Is a Vita worth getting yet?

[Bojay1997]

I can't see Sony abandoning the Vita in the immediate future, but they need to all but do a drastic/hard-stop marketing reboot at this point, I would suspect starting with a price cut on both the system hardware and (more importantly) the large proprietary memory.

It's such a spectacular piece of portable gaming hardware, it's a travesty that they've somehow bungled this thing in the marketing.

Agree. I have to say that they have really stepped things up on the PS3 front even in light of the fact that the PS4 is coming out later this year. I'm really looking forward to exclusives like Last of Us and Beyond Two Souls which are both coming in the next six months. I hope they can do the same for the Vita as it does appear to be part of the overall PS4 strategy.

[Rickstilwell1]

Reading through this thread, I'm really surprised there's actually still people that haven't gotten a 3DS yet.

My monthly income has gone back up so in a few months I have plans to get a Vita and a few games that interest me. Mostly RPGs and fighters.

[Tupin]

Oh, I already own a 3DS and about a dozen games for it. Just picked up Fire Emblem.

I've played like one or two Vita games that were decent, a demo of a game called Guacamelee seemed pretty fun.

[The 1 2 P]

Reading through this thread, I'm really surprised there's actually still people that haven't gotten a 3DS yet.

I actually just found one a few days ago at a flea market that I've been comtemplating rather to sell or not. It was pretty cheap so I think I'll probably hold on to it. As for the Vita, a price drop is imminent. Otherwise it will continue to not sell. I definitely don't think it's worth it to buy now but once they get a nice price drop and start rolling out more games I actually care about I'll be willing to take another look at it.

Now also seems like the perfect time for a price drop(for more than just Japan) because 6-10 months from now we are most likely going to get one or two new consoles and at that point the Vita will be even more overlooked than it is now. Although they probably have other plans ahead I think Sony dropped the ball big time by not rolling out a universal price drop all at once.

[Tupin]

I think I'm going to wait, like others have said, until Sony comes out with a new model. I won't jump when they lower the price on the same units they've been selling since last year.

[Trumpman]

I don't know, I think I may just be done with handhelds altogether. My phone is more than sufficient for my on-the-go gaming; I don't take long enough trips with any regularity to make a dedicated handheld worth it. A typical mobile gaming session for me these days is 15 minutes max, so iPhone games like Super Hexagon are plenty for me. I have no interest in sitting on the couch in my apartment playing a handheld when my widescreen is eight feet away. If I'm going to play games, it's going to be on a console. Actually, this I think is the Vita's biggest problem -- it comes CLOSE to graphical parity with 360/PS3, but is far enough away to make you wish you were playing on a console.

I enjoyed the hell out of my DS (and still do), and there are some 3DS games that interest me (like Mario 3D land), but I just can't justify a $200 investment right now. And the Vita, while it is snazzy, with those obscenely priced memory cards and a lack of unique games for an even higher price? Don't think it's going to happen.

Smartphones have destroyed the dedicated portable market for me at least, and I can't say I'm bummed out about it.

[WCP]

i gotta have buttons

[The Adventurer]

i gotta have buttons

This is actually why I ended up getting a 3DS myself. I have nothing against touch screen games. I have an iPad, I play games on it. But its not the same experience as having a dedicated console with buttons for feedback. Its not better, or worse, but its different enough for me to need a dedicated handheld for a specific gaming experience.

[Tupin]

To me, the reason why I find a handheld necessary mostly isn't the controls. A lot of games, 3D ones excluded, work just fine on a touch screen. Hell, I bought a good Final Fantasy RPG and it controls great.

The problem is that the image of the market is ruined by Gameloft and "freemium" games. If I pay money for a game, I don't want to have to buy anything that I could get from just playing the game, and designing the game in order to not give you enough of it is just cheap. I remember when "Free" on the Android meant you'd be getting a shareware-like game from a possibly one-man operation. Now it just means "yet another time-wasting moneysuck."

