PSN Store cross buy, Vita finally worth it?

[J Tyran]

The PS Vita got off to a slow start and still faces a lot of problems, price of the console and memory cards is a big one and so is the lack of titles. The Ironic thing is Sony wanted the Vita to be the machine that finally brings a "full console experience to a handheld device" which is almost does.

Some of the AAA games for it have been OK and some even fairly good, others where among the worst games of that year. The Vita is really beginning to shine with small dev and indie games though, small cheap PSN Store games like the ones on XBLA and Steam among other places. The big devs simply are not delivering enough games but the indie devs and small publishers are picking it up

Where it really gets interesting is Sony's cross buy+cross play idea, you simply buy the game once and it adds it to your PSN account and you can play it on both a PS Vita and a PS3. You can even have your saves transferred over, so you can play on your PS3 and then pick up your save later on your Vita and then pick it back up on your PS3 later. You only buy the game once and essentially get two copies.

Heres the list [http://www.giantbomb.com/cross-buy/3015-7554/games/] that have cross buy and cross play for the moment, not many but its a recent addition and doesn't include every indie game on the Vita at the moment. The indie games are great enough but this cross buy idea is pretty interesting. It will not entice a lot of people to spend money on one but its a great service even still.

Its just very ironic that the indie devs are the ones bothering with the Vita, maybe their lower costs make it worth it. Especially when they can get it working for both machines and entice more people to buy thier games.

 

[omicron1]

Vita's been worth it since Persona. But yes, with the cross buy stuff it is finally coming more into its own.

Now if only they'd get off their rears and implement cross PLAY. >_>

 

[Roxas1359]

Sounds like a Vita may be something I purchase in the future now. Now all Sony needs to do to get me sold is to create a way for me to be able to play the games on the TV, mainly so that I can record the games. XD

 

[Risingblade]

That'a great in theory and would be in practice but aside from Zen pinball there's nothing there i would have bought anyway.

 

[Windcaler]

Oh yes, its very worth it. You get so many free games that its rediculous value for what little money you give them. Plus threres a few good games on the Vita already, the best one being Persona 4g atm

It still has a shortage of games but with PSN its much better then it was

 

[Imperioratorex Caprae]

I would like to see more games for the Vita developed, but apparently 3rd parties aren't interested because of the apparent difficulty involved. I personally think its a great platform, and love it but shit happens.

 

[Korten12]

I would like to see more games for the Vita developed, but apparently 3rd parties aren't interested because of the apparent difficulty involved. I personally think its a great platform, and love it but shit happens.

It's horrible...

People don't buy the vita because of the lack of games -> Developers/Pub don't put the games on it because the lack of people...

I don't think they understand that it's the publishers fault if people don't buy it as much... Luckily it seems to be getting better.

 

[Windcaler]

I would like to see more games for the Vita developed, but apparently 3rd parties aren't interested because of the apparent difficulty involved. I personally think its a great platform, and love it but shit happens.

Pretty much the situation is a self fulfilling prophecy. Devs have the perception that games dont sell on the Vita so they dont make games for it. Yet the reason games dont sell on the Vita is because theres only a few good ones for it

 

[Asuka Soryu]

I honestly wasn't gone to get a Vita, but then it descended from Heaven. A Vita, and an 8GB memory card for 160$ I quickly snagged it up and bought myself a PSN + card. :3 Uncharted and Gravity Rush for free.

 

[Imperioratorex Caprae]

I would like to see more games for the Vita developed, but apparently 3rd parties aren't interested because of the apparent difficulty involved. I personally think its a great platform, and love it but shit happens.

Pretty much the situation is a self fulfilling prophecy. Devs have the perception that games dont sell on the Vita so they dont make games for it. Yet the reason games dont sell on the Vita is because theres only a few good ones for it

I may be wrong, but I remember reading somewhere that development for the Vita is a little difficult, which is what PS3 suffered from in the early years... Still PS3 had more games in its first few years lined up than the Vita so I think a lot of publishers are just more interested in console games and the mobile boom (which I think is past its peak and may die out into crappy party favor games... wait thats all they really have).

 

[Windcaler]

I may be wrong, but I remember reading somewhere that development for the Vita is a little difficult, which is what PS3 suffered from in the early years... Still PS3 had more games in its first few years lined up than the Vita so I think a lot of publishers are just more interested in console games and the mobile boom (which I think is past its peak and may die out into crappy party favor games... wait thats all they really have).

If Vlambeer can put a game like Luftrausers on the Vita in a short time then I dont think its as complicated as people think it is (or make it out to be). Im not a game developer, as much as I would like to be, so I cant say how accurate or inaccurate it is to say its a difficult system to port/design to

 

[Brogan Cordova]

I would like to see more games for the Vita developed, but apparently 3rd parties aren't interested because of the apparent difficulty involved. I personally think its a great platform, and love it but shit happens.

