Michael “Red Pen of Doom” Futter
It’s not doubt that the handheld market is undergoing significant change. The success of $.99 games like Angry Birds and Fruit Ninja, along with titles featuring complexity and depth to rival what we’ve seen on the core handheld platforms from Nintendo and Sony, herald a new age.
The 3DS launch has been rocky, but it’s unclear if this is due to software lineup, battery life, technical issues with the 3D implementation or because the mobile market has become thick with competition from non-traditional devices. Some of these issues are easier to fix than others, of course. New, high profile first- and third-party titles will drive console sales. Battery life can be improved in the inevitable hardware revision we’ll see by the end of 2012. Competition can be addressed through pricing, unique software and careful marketing.
If the core issue with the 3DS adoption is the poor implementation of 3D, though, that might be a harder nut to crack. If it’s simply a development experience issue, we should see improvement shortly. However, if the drop in performance that occurs when 3D is activated on the console is due to memory issues, Nintendo could be in serious trouble. If the only way to fix this is to increase the onboard memory and, even if this is handled with a hardware revision, it will mean that the install base will be split. It might be possible that the memory could be increased with an attachment of some sort. It’s been done before, but regardless, if Nintendo were to admit that the console is underpowered for its key selling feature, it would call into question the competence of those individuals that allowed it to go to market with these specifications.
As for the Vita, what little we know about it, and make no mistake, there is still so much that hasn’t been revealed, it should be a strong competitor in the broadening handheld market. However, until Sony tells us more about the PS3 interoperability and the software lineup, we can only speculate how it will fare. Right now, there are some very interesting business maneuverings going on between Sony and Nintendo and, now, analysts are chiming in that the Vita needs a price cut to compete. I find this odd given how much praise Sony got for the $250 price point, but the landscape is ever shifting. Until the Vita launches, there is no way to truly know how this will play out.
Ken “ZeroTolerance” McKown
Honestly I think this handheld market is being overanalyzed just a bit. The 3DS will flourish this holiday with titles like Mario Kart, StarFox and Mario. The price drop is fantastic, and the ambassador program is a nice incentive, even if the games are simply nostalgic at best. As for the Vita, I am sick of hearing people saying that it is somehow overpriced now. So the 3DS dropped its tag. It had to, but for what the Vita offers $250 is still a perfectly reasonable price point.
Personally, I think the handheld market is slowly going to progress into mobile devices simply for their penetration of the market. Hardly anyone you know anymore doesn’t have an Angry Birds-playing device, am I right? Whether or not you want to admit it, these devices will be in the hands of everyone soon enough, and all it takes is one quick glance at the App Store to find yourself a quick and cheap fix. That said; think of this market like the Wii. Even people who don’t search out gaming devices will own one, making their market share unreachable by either Sony or Nintendo. This opens up developers to create simple experiences for low prices. I mean, if you think about it, Resident Evil Mercenaries retails for $39.99 and has maybe half the content of some iPhone games retailing for $1.99. You do the math.
As for the future, I see the 3DS re-launching itself when Vita lands with a new model, perhaps cheaper with a longer battery life and a solid lineup of games. Vita will do well at launch, and as long as developers keep churning out titles, it will enjoy much more success than Sony’s original handheld effort. Calling a winner is just plain silly, as mobile devices will be the real money makers over the next two years. Sony and Nintendo will simply be vying for a notch at second place.
That’s all for this edition of the ZTGD Reviewer Rodeo. Join us next week as we grab onto another bucking bronco of controversy and beat it into submission.
Got questions or comments? Drop ’em in the comment section below or hit us up via email. Suggestions for Reviewer Rodeo topics that you want our opinions on? Hit Mike up at michaelfutter@ztgamedomain.com.
