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NEWS: Bloomberg: Sony Working on New Handheld Console




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Greed1914



Joined: 28 Oct 2007
Posts: 4637
PostPosted: Mon Nov 25, 2024 5:20 pm Reply with quote
We'll see. People have not forgotten how quickly they moved on from the Vita, and the PSVR2 was eerily similar. Sony would have to commit for more than a year before going back to the main console.

Also, I'm not sure what market they would serve here. Part of why Sony bailed on the Vita was deciding that people preferred to game on their phones, but Nintendo went on to prove that portable gaming is still a thing. Will Sony be able to pull off console games in a portable format like the Switch. Heck, new iphones have versions of rather new Resident Evil games on them, and handheld PC gaming seems to be growing. It may be far too late by the time they get something out there.
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Silver Kirin



Joined: 09 Aug 2018
Posts: 1235
PostPosted: Mon Nov 25, 2024 5:40 pm Reply with quote
I find it a bit funny that many years ago most gaming journalists and industry analysts claimed that handheld consoles were going disappear with the rise of mobile gaming, and while mobile gaming is a huge industry, it mostly revolves gacha and simple games, while some phone manufacturers like Apple offer console experiences on their phones, I think most people don't want to play games like the modern Resident Evil games or Death Stranding in a tiny screen and using a Bluetooth controller. I think the Switch has become truly a revolution in portable gaming, due to its form factor, and it's kind of obvious when you see most portable PC handheld consoles are clearly inspired by the Switch
In regards to the PlayStation, I still remember when people were convinced the PSP would win over the DS and we know that wasn't the case, though to be fair, the PSP was ahead of its time due to its multimedia functionalities, though these days an average smartphone can do all of the things a PSP could. It seems Sony is aiming to offer a cutting edge portable experience, but to be honest I think those were some of the reasons why their portable never managed to win over the DS and 3DS.
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ZelosZoidberg



Joined: 23 May 2018
Posts: 726
PostPosted: Mon Nov 25, 2024 5:50 pm Reply with quote
Greed1914 wrote:
We'll see. People have not forgotten how quickly they moved on from the Vita, and the PSVR2 was eerily similar. Sony would have to commit for more than a year before going back to the main console.

Also, I'm not sure what market they would serve here. Part of why Sony bailed on the Vita was deciding that people preferred to game on their phones, but Nintendo went on to prove that portable gaming is still a thing. Will Sony be able to pull off console games in a portable format like the Switch. Heck, new iphones have versions of rather new Resident Evil games on them, and handheld PC gaming seems to be growing. It may be far too late by the time they get something out there.
I think in Japan it could succeed, but in the west no. Sony basically did a whole 1st party abandonment of the Vita expecting just 3rd parties to keep the whole thing afloat. If it just plays the base PS5 games at a 720p screen with FSR on it has a chance but if its own platform they would need to support it in the west with their own development teams which they are cutting and games of the that caliber would need large teams still. Price is also a huge concern along with size of the thing, and then you got Nintendo who know how this stuff works on the verge of a new system and who will support the system which they are on a roll with their software (I could see a new main line 3D Mario game or even Mario Kart launching with it!) so my magic 8 ball is saying "outlook not so good".
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Primus



Joined: 01 Mar 2006
Posts: 2820
Location: Toronto
PostPosted: Mon Nov 25, 2024 6:00 pm Reply with quote
Greed1914 wrote:
We'll see. People have not forgotten how quickly they moved on from the Vita, and the PSVR2 was eerily similar. Sony would have to commit for more than a year before going back to the main console.


This wouldn't be a new platform. It would be the PS5's equivalent to the TurboExpress, Sega Nomad, or more recently and relevantly, handheld PCs. It's not going to have a unique software ecosystem like PSP and Vita did. The intent is to play existing PS5 games. The idea is almost certainly to keep people within their walled garden. If Microsoft actually launches their own handheld, that would leave Sony as the only one without an at-home/"portable" solution, excluding streaming.

If this is years away, developers might not even have to optimize their games beyond text scaling and controller layout. Games would just play as-is. With that in mind, there's not much for Sony to support. They don't have to make unique games for this. No one does. This will probably launch while PS6 is looming, but games are still being released for 10+ year old consoles. Middleware has made development far more scalable to lower-spec hardware than ever before, allowing platforms to achieve greater longevity.
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AiddonValentine



Joined: 07 Aug 2006
Posts: 2348
PostPosted: Mon Nov 25, 2024 6:09 pm Reply with quote
Greed1914 wrote:
We'll see. People have not forgotten how quickly they moved on from the Vita, and the PSVR2 was eerily similar. Sony would have to commit for more than a year before going back to the main console.

