PlayStation 2

Reviewed by:
Ryan Boyce

It’s not just a game system, it’s not just a DVD player, and it’s not just a shiny new hunk of useless junk that’ll empty your wallet faster than a strip club. Sony’s PlayStation 2 is a new kind of technology that’s set to wreck marriages, lower homework scores, and piss off girlfriends the world over. But, despite some drawbacks, it’s all so worth it.

Think of it as a Trojan Horse and your living room as Troy: Sony wants you to initially buy the PlayStation 2 for its games, but in the long run, they want it to quietly become the device that does it all. The back of the system is littered with expansion ports that include USB interfaces (for keyboards, digital cameras, etc.), modem inputs, and high-bandwidth connections. In theory, the PlayStation 2 could become your sole entertainment hub that incorporates Internet, gaming, and high-speed movie delivery into one neat little package. Now if they can include a microwave and fridge, we’d be set.

Unfortunately, you shouldn’t expect these goodies anytime in the near future. At its heart, the PlayStation 2 is a 128-bit system with a lot of potential. Unlike Sega’s Dreamcast, there is no online gaming or Web browsing available out of the box. The system doesn’t include a modem, so once Sony’s massive online network is up, you’ll have to upgrade your system to participate. Right now, the real reason to buy the PlayStation 2 is to play games with cinema-quality game visuals and DVDs (for those of you who haven’t taken the plunge yet). The system’s main 128-bit processor, or “Emotion Engine,” is much more powerful than the Sega Dreamcast, even though their engines have the same amount of cylinders—without getting into the boring, geeky details, let’s just say that the system’s performance has been raised to unheard-of levels.

The chip is so high-tech, in fact, that Sony hasn’t had enough time to manufacture enough of them in time for the October 26 launch date, and that’s going to be a major pain in the ass if you want one of the systems by this holiday season. Only 500,000 will be available in the first deployment, with 100,000 every week afterwards. So if you don’t want to pay a king’s ransom on EBay, you might chance it at a mom ’n’ pop retailer or the forgotten video game sections of Target and Wal-Mart if you want one right away.

The good news is that finding PlayStation 2 games won’t be a problem. There are 27 PS2 games available on launch day and five times more software on the shelves than consoles. As an added bonus, all of your old PlayStation games will work on the system, and will even look better, too. Either way, the system is instantly gratifying, if for no other reason than you’ll be the first kid on the block with Sony’s amazing new toy…if you can get your hands on one.

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