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How
Has Sony Gained a Foothold in the Handheld Gaming Market and Competed with
Nintendo’s Handheld Consoles?
http://gadyear2.blogspot.co.uk/
09/02/2013
Liam
Gallagher-Vaes
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Handheld games consoles have been a
technological change in the games industry, but have never been named superior
to static games consoles. But what has the games industry done to try and
create the static gaming experience in the form of a portable console, and how
successful have their efforts been? I will be writing about how the games
company Sony has marketed their handheld consoles the PSP and the
PS VITA. I will focus on comparing their content, hardware and
functionality from a technological perspective to Nintendo, Sony’s
new handheld competitor. I will extensively talk about what they have done
differently in marketing for a particular target audience and their technical
device knowledge, and their consoles changes for the future.
Before Sony’s handheld consoles came along, Nintendo dominated the handheld market with their top selling portable Game Boy. The Game Boy dates back to 1989, and continues to update its potential with new features. Aside from the Game Boy, there were many other handheld consoles available that tried to compete against the Game boy’s supremacy, such as the Sega Game Gear, the Atari Lynx, and the Bitcorp Game Mate. Due to their lack of popularity, not all of these handhelds were available worldwide and couldn’t beat the sales of Nintendo’s handheld consoles. In comparison, the Game Boy sold 118.69 million units worldwide since its release. The Game Boy was constantly improving in appearance, graphics, games and functionality. By 1998 Nintendo managed to develop having colour graphics and a smaller, more portable console with the Game Boy Color. Then by 2003, Nintendo had developed their technology even further with the release of the Game Boy Advance, with even more advanced graphics and interface. By 2009, Nintendo had released a whole new set of handheld devices called the DS. They ranged from the simple dual screened console, one screen featuring stylus touch technology to the more advanced DSi XL, which featured larger screens, a built in camera and microphone. All of the consoles had a vast series of games available for an audience of all ages and in a variety of genres.
The PSP (Playstation Portable) was Sony’s first attempt in the handheld gaming market. It was released mid 2004, to gain a financial advantage in the new age of the handheld market. This was months before its biggest competitor Nintendo, released their new handheld console; the DS. The PSP was a multimedia, portable gaming device. It was the first handheld to feature a wide liquid crystal display (LCD), giving portable games a new, revolutionary look. Although the PSP had an LCD screen, the DS counteracted that with dual screens. The PSP allowed players to access the Internet, via Wi-Fi, which also allowed players to compete at certain games online over PSN (Playstation Network). Players could also link up and play locally via the Bluetooth connection or Infrared. The PSP allowed players to download files such as videos, pictures, games and music directly from a computer or Playstation 2/3 console via a USB cable, Bluetooth or from the Playstation Store. The DS had an exclusive online community called the Nintendo Wi-Fi Connection Service; it didn’t however have an online store for users. It meant that DS users didn’t need a Wi-Fi connection to play against each other, but they did need to be within a designated distance to get a connection. The DS did feature one online technical advantage over the PSP. When players were gaming locally, only one player needed the game, as the others were able to download it from the host game owner. The first series of DS (late 2004) didn’t feature music or video playback, and consumers were unable to connect it as an external storage device to any computers or consoles. The DS didn’t have an external SD memory card. It all data was stored internally, this means you were unable to expand the memory of your DS.
The PSP was able to store all this media content using an SD card, available in a number of different capacities. Aside from internal media entertainment, Sony introduced the Universal Media Disc (UMD), which was an exclusive format for the PSP. UMD’s were mini discs, available in the form of video games and films. The discs were necessary in order to support the high amount of data and graphics the games/films featured. The DS used mini chips (solid state mask ROM) for their games. It allowed better portability and the game chips featured memory space for its saved data. The DS included backwards compatibility, having a cartridge slot for GBA games (Game Boy Advance).
The PSP’s interactive controls were the same style as most handheld consoles; four, multifunctional buttons, a directional pad, pause button and two trigger buttons. Aside from the standard button layout, it also featured an analogue stick and a lock switch. The analogue stick was specially designed for the PSP to use for in game character controls. Compared to the Playstation 2, having two analogue sticks made character and camera control easier, so only having one on the PSP did limit gaming experience. PSP games using a multi view camera such as Gran Theft Auto and Final Fantasy, however, had configured tracking camera capabilities. The lock switch allowed users to ‘lock’ their console when transporting to avoid accidental use of the console. For example when listening to music on the go, as without the ‘lock’ button, if knocked, the console may accidently perform unapproved tasks.
The PSP included a rechargeable battery, which didn’t have to be removed when charging, unless to replace it with a fresh charged one. The battery on average would support three hours of use, but would slowly decline as it aged. New, longer lasting batteries became available as the console grew in popularity. The DS also used a rechargeable battery, which functioned the same way as the PSP. Their batteries lasted up to fifteen hours, really jumping ahead of the PSP’s average of three hours; this is because of the lower graphics count on the DS and it use of LED screens.
