Menu Close

SCEA Confirms PS2 Price Drop To $99

When we learned that today's announcement couldn't possibly be a price drop for the PlayStation 3, we were about 90% certain it would instead be a price cut for the system's predecessor. And so it is.

Today, Sony Computer Entertainment America has announced that as of tomorrow, April 1, the PS2 will drop to the deliciously agreeable price of $99.99. The most popular video game console in history has reached the 136 million worldwide sell-in mark, and its immense library of titles has swelled to around 1,900 in a little over 9 years. Said Jack Tretton, SCEA president and CEO:

"PlayStation 2 set the industry standard for worldwide mass market adoption and is a clear embodiment of Sony's commitment to platforms that deliver 10-year product lifecycles. It's a tribute to outstanding technology, great consumer value and unprecedented development support that we've now been able to do twice what no one else has ever accomplished. Demand for PlayStation 2 remains strong throughout the world, and the new $99 price point will bring in new consumers who will discover how PlayStation platforms are an outstanding choice for their gaming and home entertainment needs. Just as PlayStation 2 is delivering on a 10-year lifecycle and helped expand and solidify the DVD format for home entertainment along the way, we believe PLAYSTATION 3 offers the same promise by helping secure the Blu-ray format and delivering unprecedented value as the total home entertainment solution for the next decade."

SCEA says they will keep supporting the PS2 with even more new titles "that appeal to families and casual gamers looking for social entertainment experiences." If you're looking for some great deals out there, over 250 titles are now under the Greatest Hits umbrella, making them extremely cheap, relatively speaking. The press release further reminds us of the role the PS2 has played in establishing the widespread popularity of many of the leading franchises in the industry today; Metal Gear Solid , Guitar Hero , Final Fantasy , God of War , Ratchet and Clank , Gran Turismo , etc.

The release concludes by saying the PS2 "remains the most played computer entertainment system on the market." According to a December 2008 Nielsen report, the PS2 became the first console in the industry's history to hit the 50 million sell-in unit sales plateau in North America…and now that it's at $99, you will probably see the last surge of hardware sales. This is a legendary machine, indeed, and now it's at a budget price in the world of game consoles. If for whatever bizarre reason you don't have one, now's the time. Remember, your PS3 likely doesn't boast backwards compatibility for PS2 titles…and you know you still wanna play 'em.

91 Comments
Inline Feedbacks
View all comments
WorldEndsWithMe
WorldEndsWithMe
15 years ago

LOL @ More effing Ogres

Totalz
Totalz
15 years ago

Ok I think I may have gone a bit OTT…
And I am eating my words today. Sorry Ben, thought the announcement was more anticipated than it was and I guess after the announcement of the PS3 drop today I look like a bit of a fool.

Ben Dutka PSXE
Ben Dutka PSXE
15 years ago

I'll try and explain this again. Some of you are being extraordinarily egocentric.

Sony executives weren't sitting around in a boardroom somewhere saying, "hey, let's tease the gamers with a huge announcement when we know a PS2 price drop isn't huge." …none of that is logical.

It isn't Sony's job to try to counter hype generated by sources. It's your job to view the situation without being led by rumor and speculation. Kotaku and other sources said Sony will announce something on Tuesday, and so they did. Sony never once said it'd be anything earth-shattering and being part of the press, we see "so-and-so will announce such-and-such on this-and-this date" every single day.

I will always call out Sony for lame ad campaigns and things like that, but in this case, this is nothing more than a tiny group of hardcore gamers acting all peevish and sullen going, "damn, this isn't what I wanted."

…as if Sony promised anything in the first place.

zerostar39
zerostar39
15 years ago

haha. it's no use ben…

telly
telly
15 years ago

We obviously disagree on this, Ben, and that's fine with me. But as a PR professional, I can assure you I never notified reporters a day before an announcement unless I thought the announcement qualified as "big." $30 off PS2 did not warrant a heads up to reporters beforehand. Sony knows damn well what will happen when they tell reporters to keep their ears open for an announcement on Day X, and what the gaming public will think when they hear beforehand of the Day X announcement. If they don't want expectations raised, they shouldn't leak a "heads up" to the press beforehand.

