Vita: Sony won't repeat PSP mistakes

By Wesley Yin-Poole Published 8 July, 2011

Admits to PSP interface failings.

Sony has pledged to right the wrongs of the PlayStation Portable with its successor, the PlayStation Vita.

One of the first questions Sony asked itself when creating Vita was how to improve on the PSP's controls.

"What we didn't do right with the PSP was where we started when we began the development of PlayStation Vita," president of Sony's Worldwide Studios Shuhei Yoshida told Eurogamer sister site Gamesindustry.biz.

"We were very happy with having something very close to the PS2 experience in a portable format with the PSP, but we didn't do a good enough job creating the proper interface to really play games with graphics in 3D.

"The lack of a right analog stick, for example. That's something we wanted to attack with the PS Vita because we wanted to enhance the portable core gaming experience and we have to do it right."

Another problem faced by the PSP, Yoshida said, was that its visuals were rendered outdated by high-definition home consoles soon after release.

This is why Vita features touch-screen controls, a rear touch pad and motion sensors as well as enhanced graphics and dual analog nubs.

"The other thing was that after a couple of years with the PSP people get used to looking at pretty pictures and especially after the launch of the Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3 the expectations for graphics moves on," Yoshida said.

"Just having great graphics on a pretty screen wouldn't have been enough. That's why we spent so much time innovating with user interface devices like the touch pad or camera and motion sensors."

Vita is without a release date or UK pricing. Announcements are expected at German show Gamescom next month.

Picture of Wesley.

About Wesley Yin-Poole

Wesley is Eurogamer's news editor. He likes news, interviews, and more news. He also likes Street Fighter more than anyone can get him to shut up about it.

Read more articles from Wesley by visiting the Wesley Yin-Poole archive page.

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Comments (40) Latest comment 11 months ago

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  • Ultrasoundwave #1 11 months ago

    I wouldnt say the PSP had much wrong with it. It was supposed to be a portable PS2 basically, but the biggest problem was the complete lack of games.

    The Vita has Uncharted and Killzone, which already puts it way ahead of the PSP.

  • JoeGBallad #2 11 months ago

    I know I'm in the minority here, but I think the PSP is gorgeous, and it's games are beautiful looking as well. The Ridge Racer intro in the palm of my hand is a breath taking achievement. Sony would do well not to do a Robbie Williams and slag off their own past.

  • Goffee #3 11 months ago

    @JoeG - yep, the games are amazing - playing Ridge Racer 4, FFVII, Dissidia 12 loads - no trouble on that front.

    PSP didn't do as well because Sony launched a really cool device and then assumed that would be enough. All the extra cool things it could have added it to keep interest going, it never bothered with:

    Users wanted YouTube on it - never happened (instead we got a pissy video RSS theme).

    Users wanted indie games on it, long ahead of iPhone, Sony belatedly launched 'minis' rather than adding a sandbox (i.e., legal) protected homebrew mode.

    There have been about three graphic/visual novel releases in the west - something the PSP does really well - how is that trying?

    All the music playing features have been half-arsed at best, how long did it take to get folders and suchlike? Qriocity - five years too late.

    And so on, and so on - but hey that'll all be fixed on the Vita :)





    Edited by Goffee at 08/07/11 @ 09:17

  • Ryze #4 11 months ago

    It's less to do with the hardware's capability. Less to do with the library.

    The CONTROLS were a serious problem. Many of the games just couldn't work well without a right analogue.

    In addition, only on game that I'm aware of would use the MemoryStick in the same way that PS3 games use the hard drive. That game is Gran Turismo, and it took WAY too long to arrive. The PSP's portable experience, with all of the load times was affected by the UMD drive in many games.

    Also, don't get me started on the online features. Where were they!?

  • HyperTails #5 11 months ago

    Sony shoved PSP out the door and then turned their entire attention towards PS3. I liked the PSP, but there were times when I grew frustrated with Sony's handling of it. This time round they are giving us games built from the ground-up for the device, have innovated and made it easy to program for. Its clear that the Kutaragi era Sony has been kicked out the door by Hirai, who seems to know exactly what he's doing.

