Sony's big announcement: PS2 pricecut, PS3 will secure Blu-ray format |
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There we have it. Sony's big March 31 announcement: the standard rate for the PS2 is now getting a pricecut. Starting April 1 (and no, it's not an April Fool's joke), the PlayStation 2 will be going for US$ 99.99. Hah, I called it!This announcement is ten years in the making. Yes, right about this time, the PS2 has been in the market for a decade now, and Sony's proud that their baby could have a lifespan so long. As John Koller says (via the PS Blog):
In the gaming industry, the typical lifecycle for a console is around five years, but because we build each of our platforms for a large and diverse consumer base, we design our platforms differently. With the original PlayStation and now PlayStation 2, weÂ’ve proven that consumers can rely on our platforms for their gaming and entertainment needs for at least a decade.
This statement is echoed by Jack Tretton of SCEA. He attributes this successful ten year lifespan to the PlayStation brand, and is optimistic that it will also happen for the PS3. Says Tretton (via Edge):
Just as PlayStation 2 is delivering on a 10-year lifecycle and helped expand and solidify the DVD format for home entertainment along the way. We believe Playstation 3 offers the same promise by helping secure the Blu-ray format.
And it's true. They started pretty rough, with the competition against HD-DVD, but now that Toshiba's withdrawn, the whole world is Sony's oyster now.
Thanks to tipsters Justin.H, Nall256, bitwreck, ace241280, gtxboyracer, and dragonracer900!
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Comments [refresh]
What a big announcement, Sony you should have dropped PS3 price instead! Is this your way of giving us backwards compatibility? Plizz gimme a break! Epic Fail
In the immortal words of eric cartman....Laaaammme!!! Seriously the only people who buy a ps2 now are the people that are replacing an old 1. They should be focusing more on the ps3. The only reason the ps2 is still going is cause it probably gives them similar income as the ps3 if not more
Well.. not what I was hoping for. I wanted some big new thing for the PS3 or the PSP2 or something. My PS2 I've had for nearly seven years is still working just fine.
sony's big announcement is a ps2 price cut.... its not that big ....thats actually bad news. i want some big announcement PS3 NEWS!
well not bad. PS2 does deseve the $99 price
I need something cool for my ps3 comon sony i support you and you give me I.O.U.'s thats not fair.
So the big news is something we already knew? Lame.
Maybe too many people (like myself) got caught up in the hype of something "big" and important happening, but this is just a disappointment.
Just a price drop on the PS2? Really? What a drag. Give me some PS3/PSP news or even something different, not a price drop on a system 10 years old and call it a "big announcement".
sony will come out on the 1st and say APRIL FOOLS and then announce ps3 news. trust me on this *wink* i know something you all dont
I work at GameStop and you wouldn't believe all the people who come in and buy their first PS2...
And another point, now that the system is $99, I don't see why people are complaining about backwards compatibility. Buy the cheaper PS3 and a PS2 and you have better backwards compatibility than even the 60gb model.
I own a 60gb and an old old old PS2, simply because some PS 1+2 games just don't work 100%, even on the 60gb.
So, they do the April Fools joke on March 31, and then tell the truth on April 1st?
Actually...Sony probably would do something stupid like that.
THIS IS DUMB. Honestly. It's like Ford saying they're reducing the price of their 1999 focus!!! Or Nintendo saying they're lowering the price of the original Game Boy!!! Like WTF.
OMG! Just what I've always wanted. ***** new features or some new games, my dream to have a cheaper obsolete game console has finally come true! Maybe next week they'll announce a pricecut for the PS1!!!! OMG! FANTASTIC!!!
It's something we practically already new, given their claims on the PSP's "ten year lifespan".
hey that's good for people that are moving out of their parents house etc etc.
this would have been a good announcement. All they had to do, was say it a day in advance to give it a good enough minor hype, then release it. Instead they told all the major blogs that there is going to be an announcement a week in advance.
A week of speculation is enough for people to start thinking, omg, FFVII REMAKE, PS3 PRICE DROP, FREE TACOS W/PURCHASE!. Because heck, we are all expecting the taco bonus feature that was rumored 3 years ago.
It's only a disappointment for you guys because Sony never said it was a big huge announcement. They merely said they had something to announce.
This is great news, regardless.
I just bought a new PS2 a week ago. Maybe I can find the receipt...
All PS1 + PS2 games work on the 60 and 20GB PS3 models. They have the PS2 hardware in them. Even the games that actually support the PS2 hard drive work.
