The 26 Best PS Vita Games of All Time

The launch game lineup for the PS Vita was led by this spinoff action-adventure experience that brought Uncharted's Nathan Drake into the palm of everyone's hands. Uncharted: Golden Abyss encapsulates the funny exposition, wild shootouts, and daredevil climbing segments of the series to a great degree. The touchscreen and rear touchpad controls proved to be a bit unwieldy if we're being honest. But overall, this PS Vita exclusive still holds up as a fun treasure-hunting romp for Uncharted's fun-loving and super-confident globe trotter.

The futuristic anti-gravity racer known far and wide as Wipeout has been a staple on PlayStation from the very first console. Wipeout 2048 serves as a prequel to the first game, which ended up serving the gameplay in a cool way by having players race across city streets instead of dedicated race tracks. Zipping across some of the most visually striking courses in the series with all manner of speed ships, agility ships, fighters, and prototypes is pure racing bliss.

It saddens us that we may never get a third follow-up in the Gravity Rush franchise. The world needs another colorful, fanciful, and exciting foray into Kat's world. The first Gravity Rush is such a unique action-adventure game that includes trippy platforming segments that let you use the power of Zero-G gravity navigation. It's even more of a fun time when you use Kat's powers to float through the air and land some devasting kicks on the enemies that frequent her airspace.

Killzone: Mercenary is such a valuable part of the PS Vita games library because of how amazing it feels as a handheld FPS. And for fans of Sony's (sadly defunct) IP, it sticks out as a playable side story that retells the most important events of the first three games. ISA mercenary Arran Danner is commanded by players here to fulfill his contracts as he fights on both sides of the ISA and Helghast war. The weighted feel of the gunplay feels great and the graphical presentation makes Killzone: Mercenary feel like it could easily exist on a PS3.

The original version of Persona 4 is a classic JRPG in its own right. But with the extra story content, additional "Personas," and plenty of fresh dialogue sequences in two, Persona 4 Golden expanded in a way that made it the definitive version worth playing. On a base level, this lengthy JRPG provides an adventure full of shocking twists and turns that follow a group of high school students that find themselves in the middle of a murder mystery. Battling, talking with your fellow party members, and improving your "Social Links" with them marks this game's most notable features.

Tearaway must be recognized as the PS Vita's killer app. And that's thanks to the game's intuitive utilization of the handheld machine's myriad features. The rear touch panel actually lets you mimic the act of pushing your fingers up through the game world to interact with platforms. Taking pictures with the PS Vita's camera plays into clever puzzles. And using the front-facing touchscreen to cut out objects and draw designs added another cool element to Tearaway that makes it the quintessential PS Vita platformer.

Drinkbox Studios has released some pretty notable indie games, which include Tales from Space: About a Blob and Guacamelee! One of its most experimental projects is this PS Vita game that gives players access to touchscreen-enabled combat that works way better than it should. Severed feels like a natural evolution of first-person dungeon-crawling RPGs - its gorgeously animated art style, implementation of severing enemy body parts to prevail, and using those same body parts to unlock new abilities pushed the sub-genre forward and excels as a PS Vita great.

Japanese development studio Vanillaware produces the types of games that look like you're playing within paintings placed upon the walls of your local museum. That signature art style is front and center in this classic beat 'em up that feels like a new-age rendition of Golden Axe. Dragon's Crown's premise explores the realm of medieval fantasy as you choose from six character classes to master and battle alongside your allies. The dungeon runs you'll embark on here offer some surprising challenges in the form of unexpected enemy placements and wild plot developments. The Amazon's "proportion" still blows our minds, yet we still can't get enough of Dragon's Crown.

Lt. Kai Tana is one of those gaming heroines that deserves a lot more cred among the gaming community. We feel that way because her role in Velocity 2X makes her come off as one of the most badass space explorers/alien fighters we've ever come across. She gets caught up in all the madness that encompasses her job by engaging in some vertical space shooting and side-scrolling action sequences that present the perfect combination for this slept-on title. Boosting and shooting - it doesn't get any better than that.

