When will a new Playstation handheld come out?

[toughtrasher]

I've been recently craving a Vita lately (due to Borderlands 2 and the awesome slim design that came out) but was wondering if they have any new handheld planned?

Seems I'm a bit late to the Vita scene so I'm not sure if I should buy a new one right now :|

 

[cmdrdredd]

Nothing soon

The new system's screen is terrible IMO.

 

[Arkaign]

Slim to none chance of a Sony handheld console ever replacing the Vita. And with the market situation for the PSV, it's hard to say if manufacture will even continue for 18 months from now. Support is probable to some degree or another through fall 2016.

It's weird to say, but a PS-branded Xperia mobile add-on is more likely than another dedicated handheld console, because it would be an absolute fraction of the cost of developing new specific hardware. Tacking on a controller/buttons to a kit that attaches to Xperia phones, along with porting IPs/games to it in more limited fashion would be an interesting concept (doomed to fail if done poorly, but could succeed if they hit all cylinders properly). I think if the kit was basically universal for qualifying android phones AND had truly amazing games/IPs it could be a hit, but come on now, the odds are still slim as hell.

The smart money by far is Sony simply abandoning mobile gaming by and large, but probably licensing IPs for mediocre touch-screen gaming for iOS/Android. You know, the usual blah quality, $4.99-$14.99 forgettable shovelware that constantly pushes past the app stores.

It's sad, because the PSP was the most successful non-Nintendo handheld of all time, by a pretty huge margin, but the Vita fell right on its ass. It's not even a certainty by any stretch that we see a full Nintendo replacement for the 3DS, although that is considerably more likely to happen in contrast.

 

[DaveSimmons]

Based on playing Borderlands and Persona 4, the new Vita screen is fine.

It's unlikely Sony will release anything new anytime soon. The Vita is "good enough" for modern games (much better than the 3DS) and the handheld market seems to be declining thanks to competition from phones.

Spending a billion now on a new handheld and trying to get developers to invest in it doesn't seem sensible. It might make more sense to offer a "PSN Player" app and controller shell for high-end phones that would run some PS1, PS2, PSP and Vita games.

> Seems I'm a bit late to the Vita scene so I'm not sure if I should buy a new one right now

If you like JRPGs it's a pretty good buy -- it and the PS3 are getting most new releases, and both are also getting PS1 & PS2 ports.

 

[cmdrdredd]

Based on playing Borderlands and Persona 4, the new Vita screen is fine.

If you compare them side by side the new screen is very bad. The colors are less vibrant, the viewing angle is worse, & it seems more washed out. I never said unplayable.

 

[Kneedragger]

I seen a side by side and also prefer the colors on the OLED screen but I would be happy with the new one.. I really don't see them updating the hardware for the Vita any time soon. This year there are a ton of games rolling out and even though its not out with PS Now I believe you can play PS3 games on it.

 

[mmntech]

I have a feeling that Sony is going to abandon the handheld market. FWIW, it's selling worse than the Wii U is, and has a pretty weak tie-ratio as well.

The biggest problem with the Vita, to me, is that it doesn't offer an experience that you can't get elsewhere. Console ports really aren't a viable strategy. You just have to look at the reviews Borderlands 2 has been getting to see why. Kotaku put it best by saying "it made me want to play Borderlands 2 again... on PC."

Sony needs to start churning out Vita exclusive franchises. Maybe revive Spyro or Crash Bandicoot, as they're games people recognize but haven't had a console release in a while. 3DS did well early on building on the nostalgia factor.

 

[exdeath]

Best Buy and New Egg still have new in stock OLED models last I looked for $199.

Not as good as some of the bundles for black Friday but that time has passed and the reseller buzzards are already circling with the RARE OUT OF STOCK HARD TO FIND OLED MODEL!!!1!1!1!1!1WOWLQQK $299+ nonsense...

 

[exdeath]

Ouch or not. Just checked. They were there. No way they sold that fast naturally.

Bet they are all on eBay now @$299+

 

[DaveSimmons]

The $199 BL2 bundle does come with an 8 GB memory card, enough to hold BL2 and another big game.

FYI, BL2 is challenging to play on the Vita, especially compared to mouse + kb. I actually got killed by Knuckle Dragger, that never happens to me on PC.

 

[Sonikku]

No way Sony would launch a new portable any time soon. The vita is on life support. The hardware has reached a point where it's powerful enough to do any game experience you'd want on a tiny screen. The developer budgets are a far greater bottleneck at this point. For my part, I'm not interested. The first vita isn't nearly as portable as the psp 3000. I want something that fits snug in my pocket. The new vita model slims it down a smidge, but dumbs down the screen. I'm left with no definitive version of the hardware.

 

[KaOTiK]

They probably wont release a new handheld honestly. So I'd grab a Vita if I was you. The Vita has a good library of games with lots of new ones coming out and being brought over from Japan where it it sells decently.