I guess this is sony's way of apologizing for removing PS2 compatibility.
pretty lame announcement =/
@ Mister Common Sense
Actually, you're very wrong and Gblo6689 is very correct.
I also happen to own a 60GB PS3 and can tell you from personal experience that Soul Edge for the original PS1 does not function correctly at all. Neither does SNK Battle Colosseum, and that was a fairly recent PS2 title. Even though the 60GB PS3s contain the emotion engine, they don't necessarily play everything perfectly because some of the hardware is indeed emulated.
Oh brother! Is Mr. Douche spreading more lies around?
Not all PSx games work on the PS3. Gees, that's common knowledge!!!
if you stole a ps2 from some rich bastard who would never miss it? :)
Why are they still focusing on the PS2? Dude there's PS3 already. Start working on the PSP/PS3. Stuff that might make you some money.
10 year life span for the PS3? So... that's about 20 repairs... well for me anyways. 2 down, 18 more to go. So 18 x $150 = $2,700
I think I only used the PS2 to watch DVDs a few times.... I think it was porn... so maybe a dozen times....
"Buy the cheaper PS3 and a PS2 and you have better backwards compatibility than even the 60gb model."
Only problem with that is, most people would rather have it all in one.
.....that was amazing news.............sorry excitment made me drop off!!
seriously, WTF!! they could have called it a small announcement! hardly the hype they worked up over it. time for some japs to fall on their swords for this one!
That is true... it does look a lot nicer and is more convenient to only have one... but if you want to play PS2 games unfortunately this is (for the most part) the only way.
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Not all of the 60gb and 20gb have the emotion engine within. Only Serials ending with CECHA and CECHB have hardware emulation, so even with the 60gb and 20gb you might be out of luck.
My source:
http://www.edepot.com/playstation3.html#PS3_Model_Differences
Mine is a CECHA and I can't play Silent Hill 1 due to the fact that if you do your ears will bleed from the sheer mind numbingly high pitched sound caused by firing your weapon...
They don't make PS1 anymore.
But I'd like it if the announcement was a redesigned and overclocked PS1.
Nah, rich guys usually have good security.
Does this mean that Controller and Memory Card prices drop too?
no those things will probably stay at $25 until they stop making the thing. (And even then it will probably be a $5 drop.)
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But no seriously I don't think the price of a DS2 has ever changed.
Correction, common sense. The PS3 does NOT have ps2 hardware in it, it in fact uses a custom chip to emulate a PS2, which is why not ALL games will run on it. PS1 is emulated as well, but because it requires so much less power, it doesn't require it's own chip to be emulated, which is why all ps3's can emulate ps1.
This is actually you and everyone else's fault who proclaimed this news "big" announcement. Sony never said at any point this news was big. This was misinterpreted to the fans/fanboys of the PS3 hoping it's going to be something huge. I even told QJ the news wasn't big and Sony never said it was. But I suppose I shouldn't be surprised. Happens all the time, some news get out and everyone thinks it's some huge holy grail of consoles. I had a feeling it was either a game or PS2 price cut. Cause lets face it, Firmware 2.70 having all the features everyone asked for would be huge, but then Sony would have no real reason to continue updating the Firmware unless to fix errors and stabilize stuff.
It wouldn't be price cut, cause they're still losing money per console sold, and as a business they're trying to make money. Sure cutting it you can say "make it cheaper then people would buy it tons and gain money". While in theory that does sound good, and could work, in reality it can't. They'd lose more money doing that. PS3 price is a bargain/steal for what the system is offering. I mean it's the same price as the Elite, and people still buy that. It wouldn't be PSP2 news since the PSP still has a good year and a half left before they mention it or release it. So, in reality the speculation of what it was, was severely limited based off this. The PS2 price cut sounded more realistic imo. It's not big to people who own PS3, and a PS3 price cut wouldn't matter to people who already have one, but newer people just getting into gaming seeing the massive library PS2 still has over all competitors at this time, and for the cheap price it's at, it's a steal as well. It not only brings new fans into the PS brand, but more fans into the gaming realm.
@Gblo6689 - you're right, there was a few PS2 titles I couldn't play with PS3, but unlike some, I still have a PS2 and it works perfectly. So, I have no problem with the lower percentage of working PS1, PS2 titles on the PS3. Hell, I've completely moved to the PS3 titles. Cause quite honestly they look outstanding and play great where playing old titles wouldn't feel the same. I still play them once in awhile, but don't get the same satisfaction as I did when I first played them after playing PS3 titles.