I like the Vita a lot. It my be my favorite platform of all time. Below is a list of every game I've played on the system, ranked by fondness.
I denoted some games as "Best on Vita", which just means that I think the Vita is the best platform to play these games on. The reason will vary between:
games you can pick up and make some progress in a short amount of time
games that aren't served better by a dual shock or mouse and keyboard
games that require demanding timing, but not precise controls
Games 101 and beyond:
Rayman Legends: Even better than Origins, this was a great followup. The music-synced levels were some of the most memorable experiences I've had in games. The Platinum trophy situation is a real pain in the ass, requiring you to play for months to collect points and rank something like top 5 among all players on a speed run.
Update: After suffering through the online challenges for months to get the Platinum, I hate this game. Legends and Origins used to rank fairly high on this list, but that ordeal truly broke me and I'll never play another Rayman game again.
Rayman Origins: This was my first Vita Platinum and my first experience with Rayman. There is a ton of variety here for a platformer and the stages are so fluid and enjoyable to run through.
WRC 3: Meh. I played this because I needed a game that started with W for my platinum alphabet challenge. It seemed to be an impossible game until I put the difficulty way down on easy. Perhaps that ruined my enjoyment of it, but I was dead last in a dozen races on the default difficulty settings.
Psycho-Pass: Mandatory Happiness: A VN with an OK story. I got bored towards the end and just skipped all the dialog because I needed a P for my platinum alphabet challenge.
Warlock's Tower: Surprisingly wonderful! Certainly the most polished and well-running gameboy puzzle game I've ever played. It probably got a bit too hard for me in the end, but the first 80% of the game was exceptional.
Habroxia 2: A marked improvement over the first game. It ran really well and its non-linear structure made it more interesting to progress though. It had a good challenge overall, and even came with free DLC and bonus trophies.
Fernz Gate: A pretty boring RPG with occasional humor. The load times weren't great on Vita and the combat left a bit to be desired. The trophy grind ruined the game even more.
Pure Chess: A fine chess game, though performance and touch controls are a little sluggish. Would've been nice if it had a mode for teaching.
Metagal: Megaman clone, not a whole lot going for it. The trophies didn't do it any justice (you don't even have to complete the game to earn the Platinum).
Bucket Knight: Basic platformer, nothing special. I beat the whole game w/ the pistol and then bought the extra weapons after it was over for the trophies because I'm a real bad ass.
Gunhouse: It was OK. It was fun figuring out, but ultimately pretty shallow. I played through to day 30 enough to get a good handle on the game mechanics. I stopped there, because I didn't want to play through another 70 days to get the last trophy.
Rocketbirds: Hardboiled Chicken: Did not run great and controlled like hell. I ended up going for the Platinum, but it was an absolute chore.
Daggerhood: This is entirely more difficult than it should be. It's made even more difficult by the fact that it seems to run at 20 frames/second on Vita. I S-Ranked every level in the first world and damned if the last level didn't kill me. The trophies are absolutely dumb, it's a 20 minute platinum that can be achieved after beating the first 12 levels. I actually stopped playing when I got to world 2-1, sadly. Partly because of the frame rate, and partly because of the trophy system. It really seems like bad design for a developer to virtually suggest that you don't need to finish their game after the first 12 levels.
Dungeon Punks: I don't know why I played this as much as I did. I guess because the Platinum was within reach. The game is mindless and has virtually no depth. If you're playing alone, you're stuck with AI characters that aren't very good at the game--they take a lot of damage and very often grab and waste items before you're able to get them.
Ultratron: I legit didn't like Robotron, I'm not sure why I played this. I got extra triggered with this because the right stick on my Vita had some drift, which made getting some of the trophies 10x more difficult.
Super Crate Box: Something about the controls/graphics didn't click with me.
Nova-111: Fun little semi-turn-based/semi-action game. Almost felt like chess at times.
Woah Dave!: Mindless but not entirely fun unfortunately. Endless game where you run around collecting coins. Felt like a Super Crate Box knockoff without interesting weapons.
Sigi - A Fart for Melusina: I mean... I got the Platinum, but... it wasn't very fun. It would've been OK, but the frame rate and frame drops were unreal.
Type:Rider: I think the "lore" was more interesting than the physics-based gameplay. The information you unlock around more modern typefaces (starting with advent of advertising) was fascinating.
PixelJunk Monsters: Ultimate HD: This is not an easy game that I ended up quitting. It was probably my own fault for trying to play every level perfect. I recognize that it's a quality tower defense game, however. I may get back to it some day. Update: I ended up going back to this in 2023 and enjoyed it more than I originally did. It's not my favorite tower defense game, but is pretty decent
Pix the Cat: I never really connected with this... I don't particularly enjoy simplistic retro games (Pac-Man, Q-Bert) where it feels like there's no point (no story to be gained, no satisfying puzzles to be solved). From what I remember, there is a puzzle mode in it and I did play through that a great deal, but never completed it.
