Sony Sony Denies Widespread PlayStation Vita Glitches

Amaury · Dec 23, 2011

Article: Sony Mystified by PS Vita Glitch Reports

Published: 12/21/2011, 4:05 PM PST

Guardian said:

Sony is fuming after a number of stories appeared online stating that the first PS Vitas sold in Japan have been beset by widespread glitches, allegedly including problems powering the handheld console up and down and frozen touchscreens.

While it acknowledges that a few new PS Vita owners may have experienced isolated malfunctions, it is adamant that users are experiencing no more problems than would be expected given that 325,000 units of the handheld console were sold during its launch weekend in Japan.

David Wilson, head of UK PR at Sony Computer Entertainment, said: "The PS Vita has had a terrific launch and sold in large numbers. We're annoyed with these stories, because we can't find any evidence of widespread glitches.

"The stories even said that Sony has issued an apology for PS Vita glitches, which simply isn't true â€“ there's an apology on our Japanese website for people who are having trouble getting through to our technical help line, but that's it.

"And there's a page showing standard procedures for powering the PS Vita on and off, which has been on our site since before the launch, which has been presented in some news stories as a means of solving the alleged glitches."

Sony appears to have been a victim of internet Chinese whispers, combined with an element of its Japanese website getting lost in translation.

It has issued a firmware update, but that is only to be expected with a new and complex handheld console such as the PS Vita. There is also a YouTube video showing a PS Vita with a frozen screen, which has been replicated in various places on the web, but that hardly constitutes a welter of malfunctions.

One wonders whether the Sony-haters who hacked the PlayStation Network earlier in the year and aimed a barrage of bile at the company (including threats to senior executives) are up to their old tricks again.

Despite the negative reports, the PS Vita's future would still appear to be bright: the 325,000 units sold in its opening weekend represents a solid if unspectacular start.

Nintendo's 3DS handheld sold 371,000 units in its opening weekend, but sales subsequently tailed off swiftly, which was attributed to a lack of compelling games.

The PS Vita, by contrast, launched in Japan with a healthy portfolio of 24 games, and Sony has announced that 33 games will be available for the UK launch on 22 February.

And even if it does turn out that a significant number of the first PS Vitas sold in Japan were faulty, Sony has plenty of time to iron out teething problems before the unit goes on sale in the UK.
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libregkd · Dec 23, 2011

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Noroz · Dec 23, 2011

I honestly don't see the big fuzz about it. As long as it's not a hardware issue, and they can fix it with an upgrade, what's the big deal?

Any console with a lot of functions are more or less guaranteed to have some bugs caused by the software. If all it takes is an update, I don't see the problem. However, if there was a hardware problem, that would be worse.

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Sony Sony Denies Widespread PlayStation Vita Glitches

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