Also, I'm not sure what market they would serve here. Part of why Sony bailed on the Vita was deciding that people preferred to game on their phones, but Nintendo went on to prove that portable gaming is still a thing. Will Sony be able to pull off console games in a portable format like the Switch. Heck, new iphones have versions of rather new Resident Evil games on them, and handheld PC gaming seems to be growing. It may be far too late by the time they get something out there.


No kidding, my first thought was Nintendo is thinking "Oh boy, another skull for the throne!" Trying to get it on the hybrid console scene now feels like trying to catch up to a bullet train, especially when Nintendo has had thirty years to perfect this. I feel this is partially Sony trying to recapture the portable-centric Japanese market because while it's not as big as the US, playing second fiddle in your backyard is a blow to the ego.

It's just funny how people considered portable gaming dead and now it's turned into the new arms race. Mostly because portable gaming is way more enticing to the broader market which is where a lot of potential for growth is.
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Silver Kirin



Joined: 09 Aug 2018
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PostPosted: Mon Nov 25, 2024 7:02 pm Reply with quote
ZelosZoidberg wrote:
I think in Japan it could succeed, but in the west no. Sony basically did a whole 1st party abandonment of the Vita expecting just 3rd parties to keep the whole thing afloat. If it just plays the base PS5 games at a 720p screen with FSR on it has a chance but if its own platform they would need to support it in the west with their own development teams which they are cutting and games of the that caliber would need large teams still. Price is also a huge concern along with size of the thing, and then you got Nintendo who know how this stuff works on the verge of a new system and who will support the system which they are on a roll with their software (I could see a new main line 3D Mario game or even Mario Kart launching with it!) so my magic 8 ball is saying "outlook not so good".

The funny thing about the PS Vita demise is that it didn't actually had that strong of a third-party support, I know people claim the Vita did well in Japan, but it was crushed by the 3DS and in part it was due that many Japanese third-party developers didn't develop anything huge for the PS Vita, the PSP got things like Final Fantasy VII Crisis Core, Metal Gear Solid Peace Walker, Portable Ops and Acid and plenty of Monser Hunter games which became huge hits in Japan, but while the 3DS wasn't as successful as the original DS it got a considerable amount of support of Japanese third-parties, even Capcom developed mainline Monster Hunter games for the system and Enix decided to make a version of Dragon Quest XI. The only major third-party for the Vita that I can think of was Persona 4 Golden, a updated port of a PS2 game, and also Danganronpa
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ZelosZoidberg



Joined: 23 May 2018
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PostPosted: Mon Nov 25, 2024 7:13 pm Reply with quote
^ Huh TIL. Maybe it was owners from the west their way of coping by making it seemed liked it did well in Japan?
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Top Gun



Joined: 28 Sep 2007
Posts: 4803
PostPosted: Mon Nov 25, 2024 7:27 pm Reply with quote
Sony continuing to do what Nintendid.
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Silver Kirin



Joined: 09 Aug 2018
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PostPosted: Mon Nov 25, 2024 7:30 pm Reply with quote
ZelosZoidberg wrote:
^ Huh TIL. Maybe it was owners from the west their way of coping by making it seemed liked it did well in Japan?

Don't know if the information I found is correct, but apparently these are the saled numbers for the the PlayStation family of consoles in Japan: PSOne (19,411,000), PS2 (24,260,000), PSP (19,632,197), PS3 (10,469,971), PS4 (9,504,516), PS Vita (5,863,126) and PS5 (6,231,554). As we can see, the PS Vita is the lowest selling PlayStation console in Japan, and just for comparison, in Japan the DS sold 32,990,000 units, the 3DS sold 25,260,000 and the Switch 34,374,414. It's pretty clear that Sony has lost a huge percentage of the Japanese gaming market
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Primus



