PlayStation Fans Are Claiming That Various PS3 Games Cannot Be Patched Anymore

Gamers angrily took to Twitter, Facebook, and other social networks over the weekend after users on some video game-focused forums made an unfortunate discovery. Hopefully, it'll be formally addressed by Sony soon.

Deliberate Silent Takedown, or Lingering PlayStation Bug?

Following Sony's announcement that its older PlayStation stores are closing soon, user DeidaraTV first posted to PlayStation tracking website PSNProfiles to report that a number of PlayStation 3 titles can no longer download the game patches needed to play online and earn trophies.

Days later, users on independent video game discussion forum ResetEra also joined the discussion, when user Storm posted a PSA last Saturday. It reads, "We don't know if Sony will fix this or not, so best to patch your game collections now while you can."

Storm also urges anyone able to test games to do so as soon as possible, warning gamers to not delete anything—otherwise, you might not be able to recover that data.

Related: How to Back Up and Import PS3 Game Saves

According to DeidaraTV's initial post (which is being updated periodically as gamers keep testing), over 30 PS3 games across several regions are currently unable to get patches. Here are some of the more popular games on the list:

• Battlefield 4 – (EU, Digital)
• Castlevania: Lords of Shadow – (USA, Disc)
• Dante's Inferno – (USA, Disc)
• Journey – (EU, Digital)
• LittleBigPlanet Game of the Year Edition – (EU, Disc)
• Payday 2 – (EU, Digital)
• SoulCalibur IV – (EU, Disc)
• Street Fighter III 3rd Strike Online Edition – (USA, Digital)
• Tekken Tag Tournament 2 – (USA, Disc)

Are We Already Heading Towards a Digital-Only Future?

Sony has yet to say anything about this situation, so that could mean... anything. Maybe it's a bug that the company is already aware of, and the developers are hard at work trying to fix it. But if that was true, wouldn't some kind of public announcement be made?

When Sony announced that its older digital stores were closing, the fine print stated that you could still re-download and play previously purchased titles. People assumed that meant they would be able to patch them too. Apparently, that's not the case.

This incident has sparked quite the heated debate across social media, touching upon subjects of emulation, piracy, and game preservation. Some folks are going as far as to claim that the gaming industry is slowly pushing consumers to ditch physical copies in favor of digital ones.

Rest assured that if this story shifts over the coming days (for instance, if patches can be downloaded again or if Sony acknowledges the incident), we'll keep you posted.

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