Sony admits 200 PS2 games not working on PS3
by James Ransom-Wiley 
{ Nov 14th 2006 at 12:10PM }
Sony has confirmed reports that several -- like 200* -- PlayStation 2 games are not functioning properly on PlayStation 3. The company claims most of the backwards compatibility inconsistencies relate to audio glitches, but admits that some games do not run at all. SCE spokesperson Satoshi Fukuoka said the issues would be fixed through future patches (likely built into firmware upgrades) distributed online.Microsoft drew a lot of flak when Xbox 360 debuted with a paltry list of compatible Xbox titles (which shrank before it grew), but at least there was an effort to be honest to the consumer. That's not to say Sony was being overtly dishonest by advertising 100% backwards compatibility; if we had to guess, a team wasn't budgeted to test all of PS2's 8,000+ titles. Sure, you could bitch that Sony did a disservice; but let's be real, anyone lucky enough to score a PS3 during launch probably owns PS2 -- problem solved.
*200 titles account for less than 2.5% of the PS2 software catalogue.
See also: A HUGE backwards compatibility checklist for the PS3
[Thanks Marc]
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
LINES @ Nov 14th 2006 12:14PM
No offense, but who cares? This is far more than the Xbox 360 had and has to offer. And Nintendo never offered BC until the Wii. So, this is still huge in my eyes. Especially seeing as how it just launched, and 1st gen consoles always have issues. Xbox 360 anybody?
32_Footsteps @ Nov 14th 2006 12:17PM
Curious - anyone know which 200-odd titles don't work? I mean, if we're talking dating sims (sorry, interactive novels) and other minor titles, I don't think it's a big deal. But if we're talking the Final Fantasy games, Ratchet & Clank, and the DDR games, then I'd have some issue.
Pierce @ Nov 14th 2006 12:19PM
you people act like when the xbox 360 launched all the jostiq news just ignored it.
xboxstiqwii comments when the SECOND a story comes out that trashes those consoles in any way it also appears here.
just get over it and accept the fact that they post whatever news they get a hold of.
even pure news sites like excite and what not seem to have 1 anti sony news story per day. and they usually dont even comment on consoles.
The Intangible Fact @ Nov 14th 2006 12:20PM
@1
....But MS didnt lie about having every game being backwards compatible. They said that it was being updated. Thats the difference! The people at the Sony Corporation are liers and cheaters.
thegreengrunt @ Nov 14th 2006 12:20PM
I have a 360 and to be honest I wont be playing any xbox 1 games unless its the major titles like GTA, Halo1, Halo2, NinjaGaiden, Fable. Anything other than that is not worth playing.
Why would you want to play old games on the 360? Seriously? I would rather play GRAW or Gears or CoD2 and 3 or Lost Planet or Dead Rising. Waste of engineering effort. Just make the 360 not have red lights and I would be happy. :)
Raynre @ Nov 14th 2006 12:22PM
Among the heavy hitters are GT4 and DMC3.
Great move Sony. Didnt you pack a PS2 into every PS3 because the emulation software wasnt working correctly? So why the hell arent these working?
Brian B. @ Nov 14th 2006 12:40PM
How was Microsoft being more honest when they promised back compat and then delivered next to nothing? Sony tells people that 98% of their old games DO work and it's lying? That's some ass backwards logic there my friend.
LINES @ Nov 14th 2006 12:30PM
800 games out of 8000 are not working. *GASP* What, are the majority of games Barbie - Princess Tale, Be a janitor SIM. Out of the 800, there are really only 2 heavy hitters that are missing. No HUGE loss. EVERYBODY has a PS2. Plug it in, and play.
Sony didn't lie. Remember with the PS2 launch, memory cards were supposed to work? They didn't save games, and some even fried PS2s. It's a launch system.
enjoy 97.x% of PS/PS2 games on your PS3. Oh no, not 100% backwards compatible. I doubt anybody on Joystiq has the 800 games anyway.
thegreengrunt @ Nov 14th 2006 12:35PM
The more I think about this the more Im thinking that anything Sony is a lie. Who the hell is running this company? Monkeys?
Sony says one thing that is positive then they retract it later. Multiple examples of this. Worst PR people in the world work at Sony apparently.
