The Playstation 2 is turning 15 years old, and it seems like just yesterday it was pounding the competition with minimal effort. The PS2 is easily the most successful console in the history of the gaming universe, and although there are some that came close (Nintendo Wii was well on pace, Nintendo DS missed by inches) none could match the hardware and software sales that was attached to that behemoth. As a matter of fact Sony remains afloat in the business world because of what the PS2 accomplished.
There are tons of reasons why the PS2 did so well during the sixth generation (and even the beginnings of the seventh generation). It was a mix of underwhelming competition, hardware options that made it the better sale, much better lineup of games, great third-party relationship, superior marketing campaign, and in the end because its successor took a very long time to warm up to gamers. It was the perfect storm that allowed this system to sell well for two different gaming generations.
Let’s start with the competition during the sixth generation. The Sega Dreamcast was a mix of bad timing, bug-filled launch titles, lack of true PS-like third-party support, and gamers still not forgiving Sega for the Sega Saturn fiasco. The Dreamcast did have plenty of great games, especially in the sports and fighting genres. However, it just couldn’t prove that it was the beginning of a new era, instead looking like a system that was mingling with the fleeting N64 and Playstation. Gamers collectively made the decision to bypass the first system of the new era and instead wait on Sony’s successor.
The XBox didn’t have much of an identity outside of being the ultimate system for FPS fans. Up until 1998’s surprise-surprise hit Goldeneye 007 we didn’t know Americans were ready to embrace the FPS genre in anything other than PC. So with Halo, the Green Machine became the go-to system for action shooters. 7 of the 15 best-selling XBox games were action/shooters, with the two Halo games occupying the top spot and underrated gem Splinter Cell emerging in third place. But of course, with a lack of variety you can’t really grab much of an audience. The Japanese rejected the XBox entirely, also adding to its lackluster sales. The ONLY reason XBox even continued was because Microsoft can afford to be patient, and because Halo showed the world that the XBox brand has a shot at making good money. Outselling Nintendo was also a positive sign.
Which leads us to the Nintendo Gamecube: a mess. Third-party companies were flying away from the Nintendo brand as the House of Mario continued to refuse to abide by the technology being used and stuck with their decision to use smaller disks to make games while simultaneously not put any effort in trying to go online. These two things, plus the lack of backwards-compatibility that benefited the PS2 greatly propelled it to lackluster launch sales, and this bad stench would carry over through the remainder of the generation. Gamecube’s arsenal of cancelled and delayed games also made it easier for Sony to flourish. The final nail on the coffin was when Twilight Princess was getting delayed time and time again while Capcom betrayed Nintendo and sent Resident Evil 4 and Viewtiful Joe to PS2.
PS2’s hardware was definitely the biggest reason why Sony handedly won the generation. It was backwards-compatible, which allowed PS1 owners to easily make the transition and bring their lineup of purchased games to the next generation. So even though PS2 didn’t have many great games to start, you at least were able to keep your games from the past. Then there’s the DVD player, which made the PS2 arguably the first console to double as a sort of entertainment hardware. The DVD boom occurred at around that point, which gave the PS2 even more value than expected. Sony’s decision to use CD disks in 1994 is paying off with interest come 2000.
Third-party support for Sony was at its absolute peak here in the sixth generation. Feeding off the PS1 success, third-party companies wasted no time announcing their allegiance to the PS2 (and in most instances, ONLY the PS2) and gave the system some of the best games in the 2000s. Sony’s first-party lineup was nowhere near as good as the latter systems (especially PS3) but franchises like Grand Theft Auto, Madden, Metal Gear Solid, SOCOM, Need for Speed, and Final Fantasy eased the pain of lack of games coming directly from Sony. And besides, Gran Turismo was all Sony really needed to do (26 million sold between two games). Sony had popular franchises for Japan (Final Fantasy, Dragon Warrior), England (Pro Evolution Soccer, Grand Theft Auto), and America (Medal of Honor, Grand Theft Auto, Tony Hawk, Kingdom Hearts).
Better hardware (despite weaker specs and slow online start), much better lineup of games (even though in my eyes Gamecube owned the top game of the sixth generation with Metroid Prime), much more games to choose from, backwards-compatibility, and better value. Anything else? Well, there is one more thing: the Playstation 3’s disastrous launch.
The PS3 looked ugly, it looked big, and it was incredibly expensive. It had a terrible launch marred with controversy over the long lines that ended in disappointment as all the stores wound up getting less copies than promised. Why shell out the $600 to get a new system showing minimal promise when you still have a working PS2 that technically has access to over 800 titles? So with that, the PS2 continued to sell. It was still the best Sony option out there, above the clunky PSP and the still-expensive-and-underperforming PS3. With that, the PS2 was able to continue its record-setting hardware sales. 7 years after its launch, it still managed to release a game that sold 5 million copies (Guitar Hero III).
The PS2 is a type of success that cannot ever be duplicated. No system in the near future will have the overpowering third-party advantage that Sony enjoyed in the early 2000s, which is required to create such sales havoc. The Nintendo Wii’s ridiculous success was marred because it simply ran out of games to deliver to consumers after it peaked at around 2008-2009. Third-party had piggybacked on Wii’s success but jumped ship when the jig was up and the hardware limitations were beginning to become more obvious. First-party games can only take you so far; just ask the first-party heavy Nintendo 64 (tons of masterpiece games, but really lacked on software options overall).
You can duplicate the PS2 formula, you can imitate the controller (probably best controller ever), the design, the marketing campaign, and its method of pricing. But, you won’t ever see the big lead PS2 had on its competition (Combine Dreamcast, Gamecube, and XBox hardware sales and it will still be 100 million short) ever again. When the NES pulled off its 85% market share, which was a near monopoly Nintendo was pulling back then. But under a fair(er) playing field, we won’t see a winner like PS2. The market is tighter than ever, and there are less third-party companies willing to stick to just one system. The Playstation 2 was a special, special system, and would pave the path that the modern gaming industry is trailblazing today.
Happy Birthday PS2, lots of great memories indeed.
Source of my data
No comments:
Post a Comment