Looking ahead, I have a lot of exciting news for you guys today! I'll get it all typed up now, before 1PM, but it's all set to publish throughout the day (one of the reasons it seems we're slow, actually... got to spread out the news. Tossin' it all out in a two hour timeframe really doesn't make much business sense). First up is this, our follow up to the announcement that Sony will release a new version of the PS3 in Europe, sacrificing some backwards compatibility temporarily as well as our other post describing how this is just temporary but may be indicative of a price cut next year due to decreased manufacturing costs.Sony Computer Entertainment Europe's big brother, SCEI, has issued a statement regarding the backwards compatibility software stuff. Really, they should've just quoted us. I think we made a pretty decent rational appeal. What was told/confirmed (even though it pretty much was already) is that "Sony is including hardware of some form that will take the place of the Graphics Synthesizer graphics chip. The Emotion Engine CPU functionality will be replicated entirely through software emulation." Still no word on actual percentages of games playable from the past, but we've said enough on this topic. Let's all collectively shrug, keep our PS2's in a closet for when we want them, and move on. This isn't good news, but it's in no way "OMFG liek boo sONy!" news.
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
2-26-2007 @ 11:47AM
bmac said...
Unfortunately, everything turns into "OMFG liek boo sONy!" news. Good or bad, the fanboys seem to spin and bitch.
We should be glad the general public doesn't read joystiq and the like. I'm surprised noone has claimed their baby was eaten by a ps3 yet.
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2-26-2007 @ 12:01PM
humpty said...
Personally, i dont think its a big deal in the grand scheme of things. But, im still glad i have the EE chipset in my PS3... i never had a PS2 and plan on picking up a number of classics i never had a chance to play.
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2-26-2007 @ 3:23PM
Dolla Dolla said...
There are reasons why this is good, and reasons why it's bad.
It's EXTREMELY good for early adopters(in Japan and US who got the EE chip in their machines). Why? Because you get the best of BOTH worlds. You'll have 98% compatibility with PS2 software AND software updates that may allow upscaling of older games.
It's bad for Europe and newbies because you will have to suffer through less compatibility with PS2 software for now, and who knows how long. And, since a price cut isn't rumored until next year(I'd bet on Christmas, actually), you will be paying the same price that those who have the extra chip pay.
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2-26-2007 @ 5:16PM
calvin said...
The only real question now for the people in the United States about to buy a PS3 is how do you identify one of these EE-stripped versions.
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2-27-2007 @ 8:06AM
Andir3.0 said...
You forgot the good that could come with software emulation...Upscaling.
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2-27-2007 @ 11:34AM
Dolla Dolla said...
@Andir3.0
Actually, and this is speculative, I've heard otherwise. The "PS2-on-a-chip" is actually two things: The EE(Emotion Engine) and GS(Graphic Synthesizer). They are only removing the EE. This may mean no upscaling. But, time will tell.
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2-27-2007 @ 6:30PM
Andir2.0 said...
It kind of upsets me really. I want to know what the new PS3 can do that mine can't do now. I don't ever play my PS2 games anymore and if they improve the performance of the Cell/RSX or Memory, I'd truthfully rather have that than something I'd likely never use.
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2-27-2007 @ 7:54PM
Dolla Dolla said...
@Andir2.0
Any and all software enhancements will be downloadable, whether you have the old version or the new one. The new one simply cannot handle as many PS2 games at launch. That's about it. There is no new functionality.
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2-28-2007 @ 11:37AM
Andir3.0 said...
yes, but...if they get a hardware upgrade (say the extra SPE, or memory, or anything that I can't download) I'll be upset. Not enough to chop my PS3 in half, but I may have to give it to a friend and buy a newer one sooner than I thought.
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