    I firmly believe that this will be a massive success. I'm really looking forward to seeing what the games are like once its out and developers have got their imaginations running.

  • PinktotheLast #6 11 months ago

    The Vita will undoubtably be a better proposition than the PSP, but I wouldn't be surprised if it doesn't sell as many as the PSP. It wont be able to compete with smartphones on the kind of bite-sized ultra-cheap touchscreen games. It still wont be able to compete with the experiences of Uncharted and Killzone on the PS3, let alone the PS4 which will be out in a couple of years. Nintendo can still lean on their core IP like Pokemon and Mario for the 3DS.

    I could be wrong but I just cant see it doing that well :(. Which is a shame cos its a good idea.

  • onyxbox #7 11 months ago

    Is it me or is the news around here (Eurogamer) a lot more balanced again?

  • chris_ace #8 11 months ago

    Post deleted at 11:55:13 13-12-2011

  • Raniz #9 11 months ago

    @Ryze
    You're saying that the lack of a right analog stick isn't a hardware problem?

    Sony should definitely release an SDK and an app store for the Vita so that we can create games and apps for it. Give us a sandbox and some limitations so that our games won't compete with retail/downloadable games. Satisfying homebrew demand will keep (some) hackers from it and having access to free/cheap apps and games will help sell the platform.

  • nickthegun #10 11 months ago

    Dont forget that the D-Pad was virtually unusable.

  • actionfitz #11 11 months ago

    lack of games and stupidly high pricing.
    my personal opinion.

  • smoison #12 11 months ago

    Build quality of the original PSP burned me.

    After several returns and replacements, I was left with a useless left analogue nub that needs to be taken apart every 2-3 hours play to continue to function properly.

    I won't be getting any more portable Sony consoles after that ordeal.

  • Spekingur #13 11 months ago

    Are people really going to buy Vita if they already have a DS/3DS?

  • bad09 #14 11 months ago

    The right stick was it's biggest failing, not to mention when CF opened up a world of possiblity Sony didn't act on that so to get the best out of the machine you needed a hacked machine then Sony rather stupidly locked you out of PSN killing any chance of you buying from the store. Mind you most of the PS1 offerings then were arse anyway and you were much better off converting your own games, I loved playing all my Resi games on my PSP and making your own eboot images was cool, made a few cool ones myself.

    Add to that the PSP software was absolutely dire. Publishers would release a console game and give you a watered down version of the same game on PSP, why the hell would you buy 2 versions of the same game? Admittedly sometimes that worked with the GTAs, fighters, racers being good examples but in general the software was awful, by the end of my time on the machine I was playing the GTAs and Tekken over and over and just using it for emulators.

    It was bold machine, with a lot of power and it gave me a lot of fun in gaming (mostly my own though through CF), video (again my own not the awful UMDs) and music. I do believe the Vita *snigger* will improve on the PSP mistakes but these days I'm just really not up for a souped up PSP.
    Edited by bad09 at 08/07/11 @ 10:23

  • G-Lord #15 11 months ago

    PSP was far from being a failure when compared to all the other competitors on the handheld front so far. But some PSP games would have been better with a second analog stick.

  • mr2ange #16 11 months ago

    The PSP did have some stunning games,

    Monster Hunter was the stand out title for me, with almost 200 hours clocked...

    There did seem to be a gap year or two where nothing really appealing came out,

    However it can hardly be seen as a failure with 68 Million units sold.

  • Biker_Bob_1971 #17 11 months ago

    Post deleted at 16:59:10 06-02-2012

  • Biker_Bob_1971 #18 11 months ago

    Post deleted at 16:59:10 06-02-2012

  • Ryze #19 11 months ago

    ^ The games didn't sell well on the whole in EU and US.

  • mr2ange #20 11 months ago

    @smoison

    Really? you found it to be badly made?

    I have an original Japanese Launch psp, which functions perfectly after having the hell played out of it / been chucked across the carpark by accident, sat on, dropped...

    Maybe you were just a little rough with it...

