Sony: Why Vita gives us an advantage over Wii U

The Vita's impressive horsepower gives Sony an important advantage over the Wii U and its tablet controller, so says Sony Worldwide Studios VP Scott Rohde.

Speaking in an E3 interview with GamesIndustry International, Rohde argued that Vita-to-PS3 connectivity inherently holds more potential than the Wii U's dual-screen offering as both Sony systems boast their own processor.

"That Wii U tablet doesn't have a processor in it, so it's got to be fueled by that box sitting under your TV," he said.

"We can do some pretty special things that you'll start to see on the [E3] floor this year and you'll see more over the upcoming months about what you can do when you actually have a processor in the thing that's in your hand as well."

Of course, the Wii U gamepad comes with the system, while a Vita is a separate console retailing at around ?200. Sony had only sold 1.8 million Vitas worldwide by the end of March, and it's unclear how many of those buyers also own PS3s, of which 63.9 million have been shifted globally.

"It's only been three months though, just three months. There are a lot of games on that machine and I think what we have to hang our hat on... Every single person that actually picks that thing up absolutely loves it," Rohde said in Vita's defense.

"If you're a gamer and you pick up a Vita, you're going to have fun. And you're going to use it over a device like this [points to an iPhone] if you really want a game.

"Look at two of the titles that are here at E3, PlayStation All-Stars and Sly 4, for example. Both available on Vita and PS3, and there's some sort of interactivity across the board. Developers are interested in that kind of stuff," he added.

"We have a lot of good things coming. And some of the games that we have coming out in the near future, they do cross out into the mobile space a little bit... it's absolutely natural for games to do that. You see all the big third party publishers have been doing it for a while."

Despite the Vita's relatively high cost and sluggish start at retail, Rohde was unwilling to discuss a potential price drop, though he added that Sony has been discussing what's "going to be best for the consumer."

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