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Yes, it is the time that many Playstation fans have been waiting for: The European launch of Playstation 2. Unfortunately not all of them will be able to get one on release as there will only be 165,000 units this year. Ok, so many people have slated the PS2, but the fact remains that it will be bought by the masses, and probably, and somewhat unjustly, outsell the Dreamcast by a long way. If you think about the situation for a moment: Sony sold 70million Playstation consoles whereas Sega sold no more than 3million Sega Saturn consoles, just a slight difference! So far, the PS2 has sold well despite its faults and problems, so far I think over 3 million consoles have been sold since March! The Dreamcast has exceeded Sega's expectations and is on a respectable 6.2million as I speak.
I do no want to turn this into another PS2 versus Dreamcast post or opinion, so I'll talk solely about Sony's machine. So, what does it have to offer? Well, at £299.99 you get a 128bit, 291MHz Console offering DVD playback technology. This price may sound high, but then think back to when Playstation was first released! I seem to remember it was exactly the same price! For what you get, the Playstation 2 isn't THAT expensive, but the amount the British consumers must pay IS too much when you compare the US and Japanese prices - In Japan the console is a mere £175, and in the US of A it is also cheaper at £199.99. So, are we getting ripped-off by Sony? Work it out....
The cost is expensive at double the price of the Dreamcast and at over 3 times the price of the PSone and N64. The DVD player isn't the highest spec machine that you'll ever see, it isn't that great actually, but it's still an added USP for Sony to preach about.
Let's forget the competition for the moment. Let's say you are getting a PS2 and nobody's thoughts will convince you otherwise. What should you get with the console? GAMES: The games that the Playstation 2 will have at launch aren't that exciting. From personal experience I can warn you NOT to get Ridge racer 5 or Tekken Tag Tournament, you'll be far better off with a copies of Dead or Alive 2, and Smuggler's Run, but if you can wait until the release of Gran Turismo 3 (arriving in the new year) then I suggest you hang on, because it will be PS2's premier racing game. Don't forget you can still play most of your original PS titles on the console, but they will be running at the same speed, so there won't be any graphical advantages by playing them on the new machine.
Metal Gear Solid has won a lot of fans, and the sequel looks as though it'll be even better, I'd hold out for this one if I were you! If you like football then forget FIFA 2001, it doesn't matter if Sony own EA, do YOURSELF a favour and get the fantastic ISS evolution as it really will be in a different league.
DVD! Well, in Japan the Playstation 2 sparked off a frenzy of DVD sales, and boosted the market in a very significant way, but it seems as though our Japanese relatives (however distant they might be) are using their machines mainly for DVD usage, the games sales speak for themselves, with games rivalling Dreamcast titles in terms of sales - the Playstation software sales are still the highest! What DVD titles do I recommend? Well, I cannot tell you which to avoid, but I strongly recommend The Blair Witch Project, The 6th Sense and The Matrix. The DVD market has already grown substantially in Europe and in the UK in particular, but it’s going to grow even more.
Peripherals and Add on equipment: Ok, so you can lie you PS2 flat, or stand it upright, the latter will cost you an extra £20 – I hope you know what you should do. A memory card will be £30, but will have more space, and the control pads are £10 more (*I think). Of course, you can still use your old pads from the Playstation they’ll work just as well.
There is no doubt in my mind that the PS2 won’t be all its been hyped up to be. For example the so-called ‘emotion engine’ is nothing more than a bog standard processor, but Sony will obviously tell you otherwise. Also, the initial PS2 games will all run at 50hz, and not 60hz. Now, you might not think that’s very important, but just ask any well educated Dreamcast owner, and they’ll tell you how much better games run at 60hz. I have to say that most TVs now support 60hz, but Sony haven’t chosen to include this beneficial feature at present.
In today’s world £299.99 is a lot of money to pay, and you should feel annoyed that the Americans and Japanese are paying £100 or more LESS than you, then simply don’t buy one if you feel that you are getting ripped off. There are plenty of alternatives on the market, including the 32bit and 64bit machines, and, of course Sega’s Dreamcast, which is amazing value at £149.99 with 4 games, Internet access and the best Christmas line-up of games ever.
