The 5 rarest PlayStation Vita games you'll never own

For a long time, the handheld gaming market was dominated by Nintendo with their various portable system releases. However, in 2005, PlayStation released their own handheld console with the PlayStation Portable. The company then took things further in 2012 with a follow-up to that handheld with better features, the PlayStation Vita. Unlike what was being done at Nintendo during that time, PlayStation Vita was a device that focused on trying to bring the AAA game experience onto a handheld system, offering what gamers saw on the PlayStation 3 and 4 into the palm of their hand. Within the system's lifespan, a number of great video game releases populated the PS Vita library, including titles from some of the biggest developers under the Sony PlayStation umbrella.

Over time, however, the PlayStation Vita became less popular following a number of controversies, leaving Sony to abandon the platform altogether in 2019. The amount of games available physically for the PlayStation Vita was pretty vast, but there were a few titles that became exceptionally rare for collectors to find. A combination of limited physical runs and other outside factors led to these games becoming gems for PS Vita enthusiasts. But these games are so rare that few PS Vita owners will ever get to have them in their collection. Here are the 5 rarest PlayStation Vita games that you may never get to own, but can still admire them from a long distance away.

5 A.W.: Phoenix Festa

Light novel commodity

A.W.: Phoenix Festa is an action RPG that is based on the light novel series The Asterisk War, which was popular in Japan as an ongoing series. International releases for the light novels, manga, and anime series adaptations were released for North America in 2016. The PS Vita game adapts the story of the franchise in the same way most other anime or manga adaptations make the jump to video games. Many of the characters that appear in the series also appear in the game, as well as big moments from the franchise that fans will recognize. Gameplay involves taking on missions or jobs that often end with fighting enemies, sometimes in a duel, to advance the plot. In Asian regions, the game was known as The Asterisk War: Houka Kenran and had a physical release, but in North America the game was re-titled to A.W.: Phoenix Festa and only released digitally on the PlayStation Network.

The Asian English physical version of the game is the one that is valuable to collectors. It's one of the rarest Asian English physical releases of a game for the PS Vita, and is different from the one in Japan. A loose UMD of this version of the game is valued at around $450 alone. A complete-in-box version of A.W.: Phoenix Festa will skyrocket in price, often around $600 in some auctions. The hike in price of the game is mostly due to it not receiving a lot of notoriety in most places, which has made it an elusive game for PS Vita collectors.

4 Hyperdimension Neptunia Re;Birth 1 (Limited Edition)

Console wars, but with anime

What if you could see how the seventh generation consoles were in conflict with one another through the lens of anime? That's exactly what Hyperdimension Neptunia is, and how wacky it can be to play. The series has been ongoing since 2010 on the PlayStation 3, with multiple releases across different platforms. In 2013, the PlayStation Vita had a remake of the first entry in the series, titled Hyperdimension Neptunia Re;Birth 1. This remake retells the same story as the original, but adds in new features and tweaks the overall gameplay to be better. This version of the game was also ported to the PlayStation 4 in 2018 and added additional new features to the experience, including new systems and new voice acting. Gameplay involves turn-based battles, dungeon exploration, and more.

The limited edition of Hyperdimension Neptunia Re;Birth 1 is very valuable, as it was an exclusive sold on Amazon. This edition came with a case for the PS Vita system, a large print with some of the characters in the game, a keychain accessory imported from Japan, and the game itself with a PS Vita box. Loose copies of the limited edition are valued at around $500 without all of its contents. But a complete version of Hyperdimension Neptunia Re;Birth 1 Limited Edition is worth nearly $760. Some auctions online have been known to sell the game for even higher prices, as this version of the game only saw around 1000 copies printed.

3 VVVVVV

An indie gem

VVVVVV is an indie game from 2010 that was brought over to the PlayStation Vita in 2015. The game was created by Terry Cavanagh in Adobe Flash for PC before being brought over to other platforms. The game's plot involves Captain Viridian trying to save his fellow crew members in a separate dimension. By controlling the shift in gravity, Captain Viridian needs to navigate through 8 main levels to rescue his allies, all of which are populated with hazards and challenging obstacles. There are over 400 different kinds of rooms within VVVVVV, which also allows people to create their own custom rooms to share with other players. To many, the game can be very challenging.

Although the game was brought to PlayStation Vita, the physical version of the game was never fully released in stores. However, promotional copies of the game in physical form were sent to various stores, which are the ones that get circulated among collectors online. A loose version of VVVVVV physically can be worth over $800 alone. A complete boxed copy of the game is much more valuable, with some places pricing it at over $1,000. This is specifically for the promotional version of VVVVVV, which is often identified by the case having a punched hole on the back. This port of VVVVVV is much rarer than versions of the game on other platforms.

2 The Binding of Isaac Rebirth

Biblically expensive to find

The Binding of Isaac: Rebirth is a remake of the original The Binding of Isaac for the PlayStation Vita. The game is an action-adventure roguelike where players control Isaac as he navigates through dungeons and fights various enemies. The plot of The Binding of Isaac is based on the biblical story of the same name, but done in a very exaggerated and stylized fashion. Isaac is a young boy who is imprisoned by his mother who believes she is doing God's work. Just before she kills him, Isaac escapes to the basement and traverses through dungeons filled with horrific enemies. The Rebirth version of the game has more content and tweaks to the gameplay for it to feel and look better to play through.

This game is another expensive addition to the PlayStation Vita library. For a while, most people didn't think there was a physical version of The Binding of Isaac: Rebirth, until one was found. A lot of the circumstances behind the limited nature of the game having a physical release haven't been confirmed, but it is highly sought-after by Vita collectors. But anyone looking to grab it for their collection will have to pay a lot. A loose copy of The Binding of Isaac: Rebirth for PS Vita is worth over $2,600 alone, while a complete boxed copy of the game can be valued at more than $4,000. But good luck trying to find someone willing to sell it.

1 Revenge of the Bird King

The rarest cancellation

Anyone who purchases physical games through Limited Run Games knows how pricey things can get. But this PlayStation Vita release of Revenge of the Bird King may take the cake as one of the most expensive around.

Revenge of the Bird King is an action platformer that was originally released in 2018 for the Nintendo eShop, and was ported to the PlayStation Vita around the same time. Players control a half-man, half-bird hero named Dwanye, who takes on a barrage of enemies in a place called Gunworld, where plants actually sprout guns on them for Swayne to use. The gameplay is similar to 16-bit style action games from the 90s.

The original plan for the PS Vita version of Revenge of the Bird King was to have it as a bonus for those who ordered every Vita game sold by Limited Run Games. However, this plan was canceled and became the subject of controversy involving multiple individuals and Limited Run Games. But despite the controversy, a number of physical copies of Revenge of the Bird King were printed, and some of them managed to get out to customers. A physical copy of Revenge of the Bird King is arguably the rarest PlayStation Vita game to own physically. A loose copy of the game is valued around $6,000 alone, with a complete-on-box copy of it skyrocketing in price and worth nearly $7,000. Some auctions for a complete copy of Revenge of the Bird King have been known to sell for around $10,000 online.

The rare PlayStation Vita gems

The PlayStation Vita was an interesting handheld system that was gone before it truly hit its stride. Luckily, before official support for the Vita came to an end, we managed to see some great games get developed for it. The rarest PS Vita games are neat gems from a platform that could have been a bigger deal in another time. But as much as you might love the PlayStation Vita for one reason or another, chances are you'll never get to add some of these rare physical games to your collection. They are prohibitively difficult to obtain and incredibly expensive to buy in most cases. Unless you're willing to pay a hefty amount of money, you're better off admiring these PlayStation Vita games from a far distance.