As the years went on, Sony continued to release new and better PSP consoles to keep up with the technology developing in the handheld gaming market. With the DS releasing a lighter version of their already popular predecessor, a new PSP 2000 was released in 2007. It had a sleek design and came in a selection of colours. Its new feature was a built in microphone for online interaction with other players. In 2009, the PSP Go was released. It was half the size of the original, and the screen would slide up, revealing the controls underneath. In 2011, Sony took one last shot at a new, cheaper version of the PSP. The E-1000. It had no UMD slot, and only allowed PSN game downloads. This was only one year before the release of Sony’s new handheld console, the PS VITA. Nintendo had already released theirs; the DSiXL, and already had plans for another handheld for 2011; the 3DS. Sony’s PSP was released a few months before the DS. The console was more advanced than the DS in functionality, sophistication in digital games and online entertainment. By the end of the first financial quarter, the PSP had sold around three million units. This quickly changed when the DS was released, nearly halving PSP sales by 50%. Sony may have been beaten in sales by over thirty million (as of 2012). They still gained a strong technological foothold over Nintendo, which would be paving the way for the new PS VITA.
The PS VITA was released early 2012. It was a huge change in functionality to the PSP. The VITA maintained the same physical appearance and button layout of the PSP but had some new extras to meet the standards of its time. The VITA had two analogue sticks, to optimize game experience, a new interface layout, built in camera’s on the front and back, a touch screen, with multi gesture capabilities, and also a multi touch surface on the back. Compared to Nintendo’s recent 3DS and DSiXL, Sony felt that they have taken the lead in the handheld gaming market. The struggle for Sony was that their variety of games didn’t meet the expectations of the audience range Nintendo had with their games. The consoles layout and games were very detailed, complex and solely made for hardcore gamers. Prime examples of these are Uncharted and Call of Duty. The DS, whether it is the original or the 3D version maintained its simplicity in its controls and the graphics. The 3DS graphics are a little different, allowing players to enable 3D mode in 3D compatible games to create a three-Dimensional experience. The DS has an array of games ranging from action (Mario, Zelda, Pokemon) to small pick up and play puzzle games (Brain Training). Sony’s marketing intention is to focus on what they know, the hardcore gamers. Aside from its state of the art portable technology, Playstation exclusive games were another key element to marketing the VITA. Games such as Metal Gear Solid and Little Big Planet were reinvented to the handheld console, which made them appealing to current Sony gamers. To promote the VITA’s technology, a few mini games were released for consumers to play, in order to view the potential of the console. Built into the VITA’s camera was a scanner, which scanned a shape printed on a card, transforming it into a virtual mini game. When the player moved the camera, the games environment stayed still, allowing the player to look around the level as if it was real. Table football and cliff diving were a couple of the games available. This technology was also available on the Playstation 3. The console featured the motion sensing remote called the Playstation Move and the Wonder Book, which worked by the Move’s camera scanning a code in a book, turning the pages into a virtual reality gaming world. Having this technology already available, it was a simple task for Sony to re invent it into a smaller, portable format for the PS VITA. (See Blog post: ‘CS 2000 Words’).
In the industry, the technology is still in the early stages of development. But in the future, it will give Sony the advantage over Nintendo. Although the VITA mainly has a hardcore gaming market, it is still very popular, because people who enjoy the static Playstation get a very similar gaming experience on the go with the minor reduction in graphical detail. Nintendo also has exclusives too, which have been reinvented, but compared to their static motion console; The Wii, the technology isn’t as advanced on the DS, minimizing the games reinvented optical performance. Aside from the reduction in mobile technology, Nintendo still dominate in digital games sales from the sheer variety of digital game genres. The PS VITA still remains to be the most technological advanced console on the market, currently rivaling Nintendo’s DS consoles. But it is unable to compete against Nintendo’s overall digital game sales, because they target a larger audience.
Both Sony and Nintendo have their advantages be it in the technology or the advanced experience in targeting a variety of audiences. However, Sony was able to establish their foothold in the handheld gaming market by integrating gyroscope and touch sensitive capabilities into the form of a multimedia, mobile gaming device. As both companies evolve, Sony will have an advantage in the features their games can include, thanks to their more sophisticated technology, therefore increasing their potential in higher unit sales over the DS consoles. Even though these handheld consoles will always be popular because of their accessibility and portability the dominating technology in portable gaming and practicality will always be the mobile phone.
