games - plus a tonne of downloads. I don't get free copies of games on Nintendo's console, see, so I have to buy most of them myself. Which, incidently, I'm happy to do.

In fact, most of my criticisms of Nintendo have been out of concern for a company that isn't doing things right. I couldn't care less if Microsoft goes out of business tomorrow. I would be disappointed if Nintendo did. I'd much rather Nintendo do things right.

But once again, I don't side with companies. It's silly to side with companies; they're not people, and here's the kicker - none of them care about you.

They say they do. That's marketing. All they want is your money. Stop giving it to them and they stop caring.

I don't believe that last one. Pics or it didn't happen.

It was one of the PlayStation threads on this forum, and it was quite a while ago. I said something critical of a PlayStation product or something and a dude whined that I was a fanboy.

I'm sure it'll happen again at some stage. I'll be sure to screencap it next time.

/me tears up his signed Miyamoto poster while crying.

No.

The REALITY is that WaltzElf thinks with his brain and not his heart. While most other people get all "bleeding heart" over whatever imagined offense there is to their beloved companies, he looks at things clearly with a mind towards business and how those businesses make money. Because that's what businesses are in business to do.

For the record, I despise Apple but I can't deny that their marketing machine is pure genius. Handheld consoles DO need to be worried about Apple, and to a lesser degree the other mobile hardware/software companies. They're whitling away at Nintendo's and Sony's profits and will continue to do so as the mobile device market continues to evolve. It's through the CONSTANT innovation by console makers that will stem the tide. There almost isn't any room for a misstep.

Very well stated and observed. I'm the same way and I've gotten more hate here than love for it. When Waltz first started coming around NLife he was very critical of Sony, didn't own a PS3 and/or PSP, and was no where near a fanboy and still isn't. I'm critical of all companies myself. Why? Because gaming is a business and we're consumers. If you simply forgive and forget a company's missteps, they will run all over you. Do you think that Nintendo would have dropped the price of the 3DS and/or launched the Ambassador Program had it not been for all of us paying consumers (fans) letting it be known that we're not and haven't been happy with Nintendo's business decisions for a longtime. Which in turn they can see by their games targeted at older audiences selling quite poorly, as we're spending our hard earned cash elsewhere.

I myself have nearly 7 years sales experience with Buffalo Rock, which is the largest distributor of Pepsi Cola in the world. I worked my way up in the company at a very young age and found out how business work from the inside out. I learned the tricks to making large sales, managed over a 100 accounts a week personally, how to make numbers happen, sales charting, graphing, etc., and I can tell you from experience; when you get comfortable with you customers, it's easy to get accustomed to a daily routine of just working and selling and not pushing you limits or goals higher, until your competitor takes notice and takes advantage of it - maybe a large 12-pack display that you spent hours to go through the ropes of getting approved in a large market(s), and/or winning multiple store contracts, only to have it taken away by your competition because they beat your numbers, or had better service for a few months, etc. This same thing happens to all of the major gaming companies at times and Nintendo is currently taking its hit after the business decision they made to push head first into the casual markets and left their core gamers sitting in the dust for years! Yes they sold a ton of Wii's and above-average casual-shovelware (Wii Fit, Wii Play, Wii Music, etc.), but when you make a decision to move your company away from what got you to what you are in the first place, the end result may look bright at first, but other businesses will always jump on quick cash and offer up strong competition, and those consumers that you left out, well they will move on to bigger and better things until you devise a way to regain their trust and buy them back in some way.

So did the PSP and DS, yet the were in competition with each other. With no other handheld devices on the market, of course people are going to compare the Vita and 3DS,

Sony and Microsoft target a different audience than Nintendo, yet they are still competing for sales.

And saying an unreleased device is in trouble is overreacting a bit, don't you think?

Wait until next year after both devices have had time to compete, THEN give us your opinions.

If you want to be inclusive, you could say film, sport, music concerts and Love Hotels are competition for the 3DS and Vita as well, as they're all competing for the same entertainment discretionary spend of someone.

I prefer to narrow it down, and I don't think consumers are going to choose between the 3DS and Vita. One one appeal to them, or the other will, or they'll get both. The decision will be in deciding if the iPhone or iPad are enough for a person's gaming taste, or whether they need a dedicated handheld console.

Why people keep stating that 3DS will represent a great danger for the Vita once Pokemon, Animal Crossing, Mario, Kirby, DK, etc are released? I bet most users planning to buy a Vita would never play any of these. And the same applies in the opposite direction. But then there are all these millions of users that for reasons different than just playing are buying modern smartphones or tablets. For these the 3DS doesnt offer anything new, as you already have smartphones with 3D screens and far more capable than the 3DS, and the Vita might be perceived by them as too close to the smartphone itself. So most of them will not buy any console for gamming.

Apple is currently the second most profitable company in the entire United States, trailing only Exxon Mobile. Anyone want to guess who is hurting both Sony and Nintendo right now?

Also, Nintendo is going to compete with itself this Christmas, but nobody seems to care that the DS/DSi/DSiXL are outselling the crap of the 3DS right now because of the cheap price and I'm willing to bet that if the economy continues this downhill blast that is currently happening, I'm betting the cheap price of the DS's and it's games,will pull heavy sales once again this Christmas.

Finally, someone actually points this out.

Naughty Dog already started the Wii U vs PS Vita debate ealier this month, claiming that the handheld system, when paired with the PS3, could deliver an experience similar to the Wii U. Sony too confirmed that games like Ruin allow players to seamlessly switch between PS3 and PS Vita gameplay, much the same way the Wii U tablet can operate games free from the TV.
Now the company says that the handheld could even be used as a PS3 controller, allowing games that utilize the functionality to implement control schemes that take advantage of the PS Vita's unique touch screens and gyroscope. Sony Europe R&D manager Phil Rogers explains:
PS3 can send data down to Vita and Vita can display it. You could use the unique features - gyroscope, touch front and back - as a control device for a PS3 game.
You can run software on both devices and use the network to sync the game states. And that's pretty good, because you then have the processing power of PS3 doing that work, Vita [doing] fancy graphics - however you want to do it. You're not sacrificing the PS3's CPU to be able to have a rich experience on Vita.
Rogers also says Sony will have several PSN titles for launch that utilize cross-platform gaming, dubbed "Continuation Play."
At launch we're going to have some PSN features that work across both platforms. You could access data on each side and access scoreboards, for example. We're building on that.
Even Remote Play, which streams PS3 content to a remote Vita screen, is already up and running on the device. Down the line, Rogers says that existing PS3 games could be patched for Vita compatibility and make use of these new features.

Just in answer to the Question 'Is the Vita in trouble'....

I think with the 3DS Price Drop it may well be, although, I can't predict the future. If the 3DS Sales pick up after the Price Drop (which seems to be happening, due to the fact Amazon UK ran out of 3DS stock by 3 on the day of the Price Drop) then I think most people who are not Gamers as such and are just looking for a Games Console may well have picked up a 3DS before Vita launches. If the sales do pick up this may also create more software, which would put the 3DS in charge of the handheld market. In my opinion, it's kind of like this.

3DS Price Drop Succeeds - 3DS Wins Outright
3DS Price Drop Fails - Vita wins Outright

I honestly can't see who's going to come out top in the Handheld War, but I think if the Price Drop does lift off, Nintendo will probably seal the deal before the Vita is even launched.

Here's the funny thing: The 3DS is now the same price as the DSi XL ($169), so that makes it even more awkward.