post #2160915

The PlayStation 2 (abbreviated as PS2) is Sony's second console in the PlayStation line, releasing in the year 2000 worldwide. Following the success of the original PlayStation, Sony would begin secretly developing the successor, with rumors of its existence having floated around since the year 1997, with Sony repeatedly denying that they were secretly working on a new system, with Sony officially revealing the PS2 in early 1999, with them showing it off later that year in September (the same month the Sega Dreamcast was released in the United States). The PlayStation 2 offered better graphics and specs compared to the PS1, which had started to seem a bit primitive, with the PS2 managing to produce (comparatively) realistic graphics compared to both the Dreamcast and PS1. It was one of the first major consoles to lean into online play, although it required an adapter to use. By far the biggest selling point of the system was its capability as a DVD player, which was a huge boost to the console's sales as DVD players were more expensive compared to just buying a PS2, and could only play DVDs, while the PS2 had a whole new library of cutting edge games. It was also fully backwards compatible with the PS1, which gave it even more games to play instead of just the new PS2 games. As a result of these factors and the success of the original PlayStation, the PS2 sold like crazy, selling out across the world to the point where Sony couldn't keep up with demand. The initial success was also a major factor to the Dreamcast's discontinuation and Sega dropping out of the console market, as they had next to no hope of competing with Sony's juggernaut coupled with their own financial troubles. While the PS2 had a head start, Nintendo would release their own next-gen console, the Gamecube, while Microsoft decided themselves to jump into the console market with the Xbox. However, Sony countered with that year's holiday season releases, which contained MANY killer apps and exclusives, such as Metal Gear Solid 2, Grand Theft Auto 3, Final Fantasy X, Devil May Cry, and many others. Coupled with the fact that the PS2 got a price cut, it led to the PS2 selling massively across the world, with it becoming the best selling game system of all time, selling over 155 million units, with many worthwhile games, such as Metal Gear Solid 3: Snake Eater, SSX, Amplitude, Tony Hawk's Pro Skater, the Grand Theft Auto trilogy, Kingdom Hearts, God of War, Ratchet and Clank, and many more.
In 2004, Sony would release a slim model of the PS2, which was sold for cheaper, although it was missing some features. Even after the introduction of the PlayStation 3 in 2006, the PS2 continued to sell millions of units every year (due in part to the PS3 struggling when it was launched), with it being common for next gen games to get PS2 versions as well. The system as a whole would be discontinued in 2013, with some online services for games such as Final Fantasy XI being discontinued a few years after. The PlayStation 2 is regarded as one of the best systems of all time, with a ton of nostalgia factor for those who grew up with the console. The PlayStation 2 would be succeeded by the PlayStation 3 in 2006.

PlayStation tags

• playstation_console
• playstation_controller
• dualshock
• playstation_move

• playstation_1
• playstation_2
• playstation_3
• playstation_4
• playstation_5

Handheld consoles

• playstation_portable
• playstation_vita