question on ps3

[judge alba]

i was wondering why the 40gb ps3 dosent play ps2 games is it a software thing that can be downlaoded or more of a hardware thing?
i was wondering cause i have a ps3 and a ps2 and was kinda hoping to scrap the ps2 but still keep the games

 

[Haggis and tatties]

The 40gig PS3 had a the two PS2 chips that allowed backwards compact removed to save money along with 2 USB ports and the card readers slots....you can play PS1 games but thats about all the back compat you have.

The only versions of the PS3 to allow full back comat with PS2 games was the Jp 20gig(now defunct) and the NA PS3(now defunct), which were followed by the 80gig NA PS3(now defunct)and the EU PS3 60gig(now defunct)which both had half the PS2 backwards compat hardware removed and both use a mix of hardware and software to run Ps2 games with about 90% of PS2 games working.

All that's available worldwide now is the 80gig and 40gig which have no backward compat.

 

[Hermiod]

i was wondering why the 40gb ps3 dosent play ps2 games is it a software thing that can be downlaoded or more of a hardware thing?
i was wondering cause i have a ps3 and a ps2 and was kinda hoping to scrap the ps2 but still keep the games

It's a hardware thing.

The original Japanese and US Playstation 3s had the PS2's Emotion Engine and Graphics Synthesizer chips. These PS3s will play virtually any PS2 game.

In order to cut costs the first European PS3s lost the Emotion Engine and relied upon software emulation. These PS3s will play most PS2 games with the occasional problem.

The 40gb PS3 and the coming 80gb version of that lack both the Emotion Engine and the Graphics Synthesizer which cannot be emulated in software meaning that they cannot play any PS2 games.

I believe the 80gb version containing the Emotion Engine is still on sale. You can tell the difference since the backwards compatible version still has the memory card readers.

PSOne compatibility was done via software emulation from the start and is available on all PS3s.

 

[Aragorn]

[PKerr]Stay far away from Sony! You should get an Xbox 360! No matter what price they're asking for it, buy it anyway! Every game for the 360 is worth buying a full price! Do it now![/PKerr]

To answer your question, the original 20 and 60 GB PS3s were fully backward compatable with hardware. However, since then they've decided to go the Xbox route where emulator software is what you use to play the PS2 games, and you can only play the games they've written emulation for.

According to Wikipedia, however, the 40 GB and one of the 80 GB PS3s have zero backward compatibility due to the removal of "Graphics Synthesizer" GPU, which stripped the units of all PlayStation 2 based hardware.

 

[Chaos Descending]

The 40GB PS3 does not have either the hardware emulation (like on the 60GB) or the software emulation (like on the 80GB) capability to run PS2 games.

There is nothing that you can do to make your 40GB PS3 play PS2 games.

 

[Haggis and tatties]

[PKerr]Stay far away from Sony! You should get an Xbox 360! No matter what price they're asking for it, buy it anyway! Every game for the 360 is worth buying a full price! Do it now![/PKerr]

That was a bit harsh and a bit pointless.

 

[PKerr]

[PKerr]Stay far away from Sony! You should get an Xbox 360! No matter what price they're asking for it, buy it anyway! Every game for the 360 is worth buying a full price! Do it now![/PKerr]

How about go fuck yourself?
I've pretty much let all your bullshit baiting slide and had I've enough of it.

Galactic Scooby, sorry for the derailing of your thread.

 

[judge alba]

The 40GB PS3 does not have either the hardware emulation (like on the 60GB) or the software emulation (like on the 80GB) capability to run PS2 games.

There is nothing that you can do to make your 40GB PS3 play PS2 games.

ah nuts! oh well guess i'll have to keep the old ps2 as well thought i'd ask anyways

 

[gh4chiefs]

[PKerr]Stay far away from Sony! You should get an Xbox 360! No matter what price they're asking for it, buy it anyway! Every game for the 360 is worth buying a full price! Do it now![/PKerr]

Careful, careful. I asked Pkerr a question one time about his support of 360 in what I thought a was unantognistic manner, and I still got in a lot of trouble.

EDIT TO ADD: Opps! I see he's already responded. Can't say I blame him.

 

[gh4chiefs]

i was wondering why the 40gb ps3 dosent play ps2 games is it a software thing that can be downlaoded or more of a hardware thing?
i was wondering cause i have a ps3 and a ps2 and was kinda hoping to scrap the ps2 but still keep the games

Sony has really had a PR and/or marketing issue with the PS3 in this regards. They started out by touting the backwards capability of the PS3 but I assume they found the costs outweighed the benefit and as others have posted here, stripped that capability from their newer machines. Now instead of touting backwards capability, they're talking out the other side of their mouth going on about how they're "looking forward."

