Price
The Kindle Fire has become one of the hot holiday gadgets of the year, and it can play games. It only costs $199. The Nintendo 3DS is $170.
In today's new tech landscape, $250 once again seems expensive. The 3G-enabled version of the Vita will cost even more: $300. That's the cost of a PlayStation 3 or Xbox 360 bundle. It's $50 more than an entry-level iPod Touch.
(Credit: CBS)
Let's also not forget how much more Vita games will cost, not only compared with the 3DS, but also the thousands of titles in the App Store. Sure, a 99-cent bubble-popping game won't compare with something like Uncharted: Golden Abyss, but explaining that to the casual consumer may not be an easy task.
Features
In an age of convergence devices, we've come to expect far more from our gadgets. The PS3 and Xbox 360 are making strides for their streaming-media and home theater functions. Smartphones are useful as cameras, always-on computers, and phones--and, of course, game systems.
The Vita will have to offer apps and services that make it multifaceted. Sure, there already does seem to be plenty of support from social entities like Twitter and Facebook, but we've already come to take these types apps for granted. The Vita will need to eventually match the content prowess of its big brother, the PlayStation 3, in order to maintain customer appeal. Even the Nintendo 3DS has Netflix. Can Sony develop software and partnerships that make the Vita more than a fancy game system?
Fun
Hard-core games are a joy...for hard-core gamers. Studded with dual control pads, front and back touch panels, gyroscopic sensors, and front- and rear-facing cameras, the PlayStation Vita is a machine dripping with potential. It's all for naught, though, if it's not fun. Those extra control schemes can also get confusing, especially for a newcomer to gaming. Heck, they even got confusing for us. During our time with games like Little Deviants, we found it confusing switching back and forth between control schemes. Also, that 5-inch screen might be big and gorgeous, but stretching your thumbs to reach across it for touch-gaming, isn't as simple as it sounds.
Android tablets have told the tale over and over again: an extra USB port or SD card slot doesn't sell a gadget. The Vita's control schemes are utilized in unique ways for some of the launch games, but cheap, mass-appeal games with unique qualities will be essential. As good as Uncharted looks, Infinity Blade II for the iPhone and iPad isn't too shabby, either. Graphics alone can't sell the Vita. Sony will need to tap deeply into its rich game library for ideas that can reach out in new ways, much like many of the most critically successful indie downloads on the PSN network, such as Flower.
As we mentioned above, it's here where Sony needs to flex its gaming muscle. The company needs to pounce on the fact that a game machine without buttons is missing out on satisfying and precise analog controls.
