We’re two generations on, but the PlayStation 3 is only now approaching an important milestone in its sunsetting. Sony is ending PlayStation Store support for the PS3 and PlayStation Vita, a process that will start in August 2026 and be completed worldwide by July 2027. If you still have a PS3 backlog, this means you’ve got one year to buy any digital games before your only option becomes used discs, a luxury that won’t be possible on PlayStation 6.
PlayStation Network connectivity will remain supported on PlayStation 3 consoles for the time being, so downloading any games you own will still be possible, but once the storefront is taken offline, purchasing new digital games will not be possible. Below are 10 must-have games, and while there’s a bit of overlap with the best PS3 games of all time, we’ve honed in on console exclusives specifically, since their accessibility will be seriously jeopardized by the PlayStation Store closure.
Demon’s Souls
It’s safe to say Demon’s Souls was ahead of its time, arriving two years before Dark Souls began FromSoftware’s meteoric rise, but laying down many of the conventions used throughout the likes of Bloodborne and Elden Ring. You can play Demon’s Souls pretty easily thanks to its 2020 remake on PS5, but the PS3 original still has a distinct atmosphere, and has now come to be seen as a bona fide classic for Sony’s third console.
God Of War 3
God of War 3 was at one point in the discussion for most impressive console graphics, and it still looks astounding for a game released in 2010. It was also the long-standing pinnacle of the hack-and-slash series before the 2018 soft reboot transformed God of War into third-person action games. God of War 3 is Kratos at his angriest and most bloodthirsty, and it has a sheer scale that still remains unmatched by later games.
Infamous
Sucker Punch Productions is on a run of iconic PlayStation exclusives lasting more than two decades, and right between Sly Cooper and the more recent Ghost games is Infamous. The main character, Cole, begins the game by getting caught in an explosion which rocks Empire City and gives Cole electric superpowers, making him a Conduit, a small group able to manipulate various substances. While its karma system is rather rudimentary, only giving you choices between good and evil, it adds some fun roleplaying to the open-world game.
Killzone 2
Killzone has similarly been abandoned for newer PlayStation exclusive series – Guerrilla Games moved onto its Horizon franchise. Touted as one of PlayStation’s big first-person shooter series, Killzone has seen a fairly mixed reception over the course of its four mainline games, but its second outing is excellent. You begin with a planetary invasion, dropping in from low orbit, and it only gets better from there. Killzone 2‘s campaign is a great romp across the planet Helghan (Killzone 3 is worth your time, too), but its official multiplayer servers are sadly now offline, though there are community revivals.
The Last Of Us
The Last of Us doesn’t really need much of an introduction; it’s arguably the best PS3 game, is definitely the console’s most famous, and ended the generation on an incredibly high note. Because of a remaster on PS4 and a remake on PS5, The Last of Us has enjoyed significant longevity, but there’s something especially charming about the original. Playing through Ellie and Joel’s odyssey on its original hardware just feels right.
LittleBigPlanet 2
You’ll have to do some additional tinkering to fully enjoy LittleBigPlanet 2 (or its predecessor and sequel), because the official servers have been taken offline. This jeopardizes a major attraction for the game, its player-created levels, but dedicated fans have made a workaround with various private servers. You can’t go wrong with any game from the original LBP trilogy, but the second is generally considered to have the best campaign, for whatever that’s worth in a series propped up by custom content.
Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots is finally being set free from the PlayStation 3 when MGS‘s Master Collection Vol. 2 comes out in August 2026, but it has become something of an artifact for the console, and is well worth a download before PlayStation Store support ends. MGS4 is the chronological endpoint of the series, so if you’re unfamiliar, you may not catch every detail of every narrative turn, but Kojima games are notoriously wacky enough that there’s not much harm in jumping in wherever.
Ratchet & Clank games are few and far between now (Insomniac is busy with Marvel’s Spider-Man and Marvel’s Wolverine), but the PlayStation 3 got four mainline exclusive titles from the series. It’s hard to go wrong picking a Ratchet & Clank game – they’re a grab bag of third-person shooting and platforming – but Tools of Destruction is a safe bet if you have to choose one from the PS3. It’s fairly highly regarded, even if the Future saga is a bit derided in retrospect.
Resistance: Fall Of Man
Resistance was PlayStation’s other major FPS franchise, and is also dead, much to fans’ chagrin. Poll most players, and you’ll find a toss-up between the first two games for which is the favorite, but starting at the beginning is an easy recommendation to make – it’s also a quintessential PS3 experience. Resistance: Fall of Man‘s wide appeal, which still causes fans to beg for the series’ return (again, Insomniac is busy), comes from a clever blend of historical fiction and sci-fi where you fight an alien invasion in mid-20th century England.
Uncharted 2: Among Thieves
Looking at these six years of the PS5 generation without a new release from Naughty Dog is a sad state of affairs compared to the PS3, which saw the first three Uncharted games released before The Last of Us. Uncharted 2 tends to stand above its trilogy cohorts; the first game was a bit clunky, and the third’s only sin is being not quite as immaculate as its predecessor. Among Thieves saw Nathan Drake become much more than an Indiana Jones caricature, and thrust the series into elite action-adventure game territory.
The PlayStation 3 got off to a slow start – its initial price being a major factor – but has no shortage of truly excellent games, and ended up a massive success. It came out in an age when physical media was most prevalent, so used copies of PS3 games aren’t hard to find, but its PlayStation Store support ending still feels like the close of an important chapter. There are plenty of exclusives that didn’t make the list (Gran Turismo is a notable exclusion), but the above 10 games are essential to the PlayStation 3 generation.
- Brand
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Sony
- Original Release Date
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November 11, 2006
- Original MSRP (USD)
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$499, ¥49,980 (20 GB model) / $599.99, ¥60,000, £425, €599 (60 GB model)
- Operating System
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CellOS
- Storage
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20-500 GB
- VR Support
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No