After months of hype, claims of lagging stock levels and anxious faces amongst the local gaming community, PlayStation 2 finally goes on sale in Australia tonight.
Sega opened its assault on the home PC last year when the Dreamcast shipped with Internet access capability. But the introduction of Sony Computer Entertainment's PlayStation2 is likely to have an even greater effect on potential home PC buyers. Although the PS2 doesn't ship with Internet access capability (expected as an add-on in the first half of 2001), it does boast the most powerful gaming engine currently on the market, plus the ability to play DVD movies and audio CDs, the sheer entertainment value of the PS2 is a knockout.
The black PlayStation2 case measures 8.89 x 30.4 x 17.7 cms(HWD) and weighs 2.26 kgs. Unlike typical lightweight game consoles, the PS2 feels substantial and looks like an expensive home entertainment component. The system ships with a single analog DualShock2 controller , AV cable with RCA video and stereo audio plugs, and an instruction manual. No games, movies, or audio CDs are included.
On the front of the case are two memory-card slots, two controller ports, two USB ports, one i-Link (IEEE 1394)port, the disk tray, and the Reset and Media Eject buttons. On the back you'll find the power switch, an AV output port (optional cables support S-video or component AV), an optical/digital/audio port, and an expansion bay intended for a hard drive to be released in the future. In addition to supporting games written for the PS2 (it's also backward-compatible with original PlayStation media), the system supports DVD-ROM, DVD-Video, CD-ROM, DTS, and Dolby Digital media.
The ports and expansion bay suggest this same device may be used in the future for broadband Internet access and as a video recorder for television content with features similar to TiVo and ReplayTV. For now, however, the PS2 is a super game console and a fine DVD and audio CD player.
Sony's DualShock2 controller included in the package is a big step above the digital controller bundled with the original PlayStation, which had only two analog controls. All buttons except Start and Select are analog on the new controller, which provides more precision when playing games. Between 20 and 25 games will be available, we tested EA Sports' SSX, Namco's Ridge Racer V, Infogrames' Unreal Tournament, and KOEI's Dynasty Warriors 2.
The PS2 is without a doubt one monster of a game system. Using the 128-bit Emotion Engine as its core graphics processor, the PS2 can handle a beefy 66 million polygons per second (double the Sega Dreamcast's 33 million polygons). When we played Unreal Tournament on the PS2 with a USB keyboard and mouse, the devices were recognised immediately and worked as dual controllers. You can also connect two systems via the i-Link port for network play (we couldn't test this feature because no one we knew had a PS2).
As with other video game consoles, game software requires no user setup. Of the four games we tested, SSX was the most impressive, with incredibly detailed and lifelike graphics. Like Dreamcast games, at default system settings PS2 games consistently show jaggies (rough edges that look out of place on a smooth 3D model). While jaggies don't hinder game play, they are quite noticeable and unattractive. If you turn on the anti-aliasing option via the PlayStation2 OS driver menu, the jaggies are reduced.
Playback image quality of DVD movies on the PlayStation2 is much sharper than on a PC, as good as on standalone DVD players, with all traces of artifacts removed. Sony's inclusion of this feature is sure to build a large user base quickly, as it has in Japan. You can also play audio CDs.
Dreamcast is the PS2's only real competition now, although Nintendo's Gamecube and Microsoft's XBox promise to bring more competition in late 2001.
As a game console the PlayStation2 kicks the pants off the competition, with superb graphics and audio. If you don't have a standalone DVD player, it does that job well, too. PS2 units may be hard to get, with additional hot features such as the hard drive and broadband adaptor yet to come, but we'd suggest picking up the first PS2 you can find.
Sony PlayStation2
Company: Sony
Ph: 02 9878 9712; Fax: 02 9888 6264
Price: AU$749.
Rating: 5 Star
6%
1%