This is all besides the point, really. I thought the PS2 price cut announcement was lame, and there's nothing anyone can do to change my mind. You and some others think it's not fair to dislike the news for some reason. You yourself admit this was an announcement geared towards the casual gamer. As I said in an earlier post, I don't care if Sony wants to go after casual gamers. But if I think any news from any company is lame, I'm going to say so.

WorldEndsWithMe
WorldEndsWithMe
15 years ago

But wasn't the word "global" used, that kind of indicates massiveness.

Ben Dutka PSXE
Ben Dutka PSXE
15 years ago

telly: That's exactly the point you're missing. Sony didn't "announce the announcement." If this was the case, we would've had a press release for the press release. You said you wouldn't make any announcement for an announcement unless it was a big deal.

Yeah. Neither did they. I also made no mention of saying whether or not people should "like" the news. That has nothing to do with anything; I don't care one way or the other what people think of it.


Last edited by Ben Dutka PSXE on 3/31/2009 2:35:54 PM

Highlightreel
Highlightreel
15 years ago

Lol. These posts repeat every 6 posts or so, then Ben has to defend himself again. SONY didn't say crap to make this lame announcement a 'lie'. It's all internet hype. We all wish there was a great PS3 announcement, but it wasn't promised, so no one should blame SONY.


Last edited by Highlightreel on 3/31/2009 1:03:24 PM

WorldEndsWithMe
WorldEndsWithMe
15 years ago

I get what Ben's saying, that nothing was official until today, and ultimately the announcement affects no one here but here's my reasoning for being let down:

"Global Announcement" kind of means "This is gonna be big people"

Waiting until a few days AFTER GDC to drop this news so that it doesn't get lost in other announcements reeks once again of "This is big enough that we need people to take notice"

And leaking that info to Kotaku pretty much guarantees that it will be broadcast (And I DO think that is what they wanted since announcements about announcements are popular these days)

That is how I think they sneakily DID cause hype over the announcement, even if most of the rest of it came from widespread panic across the internets.

WorldEndsWithMe
WorldEndsWithMe
15 years ago

Dear God, here's a feather for Ben's cap concerning that old article about MS needing to shut up. They are already badmouthing this price drop:

http://kotaku.com/5192250/microsoft-discounts-ps2-price-cut

Gregory Freeman
Gregory Freeman
15 years ago

one sony staff slips, and you get an uproar of pissed off, toarch & pitchfork weilding h/core gaming mob forming all over the internets… lol sony should invest in duct tape like red green… "it fixes all the leaks"

Daedusian
Daedusian
15 years ago

LOL! I freaking love the Red Green Show!!


Last edited by Daedusian on 3/31/2009 7:04:37 PM

crawdaddy
crawdaddy
15 years ago

Look! This is just another example that Sony doesn't have a clue what is going on. The wii is so popular for one that it is geared toward the casual gamer, and it is relatively inexpensive, and it has really good graphics (not as good as ps3 ect…) but much much better than ps2. If Sony wants to break into the casual gamer market, they should do it with something like an upgraded ps2 with really good graphics ect…, and that is relatively inexpensive like 199.00 or something. A 99.00 out of date system that everyone already owns will not do it. It will have to be a better system that does not cost much. Instead of lowering the price of the ps2, thay should upgrade the ps2, and heavily market it towards the casual gamer. Sony just don't get it!


