The PS Vita, despite its critical acclaim and a handful of standout titles, never quite found its footing in the gaming landscape. Former PlayStation head honcho Shuhei Yoshida recently opened up about its challenges in an interview that’s worth a listen. It’s a candid discussion that explains what went wrong and hints at what might come next for Sony.
The PS Vita launched in 2011 is touted as a worthy successor to the PlayStation Portable. Even with charming titles like Tearaway and Gravity Rush, it sold fewer than 15 million units before being discontinued in 2019, an eyebrow-raising number compared to its predecessor’s whopping 65 million units.
The conversation occurred during his first chat since leaving Sony this month, where he reflected on several factors contributing to the Vita’s lackluster performance. He pointed out technical missteps, such as requiring proprietary memory cards, which frustrated many gamers who felt they were forced into extra expenses. “That was a mistake,” he admitted bluntly. Including a back touchpad seemed promising initially but ultimately fell flat, driving up costs without delivering value.
Yoshida also lamented that while the Vita boasted a beautiful OLED screen, key features like video out were removed to cut costs, making developers’ lives harder. “The one feature…was taken out just to save a few cents,” he recounted, highlighting how these decisions shaped consumer experience.
Beneath all these layers lay what Yoshida identified as the root problem: resource allocation. With Sony focusing efforts on both home consoles, the PlayStation 3 and later the PlayStation 4 the development teams were stretched too thin. “We didn’t have that resource,” he said plainly.
This situation starkly contrasts with Nintendo’s approach with their hybrid console, the Switch. By pooling resources into one device, Nintendo reaped substantial rewards while Sony managed two platforms simultaneously. “Nintendo did so well… for Switch,” Yoshida noted with admiration.
A surprising twist came when discussing Sony’s latest hardware venture, the PlayStation Portal. Initially skeptical about this streaming-only device launched in 2023, Yoshida was impressed by its reception and sales success. “I remember saying to the hardware team… ‘the only way PS Portal will be successful is if we sell it at $199’…and they did it.” Talk about winding up pleasantly surprised!
Naturally, whispers swirl around another possible Sony handheld capable of playing PS5 games. Reflecting on this prospect, Yoshida expressed excitement for portable PCs akin to the Steam Deck: “Of course I would be excited if in the future PlayStation made something like this.” However, he cautioned against trying to juggle two separate platforms again, given how much bigger PlayStation has become now compared to back then.