Sony Computer Entertainment's Japan Studio is defunct, which is something we'll never properly get over. When it was still around, gamers were treated to distinctive and enjoyable games such as Puppeteer, Patapon, and LocoRoco. When the studio headed on over to the PS Vita, it ended up producing a gruesome action RPG that implemented a macabre mechanic - sacrificing one's body parts in order to pull off even more powerful attacks. Soul Sacrifice Delta is the best version of that game as it fills out the original's content suite with more enemies to kill, more explorable areas, a combo system that lets players combine specific offerings, etc.

The Lumines series stick to the realm of puzzle-solving and rhythm game mechanics to make players block-clearing music maestros. The lone PS Vita series entry Lumines: Electronic Symphony abides by everything great about the trademark gameplay mechanics while adding in alternate control methods via the front touchscreen and read touchpad. The strong soundtrack does a lot to bring players back into the musical, block-clearing fold and get them into a zen-like mode as they reach impressive levels of high scores. What we have here is one of the best PS Vita games and one of its finest launch titles.

Japanese publisher/developer Spike Chunsoft definitely knocked it out of the park when it released three remarkable games within the Zero Escape franchise. The second entry in the visual novel/adventure game series, Zero Escape: Virtue's Last Reward, certainly kept us on the edge of our seats from beginning to end. This visual novel/puzzler forces players to make some monumental decisions that cause its story to go in wildly different directions. And on top of all that, you had to really put your thinking cap on during some intense escape room scenarios. Sweating profusely while trying to figure out the best way to solve each one of those puzzles kept us on our toes in this one.

While Spelunky isn't considered a "pure" roguelike, its penchant for including randomly generated levels that keep every platforming run you make feel fresh. That feeling of "just one more try!" permeates through this underground exploration game as upon death, you'll get the urge to venture deeper into your next stage challenge. A smorgasbord of dangerous monsters, sinister traps, and valuable treasure gave players plenty of incentive to keep playing Spelunky to death in this fine handheld form.

LUCHA! LUCHA! LUCHA! The colorful masks and high-flying antics of Lucha Libre wrestling are fully embodied in one of the finest examples of a "Metroidvania" game we've ever played, Guacamelee! This highly entertaining pick on our list offers a side-scrolling platformer that respects Mexican culture and presents it within the confines of a game all about wrestling demonic hordes. The tricky yet entirely fair platforming segments push you to quickly switch between the "Worlds of Living and Dead" and test the legacy skills of experienced fans of platformers.

The smashing success of the Dragon Quest IP has afforded Square Enix the opportunity to put forth a good number of spinoff games that retain the charm and classic JRPG storytelling of the mainline games. Dragon Quest Builders is one of those side projects and it's one of the more memorable, for sure. While players embark on another world-saving adventure, this game differentiated itself from the mainline games by focusing on using building blocks to build your base and ultimately the world. Smashing familiar Dragon Quest monsters while playing around with Minecraft-like mechanics worked a lot better than expected.

Japanese development studio Vanillaware is back on this list of the best PS Vita games for good reason. And that's because we fell so deep in love with another one of its beautifully animated side-scrolling action RPGs that looks like you're playing through a storybook. Odin Sphere: Leifthrasir is a proper remaster of the PS2 underrated gem that brings all the fun and splendor fans have come to adore. This game provides hours upon hours of amazing beat 'em up gameplay that lets you run headfirst into battle with five fantastical characters. Exploring the visually appealing realm of Erion must be experienced within this high-quality adventure.

No one expected the very first Danganronpa to morph into such a cult classic that's churned out a ton of sequels and spinoffs in the years since its 2010 debut. Thanks to the absolute madness on display in Trigger Happy Havoc, fans of visual novels and murder mysteries became super enamored with it. We have the exact same sentiment about this twisted adventure game that's equal parts Pheonix Wright and Battle Royale. Taking on the role of a high school student Makoto Naegi and being forced to deal with a crazed robot bear while murders are going around you is an experience that will stick with you long after it's done.

Hotline Miami is a gruesome, balls-to-the-wall action thriller contained within a top-down shooter package that is considered one of the greatest video games ever made. As the mysterious silent protagonist "Jacket," players embarked on a violent crusade against the Russian mafia across a bevy of maps that provide all the tools needed to wipe them out. Using all manner of melee and ranged weaponry to enact bloody murder on everyone that greets you with high levels of violence of their own is a joy that always delivers in Hotline Miami.

