Video Game Buyer's Guide 2001 - Sony PlayStation 2

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page created: 11/29/01

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Sony PlayStation 2

Price: $299 ($329 with included Gran Turismo 3: A-spec game)

Main Processor: Sony Emotion Engine, 295 MHz

Graphics Processor: 150 MHz Sony Graphics Synthesizer

Polygons per Second: 66 million (raw, no game effects engaged)

System Memory: 32 MB

Audio Channels: 48

Media Format(s): Standard CD-ROM and DVD-ROM discs (with 650 MB - 4.7 GB of storage)

On-line Gaming: The PS2 supports both Broadband and Narrowband (56k) Internet capabilities with an accessory network adapter ($40) hooked up to your existing ISP (the Sony adapter is not yet available, but currently you can use certain third party USB modems or Ethernet devices). Tony Hawk's Pro Skater 3 is the console's first on-line game, and Sony already has more in the pipeline, including Square's Final Fantasy XI, and Sony's own properties SOCOM: U.S. Navy Seals, Twisted Metal: Online (an add-on to Twisted Metal: Black), and the fourth iteration of the coveted Gran Turismo racer.

Plays DVD-Video discs and CDs: Yes

Recommended Accessories: extra controller ($35), memory card ($35), S-video cable ($10)

Dimensions: 12"/3.125"/7.25" (W/H/D)

Noteworthy Games Now Available: Metal Gear Solid 2: Sons of Liberty (tactical espionage action), Gran Turismo 3: A-spec (racing simulator), Grand Theft Auto III (driving/third-person shooter), Devil May Cry (platform action), Tony Hawk's Pro Skater 3 ("Xtreme" skateboarding), Madden NFL 2002 (Pro Football), Twisted Metal: Black (car combat), Ico (platform adventure), SSX Tricky ("Xtreme" snowboarding)

Upcoming Games of Note: Final Fantasy X (role playing game), Max Payne (third-person-shooter), Dead to Rights (third-person-shooter), Medal of Honor: Frontline (WWII first-person-shooter), Spider-Man: The Movie (platform action), Return to Castle Wolfenstein (first-person-shooter), Tomb Raider: Next Generation (working title) (platform adventure), The Thing (survival horror), The Terminator (action), The Matrix (action), Soul Calibur 2 (fighting), Tekken 4 (fighting), Virtua Fighter 4 (fighting)

Gran Turismo 3: A-spec

Metal Gear Solid 2: Sons of Liberty

Devil May Cry

Pros

With a one year head start on its competitors, a worldwide installed base of over 20 million units, hundreds of available titles, spectacular "in-house" game development (responsible for PS2-exclusive mega-hits like Gran Turismo 3: A-spec, Ico, and Twisted Metal: Black), and unparalleled third-party developer support, Sony's PlayStation 2 is a major contender in the next-generation console war. In other words, despite its shortcomings, the PS2 is a very safe bet… at least for the time being.

The PS2 is the only console on the market right now that is playable on-line. If you buy Tony Hawk's Pro Skater 3, have ISP service in your house, and an external USB modem or Ethernet device (or Sony's own $40 device out next year), you can be grinding and olllie-ing with people all over the country in no time flat. Plus, Sony already has other titles coming soon that will take the on-line experience even further, including Square's Final Fantasy XI, and Sony's own SOCOM: U.S. Navy Seals, Twisted Metal: Online, and Gran Turismo 4.

Playing DVD movie discs and CDs is no problem for the PS2, and the system will even play DVDs right out of the box - unlike Microsoft's Xbox, which requires a $30 add-on to play DVDs. Coming next year from Sony is a hard drive that can be easily housed inside a port on the back of the console. It's a 40 GB unit (probably costing about $150) that will allow you to install game data into the drive and cut down on the tedious load times of some titles. It's also a requirement if you want to eventually use your PS2 for e-mail and 'net surfing (however it's not required if you simply want to play games on-line).

After spending the last 15-20 years of my life playing video games, I can safely say that the Sony DualShock controller is the best I have ever used. It's a comfy unit with ideally sized and placed buttons that allow quick access without taking your eyes off the screen. The DualShock is also a well-designed controller that will be comfortable in many different hands. I have short, stubby fingers, yet the DualShock is just as comfortable in my hands as it is for my fiancée who has long, thin fingers.

20 million installed units is not something game developers want to ignore. It won't surprise you, then, to learn that some third party developers concentrate their efforts on PS2 titles before developing for other systems. For example, the development of Metal Gear Solid 2: Sons of Liberty (the most anticipated game of 2001, according to many industry experts) was concentrated for the PS2, however the Xbox and may get a version of it sometime in 2002. Until Microsoft becomes a proven player in the game business, you won't see the Xbox getting every title the PS2 gets, at least as quickly. And if the titles are big enough (like the Madden NFL franchise and the Sega Sports 2KX franchises), you can bet your sweet bippy that they will appear on multiple platforms, almost always including at least the PS2.

Early next year in Japan, a line of PS2 "greatest hits" titles will be introduced at reduced pricing (after converting the yen, they come to about $30, give or take). These titles include huge hits like Onimusha Warlords and Gran Turismo 3: A-spec, among others. With the success of PS one greatest hits titles here in the states, I would look for a line of bargain-priced PS2 greatest hits titles on this side of the Pacific by next Christmas. Microsoft and Nintendo might apply this strategy as well, but it's far too early to say.

And don't forget, the PS2 is perfectly capable of playing your vast library of PS one games!

Cons

When it came to sheer graphics muscle, one year ago, the PS2 was the cream of the crop… king of the jungle… lord of the dance! Now, post Xbox and GameCube launches, it's carrying the bronze. After all is said and done, the Xbox rules the day when it comes to graphics, but not by a huge margin. When programmers spend the time developing for the PS2 with loving care and attention to detail, PS2 titles easily hold their own against Xbox titles. Metal Gear Solid 2, Devil May Cry, and Gran Turismo 3: A-spec are every bit as beautiful and detailed as anything I've seen on the Xbox.

But here's the trouble: the PS2 is a bitch to program for. Programmers HAVE to spend extra time and attention to detail to develop for the PS2. There's a much larger proportion of beautiful to ugly titles on the Xbox than the PS2 because not every PS2 title is given the attention that mega popular games like Metal Gear Solid 2, Devil May Cry, and Gran Turismo 3 are shown. Programming for the Xbox is like programming for the PC, so developers can pretty much do it in their sleep.

If you wanted to buy a PS2, and build it up with a hard drive and Ethernet device for not only hardcore on-line gaming, but e-mail and web browsing, you'll be spending a tad under $500. Guess what - for $299 the Xbox has these included. The Xbox and GameCube both have four controller ports on their units, but Sony only included two on the PS2, and to connect more you need to drop $35 for an extra peripheral. And, to save game data, your only choice with the PS2 is an 8 MB memory card ($35 each). While Nintendo has a 4 mega bit card (only $15), you can expand it to 64 MB with add-on enhancement, and with the Xbox, you need only to save to its built-in 10 GB hard drive.

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