Wednesday, April 24, 2013

I bought a Vita...



Judging from their sales numbers, especially here in the States, not many people are saying that apparently. Their sales are abysmal and despite the recent surge in Japan, it clearly won't continue to sell like hotcakes there.

But why would I want one? If you listen to everyone, the Vita is a sinking ship with no games coming out for it and is a failed handheld. Everything is either Ouya, 3DS, or IOS/Android. Vita is this forgotten child locked in the basement that we peek in every once in a while just to remind ourselves how disappointing it is. Or at least, that's how I interpret most responses about the Vita.

And yet, I wanted one. I already posted about why I have a new love for handhelds, but the love couldn't sustain my need to keep my 3DS. Although I enjoyed playing games like Pushmo, VVVVV, Pokemon Black 2, and The World Ends With You; I couldn't really justify the need for a 3DS that I couldn't have with a DSi. Sure it had a couple Mario games and some 3D versions of 64 games, but having played several of these 3DS only games...I can't say I really cared. I never played Ocarina of Time on the 64 and grew bored with the 3DS version and it's bland empty open world. New Super Mario Bros 2 was nothing spectacular and while 3D Land was good, it didn't blow my socks off. So, I no longer own a 3DS.

So why the interest in a Vita when the "superior" 3DS can't hold my attention? Well, first and foremost, the games. I know, I know. There are no games. The same cliche' response that every person who dislikes their Vita seems to go to. I think the proper response isn't "There are no games", it should be, "There are no games that I'm interested in playing". Those are two completely different responses, and only one which I would say is valid.



Here are a few of the games I am currently interested to play on the Vita: Uncharted: Golden Abyss, Escape Plan, Unit 13, Assassins Creed III: Liberation, LittleBigPlanet Vita, Gravity Rush, and Persona 4: Golden. To make matters even better, PS+ has been knocking it out of the park with free Vita games. Add to it PSN games and the Cross-Buy games, and there's a huge selection to choose from. Maybe I'm the only one who thinks it, but games like Rayman Origins or Retro City Rampage are games better suited for Vita in my opinion.

I'm also looking forward to the integration between the Vita and PS4. I wish I could really expand on this, but I'll probably have to wait for E3 to do so. But playing PS4 games on the Vita while I'm out of the room or being able to play against people on the console using my handheld opens up more possibilities than having a specific restriction to that one device. The potential of the link between these two systems intrigues me and I can't wait to learn more about it.

So I gave in to the urge and purchased my first Vita. And immediately I knew why some people disliked it, and that was the need for a memory card. While you can play Welcome Park on it, that's more of a tech demo than an actual game. Nice to try out some of the features such as the tilt control, the camera, the touch screen, etc; but I wanted real games. So after spending $30 on an overpriced 8gb memory card, I was able to get some of the games I wanted. And while the PS3 has been recognized for it's slow download/install times, I didn't notice the same problem with the Vita.



The buttons and the sticks are kinda small and I'm still not sure how I feel about them until I put some more time into the handheld, but I like it. I'm happy with my Vita purchase. I wish I could say the same about Gravity Rush which has been somewhat disappointing so far (due to the controls if anything), but I have more on my plate I'm able to try including Tales From Space: Mutant Blobs Attack which I'm eager to keep playing. I haven't really touched a ton of the other apps such as Near, and I think there may be some trouble with trophy sync (Mutant Blobs Attack seems to sync, but Gravity Rush hasn't yet...), but I think I found a winning handheld.

And it's only just begun...