Should I get a PS2?

[The Almighty MegaMan]

I would recommend soft modding your PS2 with Free MC Boot, it lets you play burned games that you downloaded on your system without doing any hardware mods. Its also better than swap disk because you don't have to swap a disk out. My fat PS2 is free MC boot modded, and works like a charm. I even setup a HDD loader that will play the games off an HDD, but its not compatible with some games. You need a network adapter to use the HDD loader function.

As for the PS3, there is no reason to pay Sony a premium just for a larger HDD, you can buy a 500GB HDD for your PS3 for around 60 dollars, which is more space than most people will ever use.

I appreciate the input. However all PS2s around here where I live already are chipped, so...
Besides, it's not that I want a big HD if I ever get a PS3 - point is, there ain't anything smaller. I have an external HDD, that's not the problem hahaha

[Flegmatica]

If you dont care about high end modern graphics then i'd say PS2. It has so many great games that it will make your head spin. Oh and did i mention modchip?

[Joe Blog]

The old school Xbox is a good option, their quite reliable too, everyone i know that has had a ps2 has had some form of problem it. My dad bought one and it spent most of its life in the shop getting repaired he had had enough of it by the time the warranty ran out. The ps1 is a completely different, story mine still works fine after 10 or more years its a shame there so outdated.

[Inferno.]

The old school Xbox is a good option, their quite reliable too, everyone i know that has had a ps2 has had some form of problem it. My dad bought one and it spent most of its life in the shop getting repaired he had had enough of it by the time the warranty ran out. The ps1 is a completely different, story mine still works fine after 10 or more years its a shame there so outdated.

The lasers are the weakest part in the PS2, the motherboard itself will probably last forever.

Old PS2 + FMCB memory card + HDLoader + Network adapter + Decent size IDE HDD =

[Joe Blog]

i think you are right about the lasers, it went through a ton of them, there might be a market in selling after market lasers of better quality than the ones Sony uses.

[Chet Starr]

I'm just repeating everyone else, but yes get a ps2! It will be cheaper and already has a huge library of games.

[Alakazander]

Well, it seems to be unanimous.

Well, in defense of the PS3, the PS2 does not have near the multimedia capabilities of the PS3. You can't play Blu-Ray, surf the web, or watch Netflix on a PS2. You also can't just plug in a flash drive that has your movies and music stored on it and simply play it on your TV/Stereo from there. Hell, you can't even look at pictures.
The worst thing (for me, anyways) is that the PS2 has no online multiplayer anymore.

That's not to say that that the PS2 is a bad system. In fact I own two, one mod'd and the other unmod'd, and I love them both. Just remember that you are not only getting a console (other than the Sony fanboys I know, most of my friends got it because it was not that much more expensive than a regular Blu-Ray player) and that the PS3 is at least somewhat backwards compatible. It really just depends on what you want out of your system.

Anyways, I would specifically recommend: Bully, Star Wars: Battlefront II, Resident Evil 4, Ultimate Spider-Man, Incredible Hulk: Ultimate Destruction, Mercenaries: Playground of Destruction, Destroy All Humans! (skip the second one), Gun, Prince of Persia, and Psychonauts.

And you might like: God Hand, Tomb Raider Aniversary, Mega Man X Collection, Marvel: Ultimate Alliance, and if you want some mindless fun the Lego Star Wars games.

Oh, and some people like Scarface: The World is Yours and The Godfather. I didn't, but you might.

[Will98]

Dude just get it!, The older ps2s with the HDD port are the best, no problem of over heating, you get the hard drive that goes into it and if your really crafty, you can hack the ps2 and turn it into a computer.

Also the Playstation has so many titles that its just crazy, about 10,000 games for it and it's only been out for less than 10 years. Compared this has more games than all the other game stations combined!!!

So...uh good luck in your choice.

[Fer!]

You mean you haven't played a PS2 game or something?

Goddamn, forget about current gen consoles then, the PS2 is filled with so many jewels that you'll lack time going through them all, though it's a shame you don't like turn-based RPG's, but there's still a great selection for you.

Well, in defense of the PS3, the PS2 does not have near the multimedia capabilities of the PS3. You can't play Blu-Ray, surf the web, or watch Netflix on a PS2. You also can't just plug in a flash drive that has your movies and music stored on it and simply play it on your TV/Stereo from there. Hell, you can't even look at pictures.
The worst thing (for me, anyways) is that the PS2 has no online multiplayer anymore.

