PSP/Vita forecast revision yet again.
20 > 16 > 10 > 7
Good job releasing a dud. Will likely get Lenny'd late 2013/early 2014 when all focus shifts to PS4, mobile and tablets.
I imagine they'll announce a lot of integration with PS4 and really try to emphasize cross buy and remote play going forward. That could renew interest for sure, and it's one thing their main competitor MS can't offer.
I'd say that's a poor business decision. They're better off promoting smartphone and tablet integration into the PS4.
Pushing a desirable product for cross sales due to integration is going to yield better results then resurrecting the dead.
IMHO, promoting smartphone and tablet integration is unlikely to make a big difference too. ^_^
I consider it a hygiene factor. If you have the feature, victory is not guaranteed. If you don't have the feature, consumers may be dissatisfied.
I agree the 2 approaches (Vita integration and smartphone + tablet integration) are not mutually exclusive.
Personally, I think the basic Vita problem is the management did/does not have a clear idea of what they want Vita to be. They seem to lack the will to invest in its success. Sony saved on Vita's look and feel. While the LiveArea concept works surprisingly well, it is butt ugly and inconsistent (lookwise) by western look & feel standard. They did not deliver a unique and clear-cut leap of user experience + benefits for people to buy Vita in droves. The product seems to be conceived in isolation even though they probably sought a lot of technical feedback from developers.
As a result, gamers have to spend hands-on time with Vita to understand what the deal is. As a modern Playstation, it did not integrate with PS3's PSN until months later. It did not have a PSP library at launch, even though it could play them easily. It did not have any PS+ deal. The successful PSP games did not have follow-up on Vita due to Sony mishandling PSP earlier on. In general, there were tons of miscommunication and missed opportunities. SCEJ, SCEA and SCEE all seem to have different ideas when or how to drive Vita. No one seems to be in charge.
Only after launch did they get their act together to realize Vita's value proposition bit-by-bit.
Lucky for Sony, Vita turns out to be a superb and very capable gaming handheld. Some of the stuff are too late to change (e.g., PS3 and Vita integration is hampered by PS3's limitations). So yes, PS4 better delivers seamless Vita integration.
I think the management needs to start from the top level benefits and work their way down. Playstation Plus is a good place to begin. I would also revisit Vita's battery need. If Vita is plugged into the wall socket, car charger or battery pack, Sony should let Vita run at its full potential (e.g., make it always-connected, or even serve as a local LAN Playstation game server for nearby iOS/Android devices). Right now, the experience is a little fragmented by the need to keep power consumption low.
Other non-games on Vita should be "gamified" and properly integrated too. The apps and games should be picked carefully, not randomly, to fit the target user profiles.
I got a tethered tablet dataplan for my iPad mini 3 months ago. Hope to rebuy a Vita again. An always-connected Vita packed with your favorite games and media is a very cool experience. It's like scuba diving in a sea of sweetness. Few people understand this upfront.