Before Sony’s handheld consoles came along, Nintendo dominated the handheld market with their top selling portable Game Boy. The Game Boy dates back to 1989, and continues to update its potential with new features. Aside from the Game Boy, there were many other handheld consoles available that tried to compete against the Game boy’s supremacy, such as the Sega Game Gear, the Atari Lynx, and the Bitcorp Game Mate. Due to their lack of popularity, not all of these handhelds were available worldwide and couldn’t beat the sales of Nintendo’s handheld consoles. In comparison, the Game Boy sold 118.69 million units worldwide since its release. The Game Boy was constantly improving in appearance, graphics, games and functionality. By 1998 Nintendo managed to develop having colour graphics and a smaller, more portable console with the Game Boy Color. Then by 2003, Nintendo had developed their technology even further with the release of the Game Boy Advance, with even more advanced graphics and interface. By 2009, Nintendo had released a whole new set of handheld devices called the DS. They ranged from the simple dual screened console, one screen featuring stylus touch technology to the more advanced DSi XL, which featured larger screens, a built in camera and microphone. All of the consoles had a vast series of games available for an audience of all ages and in a variety of genres.
The PSP (Playstation Portable) was Sony’s first attempt in the handheld gaming market. It was released mid 2004, to gain a financial advantage in the new age of the handheld market. This was months before its biggest competitor Nintendo, released their new handheld console; the DS. The PSP was a multimedia, portable gaming device. It was the first handheld to feature a wide liquid crystal display (LCD), giving portable games a new, revolutionary look. Although the PSP had an LCD screen, the DS counteracted that with dual screens. The PSP allowed players to access the Internet, via Wi-Fi, which also allowed players to compete at certain games online over PSN (Playstation Network). Players could also link up and play locally via the Bluetooth connection or Infrared. The PSP allowed players to download files such as videos, pictures, games and music directly from a computer or Playstation 2/3 console via a USB cable, Bluetooth or from the Playstation Store. The DS had an exclusive online community called the Nintendo Wi-Fi Connection Service; it didn’t however have an online store for users. It meant that DS users didn’t need a Wi-Fi connection to play against each other, but they did need to be within a designated distance to get a connection. The DS did feature one online technical advantage over the PSP. When players were gaming locally, only one player needed the game, as the others were able to download it from the host game owner. The first series of DS (late 2004) didn’t feature music or video playback, and consumers were unable to connect it as an external storage device to any computers or consoles. The DS didn’t have an external SD memory card. It all data was stored internally, this means you were unable to expand the memory of your DS.
The PSP was able to store all this media content using an SD card, available in a number of different capacities. Aside from internal media entertainment, Sony introduced the Universal Media Disc (UMD), which was an exclusive format for the PSP. UMD’s were mini discs, available in the form of video games and films. The discs were necessary in order to support the high amount of data and graphics the games/films featured. The DS used mini chips (solid state mask ROM) for their games. It allowed better portability and the game chips featured memory space for its saved data. The DS included backwards compatibility, having a cartridge slot for GBA games (Game Boy Advance).
The PSP’s interactive controls were the same style as most handheld consoles; four, multifunctional buttons, a directional pad, pause button and two trigger buttons. Aside from the standard button layout, it also featured an analogue stick and a lock switch. The analogue stick was specially designed for the PSP to use for in game character controls. Compared to the Playstation 2, having two analogue sticks made character and camera control easier, so only having one on the PSP did limit gaming experience. PSP games using a multi view camera such as Gran Theft Auto and Final Fantasy, however, had configured tracking camera capabilities. The lock switch allowed users to ‘lock’ their console when transporting to avoid accidental use of the console. For example when listening to music on the go, as without the ‘lock’ button, if knocked, the console may accidently perform unapproved tasks.
The PSP included a rechargeable battery, which didn’t have to be removed when charging, unless to replace it with a fresh charged one. The battery on average would support three hours of use, but would slowly decline as it aged. New, longer lasting batteries became available as the console grew in popularity. The DS also used a rechargeable battery, which functioned the same way as the PSP. Their batteries lasted up to fifteen hours, really jumping ahead of the PSP’s average of three hours; this is because of the lower graphics count on the DS and it use of LED screens.
As the years went on, Sony continued to release new and better PSP consoles to keep up with the technology developing in the handheld gaming market. With the DS releasing a lighter version of their already popular predecessor, a new PSP 2000 was released in 2007. It had a sleek design and came in a selection of colours. Its new feature was a built in microphone for online interaction with other players. In 2009, the PSP Go was released. It was half the size of the original, and the screen would slide up, revealing the controls underneath. In 2011, Sony took one last shot at a new, cheaper version of the PSP. The E-1000. It had no UMD slot, and only allowed PSN game downloads. This was only one year before the release of Sony’s new handheld console, the PS VITA. Nintendo had already released theirs; the DSiXL, and already had plans for another handheld for 2011; the 3DS. Sony’s PSP was released a few months before the DS. The console was more advanced than the DS in functionality, sophistication in digital games and online entertainment. By the end of the first financial quarter, the PSP had sold around three million units. This quickly changed when the DS was released, nearly halving PSP sales by 50%. Sony may have been beaten in sales by over thirty million (as of 2012). They still gained a strong technological foothold over Nintendo, which would be paving the way for the new PS VITA.
