Mario creator acknowledges abilities of Sony's latest handheld, but says it doesn't have the software-hardware combination that makes for a strong product.

The PlayStation Vita has struggled in the sales charts, and Mario creator Shigeru Miyamoto thinks he knows why. Speaking to Edge, Miyamoto suggested the Sony system's software isn't matching the abilities of the hardware.

Shigeru Miyamoto has some recent experience launching hardware without the right software.

"It's obviously a very hi-spec machine, and you can do lots of things with it," Miyamoto said, "But I don't really see the combination of software and hardware that really makes a very strong product."

Miyamoto expressed a similar sentiment about the 3DS's initial struggles after launch.

"When we launched the 3DS hardware we didn't have Super Mario 3D Land, we didn't have Mario Kart 7, we didn't have Kid Icarus: Uprising," he told Edge. "We were striving to have all of these ready for the launch, but we weren't able to deliver them at that time. We were kind of hoping that people would, nevertheless, buy into the product, find 3DS hardware promising, but looking back we have to say we realize the key software was missing when we launched the hardware."

Nintendo spurred the system's retail success with a substantial price cut mere months after launch, and a holiday lineup of games included Mario Kart 7 and Super Mario 3D Land. Though the cut has Nintendo selling the 3DS at a loss and contributed to the company's first-ever annual shortfall, the company has said it expects to rebound for the current fiscal year.

Read and Post Comments | Get the full article at GameSpot