Sony's Vita console sales hit 1.2 million

Sony's latest handheld games console, the PlayStation Vita, has sold 1.2 million units worldwide.

The company said the sales have exceeded its expectations and it also revealed that two million games have been sold globally since the Vita's launch in Japan on December 17 last year.

The machine was finally released in America and Europe this month, selling 800,000 units.

When added to the 400,000 sold in Japan, the overall salesbase is 1.2 million.

In comparison, Vita's rival, the Nintendo 3DS, is said to have sold 400,000 unit sales over its Japanese launch weekend although it has gone on to sell 6.7 million consoles worldwide in the eight months since.

The Vita is essentially a remodelling of the Sony PlayStation Portable, adding a second thumbstick which gamers say it vital for playing many titles.

Featuring a large screen and a rear touchpad and coming in WiFi-only and 3G versions, it has been bolstered by critcally acclaimed games such as handheld versions of the popular Uncharted franchise and another iteration of WipEout.

SCE group president Andrew House told MCV magazine: "PS Vita was designed to deliver the ultimate portable entertainment experience, and we couldn’t be more thrilled with the reaction we’re seeing from consumers and the pace at which PS Vita is selling."

Top three Vita games

Uncharted: Golden Abyss

A small-screen version of a big console classic, Uncharted: Golden Abyss is seen as the flagship launch game for the Vita. Although it is lighter on the cut scenes and cliff-hanging set-pieces, it retains the ethos of the series to date. As a boys-own adventure - and despite not including the popular female characters Elena and Chloe - it sets a high bar for future handheld releases and it looks as lush as the PS3 version.

WipEout 2048

When the PlayStation launched in the mid-1990s, WipEout was one of the outstanding early games and it helped to heave gaming out of the bedroom and into mainstream lives. It became a favourite in clubs up and down the UK but it was also a tricky beast. Today the controls are more fluid, the action is just as slick and fast and it is retains all of the challenge of its predecessors. There are few finer racers out there.

Everybody's Golf

Games such as Everybody's Golf are almost expected launch titles for a Sony games console and while it is not going to be the game that makes your gran pick up the handheld in the hope of some Wii Sports-style play, it is nevertheless a cute and fun game of golf which is well worth buying, particularly because it is available for just under £30 (Sony, to its credit, has unveiled more fluid price structures for Vita games).