The PS VITA was released early 2012. It was a huge change in functionality to the PSP. The VITA maintained the same physical appearance and button layout of the PSP but had some new extras to meet the standards of its time. The VITA had two analogue sticks, to optimize game experience, a new interface layout, built in camera’s on the front and back, a touch screen, with multi gesture capabilities, and also a multi touch surface on the back. Compared to Nintendo’s recent 3DS and DSiXL, Sony felt that they have taken the lead in the handheld gaming market. The struggle for Sony was that their variety of games didn’t meet the expectations of the audience range Nintendo had with their games. The consoles layout and games were very detailed, complex and solely made for hardcore gamers. Prime examples of these are Uncharted and Call of Duty. The DS, whether it is the original or the 3D version maintained its simplicity in its controls and the graphics. The 3DS graphics are a little different, allowing players to enable 3D mode in 3D compatible games to create a three-Dimensional experience. The DS has an array of games ranging from action (Mario, Zelda, Pokemon) to small pick up and play puzzle games (Brain Training). Sony’s marketing intention is to focus on what they know, the hardcore gamers. Aside from its state of the art portable technology, Playstation exclusive games were another key element to marketing the VITA. Games such as Metal Gear Solid and Little Big Planet were reinvented to the handheld console, which made them appealing to current Sony gamers. To promote the VITA’s technology, a few mini games were released for consumers to play, in order to view the potential of the console. Built into the VITA’s camera was a scanner, which scanned a shape printed on a card, transforming it into a virtual mini game. When the player moved the camera, the games environment stayed still, allowing the player to look around the level as if it was real. Table football and cliff diving were a couple of the games available. This technology was also available on the Playstation 3. The console featured the motion sensing remote called the Playstation Move and the Wonder Book, which worked by the Move’s camera scanning a code in a book, turning the pages into a virtual reality gaming world. Having this technology already available, it was a simple task for Sony to re invent it into a smaller, portable format for the PS VITA. (See Blog post: ‘CS 2000 Words’).
In the industry, the technology is still in the early stages of development. But in the future, it will give Sony the advantage over Nintendo. Although the VITA mainly has a hardcore gaming market, it is still very popular, because people who enjoy the static Playstation get a very similar gaming experience on the go with the minor reduction in graphical detail. Nintendo also has exclusives too, which have been reinvented, but compared to their static motion console; The Wii, the technology isn’t as advanced on the DS, minimizing the games reinvented optical performance. Aside from the reduction in mobile technology, Nintendo still dominate in digital games sales from the sheer variety of digital game genres. The PS VITA still remains to be the most technological advanced console on the market, currently rivaling Nintendo’s DS consoles. But it is unable to compete against Nintendo’s overall digital game sales, because they target a larger audience.
Both Sony and Nintendo have their advantages be it in the technology or the advanced experience in targeting a variety of audiences. However, Sony was able to establish their foothold in the handheld gaming market by integrating gyroscope and touch sensitive capabilities into the form of a multimedia, mobile gaming device. As both companies evolve, Sony will have an advantage in the features their games can include, thanks to their more sophisticated technology, therefore increasing their potential in higher unit sales over the DS consoles. Even though these handheld consoles will always be popular because of their accessibility and portability the dominating technology in portable gaming and practicality will always be the mobile phone.
Bibliography
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Date
it was read
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Reasons
for search
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26/01/13
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Pre release review on
the PS VITA talking about its
potential in the handheld market and the technology
|
|
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06/02/13
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Current PS VITA sales since its release,
compared to the DS
|
|
|
02/02/13
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Timeline
of the Game Boy to the DS
|
|
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02/02/13
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Forum discussing the DS battery life
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|
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06/02/13
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Total PSP sales since 2004 release
|
|
|
06/02/13
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Expanded information
on DS and 3DS sales, listing total sales (used for a secondary source to
check over sales digits)
|
|
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24/01/13
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Article
announcing the PS VITA and its
potential (secondary back up source)
|
|
|
02/02/13
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List of DS games on sale
|
|
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23/01/13
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Forum discussing the PSP’s battery life and its changes
over time
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|
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02/02/13
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List of PS VITA games on sale, and games still
to be released
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06/02/13
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Article about how the PSP sales have reduced since the DS release
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02/02/13
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Nintendo
Sales article: by 2009 the DS
outsold the Game Boy
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24/01/13
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An overview of Sony’s handheld products
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|
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24/01/13
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General overview and
article about the PS E-1000
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|
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02/02/13
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Timeline covering all
of Sony’s handheld and static
consoles
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|
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02/02/13
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Total Nintendo DS sales
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