PlayStation had plans to shut down the PlayStation 3 and PlayStation Vita stores for good in the summer - but the subsequent reaction to losing a huge number of fan-favourite titles has caused it to change its mind.
Writing in a post to the PlayStation Blog, CEO Jim Ryan explained that it became "clear that we made the wrong decision" regarding the preservation of the legacy of PlayStation and the bold steps into the future with the PlayStation 5. The panic that over 100 games only available on this digital platform - like Tokyo Jungle, Rain, MotorStorm RC and Infamous: Festival of Blood - would be lost to the ether saw gamers stampede to the digital stores and snap up what they could.
And it is bizarre, truth be told, that this was ever considered. Surely Sony would have a literal investment in keeping its library of first- and third-party titles safe and sound. To continue with this metaphor, you don't set fire to a third of a bookstore because the books in that section aren't selling as well as they did when they were printed.
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"Historically, games haven't really considered themselves as being a cultural industry," said Iain Simons, director of culture at the National Videogame Museum, when we spoke to him about maintaining the legacy of the medium. "It's literally baked into their business model that the next game is always the most exciting one, the one you really need to have - and that the previous one is now obsolete. With that underpinning everything, it's easy to see why preservation isn't top of the list of priorities."
Fortunately, Sony has had its ear to the ground and chose to walk back on its decision to close the PlayStation 3 and PlayStation Vita stores. "When we initially came to the decision to end purchasing support for PS3 and PS Vita, it was born out of a number of factors, including commerce support challenges for older devices and the ability for us to focus more of our resources on newer devices where a majority of our gamers are playing on," said Ryan.
He continued: "We see now that many of you are incredibly passionate about being able to continue purchasing classic games on PS3 and PS Vita for the foreseeable future, so I'm glad we were able to find a solution to continue operations. I'm glad that we can keep this piece of our history alive for gamers to enjoy, while we continue to create cutting-edge new game worlds for PS4, PS5, and the next generation of VR."
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Yeah. Don't scare us like that again, Sony. Geez. It is worth noting that Sony reiterated that PSP commerce functionality will still shut down on July 2nd, so be aware of that if you've got your eye on any exclusive titles for the handheld (one of the very best, ever). While you're here though, there is an absolute banger of a giveaway going on for PlayStation 4 and 5 right now. As part of PlayStation's Play At Home program, Horizon Zero Dawn is available for free for everyone, and here's how you get your mitts on it.
Featured Image Credit: Sony Interactive EntertainmentTopics: News, PlayStation, Retro Gaming