Sony: PS Vita Will Not be Ready by Christmas
The PlayStation Vita won't ship to the United States and Europe until early 2012, missing a key marketing window.
Bad news for gamers here in the States and over in Europe looking forward to getting their hands on the next-generation Sony handheld console this holiday season: it won't be available in 2011.
Sony Corp. Executive Vice President Kazuo Hirai said on Thursday that the PlayStation Vita won’t go on sale in Japan until the end of the year. That means we won't see the unit until early next year. Hirai didn't label the new release schedule as an actual delay, but instead stated that the company wants a solid software offering when the hardware launches.
Could this hesitation be due to the lackluster sales of Nintendo's 3DS handheld? The rival's console launched here in the States back in March with not only a steep pricetag, but a rather shallow library of games. While a few gems have popped up since the console's release, the overall library still has a lot to be desired. Some developers have actually canceled their projects while one has even admitted that it's put development on hold to see how the gadget performs.
According to Sony, the PlayStation Vita will cost $249 USD / 24,980 yen for the Wi-Fi-only version, and $299 USD / 29,980 yen for the 3G version. Starting August 11, the Nintendo 3DS will cost 15,000 yen in Japan and $169.99 USD here in the States on August 12. Given the sudden price hack, does Sony plan to reduce the PlayStation Vita pricetag before it lands on store shelves?
"We packed so much into the device and made it very affordable," Hirai told reporters at Sony's Tokyo headquarters. "There is no need to lower the price just because somebody else that happens to be in the video game business decided that they were going to lower their price."
Guess that's a big no.
Hirai didn't say exactly when the PlayStation Vita will arrive in the States and Europe, only stating "early next year," but the Associated Press didn't even feel confident that Hirai's "end of the year in Japan" comment even indicated that the hardware would be ready by Christmas. Still, one thing's for certain: Sony will miss a key marketing window here in the States by delaying the release until after the holidays. Would the 3DS have done better had it launched in the November/December holiday season window? Probably.
Hirai said that once the PlayStation Vita launches in Japan, the console's shipment schedule will enter into a phased rollout for the other territories.
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Sigh, Sony just can't make the right decisions.
Bummer.
this is gonna be dead on arrival. it seems like this offers less and costs more than a 3DS.
3DS has a chance now, at least. Nintendo should send Sony a thankyou card.
this is gonna be dead on arrival. it seems like this offers less and costs more than a 3DS.
i guess you haven't looked into what a the Vita can do.
On another note, very disappointed that the device wont be available by Christmas, even if all you offered was a metal gear game i would buy it flat out.
I've not used playstation since the playstation 1 and the first gen psp. They both still work and are fun to play on sometimes, but overall I havent strayed from the xbox since the console wars. Was willing to make the leap and purchase the Vita cause it offered so much more then a DS and always had a great online experience with it.
You can compare a 3DS to Sony Vita. Do your research please.
Pst, Sony, you're supposed to copy the good ideas Nintendo has, not the bad ideas. Even though the 3DS was overpriced and had a lacking release lineup, at least part of their error was releasing outside of the major holiday season when kids demand things like this, making it the "hot Christmas item". Not only have they missed a marketing opportunity, they've given Nintendo several more months to get their act together and release better games and features. By even early next year, they're going to have a much larger hill to climb.
My PSP-3000 broke and i decided to wait untill this was released to buy it (i stay away from the PSPgo [FAIL] ) but i guess ill buy a 80 dollar PSP again
If I remember correctly, the original PSP launched in December. Their marketing team knows Nov-Dec is the most opportune time to launch, it's basic stuff you learn in your first year of collage.
Something's off here. There could be some design flaw that they're currently working on, like cooling issues, battery issues, who knows. Me? I'll probably wait for the Slim version, but if it gets hacked (IF it gets hacked... which could take another 4 years if Sony learned a thing or two from the PS3) and Hitman 5 comes out on it (or something that I really really wanna play), I may just get one.
Apparently, either that can't make enough to meet possible world demand, or typical Japanese release schedule for new products. It is Japanese afterall... but more than that, when something new comes out in Japan, people will BUY IT. Even if there is only a few titles for it.
Then after another 3~4 months, giving developers times to come out with more titles and convert to ENgliSH - they release into the more picky USA market.
The 3DS developer is a bit stupid.... 3DS sales is effected by titles, its not a price issue... to somehow expect Nintendo to sell 20 million units overnight is stupid. It plays normal DS titles which is good. There is a possible issue of damaging children's eyes - so that is going to hurt sales.
In the crappy economy and useless political games (where are the jobs? FAA? Construction?) - its easier for a parent to buy a new DS for $90... than the $180 3D version for their 5~10 year old kids.
let's see, no 3D games, no 3D movies, no Netflix, the are said to be much more powerful, but it's on such a small screen (you don't need a Radeon 6990 for 400x240 resolutions).
The graphics for games on the 3DS look very very good. just saying it's a 3D version of the DS is false. It's much much more powerful.
sad... was saving up for this, skipping psp.
RRRYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYY
That's too bad, a lot of people I knew were really excited about this.
Also, fight the spam already.
You would think that companies that had done all this before would KNOW how to do this sort of thing. Really, what idiot let's HALF of their business model slide for a full year ?
Oh yeah, Nintendo and Sony.
Have people already forgotten how Japan was severely affected by humanitarian and natural disasters this year, POSSIBLY offsetting projects by JUST A BIT? although, Sony should kick back wayy back, on all paper launches, so should the rest of this industry. Half of Japan are relocating offices to quake free zones, etc. It's trying times for Japan, ever wonder why no PS3 firmware updates since hack? yet they released 50x firmwares once a week in the past to combat piracy and crap. They're going back to drawing boards, Japan owns Sony and Nintendo, they are in the meeting rooms for quite some time to come.