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pros
1) The Games - with virtually every great developer on board the PS2, the machine is going have some incredibly intense software battles on it. In fact, the PS2 should have the best software of any of the next generation machine's because of this.
2) The Look - lets face it. The PS2 looks awesome, like a high tech piece of equipment. At least, standing up it does.
3) METAL GEAR SOLID 2: SONS OF LIBERY - yup. This game alone is reason enough to buy a console. It looks (and sounds) incredible.
4) Squaresoft's RPG's - Squaresoft seems eager to innovate in the RPG genre, and with the Emotion Engine being designed to give games facial expressions in real time, we can be sure that the master storyteller Square is going to do some amazing things with it. I can't wait to see FF X.
5) DVD Movies - Some people are actually complaining that the PS2 will play DVD movies, but it costs them near nothing for Sony to put the functionality in there, simply because the PS2 uses MPEG 2 texture compression. And it's going to be awesome seeing DVD movies on your console. Most of us (myself included) don't have a DVD player, so getting a console that plays DVD movies is going to be cool. And besides, game makers could include cool footage like "the making of MGS2" or "the directors of FF X". Coolness.
6) Backward Compatibility - OK, so Bleem! does a better job of playing PSX games than the PS2. But it's still nice to play PlayStation games on your PS2.
7) Controller - the PS2 has the best controller in the history of consoles. The original Dual Shock was great, but Sony took it a step further and made it awesome by making all the buttons except start and select analog. Oh yeah, and it looks cool.
8) Broadband Future - this is the future of playing games. Playing over the Net with narrowband can only go on for so long - as games become more and more graphically demanding, so will the need for high-speed connections that can shift around large amounts of data over the Net. Sony is betting that the PS2's broadband will be the future of entertainment, "computer entertainment". It's going to be amazing downloading the newest software, without having to go to the store and worry about not being able to secure a copy of your favorite game. It's also going to be awesome downloading music and movies as well, at lightning speed. Here's hoping that they can pull it off...
1) The Games - with virtually every great developer on board the PS2, the machine is going have some incredibly intense software battles on it. In fact, the PS2 should have the best software of any of the next generation machine's because of this.
2) The Look - lets face it. The PS2 looks awesome, like a high tech piece of equipment. At least, standing up it does.
3) METAL GEAR SOLID 2: SONS OF LIBERY - yup. This game alone is reason enough to buy a console. It looks (and sounds) incredible.
4) Squaresoft's RPG's - Squaresoft seems eager to innovate in the RPG genre, and with the Emotion Engine being designed to give games facial expressions in real time, we can be sure that the master storyteller Square is going to do some amazing things with it. I can't wait to see FF X.
5) DVD Movies - Some people are actually complaining that the PS2 will play DVD movies, but it costs them near nothing for Sony to put the functionality in there, simply because the PS2 uses MPEG 2 texture compression. And it's going to be awesome seeing DVD movies on your console. Most of us (myself included) don't have a DVD player, so getting a console that plays DVD movies is going to be cool. And besides, game makers could include cool footage like "the making of MGS2" or "the directors of FF X". Coolness.
6) Backward Compatibility - OK, so Bleem! does a better job of playing PSX games than the PS2. But it's still nice to play PlayStation games on your PS2.
7) Controller - the PS2 has the best controller in the history of consoles. The original Dual Shock was great, but Sony took it a step further and made it awesome by making all the buttons except start and select analog. Oh yeah, and it looks cool.
8) Broadband Future - this is the future of playing games. Playing over the Net with narrowband can only go on for so long - as games become more and more graphically demanding, so will the need for high-speed connections that can shift around large amounts of data over the Net. Sony is betting that the PS2's broadband will be the future of entertainment, "computer entertainment". It's going to be amazing downloading the newest software, without having to go to the store and worry about not being able to secure a copy of your favorite game. It's also going to be awesome downloading music and movies as well, at lightning speed. Here's hoping that they can pull it off...
YW.
I just thought that with the title of the topic and all, it needed a little balance. So I balanced it.
:-)
I just thought that with the title of the topic and all, it needed a little balance. So I balanced it.