If he's going for games only I don't see the problem with it, he currently owns a computer and a internet connection, so he can watch movies, pictures and all the yadda yadda on his computer.

The only cons I see are the new games, no online multiplayer and the lack of a Bluray. If those are the cons against a ten year old console, it's not too bad to be honest.

[Inferno.]

Dude just get it!, The older ps2s with the HDD port are the best, no problem of over heating, you get the hard drive that goes into it and if your really crafty, you can hack the ps2 and turn it into a computer.

Also the Playstation has so many titles that its just crazy, about 10,000 games for it and it's only been out for less than 10 years. Compared this has more games than all the other game stations combined!!!

So...uh good luck in your choice.

Why anyone would want to actually run Linux on a PS2 is beyond me. That 200MHz processor is going to be painfully slow.

Hell, Linux is bad on the XBOX as well due to its 64MB of RAM.

[Supreme Warrior]

Why anyone would want to actually run Linux on a PS2 is beyond me. That 200MHz processor is going to be painfully slow.

Hell, Linux is bad on the XBOX as well due to its 64MB of RAM.

just because they can?

[Alakazander]

If he's going for games only I don't see the problem with it, he currently owns a computer and a internet connection, so he can watch movies, pictures and all the yadda yadda on his computer.

The only cons I see are the new games, no online multiplayer and the lack of a Bluray. If those are the cons against a ten year old console, it's not too bad to be honest.

Yeah I know, but most people have a better sound system connected to their TV than their computer (which could probably be corrected with a pair of decent headphones), and I always prefer to watch movies in HD on my semi-large TV than on my computer. I use my modern consoles as the entertainment hub of my whole house, but like you said, if he just wants game he just wants games, and the PS2 is pretty fucking awesome for that.

[Alan Heer]

Comparisons.

Ps2 has a larger library. While some of the ps2 versions were graphically inferior, it is still a beast and the most well rounded of last generation. With free MCBoot you can play backup discs using ESR, or use a hard drive. Either get an ide hard drive and the network adapter if you get a fat model or hook up an external especially if you get a slim which has no slot for an ide hdd. External hdd's are slower to access than the disc since ps2 doesn't have usb 2.0, but as I say reliability over performance. Most games will run fine from what I have heard though some may stutter on cutscenes. I'd put more ps2 games on my hdd but most of my games are too scratched. Free MC boot also adds other capabilities too.

Ps3 has better graphics but a smaller library. Plus only some models have bc with ps2 games. All ps3s play ps1 games though. Ps3's can also be hacked as long as the firmware is 3.55 or less. The hack involves putting a hacked firmware update like Kmeaw or rebug and updating as if it were a normal update. Of course those need to be updated to 3.55 first. Ps3 has decent media capabilities and Showtime, a media player for hacked ps3's improve that and will add more formats and stability. You can also hook up an external harddrive and dump ps3 games to it through backup managers similar to the ps2 backup managers for free mcboot. If you buy a cobra usb you can also play ps1 and ps2 iso files from hard drive as well though ps2 games are buggy if played on ps3s without bc capability.

Another option would be the wii as it can also be hacked and homebrew installed.

All three can play emulators though the wii seems the most well rounded in that regard with the ps3 shortly behind.

Overall I say if the ps3 is bc compatible and on fw 3.55 or less, Go for it. That will open up ps2 and ps1 as well as the emulators and media playback. Otherwise the ps2 might be the better choice, especially if the firmware is 3.56 or higher.

[flaming_shadow]

I bought my PS2 last year just so I could play Kingdom Hearts I and II and Final Fantasy X and XII
I really recommend it for those games

[The Almighty MegaMan]

GENTLEMEN, A DECISION HAS BEEN TAKEN

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I raise my glass and say "welcome to the family, PS2!"

Thanks to everyone for their input! With such an unanimous good feedback it's no wonder it has a good reason to be the best selling console of all time!

I've got two questions remaining.
a) I've seen some strongly recommend the PS3. Would you really pay 2000 bucks for it?
It's got plenty of things but I don't think it justifies such a quantity of money (moreso when the PS2 costed me less than half of that).

b) Do you really want your consoles for movies? Why don't you get a VGA cable and connect your comp to your TVs then?


And, apart from it all, this post...

I bought my PS2 last year just so I could play Kingdom Hearts I and II and Final Fantasy X and XII
I really recommend it for those games

Did you even read the first post?
No?
Yeah, I thought so.

Spoiler warning:

If you did, let me tell you that trolling must be SUBTLE.