Topic: The Ultimate Showdown of Outcasted Consoles: Wii U vs Vita

[Kytim89]

Perhaps the most two out casted consoles in the industry today are the Playstation Vita and the Wii U. Both suffer from less than spectacular sales and get potentially no third party support to amount to anything. They are, for the most part, strictly first party only systems when it comes to games with a smattering of decent third party games.

Which of the two consoles will have the best future?

[pokepal148]

Well the Wii U is the only one of the two I see having a future.

[Oblivion]

No third party support on the vita?

hehehehehe good one mate


No matter what Nintendo apologists say, Wii U's future is undoubtably, first party only now and forever. The Vita will continue to get a slight amount of Thirds in the US and a metric **** ton of thirds from Japan, like they've been getting already.

[Luigi Dude]

In the West - Wii U

In Japan - Vita

[Adrock]

I accidentally read Oblivion's post to say "turds" instead of "thirds." I was mildly amused.

I say Wii U only because 2014 is a much stronger year for their first party software.

There are a few games I'm interested in on Vita, but I'm still holding out for a PS4-Vita bundle after PS4's first redesign. I messed around with a friend's Vita. It's a nice system; I just wish Sony had even the slightest clue what they want to do with it. Hell, I might just wait for a second redesign and another price cut.

[Kytim89]

The Vita would have been a bigger threat had Sony used normal SD cards. As for the Wii U, it is not even en eighth generation home console and because of this it competes more with the Vita for market share than with any other console. The Wii U and Vita are competing for the title of "Dreamcast 2" and which ever one wins, and it seems likely it will be Wii U, gets the crown.

Could it be argued that Sony has abandoned the Vita?

[ShyGuy]

The Wii U will have a successor. The Vita will not.

[Adrock]

The Vita would have been a bigger threat had Sony used normal SD cards.

Vita's proprietary memory cards are annoying, but they're hardly as big a deal as you're making them out to be.

As for the Wii U, it is not even en eighth generation home console and because of this it competes more with the Vita for market share than with any other console.

What in the...

Could it be argued that Sony has abandoned the Vita?

No. They just launched Vita TV and a newer, (mostly) improved model. That doesn't sound like Sony abandoned or is abandoning it to me. Sony doesn't really have a gameplan, mainly due to not understanding the market. Vita lacks an identity and like PSP before it, Sony is still selling Vita as a handheld Playstation rather than a machine that can stand on its own merits. Cross-play is cool; Sony just bet on it being a bigger deal than it actually is. They may not know what to do with Vita, but they aren't giving up on it any time soon.

[Ceric]

The Vita would have been a bigger threat had Sony used normal SD cards.

Vita's proprietary memory cards are annoying, but they're hardly as big a deal as you're making them out to be.
...

I have to disagree with you there.  That whole Memory card BS is a real deal breaker for the Vita.  I would have bought one a long time ago if I could have used a Micro SD card or heck if Memory Stick.  You just need so much raw space to even scratch the actual potential of the Vita.

[Adrock]

Put an SD card slot in a Vita and I still don't see it touching 3DS. Sony would get a few fence-sitters. Calling it "a bigger threat" after that would technically be true due to the slightly higher sales; putting any weight behind that description would be vastly exaggerating the affect of those sales. Vita's real problem is its lack of titles; the memory card controversy just makes that harder to swallow.

[Ceric]

It be easier to argue the whole title thing when you don't have to say, "You'll need a memory card to play it."  It has enough titles and value add with the PS4 to have a better niche then it has.  Its the high cost of initial ownership that is really weighing itself down from holding its own like Leapfrog does with its products.

[Oblivion]

As for the Wii U, it is not even en eighth generation home console

Have you been reading Kotaku or IGN? Of course it is 8th Gen. Gens aren't about power.

[Ian Sane]

I was pretty surprised when the Vita came out.  The PSP didn't seem successful enough to justify a successor.  I guess it did pretty good in Japan?  It was clear that Sony doesn't get handhelds and as that marketshare gets pecked away by mobile devices it seems that only a company that really knows handhelds like Nintendo would be able to make a go at it.  I assumed that any PSP successor would bomb so the Vita's lack of success is not at all surprising.

The Wii U's failure is a little surprising.  I never had any faith in it once I found it had last gen specs and I was not impressed with the Gamepad which seems like a mere variation of the DS touchscreen but I expected a better effort from Nintendo.  The choice of games they've developed is very subdued with a lack of innovation or ambition.  Clearly the 3DS is where the "real" Nintendo games go and the Wii U is an afterthought.  They seemingly gave up on the big hardware gimmick within months.  The time between releases was surprising particularly when Nintendo pointed out the challenges of HD development during the Wii years and then failed to take their own advice and were caught off guard by the challenges of HD development.  That alone might be Nintendo's most embarrassing and stupid blunder.

Because of Sony's reputation I figured that ANY new Sony handheld was doomed but Nintendo was perfectly capable of releasing a successful console.  They have enough of a track record with that.  And even with the Wii U's limitations Nintendo could have put in a much stronger effort.  Sony is merely failing at extending their game division into another market while Nintendo is potentially going to be forced out of a market they effectively invented.  The Vita will probably be just a failed side project like the Virtual Boy.  The Wii U may end up like the 32X, the jump-the-shark failure that started a downhill slide towards irrelevance.  The Vita is probably Sony's last handheld but that really doesn't matter in the longrun.  The Wii U or its successor may be Nintendo's last console and that's a huge impact on the company and, hell, videogame history.

