Sony UK boss: Vita sales are 'robust,' banking on Minecraft

Sony has been fairly low-key on Vita recently, with little mention of the device at its Gamescom press conference this year, and just a little Vita love during its Japan & Asia conference. However, Sony hasn't forgotten Vita – its sales are "robust and consistent," Sony UK head Fergal Gara claimed in an interview with Eurogamer.

"It's trucking along," Gara said. "It's currently in year-on-year growth and enjoying a healthy year, and it's about to hit its biggest and potentially most powerful release of the year, which is Minecraft. That could be an extraordinary release for Vita."

Minecraft is due to hit Vita soon. The big news around that game is now Microsoft's $2.5 billion acquisition of Minecraft studio Mojang, a deal that was confirmed this morning. With the purchase, Xbox head Phil Spencer said that Minecraft would "continue to evolve" on PlayStation, PC and mobile platforms.

Gara, speaking last week, said Sony will not ignore Vita this holiday season: "We're very pleased with how it continues to sell, and look forward to another big, seasonal spike at Christmas. Its sales profile has over the last couple of years proven to be far more seasonal than, say PS3, and how PS4 will behave once we have another year under our belts. There's a perception that it's fading away. I can absolutely assure you that that's not happening. It's proving remarkably resilient. We enter the peak season very optimistic about hitting similar or bigger numbers to last year."