3DS vs. Vita - which will be the RPG'ers choice?

[Themadcow]

With todays announcement of big price cuts for the 3DS, and the imminent (Sept?) release of the more poweful Sony Vita I'm torn as to which to get. Head to head, the backwards compatible catalogue for both machines is good so I'm thinking more in terms of new games.

If the Vita is more like the PS3 to develop for, will that push RPG developers (other than the really big guns) away because of cost?

Will RPG's really have any use at all for the 3D capabilities of the 3DS?

Usually I'd wait and see but as the Mrs has conceeded to purchase me a new handheld for my birthday I really have to make a choice. Right now it looks like the 'cheaper' 3DS because I don't have an old DS and the backcatalogue of dungeon crawlers like Strange Journey and Etrian Odyssey is a strong but I'm happy to be convinced otherwise...

ADMIT EDIT: Typo fixing.

[Eusis]

Sorry, seeing Vito instead of Vita was getting to me.

... Anyways, it's too early to call, but you WILL have stuff to play if you go with the 3DS, even though they're just ports thus far. There'll also be Level 5 stuff in the future, but I'm not sure how much of that will really be RPGs, and short of Dragon Quest I think some of their best efforts haven't been RPGs anyway. This generation's showed you can't really make a reliable call in regards to platforms, though it's possible it ALSO showed that handhelds are the bastion for JRPGs now.

[Themadcow]

That's what worries me about the Vito (...oooonly kidding) - it's that it's technology will scare off potential RPG developers that aren't equipped to deliver high end visuals. We saw next to no decent RPG's on the PS3 (especially in Europe) for the first 3 years of the PS3's life.

Now, whether it's easier to develop a '2D' game on a higer spec console than a 3D game on a lower spec console.. I have no idea. But I do see some developers ignoring the 3D functionality of the 3DS as the novelty wears off, maybe releasing 2D only titles for the system - something that I can see appealing to RPG developers.

On the other hand, portable Demon's Souls? Yus please.

[badsanta]

As always, it will depend on both the games, and the amount of them.

[ShadowLaguna]

In my opinion, it's too soon to determine which will be the better system for RPGs. It may be a bit easier to answer this after about a year of the Vita's release. But at the moment, I'm only going with the 3DS, as it has some pretty solid-looking RPGs coming out for it.

[CDFN]

That's what worries me about the Vito (...oooonly kidding) - it's that it's technology will scare off potential RPG developers that aren't equipped to deliver high end visuals. We saw next to no decent RPG's on the PS3 (especially in Europe) for the first 3 years of the PS3's life.

Now, whether it's easier to develop a '2D' game on a higer spec console than a 3D game on a lower spec console.. I have no idea. But I do see some developers ignoring the 3D functionality of the 3DS as the novelty wears off, maybe releasing 2D only titles for the system - something that I can see appealing to RPG developers.

On the other hand, portable Demon's Souls? Yus please.

I don't think that developers will feel pressured to deliver high-end visuals on the vita. Despite the hardware people will still have the "it's a handheld" mentality so I don't think anyone will be shocked if certain games look a bit more basic, people will be comparing it with the other handhelds available on the market, not home consoles, at least initially. Developers should be more concerned with exploring the touchscreen/pad combo and the other features the system offers to enhance gameplay. Besides, everyone seems to agree that the system is very developer friendly.
As for the rpg library, it's too early to tell.

[Yoda]

Well I hope it's the Vita, based on the fact the screen is bigger and it has dual analogs.

[ZeronHitaro]

Vita should be the obvious choice. After all if Sony keeps up the PSN eventually the store will start carrying "PS2 Classics". Between that and PSOne there will never be any reason to not own whatever console/handheld can support that. I'm willing to bet it'll be the Vita, if not it's immediate successor.

[Kevadu]

I know this isn't what you want to hear, Themadcow, but honestly I wouldn't buy either system now.  At least not for RPGs.

Keep in mind if you're planning on playing DS games on the 3DS I have heard (though I don't have a 3DS myself to confirm...) that most DS games really don't look good on the 3DS screen because of the stretching from the resolution differences.  When you add in the 3DS's battery life issues I think you're much better off playing DS games on a DS.

Maybe see if you can find a cheap DS somewhere.  There are probably great deals to be had these days, so I wouldn't pay MSRP.

Personally I'm quite interested in the Vita, but not for RPGs at this point.  They've barely announced any yet.  Of course it's still really early, and RPG developers tend to be slower about adopting new platforms in general.

[hell_snake]

Well, like CDFN mentioned earlier, I've read that the Vita is actually easy to develop for unlike the PS3.

Also, Sony openly supports garage devs: http://www.develop-online.net/news/38201/Sony-Support-garage-devs-or-innovation-suffers

While Nintendo has this to say about that: "In our view, that’s not a business we want to pursue".

