PS Vita drops price in the US… kind of

By Ryan Fleming Updated August 19, 2013

graduation gifts Sony PS Vita

Gamers that have been hoping for a price drop for Sony’s PS Vita may have finally gotten their wish. Or maybe not.

Following a major (and likely temporary) price drop in Hong Kong only, Best Buy and Target are both listing the Wi-Fi and Wi-Fi/3G models of the PS Vita at $200, a $50 and $100 mark down, respectively. Many retailers, however, including GameStop and Walmart, two of the world’s biggest game sellers, are continuing to sell the hardware at the normal prices.

As Joystiq was quick to point out, with Gamescom coming this week, if Sony were going to announce a price drop it would make sense to do it now. The Sony press conference is on August 20, and it’s possible that Best Buy and Target are just jumping the gun a bit and that Sony will have a major announcement regarding the PS Vita pricing during the show. Alternatively, the retailers may just be trying to take advantage of the increased excitement in the gaming fanbase that typically comes from a major event like Gamescom or E3.

The real question is whether this is a temporary sale, as the notice on Best Buy’s site suggests, or if it really is a long-hoped-for permanent price cut.

best buy

Almost since the day the PS Vita was released in February 2012, people have criticized the price of the hardware as well as its expensive peripherals, like the exorbitantly priced, proprietary memory cards. Yet Sony has remained steadfast in its pricing even as the Vita’s nearest competitor, Nintendo’s 3DS, has seen its sales explode – not coincidentally immediately after a major price drop.

Sony has big plans for the Vita when it comes to the upcoming PlayStation 4, but currently the hardware’s sales have been anemic; in 18 months, Sony has only sold just over 5.5 million units. Nintendo, on the other hand, has sold nearly 33 million 3DS units worldwide.

Topics

Sony

Former Digital Trends Contributor

Ryan Fleming is the Gaming and Cinema Editor for Digital Trends. He joined the DT staff in 2009 after spending time covering…

Gaming

Turn your PS5 into a colorful throwback with these translucent faceplates

Purple Dbrand retro darkplates for the PlayStation 5.

Dbrand is back with new console covers, or as it calls them "darkplates," for PlayStation 5 consoles. These new Retro Darkplates are supposed to be throwbacks that mimic the colors of translucent Nintendo 64 systems.

This announcement marks the accessory manufacturer's grand return to making console covers for the PS5. Dbrand previously sold PS5 darkplates during the system's first year on the market, but Sony threatened legal action against the company. After that, Dbrand said at the time that it was forced to "submit to the terrorists' demands" and stopped selling darkplates. Sony ended up releasing colored console covers of its own in 2022. Clearly, Dbrand is now confident enough again in its product (or found a legal loophole) to start selling these darkplates for the PS5, and decided to base them on some of its viral social media posts.
These new darkplates come in four N64-inspired colors: Atomic Purple, Ice Blue, Fire Orange, and Smoke Black. The side panels are translucent, while Dbrand also provides a cover for the black center bar on the PS5, which makes it look like it's translucent as it shows an image of the system's innards. If you choose to buy a Retro Darkplates kit, you'll get one Retro Darkplate set, one hue-matched retro middle and bottom skin, three left light strips, three right light strips, and a microfiber cloth.

Gaming

Final Fantasy XVI’s first 3 hours play like a high fantasy Last of Us

Joshua speaks to Clive in Final Fantasy XVI.

When I demoed Final Fantasy XVI back in February, I had some questions. The slice I played was very much focused on the upcoming PS5 release’s combat system. I was immediately impressed with how fast and furious it was, bringing a bit of Devil May Cry to the RPG series. That said, there was quite a bit I didn’t see. The story mission I played would only give me a brief introduction to its hero, Clive Rosfield, and the war-torn nation in which the game takes place. I was itching to know more.

I’d get all those lingering questions answered when I went hands-on with the first three hours of the game, which launches on June 22. Rather than letting me test out an arsenal of spells, I’d start with a much less capable Clive with only a few attacks to his name. I’d get to see his full tragic backstory play out through long cinematics with only a few smaller gameplay snippets between. I’d leave my demo session with far fewer question marks, a bit more intrigue, and a couple of lingering concerns that could be alleviated later in the adventure.

Gaming

Humanity is the best PS5 (and PSVR2) game I’ve played so far

Humans jump over a gap in Humanity.

Over the past few years, I’ve found myself mourning the PlayStation brand I grew up with. When I was a kid, PlayStation was an eccentric platform home to the kind of oddball creative swings you now only ever see indie publishers take a chance on. In the PS5 era, though, Sony has doubled down on a cinematic action-adventure formula that feels less safe (though likely way more profitable) by comparison. It’s an understandable pivot, but it leaves me hungry for more diverse experiences on my PS5.

Thankfully, that desire has been satiated with Humanity, a game that’s already nabbing several impressive accolades from me. It’s the best reason to subscribe to PS Plus, the best game currently available on PlayStation VR2, and perhaps the best PS5 console-exclusive period (it’s also available on PC via Steam). The unique puzzler has all the markings of those left-field PlayStation classics I love … except for the fact it wasn’t developed or published by Sony at all.