Update []: A shaky week for the PS3’s creaking PS Store appears to have concluded, with full service resumed and no more error messages.
At least, we’re not having any problems here in Europe anymore, and we’re seeing similar confirmations from around the world.
It’s a big relief for fans who feared this may be the beginning of the end for the last-last-gen console’s service, but it’s always worth remembering Sony would need to communicate any potential server shutdowns well in advance.
In this case, the storefront was likely hit by a bug, which appears to have been (relatively promptly) fixed.
We’ll let you know if things start acting strange again.
Original Story: Sony has tried to shut down the PS3’s creaking PS Store before, but it was met with such a ferocious backlash it reversed its decision. The system is almost 20 years old at this point, though, so whenever it breaks, fans always fear the worst.
And that’s what’s happened this week: the last-last-gen console’s storefront has been kicking out maintenance error messages for almost 24 hours now. This was first spotted by the website Delisted Games, but we can confirm it’s also happening to us on the European PS Store at least.
The Japanese giant hasn’t communicated any ongoing maintenance, but it’s not like the PS3 is a priority for it these days, so that’s hardly surprising.
It’s worth noting we’re not having any issues with the PS Vita, and this issue has occurred and been resolved before.
The PS3’s ancient architecture is undoubtedly a bit of a headache for Sony, as recently the manufacturer’s more modern consoles lost access to old purchased avatars as well. Perhaps this maintenance is related to that? (Although it seems unlikely.)
We’d be surprised if the platform holder tried to take the PS3 offline, as the backlash was so loud and ferocious the first time it tried that we just can’t foresee it attempting it again for many years yet. This is probably just a hiccup that will quietly get corrected, then – perhaps someone at PlayStation HQ needs to plug in the appropriate cable, or maybe blow on the bottom of a cartridge. Something like that.