The software support for the Vita will be fine though, it has a crazy high attach rate (last time Sony announced a figure for the attach rate that I can remember was almost a year ago and it was like 12to1 at the time). People that own a Vita, REALLY like their Vita. I can attest to that. I love mine and am very very happy with it.

 

[toughtrasher]

If you had to put a time stamp on it, what year would a new handheld be released? I know you guys said it was improbable.. but just wondering what you guys think

 

[KentState]

I don't see anything for awhile (2018). Sony is going to start focusing on stream games next.

 

[DaveSimmons]

Yes, we might see a cost-reduced Vita "slimmer" within the next 2 years but that's it.

The slimmer might have better battery life and more onboard storage but nothing else new.

2017-2018 sounds right if there is a successor to the Vita.

 

[railven]

Vita is finally starting to get a good release schedule of JRPG/J-content. I don't seem them changing the platform anytime soon.

All in all, I play my Vita less than my 3DS but I think that is mostly due to fear of scratching my now rare OLED model haha. Clam shell of the 3DS makes it for just shoving it in a pocket and go.

 

[toughtrasher]

Seems there are only a few titles on the Vita that I like (Borderlands 2 being the main one since I *gasp* didn't get to play the 2nd Borderlands..) and if JRPG's are a bright point for the Vita, that's a bright point I won't like so I'd be missing a huge chunk of the Vita.

 

[DaveSimmons]

If Borderlands is the main draw for you, buy a GTX 750ti for your PC (it's very low power so no new PSU needed) and play it there.

It's amazing to be playing it on something so tiny, but the PC's KB + mouse control is so much better than the Vita sticks.

 

[toughtrasher]

If Borderlands is the main draw for you, buy a GTX 750ti for your PC (it's very low power so no new PSU needed) and play it there.

It's amazing to be playing it on something so tiny, but the PC's KB + mouse control is so much better than the Vita sticks.

Hmm, yeah heard a ton about the awkward Vita controls.. Another thing that I find interesting in the Vita is the remote capabilities. I own a PS4, so that option intrigued me. However, since it's the same network, I don't know why I can't just pick up my PS4 controller and play on the big screen instead.

 

[cmdrdredd]

Hmm, yeah heard a ton about the awkward Vita controls.. Another thing that I find interesting in the Vita is the remote capabilities. I own a PS4, so that option intrigued me. However, since it's the same network, I don't know why I can't just pick up my PS4 controller and play on the big screen instead.

You can use remote play over the internet. The game play is laggy sometimes but it does actually work.

 

[Dumac]

Are there even any interesting Vita titles out? All the ones I've seen were either ports or extreme rehashes.

What about interactivity with PS4. Should I consider getting a Vita once I get a PS4?

 

[DaveSimmons]

Are there even any interesting Vita titles out? All the ones I've seen were either ports or extreme rehashes.

What about interactivity with PS4. Should I consider getting a Vita once I get a PS4?

If you like JRPGs - yes, a bunch of releases. If not, no not many.

Remote Play is screen streaming. It might make sense for you if your PS4 will be connected to a screen that other people want to use to watch TV when you want to game.

 

[mmntech]

Are there even any interesting Vita titles out? All the ones I've seen were either ports or extreme rehashes.

What about interactivity with PS4. Should I consider getting a Vita once I get a PS4?

The Vita has a lot of indie games and oddball JRPGs. It's also region free, which means you can import games from Europe and Asia if that's your thing. There's really nothing that's standout or unique to the system though aside from maybe Tearaway or Gravity Rush. Which as I said is the Vita's biggest problem.

PS4 streaming works quite well. Use a wired connection and a strong WiFi signal yield the best results. Lag isn't too bad. Maybe not ideal for hair trigger games but fine for most things I've played on it.

 

[bearxor]

If you had to put a time stamp on it, what year would a new handheld be released? I know you guys said it was improbable.. but just wondering what you guys think

2017 at the earliest.

But also agree that streaming is the future. The next Sony handheld may be less of a console and more of a dumb terminal that connects to PS Anywhere and streams game play live.

I expect this to be the last console generation as well, as we move to a streaming services for both MS and Sony. Sony MIGHT sneak another console out after the PS4, but it's doubtful.

I've got 50/50 odds on Microsoft even staying in the console business past 2015.

 

[cmdrdredd]

2017 at the earliest.

But also agree that streaming is the future. The next Sony handheld may be less of a console and more of a dumb terminal that connects to PS Anywhere and streams game play live.

I expect this to be the last console generation as well, as we move to a streaming services for both MS and Sony. Sony MIGHT sneak another console out after the PS4, but it's doubtful.

I've got 50/50 odds on Microsoft even staying in the console business past 2015.

Streaming will never ever work for real games. That is because the internet is never going to be fast enough with low enough latency to match a game running on local hardware. It is impossible. The memory bandwidth on a gpu is measured in GBps and the internet is measures in Mbps...that is a huge difference in performance.

Anything real time will not be possible with any quality. Especially nothing that requires precision timing and twitch reflexes. I couldn't imagine trying to play a fast platformer with any kind of success.