PlayStation 3 production shut down in Japan

The PlayStation 3 is at the end of its life.

Sony has ceased production of its third console in its home territory of Japan, according to Gematsu's translation of the official Japanese PlayStation website. The site lists shipments for the 500GB standard model - until now, the only one being produced in Japan - as "ended".

Cessation of PS3 production has been inevitable since the launch of the PlayStation 4 back in November 2013 (although, interestingly, February 2014 for Japan) - in fact, Sony previously alerted the industry that this was in the works back in March. The PS3 first launched in November 2006, with PAL territories waiting until 2007 for it.

There is always overlap when a console's successor arrives on shelves, although the PS3 falls short of beating the lifecycle of its predecessor, with the PS2 only ceasing production back in 2013 - 13 years after it first launched.

While this specifically marks an end to PS3 production into Japan, Sony will still have some units in production in other territories, but expect those to be discontinued in the coming months. Some territories, such as New Zealand, have already seen the console pulled from production.

Further support, such as firmware updates and online support, are also likely to be wound down in the year ahead as Sony concentrates solely on the PS4 and PSVR - and inevitably gears up for the next PlayStation.

To date, the PlayStation 3 has sold more than 80m units worldwide - doing a fine job of keeping pace with Xbox 360 after a troubled and staggered launch.