Last edited by crawdaddy on 3/31/2009 2:37:36 PM

TheHighlander
TheHighlander
15 years ago

Alright, how? Take any PS3 game that has a mandatory install. Now, to be a PS3, any 'stripped down' model must be able to play PS3 software including games with mandatory installs. Therefore the minimum specification for a ps3 is as follows;

Standard PS3 motherboard with Cell, RSX and all memory and components such as BlueTooth, USB and Ethernet. BluRay drive to play PS3 game discs, Hard disc for game installs, system updates, downloadable content and save files. Throw in a controller. That is the bare minimum specification of a PS3. That is incidentally the spec of the PS3 as it stands. No extra USB ports, no card reader, no PS2 chipset. Just the basic PS3 components and an 80GB HDD. A cheaper HDD would make zero difference since 80GB is essentially as cheap as 20GB, probably cheaper since the 20GB drives are in limited production/availability.

So, what exactly do Sony cut out of the PS3 to make it a stripped down box? Folks need to get some perspective. Xbox360 arcade has no wireless, no bluetooth, no hard disc and no HD video playback. Is it any wonder it's cheaper?

LegendaryWolfeh
LegendaryWolfeh
15 years ago

so 150 millions people is everyone right? i tohught more people existed in the world, oh well

Alienange
Alienange
15 years ago

Wow TheHighlander, that's just crazy talk. crawdaddy was talking about an upgraded PS2. I kinda hear him on that. Why can't Sony have two consoles on the go? No one would waste time making casual crap games for the PS3, they could just do it for the PS2.5

Qubex
Qubex
15 years ago

No Alienange, that would be the wrong strategy and a complete waste of money!

Q!

"i am home"


Last edited by Qubex on 3/31/2009 10:00:11 PM

TheHighlander
TheHighlander
15 years ago

@Alienage

Yeah, I see that NOW, but when I wrote the reply I think I was replying to a though in another comment, and replied to the wrong one, but once you send a reply, it's not possible to edit or remove it (so far as I can see).

slugga_status
slugga_status
15 years ago

Now that I think about it Sony never said it was a PS3 announcement. Technically this announcement was global. So "technically" speaking Sony did nothing wrong.

I think WorldEndsWithMe said it best though, this should've been something announced at GDC instead of after. What really was the point of announcing this after GDC. I think that's what really made "hardcore" gamers think it would be something massive.

Even though Ben is right…it was still lame. All we can do is hope that Sony finally gives us back b/c…even though I doubt it.

crawdaddy
crawdaddy
15 years ago

It's not really about the announcement. It is more like it's about the lack of an announcement. Who cares if a ps2 price dropped a whopping 30.00. Big deal! you can buy a used one just about anywhere for little of nothing.

TheHighlander
TheHighlander
15 years ago

@crawdaddy

Oddly enough, even though we have two PS3s with BC (60GB full hardware version) in our house, I would definitely consider getting a PS2 slim now. Because at $99 it's a really cheap way of absolutely ensuring that my PS2 game favorites will remain playable into the next decade. I can just unpack it, test it works, and then box the sucker up again. That way I have it just in case the PS3s stop working. Kind of a $99 insurance policy for my PS2 game collection.

moose88
moose88
15 years ago

@ Highlander … you want a PS2. I guess some people do dig that kind of thing. There are plenty of folks who don't have a PS2 yet, and I'm sure sales of the old tech will surge again. That's fair.
However, I'm not one to wake up in the morning and find I have an immediate hankering to hunker down with some gaming history.

TheHighlander
TheHighlander
15 years ago

@moose

My old PS2 is one of the original US launch models, and the dvd has been adjusted so many times it's a miracle that it still reads any discs, let along games *and* DVDs, but one day it will die, and that will be that. I have a good game collection from the PS2, and right now my PS3 can play them. Unless Sony is kind enough to restore PS2 compatibility, that may not always be the case, purchasing a $99 slim PS2 now, or in the foreseeable future is an insurance against that, I don't relish losing access to my game library. I may not play them often, but if the mood took me to play Xenosaga, I'd be kinds disappointed if I had no way to do so. You know?