Sony today reminds me how poorly Apple was run back in the mid late 90's. If Apple can make a turnaround so can Sony. Its painful to watch a once great company turn into a bunch of backwards ass hats
George @ Nov 14th 2006 12:36PM
Its funny the same people who mocked 360 are now sticking up for sony. this is just the first problem, i am sure hardware failures are next. Its also funny sony hasnt had any gameplay videos shown to the public in any stores or ads because they know people would say it looks like 360 and not pay the extra $$$ .... I am not a sony hater but a game lover i just get tired of you forum loosers mocking everything you cant afford, or dont have. your not true gamers/game fans because if you were you wouldnt have an extreme loyalty to one system.
Izuna Drop @ Nov 14th 2006 12:40PM
I always found backward compatibility kind of worthless, unless you happen to be short on storage space. It's always nice to have your old systems to fire up when you want to play old games. Though, I suppose the mass market aren't otaku like us Joystiq readers, so the probably have no interest in keeping their old systems.
sracer @ Nov 14th 2006 12:41PM
The thing that makes the lack of 100% PS2 backward-compatibility newsworthy is that it seems to contradict the official Sony claims that PS2 BC would be 100% because it is being done via hardware, not software emulation like the XBox360.
So, if it isn't 100% and will be fixed via software, then is PS2 BC really via software emulation?
Todd @ Nov 14th 2006 12:41PM
Heh, since when has Sony been honest with the consumer.
JCM @ Nov 14th 2006 12:50PM
When did Sony promise 100% backwards compatabiity? Only Joystiq could turn find a way to make MS's piss-poor BC a win over Sony.
Thryon @ Nov 14th 2006 12:46PM
I do not understand why this is a concern to anyone. When DVD replaced VHS, was anyone annoyed that the formats where not backwards compatible? What about CDs and cassettes or vinyl?
When I got my Xbox 360, I sold all my Xbox and games. If I really wanted to play Xbox games, I would have kept my console.
I know that some do hold their old games near and dear, but why would you pay $600 to play old games. If the reason is the lack of games for the PS3, why not wait till more games are available, and price cuts. I paid full price for my console, and then paid full price for my games. My friend just got his console for $50 cheaper than I paid, and got 3 games included.
Flit @ Nov 14th 2006 12:48PM
@2:
I know that DDR games, and Guitar Hero games DO NOT work with the ps3, as Joystiq has covered recently. No controller port (unless you buy a converter, and still GH won't work).
I love the fact that i have to buy 4 more controllers for my ps3! all hail sony!
"How was Microsoft being more honest when they promised back compat and then delivered next to nothing?"
yeah, but they didn't claim 100% BC like sony has. Oh and the PS3 will have 2 hdmi outputs too.
JodyAnthony @ Nov 14th 2006 12:49PM
anyone that expected it to be flawless was being foolish. of course it will have some games not working. ps2 had some ps1 games that didn't work, yet they said it was 100% backwards compatable. I'm sure there will end up being a gamecube game or two that won't work on wii either. do i care? not really. I'll still have my wii in 5 days, and will love the hell out of it. It would be nice if 360 could play every xbox game, if ps3 could play every ps1/2 game, wii could play any nes/snes/genesis/n64/tg16/gc game (side note - I still think Wii is incredible [personal opinion!]), but they won't. everyone knows it.
Willie @ Nov 14th 2006 12:52PM
I remember Sony mention that not all games would be compatible; usually the lesser played games. I don't think they were trying to be dishonest. I remember them being pretty honest about this issue early on. The amount of games that can be played on PS3 is huge. Who cares about the 2.5%.
heavyness @ Nov 14th 2006 12:53PM
"Sure, you could bitch that Sony did a disservice; but let's be real, anyone lucky enough to score a PS3 during launch probably owns PS2 -- problem solved."
but when it was the Xbox 360, it's all hell breaking loose and Microsoft f*in their customers. at least Microsoft told customers before hand that not all games will work and they will continue porting more and more games over.
Mitch @ Nov 14th 2006 12:54PM
@LINES
Nintendo has never offered BC with consoles, but they have with portables.
Pulse @ Nov 14th 2006 1:00PM
Whats wrong with playing old games? What was the point in Microsoft offering you arcade if you don't want to play them? Waste of time then if you ask me.
