Opinion: Why Sony delayed PS Vita in the West

There’s no denying that Sony initially intended to launch the PlayStation Vita sometime around November 2011 in North America. Why else would Kaz Hirai have made the bold statement at E3 in May that PS Vita “will be available starting from the holiday season this year”?

We now know that Japan is the only territory for which this claim holds true, yet Hirai was addressing a largely Western audience in the US. If Sony was already aware that the PS Vita would only release in early 2012 in the West, then his statement was intentionally misleading, and somehow I don’t think he would willingly put himself in a position where he could be accused of lying when the truth eventually emerged.

Sony has denied all reports of a delay for the PS Vita, but it’s clear that the company was originally targeting a holiday 2011 launch in as many Western territories as possible. This is the time of year when people are more willing than usual to part with their hard-earned cash, and so a shiny new Sony portable on store shelves would seem like an enticing Christmas present proposition to many.

Why then did Sony push back the PS Vita to early 2012 in the West? It’s a question I’ve mulled over many times while resigning myself to the fact that I won’t be able to purchase a PSV this year.

After considering a wide array of possible solutions to this conundrum, I’ve isolated one answer which makes the most sense, taking into account Sony’s recent strategy regarding the gaming side of their business – there just wasn’t enough compelling PS Vita software lined up to make a 2011 launch feasible.

Imagine a scenario where you buy a PS Vita in November along with a couple of launch titles – perhaps Uncharted: Golden Abyss and WipEout 2048. You grow tired of both games by the end of December and make a trip to the store to acquire some new titles. The only problem is that there’s nothing there to really tempt you to part with $40. You experience the same vexing scenario during the next two months, and subsequently decide to rather concentrate on building your PS3 collection. The initial enthusiasm you had for PS Vita has waned by this point, and you tell all your gaming friends about your disappointing experience with the console.

Sony wants to avoid this type of negative user feedback at all costs, and postponing PSV’s launch by a couple of months allows the company to line up a more enticing range of games for the consumer, strategically spaced apart so we always have something new and exciting to look forward to.

If you look at PS3’s software line-up for 2011, you can clearly see how Sony has spaced its exclusives to ensure the console’s momentum is maintained throughout the year: LittleBigPlanet 2 in January; Killzone 3 in February; MotorStorm Apocalypse in March; Socom 4 in April and so on. While I doubt the PS Vita will have anywhere near this kind of first-party support initially, I’m sure Sony is working hard to ensure that there are enough titles lined up for it to keep gamers very happy indeed.

Sony can afford to launch PSV in Japan at the end of the year because there are far more studios over there who are interested in developing games for a handheld system. Portable gaming in Japan is a lot more popular than home console gaming is, partly because of long commutes via train to school and work. To get an idea of how much support PS Vita has received from Japanese developers, look no further than the forty or so titles that will be on display for the system at next week’s Tokyo Game Show.

Personally, I wouldn’t mind only being able to play a couple of new PSV games if the system was launched in the West at the end of the year. I’m sure I could occupy myself for months playing old PSP games and PSOne Classics on the enhanced screen, and testing out all the PSV’s media-related and Remote Play capabilities. That said, Sony has to focus on the general consumer who needs flashy new games to keep them interested in their newly-acquired console.

So there you have it – my theory as to why PS Vita has been delayed in the West. Please feel free to disagree and post your own views in the comments section below.

Hopefully the launch date for PSV in the US and Europe is closer to January 2012 than it is to April, because I’m sure I’m not alone in wanting to get my hands on one as soon as possible! Sony has yet to peg down an exact release date for the system in Japan, although its pre-TGS press conference on September 14th should prove enlightening in this regard.

If you enjoyed this editorial, be sure to read Tom’s article, ’Ten things the PS Vita needs to succeed,’ as well as Peter’s hands-on impressions report on the PS Vita.