Top 5 Vita RPGs (that are often on sale)

While a lot of people think that the Vita is dying, we know that’s far from true. It has a fantastic library of both native and legacy games that can be played. But what of the strapped gamer on a budget? How can you get the best bang for your buck? In this list, I’ll give you the Top 5 RPGs for PS Vita that often get discounted on the PSN Store through sales.

1. Persona 4 Golden

An absolute classic and a fantastic game to boot, this must-have for any Vita owner is often on sale in both major territories. You’ll easily find it at around $15 (or its equivalent in your currency). For that, you’ll get way over 100 hours of gameplay, some of the best Western voice acting to ever grace the Vita, and a story that, once you get past the slow start, will intertwine with a fun mechanic to entertain you until your battery dies. (Battery problems? Check out my review of the Nyko Power Grip and double your battery life). If you’re keen on playing P4G somewhere else, you can get cdkeys now, as it’s been released on PC and it’s done amazingly well for Atlus.

Get Persona 4 Golden physical on Amazon

Get a PSN Card to buy P4G when it goes on sale

2. Rainbow Moon

A lot of people don’t know about eastasiasoft’s masterpiece, but this top down isometrical RPG is one of the most fulfilling, if a bit difficult, experiences you can have on the go. I’ve seen people clock over 200 hours getting the platinum for it, too, which means you’ll get a lot of bang for your buck. Best part? It’s usually $5 or less! Talk about stretching that dollar as far as it can go! (Rainbow Moon saw a physical release through Limited Run Games… and other places. See what we think about LRG’s current release policy).

No link to a physical version as we hate scalpers, but you can get a PSN Store Card and buy it when it goes on sale:

3. The Neptunia series

There’s a lot of hate in the industry for Compile Heart / Idea Factory RPGs (with Colin Moriarty being an infamous hater), but I absolutely adore the games, specially the Neptunia series. It’s funny, jokes about an industry that takes itself way too seriously sometimes, and it has just enough fan service to be service-y without being lewd. I recommend going for Hyperdimension Neptunia Re;Birth1 as it’ll be the cheapest of the lot (it’s been seen as low as $6) and later games rehash a lot of resources from it. It took me 20 hours to finish the main story, and you can spend another 20 to get it to 100%. (On the fence? Read my review of Re;Birth1 and let me help you make up your mind).

Buy a PSN Card for when the games go on sale

4. The Senran Kagura series

Another series that is bashed for being fan service-y, and another that I’ll defend to the hilt. There’s a lot of fun to be had in action RPGs where you wade through tons and tons of enemies. And if you can do that dressed in sexy outfits, I see nothing wrong with that. As Erin Fitzgerald said when I interviewed her, as long as they represented correctly, there’s nothing wrong with a sexy woman on a videogame. Again, I would go for Senran Kagura: Shinovi Versus, the first full-feature game to come to Vita, as it’ll be cheaper (as low as $8) and the combat system is actually a bit better than in later games. 15+ hours on it without a problem, too!

Buy a PSN card for when the Senran Kagura girls go on sale

5. Borderlands 2

This one had its ups and downs: everyone got super excited when it got announced. It even got a Slim Vita bundle. But the release was plagued with performance issues and everyone slammed it (with good reason). However, the porting house actually kept releasing fixes for it, and it now runs quite smoothly! For a Western RPG you can’t really go wrong. It’s difficult to play on your own, but you’ll easily get 20+ hours out of it. Comes with a tonne of DLC, too. I’ve seen it as low as $5.

Buy a physical copy of Borderlands 2 on Amazon

Get a PSN Card for when Borderlands 2 goes on sale

SPECIAL MENTION: Freedom Wars

The last great first-party release for the Vita, Freedom Wars was an instant hit with Vita owners. It borrowed a lot from the Monster Hunter series but it offered the possibility of playing on the Vita. Sure, there’s Toukiden and Soul Sacrifice (both of which are good and also often on sale), but the fact that this is a first-party release makes me gooey inside. I’ve seen it as low as $8. You can clock in well into the 30+ hour mark.

Buy a physical copy of Freedom Wars on Amazon

Get a PSN card for when Freedom Wars goes on sale