Epic president talks about Vita reservations

Epic Games president Mike Capps talks about his company's hesitance to jump on new systems at launch, and how the smart phone market is going to be a difficult hurdle for the PlayStation Vita.

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Epic Games president Mike Capps likes to jump into new technology, but from an investment standpoint the company tends to sit back and watch for a console's success before developing a title. In a new interview, Capps explains some of his reservations about the PlayStation Vita, and why its performance in the western market will determine the company's decisions to develop for it.

Capps' main concern seems to be how it will perform next to smart phones, which are taking an increasing share of mobile markets. "I'm not sure how well [Vita is] going to be accepted in our Western market which is primarily where our games sell," he told GamesIndustry.biz. "It's a really cool platform, but I have a phone, and it's really hard to compete with that."

Capps says that Epic worked on their tech because licensees were "curious" about the device, but that's a far cry from the familiarity that comes from shipping a game. "That's how we know we know that platform, and it's really important for us to do that," he said. "And so with Vita we're not planning on shipping a game and so that means we're pretty honest with folks and say 'you can have the Vita code we've got but this is not the same as us having shipped on Xbox or iPhone.'"

This isn't entirely new, as Epic held back on shipping an Xbox game until it had a year to gather an install base. He says launch titles are "costly in terms of poor install base on the platform," and that "the first year is always bad, it's always hard, and so we just prefer to wait."

Still, support from third-parties is necessary to build an install base, so it puts Sony in a bit of a catch-22 situation. Smartphone competition is going to be tough to overcome, and the Vita's dedicated handheld competition, the 3DS, will have a full year and a holiday season of a head start. We'll have to see if the device crosses the threshold to coax in publishers like Epic.

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From The Chatty
  • reply
    December 7, 2011 10:45 AM

    Steve Watts posted a new article, Epic president talks about Vita reservations.

    Epic Games president Mike Capps talks about his company's hesitance to jump on new systems at launch, and how the smart phone market is going to be a difficult hurdle for the PlayStation Vita.

    • reply
      December 7, 2011 11:40 AM

      I hate the, I have a phone argument.

      Can someone name a game on iOS or Windows Phone, or Android that is good and controls like a video game and not a touch the screen game? I can't.

      Let me know when something like Persona, Uncharted, or MGS hits iOS and actually controls like it would on Vita. Until then, this is a stupid market. Being worried about the install base is one thing. cCmparing mobile games to portable games is a completely different argument.

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        December 7, 2011 12:35 PM

        the "I already have a phone" is part of the install base discussion.... I can see alot majority of the consumers out there are going to go "So i have to spend $250 on the device, another $60 on this special memory card thingy, and then another $40 on a game? eh....maybe later, my kid can play farmville on his phone". the thing is you actually need a phone, and if it can double as a lower rate gaming system while you are on the go (and yes...this is all about gaming on the go), do you want to spend as much as a console to do so?
        The majority of the hardcore gaming community will prefer the better device, but how often do the gaming developers cater to the hardcore over casual?

        I have a few PSPs, and i admit dont play them as much as my iphone. Does that mean the iphone has better games? Definitely not. It just means i dont feel like lugging it around and worrying about charging it 95% of the time.......

        I was planning on buying a Vita day 1, since they finally added the one feature that the users have been asking for, but after all the stuff thats been coming out about it recently i might be waiting

        And the games really have been getting better by leaps and bounds on iOS. things like Gun Bros, Pocket Legends, Touch Tanks, Galcon Labs are all pretty damn fun to play, have multiplayer and each caters to a different audience

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          December 7, 2011 4:42 PM

          I like the where are the physical buttons on my iPhone arguement.

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        December 7, 2011 12:53 PM

        The "I have a phone" argument really has little to do with the quality of the games. For me, it's all about not wanting to carry around another, bigger device in my pocket when I already have something that can entertain me for short bursts. Do I think mobile games are all that great? Not really, but when I'm on the go I rarely have more than a few minutes to play a game anyway.

        Now, if you're taking a trip, on a flight or two, stuck in a hotel without a console or a PC, then yeah the Vita is looking really good. But for 99% of the time you are away from home, stupid little mobile games are a much easier distraction. If you are at home playing it, why bother when you can just play on your PC or console.

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        December 7, 2011 1:07 PM

        The whole point of the argument is if you have a smart phone, it's only a dollar to play a game. To waste 20 minutes in a waiting room or whatever, a lot of people aren't going to buy a Vita/3DS plus memory card or whatever, and still have to buy a $40 game and then also lug around another device. Obviously some people want the games that won't be on smart phones, but a lot of people just want to kill time and smartphone games fit the bill.

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        December 7, 2011 2:13 PM

        You do not understand.

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        December 7, 2011 4:55 PM

        Doesn't matter, wayyyyy more people have phones, and for enough of them they are "good enough" for games on the go. It isn't as good, but it really doesn't matter.

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        December 7, 2011 5:13 PM

        Normal people don't have time to spend playing games like Uncharted on a handheld device. Any time they have would be better spent playing Uncharted on a big screen TV. For the few minutes of spare time they have, maybe during commuting or at a doctor's office, its better to play something like Angry Birds. The Vita will fail hard and fast. Its pretty obvious. Another poor decision by Sony in a string of bad decisions.

    • reply
      December 7, 2011 5:33 PM

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