Sony has seen tons of success with the PS4, selling more units than the Xbox One, and analysts predict this trend will continue through 2018. However, with success comes failure, and in Sony's eyes, the PlayStation Vita is the latter, with reports emerging that suggest the struggling handheld device will no longer be produced in certain markets.
If true, this development isn't too surprising. Sony has more or less abandoned the Vita, declining to list the handheld device in its sales forecasts and having stopped making first-party games for the system, opting to focus its efforts on the PS4.
Reports of the Vita seeing its end in the Netherlands comes from a user named Caayn who referenced a Dutch article that stated several stores in the Netherlands have been asked about the PS Vita in response to the low amount of units available there as of late. All gave a similar response: the PS Vita isn't in stock and won't be in stock anytime soon.
Even Bol.com, one of the largest online retailers in the region, is feeling the effects of the decline and, reportedly, only had two units as of yesterday afternoon.
If this wasn't enough, when asked about the situation, Sony Benelux provided an evasive response, saying it has "nothing to say" about the PS Vita.
The Netherlands isn't the only region to report declining Vita stocks. Though not on the same level, at least one game store owner in India said a similar situation is unfolding there.
"They brought in around 1,500 last year and nothing else," the owner said, noting the last PS Vita shipment came nearly a year ago. "It might not be end of life, but it's not selling much anyway."
The Vita may not be doing amazingly well in other regions like Japan or the U.S. either, but it still has a solid audience and remains the definitive device to own if you're big on JRPGs. If the system really does peter in the Netherlands, that isn't necessarily an indication of what's to come elsewhere. Not to mention it certainly isn't anywhere as bad off as the PS TV, which has already been confirmed to have ceased shipments in the U.S. and Europe.
"PlayStation TV shipments were terminated at the end of 2015 in SCEA and SCEE," a Sony spokesperson said. "Shipment is still continuing in SCEAsia (as of the end of February 2016), and we have nothing to announce regarding the timing of termination."
So is the Vita really at the end of its rope? That certainly seems to be the case in the Netherlands at least, though until Sony gives an official announcement, it's all speculation and hearsay.