The PS2 will be advertised – a lot, but Sony have chosen to go for the obscure advertising campaign, just like Sega did when the Dreamcast was released. If you have seen the 3 or 4 second advert with a black screen and a flashing blue dot, then you’ll see what I mean (could the dot represent Morse code or something?), and could the Playstation 2 lose any Brand Identity? This Christmas will be a great time for gamers across the land, whether you chose to get a PS2 or something else. I do not own a PS2, I won’t be, and I would highly advise you to get a Dreamcast as I have been delighted with mine, but get what you will, and have a great time playing games this Christmas!!!
Thanks for reading, all comments are always read and responded to.
Dan
I do no want to turn this into another PS2 versus Dreamcast post or opinion, so I'll talk solely about Sony's machine. So, what does it have to offer? Well, at £299.99 you get a 128bit, 291MHz Console offering DVD playback technology. This price may sound high, but then think back to when Playstation was first released! I seem to remember it was exactly the same price! For what you get, the Playstation 2 isn't THAT expensive, but the amount the British consumers must pay IS too much when you compare the US and Japanese prices - In Japan the console is a mere £175, and in the US of A it is also cheaper at £199.99. So, are we getting ripped-off by Sony? Work it out....
The cost is expensive at double the price of the Dreamcast and at over 3 times the price of the PSone and N64. The DVD player isn't the highest spec machine that you'll ever see, it isn't that great actually, but it's still an added USP for Sony to preach about.
Let's forget the competition for the moment. Let's say you are getting a PS2 and nobody's thoughts will convince you otherwise. What should you get with the console? GAMES: The games that the Playstation 2 will have at launch aren't that exciting. From personal experience I can warn you NOT to get Ridge racer 5 or Tekken Tag Tournament, you'll be far better off with a copies of Dead or Alive 2, and Smuggler's Run, but if you can wait until the release of Gran Turismo 3 (arriving in the new year) then I suggest you hang on, because it will be PS2's premier racing game. Don't forget you can still play most of your original PS titles on the console, but they will be running at the same speed, so there won't be any graphical advantages by playing them on the new machine.
Metal Gear Solid has won a lot of fans, and the sequel looks as though it'll be even better, I'd hold out for this one if I were you! If you like football then forget FIFA 2001, it doesn't matter if Sony own EA, do YOURSELF a favour and get the fantastic ISS evolution as it really will be in a different league.
DVD! Well, in Japan the Playstation 2 sparked off a frenzy of DVD sales, and boosted the market in a very significant way, but it seems as though our Japanese relatives (however distant they might be) are using their machines mainly for DVD usage, the games sales speak for themselves, with games rivalling Dreamcast titles in terms of sales - the Playstation software sales are still the highest! What DVD titles do I recommend? Well, I cannot tell you which to avoid, but I strongly recommend The Blair Witch Project, The 6th Sense and The Matrix. The DVD market has already grown substantially in Europe and in the UK in particular, but it’s going to grow even more.
Peripherals and Add on equipment: Ok, so you can lie you PS2 flat, or stand it upright, the latter will cost you an extra £20 – I hope you know what you should do. A memory card will be £30, but will have more space, and the control pads are £10 more (*I think). Of course, you can still use your old pads from the Playstation they’ll work just as well.
There is no doubt in my mind that the PS2 won’t be all its been hyped up to be. For example the so-called ‘emotion engine’ is nothing more than a bog standard processor, but Sony will obviously tell you otherwise. Also, the initial PS2 games will all run at 50hz, and not 60hz. Now, you might not think that’s very important, but just ask any well educated Dreamcast owner, and they’ll tell you how much better games run at 60hz. I have to say that most TVs now support 60hz, but Sony haven’t chosen to include this beneficial feature at present.
