PlayStation Store closes on PS3 and PS Vita later this year: What to expect

Slowly but surely, Sony has been shutting down functionality related to PlayStation 3, PlayStation Vita, and PlayStation Portable, and later on this year, the company is going to be taking a very big step toward sunsetting those platforms for good. Sony has announced the dates it will close the PlayStation Store on the PlayStation 3 and PlayStation Vita, along with revealing with it will end remaining purchase functionality for PSP.

Over on its support website today, Sony revealed that the PlayStation Store will be closing on PlayStation 3 on July 2nd, 2021 and on PlayStation Vita on August 27th, 2021. Sony also says it will end "the remaining purchase functionality of PSP" on July 2nd, 2021.

So, what does this mean? It basically means that your ability to purchase online content on all three platforms will be going away – you won't be able to buy new games, DLC, or media on any of the three of them. You also won't be able to make in-game purchases in any PS3, Vita, or PSP game that offers them, and you won't be able to redeem PSN gift cards on any of those three platforms as well.

You will still be able to re-download games and video/media content you've previously purchased for any of those platforms. You'll also be able to redeem PlayStation Plus vouchers and continue to re-download any previously-claimed PlayStation Plus game as long as you remain subscribed to the service (Sony, of course, stopped including PlayStation 3 and PS Vita games in PlayStation Plus back in March 2019).

One thing to keep in mind is that if you have funds in your wallet when the store is taken offline, those funds will remain available for use on PS4 or PS5, so they won't be disappearing. If you have no plans to upgrade to a PS4 or PS5, Sony says that you can get in touch for a refund on those wallet funds, but that's probably going to be a rare scenario.

So, it's definitely the end of an era regarding the PlayStation 3, PS Vita, and PSP, but owners of those three devices can at least breathe a sigh of relief that their purchased games and media will still be accessible. Still, if you've got any purchases you'd like to make on PS3, Vita, or PSP, you should probably do that soon, because after those dates we've listed above, you won't have the chance to.