Historically, Nintendo’s GameBoy consoles have always defined the handheld gaming experience. Intermittent efforts from Sega and Sony over the years have been unable to unseat Nintendo as the king of handhelds.

According to the latest sales figures from Sony, the PS Vita has surpassed 1.2 million units sold worldwide, despite an unenthusiastic reception in Sony’s home country of Japan.

In Europe, first week sales of the PS Vita outsold Nintendo’s new handheld console, the 3DS. In the United States and Japan, however, first-week sales figures for the Vita lagged behind other handheld gaming consoles of the current and previous generations.

The 3DS sold seven times as many units as the PS Vita worldwide last week. 3DS games have also sold well, making up 7 of the top 10 best-selling games of the previous week.

Nintendo’s perennial success with handhelds has had a massive effect on the platform as a whole. Of the top five best-selling handheld consoles of all time, four of them are made by Nintendo. Gamers who play handhelds have come to expect a certain experience, and this experience has been almost entirely defined by Nintendo’s vision.

The PS Vita also has its own strong vision for itself. It is meant to be the home console experience in your hands, with a large, high-definition screen and graphics comparable to the home experience. And this, possibly, is where it went wrong: It’s stepping on too many toes at once.

For the cost of a PS Vita (about $300 USD), you could buy an actual home console. And because the Vita requires a memory card made by Sony, that only works with the Vita, for an addition $100, you could probably find a Nintendo DS on the cheap for that price as well.

Handheld gamers do not expect, and quite possibly are not even enticed by, the ability to play home console games on a handheld system. The most popular handheld games by far are iOS games, which are often quick, shallow, and addictive. Even GameBoy and DS games are largely episodic, with frequent opportunities to quit and come back later.

Console games, on the other hand, are meant for prolonged play. To try to fit a full console experience into an intrinsically stop-and-go format is at worst a misjudgement of the nature and appeal of the platform.

At best, it suits a very particular, perhaps European, demographic. If you do not have the space in your apartment for a home entertainment system, and use trains or busses more often than a car to get from place to place, being able to experience console gaming in a handheld format could have appeal.

Taking into consideration, however, that the largest gaming markets are in the United States and Japan, the Vita seems poorly thought through. For now, gamers who want a home console experience still prefer to play on an actual home console. Add to that the exorbitant price tag of the Vita, its aesthetically unimpressive OS, and the additional hidden cost of a proprietary memory stick, and the Vita seems to be stepping on its own toes as well.

The article Is the PS Vita Too Ambitious for Its Own Good? appeared first on The Toonari Post - News, Powered by the People!.

People often regard individuals who play video games as shut-ins who lack the necessary social skills to achieve success in life.

Jo Garcia is not one of those individuals.

Garcia, recognized by Playboy as their Cyber Girl of 2008, possesses the looks and demeanor to beat back those who question her legitimacy in gaming, as well as enough knowledge of the medium to converse with even the most dedicated players.

“I love all games, but I am a huge fan of Skyrim and Final Fantasy XII-2,” she said proudly.

Garcia has since injected her love of video games into her promotion efforts for Sony’s newest portable system, the PlayStation Vita, due to see release on February 22 of this year.

She has done this by travelling to various Vita Hill Social Clubs throughout the U.S. Her previous stops have taken her to Chicago and New York, and on February 11^th, she appeared at Miami’s Vita Hill Social Club to promote the PlayStation Vita while also spending time with individuals eager to get to know her while also getting to know the Vita’s software lineup.

Garcia expressly believes that the Vita will be a success; she admits to wanting to obtain “everything she can get her hands on” for Sony’s newest portable. In terms of games, she is most excited for Escape Plan and Uncharted.

“I think that Escape Plan is a very good game, and Uncharted: Golden Abyss is pretty sick,” she said. Jo Garcia was not the only Playboy model in attendance at the event. Leola Bell, recognized by the magazine as Miss February of this year, was present through an invitation extended to her by Playboy.

Unlike Garcia, who touts her gaming credentials, Bell is not as familiar with gaming lore.

“Unfortunately, I don’t know anything about video games,” she admitted. “However, I used to play Mario and Sonic the Hedgehog when I was younger.” Despite her unfamiliarity, Bell expressed excitement about the potential latent in Sony’s newest portable. “If I wanted a game system, it would definitely be this one. It looks really cute and well-made, and I can take it with me when I travel,” she said.

The presence of the Playboy models definitely helped in adding spice to the event; Brittany Redmon, a cocktail server and model, cited them as a key reason for attending. “I love Playboy magazine and when I heard that Jo Garcia was going to be there, I definitely wanted to attend, as I am a big fan of hers,” she said.

Danny Pena, a podcaster and host of Gamertag Radio, is also a Garcia fan; the two are in fact good friends and he specifically attended to support her efforts. Alexander Yparraguirre, a graphic designer from Tampa, FL, appreciated the opportunity to test out Garcia’s gaming talents. “I am looking forward to challenging her in Wipeout and seeing just how good of a gamer she is,” he said.

As the PlayStation Vita nears its release date, events like these will prove helpful to ensuring that the system has a successful launch. While there were some individuals at the party who remained unsure of the Vita’s potential, most of the people who had the opportunity to sample it expressed confidence in its success.

“I think that this system is definitely something that I would definitely consider either purchasing for myself or my little brother,” said Redmon.

The article Playboy Cyber Girl injects life into Miami’s Vita Hill Social Club appeared first on The Toonari Post - News, Powered by the People!.