5 Best PlayStation Vita Stealth Games, Ranked

Highlights

• PlayStation Vita is an underrated handheld system that gained a cult following despite being overshadowed by the Nintendo 3DS.
• Assassin’s Creed III: Liberation and Metal Gear Solid HD Collection are impressive achievements for the PS Vita and must-play titles for fans of the franchises.

The PlayStation Vita is one of the most underrated handheld systems of all time. While the console had great hardware for the time, Sony quickly abandoned it after it became apparent that it would’ve lost its battle against Nintendo’s 3DS, and the system ended up selling a lot fewer units than its predecessor, the PSP.

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However, the PlayStation Vita still managed to gain a sort of cult following, with some dedicated players who still use the system regularly to this day. This is also thanks to a respectable number of games released on the platform, among which there are many great stealth games. But which are the best stealth games on PS Vita?

5 Shinobido 2: Revenge Of Zen

Metascore: 55

Shinobido 2: Revenge of Zen is a 2012 PlayStation Vita exclusive game that acts as a sequel to both Shinobido: Way of the Ninja and Shinobido: Tales of the Ninja. In this game, players can take the role of one of the two main characters, Zen and Kaede. The game is a fresh take on Tenchu, which was developed by the same team and was a huge success on the PS1. While the game does look nicer than previous games, it’s still very clunky to play, and it’s clear that it was done on a tight budget, as there is noticeable asset recycling throughout the game.

However, the game is still decently fun to play, especially for all those who love this specific historical setting. There are multiple weapons to choose from to take down enemies, and the game even encourages multiple playthroughs, as players must choose to pledge their alliance to one daimyou only during a single run, and can then do the other routes in other playthroughs. While it will hardly be remembered as one of the best stealth games of all time, it’s still a solid choice, and it’s one of the few games that is still exclusive to the system.

4 Sly Cooper Collection

Metascore: 80

Sly Cooper is a series of stealth-platformer games, and the Sly Cooper Collection allows players to enjoy the entire original trilogy in all its glory, this time whenever and wherever they want. Each game can be considered a classic, and fans often argue about which game is the best in the series. While there’s no definitive answer to this question, players will surely have a great time with each one of these three games.

While these games aren’t purely stealth-focused, they do offer a great deal of stealth action, especially in the second and third games in the series. The PlayStation Vita is also home to the fourth, and so far final, game in the series, Sly Cooper: Thieves in Time, which is also a great choice for a stealth game on the system, but it’s not quite as good as the original trilogy.

3 Volume

Metascore: 86

Volume was originally released in 2016, and it’s one of the best indie stealth games of recent years. Heavily influenced by Metal Gear Solid, specifically the VR missions introduced in the first game, players will face over 100 levels where they need to take protagonist Robert Locksley to the exit without being spotted. Played from a top-down perspective, the game features many different kinds of enemies and hazards, and players will need to carefully study their patterns and how to avoid them before taking action.

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If the story mode wasn’t enough, players can also compete with other players from all around the world through leaderboards, and there’s even a whole level editor mode where players can create their own levels and share them with other players, provided they can beat them at least once before they share them. All in all, it’s a great stealth game, and its simple structure makes it perfect for a handheld system.

2 Assassin’s Creed 3: Liberation

Metascore: 70

While Assassin’s Creed 3: Liberation won’t ever be considered among the best games in this franchise, this was still the very first (and only) attempt to have a handheld spin-off capable of achieving almost the same results as a mainline Assassin’s Creed game. Released as a companion title to Assassin’s Creed III, the game has players take the role of Aveline de Grandpré, who is the first female protagonist the franchise has ever had. The story takes place in 18th-century French Louisiana, during the same time frame as the mainline game.

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The gameplay is the same as in every other Assassin’s Creed game up to that point, even if Liberation can feel a bit too limited compared to mainline games of the time, which is something to be expected given that it’s running on much weaker hardware. Despite a general lack of innovation and a rather uninteresting storyline, along with the fact that Aveline is surely not the best protagonist in the franchise, the game is still an impressive achievement for the system, and every Assassin’s Creed fan who owns a PS Vita should give it a go.

Metascore: 81

Metal Gear Solid HD Collection is a game that needs no introduction. This collection includes two classic games from the mainline series, namely Metal Gear Solid 2 and Metal Gear Solid 3. Both games have aged like fine wine, from a story perspective, and from a gameplay perspective, and for the first time ever they are completely playable on the go. While this version lacks Metal Gear Solid: Peace Walker, which was included in the home console releases of this collection, it’s still hard to complain about it, considering what this package still has to offer.

While it should be noted that both games lack any kind of updates or new features, except for a very bland graphical enhancement, these are still two of the best stealth games of all time, and some even consider them among the best games of all time in general. It would be tough not to recommend this masterpiece collection to any PS Vita player.

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