Rogue Legacy's whole roguelike gameplay concept is led by some clever storyline reasoning - upon dying, the next successor in the game's family of conquering heroes takes up their predecessor's mantle. What's so crazy about that theme is the fact that each new warrior you play with comes with a deficiency of some kind that makes their dungeon run a tough one. Hacking and slashing to your heart's content with a generational line of unlucky knights works like a charm in this side-scrolling gem.

LittleBigPlanet took the platforming and game creation genres by storm when it came to the PS3 back in 2008. Then it made its way over to the PS Vita in 2012 and came off a lot better than most gamers originally thought upon its release. You know what the deal is here, ladies and gentlemen - cute plush avatars, carefully curated developer-made platforming challenges to conquer, and enticing user-created content that gave this game unlimited replay value. Sackboy's whimsical hop-and-bopping adventures here are still worth the price of admission.

After the 3D open arena experiment for Mortal Kombat reached its three-game conclusion, the series got back to its 2D plane roots with one of the finest gaming reboots the genre has ever played. 2011's Mortal Kombat put forth an engaging story mode that brought together the first three games' plots in a satisfying fashion. This quality return to form for Mortal Kombat lets players play with their favorites within incredibly fast-paced clashes that feel like a natural evolution of Mortal Kombat 3. The debut of "X-Ray" maneuvers, the tag team battles, and the usage of special guests such as Kratos and Freddy Krueger adds to this game's worthwhile package. This bloody, gory good time is regarded by many as one of the best PS Vita games for fighting game fans.

Capcom's king of 2D fighters mashed up with Bandai Namco's "King of the Iron Fist Tournament" franchise to create an impressive 2v2 fighter called Street Fighter X Tekken. It's still such a trip to have an actual fighting game where you can team up Ryu & Jin to take on Chun-Li & Asuka. This team-based 2v2 clash of styles performs well and sticks close to its source material by incorporating familiar Tekken combos and cool rivalries between both members of the roster. As one of the best PS Vita games and must-play fighters, Street Fighter X Tekken shines as a handheld brawler that is on par with its home console counterparts.

On the indie gaming side of things, there's no shortage of twin-stick multidirectional shooters to wade through. Over on the PS Vita, Housemarque tried its hand at that style of action-fueled gameplay with Super StarDust Delta. Now here is one of those games that causes you to lose track of time as you blaze through the day into the nighttime as you orbit various planets and come across relentless asteroids, lasers, and assorted enemies. Using your spaceship litany of primary weapons and smart bombs to clear the way exudes that classic arcade shoot 'em up feel that dominated the 90s golden era. With all those different modes to hop into, this shooter provided plenty of cool ways to approach fierce space blasting.

Ubisoft revived its limbless platforming mascot with Rayman Origins back in 2011. Then it improved upon the greatness of that delightful 2D platformer with an illustrious sequel called Rayman Legends. As one of the best PS Vita games and a shining example of its esteemed library of platformers, this sequel added hundreds of new levels and remastered stages from Rayman Origins to give players a ton of content to stay busy with. The endearing music-themed rhythm stages are the real standout feature here, which is why we find ourselves coming back to them every now and then.

Arcade-style golfing isn't just relegated to Mario and the gang - Sony's take on the less stressful and more comical sport is celebrated as much as the Mario Golf series. In its one and only PS Vita appearance Hot Shots Golf: World Invitational, the series formula remained just as amusing as it was beforehand. Notching a Hole in One here elicits the most joy, of course. Plus getting to choose from a charismatic roster of golfers that includes Pac-Man and Yakuza's very own Kazuma Kiryu (who are only playable in the Japanese version, we might add) also lifts this arcadey sports game to even greater heights.

Final Fantasy fans were given an authentic next-gen experience when the IP first made its way onto the PS2 with the tenth mainline entry. Then their jaws dropped in unison when a follow-up continued the adventures of the first game's captivating "High Summoner" Yuna. Now both games come packaged in a remastered collection that offers turn-based RPG fans two of the best games in Square Enix's extensive catalog. Final Fantasy X follows Tidus and his companions as they seek out a monster named "Sin" that must be brought down for good. Then there's Final Fantasy X-2. which features Yuna in the starring role as she seeks to reunite with Tidus and take down a new threat called the "Vegnagun."