I've got loads of old games I would like to play, oh yeah, I know why 360 fans dont want to play old games, theres nothing to play from Xbox Original....thats why it flopped in the first place, lol
Mh, who cares, theres more then enough PS2 games to go around and play :) As well as PS1, yay, I can try FF7 and 8 again ^^.
dotmadhack @ Nov 14th 2006 1:12PM
@1
Actually Nintendo has backwards capability since the GBA, but didn't extend it more than a step. Ex: Ds can't play gameboy color games.
IslandLife @ Nov 14th 2006 1:11PM
You know, I'm really getting tired of hearing 360 owners talk about how backwards compatability is worthless simply because "who wants to play old games". You know who may want to play old games geniuses, people who haven't owned the previous console, that's who! If you never owned an Xbox or PS2, getting a next gen system with backwards compatability enables you to play all those great games you missed out on without having to buy the earlier consoles. Do you idiots understand that now!!!
peej @ Nov 14th 2006 1:34PM
"like 200?" Is it just me, or does that seem like more sony bs?
ie:
This footage is in game!
correction, this footage is CGI!
correction, this footage is CGI, but not as good as in game!
seems a little fishy to me.
Rich @ Nov 14th 2006 1:28PM
Yea seriously.. Who wants to play old games on a new system anyways?? Thats so DUMB!!!
On a completely different topic.. Has anyone played Street Fighter II on the 360 yet??!?! Its AMAZING!!! Best 360 game YET!!! (yes... i am spreading the sarcasm on pretty thick)
goosedude @ Nov 14th 2006 1:42PM
Could care less about Backwards compatibility because if you were a real PS2 gamer....you'd already put your games on a 200GB Installed HD.
I'm more worried about that internal power supply......I sense melted Playstations and heat venting issues and upside down playstations again....and SONY never admitting anything was a design flaw.
32_Footsteps @ Nov 14th 2006 1:44PM
"I know that DDR games, and Guitar Hero games DO NOT work with the ps3, as Joystiq has covered recently. No controller port (unless you buy a converter, and still GH won't work)."
It was my understanding that those titles did work, but the specialty controllers (floor pads/guitar controllers) didn't work with the system, and you instead had to rely on the alternate controls which are based off of the standard controller (which admittedly isn't nearly as much fun).
Given that they're pretty much certain to make PS3 versions of both DDR and Guitar Hero in the future, I feel confident that they'll soon have PS3 versions of those respective controllers.
Though given how it didn't do so hot here, I'm going to be still using my PS2 for Taiko Drum Master - I doubt that's getting the PS3 update anytime soon.
Firegirl @ Nov 14th 2006 1:52PM
Someone commented above that who cares if a few discs aren't working, it's more than the 360 has. Well, to that I say I will always stick with companies that give us product that does what they say it's going to do. And this is not the first problem Sony has had. The problems I've had with a 360 is minimal and it does everything Bill Gates told me it would do. Stop released product when it's faulty!
DeShaun @ Nov 14th 2006 1:57PM
lol...I think it's hilarious that so many people are pushing "who wants to play last gen games??"
Here's a newsflash, morons. When next-gen comes out, last gen does not spontaneously combust. It sticks around for a while. Sony would be beyond stupid to axe their PS2 libraries, especially with PS3 shortages abound and such.
Also, I find it funny that people are saying they don't want to play old games, yet whenever my friend checks his friends list on 360, Halo 2 is STILL all over the place among 360 users. So get off it.
Oh no, old games...substance, nooooo.
Anyway, so what about the small percentage. Microsoft said they were working on their issues, and they have been. Sony will do the same. Unless I'm mistaken, wasn't PS3 also supposed to support PS1 stuff?
Playing games that rely on rumble for specific parts of gameplay might be a bit of a letdown, though. Thankfully there aren't many of those.
SuicideNinja @ Nov 14th 2006 7:21PM
You know that picture is a lie, right?
PS2's all have DISC READ ERRORs. Didn't you know? LOL
PS BC isn't really that important. There's not a game like Halo 2 that is played online all the time. For all the RPG goodness, keep the PS2. Duh. Even using the PS2 for PS1 games is a joke.
Edge of Blade @ Nov 14th 2006 2:06PM
Wow. I care about this about as much as I cared about the 360's BC. Not a bit.
It's nice to play BC games, but once the next-gen games get rolling, BC gets forgotten pretty quickly. I haven't picked up Halo 2 in well over two months. I'm too busy with the other games now.
