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VITA NIXED

Sony finally orders end to production of PlayStation Vita games

PLAYSTATION Vita fans in Europe and the US have always felt pretty neglected compared to their Japanese counterparts.

Today, the final insult came; Sony has told all developers outside of Japan to stop submitting code for production onto the system's gamecards.

 The Vita was launched in 2011 and 2012 with a massive marketing machine behind it, but never quite lived up to expectations
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The Vita was launched in 2011 and 2012 with a massive marketing machine behind it, but never quite lived up to expectationsCredit: AFP
 Persona 4: Golden was one of a very small number of must-have PS Vita exclusives -- and so a solid contender for the title of Best Game No-One's Played
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Persona 4: Golden was one of a very small number of must-have PS Vita exclusives -- and so a solid contender for the title of Best Game No-One's Played

The PlayStation Portable follow-up still has a pretty devoted following in Japan where it has received solid software support, but it never really took off commercially outside of the island nation.

The Vita's launch in 2012 coincided with the rise of smartphone and tablet gaming, and within a couple of years the portable console had become the red-headed stepchild of Sony's line-up.

It was occasionally let out of the attic for a welfare check at the end of big briefings, but mostly it was just in the corner weeping about the absurd cost of its own memory cards.

that Sony Europe and their American counterparts have told developers that all production of cards should stop by 31 March next year, and that all code requests should be submitted by June 28 this year.

 The original Vita was meant to be all about the games, but really lacked any 'killer' titles with mainstream appeal
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The original Vita was meant to be all about the games, but really lacked any 'killer' titles with mainstream appealCredit: Getty Images - Getty
 Sony did try and revitalise the system with a slimmed-down version, but even that wasn't enough to save it
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Sony did try and revitalise the system with a slimmed-down version, but even that wasn't enough to save itCredit: Sony

This final nail in the Vita's coffin comes two months after Vita-owning PlayStation Plus subscribers stopped getting monthly games for their handhelds. Support for the handheld ended on the same day it did for the PlayStation 3, which came out a full six years before the Vita.

While the success of Nintendo's 3DS had an impact on the Vita's sales and marketing as it gobbled up what was left of the mobile gaming market once smartphones had taken their slice, it was probably the record-breaking launch of the Nintendo Switch that removed what little doubt their was in the system's future.

The Vita was meant to be console gaming on the go--exactly what the Switch delivers and the Vita never quite managed.


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