Now if you were a major company like Square-Enix selling your game for $15 on Google Play, how do you compete with someone who gives away their games for free?

[kupomogli]

There are some free games for PS Vita owners this week only. I attempted to download the games on the PS3 PSN but the games were taken down from the PS3 for purchase. Pretty much only allowing those who have a Vita to add them to their account. You can either search for the games or click on the Playstation Vita Bash thing showing Toro on the front. Wild ARMs(PSOne,) Patapon(PSP,) Patchwork Heroes(PSP,) and Piyotama(PSP.) After purchasing them on your Vita, there wouldn't be anything stopping you from playing them on your PSP or playing Wild ARMs on your PS3.

Wild ARMs is an amazing RPG. It's mostly similar to Lufia 2, but better in every way. Haven't played the others, but Patchwork Heroes is a Qix style game and Patapon is a rhythm game. Both supposedly good.

[Tanooki]

To me, the reason why I find a handheld necessary mostly isn't the controls. A lot of games, 3D ones excluded, work just fine on a touch screen. Hell, I bought a good Final Fantasy RPG and it controls great.

The problem is that the image of the market is ruined by Gameloft and "freemium" games. If I pay money for a game, I don't want to have to buy anything that I could get from just playing the game, and designing the game in order to not give you enough of it is just cheap. I remember when "Free" on the Android meant you'd be getting a shareware-like game from a possibly one-man operation. Now it just means "yet another time-wasting moneysuck."

Now if you were a major company like Square-Enix selling your game for $15 on Google Play, how do you compete with someone who gives away their games for free?

You as Square-Enix then join in and fuck people raw with it by going overboard. Theaterhythm FF==3DS is $30-40 these days. On iOS it's FREE(or so you think.) You get it with like a set of 3 tunes for one play through, but then every last piece of music both included on the 3DS or sold in audio packs are $1 A PIECE. I think I read somewhere it adds up to double the price of the 3DS title. I agree that freemium has become a curse and now it's infecting the greedy big game makers now going into console stuff too. We're seeing games at full price, but then they add in (already on disc) DLC or DLC after that actually completes the story more (which I think a $60 game should do already, finish itself.) And then thre's conversions of console games to tablet like NFS Most Wanted where they gimp your earnings to where you want to buy game money to get more into the game after already charging like $5+ for the title.

I'm glad Nintendo has at the least taken a stance against it. Games will either not offer it having everything. Games will offer it, but it's free. Or Games will offer it and it's paid, or a mix of paid and free in the case that stuff vital to the story is free of charge and only addon bonuses are pay but will not ruin or restrict any enjoyment of the primary title. I wish people will copy that example, not what Gameloft has spawned and their ilk.

[Frankie_Says_Relax]

Related to this thread, and free this week on the PSN store (on a PSP or Vita only!)

Up for free downloads are the following games right now on PSN (no PS+ required)

(PS1)

Wild Arms

(PSP)

Patapon
Patchwork Heroes
Piyotama

Note that you can only download these games from the PSP's and Vita's PSN Store

[otaku]

I'd get and when I do get a console for portable gaming it will be a 3DS I'd like a vita at some point (when its cheap and lived its life most likely)

[The 1 2 P]

I'd like a vita at some point (when its cheap and lived its life most likely)

I'm not sure if the Vita will ever be cheap. As far as I know the PSP never got below $100 at retail(it's still $129 or higher at Target and Toys R Us around here). The Vita might get to $150 but that probably won't be until years from now, if ever. The good news is that there will be deals during the holidays. But even better than that would be buying it used from somewhere like craigs list. Doing that will guarantee you get it cheap or atleast alot cheaper than what it goes for at retail.

