Sony reveals potentially expensive Japanese UMD transfer program for Vita

As promised, Sony is currently prepping a system to allow gamers to transfer (transfar?) their PlayStation Portable games to the UMD-less PS Vita. Today, the publisher announced system to allow Japanese gamers to convert their physical games into digital form for download, but it's not as simple as you might think. First, they'll need to download a verification application from the PlayStation Network, which will then confirm that they have a physical copy of the game. Once verified, the games can be re-purchased from the PSN with a discount, and that discount varies from game to game. While some are free, others are somewhat pricy.

The discounts vary from game to game. Onore no Shizuru Michi wo Yuke, for instance, is available for free, whereas gamers who purchased Shin Megami Tensei: Persona 3 Portable will need to spend 1,500 yen (about $20) to re-download it on their Vita. Those are the extremes, obviously, and most revealed so far fall between the two prices, coming in at either 500 or 1000 yen.

The full list of games revealed so far is below, courtesy of Siliconera.

• Guilty Gear Judgment – 500 yen
• Carnage Heart EXA – 400 yen
• Pachipara Slot – Pachislot Sea Story in Okinawa - 1,000 yen
• Akiba’s Trip – 1,000 yen
• Tale of the Lost Promise – 1,000 yen
• Shin Megami Tensei: Persona 3 Portable – 1,500 yen
• Metal Slug Complete – 500 yen
• Higurashi Daybreak – 500 yen
• Atelier Viola – 1,000 yen
• Street Supremacy (Tokyo Xtreme Racer) – 1,000 yen
• Dynasty Warriors Portable – 500 yen
• Dead or Alive Paradise – 1,000 yen
• Colin McRae: Dirt 2 – 1,000 yen
• Ever 17 ~ the out of infinity ~ 1,000 yen
• Nanatama: Chronicle of Dungeon Maker – 500 yen
• Silver Star Shogi Portable – 1,000 yen
• Chameleon – 500 yen
• Hot Shots Golf: Open Tee 2 – 500 yen
• Patapon 3 – 1,000 yen
• Gran Turismo – 1,000 yen
• Nano Diver – 1,000 yen
• Himehibi Princess Days Portable – 740 yen
• Sacrifice of the Inescapable Room – 1,000 yen
• The Promise I Made Over this Blue Sky: Paradise in the Palm of Your Hand – 100 yen
• Everyone’s Reading: Masterpieces & Detective Stories & Ghost Stories – 500 yen
• Disgaea 2: Dark Hero Days – 500 yen
• Makai Kingdom Portable – 1,000 yen
• The Convini Portable – 1,000 yen
• Evangelion: Battle Orchestra Portable – 1,000 yen
• Kanon – 1,000 yen
• Harvest Moon: Boy & Girl – 500 yen
• Memories Off – 500 yen
• Prince of Persia: The Forgotten Sands – 1,000 yen
• Onore no Shizuru Michi wo Yuke – Free
• Prince of Persia: Sands of Oblivion – 1,000 yen

Sony hasn't confirmed if this is going to make it to America, but we wouldn't hold our breaths. For one, we might all pass out, and that would be bad for the economy, but also because this isn't Sony's first dance with promising a transfer system that never materialized. We'll keep you posted, though we'd suggest being prepared to re-purchase your games without marginal discounts if you want to continue playing Patapon 3 on the Vita.