Following a report last week, Sony has made it official: the PS3, PS Vita, and PSP digital stores are closing soon. Specifically, players on the said consoles will no longer be able to buy games from the said stores when they close on the following dates:
- PS Vita & PSP – July 2, 2021
- PS3 – August 27, 2021
While players will no longer be able to buy games on the said consoles, they will still be able to download their previously bought titles. Here’s a complete breakdown of what players will and will not have access to when the digital stores close (via PlayStation Support):
Features you will still be able to access
- You will still be able to re-download and play previously purchased game titles.
- You will still be able to access previously purchased video/media content.
- You will still be able to redeem game and PlayStation Plus vouchers.
- You will still be able to re-download and play claimed game titles through PlayStation Plus as long as you remain a member of the service.
Features you will lose access to:
- You will no longer be able to purchase PS3, PS Vita and PSP digital content, including games and video content.
- You will no longer be able to make in-game purchases through games on PS3, PS Vita and PSP.
- You will no longer be able to redeem PSN wallet fund vouchers (e.g. gift cards) on PS3, PS Vita or PSP devices once PlayStation Store and purchase functionality for these devices close. Your PSN wallet funds will remain in your PSN account, but you will only be able to use your wallet funds to purchase PS4 and PS5 products on PlayStation Store on the web, PlayStation App or on PS4 and PS5 consoles.
The digital stores closing for the PS3 and the PlayStation handhelds is a big blow to fans of the said consoles. After all, there are several games and DLCs that can only be played on the aforementioned devices. Hopefully Sony is able to make a service where players can play old PS3/PSP/PS Vita titles. If not, players might have to rely on emulation to play older titles.
Source: PlayStation via IGN