In today’s world £299.99 is a lot of money to pay, and you should feel annoyed that the Americans and Japanese are paying £100 or more LESS than you, then simply don’t buy one if you feel that you are getting ripped off. There are plenty of alternatives on the market, including the 32bit and 64bit machines, and, of course Sega’s Dreamcast, which is amazing value at £149.99 with 4 games, Internet access and the best Christmas line-up of games ever.
The PS2 will be advertised – a lot, but Sony have chosen to go for the obscure advertising campaign, just like Sega did when the Dreamcast was released. If you have seen the 3 or 4 second advert with a black screen and a flashing blue dot, then you’ll see what I mean (could the dot represent Morse code or something?), and could the Playstation 2 lose any Brand Identity? This Christmas will be a great time for gamers across the land, whether you chose to get a PS2 or something else. I do not own a PS2, I won’t be, and I would highly advise you to get a Dreamcast as I have been delighted with mine, but get what you will, and have a great time playing games this Christmas!!!
Thanks for reading, all comments are always read and responded to.
Dan
I wonder how many PS2's SR got in the end? Tony?
Were are just being ripped off here in the UK, I wouldnt get a Playstation 2 until it drops in price, probably after April next year.
Until then most People would be better off picking up A Dreamcast with House of the Dead 2, boy that games addictive!
with one of those multiregion DVD players.. great value too, especially since the US DVD films always come out first, and thanks to the internet are now quite easy to get hold of.
Until then most People would be better off picking up A Dreamcast with House of the Dead 2, boy that games addictive!
with one of those multiregion DVD players.. great value too, especially since the US DVD films always come out first, and thanks to the internet are now quite easy to get hold of.
I did have a couple of questions....for £299 are you getting one controller? And do the new controllers have the type of buttons where the harder you press the harder the punch, if you see what I mean?
I'm in agreement, having read a few American views on the topic, I'm willing to carry on with the DC for 18 months or so until we get the X-Box, as most of the Americans reckon a) most of the current crop of PS2 games you could just as well play on a DC for all their quality and b) by the time the PS2 architecture is taken advantage of my developers the X-Box will be imminent, and Sony may already have a PS3 in the works by then. So my opinion is that the PS2 may be a 'stop-gap' console, kind of 4.5 generation, just waiting for the 5th generation to come along. Having said that, if more than one Final Fantasy comes out on the PS2 and Square stay loyal, then I'll just have to bite my tongue and get one next year. (The price should be down to £199 by then anyway.)
I'm in agreement, having read a few American views on the topic, I'm willing to carry on with the DC for 18 months or so until we get the X-Box, as most of the Americans reckon a) most of the current crop of PS2 games you could just as well play on a DC for all their quality and b) by the time the PS2 architecture is taken advantage of my developers the X-Box will be imminent, and Sony may already have a PS3 in the works by then. So my opinion is that the PS2 may be a 'stop-gap' console, kind of 4.5 generation, just waiting for the 5th generation to come along. Having said that, if more than one Final Fantasy comes out on the PS2 and Square stay loyal, then I'll just have to bite my tongue and get one next year. (The price should be down to £199 by then anyway.)
Yes, it is the time that many Playstation fans have been waiting for: The European launch of Playstation 2. Unfortunately not all of them will be able to get one on release as there will only be 165,000 units this year. Ok, so many people have slated the PS2, but the fact remains that it will be bought by the masses, and probably, and somewhat unjustly, outsell the Dreamcast by a long way. If you think about the situation for a moment: Sony sold 70million Playstation consoles whereas Sega sold no more than 3million Sega Saturn consoles, just a slight difference! So far, the PS2 has sold well despite its faults and problems, so far I think over 3 million consoles have been sold since March! The Dreamcast has exceeded Sega's expectations and is on a respectable 6.2million as I speak.