Sure not everyone is in the boat I am, I was simply pointing out that at $99 the PS2 slim is definitely edging into impulse buy territory for some, and a fairly easy to justify purchase for others. Good grief, the Wii comes with no HSS, and is not capable of pushing better graphics that the PS2 – 480p max. Now the PS2 is $99, you can afford to buy a PS2, half a dozen greatest hit games and still have enough left over to go purchase a pair of wireless controllers for your shiny new console, all for the price of a Wii. That's a pretty good deal considering that PS2 has just as many or more 'must have' games as the Wii does.

If I mask out the Xbox360 and SP3 gaming communities, then this announcement is a huge one because the competition is selling their console at $250, and as I pointed out in the previous paragraph, that $250 will get you a PS2, half a dozen games and a paire of wireless controllers.

Apparently this cut doesn't extend to the UK. That's an interesting facet of this because it absolutely confirms how Sony views the Wii. Nintendo recently bumped the price of a Wii in the UK up, so Sony has no reason to cut the price 0f the PS2 there since the competition just raised their price.

So, when evaluating this news, we should all be thinking in terms of the standard definition TV and or casual gaming market, not the high definition ands/or hardcore gaming market.

Qubex
Qubex
15 years ago

I may just pick up a PS2 now!

Q!

"i am home"

Robertson99
Robertson99
15 years ago

This is the "big" announcement? I was expecting something half exciting. By the way, I heard there was an update coming this Thursday (2nd April). 2.70 or something? Is there truth behind this? And if so what does it include?

Daedusian
Daedusian
15 years ago

If it's 2.70 (which I hope it is) it may or may not include the following:

http://www.1up.com/do/newsStory?cId=3172880

Firmware 2.70 was supposed to release the week of GDC (last week) but they had some technical difficulties or something. So this is most likely it as they said sometime April.


Last edited by Daedusian on 3/31/2009 7:14:30 PM

moose88
moose88
15 years ago

I'm an older gamer (pushing 40 now).
I don't want to boot up the old TRS-80 with the tape drive and wait an hour to play a Donkey Kong clone with pixels the size of dinner plates.
I'm not keen to plug in the Apple IIe and play some LoTR in green screen.
I loved Sonic on my Mega Drive and plyed it for weeks on end without another game interrupting, but I'm not happy to stick with it now.
The PS1 ruled my world and I had a job and lots of money for games – but I don't have them know (but I still have a job)
The XBOX blew me away and Buffy and I had a special relationship – until I met my wife.
The PS2 was the jewel in gaming's crown – I managed 94.1% in GT3 – and sold that memory card at auction on a cruise ship for $200.

Now I have a PS3 (after a brief stop with the 360) and I'm happy as Larry. New games, shiny BD and all the online I have time for.

I'm not going backwards. I know that their are peeps still coming forwards and they are welcome to the PS2 greatness, and I guess that is who is being targeted by the price fix … I mean 'drop'.

So Bully for you. But I'd rather they saved a bit longer and came to play with the rest of us.

karneli lll
karneli lll
15 years ago

Currently,Sony is like a really hot chick with a peanut for a brain. But i have to agree with ms on this one;its about the present (and future)not the past.

WorldEndsWithMe
WorldEndsWithMe
15 years ago

I think they are praying PS2 will be a gateway drug to the PS3.

556pineapple
556pineapple
15 years ago

This is the exact news I was expecting. A PS3 price drop would have been cool, but I already have a PS3, and even with another price drop, I wouldn't want to spend the money on a second one, because, honestly, I don't need a second one. I'd rather save that money for games or build a decent gaming/media PC.

I didn't get my hopes up for this announcement because every speculation I read on it predicted it would be the final PS2 price drop. I agree with Ben at the fact that the reason anybody here feels let down, is due to the fact that they got their hopes up and invested themselves in the hype built up by other sources. This had nothing to do with Sony misleading anybody. All that happened here was speculation by other people and sources. Sony now has a chance to expand their demographics into the casual gaming community, where Nintendo has excelled with the Wii, and I for one don't blame them for taking it.