Who knows, we might get an awesome RPG from one of those garage devs someday and apparently that's not a possibility if you only own a 3DS. Well, until Nintendo changes its stance.

About the price drop, obviously it's an important factor, but it's not the only variable in this equation. It's hard to predict what the market will want by the end of the year, but I hope the Vita is going to be the handheld to get for RPG'ers simply because of the two analog sticks, the superior hardware specs and the freaking OLED display. The device also has the potential to have iterations of RPG franchises from home consoles without a significant drop in visual quality.

All in all, I predict that I'll eventually be buying both. Games like Beyond the Labyrinth and Time Travelers (not sure if this one in particular is an RPG) look promising and I wouldn't want to miss out on them if they turned out to be great and were 3DS exclusive.

p.s. 3D on a handheld is a shitty gimmick and hopefully everyone becomes aware of that quickly.

[Zendervai]

The only company that seems to have confirmed RPGs for the 3DS is Atlus, at least as far as I know.

[Yggdrasil]

Time Travelers (not sure if this one in particular is an RPG)

from Wikipedia: Time Travelers is an upcoming video game "without a genre" for the Nintendo 3DS which is being developed by Level-5. Besides obviously involving "time travel", the game is said to contain a "massive, in-game world"."

[hell_snake]

Time Travelers (not sure if this one in particular is an RPG)

from Wikipedia: Time Travelers is an upcoming video game "without a genre" for the Nintendo 3DS which is being developed by Level-5. Besides obviously involving "time travel", the game is said to contain a "massive, in-game world"."

Well, since the dev team was originally working on Ushiro, a PSP RPG, I'd say this game has a higher chance of being categorized as an RPG or an adventure game with some RPG elements than "A game without a genre".

So we've got ATLUS and Square Enix supporting the system and we have tri-Ace's Beyond The Labyrinth. Future aint that bleak for the 3DS after all.

[SquarePenix]

Well, like CDFN mentioned earlier, I've read that the Vita is actually easy to develop for unlike the PS3.

Also, Sony openly supports garage devs: http://www.develop-online.net/news/38201/Sony-Support-garage-devs-or-innovation-suffers

While Nintendo has this to say about that: "In our view, that’s not a business we want to pursue".

Who knows, we might get an awesome RPG from one of those garage devs someday and apparently that's not a possibility if you only own a 3DS. Well, until Nintendo changes its stance.

About the price drop, obviously it's an important factor, but it's not the only variable in this equation. It's hard to predict what the market will want by the end of the year, but I hope the Vita is going to be the handheld to get for RPG'ers simply because of the two analog sticks, the superior hardware specs and the freaking OLED display. The device also has the potential to have iterations of RPG franchises from home consoles without a significant drop in visual quality.

All in all, I predict that I'll eventually be buying both. Games like Beyond the Labyrinth and Time Travelers (not sure if this one in particular is an RPG) look promising and I wouldn't want to miss out on them if they turned out to be great and were 3DS exclusive.

p.s. 3D on a handheld is a shitty gimmick and hopefully everyone becomes aware of that quickly.

Why exactly is 3D on a handheld (and I guess you can apply this to consoles as well) a gimmick?  I'd love to hear an intelliegent argument on this stance.  That includes not saying "it adds nothing to the gameplay".  That argument can be made for a LOT of features in gaming today.

[Fei]

First of all, the makers of Eternal Eden, an RPGMaker game, have been working on a 3DS remake for quite a while.  I've had it in my head that the 3DS is therefore conducive to indie efforts.

http://www.blossomsoft.com/gamezopher/category/eternal-eden-3ds/

The 3DS makes DS games blurry, and picking up an older, cheaper DSi after holding the spanking new, wallet-draining 3DS puts a negative spin on the experience.  It's lose-lose.  Remember those magnifiers they used to make for handhelds?  That would be perfect for the 3DS playing DS games in their native resolution.

3D on a handheld doesn't have to be a gimmick, but when it is, I still welcome it.  Whatever minor 3D effect Devil Survivor OC has won't anger me just because "the 3D is dumb".  More to the point, Pilotwings 3D is difficult with the 3D effect off, because you can't judge your distance from rings as well.

The poor implementation of 3D in media has created this idea that all 3D is a waste of money and stupid.  The 3DS is like looking at a regular DS, except there is unobstructive 3D depth.  It's nice.

I hate when I draw such obvious lines in the sand, but really, how uncomfortable will it be to use a touchscreen on the back of a Vita?  That's what I call gimmicky.  The thing might as well have been a giant button you can tap, because that's as far as I see most developers going with that.  I could be very wrong though.



Having said that, I kinda want a Vita to play PSP games.  I'm assuming the battery heat and noise and stuff will be better than with PSP.