Touch controls are the fucking worst. I don’t care what mechanics a game has, if the controls utilize touch for movement, aiming or any combination of the two I hate it.
I’m on the development team of Tales of Illyria, a choose-your-own-adventure/oregon-trail style RPG for Android. Why am I touting that? Our game doesn’t use touch controls for movement. We designed controls specifically for use on touchscreen devices, therefore player movement is automated. I don’t want a cookie, I don’t want your praise. I’m just telling you that’s what you have to do when working with mobile devices. Build a game from the ground up specifically for touchscreen input.
If I hate touch controls then naturally it means I like playing with a traditional mouse and keyboard setup or a gamepad (some of you probably just boo’ed). Problem is, I work way too damn much. It’s part of the reason why I update this site so sporadically. I write for Vulgamer in my free time, which I have very little of. I have need of a portable game console.
Therein lies the reason why the Vita saved gaming for me. An Xbox 360 takes a while to fire up and play, and there are very few games you can actually play in spurts (I don’t own a PS3). Even though I leave my PC on, the same holds true for most PC games. With the Vita, I can fire it up for a quick ten to fifteen minute play session and then power it down quickly so that I can jump back into work. Some of you may argue that you can do the same thing with other games and consoles, but I disagree. For the most part (and there are always exceptions to the rule), game consoles and PC games offer immersive play styles. That means when you sit down to play you want to take time and enjoy the worlds you are diving into.
It’s not that the Vita doesn’t have anything like that, because Persona 4 is definitely immersive and so is Soul Sacrifice. The main point here is that I can fire up my Vita, jump on a game for a bit and then turn it back off when I’ve had my fill. Unfortunately, that’s the type of gaming I have to do right now because I’m so busy.
Do I want you to feel sorry for me? Nope.
Do I need you to care and agree with me? Nope.
I’m merely stating that if it weren’t for the Vita, I would not be able to play the type of games that I enjoy playing. It is mostly due to a lifestyle that not everyone would understand (although I’m sure some of you can relate). On the weekends I can kick back and enjoy a more traditional game, but during the week I’d be screwed otherwise.
I will admit that I hope a lot more titles launch for the console in 2014, but only time will tell.
A PS Vita is very expensive though. Does it Play old PSP Games? Emulators?
The Vita is the successor to the PSP. It will play Playstation One and PSP titles that are available through the Playstation Network, and of course PS Vita games. There are a lot of indies coming out for it right now, but there are tons of great third party titles too.
It has been modified in some circles to play emulators, but that’s definitely frowned upon by Sony. Plus, if you install custom firmware to gain access to things like that you cannot update the official firmware, which means you can’t play online either. The PS Vita has some great multiplayer titles too.