Last edited by 556pineapple on 3/31/2009 5:09:45 PM

kevinater321
kevinater321
15 years ago

i was dissapointed about the price drop because i was really expecting something to do with a playstation 3. Anyway i already have like four PS2's so i won't benifit from this but i really think that SONY should make a alternative console. Like just a upgraded PS2 like the Nintendo DS did with the DS lite and ow the DS I (which looks really cool). But like upgrade the system so it can like match the WII or so and include a higher grade of motion sensor. Make it use DVD'd not vlueray to cut the cost and make it easy to make games on. The idea of the sixence controller looks really cool and would be very cool if playstation designed a personall console for it. But i'm pretty sure the WII would still be ahead just because it would be easier. The sales would rise quikly and sony would possible win over the WII.

Bling Bling
Bling Bling
15 years ago

Alas, if only the 2 were changed to a 3.

Robochic
Robochic
15 years ago

I agree with bens posts, i was very mislead by a website that for one said it was a BIG exciting thing and for the PS3 and then when they announced i was like what? Thank you Ben for clearing it up for me 🙂 I'll be getting a PS2 next week i know weird but i want one just incase, i have a 20gig ps3 full B/C but stuff happens and i know i wouldn't get my system back. So for a back up plus i would rather have my 4 yr old play a PS2 or the Wii then my PS3. diego dinasours here we come LOL.

Karosso
Karosso
15 years ago

Yeah right… for all of you talking about getting a PS2 so that you can play your old PS2 games in case your PS3 dies and you end up with a no B/C PS3, I have one question for you…
Have you try playing a PS2 game on a 42" HDTV? It looks like crap! simple as that you just can't reaqlly enjoy it at all. You better buy a CRT TV in case you can still find one and save them together for later… worthless news anyways, nothing to see here, move along, move along.

crawdaddy
crawdaddy
15 years ago

Yeah! My 60 gig ps3 bricked, and I have been trying to play some ps2 games, and they do look like crap on a hdtv. They look kind of like a ps1 pixeled game. Very crappy! Not much fun!

Alienange
Alienange
15 years ago

Now if only I could find a PS2 in stores. Who's selling them? Anybody know?

BikerSaint
BikerSaint
15 years ago

Not sure about new PS2's, but if your in the states, Gamestop had a bunch used PS2's for 79.99(before the price drop), so I would supspect that they should be even a bit cheaper than that now.
***********************************

I guess this price drop will be good for the new casual's that entering gaming.
Plus they can find a lot of good games in the bargain bins, from $9.99 all the way down to 2.99(hell, I've even manged to find a for 99 cents.

I'm a "preowned" games collector myself, always checking for used games/accessories in the bargain bins, & just picked up a bunch of PS2 stuff.
Got a pair of used Logitech wireless controllers for 9.99 each, a set of 4-person Buzz game contollers for 4.99, and another $15 got me an Eye Toy(4.99), & 2 eye toy games, ET Antigrav(3.99) & ET Groove(3.99).

The only downside I see with the PS2 pricedrop is for myself, because once all the new casual's start buying PS2's, there won't be a hell of a lot of cheap PS2 stuff left over for me to buy.

psxmax
psxmax
15 years ago

Has anyone tried the PS2 emulator for the PC?

Qubex
Qubex
15 years ago

Lol! Yhea, that is a bright idea… and it is free!

Q!

"i am home"

PaiNT_kinG
PaiNT_kinG
15 years ago

huh,WTF??????

NoGood
NoGood
15 years ago

I am a hardcore gamer, and I think it is great that Sony lowered the price!!! This week I will be buying another PS2 to use as a back up for when my other Ps2's break.

Honestly, I think you people were foolish to rush out and buy the PS3 !!!! You spent a ton of money and have only a handful of good games to play. LOL !!!!