I do no want to turn this into another PS2 versus Dreamcast post or opinion, so I'll talk solely about Sony's machine. So, what does it have to offer? Well, at £299.99 you get a 128bit, 291MHz Console offering DVD playback technology. This price may sound high, but then think back to when Playstation was first released! I seem to remember it was exactly the same price! For what you get, the Playstation 2 isn't THAT expensive, but the amount the British consumers must pay IS too much when you compare the US and Japanese prices - In Japan the console is a mere £175, and in the US of A it is also cheaper at £199.99. So, are we getting ripped-off by Sony? Work it out....
The cost is expensive at double the price of the Dreamcast and at over 3 times the price of the PSone and N64. The DVD player isn't the highest spec machine that you'll ever see, it isn't that great actually, but it's still an added USP for Sony to preach about.
Let's forget the competition for the moment. Let's say you are getting a PS2 and nobody's thoughts will convince you otherwise. What should you get with the console? GAMES: The games that the Playstation 2 will have at launch aren't that exciting. From personal experience I can warn you NOT to get Ridge racer 5 or Tekken Tag Tournament, you'll be far better off with a copies of Dead or Alive 2, and Smuggler's Run, but if you can wait until the release of Gran Turismo 3 (arriving in the new year) then I suggest you hang on, because it will be PS2's premier racing game. Don't forget you can still play most of your original PS titles on the console, but they will be running at the same speed, so there won't be any graphical advantages by playing them on the new machine.
Metal Gear Solid has won a lot of fans, and the sequel looks as though it'll be even better, I'd hold out for this one if I were you! If you like football then forget FIFA 2001, it doesn't matter if Sony own EA, do YOURSELF a favour and get the fantastic ISS evolution as it really will be in a different league.
DVD! Well, in Japan the Playstation 2 sparked off a frenzy of DVD sales, and boosted the market in a very significant way, but it seems as though our Japanese relatives (however distant they might be) are using their machines mainly for DVD usage, the games sales speak for themselves, with games rivalling Dreamcast titles in terms of sales - the Playstation software sales are still the highest! What DVD titles do I recommend? Well, I cannot tell you which to avoid, but I strongly recommend The Blair Witch Project, The 6th Sense and The Matrix. The DVD market has already grown substantially in Europe and in the UK in particular, but it’s going to grow even more.
Peripherals and Add on equipment: Ok, so you can lie you PS2 flat, or stand it upright, the latter will cost you an extra £20 – I hope you know what you should do. A memory card will be £30, but will have more space, and the control pads are £10 more (*I think). Of course, you can still use your old pads from the Playstation they’ll work just as well.
There is no doubt in my mind that the PS2 won’t be all its been hyped up to be. For example the so-called ‘emotion engine’ is nothing more than a bog standard processor, but Sony will obviously tell you otherwise. Also, the initial PS2 games will all run at 50hz, and not 60hz. Now, you might not think that’s very important, but just ask any well educated Dreamcast owner, and they’ll tell you how much better games run at 60hz. I have to say that most TVs now support 60hz, but Sony haven’t chosen to include this beneficial feature at present.
In today’s world £299.99 is a lot of money to pay, and you should feel annoyed that the Americans and Japanese are paying £100 or more LESS than you, then simply don’t buy one if you feel that you are getting ripped off. There are plenty of alternatives on the market, including the 32bit and 64bit machines, and, of course Sega’s Dreamcast, which is amazing value at £149.99 with 4 games, Internet access and the best Christmas line-up of games ever.
The PS2 will be advertised – a lot, but Sony have chosen to go for the obscure advertising campaign, just like Sega did when the Dreamcast was released. If you have seen the 3 or 4 second advert with a black screen and a flashing blue dot, then you’ll see what I mean (could the dot represent Morse code or something?), and could the Playstation 2 lose any Brand Identity? This Christmas will be a great time for gamers across the land, whether you chose to get a PS2 or something else. I do not own a PS2, I won’t be, and I would highly advise you to get a Dreamcast as I have been delighted with mine, but get what you will, and have a great time playing games this Christmas!!!
Thanks for reading, all comments are always read and responded to.
