Knowing your Playstation 2
The PlayStation 2, or the PS2, is a video game console that is the successor to the PlayStation and model version number 3. It was developed and designed by Sony. It was released in Japan, a year after the announcement of its development in March 1999.
To date, it is the best-selling video game console. Its sale touched a whopping 120 million in 2007. Just 5 years and 9 months after its launch, its sales reached 100 million units, making it the best-selling video game console.
Initially, when the console was released in 2000, no impressive game titles were made available. But in December 2001, a series of critically acclaimed and best-selling game titles was released, helping it maintain its leadership in the video game console market. In most cases, the creators made exclusivity agreements with the publishers of the game’s titles to stay ahead of the console market.
The game console has 3 designs: original case design, slim case design and PSX.
It is backward compatible when it comes to hardware compatibility. It can read both CD and DVD. DVD video playback is another of its features. The DVD movie playback feature was another attraction and cost justification feature for the buyer to buy. It is also compatible with older memory cards, designed just for storing games. It is also compatible with older model drivers. But the problem one faces with these controllers is that they do not support all the functions, such as the analog buttons, of the PlayStation 2 model. The memory cards also work only with older model games. On the back of the console, support for internal HDD (hard disk drive) is provided.
An upgraded version of the PlayStation DualShock controller is the DualShock 2 controller. The digital buttons on the original controller are replaced by analog face, shoulder, and D-pad buttons. The D-pad, the right buttons, the back buttons (R1, R2, L1, L2), the analog joystick buttons (R3, L3s), and the middle buttons (Home, Select, Analog) are the various input buttons .
Like its predecessor, the force feedback function is provided with the DualShock 2 controller. The force feedback is more commonly known as the “shake” function. Consider a game in which the player moves in a car on a highway. Now this force feedback feature gives a “feel” of how a royal road would have given, making the game as close to reality as possible.
PlayStation 2 was introduced with one of the most advanced features. These functions were not available with other contemporary game consoles, which helped it gain more popularity. DVD playback feature, USB support, and IEEE 1394 expansion ports were some of these features.
Software support was another advantage that worked in their favor. Old systems can be upgraded to PlayStation 2 without changing old software. This allowed new users to access older games until a new and larger library was developed for them. Speeding up disc read time, adding texture smoothing to enhance graphics, or a combination of both were the additional features provided to enhance gaming. Sometimes problems such as failed loading faced faster disk read. But texture smoothing proved to be an effective feature throughout.
The games can also be played online with multiple players. A network adapter is required for this. This is a built-in component in the slim model, but with other models the consumer has to buy it. These special features make PlayStation 2 a huge hit with kids and adults alike.