After several rumors and speculation, Sony has confirmed that the PS3, PS Vita, and PSP digital storefronts will close this year.

Sony issued a confirmation statement from its PlayStation support portal, revealing that it will end its support for older generation titles after nearly 15 years. the PS3 store will close on July 2 and the PS Vita store on August 27. the PSP store closed in 2016. but allowed users to purchase in-game items. That functionality will also end on July 2.

"After careful consideration, we have decided to make these changes to focus PlayStation Store resources on PlayStation 4 and PlayStation 5 to further enhance the customer experience," Sony said in an email sent to customers. in an email sent to customers.

Fortunately, users will continue to have access to all their data, including previously purchased media and games, through the download list. Games purchased through the cross-buy system do not require users to download both versions if they had previously downloaded only one of them. In other words, if you purchased a PS3/PS Vita game that supports Cross Buy, even if you downloaded one version, you own both versions and can re-download the game. If you purchase a PS4 game that supports PS3/PSP/Vita cross-buy after the above date, you will have access to all versions; as long as you have a PS Plus subscription, you will continue to have access to any games you have downloaded in the past.

A detailed breakdown follows.

The first hint of the closure was Sony's termination of the browser version of the PS Store. Shortly thereafter, more hints of the store's closure came from TheGamer.

While not ideal news, perhaps Sony will one day reopen the service by making older titles available on the new, dedicated PlayStation Now service.

But so far, there appear to be no such plans. Furthermore, Sony is busy dealing with the fear of not meeting its 2021 sales target and a worsening inventory situation.

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