Vita out in Europe and US early next year

[BoyBettaKnow]

UPDATE: Sony has confirmed to Eurogamer that Vita goes on sale in Japan, Hong Kong and Taiwan by the end of the year. It goes on sale in Europe, the US and the rest of the Asian territories "early next year".ORIGINAL STORY: Sony executive Kaz Hirai has confirmed that the PlayStation Vita will launch in Europe and the US early next year.
It launches in Japan by the end of the year, according to MSN Money.
Apparently Hirai did not characterize the timing as a delay. He said Sony wants to be prepared with solid game software offerings timed with the hardware launches.
And there appears to be some doubt over whether Vita will launch this Christmas even in Japan.
Hirai was clear on one thing: Sony will not cut the price of the Vita – despite Nintendo's decision to slash the cost of the Nintendo 3DS.
"We packed so much into the device and made it very affordable," Hirai said. "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."
Sony is yet to announce a UK price for Vita.

Source

Eh, i'm fine with that. Too much stuff i need to buy this year as it is.

[F34R]

Yeah, we've known that for a little while now.

[BoyBettaKnow]

It was never actually confirmed though i thought, i always thought it was speculation, i know Sony said something about not being able to supply the demand though.

Not a big deal for me though. Saving up for a 590 and i need to pay my car tax and mot around the same time

[F34R]

No, it was confirmed. When they said that it would be out in 2011 in Japan, the interviewer asked if we'd see it worldwide by this Christmas, and the rep said something to the effect of "this fiscal year", instead of confirming before xmas, etc.

I'd have to find the interview but that's the basic of it. None of that is direct quotes mind you... lemme see if I can find it.

edit:
http://www.psu.com/forums/threads/27...=1#post5577845

The video has since been removed.

[BoyBettaKnow]

No need man, i believe you.

[Zoibie]

No, it was confirmed. When they said that it would be out in 2011 in Japan, the interviewer asked if we'd see it worldwide by this Christmas, and the rep said something to the effect of "this fiscal year", instead of confirming before xmas, etc.

I'd have to find the interview but that's the basic of it. None of that is direct quotes mind you... lemme see if I can find it.

edit:
http://www.psu.com/forums/threads/27...=1#post5577845

The video has since been removed.

There was still a chance that could have meant before Christmas this year, but yeah it was seeming unlikely. Shame.

[mickice]

Time to create my Vita fund again. This is going to be so sweet.

[Rtc]

On stage at e3 did he not say coming by the end of holiday this year?

[The Black Wolf]

That clears up space for me to buy other games this holiday season.

[F34R]

There was still a chance that could have meant before Christmas this year, but yeah it was seeming unlikely. Shame.

Japan before the calendar year 2011 ends, rest of the world by the 2011 fiscal year end.

On stage at e3 did he not say coming by the end of holiday this year?

Yes, he did. However, it's only for Japan unfortunately.

[AaronSOLDIER]

Ouch, Nintendo got a full year head start it seems and will be competing with no rival this Christmas.

[F34R]

Yep, seems like a HUGE mistake too.

[Stig]

Well if this means Dragon's Crown will be a launch title then I am all for it!!

And you're right--too many games to play this holiday season anyway. This news actually comes as a bit of a relief.

[Thorzilla]

Ouch, Nintendo got a full year head start it seems and will be competing with no rival this Christmas.

I was thinking the same thing. Mario, Starfox and other big hitters are coming this fall, and Sony will miss the holidays. Oh well, I got my 3DS craving some attention after Zelda and The Mercenaries

[Bligmerk]

Japan has a big consumer market on its own and the PSP has been consistently outselling 3DS for several months with only a couple big 3DS titles causing a temporary pop. That is going to change when the 3DS big-gun titles finally show up and the PSP will definitely be on the down cycle towards the end of the year, but Vita sales in Japan at the end of the year could be more than enough momentum to carry it into world-wide sales in the spring. Nintendo isn't taking it lying down with such a huge price cut on the 3DS but 3DS is getting pretty lukewarm reception, probably because the main screen is not big enough or high def enough and the 3D is not good enough. The Vita is really notching the hand held quality up several notches, so the difference is noticeable.