  • layleeloo #21 11 months ago

    Wrong wrong wrong! Sure the no two analogues was a problem but the main reason it failed was wait for it - GAMES! Considering the PS3 came soon after and people bought PS3 games,the PSP was then over run with cut down PS3 versions (which no one really wanted if you had the full fat PS3 original) and not enough dedicated brilliance like loco roco. When will companies learn a machines success factor is always down to games way and above anything else
    Edited by layleeloo at 08/07/11 @ 11:01

  • RawNinjaKid #22 11 months ago

    Power-wise PSP was a PS 1.5 and the Vita will be an PS2.5; which is more than fine for a handheld.

    To me: Sony tried its best with the PSP, but you kinda got the feeling that the content released for it was a cut-down inferior versions of PSOne/2 franchises, especially the Western franchises. Only a few Japanese games made the most out of it.

    You don't get this feeling with the NDS, where Mario and Zelda games feel like brand new AAA+ titles.

    The PSP got a whole lot better when PSone titles got added to it and full Japanese titles were released for it. It's great to play FULL Final Fantasy titles and other Square Enix stuff on it!!

    I don't think PS Vita can emulate, PS2 games (not the original e boots anyway!), because it lacks pressure sensitive buttons. Lots of good games like MGS and Silent Hill used this feature for the PS2.

  • Desheep #23 11 months ago

    I love the way they admit to it NOW as a new platform is on it's way.

    "We denied the shit out of everything and willingly lied to the public for years about the interface flaws, but now (near the end of the products life cycle) we're willing to hold our hands up to it. We guarantee there will be nothing wrong with the vita, though..."

  • Mr.Spo #24 11 months ago

    The fact they think PSP's "outdated" graphics compared to home consoles was were things went wrong worries me. DS had "outdated" graphics from launch, and still trounced PSP and became the best selling handheld ever. It's about having compelling experiences that can't be replicated on other platforms, or that haven't been done on any other platform. Even though the line ups for both Vita and 3DS look good for early adopters and core gamers, I haven't seen anything from either of them that's going to push them beyond PSP/GBA levels of success, never mind DS levels of success. Sony and Nintendo need to get their arses into gear if they want the traditional portable market to remain viable--make something compelling that can't be done on smart phones, and that hasn't been done before, and sales will explode. It's tougher than ever to do that, but I for one hope they're both up to the task. They're bringing amazing machines to the market, so let's hope they do something amazing with them.

  • alcides #25 11 months ago

    Liking the Vita Lineup so far, but I hope new IPs will come along soon. Since that's what failed the PSP mostly.

  • Arwin #26 11 months ago

    Greatly enjoyed my PSP, but I definitely agree that it was lacking a little in the controls department. Two analog sticks would have made a pretty significant difference. UMD format was also a little too slow at times (one minute load-times for a footy match wasn't great. That's not to say that programmers couldn't have optimised better either, but PSN downloads to memory stick certainly helped a lot).

    I don't really agree with the comment above about games though, but I guess that's a matter of taste. I still think there are many more good games for the PSP than most other systems (including all of iOS / Android), simply because there are way more 'big' games that I enjoy. I'm not going to list anything - you can look up the list of 9/10 games right here on Eurogamer.

    It was clear though that the DS did have the edge in terms of originality, and in that respect I think it's very important that the range of controls on the PS Vita has so vastly improved.

    Overall the PS Vita definitely looks like it is set to improve on all major issues that the PSP had, and it's getting pretty close to my perfect portable gaming device.

  • Stomp224 #27 11 months ago

    Lumines and Outrun ports plz.

    (these are the only two games I repeatedly come back to)

  • TheEnforcer000 #28 11 months ago

    Shooters are my favourite, but the psp was simply terrible for them. Enjoyed PES and Madden though.

  • orangpelupa #29 11 months ago

    but PS Vita will still have high price....
    i wish sony release "new" PS Vita soon, then reduce the "old" ps vita price....

  • Rob #30 11 months ago

    "Another problem faced by the PSP, Yoshida said, was that its visuals were rendered outdated by high-definition home consoles soon after release.

    This is why Vita features touch-screen controls, a rear touch pad and motion sensors as well as enhanced graphics and dual analog nubs."

    Yeah, that's exactly why it features a touch-screen and the rest. Absolutely nothing to do with the success of the DS/iPhone. Not at all. Totally unrelated.