:-)
Cons
1) The most developer unfriendly console yet developed for developers. A few invested large sums of money in developing for it, and then pulled out a month into production. More and more developers are now signing up for the X-Box as the easy way out to recoup losses.
2) The look. Some liken it to a black radiator from a Ford Mustang, others to a shoe box, yet others to the black monolith from 2001. Like its name, the design of the PS2 lacks imagination. Any colour, as long as it's black.
3) MGS2 has now become so hyped, it will be lucky to survive as a classic game. The PC version will be available within 2 months of the PS2 version being launched. Too much store has been set by gamers in what the PS2 'will' do. Most PS2 fans tend to gloss over the fact that most of the initial releases are, in effect, a big letdown.
4) Even FF players are beginning to tire with the endless installments, waiting for that 'one great' installment to be released. Although a great series, FF players are just as happy to play them on the PC.
5) The addition of the DVD extra is the biggest mistake Sony ever made. Gamers want consoles, not hybrids. They want to play games, not watch movies. The DVD added at least another £100 to the cost of the PS2, delayed it by at least 6 months, and there has already been a recall in the USA because of functionality problems. They'd have been better off leaving DVD to a stand alone unit, which they already produce for under £100.
6) The PSX still plays PSX games better than the PS2. And better than Bleem ever will. Imagine the frustration of finding that once you've traded in the PSX for the PS2 that 20% of your existing games will no longer be playable, and you have to get your PSX back all over again. Not good PR for Sony, is it?
7) The controller looks exactly the same as any other black PSX controller. The added analogue is partly the reason that the console is extra hard to program for, and by the time developers get to grips with what they can do with it innovatively, the Gamecube and the X-Box will be in the marketplace.
8) The cheapest broadband line that I can get would cost me £33 per month. As a PC user this might be cost effective. As a PS2 user this might be prohibitive. The online gaming community seems resigned to the fact that in the UK we are fated to stick with 56kbps as a ceiling, and developers, of both hardware and software, are beginning to take this factor seriously and develop accordingly.
9) Go out tomorrow and buy a PS2. It's now 5 or so weeks after launch date. You'll find a DreamCast or an N64 a lot easier to come by.
10) Happy New Year to all in the forum!
:-)
1) The most developer unfriendly console yet developed for developers. A few invested large sums of money in developing for it, and then pulled out a month into production. More and more developers are now signing up for the X-Box as the easy way out to recoup losses.
2) The look. Some liken it to a black radiator from a Ford Mustang, others to a shoe box, yet others to the black monolith from 2001. Like its name, the design of the PS2 lacks imagination. Any colour, as long as it's black.
3) MGS2 has now become so hyped, it will be lucky to survive as a classic game. The PC version will be available within 2 months of the PS2 version being launched. Too much store has been set by gamers in what the PS2 'will' do. Most PS2 fans tend to gloss over the fact that most of the initial releases are, in effect, a big letdown.
4) Even FF players are beginning to tire with the endless installments, waiting for that 'one great' installment to be released. Although a great series, FF players are just as happy to play them on the PC.
5) The addition of the DVD extra is the biggest mistake Sony ever made. Gamers want consoles, not hybrids. They want to play games, not watch movies. The DVD added at least another £100 to the cost of the PS2, delayed it by at least 6 months, and there has already been a recall in the USA because of functionality problems. They'd have been better off leaving DVD to a stand alone unit, which they already produce for under £100.
6) The PSX still plays PSX games better than the PS2. And better than Bleem ever will. Imagine the frustration of finding that once you've traded in the PSX for the PS2 that 20% of your existing games will no longer be playable, and you have to get your PSX back all over again. Not good PR for Sony, is it?
7) The controller looks exactly the same as any other black PSX controller. The added analogue is partly the reason that the console is extra hard to program for, and by the time developers get to grips with what they can do with it innovatively, the Gamecube and the X-Box will be in the marketplace.
8) The cheapest broadband line that I can get would cost me £33 per month. As a PC user this might be cost effective. As a PS2 user this might be prohibitive. The online gaming community seems resigned to the fact that in the UK we are fated to stick with 56kbps as a ceiling, and developers, of both hardware and software, are beginning to take this factor seriously and develop accordingly.