[F34R]

It is so...

http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2011-0...christmas.html

Sony Corp. (675 plans to begin sales of the PlayStation Vita portable player in the U.S. and Europe next year, missing the key Christmas-holiday shopping season.
The product will initially launch in Japan before the end of December, followed by introductions in the U.S. and Europe early next year, Kazuo Hirai, Chairman Howard Stringer’s top lieutenant, told reporters in Tokyo today. The company had previously said it planned a phased global rollout of the Vita from the end of this year, without providing specifics.
The plan means Tokyo-based Sony will miss out on Christmas shoppers in two markets where the company generated more than 40 percent of its revenue last fiscal year. Japan’s largest electronics exporter is increasingly relying on its games business as the main Bravia television operations face their eighth straight year of losses.
“The PlayStation business is a key pillar,” Hirai said. “The video-game industry is evolving constantly. My expectation is for the PlayStation business to remain at the forefront of this very dynamic industry.”
Sony also needs to be more aggressive in reducing costs, Hirai said. The company said this week it’s preparing to overhaul the unprofitable TV business -- plans that may include partnerships and the reorganization of its procurement and product development operations -- to reduce costs and become more competitive.
The company is also facing mounting pressure after its larger games-industry rival, Nintendo Co., said last week it will slash prices of its latest 3-D handheld player by as much as 40 percent starting mid-August.
No Price Cuts

Hirai said today Sony doesn’t need to lower Vita’s price and follow competitors.
Both Sony and Nintendo are also facing increasing competition from Cupertino, California-based Apple Inc. (AAPL), whose iPhones and iPads are gaining popularity as gaming devices, as well as from games such as Zynga Inc.’s “FarmVille” on Facebook Inc.’s social-networking site.
The Vita, equipped with a 5-inch display and touch pads at the back, will be offered from $249 in the U.S., Sony said in June. That’s $80 more than Nintendo’s 3-D portable player after the price cut.
Sony rose 0.1 percent to close at 1,925 yen in Tokyo trading before the announcement. It’s fallen 34 percent this year, compared with the 5.6 percent drop by Japan’s benchmark Nikkei 225 Stock Average.

[Agriel]

I wonder if the earthquake had something to do with this

[dc89]

Must...not...post...Nintendo...Zoolander.GIF

Seriously though, we all know what happened when a expensive - in comparison to the competition - Sony handheld made it late to the market last time.

[Rtc]

I'll still wait for official release date from Sony before I debate really

[Ryunosuke]

Must...not...post...Nintendo...Zoolander.GIF

Seriously though, we all know what happened when a expensive - in comparison to the competition - Sony handheld made it late to the market last time.

The PSP had a very good first year. I think it even outsold the DS, hard to say since most NPD reports for 2004 and 2005 only had console sales reported for some reason. According to Sony's fiscal results the PSP outsold the DS in 2005.

According to NPD the PSP also sold 620k in its opening month in March of 2005 compared to the 479k the Nintendo DS did in its opening month in November of 2004.

The DS also had some big releases in 2004 and 2005.

Animal Crossing: Wild World
Pokemon Dash
Mario Kart DS
Mario & Luigi: Partners in Time
Super Mario 64 DS
Nintendogs

[O.J. Mayo]

Im honestly heartbroken by this news. I was looking forward to buying a Vita in December this year.
IMO this is a bad decision by Sony because we all know the best time to put out a console is in time for the holiday season.
The casual gamers wont care when the Vita comes out in lets say March 2012. Only the hardcore will buy it then

[Ryunosuke]

Im honestly heartbroken by this news. I was looking forward to buying a Vita in December this year.
IMO this is a bad decision by Sony because we all know the best time to put out a console is in time for the holiday season.
The casual gamers wont care when the Vita comes out in lets say March 2012. Only the hardcore will buy it then

It will sale just as much, if not more in March as it would have during the holiday. The reason for this is limited stock. A new system never sees the full advantage the holiday season gives when launching during the holiday season. The PSP sold more in its opening month in March than the Wii, PS3, Xbox 360 and NDS did in their opening month(all in November).

[ozman79]

To be honest, given the number of games coming out in the final few months of this year, I'm kinda glad I won't have to shell out for a PS Vita til next year. Here's hoping for some decent bundles/offers in January.

[dc89]

Does this mean the PSP is going to get some games for this fall/autumn?

If not, it's looking a very bleak period of time for PSP owners and that includes me!

[Ryunosuke]

Does this mean the PSP is going to get some games for this fall/autumn?

If not, it's looking a very bleak period of time for PSP owners and that includes me!

I believe Persona 2 Innocent Sin is coming out this fall in the US. There is also the new Invizimals; have no idea how popular it is, but seems there is some interest in the series. Most of the other stuff is yearly installment stuff.

The Little Battlers is supposedly getting a US release, not sure when. Probably sometime around when the anime starts airing in the US.

If you like PSOne classics on the PSP there are also some nice titles that are suppose to come out sometime this year; such as Chrono Cross, Breath of Fire IV, Parasite Eve 2 and more.

Until the PSVita launches Sony's main focus outside of Japan is the PS3. There will likely be a new sku and price drop announced at Gamescom and they have a strong lineup throughout the rest of the year(both first and third party games).

Edit: What has been pushing PSP sales on amazon? I have noticed it in the top 10 in amazon's "Best Sellers in Video Games" a lot lately(sometimes higher than every other system).