Sony: PS2 "Forever Changed" Gaming

[khaimera]

I was one of those "bought one for the DVD player" people. And I'm glad I did. I still own one, not my original one, and use it to play Frequency.

 

[Akalistos]

It means very VERY little, but it means something. Microsoft did take notice when designing their next system. Still, eh...it has gotten out of hand, i apologize for that.

No need to get defensive about it haha, I have a PS2, I've had a few since I've worn them out. I was just taking a stab at it since it really is just a silly feature to brag about.

Since the first NES was notorious for having bad connections (aka: the green, blue or brown screen) and was a chore to get working, they made that. Once the cartridge is locked in, it would work the first time.

Hardly an improvement it removed the AV function and RF shielding so you got an inferior more noisy/blurry signal. Then again my NES is bricked after just fixing it.

The AV function was remove to slim it down. As for the RF Shielding... it didn't need it as long as you leave the cartridge in. But it's not the point I was making, they had a problem with the original and tried to fix it. It's just to contrast the fact to @Jkudo that you can give credit for bringing something new (in this case, they bring a fix for that console) yet anyone can attested that any hardware, console or otherwise components can play on the side.

It wasn't fixing it, it was making a cheaper more price appealing model when the NES was being phased out. Same thing with the Genesis 2 (No headphone jack and different sound chip) and 3 (no expansion slots), NES2 (No AV, less shielding, no expansions), PSOne (no com ports, no reset button) PS2 (no Hdd port)and the like. Strip out features and repackage it. Yes it fixed something, as did other revisions but the real goal was to make a nice lower priced product.

AV function was removed because it wasn't as common and it's cheaper to do RF at that point. The RF shielding IS important because it makes more noise on the image displayed on the TV, it has nothing to do with the cartridge.

In all honesty, I just quote someone i saw on the Internet about the NES 2 because i don't know jack shit about it. It could have been wrong. But the point is NEW, or add something. In that case, you could load the cart in and it would work much like the SNES. Side note here, isn't the RF Shielding the plastic "door" that you found in the cartridge slot of the Genesis?

Beside, the sound from the headphone jack was horrible. When i was a kid, i prefer muting the T.V. instead of using the headphone jack on the console.

RF shielding is a metal inlay that protects the signals from outside/internal interference. The NES2 is hardly new since the Famicom (japanese NES) was a top loading unit at the time too. I get your point that it was newer but it took more than anything, many people agree the NES 1 is far better for many reasons.

The headphone jack was great on the genesis, it let you get stereo out of the system easily. Also it let me stay up later to play more Sonic, hell yes.

I don't mean new as in "It's the first" (it would have been the SNES) but more like they did something new to address something. Some sort of Improvement if you will. There's no improvement present when you realize that everything could work on the side... except cars.

 

[Jfswift]

I think the PS2's biggest selling point, for me anyway, was the larger game library it had as compared to competing systems at the time, and also the nifty DVD player was a plus. I'm surprised the online capability is mentioned, seeing as hardly anyone I knew utilized it (I know I didn't).

 

[Redlin5_v1legacy]

I never owned one but my few experiences with it were enjoyable. Nintendo should have never refused to sign up with Sony.

[sub]Top of the page FTW[/sub]

 

[blind_dead_mcjones]

while the claim 'forever changed gaming' is gross exaggerating, the PS2's success in my mind comes from the build quality, sure it may not have the prettiest graphics or high powered features of the xbox, but it could go what you asked of it reasonably well without fuss and was a very solid machine (and yes i do own one, one of the brick types and its still going strong)

also alongside the dvd player capability having the backwards compatibility thing partly helped, it meant that the system (and by extension the people who bought them) already had at least 500+ games to pick from on the very first day, and not having to wade through the launch titles while wating for the new game catalogue to build up

 

[SmugFrog]

Time to come back down to earth, Jack. Its Internet connectivity was pretty poor (you needed to buy an add-on if you had an original PS2, and it wasn't a unified network), and the EyeToy bombed.

The PS2 did enough great things that you can just stick to them, no need to try and play up things it wasn't good at.

What I admire about the PS2 is the lifespan of the thing, and how far they pushed the limits of their technology with the games that were coming out before the PS3's release.

However, if I had to pick a console that forever changed gaming, it would be first the NES, that became the first widely accepted home console system, and then the Xbox for having a hard drive and the Xbox Live network. There are others that are noteworthy, but to me, those are the biggest changes.

[sub]Top of the page FTW[/sub]

I always hate it when I get pushed to the next page, but... I guess you're happy about that? Congrats?

 

[Z(ombie)fan]

yea yea. there is still a TON of terrible games, namely everything square enix did. yes, even Kingdom hearts. STFU fanboys.

I thoroughly regret playing the mojority of games on there.

 

[Aeshi]

In my eyes the PS2 is the greatest console ever,so I would agree.

