SPRING TO LIFE
From a rumour to our trusty travelling companion… PS Vita, this is your life!
27 jan – 2011
The existence of a successor to PSP is announced, referred to only as the Next Generation Portable, earning it the mysterious ‘NGP’ moniker.
6 JUN – 2011
At E3 Kaz Hirai takes to the stage to unveil NGP as PlayStation Vita, with a big presentation showing its many hardware features.
17 dec – 2011
Less than a year from the announcement, the console launches in Japan. Those not mad enough to import are very jealous because…
22 feb – 2012
…it doesn’t come west to the UK until February. Though with a stellar launch lineup and tons of features to play with, we’re satisfied.
31 oct – 2012
While not the first portable Assassin’s Creed’s game, Assassin’s Creed III: Liberation offers a truly console-like experience and a fantastically fresh adventure on handheld.
22 feb – 2013
Persona 4 Golden, an enhanced port of the PS2 game, releases over here. This defines PS Vita as a go-to platform for JRPGs.
29 nov – 2013
PS4 launches in Europe, and works with PS Vita straight out of the box, from cross-buy to PS4 link features like remote play and second screen.
16 jan – 2014
PlayStation TV hits Asian markets before it heads west later in the year, allowing you to plug-and-play PS Vita on the big screen.
7 feb – 2014
Thinner, lighter, easier to hold on the go – the PCH-2000 (AKA PlayStation Vita Slim) launches. It replaces the OLED screen with LCD, but still looks and plays a dream.
14 feb – 2014
PS Vita already has a strong offering of Japanese games, but the localisation of Danganronpa officially cements it as the go-to console for enthusiasts after fan translations garner a cult following online.
15 oct – 2014
Minecraft eventually comes to PlayStation Vita and sells like hotcakes, shifting millions of units on the platform alone. In Japan, a limited-edition Minecraft PS Vita is even sold.
14 nov – 2014
Winning a poll for which Japanese games players would like to see localised, Tales Of Hearts R gets a Western release.
6 nov – 2015
Persona 4: Dancing All Night releases, a shining star in PS Vita’s heavenly spread of rhythm games. It proves essential for any Persona fan.
26 apr – 2016
DrinkBox Studios releases Severed, a unique take on first-person dungeoncrawlers that utilises touch mechanics and works wonderfully on PS Vita. It proves the handheld is still the indie king.
1 may – 2016
PS Plus subscribers get God Of War: Ghost Of Sparta in May, and Chains Of Olympus the following month – remasters of the PSP games that are great on handheld.
15 sep – 2017
Ys VIII releases alongside a PS4 version, showing a big-budget-feeling JRPG can still work on the handheld, and feel brilliant to take on the go – an RPG with bite.
29 sep – 2017
Launching alongside the PS4 version, Danganronpa V3’s PS Vita version shows that it is still the perfect platform for this sort of adventure/ investigation game.
20 apr – 2018
With the phenomenal God Of War releasing on PS4, we put in a few hours from our hotel using PS Vita remote play. Fearsome daddy Kratos is always with us.
now
With our libraries having soaked up most of the PS Vita games that were offered as part of PS Plus, and a massive backlog of PlayStation greats, we won’t stop playing on the go any time soon…