Review: Teeny-Tiny Playstation 2

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I’ve had a regular Playstation (not a PSOne) for a few years, which we purchased as a replacement for our previous game machine — a Sega Saturn. The Saturn was fine, except it had there were about a dozen games for it before Sega finally killed it. That brought back too many memories of when I was in elementary school, and I was the only kid on the block who had the allegedly more advanced Atari 5200. Sure Pacman looked like the arcade version, but there were about three games for it, and I couldn’t borrow any of my friends’ Atari 2600 games. Wanting to exorcise the demons from my past, we bought a Playstation. And there were games.
However, when Sony released the new Playstation 2 back in 2001, it was a little too expensive for me. And since Sony kept supporting the old Playstation because of the PSOne, there was no real reason to switch.
Just in time for Christmas 2004, Sony recently released a smaller version of the Playstation 2, under the not-at-all-confusing name “Playstation 2”. (Okay, technically, the name is “SCPH-70000 CB”, but no one is going to remember that. If you knew the previous model was the “SCPH-50000”, you’ve won a small paper bag of Sega Saturn games).
The new Playstation 2 is far smaller than the previous generation version, about the size of a hardcover book, as the Sony marketers have been saying.
Instead of having a tray-loader for the DVD drive, it now has a a little flap that opens in the top and you snap the disc in. Also, the new Playstation 2 has the network adapter built-in, with both Ethernet and a modem. The new unit is now only $150, down from the original $300 when the original Playstation 2 was introduced.
(Wait a minute. original Playstation 2? Sony really should have come up with a new name for this thing. Was “PSTwo” too good for them? At this rate, they will reach naming convention silliness approaching the Final Fantasy X-2 level. With 12 sequels of that particular game out, there’s nothing final about it. Anyway…)
The name confusion spawned itself right in our kitchen when we bought the vertical stand, which was clearly labeled for the “Playstation 2”. However, it turned out it was for the original “Playstation 2” and not the new fangled model. Back to Target with that one.
So we precariously stood the unit next to the TV until we could get a stand for it. That’s when we found that having long, ropey controller cords and Collies that like to race in front of the TV don’t mix. Let’s just say that the new Playstation 2 is very shock resistant.
The new form factor is much more convenient than the old one, where it’s easy to hid it away when you’re done with it. I find it a little annoying that the controllers look exactly the same as the previous generation Playstation, except for a discrete “Dual Shock 2” label on the back where you’ll never see it. It’s a little annoying that I had to pay $25 for the DVD remote so I can use it as a DVD player, but for $150, I guess you get what you pay for.
If you’re like me, and you waited to commit to the Playstation 2 until the new, smaller one came out, you’re in for a pleasant surprise. Cheap games! Yes, there are enough Playstation 2 games under $20 to make any late adopter beam with joy.
We picked up three games, the new Star Wars Battlefront (very cool), the old LOTR Return of the King RPG (I’m stuck at level 1), and the old and silly Simpsons Road Rage (mindless fun). On the whole, Sony has done a great job with the next iteration of their gaming machine.