Sony: Current Mobile Gamers Will Come Over To PS Vita

Sony believes that, with the release of its PlayStation Vita handheld console, many gamers who currently play mobile and tablet games will move over to the Vita for their gaming fix. In an interview with news site Gamespot, Sony's director of marketing John Koller told of how the company feels that the Vita will provide "richer, deeper experiences" compared to cell phone titles. "We view [mobile and handheld gaming] as two separate demographics, and we've done a lot of quantitative and qualitative research to back this up," he explained. "When you look at the type of consumer that's playing cell phone games currently, it's someone that enjoys smaller 'kill time' gaming and has not gravitated to the larger, richer, deeper experiences that true handheld gaming provides." He continued, "We've certainly seen that on the PSP, and I know Nintendo has probably commented on it for their products, but as we go toward the PlayStation Vita, I can tell you that as we started looking at that product and the market opportunity several years ago, we saw a real strong demographic for those deeper, richer, console-type experiences. We had them on PSP, but we've taken them to a new level on PS Vita with the entirety of new ways to play." This, he said, is what will distinguish Vita games from more casual iPhone, Android et al gaming. "That 'new ways to play' idea, particularly for Vita, really differentiates from what's available on mobile phones or tablets and, frankly, what will be available on those platforms over the next three to five years," he noted. "You're going to see PS Vita expand what a lot of people believe to be true about handheld gaming, and you're going to see a lot of those current mobile phone and tablet gamers come over to Vita. We're very convinced of that."