PS Vita sales disappoint at 2.2 million units worldwide

I can't think of a single person who was actually excited about it.

According to a recent article from Edge, the PS Vita is being outsold by its predecessor, the PSP, by almost two units to one.

This really isn't a surprise to anyone since the portable system has been abysmally received in Japan and had one of the worst releases in America compared to any other handheld. Granted, the Vita probably had more commercials than the 3DS, and is more versatile and technically impressive, but something just doesn't seem to sit right with consumers.

In my article reviewing the Vita I stated that there really isn't anything wrong with the system per say. Really, the issue becomes the purpose and need for use of it. For the price tag, $250 new (I'm sure you can go to any game store and buy a used one), it makes sense. There is a whole lot going on inside of a PS Vita. The dual touch pads, high powered graphics, game types, music capabilities, movie capabilities, camera and WiFi connectability are all equally impressive and functional.

The problem arises from need. Gamers are really having to ask themselves if they really need this device. After all, it's literally a portable PlayStation 3 system and one of the big draws is being able to continue playing games off of your PS3 onto your Vita should you have to leave the house. Obviously, there aren't enough people interested in doing that at all.

When it comes down to it, a handheld system's strengths are in the ability to entertain for a few minutes up to an hour or so, then be put down. That's how Nintendo has done it for years and continues to succeed. The games on a GameBoy or DS were always ones that were easy to pick up, but satisfied you enough after putting them down a few minutes later. "Pokemon's" entire appeal is that it has the combat and adventure feel of "Final Fantasy" with a lower level of involvement. Sure you could spend hours on the game training and whatnot, but you didn't have to in order to have fun.

I mean, it looks fun.

The games so far on the Vita (we've done at least three reviews so far) have been good games. However, the best of them were the fighting games because really, that's the best example of the Vita as a handheld. "Uncharted: Golden Abyss" was an amazing game. However, the amount of attention and invested time to play it is too great for it to be a game you play on the go. So if you're not playing it out and about, but rather at home, there's no reason to play a PS Vita on a couch when a PS3 is there with all three "Uncharted" games.

Then there are the multimedia aspects like the camera, videos and such. With all the portable technology that is at the disposal of consumers in regards to tablets and even phones, there's no need to buy another gadget that has the capabilities that previously owned tech possesses.

The fact is that the Vita came too late to the party. Much like that friend who brings a six-pack of beer when everyone's already moved on to mixed drinks and hard alcohol, Sony brought something useful and competitive to the table, but consumers have just moved on. And for the price tag, it just doesn't seem worth it to even try it out.