Sony's Shuhei Yoshida reinforces importance of indies to PS Vita

Sony Worldwide Studios president Shuhei Yoshida says that indie developers will be key to the success of the PS Vita. He wants the platform to offer a variety of experiences, from immersive AAA titles to bite-sized entertainment.

"The whole development process of Vita was us watching the smartphone and the tablet market grow and blossom," Yoshida told Gamasutra.. "We've seen lots of small games sold digitally through the app stores of each device, and that's something we thought is a great addition to the whole offering of video games to the consumers."

"We do not necessarily see the smartphone replacing the portable console market," Yoshida added. "It's true that many casual people already own smartphones, and spending a dollar for a game is a very easy thing to do. People who really like games want more immersive, deeper games. In addition, they also enjoy short-form, small games."

SCEA's Pub Fund is focused on funding indie developers and Yoshida says Tale From Space: Mutant Blobs Attack from Drinkbox Studios (which was funded through the program) is one of his favorite games.

"We do it for the love of it, almost. It's not like small games sell $100 million revenues. But we really think it's important to work with younger people, and people who really sometimes disregard conventions of making games -- Jon Mak made Everyday Shooter by himself," says Yoshida. "When games are made by a small number of people, the creative vision of one person really shines through the entire game. That's really where we find some magic happens."

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