PS Vita won't take the 'social gaming revolution' west until 2012

At least Japanese gamers' social lives will be revolutionized this year. The Associated Press reports that Sony executive Kazuo Hirai announced that the PlayStation Vita, the successor to the PSP, will not release in the U.S. and Europe until 2012.

However, Sony will release the system on its home turf this year. Keep in mind that Sony never mentioned a release date for neither the West nor Japan. Whether the PS Vita will make it into Japanese gamers' grubby hands by Christmas--the most ideal release period--is still up in the air.

Of course, Hirai was asked by reporters in Sony headquarters in Tokyo how the company will react to Nintendo's drastic price cut of its 3DS. "We packed so much into the device and made it very affordable," Hirai said. "There is no need to lower the price just because somebody else that happens to be in the video game business decided that they were going to lower their price."

Sony has slated the PS Vita as a device that will reign in a "social gaming revolution," according to a few promotional videos released by the company. This is thanks to touted features like cross-game voice chat, communication and gift-sharing with PS Vita players nearby through its Near feature, a Facebook News Feed-like feature that displays status updates from other players and more. Considering other platforms have been capable of a few of these features for years, we're waiting with bated breath to see just how revolutionary the PS Vita will be.

Casual gamers dump 3DS, PSP to hook up with iPhone, Android

As Facebook would say, "It's complicated." According to a survey released by research firm Cowen and Company, only 26 percent of casual gamers are playing on a Nintendo DS, 3DS or Sony PSP, GamesIndustry.biz reports. By contrast, 52 percent of those surveyed reported playing games on their phone. Granted, this is a survey, but we smell a trend ... a bittersweet one.

"Over the last five years, the penetration of dedicated handheld platforms into survey respondents self-identifying as casual gamers has declined by 29 per cent, with the vast majority of that decline occurring in the last two years," the report reads, according to GI.biz. "We believe cellphone and smartphone gaming is significantly impacting demand for dedicated handheld devices."

The report is based on a survey conducted in September across 1,300, randomly selected people throughout the US, 1,001 of which reported that they've played video games. The report resonates with not only recent surveys, but with how a lot of investors feel. Well, at least in Nintendo's case. The big N's response?

"The concept of having our core franchises on other systems really flies in the face of what we believe in, and that's because by understanding the hardware, that's how we're able to bring these great experiences forward," Nintendo of America president Reggie Fils-Aime recently told us, referring to games like Super Mario 3D Land for 3DS. At the very least, bonus points for sticking to your guns, guys.

Do you think Nintendo and Sony have a chance to regain supposedly lost ground in portable gaming? Where do you play most of your handheld games now?