Yesterday I was at a local game shop and on an impulse I decided to buy myself a Vita. Yes, I'm questioning my judgement as well. Anyway, the Vita itself came with a Borderlands 2 code (I haven't heard too many positive things about the Vita version of Borderlands 2),and at the store I picked up Persona 4 Golden, plus the clerk included Toukiden: The Age of Demons (which I have never heard of).

Once I got home I set up the Vita and linked it to my PSN account, I downloaded quite a few games that I already had on my PS3 and PS4. Spelunky, Hotline Miami, Thomas Was Alone, Rogue Legacy, FEZ, Guacamelee!, and Luftrausers. Now this may seem like an already sizable amount of games to have for the Vita but I was just wondering for the long term what were some of the Vita necessities that I should eventually pick up?

I don't really have a distaste for any genre so I'd say I'm open to most games out there. If anyone would like to chime in that'd be great because looking at generic "Best of" lists can only get me so far and sometimes overlooks some games.

Anyways, have a good one!

Tearaway is incredible charming and has an amazing use of the Vita's hardware.

Danganronpa 1&2, Disgaea 4 and Muramasa Rebirth are all amazing games.

Danganronpa and Disgaea 4 are both currently 40% off on PSN. 50% if you are a + member.

@flynnneary: there's a sale going on right now, on quite a few quality vita compatible games on sale right now, might be of interest to you

https://store.sonyentertainmentnetwork.com/#!/en-us/ps-anniversary-sale/cid=STORE-MSF77008-PS20THSALE_S_LP

right off the bat id recommend one called tactics ogre

The FFX remake is pretty great if you never played it. Or if you want to play it all over again...for the first time.

@frostyryan: glad to hear some positive words about Tearaway, haven't done much research on it, gonna add it to my list

What a good week to buy a vita. There is a great sale going on now, including:

• The Legend Of Heroes: Trails in the Sky in perhaps the best PSP game. Also, I'm pretty sure this is the first time it's been on sale in like 3 or 4 years, so hop on that.
• Lumines Electronic Symphony is not as good as Lumines Puzzle Fusion, but music lisencing means that'll never get released digitally, so this is the best option.
• I don't know how much P4G cost you or if you can still return it but it's $12 to download now.
• Persona 3 Portable is also pretty good.
• Tearaway is a game that I remember not liking, despite having a big smile on my face the entire time I played it.
• You may have picked up Dragon's Crown from PS+ at some point. It's better on Vita because of the way touch controls are implemented.
• Various Final Fantasies
• The PSP GTA games.

@corevi: after hearing Patrick talk about Danganronpa during the GOTY talks that was one I was considering, thanks for the recommendations!

@mrfluke: thanks for the recomendation, to be honest I've never heard of it. Plus thanks for letting me know about the sale, I had no idea it was going on.

One of the first things I picked up was Symphony of the Night, so I could have it portable. TIMELESS

The Disgaea games are so much fun. The PSP games take like no battery either, I played Disgaea 1 for 6h straight in a LONG car ride.

If you like rhythm games and dont mind/like vocaloid music, Project Diva F is pretty cool.

Not really exclusives, but Vita is great for games like Super Stardust, Luftrausers, Olli Olli and other small but fun stuff.

Looks like you've got the essentials; spelunky and P4G

Although the HD remakes of MGS 2 and 3 are pretty cool if you want to reply them, or haven't checked them out before.

And crimsonland is a cool duel stick shooter.

Gravity Rush is an absolute must-play. Everything about that game is fresh and awesome. Plus Gravity Rush 2 is supposedly still is development and sounds like it will be the last big Vita exclusive (I hope I'm wrong). I would also recommend Virtue's Last Reward and Muramasa Rebirth.

Tearaway had a lot of neat tech as well as a great artstyle and soundtrack, but is also a game for kids. Its very simple and easy, probably the easiest Platinum trophy I've gotten. Pick it up on sale if you got the time. Also, don't make penis-shaped things in that game and upload pictures of them to Tearaway's website. Sony WILL catch you.

Wake Up Club, of course.

If you're looking for console-like experiences, both Uncharted and Killzone Mercenary are pretty great versions of their respective franchises, with gorgeous graphics and solid gameplay. Maybe not to everyone's tastes, but I thoroughly enjoyed them.

If you're a fan of the LittleBigPlanet games, the Vita version is personally my favourite. Batman: Blackgate is a neat Metroid-style game that carries the essence of the Arkham games into the 2.5D plane. And, as a total nostalgia recommendation, I picked up Duke Nukem 3D: Megaton Edition, and that games holds up incredibly well, in addition to playing brilliantly on the Vita. Mindless shooting with a focus on exploration and secrets, but that might just be my childhood self talking.

