PlayStation TV Discontinued in Japan

StewShearerOld

Geekdad News Writer
Jan 5, 2013
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PlayStation TV Discontinued in Japan

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Sony will no longer be shipping PlayStation TVs in Japan.

The PlayStation TV is the sort of thing that seemed like a great idea when it was first announced. A small and cheap mini-console based on hardware taken from the PS Vita, it was marketed as a convenient means to play Vita and PSP games on your television while also extending the reach of the PS4 via streaming. Sadly for Sony, consumers never really loved the PS TV and the poor thing has spent the past few years <a href=http://www.escapistmagazine.com/news/view/139356-PlayStation-TVs-Price-Cut-at-Amazon-Walmart-and-Best-Buy>edging closer to a seemingly inevitable oblivion.

It would now seem that the PS TV's end is nigh. According, its official Japanese product page has confirmed that it's being discontinued in Japan. In other words, while the device is still being shipped and sold in other regions, it will soon become of thing of the past in its home country. The change to the product page was first noticed by users <a href=http://www.neogaf.com/forum/showthread.php?t=1191506>posting to NeoGAF.

I'm going to go and say that I'm not surprised by this news. There was, after all, a point last year where GameStop was literally giving away PS TV's <a href=http://www.escapistmagazine.com/news/view/139881-PS-TV-Now-Free-at-GameStop-With-PS4-Purchase>for free to help push PS4 sales. That being the case, I'd be lying if I said that I wasn't a little bit sad to see the PS TV finally fall flat on its face. While Sony definitely blundered its execution, it was still a nifty little device that was definitely useful if you wanted to play your PS4 in another room without moving the console itself. If nothing else, it will be interesting to see how long it lasts outside of Japan.

Source: <a href=http://www.ign.com/articles/2016/02/29/playstation-tv-no-longer-on-sale-in-japan>IGN


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Casual Shinji

Should've gone before we left.
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Jul 18, 2009
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StewShearer said:
While Sony definitely blundered its execution, it was still a nifty little device
I'd say that's pretty typical of Sony; Make something unique and interesting, and proceed to let it die.
 

SlumlordThanatos

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Aug 25, 2014
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Maybe this means that they'll finally pull the plug on the Vita's life support and let it pass into peaceful oblivion.

Then maybe they'll get around to porting what few good games it had to the PSN. I've wanted to play Persona 4: Golden for a long time, but I couldn't justify buying a Vita just to play an enhanced version of a game I already own.
 

Something Amyss

Aswyng and Amyss
Dec 3, 2008
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Casual Shinji said:
StewShearer said:
While Sony definitely blundered its execution, it was still a nifty little device
I'd say that's pretty typical of Sony; Make something unique and interesting, and proceed to let it die.
I'd say this goes one further. They took an idea they didn't promote and barely developed for, made a new version of it with a different purpose, and then proceeded to let that die.

The Vita was a competent handheld which deserved better. Or, alternative, Sony just shouldn't have bothered. So while th ePS TV seemed like a cool idea, I passed on it.
 

Xerosch

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Apr 19, 2008
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*sigh* Ah, well... I like my PSTV and am happy with the games I can play on the big screen. There's actually quite a lot of nice stuff you can get that's compatible, but you have to be a japanophile niche gamer. And here goes my hope that someday we'll get a 'Crisis Core' or 'Final Fantasy Tactics' patch...
 

J-Dig

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Oct 25, 2011
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I have one filled with indie goodness in its own right and also does a great job of remote play for my PS4. It'll be a shame to see them die out.
 

Hairless Mammoth

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Jan 23, 2013
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Well, that's kind of sad news. The Vita line gets another blow today.

Although, this makes a decent amount of sense, despite the Vita's (somewhat) success in Japan. The country is known for the large portable market. Everyone there who wanted Vita games on a big screen already bought a PS TV, and new sales are too low to sustain production for that market. The handheld itself will probably survive in Japan longer than most regions. Now the question really is "how long until other markets lose the PS TV?"
 

The Bucket

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May 4, 2010
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SlumlordThanatos said:
Maybe this means that they'll finally pull the plug on the Vita's life support and let it pass into peaceful oblivion.

Then maybe they'll get around to porting what few good games it had to the PSN. I've wanted to play Persona 4: Golden for a long time, but I couldn't justify buying a Vita just to play an enhanced version of a game I already own.
That would imply Sony had been giving it any support in the last few years to pull. I own a Vita and to me it has a very good library because of all the third party niche titles it gets, but Sony hasnt tried with it for a very long time.
But the Playstation TV is a very good option if you want to play a few Vita titles, pretty sure you can pick one up for less than 40 bucks and it plays most Vita titles as far as i'm aware
 

Leg End

Romans 12:18
Oct 24, 2010
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ITT: How you don't make a microconsole and how to fail at a sure thing. I think this is the thing I'm most pissed at Sony for and will be for quite some time.

Lunar Templar said:
o.o?

There was a Playstation TV?
Your response is precisely why the thing died as hard as it did. Almost no marketing and even less support. The entire history of it is a guide on what not to do if you want to sell something.

Now i'm just glad that long after they stopped supporting it in the US, I picked up three at my Walmart for thirty bucks a pop. I'm still deciding on what to do with the third one as one was a gift. Crossing fingers that full hacks come and the homebrew scene explodes for the Vita in general.
 

Skops

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Mar 9, 2010
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I picked one up today for 40 bucks, now I can actually record a bunch of PSP/Vita games for gameplay videos. I can't imagine that the dedicated 'Let's Play' crowd is big enough to make a splash for a product to succeed, but I do find it weird this flopped so hard. The more platforms you can cover the better in my opinion.

It makes me wonder though; Will this be seen in a few years as valuable as the Super Game Boy for SNES?