The Games we play...

[spicy]

So anyone buying a Vita tomorrow? I had a go on one in Game today and played Fifa and I have to say was very impressed, it's literally a portable Fifa 12 which is one of my favourite games so I am very tempted.

Whats putting me off though is I'm normally a sucker for buying new game hardware then barely using it like I did with my now dusty 3DS :lol:

So I'm wondering whether to trade that in for £100 but as I want metal gear on it when it comes out soon I don't really want to trade it in. Such dilemmas :lol:

Anyway anyone buying a Vita? I'm probably going to end up buying one at some point.

 

[nealbie]

There's an F1 game on it, so kleptomania says I have to. I was pleasantly surprised with how good the 3DS was after someone spent months mis-selling it to me and unintentionally put me off it.

Ridge Racer, Wipeout 2048 and a VERY impressive catalogue to be honest.

The question is, Wi-Fi or 3G? I reckon it's worth the fifty quid extra for the 3G. I'll wait to see what bundles appear before buying though

 

[furie]

The Vita is a very desirable object, but... It's actually not that compelling a selection of games. There are a lot, but most are mediocre "mini games" which are cool for three weeks until you get bored of the USP and just want to play games. Then there's a slightly stripped down version of Uncharted, which I didn't like after the first one (same game each time just with longer cut scenes), Wipeout which, let's face it, is just more of the same if you've already got Wipeout HD and Fifa, which you've probably already got for the big screen.

Beyond that, it's a bunch of re-releases and meh. There's a decent catalogue, but no killer game yet. It's also unlikely to get a killer game either, because Sony don't have a single killer game IP and nobody will develop one unless the system sells very well. People are still smarting from the PSP.

The biggest issue is "do I spend enough time playing away from my PS3/360 to warrant a system that delivers those games in a smaller format?" If you don't, then it's unlikely it's worth investing in.

It IS still a desirable product though and I'll pick one up maybe in 12 month's time or so when it's cheaper. I have to say you will either need an extra 8Gb memory card (if you get one with a free 8Gb card) or a 16Gb one if you're getting one without a card. As an owner of a PSP Go, I've needed all 32Gb I can push into the thing and I still need to spend a lot of time organising data and games on and off. Okay, you can buy a few physical games, but mostly you're going to be looking at downloads for the benefits (download Wipeout and you can have it on both the Vita and PS3 with cross play for the cost of one purchase for instance (or something like that, maybe that was Motorstorm)).

So the cost is actually very high. The 3G version allows you to, erm, well, erm... You can tag graffiti on buildings and then others with Vitas can see it. Only there won't be anyone within 10 miles of you with a Vita to see it. Unlike the fantastic 3DS streetpass stuff, you're never going to reach a high enough level of consoles sold to make it work. Though Nintendo don't sell that side of the 3DS enough.

So it's a lovely bit of hardware that puts this generation of games into your hand. It's got a lovely feel, dual sticks and extra touch screens all over. Superb screen too, it's brilliant. It won't fit in your pocket though and after ten minutes of playing it in your room next to your PS3, you're going to want to play on your PS3 instead.

 

[nealbie]

Yeah, I love that about the 3DS! Just walking around and trolling people <3

Oh, and large btw Phil, my PM hub is broken.

 

[furie]

Yeah, I love that about the 3DS! Just walking around and trolling people <3

All the built in stuff on the 3DS is excellent. It's the thing I like most about the system :lol:

I replaced my iPod last week too with an iPod touch. Loving it so far. I've become a sad and simple casual gamer, but.... Like Microsoft and Sony realise, having a "friend competition" hub where you can see who well you're competing is brilliant. It encourages you to work harder on games that are simple to play, but hard to play well. Nintendo really missed the boat on that one with the 3DS.

Oh, and large btw Phil, my PM hub is broken.

Is it because you have too many messages? I can't access your PM box so I can't tell.

 

[nealbie]

The only thing that's naff is Face Raiders, and I feel it could do with more communication possibilities between friends, but the built in stuff really is mega.

Really glad Game did a £70 offer or I really wouldn't have got one!