Doki-Doki Universe: The game itself is fine, but I don't recommend it on the Vita because the frame rate is abysmal (constant 15 FPS).
~~~unsorted above~~~
The Unfinished Swan: Very cool ~first person shooter where the world is completely white and your gun paints the walls and so you build the world as you go forward.
Conga Master: Totally stupid idea that still manage to be a bit of fun. One of the trophies was a little buggy, but I got it done in the end.
Oddworld: Stranger's Wrath: Pretty good ~first person shooter on Vita with Quake-style graphics. The story/voice acting was totally silly though.
ModNation Racers: Road Trip: This game had potential as a kart racer, but goddamn the framerate and RNG fest made it nightmarish at times.
Mary Skelter: Nightmares: Weird over-sexualized RPG with dungeon exploration and turn based combat. Decently enjoyable.
Crazy Market: I had more fun with this than I should have. It's a crappy phone game but it was fun going for 3 stars on all the levels and abusing the power ups.
A Virus Named Tom: Fun bit of puzzling, got more hard which made it less enjoyable in the end.
The LEGO Movie Videogame: Gameplay was not really enjoyable, you just run around levels grabbing stuff with light combat. It really overstayed it's welcome.
Axiom Verge: I waited for a long time to get this on Vita, and when I finally did, I didn't like it at all. It made me question if I even like Metroidvania games.
Assassin's Creed III: Liberation: The game looks incredible for Vita, there's no doubt about it, but the gameplay leaves a ton to be desired, and the story just didn't draw me in.
The Bridge: Mind bending puzzle game that started off alright but got quite difficult in the end. Minor spoiler: the whole game is black and white and the "true ending" gives you the original scene in color which after hours of black and white looked amazing. I wish it would have been a permanent change.
Furmins: Physics-based puzzle game with touch-only controls that unfortunately required pixel-perfection for some levels.
Oh, Deer!: I picked this up for $0.49 cents before PSM shut down. It was as simple as I expected given the price and the "Alpha" subtitle, but it felt good drifting through turns on the way to grandma's house.
Badland: This started out decent enough, but the controls got really frustrating and ultimately it's just a phone game without a lot of depth.
Quiet, Please: Not great, but I think it was free, and at least it was cute.
Terraria: I first played this game on PC. It's a wonderful game, don't get me wrong, but I can't play it on Vita (or any console), because it desperately needs a mouse and keyboard.
Resogun: Resogun on PS4 was amazing, but I can't recommended it on Vita. It's just not the same game at 30 FPS.
Flame Over: I bounced off this hard. From what I remember the difficulty was brutal... either that or I was just terrible at it. I remember going through the first few rooms either completely unable to finish them or unable to perfect them. I don't think it was the latter. I went back sometime in 2022 and suffered greatly. The game isn't very well made but asks a lot of the player. I'm not sure I'm capable of getting the Platinum at this point.
My Name is Mayo: Let's be honest, I paid $0.99 for a load of trophies here, not a game. It's not dead last because it gave me 2 easy Platinum trophies.
Burly Men at Sea: I bought this on sale for $3.99 and even for that price it wasn't really worth the time. It looked nice at times, but the game itself was quite boring and the story didn't draw me in very well because the writing was so quirky.
Proteus: Super boring walking simulator with weird esoteric trophies. I ended up having to beat it something like 9 times to see all the plants for a single trophy.
Actual Sunlight: I just didn't get it. I feel bad for not getting it. I think you might have to suffer from depression to get it.
Lone Survivor: This had no redeemable qualities.
Licky The Lucky Lizard Lives Again: #myfirstunitygame
Showing 1-10 of 100 items
1. Persona 4 GoldenPersona 4 Goldenhttps://giantbomb.com/wiki/Games/Persona_4_GoldenOpens wiki page
I never knew I needed this game. I must have dumped some 160 hours into it, playing it through twice to see everything and get the Platinum. After playing it, I watched the anime twice (I don't regularly watch anime), listened to Snowflakes 150+ times (according to Google Music), played through older Persona games, bought newer Persona 4 fighting games, and probably dreamed of Risette, Yukiko, and and Chie. This game is literal perfection from story, to characters, to voice acting, to gameplay.