9) Go out tomorrow and buy a PS2. It's now 5 or so weeks after launch date. You'll find a DreamCast or an N64 a lot easier to come by.
10) Happy New Year to all in the forum!
:-)
pros
1) The Games - with virtually every great developer on board the PS2, the machine is going have some incredibly intense software battles on it. In fact, the PS2 should have the best software of any of the next generation machine's because of this.
2) The Look - lets face it. The PS2 looks awesome, like a high tech piece of equipment. At least, standing up it does.
3) METAL GEAR SOLID 2: SONS OF LIBERY - yup. This game alone is reason enough to buy a console. It looks (and sounds) incredible.
4) Squaresoft's RPG's - Squaresoft seems eager to innovate in the RPG genre, and with the Emotion Engine being designed to give games facial expressions in real time, we can be sure that the master storyteller Square is going to do some amazing things with it. I can't wait to see FF X.
5) DVD Movies - Some people are actually complaining that the PS2 will play DVD movies, but it costs them near nothing for Sony to put the functionality in there, simply because the PS2 uses MPEG 2 texture compression. And it's going to be awesome seeing DVD movies on your console. Most of us (myself included) don't have a DVD player, so getting a console that plays DVD movies is going to be cool. And besides, game makers could include cool footage like "the making of MGS2" or "the directors of FF X". Coolness.
6) Backward Compatibility - OK, so Bleem! does a better job of playing PSX games than the PS2. But it's still nice to play PlayStation games on your PS2.
7) Controller - the PS2 has the best controller in the history of consoles. The original Dual Shock was great, but Sony took it a step further and made it awesome by making all the buttons except start and select analog. Oh yeah, and it looks cool.
8) Broadband Future - this is the future of playing games. Playing over the Net with narrowband can only go on for so long - as games become more and more graphically demanding, so will the need for high-speed connections that can shift around large amounts of data over the Net. Sony is betting that the PS2's broadband will be the future of entertainment, "computer entertainment". It's going to be amazing downloading the newest software, without having to go to the store and worry about not being able to secure a copy of your favorite game. It's also going to be awesome downloading music and movies as well, at lightning speed. Here's hoping that they can pull it off...
1) The Games - with virtually every great developer on board the PS2, the machine is going have some incredibly intense software battles on it. In fact, the PS2 should have the best software of any of the next generation machine's because of this.
2) The Look - lets face it. The PS2 looks awesome, like a high tech piece of equipment. At least, standing up it does.
3) METAL GEAR SOLID 2: SONS OF LIBERY - yup. This game alone is reason enough to buy a console. It looks (and sounds) incredible.
4) Squaresoft's RPG's - Squaresoft seems eager to innovate in the RPG genre, and with the Emotion Engine being designed to give games facial expressions in real time, we can be sure that the master storyteller Square is going to do some amazing things with it. I can't wait to see FF X.
5) DVD Movies - Some people are actually complaining that the PS2 will play DVD movies, but it costs them near nothing for Sony to put the functionality in there, simply because the PS2 uses MPEG 2 texture compression. And it's going to be awesome seeing DVD movies on your console. Most of us (myself included) don't have a DVD player, so getting a console that plays DVD movies is going to be cool. And besides, game makers could include cool footage like "the making of MGS2" or "the directors of FF X". Coolness.
6) Backward Compatibility - OK, so Bleem! does a better job of playing PSX games than the PS2. But it's still nice to play PlayStation games on your PS2.
7) Controller - the PS2 has the best controller in the history of consoles. The original Dual Shock was great, but Sony took it a step further and made it awesome by making all the buttons except start and select analog. Oh yeah, and it looks cool.
8) Broadband Future - this is the future of playing games. Playing over the Net with narrowband can only go on for so long - as games become more and more graphically demanding, so will the need for high-speed connections that can shift around large amounts of data over the Net. Sony is betting that the PS2's broadband will be the future of entertainment, "computer entertainment". It's going to be amazing downloading the newest software, without having to go to the store and worry about not being able to secure a copy of your favorite game. It's also going to be awesome downloading music and movies as well, at lightning speed. Here's hoping that they can pull it off...