PlayStation UK boss Fergal Gara has said he believes Sony’s upcoming PlayStation 4 home console will boost sales of its flagging PlayStation Vita handheld.
Speaking to GI International, Gara revealed that the PS Vita was developed primarily as a companion to Sony’s next-generation console as opposed to the seven-year-old PS3. He also admitted the device has been hard to sell in the current climate.
"I don’t think it’s unfair to say it came into a very complex marketplace that probably wasn’t fully envisaged at the time development started," he said.
"It borrows a lot from the mobile and tablet world, especially with touch control. And it borrows a fair amount from the PlayStation of old with the analogue sticks. And it’s a very worthy and better successor to PSP. Where it’s been difficult has been proving the companion status for PlayStation 3. The fact is it was developed for PS4, much more than PS3.
"The number of things we could demonstrate and prove was limited – there’s been some good examples – but now we go into the PS4 era, that companion device will look far more clear. We’re optimistic it’s got a lot more legs left in it and the PS4 has given it a shot in the arm."
Quizzed as to whether he thought Sony released its high-powered handheld to market a little too early, Gara said that while it is a possibility, it was too early to call right now.
Gara then pointed to the Remote Play functionality of PS Vita as a major attraction point, allowing you to stream PlayStation 4 games to the handheld.
"That might be a point worth reflecting on in a year or two’s time and maybe we’ll be answering that as yes. It’s a little early to judge, certainly if it takes off now than we’ll reflect on it."
"When you consider something like Watch Dogs will be available for PS Vita via the Remote Play functionality it’s very exciting," he offered. "And the fact the PS4 is coming out at a well-received price point means it’s not out of the question to own both."
Finally, the executive revealed there are currently no plans to slash the price of the PS3 as the company prepares to launch its new home console.
"There’s no plans as yet," confirmed Gara. "The PlayStation 3 is a system where it hasn’t been particularly easy to get the costs down.
We continue to look at opportunities, there may or may not be any more, I genuinely can’t answer to that. But it will certainly be a more keenly priced machine in relative to PlayStation 4. It will sit there as a viable entry level machine for years to come. It will be different by territory as to how long its life is. There’s still a lot of love for PS3.”
Sony announced that PS4 will launch at £349/$399 later this year, and will be released alongside the likes of Killzone: Shadow Fall and DriveClub.