It's not full, it just won't let me send anything >_<

 

[Colossus]

I`m not really fond of these handheld mobile gaming devices, I cant understand why they're successful, especially with regards to the DS. This PS Vita now on the market sure looks a sexy piece of kit and I should imagine its of the highest quality, but like furie said, is it worth it? Especially if you already own a PS3, are you going to get your moneys worth out of it just playing it on the move or on the toilet. It might be different for those that say own a 360, (or no console at all), as you potentially might get more out of it, what with different games out there that are Playstation exclusive. For me its not worth it, even if XBOX released a similar device, I like to sit in front of a TV with a beer and a large packet of crisps. For gaming on the move I like crap like Angry Birds and Coin Dozer, that cost naff all, and that isn't to serious.
But this is all just opinion, it really depends on what gamer you are, I should imagine the PSP2 (yeah I called it a PSP2!) will be very successful.

 

[spicy]

Nice mini review Furie, completely agree with what you said.

These two points are exactly what I am saying to myself:

The biggest issue is "do I spend enough time playing away from my PS3/360 to warrant a system that delivers those games in a smaller format?" If you don't, then it's unlikely it's worth investing in.

Yeah my answer to that is probably no as it's exactly what happened with my 3DS, I very occasionally give Mario Kart 7 online a session but that will be it. I only game away when bored on journeys or whatever which isn't very much, but like you said the Vita is still desirable to own. :lol:

It won't fit in your pocket though and after ten minutes of playing it in your room next to your PS3, you're going to want to play on your PS3 instead.

Exactly, it is essentially a portable PS3 so you might aswell play your PS3 if your at home. At least the 3DS offers the unique 3D aspect.

 

[furie]

At least the 3DS offers the unique 3D aspect.

I think the 3DS offers more unique games. Though they're usually just a rehash of prior Nintendo games... There are still some decent enough games.

I`m not really fond of these handheld mobile gaming devices, I cant understand why they're successful, especially with regards to the DS.

The DS is popular because it sells mostly to kids. It's got playground popularity and on top of that tends to sell to slightly younger adults too who don't drive but spend a lot of time travelling. It's cheap enough to work as both a gift for kids whose parents don't want them to take up the TV with a big console, and it's a cheap way of getting games for the younger adults. The games on them (especially on the DS) tend to be suited to precisely the handheld they're on, yet deep enough to encourage long play sessions.

For gaming on the move I like crap like Angry Birds and Coin Dozer, that cost naff all, and that isn't to serious.

While this is a good point, your entry level device for this kind of gaming (unless you have a smart phone) is over £200. Okay, the Vita is higher than this and the 3DS was, but generally you can get a handheld dedicated gaming device and a couple of games for that price.

But this is all just opinion, it really depends on what gamer you are, I should imagine the PSP2 (yeah I called it a PSP2!) will be very successful.

I don't think it will be. It's expensive and appeals only to the kind of people who own a PS3. Most of those people won't buy into a handheld anyway because they already have the PS3. It's almost competing with itself. Unlike the 3DS which appeals to the 160 million+ and 100 million+ DS and Wii owners. It can happily compete with other Nintendo products which will naturally churn into 3DS sales.

I'm in a rather unique position. I own the house so the living room is "my domain". It has the PS3, but I do have to share it. So I find it's good to have a handheld so I can either sit on the sofa and play, or go upstairs to my bedroom. I think for most people here, they probably have their console/PC in their room with access to it at all times? So "in-house" portable gaming suits me, but I suspect worldwide I'm in a minority.

I can understand why people who want a Vita want a Vita, but I can't see an appeal that will make it a successful device. It's too big for commuter gamers. Too expensive for smart phone gamers (who tend to game cheap/free on an expensive device as it is) and doesn't have the game catalogue or software backing of a Nintendo device. It's just lacking the killer blow needed to make it really stand out. Nintendo half got it right with the 3DS with the built in stuff, but the Vita is trying to poke into smart-phone areas rather than concentrating on the gaming sector. I don't know what the solution is, but "game aware" is good, "social aware" not so good.

 

[kimahri]

I have more money than sense still so I'll get one eventually. I don't do the 'buy-consoles-on-release-day'. S'not my thing.

 

[slappy mcguire]

I kinda feel sorry for the Vita. It's undoubtedly a superb bit of kit, and frankly the first handheld to have a decent control system, but to me, it has massively missed a trick. It needed to be aimed squarely at the Ipad market, as kind of a 'gaming tablet', but what it has managed to do is give itself the impression that it's all fur and no knickers, whatever the reality is.

