The PlayStation Vita has had quite the rocky life; since its middling launch in 2011 Sony had mostly left the handheld out to die, quickly pulling away from supporting it with first party content. Meanwhile, indie and Japanese games flourished on the platform thanks to a small but loyal userbase. Now it's 2018, and the Nintendo Switch has been quietly smothering the remaining life out of the Vita. A few months ago saw Sony mention that physical game cartridges for the system would come to a halt. Today, Sony Interactive Entertainment's VP admitted that PlayStation Vita systems in Japan would finally be put to rest in 2019, when the company plans to end production. Perhaps more notably, he also stated that Sony PlayStation has no plans for a successor or handheld gaming console at this time.

Source: Famitsu
If you're interested in games for the PlayStation Vita, check out our highlights list

 

[Costello]

Goodbye my lover
Goodbye my friend
You have been the one
You have been the one for me

Not

 

[McHaggis]

TIL the PS Vita was still in production

 

[Justinde75]

Personally I think just think it failed since it didn't have alot of games that weren't available on other systems. Anime games are way too niche to catch the interest of normal consumers. The 3ds was way easier for people to pick up, especially with titles like Mario, Pokémon and Smash Bros. Also alot of parents got their child a 3ds. If one child has something that is interesting all the kids want it. Like have you ever heard a kid saying it wants a ps vita? Most people don't even know it's a thing.

 

[duwen]

Only if you like JRPGs and VNs.

...and shmups, and versus fighters, and 3d action games, and FPS's, and survival horror, and racing games... and all the other genres the 3ds doesn't really represent.

 

[Jayro]

And not a single tear will be shed for the portable PlayStation 2.7... err, I mean Vita.

 

[mightymuffy]

I still don't get the hur dur Vita was shit comments, it has GREAT games , GREAT ports, and is quite the little powerhouse for a portable, hell mine still gets tons of game time.
SURE it isn't as popular as the 3DS, but let's be real, I think we can all agree that NO ONE can go up against Nintendo portables anymore, they kinda turned it into an artform that no one can rival anymore.

The only major bullshit Sony pulled with Vita was the proprietary MemoryCards ... fuck those expensive piles of crap.

I think Sony thought they'd simply have to walk into town with the PSP and smash Nintendo without breaking a sweat just like they did with PlayStation in the console market (I even thought this would happen myself! As did most of the gaming media at the time) How wrong they (and most of us at the time) were... The Vita at least tried to do lots of things right (the screen on the original model is still a beaut!) but it was never gonna challenge the 3DS, and the hilarious decision to opt for proprietary memcards sealed its fate. Did well in Japan though, and got a few great titles as a result, so still a worthy purchase for me!
Were I forced to give up one of the machines though (Vita or 3DS - and don't give the missus any ideas!), then the Vita would be straight down the pawn shop without even a second thought..

 

[Axido]

...and shmups, and versus fighters, and 3d action games, and FPS's, and racing games... and all the other genres the 3ds doesn't really represent.

Fixed that for you. Even though I can only think of 3 first-person shooters on the Vita (KZ:Mercenaries, Resistance - Burning Skies and Borderlands 2). Everything else I know of is third-person. So, you might want to call it "shooters" in general.

 

[duwen]

...

Fixed that for you

Ignoring facts fixes nothing.
Don't get me wrong, I love the 3ds - I own two, and had my first on launch day... but it doesn't have the wealth of genre games that the Vita does.
I'm not saying that those genre's aren't on the 3ds, just that they're woefully under represented on the platform. For every shmup or versus fighter the 3ds has, the Vita has at least 5, and the same goes for the other genre's I mentioned. And there's a similar argument against the Vita, where it doesn't have the wealth of mascot platformers, puzzle games, and kid-friendly-shovelware that the 3ds does.

 

[DinohScene]

I like the Vita :c

Didn't know it was still in production in all honesty.

 

[Youkai]

Vita was a gem, unlike some haters here I still love it and for me it is one of the best handhelds ever made BUT they destroyed it with those ridiculous expensive memory cards...

of course they effect cartridge buyers less then people who buy from PSN or pirate but still sucks, especially if you do all three things

currently playing Cyber Sleuth Hackers memory on my Vita

 

[CraddaPoosta]

Goodbye my lover
Goodbye my friend
You have been the one
You have been the one for me

Not

Now I have to watch that clip of Michael Scott in his moment of frugal mourning.

 

[Localhorst86]

They were still producing these?

 

[Paulsar99]

Rip. But hey atleast it last longer than the wiiu.

 

[BORTZ]

And not a single tear will be shed for the portable PlayStation 2.7... err, I mean Vita.

I will lol, the Vita was baller.

 

[Deleted User]

I'm gonna have to pick one up before it becomes hard to come by for a decent price.

 

[Localhorst86]

I'm gonna have to pick one up before it becomes hard to come by for a decent price.

They already are in the western world. Haven't seen a device being sold in stores for ages. Your best bet is finding one on craigslist or ebay. You can be very lucky sometimes if you're willing to wait a few weeks and watch for new offers.
I bought a DSi XL in very good condition for 20€ and a PSV 2000 (also very good condition) for 75€ - which are really good deals, tbh.

otherwise, importing one from japan might be an option, but even then, they are a bit more pricey (but also a lot more beatiful if you can find a colored one)

 

[jt_1258]

So when it comes to mainstream dedicated handhelds consoles Nintendo has a monopoly now ehh. Well then. Sad to see it go as even it was outselling the xbx1 in Japan.

 

[duwen]

They already are in the western world. Haven't seen a device being sold in stores for ages. Your best bet is finding one on craigslist or ebay. You can be very lucky sometimes if you're willing to wait a few weeks and watch for new offers.
I bought a DSi XL in very good condition for 20€ and a PSV 2000 (also very good condition) for 75€ - which are really good deals, tbh.

otherwise, importing one from japan might be an option, but even then, they are a bit more pricey (but also a lot more beatiful if you can find a colored one)

Yeah - I believe this news is specifically about Vita production for Japan... for the rest of the world I think production ended a while back.
I picked up my 1000 OLED model at the start of the year for £50 with a 4Gb memcard and a copy of FIFA 14, but I'm also thinking about getting a Japanese slim before production stops.

 

[Deleted User]

otherwise, importing one from japan might be an option, but even then, they are a bit more pricey

Yeah I tried looking on Amazon JP, and they're already pretty expensive, even if you exclude shipping.

 

[Noctosphere]

well, looks like the Switch won