2. SpelunkySpelunkyhttps://giantbomb.com/wiki/Games/SpelunkyOpens wiki page
Best on Vita. I picked this up on Vita when it first came out after missing it on PC and 360. I played it for 3-4 weeks and managed to beat Olmec somehow. At the time, having never consulted any guides, I didn't really understand the game, so I moved on. Four months later when I started watching "Spelunkin' With Scoops", everything changed. Suddenly I saw what the buzz was about, I saw the game for what it was, and I got hooked. I spent the next month squeezing every last drop from the game and managed to unlock all the trophies, and (I believe) see everything the game had to offer. It was one of the most thrilling and satisfying experiences I have had in gaming.
3. TearawayTearawayhttps://giantbomb.com/wiki/Games/TearawayOpens wiki page
Tearaway was one of those games where you just can't help but smile while you play. It oozed charm from every pore, and used the Vita in really interesting and fun ways. I'll pull up screenshots from time to and relive some great experiences I had with the messenger.
4. MotorStorm RCMotorStorm RChttps://giantbomb.com/wiki/Games/MotorStorm_RCOpens wiki page
I was pretty certain I wouldn't like this. It had two things going against it -- a steep learning curve, and free to play. Somehow it got its clutches in me pretty good. Its format (short sessions, improve your time) complimented the Vita perfectly. I remember playing this a lot while my kids were getting baths. I ended up buying all the DLC because the loop of beating the track time was so rewarding.
5. Final Fantasy X/X-2 HD RemasterFinal Fantasy X/X-2 HD Remasterhttps://giantbomb.com/wiki/Games/Final_Fantasy_X_X_2_HD_RemasterOpens wiki page
Not best on Vita, but damn close. FFX is the second best Final Fantasy game (after VI), however replaying it on Vita nearly convinced me that it was the best of all time... and it may actually be. I've probably finished the game 3 or 4 times in my life (definitely once on PS2, probably twice on PS3, and now on Vita), but I never did much past end game. Trophies gave me a reason to see it all and waste a mountain of my time on my way to Platinum. It was worth it though. Also Blitzball still sucks.
In 2024, 6 years after playing FFX, I finally circled back to play Final Fantasy X-2. The combat in that game is the greatest Final Fantasy combat of all time I think. Still pretty much turn based, but fast as hell and so many options with all the dress spheres (effectively a job system).
6. TowerFallTowerFallhttps://giantbomb.com/wiki/Games/TowerFallOpens wiki page
TowerFall was the one and only Ouya game I purchased and it was amazing. It's one of the most joyous local multiplayer games out there. When I tried the single player, I was initially put off by the difficulty but sometime in 2023 I went back and had an incredible time with. It runs smoothly, the gameplay is ever exciting, and the difficulty is dialed in to where it feels perfectly fair.
7. World of Final FantasyWorld of Final Fantasyhttps://giantbomb.com/wiki/Games/World_of_Final_FantasyOpens wiki page
This was my GOTY for 2016. It would be a bit higher on this list had the story been anything more than just fine. The gameplay was fantastic though -- collecting, stacking, and leveling mirages, while going through a vaguely familiar world with remixed nostalgic music. It felt exactly like a Final Fantasy should, both looked and performed wonderfully on the Vita. It made me pine for more triple AAA releases.
8. Hotline MiamiHotline Miamihttps://giantbomb.com/wiki/Games/Hotline_MiamiOpens wiki page
Best on Vita. I thoroughly enjoyed it this on PC when it came out, but never really obsessed over it. I got much deeper into it when it came out for Vita complete with a Platinum trophy. It controlled so much better (for me) with buttons and a D-pad and its format compliments the Vita so well.
9. Titan SoulsTitan Soulshttps://giantbomb.com/wiki/Games/Titan_SoulsOpens wiki page
Best on Vita. I'm not sure why no one put this formula together before, but this game is one of the greats. A beautiful 16-bit world to explore and then you come up on this incredibly unique boss that you're meant to best in a single hit of your arrow. Rinse and repeat for a very good time.
10. I Am SetsunaI Am Setsunahttps://giantbomb.com/wiki/Games/I_Am_SetsunaOpens wiki page
I avoided purchasing this when it came out in hopes that it would get a North American Vita release, but Square Enix never made that happen. I finally ended up playing the fan translation on my old Vita, and discovered what an absolute delight the game was. That might seem odd, since it's a dark and depressing game, but I eat that kind of stuff up. The soundtrack (almost entirely solo piano) was the perfect backdrop to a spiritual successor (Chrono Trigger). The story really grabbed me and held my interest the entire time. Every playable character I encountered had a solid back story and well-defined motives. The battle system was exceptional. The performance on Vita wasn't as solid as I'd like, but it was totally playable. I can't recommend this enough.
