Sony may have dropped support for the PS Vita faster than players had hoped for, but it still believes that the handheld was an “evolutionary leap forward in portable gaming.” In a webpage dedicated to PlayStation’s 30th anniversary, the company said that its goal was to offer “console-quality” gaming in a compact portable system.
Sony has never officially disclosed PS Vita lifetime sales figure
A lot has been said about the PS Vita and why it ultimately failed, but the handheld was arguably ahead of its time. Sony believes that it offered “revolutionary new features” in handheld gaming, and that the PS Vita had a robust and diverse launch lineup.
“Putting a true console experience into the pockets of gamers worldwide meant innovations on a more compact scale, from how players interacted with game worlds, to building an interconnected ecosystem with home PlayStation consoles,” Sony added.
What’s understandably missing in the webpage is just how many units the PS Vita sold in its lifetime — a figure Sony has never disclosed. Its predecessor, the PSP, sold over 80 million units, which Sony proudly shared on the same webpage.
Unofficial PS Vita sales estimates are around 15-16 million units. Considering this, Sony’s portable gaming hiatus is no surprise.
That said, there’s been some good news on that front in form of reports from credible sources that Sony’s looking to make a return in the handheld market following the success of PS Portal.
