Sony May Be About to Retire One of Its Most Iconic Consoles
Do you still have a PlayStation 3 at home? If so, do you still play on it? Whatever your answer to those questions may be, almost everyone has come in contact with the iconic console at some point throughout their life. And with great games like The Last of Us and Red Dead Redemption being released for the console, it's no wonder that players hold it in such high regard. Last week, the console's digital store shut down for several days without explanation from Sony, causing players to fear the worst.
The End for the PS3, PSP, and PS Vita?
In 2021, Sony announced that it would soon shut down the digital stores for three iconic consoles. That included the PlayStation 3, PSP, and PS Vita. The imminent closure was avoided only after intense player backlash. So when the PS3 store became unreachable for four days last week, many players assumed that Sony finally followed through with their plan.
In a rather unexpected turn, however, the console's digital store came back online once more. However, that doesn't mean players are no longer worried. It is safe to say that the console's stores will eventually have to shut down. This is mainly due to the cost of keeping the servers online, which Sony is unlikely to want to cover indefinitely. Although the store and its many games are safe for now, that may not be the case permanently.
Why Is This Such a Big Deal?
If you're not a retro gamer, it may not immediately be apparent why the closure of an almost 20-year-old console is such a big deal to some. And while nostalgia certainly plays a big part in wanting to keep the console alive, there are other reasons as well. One of those is that the store's closure would essentially render many games lost to time.
Some games were only released digitally, while others may not have sold many physical copies, which makes those copies rare and expensive. To many gamers, preserving video games is like preserving art. After all, each game is the result of many hours of intense labor and creative processes. Losing these games forever would thus be a great loss indeed.
Additionally, the PlayStation 3 is known to be a particularly challenging console for porting or emulating games. So if the store were to close down permanently, most players would have to quickly buy any games they want to keep and preserve, which is an expensive undertaking.
In the past, Nintendo has come under scrutiny for shutting down its Nintendo eShop. Many digital games were lost in the process, and as Nintendo holds a strong anti-emulator stance, some are likely lost forever. Players can only hope that when the time comes to shut down the PS3 store, Sony will handle it with more grace.
Do you think that console makers have a duty to preserve video games in some capacity? Should the preservation and distribution of games be allowed once official stores cease to exist? Let us know in the comments below!
Source: Reddit