It could also have captured the market that Ninty is hoping to secure with the Wii U, with a lot of it's PS3 compatibility and features doing already the thing that Nintendo are dressing up as a USP. There would also have been a good deal of sense in hitting the contact mobile market, in much the same way that the tablet PCs have done.

It is less of a fudge than the 3DS was at launch, but if the biggest thing that it is relying on to sell itself is the 'oooo shiny!' market, then sadly, it will never be the success that it abilities should have made it.

 

[EnigmaHyena]

I've no interest in the Vita, perhaps I'd buy it for Uncharted if I didn't already have all 3 (with better resolution at that) on the PS3. It's looking like it's going to turn into another dull sports console like the PSP did. Hopefully Sony will prove me wrong on this one.

On to the 3DS now, I downloaded the free demo of Metal Gear and personally I think it's such a mess...and to make matters worse the frame rate is abysmal which is just off-putting. I'll stick to the PS2 version...

It's funny how I only really ever use the console to play the free GBA games (Zelda Minish Cap and WarioLand 4 being the big two time-sappers) and DS games. I think the problem with 3DS games is that they have loads of potential but are far too short (OoT doesn't count since it's just a port) and although graphics don't make a good game it'd be nice if more games really pushed the system to its limits - it is meant to have the power of a Gamecube after all. I'm still annoyed at Capcom for not waiting to release Okamiden on the 3DS instead of doing what they always do and putting it on a dead console (DS this time, last time it was the PS2 when the PS3 had just been launched) with virtually no marketing. It was very good for a DS game, but damn it it could've been so much more. Here's hoping they go ahead with Okami 2 on 3DS...which they probably won't because Capcom is made up of a team of clueless monkeys.

Oh and lastly, who actually bothers turning the 3D effect on? Usually I'll only test it out in cutscenes and the first level of a game, but other than that it's always off.

 

[kimahri]

I used the 3-d for Cave Story.

In other news. REZ, REZ, REZ, REZ, REZ, REZ, REEEEEEEEEEEEEZ. IT MAKES MY VAGINA MOOOOOOOOIST

[/Fangirl]

 

[Youngster Joey]

If I do get a vita, It won't be for at least a year. I got the 3DS on day one because I had gift cards that were going to start depreciating in value. I suffered through the drought of 3DS **** for six+ months. The Vita and its memory sticks especially are just priced too high. I suspect It will get a price drop within a year of it's release. Not to mention it's selling miserably in Japan

 

[furie]

I kind of agree Slappy and hinted at this in a previous post.

The thing is, it's a dedicated gaming device. It's not a phone, or a tablet, but a "PS3 in your hands". However, what the mobile market (not too sure about Android, but Apple definitely) has done is to start off "social" and moved on from there. The games are very simple pick up and play, but they have the advantage that everyone can play them, and then tell their mates or even better, compete through the Games Centre. It's a very social way of playing games, but that's aside to the it's primary function as a communication and "work" device.

The Vita is coming from the other direction, but it's never going to be a phone. It's never going to have a PDF reader or Royal Bank of Scotland App. It's a solid gaming device, but they've then tried to shoe-horn in a couple of social apps with a Twitter and Facebook feed. What they've neglected is a really solid social gaming side. They have trophies, but does it have an inherent system where you can see what your friends are playing? What scores they have so you can beat them (like the EA NFS Autoblog which is excellent)? They've skipped a fantastic opportunity and added in a bit of half-arsed social functionality. It's never going to compete in the tablet/phone market, the games cost too much for starters, but it could have at least gone some way towards taking aboard what those systems do well.

As you say though Slappy, there's just nothing to make it a "must buy", but it does have a much larger release line up than the 3DS

 

[Intricks]

Well...i would join in the Vita talk, but meh...

I honestly thought its main selling points were Augmented Reality play, the back touch thing and the whole streaming PS3 games wherever you are able to.

Saw the Doomsday Trailer for Borderlands 2. Cant wait to joy puke my face off!

Sent from my SPH-D710 using Tapatalk

 

[kimahri]

I like REZ, it's pretty and colourful.

 

[Intricks]

^ <3. Much <3

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[Youngster Joey]

Playing MW3 with Snoo. It's an interesting experience.

 

[kimahri]

You're much too young for that!!!