And I'll second Gravity Rush, Danganronpa, and Virtue's Last Reward. All fantastic games well worth the time.

I join in on the Muramasa Rebirth praise.

TxK is a pretty great version of Tempest.

Mortal Kombat on Vita is surprisingly good. I always end up playing it when I travel.

If I had to choose TxK is great if you like arcade score games, and Tempest. Soul Sacrifice Delta is my favorite not-monster huner game on the vita but if you have Toukiden I don't know if you need it.

I'd second the Disgaea 4 reccomendation. It was my first entry into the series and it was great - the tutorials to start with are friendly and the game quickly starts to ramp up difficulty. It's pretty funny and has a great aesthetic too.

Good job on P4G too - by far my most played game on the system.

Senran Kagura Shinovi Versus is a really fun hack n slash (if you don't have a problem with crazy breast physics and the fan service) and Rayman Origins and Legends are really good on the Vita

Velocity 2X(shoot em up and platforming) is really great too

Think there was just a thread on this but I'll re-iterate and say Gravity Rush was and probably still is my fav Vita game.

Obviously depends on what types of games you are in to. Personally I've found Borderlands 2 on Vita fine, but I've just grown tired of Borderlands in general. Its also the same trophy list as PS3, so fyi there.

I just order Persona 4 Golden, I have heard lots of good things about it.

Otherwise my most played games on my Vita are probably:

Need for Speed Most Wanted

Killzone Mercenary

Rayman Origins

Hotline Miami

Dragon Fantasy Book 1
*EDIT Virtues Last Reward Zero Escape -Nearly forgot one of my absolute favorites!

@mosespippy: What? Lumines Electronic Symphony is the best Lumines to date! So many good tracks and tunes o n it.

@trafalgarlaw: For me the track selection on Electronic Symphony is 50% great, 40% shit and 10% OK. Throw in the lack of a puzzle mode, lack of a vs CPU mode and the occasional frame rate issues and that makes it a lesser game than Puzzle Fusion.

I also didn't like that I went from level 28 to 50 from playing on a day that the world block was completed.

I guess no one mentioned Terraria yet, either. I've been spending more time with it on Vita lately, and while it's definitely not preferable to the PC version, it's still pretty decent once you get past the early game where all you have is a copper pick. Not terrible!

@mosespippy: Frame Rate issues? I played LES the legit way from level 1 all the way to level 50 without getting the world cube bonus, I have not witnessed any framerate drops. Even with 70-minute voyage sessions I have yet to see any technical issues. Did you make sure it wasn't your Vita acting up?

@trafalgarlaw: There is occasional slowdown on some of the skins due to the 3D rendered backgrounds. Most of the reviews mention it too, so it's not just me.

You mean framerate drops in the background video? I never actaully experienced it when dropping the blocks.

Minecraft on vita is wonderful.

@flynnneary: Here are some of my favorites.

Gravity Rush - Game has a neat concept. It's really fun to fly around, the game has great music and it has a great look. Plus the story and characters are pretty good. Get it! It's my favorite Vita game that isn't a port. The combat isn't very good but the game is worth playing through.

Killzone Mercenary - If you just want to shoot people in the face, then here you go. i got the game for $9, thought it was pretty good. It looks really good for a Vita game.

Muramasa Rebirth - If you like hack 'n slash and side scrollers, you'll like Muramasa. It has a great look to it and the combat is really good. There's 2 characters so 2 storylines and there's like 4 DLC's for it with all new characters that people say are pretty good.

Rayman Origins + Legends - Both are really good games to play on Vita. Most would agree they're best played on Vita. I crossed out Origins because I think all of the levels in Origins are in Legends. I think.

Sound Shapes - One of the best platformers out there. So good.

Tearaway - The game uses the Vitas features but it doesn't feel gimmicky. It's $14.40 for PS+ members right now, $18 for non PS+ members.

Uncharted: Golden Abyss - If you want some Uncharted on the go, here you go.

Velocity 2X - Play this.

Zero Escape: Virtue's Last Reward - If you like visual novels, here you go. It's like 30 hours but the story is great. Plot twists are ridiculous and it's just pretty addicting if you're into story driven games/visual novels.

Danganronpa 1+2 - Read Zero Escape.

Minecraft - If you like Minecraft, here you go.

As for games you should avoid. Do not play Batman: Arkham Origins Blackgate & Assassin's Creed 3 Liberation, they are BAD games.

@rorie: 'Not terrible' -- Back of the box quote right there! :P

If you like puzzle games, Escape Plan is pretty fun.

Persona 4 Golden the greatest JRPG I've ever played.

Shin Megami Tensei: Persona 3 Portable The Persona game with the better story. Available as a PSP classic.