Sony has promised it: the Playstation Store will not close its doors on PS3 and PS Vita. Still, certain measures taken by the manufacturer will inevitably cause the disappearance of certain games. We will explain everything to you.
A reminder of the context is in order. In March 2021, Sony announced the closure of the Playstation Store on the PS3, PS Vita and PSP by the summer of 2021. Unsurprisingly, the news caused an uproar and players are crying out loud and mobilizing to bend the Japanese manufacturer. A month later, Sony gives up closing the PS Store on the PS3 and PS Vita. However, the store will close its doors on PSP.
We therefore thought this episode definitively closed, but Sony was obviously not decided to close the file. In early October 2021, Sony discreetly introduced a new measure. From October 27, 2021, players will no longer be able to to buy games on the PS3 and PS Vita stores with their credit card or via PayPal.
The only options available are going to a store to buy funds to add to your digital wallet, or to manage to find the game in physical version on the net or in a second-hand store. You will agree, this measure will only make life more difficult for gamers, but it will still be possible to buy games on PS3 and PS Vita no matter what.
+18 games will disappear on PS3 and PS Vita
However, this measure will have unexpected repercussions on certain territories, and in particular in the Japan. You see, the CERO standard is particularly respected in Japan. It is neither more nor less than the Japanese equivalent of the PEGI standard, which makes it possible to determine the minimum age from which a video game is recommended (several criteria are taken into account such as violence, the use of words coarse, sexual content, etc.).
On the archipelago, games reserved for over 18s are placed in the CERO Z category. However, to acquire a title classified CERO Z, it is imperative to have a bank card with a valid ID to be able to purchase the game. Do you see the problem coming? How can players prove that they are of legal age via their credit card if they can no longer pay for their purchase with their credit card on the PS Store? Simply impossible.
Some Japanese studios have already announced the removal of their CERO Z rated games from the PS3 and PS Vita Playstation Store. This is for example the case of Nippon Ichi Software, which has just confirmed the disappearance of two titles from its catalog as of October 26, 2021, namely Shin Hayarigami and Shin Hayarigami 2, two visual novels. It’s a safe bet that other studios and publishers are taking the floor to announce in turn the disappearance of their games classified CERO Z.
Source: Gameblog