But it seems that Sony has done the research and is sure that there are experiences that Vita can create that other devices cannot compete with.
John Koller, who is the hardware marketing director working at Sony, has spoken to Gamespot and said, “When you look at the type of consumer that’s playing cell phone games currently, it’s someone that enjoys smaller ‘kill time’ gaming and has not gravitated to the larger, richer, deeper experiences that true handheld gaming provides.”
He added, “We’ve certainly seen that on the PSP, and I know Nintendo has probably commented on it for their products, but as we go toward the PlayStation Vita, I can tell you that as we started looking at that product and the market opportunity several years ago, we saw a real strong demographic for those deeper, richer, console-type experiences.”
Koller believes that the control features offered by Vita, which offer a touch screen element but also traditional options, make it superior to what smartphones have at the moment.
Another big name handheld, the 3DS from Nintendo, has failed to perform as well as expected since it was launched earlier during the year and analysts have blamed a lot of the issues it has faced on tough competition from the iPhone and from the Android-powered devices.
The PlayStation Vita seems to be aimed at a more hardcore audience and that might make it a more successful platform in the long term.
Sony also seems prepared to provide much better post-launch support for the Vita and has a big number of franchises that it can deliver on the new handheld.