But the Wii U has Pikmin 3 so I want to get one at some point.  If both products were discontinued and being sold at clearance prices I would buy the Wii U in a heartbeat but would not bother with the Vita.

[broodwars]

The Vita will probably be just a failed side project like the Virtual Boy...

...But the Wii U has Pikmin 3 so I want to get one at some point.  If both products were discontinued and being sold at clearance prices I would buy the Wii U in a heartbeat but would not bother with the Vita.

And you would be a fool for discounting the Vita so easily. It is a handheld with a niche lineup, but the Vita has more and better software than the Wii U has (and will likely ever have), not to mention better 3rd party support. Hell, Danganronpa and Tearaway alone practically justify a purchase, not to mention the PS+ games. Don't put the Vita in the same category as the Virtual Boy, a terrible piece of hardware with almost universally terrible software (with the possible exception of Wario and that robot boxing game) and a sub-1 year lifespan.

As for the topic, the Wii U has a better future with 1st party titles than the Vita does (Sony seems to have given up on developing Vita software), but the Vita has a FAR brighter future with 3rd party titles than the Wii U has ever had or ever will have.

[Phil]

As for the Wii U, it is not even en eighth generation home console

Have you been reading Kotaku or IGN? Of course it is 8th Gen. Gens aren't about power.

No, gens are now all about power. Just like last generation the Wii outselling the 360 and PS3 didn't count, as Nintendo abandoned hardcore gamers, the hardware was really weak, and it was nothing but a fad... or something like that. The rules changed when Nintendo won, is the point.

[Mop it up]

Wii U will likely sell more systems from the strength of Nintendo's first-party titles.

That said, both systems kind of have the same problem in that they lack an identity and need more unique software.

[Oblivion]

need more unique software.

Why is Broodwars the only that understands that this statement is entirely false?

[Kytim89]

If Nintendo can continue to pump out more high quality first party titles then it will spur sales and attract more third party support. Let's be honest, the Wii U is not going to be home to large number of third party games, but the Wii U could get games that are exclusively to it such as No More Heroes 3, Shin Megami Tensai 5, and many others.

As for the Wii U and Vita's identity crisis, the two consoles are suffering mainly because they are the start of a new class of systems in the industry. The new class consists of bridging the gap between the home console and handheld, and many people are not excepting of this at first. 

[Oblivion]

If Nintendo can continue to pump out more high quality first party titles then it will spur sales and attract more third party support.

Then I guess that's what happened with the Wii, right?!?!??!?!?!?!?!?

[Phil]

If Nintendo can continue to pump out more high quality first party titles then it will spur sales and attract more third party support.

Then I guess that's what happened with the Wii, right?!?!??!?!?!?!?!?

Technically, third party support did come to the Wii, but it was from B teams and C teams or unwanted titles.

[Stratos]

Agreed. My shelf of beloved Wii games is filled with Nintendo 1st party efforts and titles that appear on EVERY hidden gems list ever created this past decade. I love those games, but I suspect most 'gamers' (both casual and core) only desire a few 'hidden gem' level games.


No More Heroes 3 will not move consoles unless something changes and I don't think Suda51 is capable so creating a blockbuster as we know it. He would not be Suda51 if he did make a blockbuster.

[lolmonade]

The Wii U will probably have better sales, unless the Vita is able to successfully piggyback upon Playstation 4's success with connectivity features (I doubt it).


That said, I'm enamored with my Vita, and have played it MUCH more than my 3DS as of late.  It's an awesome handheld, and it's too bad it hasn't gotten more widespread acceptance.

[ejamer]

I wasn't a fan of PSP at all, but looking back now it's got a large and excellent library of games. Why would Vita be any different? Despite weak system sales, it's got decent developer support (better than 3DS in the West, I'd wager) and the hardware is solid.


If asked to bet now, I'd put my money on Vita having a longer life and bigger library of games. That might not answer the question though - because I value Nintendo first-party software very highly. (Go figure. Someone on a Nintendo fan site loves Nintendo games.)

[Nile Boogie Returns]

I also feel the Vita's biggest hurdle initially was the Memory price. It was all kinds of ridiculous for any substantial size. I have a 4gb and a 8gb and both are not full. Have to reboot the system every time you swipe memory cards makes it an improbable solution. Also it should have been a phone or at least 4G.lte and it could have keep the 249.99 price tag.  The hardware is flat out amazing and I wish it had more support but Sony could always build a bridge they have trouble supporting it.




VS.



The Wii U has a serious image problem. From people not knowing what it is to folks at GameStop still calling it "kiddie", there is a perceived lack of EPICNESS on Wii U and from Nintendo, and if Star Wars has taught us anything, its that "your perception determines your reality".




At the end of the day, the Wii U will be able to sustain a stable marketshare of 8th Gen (20-25%) while the Vita's destiny is ironically death. 




Vita = Firefly

Wii U = Futurama

[ejamer]

...
Vita = Firefly

Wii U = Futurama

We must be looking at different lists for upcoming releases - because everything I see shows Vita with stuff continuing to come out (slowly) while Wii U looks like it's getting absolutely cut off at the knees this year. Cancelled before it could hit it's stride, versus able to make a meaningful comeback? Guess only time will tell.


(Source: IGN release list shows less than 50 upcoming games for Wii U, and probably twice as many for Vita. I'm sure there will be more games come out for Wii U... but the release schedule is hardly robust.)