The PlayStation Vita is basically dead as the publisher has confirmed that it’s ending manufacturing of the system. Sony Interactive Entertainment senior vice president Hiroyuki Oda made the announcement earlier today, noting that the Vita will be discontinued in 2019, eight years after its initial release. And there doesn’t appear to be any plans for a successor, either.
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“Currently, we do not have any plans regarding a new handheld device,’ Oda said while speaking with Famitsu. “In Japan, we will manufacture the PlayStation Vita until 2019. From there, shipping will end.” Keep in mind that his comment only talks about the Japanese region, though, due to the system’s lack of popularity, the U.S. and European markets will probably follow.
The system did get some attention from the “hardcore” gaming audience since its initial release, thanks to games like Uncharted, Injustice: Gods Among Us, Ultimate Marvel vs. Capcom 3 and others. However, it has only sold 16 million units worldwide, which pales in comparison to the 80 million units the PlayStation Portable has sold.
Sony hasn’t really provided the system with the support it needed to thrive, despite making games like LittleBigPlanet and Borderlands 2 for it. It’s been kept alive mainly thanks to the indie community, with games like Bloodstained: Curse of the Moon among others performing reasonably well for it. And, of course, it never hurts to have Kinda Funny’s Greg Miller as an advocate for the handheld, among other fans.
But, alas, its time will come in 2019. That should give you a good amount of time to track one down and add it to your library, in case you’re curious. There are more than enough good games available for it, particularly from the PSP lineup, as a handful of titles are backwards compatible.