Joined: 01 Mar 2006
Posts: 2820
Location: Toronto
PostPosted: Mon Nov 25, 2024 8:04 pm Reply with quote
Silver Kirin wrote:
The funny thing about the PS Vita demise is that it didn't actually had that strong of a third-party support, I know people claim the Vita did well in Japan, but it was crushed by the 3DS and in part it was due that many Japanese third-party developers didn't develop anything huge for the PS Vita, the PSP got things like Final Fantasy VII Crisis Core, Metal Gear Solid Peace Walker, Portable Ops and Acid and plenty of Monser Hunter games which became huge hits in Japan, but while the 3DS wasn't as successful as the original DS it got a considerable amount of support of Japanese third-parties, even Capcom developed mainline Monster Hunter games for the system and Enix decided to make a version of Dragon Quest XI. The only major third-party for the Vita that I can think of was Persona 4 Golden, a updated port of a PS2 game, and also Danganronpa


According to Gamefaq's release list, there were more games released physically for Vita in Japan than 3DS. That's despite the obvious disparity in hardware sales. So no, it didn't have weak third party support in Japan. What it did lack was notable exclusive content. Most of those games were multi-platform titles, like God Eater, Sword Art Online, Dragon Quest Builders, Gundam, SRW, etc. There was a period of a few years where outside of really high end games, pretty much every Japanese third party PlayStation title was being released on PS3, Vita and PS4. But that was a sign of changing times. With few exceptions, third party exclusives don't exist anymore. At most, you get maybe 6-18 months before a game hits other platforms.
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AiddonValentine



Joined: 07 Aug 2006
Posts: 2348
PostPosted: Mon Nov 25, 2024 9:25 pm Reply with quote
Primus wrote:


According to Gamefaq's release list, there were more games released physically for Vita in Japan than 3DS. That's despite the obvious disparity in hardware sales. So no, it didn't have weak third party support in Japan. What it did lack was notable exclusive content. Most of those games were multi-platform titles, like God Eater, Sword Art Online, Dragon Quest Builders, Gundam, SRW, etc. There was a period of a few years where outside of really high end games, pretty much every Japanese third party PlayStation title was being released on PS3, Vita and PS4. But that was a sign of changing times. With few exceptions, third party exclusives don't exist anymore. At most, you get maybe 6-18 months before a game hits other platforms.


Untrue; Vita lists tend to be inflated due to multiple rereleases (Playstation Greatest Hits and whatnot) so it only seems to have a higher amount of games. The 3DS still beat it, even if the amount was under a hundred titles. Plus the other thing that killed it was Sony's obsession with proprietary memory cards instead of just having any SD card work.
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Primus



Joined: 01 Mar 2006
Posts: 2820
Location: Toronto
PostPosted: Mon Nov 25, 2024 10:32 pm Reply with quote
AiddonValentine wrote:
Untrue; Vita lists tend to be inflated due to multiple rereleases (Playstation Greatest Hits and whatnot) so it only seems to have a higher amount of games. The 3DS still beat it, even if the amount was under a hundred titles. Plus the other thing that killed it was Sony's obsession with proprietary memory cards instead of just having any SD card work.


Gamefaqs doesn't include The Best reprints in their count. You can check that yourself. There's 11 pages for 3DS and 12 pages for Vita. Both lists include some repeated titles (it seems to happen if a game has a different international name - see Resident Evil and Biohazard), cancelled games and dual packs, but the fact that there's even a comparable amount suggests the claim that Vita had poor Japanese third party isn't accurate. It had support, just not exclusively and few of those games were the kind needed to gain mass adoption.
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AiddonValentine



Joined: 07 Aug 2006
Posts: 2348
PostPosted: Tue Nov 26, 2024 12:43 am Reply with quote
Primus wrote:

Gamefaqs doesn't include The Best reprints in their count. You can check that yourself. There's 11 pages for 3DS and 12 pages for Vita. Both lists include some repeated titles (it seems to happen if a game has a different international name - see Resident Evil and Biohazard), cancelled games and dual packs, but the fact that there's even a comparable amount suggests the claim that Vita had poor Japanese third party isn't accurate. It had support, just not exclusively and few of those games were the kind needed to gain mass adoption.


I did and unfortunately the lists have a lot of repeats because of something as simple as an asterisk or different entries for international titles. Gamefaqs is a decent source, but it's basically a Wiki when you get down to it. And funnily enough Wikipedia has a more accurate version (again, the 3DS had about a hundred more). The point is the support was more b-tier, especially when the 3DS had bigger names like Dragon Quest, Monster Hunter, Yo-Kai Watch, it wasn't even a close race in sales.
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