Pretty much the situation is a self fulfilling prophecy. Devs have the perception that games dont sell on the Vita so they dont make games for it. Yet the reason games dont sell on the Vita is because theres only a few good ones for it

This. Software sells hardware. Sony needs more people to start buying Vitas. The main reason to buy a Vita (as opposed to mobile device gaming) is quality games on the go. And those games have to either be exclusives or vastly superior to other versions (i.e. Skyrim on 360 vs Skyrim on PS3). Persona 4 Golden, while the original is on the PS2, is a great start because no other system has what is basically the "GOTY edition" of it. To get those, you need dev support. But making more and more games for the Vita is both essential and possibly ineffective. Just because current Vita owners nod, appreciate, and like a game like Gravity Rush doesn't mean the game is a big enough hit to convince someone to buy a Vita.

Pokemon X and Y, Fire Emblem, Kingdom Hearts 3D, and Animal Crossing are system-sellers for the 3DS. When you get down to the prime deciding factors, people want their Pokemon and they will buy a 3DS to get more and more of it. Sony needs a big library of games and they need to find "people want their ____ and will buy a Vita to get it." Except they don't have a rabidly popular franchise like that. Quality franchises, successful franchises, yes. But not like Pokemon. Nintendo is at the point where they have several big hits already out (see above) and they have really cool stuff like LTTP2 and Pokemon X/Y on the horizon. Games now and games later, and that's why I'm gonna buy one now. Immediate satisfaction and promises of the future.

Crossbuy is not a system-seller, nor are indie games. Both are fantastic and wonderful things, but serve mainly to the benefit of people who already own a Vita. Another problem is that, while Pokemon and Fire Emblem (casual and hardcore turn-based RPGS) work for Nintendo's killer games, the biggest franchises Sony has going for them already have games on the Vita (like Uncharted and shooters). Big third-party games like Call of Duty too. And some of them either tanked or turned out "meh." Furthermore, the shooter market is becoming too crowded and over-saturated, pushing franchises that aren't Call of Duty or Battlefield out of profitability.

Hate to doom and gloom, but it does not appear that it's going to end well for the Vita, whether I want the Vita to succeed or not. Sony is stuck between a rock and a hard place, and they don't have the first-party pull like Nintendo does to pull out of something like this.

EDIT: Did some googling, found this. Fairly recent too.
http://www.wired.com/gamelife/2013/02/playstation-vita-failure/

 

[Azaraxzealot]

This makes me want a vita. So bad.

It looks like to get the most out of gaming you should own a vita, a DS lite (for access to GBA games), and a Gaming PC. I already own 2 of those three, but this and all the free shit PS+ owners get is pushing me WELL into "get a vita" territory

 

[GonzoGamer]

This is actually one of the things that bothers me about sony: they have a great feature but with such a short list of games that actually use it.

 

[jebara]

I apologize for answering not reading the OP, but sometimes your just not in the mood for a wall of text, summarize it if you could.
As for the answer, no.
The worst thing that could happen is that Vita turns itself into just a "portable PS3" with the way Sony is marketing it.
I already got a PS3, why do I need to spend so much on another one, do I need to by a handheld just for the same kind of experience on console?
Sony should make the Vita its own thing, the 3DS did that and Sony should follow suit.

 

[IllumInaTIma]

I bought Vita last September as a replacement for my old PSP, and since right now I can't have a full, non hand-held console, I was hoping it would be my gateway to console gaming. So, for 2 months there was nothing to play! I've completed Mortal Kombat in a week or two and that was it. But then, Persona 4: Golden came out and Vita immediately justified itself! Those 300 bucks were worth it for that game alone. And so, little by little, more and more nice games and ports snuck on Vita. Atelier Totori, Soul Sacrifice, Dead Or Alive 5+... So yeah, I'd say Vita totally worth it right now. Although, I'm still wondering if PS Plus worth it if you have just Vita...

 

[Something Amyss]

Thanks to all the free games I can get through PS+, Sony has secured my purchase of the Vita. Clever marketing, Sony.

Yeah, PS+ is the best reason to have a Vita at this point. Though Crossbuy isn't a bad thing. I just wouldn't say it's what makes the system.

This is actually one of the things that bothers me about sony: they have a great feature but with such a short list of games that actually use it.

That's pretty common.

 

[Legion]

I am tempted by the Vita due to a couple of exclusives, but I am currently waiting for a price drop.

Having recently traded in my Xbox for the 3DS XL (with Fire Emblem) I am not in that much of a rush to get one just yet. If they put on a good deal sometime soon I will probably pick one up, but right now in the UK they are very expensive for what they give.

I also don't have a PSN+ account (although I do have a PS3). Persona 3/4 and Valkyria Chronices II are calling out to me though.