[WCP]

I'm not sure if the Vita will ever be cheap. As far as I know the PSP never got belowe $100 at retail(it's still $129 or higher at Target and Toys R Us around here). The Vita might get to $150 but that probably won't be until years from now, if ever. The good news is that there will be deals during the holidays. But even better than that would be buying it used from somewhere like craigs list. Doing that will guarantee you get it cheap or atleast alot cheaper than what it goes for at retail.

Yeah, it's going to be a long time before you can buy a brand new one, at retail for what somebody would really consider cheap.

However, there are places like Cowboom.com , where you can buy used ones for as cheap as $119.99. These are going to be used, and the condition of them are going to vary. (I've heard to only buy ones that are rated 6 or 7, don't buy any rated 5 or 4 unless you want tons of scratches on it, etc, etc. ) The best way to get a used one on Craigslist is to find a guy with a nice package deal at a good price.

Recently, this guy was selling a used Vita, with a 16 gig memory card, Resistance and Madden 13, all for $175. That's a very good deal when you consider that the 16 gig memory card is worth at least $30 by itself. Madden and Resistance are both worth at least 15 each. You're essentially getting the Vita for only $115. When I saw this deal, I was tempted to jump on it, even though I already had a Vita. I was going to keep the 16 gig card, and then sell off everything else. Unfortunately, I took too long to contact the dude, and he already sold it, but deals like this are out there, if you're patient and keep checking your local craiglist.

Also, if somebody is selling a big Vita bunlde for $250, try offering them $175. You never know when they might get tired of waiting for a buyer.

[BHvrd]

Vita sales in Japan have more than quadrupled in the past month thanks to a price cut and of course thanks to:

http://www.ign.com/articles/2013/03/...dd00fa50000018


If you read the numbers in the article you will see that the Vita's increase in sales have almost a 100% attachment rate with sales of Phantasy Star Online 2 at retail alone "download sales not included". Sega still got the juice kid!

Proves that only killer apps will save any system, cause um, people buy systems for the games dumbfuck Sony. Btw, where the fuck is my new Everquest: Online Adventures, turd bastards *looks at Sony*.

[Frankie_Says_Relax]

Vita sales in Japan have more than quadrupled in the past month thanks to a price cut and of course thanks to:

http://www.ign.com/articles/2013/03/...dd00fa50000018


If you read the numbers in the article you will see that the Vita's increase in sales have almost a 100% attachment rate with sales of Phantasy Star Online 2 at retail alone "download sales not included". Sega still got the juice kid!

Proves that only killer apps will save any system, cause um, people buy systems for the games dumbfuck Sony. Btw, where the fuck is my new Everquest: Online Adventures, turd bastards *looks at Sony*.

That's good news and should play right into my formula theory.

Killer app in Japan = more Japanese games developed = more games to be cheaply localized for US market to flesh out retail releases and help overall sales.

[josekortez]

Yeah, I'm waiting for one of the Vita bundles (either the Call of Duty one or the Target-exclusive Lego Batman 2 one) to get clearanced out before I buy the system. That said, I already own Hot Shots, Ninja Gaiden Sigma and Ultimate Marvel vs. Capcom 3 and a 4 gig memory card. There are a few few-cheap downloadable Vita games on PSN right now, so I'm hoping I find one soon at a reasonable price.

[PreZZ]

Oh man, bringing pso2 to NA is taking forever, the game has been complete for almost a year, whats taking so long to translate menu's and dialogue? I want it NOW on vita its still not confirmed for NA, smells fishy

[Frankie_Says_Relax]

Shouldn't weigh heavily on the worth of the system in a purchase decision, but I felt it was noteworthy - the latest firmware update did a few things that were sorely lacking since the system launched.

1. Folder support. Seriously, in this day and age of apps, you NEED to launch a product with folder support. That's sorted now.

2. An icon in the upper-right now displays what physical game you have in your system (similar to how inserted games display in a DS). Previously, if you missed the "app" bubble for whatever game you had inserted "bouncing" when you powered up, you'd have to pop out the game to see what it was.