A gamer has made a disturbing discovery after apparently an ant colony lives in their PS Vita. Their post drew horrified reactions from netizens, with most asking how the insects got into the console.
Launched in 2012, the PS Vita is the successor to the PlayStation Portable (PSP). While the handheld game console had a decent following, it was considered a commercial failure and Sony discontinued its production in 2019. Players can still download the PS Vita, but seem to have run into issues with the PlayStation Store recently.
With the PS Vita being discontinued, it can be difficult to find brand new ones in stores. Gamer mutdualeo probably knows about the struggle, and asked a Reddit user for help in getting rid of the ant colony living in their PS Vita. Their 20-second video shows the console open, showing several ants running inside it and crawling out of the speaker and charging port. The user also said they were concerned that the insects might damage certain components in the PS Vita.
In the comments, many gamers tried to give him some tips on how to carefully remove ants without damaging the device. A day later, mutdualeo informed everyone that they had managed to get rid of the ants and that their PS Vitas were still working fine. Meanwhile, understandably, several other comments have crept in after seeing the ant colony.
Unfortunately, this problem is not uncommon, as other game consoles, such as PlayStation and Xbox, also have ants. This can happen after food or drink has been spilled on the device, or because ants generally just gravitate toward warm environments to shelter themselves, like the inside of a PS Vita. While it’s relatively easy to clean them up or have tech support do it, ants can still damage electronics, especially if they electrocute them internally or eat heat-conducting compounds. In mutdualeo’s case, they were lucky their PS Vita didn’t malfunction and they were still able to enjoy their favorite games.
Sony hasn’t released a new handheld since the PS Vita was released. Though there’s speculation it’s running on a PS Vita 2 or a brand new handheld. If the rumors are true, the Nintendo Switch and Steam Deck could have another worthy competitor. Other reports suggest that the new Sony handheld will not be an actual handheld, but for PS5 Remote Play. Regardless, gamers will just have to wait and see what Sony does going forward.