The all new PS3 thread. (Bright, shiny and plays dvds well)

sack · Post by **sack** » Wed Oct 03, 2007 4:12 pm 0

why cut ps2 compatibility?

I'd have thought it wasn't really expensive to implement on a per-console basis and it's not exactly a must-have feature that people will pay the difference for.

Plus for folks like me who still don't have a ps2 and think there's not anything worth having on the PS3 at the moment a large previous generation back catalogue + a lower number of must-have ps3 titles might seal the deal.

If I can't play ps2 games it's going to take a lot more ps3 titles to convince me

Dio · Post by **Dio** » Wed Oct 03, 2007 4:27 pm 0

sack wrote:I'd have thought it wasn't really expensive to implement on a per-console basis and it's not exactly a must-have feature that people will pay the difference for.

It's a case of cutting absolutely everything that they possibly can. Â£5 less at the BOM stage is Â£15 less in the shops.

merman · Post by **merman** » Wed Oct 03, 2007 4:32 pm 0

The backward compatibility would be one feature I wanted if I were to upgrade...

Peet · Post by **Peet** » Wed Oct 03, 2007 4:42 pm 0

merman wrote:The backward compatibility would be one feature I wanted if I were to upgrade...

Even if the difference in price is more than a PS2?

For emulation?

Why?

juice · Post by **juice** » Wed Oct 03, 2007 5:00 pm 0

aureole wrote:
juice wrote: Snip Getaway thoughts
The sheer effort and love poured into the engine was incredible - talk to the guys on the team and they're incredibly proud (rightly so) for the way they managed to use and stream all that data - shouldn't have been possible. So to see that the actual gameplay had nowhere near the attention or talent on it is criminal, it really is.

Absolutely - fitting a recognisable map of London onto the PS2 was a major feat. Me and my housemate spent a good couple of hours just zooming around and checking out landmarks we recognised (from stuff like Big Ben to the electronic shops on Tottenham Court Road).

Getaway on the PS3 has potential: they can crank the textures up and make it genuinely feel like London - and maybe throw in an on-screen GPS unit to improve navigation around those old cobbled streets. Some serious work needs to be done on the gameplay mechanics though.

Well, I don't know if that's going to happen. I've not seen a really good *game* come out of SCEE Soho and I don't really rate their designers at all. Shame, because they've got a factory of some of the brightest PS2/3 coders out there.[/quote]
It was wishful thinking, I admit. They've got the engine (which can presumably be ported to the PS3, though it may be too heavily tailored for the PS2), an extensive model of London and all the original high-res photos and media they used for the original Getaway. That's got to account for 50-60% of the resource needed to fire up a PS3 sequel, so surely they can dedicate some more resources to the actual gameplay?

juice · Post by **juice** » Wed Oct 03, 2007 5:05 pm 0

Dio wrote:
sack wrote:I'd have thought it wasn't really expensive to implement on a per-console basis and it's not exactly a must-have feature that people will pay the difference for.
It's a case of cutting absolutely everything that they possibly can. Â£5 less at the BOM stage is Â£15 less in the shops.

I have to admit, this is the kind of thing which puts me off buying a PS3 (that, and the fact that the only game I currently want is Super Stardust). It's bad enough that we're already stuck with software emulation of the Emotion Engine: if they're going to cut even that out, then my justification for buying a PS3 drops through the floor.

Still, tis all just rumours at the minute - I guess we wait and see!

merman · Post by **merman** » Wed Oct 03, 2007 5:15 pm 0

Peet wrote:
merman wrote:The backward compatibility would be one feature I wanted if I were to upgrade...
Even if the difference in price is more than a PS2?

For emulation?

Why?

See, the high price is putting me off anyway. But if it had the backward compatibility, it would be one step closet to justifying the purchase. But removing it seems like a bad idea and a backward step for Sony.

Tmuk · Post by **Tmuk** » Wed Oct 03, 2007 5:17 pm 0

Anything to lower the RRP isn't it? Maybe they should consider making the casing out of egg boxes.

Duck Turkin · Post by **Duck Turkin** » Wed Oct 03, 2007 5:20 pm 0

juice wrote:
Dio wrote:
sack wrote:I'd have thought it wasn't really expensive to implement on a per-console basis and it's not exactly a must-have feature that people will pay the difference for.
It's a case of cutting absolutely everything that they possibly can. Â£5 less at the BOM stage is Â£15 less in the shops.
I have to admit, this is the kind of thing which puts me off buying a PS3 (that, and the fact that the only game I currently want is Super Stardust). It's bad enough that we're already stuck with software emulation of the Emotion Engine: if they're going to cut even that out, then my justification for buying a PS3 drops through the floor.

Still, tis all just rumours at the minute - I guess we wait and see!

It does sound weird though that they will not even implement software emulation of the PS2 on the still rumoured $399 machine. However, while I would like PS2 sompatibility it isn't a system seller for me, I still have my old PS2 and therefore can use that to play PS2 games.

As someone else has said, despite the drop in price of the XBox360, it just doesn't have the critical mass of games I want to play in order to justify me buying one, well that and the still high failure rate. Of course, the PS3 has also yet to have the same 'software critical mass' but judging from what I've read it will, and in the not too distant future. Sure, some of those games will also come out on the Xbox360, but a few won't, and that's the key here (for me at least). It is looking more and more likely that I'll be getting one soonish (although the iPod Touch and PSP slim are also calling my name).

amanset · Post by **amanset** » Wed Oct 03, 2007 5:43 pm 0

Peet wrote: Even if the difference in price is more than a PS2?

For emulation?

Why?

Last I heard the backwards compatibility was software based, so there should be next to no actual saving on Sony's part. They either choose to put it on the HD or not.

More likely that they let you "upgrade" to having BC via their online store and thus making more money from it.

gravy · Post by **gravy** » Wed Oct 03, 2007 5:46 pm 0

amanset wrote:
Peet wrote: Even if the difference in price is more than a PS2?

For emulation?

Why?
Last I heard the backwards compatibility was software based, so there should be next to no actual saving on Sony's part. They either choose to put it on the HD or not.

More likely that they let you "upgrade" to having BC via their online store and thus making more money from it.

There's no EE in the new PS3's but there is a GS chip in there which now looks like its been dropped

Dio · Post by **Dio** » Wed Oct 03, 2007 5:49 pm 0

It's not out of the question they can restore backcompat later by adding software GS emulation. From what little I know of the GS, though, that's probably a hellish job.

Kamineko · Post by **Kamineko** » Wed Oct 03, 2007 6:15 pm 0

Peet wrote:
merman wrote:The backward compatibility would be one feature I wanted if I were to upgrade...
Even if the difference in price is more than a PS2?

For emulation?

Why?

Near infinite memory card space!

That's all I can think of.

Dio · Post by **Dio** » Wed Oct 03, 2007 6:17 pm 0

I've got two consoles under the TV and it's one too many. Of course, if you want to play all the new games, you've got to have three - so requiring four is a pain in the proverbial.

Kemper_Boyd · Post by **Kemper_Boyd** » Wed Oct 03, 2007 6:20 pm 0

Dio wrote:It's not out of the question they can restore backcompat later by adding software GS emulation. From what little I know of the GS, though, that's probably a hellish job.

Well full software emulation was the plan, so I wonder if they've
given up. I'm not sure it's a big deal really, anyone with a large
number of PS2 games will already have one. Anyone who really
wants to play PS2 will be able to buy one very cheaply, and it's got
enough life in it that an even cheaper model isn't unthinkable.

Right now as low a price point as possible probably trumps backwards
compatibility in Sony's plans, and of course nothing has been confirmed yet.