Sony and Nintendo each have their own strategies in the gaming industry. The former prefers to focus on consoles and other gaming-related technology, such as virtual reality. Nintendo, on the other hand, is leaning towards the handheld market, hence their hybrid Nintendo Switch console. In line with this, Sony’s Andrew House recently sat down for an interview with Bloomberg to talk about their stance on the handheld market.
Sony moving on
According to a recent interview with Bloomberg, House revealed that they don’t see a “huge market opportunity” in the Handheld Gaming market.
While PlayStation Vita did quite well in Japan and Asia, he claimed that the demand wasn’t that strong abroad. However, House stated that Nintendo has their own strategy in the handheld market and that it’s doing “great.” Nonetheless, Sony is placing their full attention towards Home Consoles instead.
Sony released their current handheld, PlayStation Vita, back in 2012. Many believed that the system was a bit overpriced and that the exclusive memory cards for the system were way too expensive. Sony eventually dropped first-party support a few years later, yet left the console open for third-party developers. Since then, the PlayStation Vita has become a very niche machine filled with indie games and various Japanese role-playing games.
Third-party support for Switch
Nintendo is working on bolstering their relationships with third-party developers. While their console Wii U was deemed a failure, Nintendo Switch is doing pretty well. The Switch will be getting “Doom” and “Wolfenstein II: The New Colossus,” very soon, while “L.A. Noire” and “Skyrim” are slated to release later this year.
In line with this, Den of Geek shares that game publisher Bethesda still has plans of bringing over more games to the hybrid console.
Vice President Pete Hines mentioned that they’ve been in “constant conversation” with Nintendo. “We want this to be the start of a relationship that we build with Nintendo and Nintendo fans," he claimed.
Moreover, “The Evil Within 2” producer Shinji Mikami had previously mentioned that he wants to port the game over to the Switch.
Aside from its third-party support, Nintendo is also developing more first-party games for their console. Games like “Super Mario Odyssey” and “Xenoblade Chronicles 2” will be releasing later this year. They’ve also announced a new mainline “Pokemon” game and “Metroid Prime 4” for the Switch.