Monster Hunter Tri coming out on the 3DS around the same time as the Vita launch didn't help either. The Vita doesn't have the best Japanese centric line-up right now. I think it will do much better in the US.
PS Vita Price Cut by Japanese Retail
The 3G version is seeing heavy discounts at some shops.
The video game market has been quite volatile in Japan as of late. With the economy still reeling from the current worldwide downturn and the country still rebuilding in the wake of the 3/11 tsunami, games and hardware simply haven’t been selling as well as other markets. After a decent launch, the new PS Vita is seeing price cuts after just a couple weeks on shelves.
The Sony portable powerhouse reportedly sold 325,000 units in its first “week”, which was actually the first two days at retail. This was about 50,000 less than the 3DS, but still a solid showing. Things changed quite a bit in the system’s first full week at retail however, dropping to just under 75,000 units sold. The system actually came in behind the 3DS and PSP in sales for that week, coming in 5th place.
While these numbers are lower than, say, the 3DS in its first week, the numbers aren’t quite so dire, considering the economic climate at this time. However, that hasn’t stopped some retailers from dropping the price on the new handheld, especially for the more expensive 3G enabled version. It has been reported that the systems have been cut by as much as 20% to move them off the shelves.
This is a common practice in Japan, where prices are often slashed in record time. Final Fantasy XIII-2, for example, was being sold at 40% off just a couple weeks after launch, and many new and hot games see similar price drops in short periods of time. Still, seeing a new machine getting a price reduction at retail so soon does not bode well, and time will tell how this affects the system moving forward.
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