Sony switches off PS2 for last time

Sony fans worldwide are letting out nostalgic “awws” as it has been announced no more Playstation 2 consoles are being produced, anywhere.

It was confirmed by the Guardian that after 12 years of production, the PS2 is no more.

That’s despite the fact the console sold more than 150 million units in its lifespan, cementing its place in history as the best-selling home gaming machine ever.

In contrast, the PS3 has sold 70 million units since its 2006 launch, and is more expensive to produce than its predecessor. The console has also not managed to catch its biggest rival the Xbox 360, which launched a year earlier.

Revolutionary in many ways, the PS2 managed to infiltrate living rooms as a versatile game/DVD player combo, much aided by its enormous library of games – launched in 2000, by 2011 there were more than 10,000 games available for the console.

Among those were games that would set the standard for those that followed, including the Final Fantasy series, Grand Theft III and San Andreas, Metal Gear Solid and the God of War franchise.

It trounced its direct competitors when it launched, namely the much weaker and feebler Nintendo Gamecube and Sega Dreamcast.

You might think that a look back at a console is unnecessarily nostalgic and sentimental, but don’t forget that with the shift to cloud-based gaming looming ever closer, it’s very possible we are heading for the last generation of game consoles with the upcoming release of the so-called Xbox 720 and PS4.

Did you have a PS2 way back when Carl Johnson ruled the streets? When Kratos first became the God of War, or when Tidus learned the truth about his father? We’d like to hear your best PS2 memory or, failing that, your best (relatively) old-school gaming moment.