Dan
I do no want to turn this into another PS2 versus Dreamcast post or opinion, so I'll talk solely about Sony's machine. So, what does it have to offer? Well, at £299.99 you get a 128bit, 291MHz Console offering DVD playback technology. This price may sound high, but then think back to when Playstation was first released! I seem to remember it was exactly the same price! For what you get, the Playstation 2 isn't THAT expensive, but the amount the British consumers must pay IS too much when you compare the US and Japanese prices - In Japan the console is a mere £175, and in the US of A it is also cheaper at £199.99. So, are we getting ripped-off by Sony? Work it out....
The cost is expensive at double the price of the Dreamcast and at over 3 times the price of the PSone and N64. The DVD player isn't the highest spec machine that you'll ever see, it isn't that great actually, but it's still an added USP for Sony to preach about.
Let's forget the competition for the moment. Let's say you are getting a PS2 and nobody's thoughts will convince you otherwise. What should you get with the console? GAMES: The games that the Playstation 2 will have at launch aren't that exciting. From personal experience I can warn you NOT to get Ridge racer 5 or Tekken Tag Tournament, you'll be far better off with a copies of Dead or Alive 2, and Smuggler's Run, but if you can wait until the release of Gran Turismo 3 (arriving in the new year) then I suggest you hang on, because it will be PS2's premier racing game. Don't forget you can still play most of your original PS titles on the console, but they will be running at the same speed, so there won't be any graphical advantages by playing them on the new machine.
Metal Gear Solid has won a lot of fans, and the sequel looks as though it'll be even better, I'd hold out for this one if I were you! If you like football then forget FIFA 2001, it doesn't matter if Sony own EA, do YOURSELF a favour and get the fantastic ISS evolution as it really will be in a different league.
DVD! Well, in Japan the Playstation 2 sparked off a frenzy of DVD sales, and boosted the market in a very significant way, but it seems as though our Japanese relatives (however distant they might be) are using their machines mainly for DVD usage, the games sales speak for themselves, with games rivalling Dreamcast titles in terms of sales - the Playstation software sales are still the highest! What DVD titles do I recommend? Well, I cannot tell you which to avoid, but I strongly recommend The Blair Witch Project, The 6th Sense and The Matrix. The DVD market has already grown substantially in Europe and in the UK in particular, but it’s going to grow even more.
Peripherals and Add on equipment: Ok, so you can lie you PS2 flat, or stand it upright, the latter will cost you an extra £20 – I hope you know what you should do. A memory card will be £30, but will have more space, and the control pads are £10 more (*I think). Of course, you can still use your old pads from the Playstation they’ll work just as well.
There is no doubt in my mind that the PS2 won’t be all its been hyped up to be. For example the so-called ‘emotion engine’ is nothing more than a bog standard processor, but Sony will obviously tell you otherwise. Also, the initial PS2 games will all run at 50hz, and not 60hz. Now, you might not think that’s very important, but just ask any well educated Dreamcast owner, and they’ll tell you how much better games run at 60hz. I have to say that most TVs now support 60hz, but Sony haven’t chosen to include this beneficial feature at present.
In today’s world £299.99 is a lot of money to pay, and you should feel annoyed that the Americans and Japanese are paying £100 or more LESS than you, then simply don’t buy one if you feel that you are getting ripped off. There are plenty of alternatives on the market, including the 32bit and 64bit machines, and, of course Sega’s Dreamcast, which is amazing value at £149.99 with 4 games, Internet access and the best Christmas line-up of games ever.
The PS2 will be advertised – a lot, but Sony have chosen to go for the obscure advertising campaign, just like Sega did when the Dreamcast was released. If you have seen the 3 or 4 second advert with a black screen and a flashing blue dot, then you’ll see what I mean (could the dot represent Morse code or something?), and could the Playstation 2 lose any Brand Identity? This Christmas will be a great time for gamers across the land, whether you chose to get a PS2 or something else. I do not own a PS2, I won’t be, and I would highly advise you to get a Dreamcast as I have been delighted with mine, but get what you will, and have a great time playing games this Christmas!!!
Thanks for reading, all comments are always read and responded to.
Dan