I assume you have a large PS2 library which is why you're asking. I bought one of the earlier PS3 becasue I did want backwards capability but the reality is that I've played almost no PS2 titles. As much as I laugh at Sony about their changing marketing ploy, I kind of found myself agreeing. The PS3 is about looking forward to next gen games.

But if you already have a lot of PS2 games, I could understand why you'd want that.

 

[Haggis and tatties]

The problem with Sony is that they already had a viable cheaper option with the 20gig PS3....It had no built in wifi or card reader and no chrome finish.........But why oh why they dumped it i have no idea, in my view they had the perfect PS3 SKU's at launch, two versions, one the premium with all the bells and whistles and one the cheaper but still fully functional cheaper option.

 

[Hermiod]

^It's because they're losing money on every PS3 sold and they were trying to stem those losses while still selling more PS3s which they desperately needed to do given how badly the launch went.

It's less of a problem now. I'd hope that they keep a premium, backwards compatible PS3 on the market. Perhaps one with a big hard disk at a higher price point.

 

[gh4chiefs]

Yeah they really shot themselves in the foot with their marketing. I don't know what they were thinking. My crackpot theory was that the primary focus of the PS3, at least as first, was a ploy to get blu-ray players in the homes of consumers, with the gaming kind of being secondary. I'm probably completely full of shit, but it seemed to have kind of worked out that way. Now that the blu-ray vs HD-DVD battle is over, it seems like they're finally starting come on a little as a gaming system with the recent release of games like MGS4.

 

[Haggis and tatties]

You wonder then why they did not ditch the more expensive to produce model and keep the 20gig version.....i mean that extra 40gig, that built in Wifi and that card reader must have cost more to include than a few PS2 chips, and with a lower production cost and a lower retail price they might have sold a lot more than they did with the very expensive 60gig model in that first year.

Of course hind sight is always a bugger, that's the reason I'm not sitting in bill gates chair.

 

[crouteru]

I have the UK 60GB PS3 which supposidly plays PS2 games, but none of the games I tried worked properly. The only game that was playable was Final Fantasy X, but the cut scenes jogged and were unwatchable, and the voice acting was sped up and didn't sync with the character movements. Also, I can't seem to get Final Fantasy VIII to work at all, and all PS1 games are supposed to be fully compatible! My advice, if you still have a PS2, keep it plugged in alongside your PS3.

 

[Aragorn]

I assume you have a large PS2 library which is why you're asking. I bought one of the earlier PS3 becasue I did want backwards capability but the reality is that I've played almost no PS2 titles. As much as I laugh at Sony about their changing marketing ploy, I kind of found myself agreeing. The PS3 is about looking forward to next gen games.

I have one of the original PS3s for backward compatibility. Well, I think they all had backward compatibility back then, but that's beside the point, since I have yet to play any non-PS3 games on it. Oh well.

You know, Nintendo shot itself in the foot with their third console (N64) and Sony took over the market. Sony screwed the pooch with their third console and Microsoft took over the market (though I'm told the PS3 is like gold overseas). I wonder what the Xbox 720 will do to screw up their lead.

 

[Gary Mitchell]

I wonder what the Xbox 720 will do to screw up their lead.

Maybe it will cook your games at 720° Fahrenheit.

 

[darkshadow0001]

The 40gig PS3 had a the two PS2 chips that allowed backwards compact removed to save money along with 2 USB ports and the card readers slots....you can play PS1 games but thats about all the back compat you have.

The only versions of the PS3 to allow full back comat with PS2 games was the Jp 20gig(now defunct) and the NA PS3(now defunct), which were followed by the 80gig NA PS3(now defunct)and the EU PS3 60gig(now defunct)which both had half the PS2 backwards compat hardware removed and both use a mix of hardware and software to run Ps2 games with about 90% of PS2 games working.

All that's available worldwide now is the 80gig and 40gig which have no backward compat.

What about the original 60 GIG PS3 that first came out? Wasn't that fully PS2 compatible?

 

[Aragorn]

The original 20GB and 60GB models had hardware for full backward compatibility, as opposed to the later models with software emulators.

 

[gh4chiefs]

You know, Nintendo shot itself in the foot with their third console (N64) and Sony took over the market. Sony screwed the pooch with their third console and Microsoft took over the market (though I'm told the PS3 is like gold overseas). I wonder what the Xbox 720 will do to screw up their lead.

Well for me, they've already done it. It's called RROD. But I'm probably less forgiving than a lot of consumers.