 

[ImprovizoR]

The PS2 was the best console of all time, and the "firsts", or associated gimmickry/gadgetry, had nothing to do with it. It was all about the games.

Exactly. It was just the console and the games. And it was awesome. So many great games and so many hours spent playing alone and with friends. I still remember how excited I was when I first opened the box and plugged in the PS2 for the first time. It was a glorious day indeed.

 

[Stabby Joe]

I'd like to point out before responding that we're focusing on one small element neglecting everything else about the console.

Hey, you could play any handheld console upside down. Hell, you could place your NES on the side too. Or Upside down. In fact, my GAMECUBE is on his side, it's more gansta that way.

(aka: It was the first to put plastic leg on the side... nothing more)

Actually the PS2 was designed to stand on it's side WITHOUT the stand, the stand itself more of a large safety measure to those paranoid enough. Also there was the logo that could be switched around. Granted it was only cosmetic but at least they thought about it.

Forget designed to do so, any cartridge system you could nail to a wall and it would work the same because there's no moving parts. Hell my friends NES was sideways next to his TV way back when and it worked perfectly.

No I'm not going to "forget designed to do so" since that's the point.

 

[Tom Phoenix]

The PS2 changed....absolutely zero. There was nothing innovative about the PS2; it was simply a better PlayStation. Any new features it added were already done before and better (PC gaming, anyone?). To clarify, that doesn't mean the PS2 was a bad console (quite the contrary). But it did not "change gaming"...at all. It was simply the logical next step on the path that gaming had already undertaken.

Also, the fact that PS2's are still selling isn't just a testament to it's strength as a platform (hardware-wise, it wasn't actually impressive, but it has an absolutely enormous library of games), but a testament to the fact that better graphics are no longer a selling point for a system like they have been since the 16-bit era. For the majority of consumers, the PS3/360 were not a significant enough leap compared to the previous generations to really justify the expense, especially since most of them didn't (and probably still don't) have an HD TV. As a result, the adoption rate for the HD twins has been really slow. That's not the only reason why the PS3 has done so poorly compared to it's predecessor (Sony apparently bumped their head one too many times and forgot that flooding their consoles with software was the reason for the PS/PS2's success), but it is one of them.

Quite frankly, I don't think the PS2's continued popularity is actually a source of pride for Sony....at least, not by this point in the current console generation. On the contrary, they were probably even embarrased that the PS2 was outselling or at least selling just as strongly as the PS3 for many years. The fact is, a great portion of PS2 owners are not shifting to the PS3. They hoped cutting the cost in half and providing a new model (the Slim) would solve the issue, but it didn't...it gave the PS3 a temporary boost, but a significant amount of PS2 owners still eludes them. They are either unaware or unwilling to admit that they have a serious problem on their hands.

 

[Dexiro]

Mmhm I'm not sure if I agree entirely, but either way PS2 was a great console :3

 

[Akalistos]

-snip-

It wasn't design that way when you realize that all components of any computer can also work on the side. I won't change my stance on this until you can prove to me that at some point in the development, i could have been hazardous for the console.

 

[Stabby Joe]

-snip-

It wasn't design that way when you realize that all components of any computer can also work on the side. I won't change my stance on this until you can prove to me that at some point in the development, i could have been hazardous for the console.

I'm not referring to technical design.

Besides if you feel THAT strongly on the matter take it up with GamesRadar since I'm just quoting them.

 

[TheEvilCheese]

I have had a kind of love-hate relationship with the PS2.
I Hate the hardware with a passion.
I dislike the fact that it had 2 controller ports (addons don't count)
Seemed to have a reputation as the most 'powerful' console of the Generation but was in truth nothing of the sort.

But in the end it had fantastic 3rd party support and it was cheap.

And it will always have a special place in history as the console that truly brought gaming into the mainstream.

 

[AndyFromMonday]

Didn't the PC do the exact same things the PS2 did and better? I don't want to be a party pooper here but I can't see how the PS2 changed gaming.

 

[Akalistos]

-snip-

It wasn't design that way when you realize that all components of any computer can also work on the side. I won't change my stance on this until you can prove to me that at some point in the development, i could have been hazardous for the console.

I'm not referring to technical design.

Technical design? What!?!? Listen, it's purely esthetic, even if you want to call that design (which i don't).

 

[Stabby Joe]

-snip-

It wasn't design that way when you realize that all components of any computer can also work on the side. I won't change my stance on this until you can prove to me that at some point in the development, i could have been hazardous for the console.

I'm not referring to technical design.

Technical design? What!?!? Listen, it's purely esthetic, even if you want to call that design (which i don't).

I'm basically saying the PS2 was designed in it's shape to be up right or on it's side, as opposed to one position regardless of how well it worked. Again, take it up with them.

 

[Lenriak]

What did it change again, I never noticed any changes in the industry when I jamp from PS1 to Xbox. Except that more monkeys calling themselves human were gaming.