  • Toothball #31 11 months ago

    I never felt the need for a second analogue stick on my PSPs as none of the games I played on it needed one. Having come to the PSP scene from years on Gameboys and DSes, I was much more interested in playing the games that were made for PSP, rather than being made for PS2 and then shoehorned into the PSP. I found enough of those to keep me entertained but that was along with whatever came out for the DS. I'd have run out of games far sooner if I only had a PSP to play on.

    I'm sure I'll make use of all the Vita's inputs, but I'm more curious to see what they'll do with the touch surfaces. A second analogue will probably mean lots of FPS games, but we're far from short of those. I want to find out how developers will incorporate a rear touch surface into games, as that's the new trick on offer.

    @layleeloo

    Loco Roco is a great example there. I was much more keen to play that than any of the countless ports. It didn't even use most of the buttons on the system to play, never mind a second analogue stick.

  • kenichi-san #32 11 months ago

    "The other thing was that after a couple of years with the PSP people get used to looking at pretty pictures and especially after the launch of the Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3 the expectations for graphics moves on," Yoshida said."

    Not here :) I still love the PSP and still try to find/play all the RPG games for it. It's you (Sony) who gave up on the PSP too early in my opinion.

  • oerhoert #33 11 months ago

    Mr.Spo said: <em>"It's about having compelling experiences that can't be replicated on other platforms, or that haven't been done on any other platform"</em>

    Spot on.

    Nintendogs sold the DS. Monster Hunter sold the PSP. None of them were to be had in better editions on PS3.

    The PSP was, and is, great. It think it sounds like Sony still doesn't know what they're doing when it comes to positioning. It's inevitable that home consoles/PCs will outperform handhelds. That's not the point. The point is, does the handheld supply a fun, unique experience, or not?

    And will Sony be willing to put enough money into the machine to go full steam at two platforms, or is this essentially trying to fight a two-sided war?

  • sourc0r #34 11 months ago

    yeah well i could have told em that one analog stick won't do, but i guess dumb people stick together. seems the vita will finally set things straight

    @ #10

    actually I want hackers to breach its security just so that i will be able to play N64 games on it someday. just image what a talented hobby developer could make out of it. i don't want be left alone with what Sony offers me, remember that you would not have been able to watch youtube on your PSP otherwise and ive got the feelin that i'll still be missin atleast something on the Vita. SDK my ass

  • MasterOfTheStick #35 11 months ago

    I just hope the releases don't dry up like they did with psp.

  • NeoTechni #36 11 months ago

    "In addition, only on game that I'm aware of would use the MemoryStick in the same way that PS3 games use the hard drive."

    A bunch of games did actually, theres a thread on playstationcollecting.com that keeps track of them

  • redcrayon #37 11 months ago

    The PSP has loads of great games, it just had a quiet couple of years after launch.

    The problem was trying to run ports of PS2 and PSOne titles without the second stick, but even if you only count the stuff where it doesn't matter so much, like RPGs, puzzlers etc, it's a great little machine.

    Shame about the death of UMD though- upgrading to a Vita means that I can't trade the old one in against it without abandoning a pile of imported games that aren't on the EU store. Won't miss the grinding sounds they used to make when loading though.

  • Turfschipper #38 11 months ago

    I want this thing so bad.


    Why has eurogamer not a vita page yet? I would bookmark it.

  • Maledictus010 #39 11 months ago

    In my opinion one of the biggest problems with PSP was (is) the fact that in europe only a fraction of the total amount of games for this machine was released. Yes, import is a possibility, but that is not something everybody is willing or able to do. It would be nice if Sony would address that by not just releasing sports- and racing games here.
    Another issue (at least over here) is the downloading of games without paying for them. Of all the people I know with a PSP I'm one of the very few that actually pays for his games. I've seen people come into game stores asking for big memory cards and saying they need them for cracked games. It's accepted practice here. I suppose this requires change in people and not change by Sony, so it's a lost cause, but I still believe that it had an effect on the success of PSP.
    Edited by Maledictus010 at 12/07/11 @ 10:13

  • Phishfood #40 11 months ago

    They forgot to mention how bad the analouge nub was, a real pain in the arse to use for an extended period.