Rumors point to Sony shutting down the PSP PlayStation Store this summer, which will have a huge impact on not just PSP gamers, but those that play PlayStation Vita as well. The shutdown will make a wide number of PSP classics significantly more difficult to get their hands on, as the physical versions of these games can be quite expensive when compared to their digital counterparts.
Sony has not confirmed that it plans on shutting down the PSP PlayStation Store. However, it is probably going to happen eventually, and so fans may want to take note of certain PSP classics that are much cheaper on the PlayStation Store when compared to their physical UMD counterparts.
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Here are five games in particular that fans may want to purchase before the PlayStation Store on PSP is shut down.
Lunar: The Silver Star was originally released for the Sega CD and was an instant-hit with critics, often hailed as one of the best JRPGs of the 1990s. A new version, Lunar: Silver Star Story Complete made its way to Sega Saturn and PS1 a few years later, which added more content to make it an even more well-rounded experience. Lunar: The Silver Star was remade yet again a few years after that when a re-imagining of the original game made its way to the Game Boy Advance handheld.
Lunar: Silver Star Harmony is the third remake of Lunar: The Silver Star, and is perhaps the best way to experience the game. It improves the visuals, remixes the soundtrack, and provides a brand new English localization to boot. On top of all this, there are some serious quality of life changes that make the game more accessible to modern gamers. Right now, Lunar: Silver Star Harmony can be purchased from the PlayStation Store on PSP and PS Vita for a mere $14.99, which is much better than the staggering $90 to $250 that it regularly goes for on auction sites like eBay.
The Persona franchise has become much more popular in recent years, thanks to the big success stories that are Persona 4 and Persona 5. Persona 5 especially has thrust the franchise into the spotlight, and it has sparked interest in older games in the series. While Atlus has shown a willingness to bring older Persona games to new platforms as of late, as evidenced by the Persona 4 Golden PC port, there are still many older Persona games that are hard to come by when it comes to their physical releases.
One of those games is Persona 3 Portable. A handheld port of Persona 3, Persona 3 Portable makes a number of major improvements over the original game, and was hugely popular among fans of the franchise. The physical PSP version will cost anywhere from $80 to well over $100 typically, and while there's a good chance that the game will eventually make its way to other digital platforms, Persona enthusiasts may want to play it safe and pick it up while they still can. The digital version of the game is currently available for $19.99 from the PlayStation Store.
Most of the rare PSP games are JRPGs, and that holds true for The Legend of Heroes: Trails in the Sky. The Legend of Heroes: Trails in the Sky put the Legend of Heroes series on the map, and it's still going strong to this day. The game features a turn-based battle system on a grid, which earned some praise among critics. Critics were also impressed with The Legend of Heroes: Trails in the Sky's writing, story, and art style. This is another game that could very well make its way to other platforms, but for now, it's exclusive to the PlayStation Portable. Those that want to spring for the physical release are going to be set back anywhere from $5o to $150, so the digital version is definitely the cheapest way to play at $19.99.
The Valkyria Chronicles franchise got its start on PS3, giving fans an incredibly unique tactical RPG experience. The second game in the series made the jump to PlayStation Portable, and is, to this day, exclusive to Sony's handheld platform. Fans who want the full Valkyria Chronicles experience will need to play the game, but if the PSP PlayStation Store is shut down, that's going to be a much more expensive proposition. Valkyria Chronicles 2 costs anywhere from $30 to $60, and that's just for the UMD. On the PlayStation Store, it can be purchased for a mere $9.99, which is not a bad price at all.
The Ys action-RPGs are not the most well-known JRPGs out there, but they have their fans. The latest Ys games are regularly available on modern platforms, but some of the older ones are much more difficult to track down. Ys 3: Wanderers from Ys was originally released in the early 90s, and while it's been available for a wide variety of platforms, it was only ever released in the US on the Super Nintendo. A remake was released for PSP called Ys: The Oath in Fleghana, and it's the easiest way for fans to play the game. It's just $14.99 on the PlayStation Store, but once that version is gone, players will have to shell out $80-$100+ for the physical version of the game.