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Posts Tagged ‘Playstation 2’

Sony’s PlayStation 2 celebrates 10 years as a fallen, bygone generation of consoles looks on in envy

Dreamcast? GameCube? Xbox? They’re cute and endearing to look back on now, because they really never stood a chance. Sony practically redefined what it meant to be dominant in a console generation with the PlayStation 2, which was launched on March 4, 2000 in Japan (the US got it that October), went on to sell over 140 million units, and is still going strong. It’s strange to think that for what many people was their first DVD player turned out to be powerful enough to bring us the cinematic experiences of Shadow of the Colossus, God of War II and Final Fantasy XII, and enough of a kicker to make it into the latest round of Madden releases. Of course, its foray into online gaming took a second fiddle to Microsoft’s Xbox, and many of Sony’s high-minded, living room-invasion promises of the console (remember that FireWire port? The hard drive slot?) never really panned out. Still, we’d say it’s been a pretty good 10 years for this thing. Feeling extra-nostalgic? Check out Sony’s own timeline of PlayStation it pumped out for the 15 year anniversary of the brand last year. Brings a tear to our eye every time.

[Thanks to everyone who sent this in]

Sony’s PlayStation 2 celebrates 10 years as a fallen, bygone generation of consoles looks on in envy originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 04 Mar 2010 13:33:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Microsoft to discontinue Xbox Live for original Xbox

It has had long run, but Microsoft announced today that it will discontinue the online game service Xbox Live for the original Xbox game console that it launched in 2001.

Xbox Live for the original console debuted in November, 2002. But by April 15, Microsoft is going to discontinue that service, according to an open letter posted by Xbox Live general manager Marc Whitten. That’s likely going to enrage the fans of multiplayer Halo 2, which has persisted as a fan favorite since the game launched in 2004.

No doubt the fans who didn’t upgrade to the Xbox 360 — which debuted in 2005 — are going to be steamed at Microsoft. The Halo 2 fans can at least migrate to Halo 3 multiplayer on the Xbox 360.

On the one hand, Microsoft is turning its back on loyal customers who paid good money assuming that their consoles would have a long lifespan. Sony, by contrast, has supported the PlayStation 2 console since 2000. But I suppose you can’t expect Microsoft to support its older products forever, given the costs of doing so. On the operating system side, for instance, Microsoft has been moving to cut its costs by ending tech support for obsolete operating systems. Microsoft appears to be justifying the shutdown by offering more features in the future for its online fans. The company says that future changes, which will bring new features, are going to be incompatible with the original Xbox.

“We did not make this decision lightly, but after careful consideration and review we realize that this decision will allow us unprecedented flexibility for future features,” Whitten said.

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PlayStation 2 finally launches in Brazil for the bargain price of around US $462
You read that right. Sony’s PlayStation 2, which the great majority of the world has been enjoying since 2000, is just now officially touching ground in Brazil. We’re pretty sure it’s been making its way into the country for many years by not-so-official means, but if you’ve gone the legit route, last-generation’s game console king can be yours for just 799 Brazilian Real, which we’re sad to say translates to about $461 in US currency. Yeah, we’re expecting this to just fly off the shelves.

Filed under: Gaming

PlayStation 2 finally launches in Brazil for the bargain price of around US $462 originally appeared on Engadget on Sat, 21 Nov 2009 01:41:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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The swirl that shook gaming: the Sega Dreamcast turns 10

Officially, the Dreamcast died an ugly death at the hands of the PlayStation 2. The system didn’t have the support of EA. Sega couldn’t compete with Sony on marketing, the inclusion of a DVD drive, and the backwards compatibility included with the PlayStation 2. The end result is that Sega became what it is now: a software company.

That’s the official story, at least.

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Video: Retractible wireless Rock Band / Guitar Hero controller perfect for the five-button shredder on the go

Guitar Hero and Rock Band’s plastic axes aren’t exactly behemoths in their own right, but if you need something even tinier, little-known game accessories company NEXiLUX looks to have a more portable solution in the works. The video for its mini guitar isn’t the clearest, but from we can see, the body is about the same size as the retracted neck, which expands from behind the touch-sensitive pads to reveal the infamous quintet of colored buttons. D-pad, navigation buttons, whammy bar, and pickup selection have all survived the compression, and to make each unit as universal as possible, there’s a switch on the bottom for choosing between either Guitar Hero for Wii or Rock Band for Wii, PlayStation 2, and PS3. Both black and white models are seen here, but there’s no mention either in-video or on the company’s website of price or release date. See it for yourself after the break.

[Thanks, Floyd]

Continue reading Video: Retractible wireless Rock Band / Guitar Hero controller perfect for the five-button shredder on the go

Filed under: Gaming, Peripherals

Video: Retractible wireless Rock Band / Guitar Hero controller perfect for the five-button shredder on the go originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 31 Aug 2009 21:53:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Xbox 360 ‘Super Elite’ with 250GB HDD glimpsed in South African retail ad

So much for secrecy. South African Xbox 360 distributor Comztek has told local gaming news site XboxGaming.co.za that the a 250GB “Super Elite” model is due there in October. Additionally, the Forza 3 bundle we saw heading to Germany is also en route to SA, retailing for R4,999 (US $646), or around the same price as the Elite before its recent global price cut. South African retailer BT Games has apparently also posted a flier in honor of the launch, offering a R500 discount on the Super Elite with the trade-in of a slimline PlayStation 2. Let’s hope the folks in Redmond have as much of a sense of humor about leaks as Sony does.

[Via Joystiq]

Filed under: Gaming

Xbox 360 ‘Super Elite’ with 250GB HDD glimpsed in South African retail ad originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 28 Aug 2009 19:13:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Sony: PlayStation 2 compatibility ‘is not coming back’ to PS3

Cling to that Cell-based PlayStation 2 emulator patent all you want, but Sony director of hardware marketing John Koller has some disparaging words for those wanting Shadow the Colossus to one day work one the latest hardware. PS2 backwards compatibility “is not coming back, so let me put that on the table,” he told Ars Technica, soon after reaffirming, “that won’t be returning.” Apparently people have been buying the PS3 not for PS2 titles but for the newest games and Blu-ray movies — and given PS2’s continued dominance in sales, presumably to play those last-gen games, we don’t doubt it. Seeing such a feature standard in all other consoles out there, including the first two iterations of this one, we can’t help but feel burned. Still, it was less than two months ago when Sony’s mantra was no PS3 price cuts, and funny enough, that’s more or less what happened. So if Koller wants to go back on his word and offer PS2 compatibility further down the line, hey, we’ll forgive him.

[Via Joystiq]

Filed under: Gaming

Sony: PlayStation 2 compatibility ‘is not coming back’ to PS3 originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 20 Aug 2009 21:49:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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