Sony officially announced that the NGP portable games console has been renamed the PlayStation Vita, and gave it an American, European and Japanese price. But where does that leave us here in Australia?
Mark over at Kotaku has a Pepsi Max-fuelled stab at what we can expect to pay here in Australia when the Vita’s official local pricing gets announced. He reckons that Sony is going to buck the trend of its previous console launches and give us a good deal, at $349 for the Wi-Fi version and $399 for the 3G. His reasons are based on the strength of the Aussie dollar, and the need for Sony to try and regain favour with its fan base.
But I disagree. When it comes to Sony, Australia pretty much falls under the European banner for all intents and purposes, which means its best if we look at the European pricing model. Even the local press release only included European pricing information.
€249 is roughly equivalent to $A340. Which makes Mark’s prediction pretty much bang on. Except for the inevitable Australia tax you can expect with any gadget purchase. For that reason alone, I’d expect the Vita to sell for at least $379, but more likely $399, which is in line with previous markups on gaming consoles.
Only time will tell though. What do you expect?
[Kotaku]