Sony Interactive Entertainment Inc. announced Wednesday night that, after nearly 20 years of support, the PlayStation 3 and PlayStation Vita online stores will officially shut down.
According to the official PlayStation Blog, PS3 online store closures will begin in Mexico, Honduras, and Nicaragua in August 2026, with additional Latin American and Middle Eastern markets following later in 2026. By July 2027, all PS3 and PlayStation Vita online stores will have permanently closed.
The announcement also said that while players will no longer be able to make new purchases, they will still be able to download previously purchased content to ease the transition. Sony said the decision was made to “support modern commerce systems, including updated payment processing standards,” which the consoles could no longer support.
“We know this news may be disappointing to PS3 and PS Vita players who hold a special place in their hearts for this generation of gaming. PS3 and PS Vita represent an important era in our PlayStation history, so this was not an easy decision for us to make,” the PlayStation Blog said.
The PlayStation Store on the PS3 launched on May 24, 2007, as part of the system’s firmware update, marking the first online storefront for the console. The PlayStation Vita online store launched alongside the handheld’s Japanese release on Dec. 17, 2011.
Games exclusive to the online storefront that will no longer be available for purchase include “Infamous: Festival of Blood,” and the only home release of the arcade classic “The House of the Dead 4.” Downloadable content (DLC), such as “The Last of Us” side story “Left Behind,” starring Ellie, will also be affected because it was never included with the physical release and is available only digitally.
