My, how time flies! If the Official PlayStation Blog hadn’t mentioned it, I would never have realized that the PS Vita is now three years old. I bought mine on launch day and haven’t been shy about sharing my love for the somewhat neglected handheld, and while Sony hasn’t been extremely supportive of the system in recent months, it’s great to see them celebrating the occasion with a big digital sale!
In addition to the large list of titles on sale from this week’s PSN update until March 2nd, PS Vita owners will also be able to download the adorable Toro and Friends theme (normally $1.99) from February 26th until the end of the sale. There are also a couple of free items for Destiny of Spirits and Fat Princess – head over to the official post to get all the details.
While you can read the full list of games that are part of the sale over on the Official PlayStation Blog, I thought I’d take the opportunity to recommend a few of my personal picks from the list:
Atelier Rorona Plus, Atelier Totori Plus, Atelier Meruru Plus ($15.99 each with PS+) – If you haven’t had a chance to play any of the games in the Arland Trilogy of Atelier titles, I highly recommend picking at least one of the updated PS Vita versions up. While everyone has their own favorite, Atelier Totori and Atelier Meruru are generally much more polished than the first game in the trilogy, Rorona, and the stories aren’t connected in a significant way that requires each title to be completed before moving on to the next. These RPG’s are prefect for portable play, and if you’re looking for something that is a little more relaxing than a regular JRPG, all three are great options.
Deception IV: Blood Ties ($15.99 with PS+) – I normally wouldn’t recommend a game I haven’t played, but I recently purchased a physical copy of Deception IV: Blood Ties solely based on my Nichiest Podcast Ever co-host shidoshi’s glowing recommendation. But let’s face it, how many games that came out in 2014 are based entirely around executing elaborate plans to murder people? That doesn’t sound creepy at all, right? Wait, where are you going?!
Hatsune Miku: Project Diva F 2nd ($19.99 with PS+) – The Project Diva games are by far my favorite rhythm games on the PS Vita (not that there’s that much competition), and while they’re also available on the PlayStation 3, I highly suggest getting the handheld versions if at all possible. While 2nd is the only Project Diva game in the birthday sale, it’s definitely the better of the two, so I’d say it’s a great place to start. Even if you’re not sure you enjoy Vocaloid music, I can guarantee you’ll find at least a couple tracks to get your toes tapping! If I still haven’t sold you, check out my full review.
Monster Monpiece ($11.99 with PS+) – Okay, I know what you’re thinking. Yes, this is the controversial game where you literally rub your PS Vita suggestively to level up your female monster cards. Funnily enough, the game is actually quite fun outside of the blatant fan service, which I could quite honestly do without. For only $12, though, I’d still recommend it as one of the only card battling games to ever come out in English! You just might not want to whip it out in public…
Unfortunately, my favorite games of 2014, Danganronpa: Trigger Happy Havoc and Danganronpa 2: Goodbye Despair aren’t part of the PS Vita’s 3rd birthday sale, but as you can see, there are still quite a few great titles that made the cut! I actually own nearly everything I’d want on the list, but I am eyeing Tales of Hearts R… If anyone’s played it, let me know if it’s worth picking up in the comments!
