Stick with The PSP or Get A Vita?

The upcoming release of the Playstation Vita has gotten a lot of buzz. Companies, like Taco Bell, have been giving the hand held game console out for free as part of a contest and the company is giving away free games as part of a push to stimulate sales of the console. Which is no surprise when you consider that they have been slaughtered in mobile game sales by the DSi and the newer 3DS for the last couple of years.

So should you get on the Vita bandwagon right away, or wait to see how this newest mobile offering plays out before you buy it? Lets look at some factors.

Game Offerings

For the time being the company will most likely release new titles for both consoles. After all, they will lose out on sales if they do not do so. The obvious exception is the mini-games that will be released for the Vita console, but only as a download. These mini-games however seem to be geared towards the little ones, and adult gamers won't miss them.


Graphics Quality


The Vita will have an enhanced graphics capabilities. The systems specs are as follows, a 5-inch OLED multi-touch capacitive touchscreen, with 24-bit color and a resolution of 960 × 544. When you compare it to the PSP that has an LCD screen with a resolution of 480 × 272, you can see that this is a significant upgrade. So, if you really want to have an upgrade to your graphics quality you need to deal with the Vita.

Wireless Downloads

The Wi-Fi and 3G on the Vita can be considered interesting, but unless you do a lot of multi-player mode it is probably superfulous in the age of smart phones and tablets. Most of us won't be web browsing on our game console with so many other devices in our pockets that are already bookmarked. The 3G could end up being just another bill that you are not getting a lot from. On the whole you could do without it.

So, should you get a Vita? To be honest, hardcore lovers of the PSP will probably want to wait and see how things fall out before they make the investment in a new console. After all, this is not the first time that the folks at Playstation have tried a new handheld only to find out that it did not go over well with gamers. Make sure that the Vita is not a flash in the pan before you drop $200+ on it.

Article by Kate Gatto