Though, the one game I would like to play on 360 right now is MK:A, but I know that's coming in the next BC upgrade.
Frightful @ Nov 14th 2006 2:15PM
I totally agree with the picture. All you guys get way too excited about backwards compatibility. I have a Xbox 360 and I really don't care about playing Xbox games on it, that's what my Xbox is for. The only thing that makes me care about backwards compatibility is if it plays games that go waaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaay back.
And besides, it's nice to play the old games on the old system.
moominsean @ Nov 14th 2006 2:15PM
realistically speaking, how could sony play through every single ps and ps2 game to double check that every single game works all the way through? there are like, what, 20,000 games probably (maybe not that many)... they probably said hey the engines are there, everything we've tried works, so we can assume that they all work. it's more like after the fact, all these consumers tried these games, complained about what doesn't work, and sony then says, oh, hey, these don't work.
and who doesn't have a ps2 already to play all of them anyway? sure, it's nice to consolidate your space, but the $30 you get in trade for a ps2 doesn't warrant immediate removal from the premises.
mesocool @ Nov 14th 2006 3:49PM
I bet a lot of the titles that dont work are EA titles because they insist on it! Because they no you may just keep the same game! LOL
Anyway the artible is trying to misleadingly dumb down the percent there are only 1567 titles release and scheduled for release for the ps2 (minus the 132 that have been cancelled) found at
http://www.tothegame.com/gamebrowse.asp?sort=title&letter=all&page=1&sortdir=asc&platform=ps2&category=all&status=all&territory=us&image.x=27&image.y=6&image=submit
Then take away the cancelled games. Just look at the bottom of the page for a total no need to count!
I't better than the 360 but not a %5 count but a 12.7% So far!!! It will grow if they went from finding none to 200 in just a couple of days(unless they where supprise! lying!).
But who cares? Most of us will NOT be playing the old games anyway more than a couple of times. People always say they will but once the new system comes they can't go back! And the difference between the PS3 and PS2 is bigger than the difference between the xbox360 and the xbox. Because the xbox had full anti-aliasing, and already had a lower HD. This is the first time PS2 only people have seen HD on games. They will not go back! I have to go finish tales of Legendia on PS2 after playing enchant arms! having a hard time start doing it even though I'm at the last few bosses! And I LOVED that games story before I started playing enchant arm ( I wish I had finished it first) Make sure you play all your ps2 games before you start PS3 guys!
whm @ Nov 14th 2006 3:02PM
So - most of my PS2 titles will work. Some has issues, and will most probably be addressed with updates to firmware - as thing in the IT industry normally work.
I mean, I buy a new PC, load a new OS, and then the printer driver don't work, but after a couple of months the drivers is updated and there we go.
Or the screen driver work, but not all the 3d functions is perfect, so I have to get an updated driver to fix the glitches. And after a couple of weeks or months the issues get sorted out. Normal - especially with BC.
The one thing that is amazing is the absolute hysteria when it comes to Sony - with any kind of news. If it offers BluRay -"arrghh - who needs it" - the sheep yell. If a title has a glitch - "ohhh the sky is falling - woe is us woe is us".
Seems like the master if FUD is really hard at work over here. Actually all it does is motivate me more to get a PS3. I mean - if the competition is in complete hysteria everytime something happens - then it can only mean that they are not very comfortable - and need to pretend the sky is falling - when it is not. The Cry Wolf has been going on for so long that it just becomes laughable now.
The media technique known as spinning - take the positive of the competitor and try and make it look bad. Take your own weak points and try and make it look like it is a positive. Now let us just stand back and see:
The PS3 offers backward compatibility - that while not perfect now - will improve over time to cover the few titles that is not running perfect - like the ones where the background music does not play (oh what a major problem - woe is us - woe is us). And then the PS2 is still supported - with new titles coming out still - and which will most likely run on PS2 and PS3.
Now for the MS one - they release the 360 - with weak BC, drops the XBox like a hot potato - no more new titles - so screw you who still owns an older XBox - buy a new one. So the older drive is now a great feature - and the ugly plug-in me-too HD drive that is not good for anything - is suddenly *good*. S in 2-3 years - what do you expect? They will drop the 360, release the 720 with little or no BC for the 360, less BC for the 180, and screw you - no more titles for the 360 - buy the 720. And this is thought of as *good*?
I mean - this is how they operate - just check out the NTFS support for Windows 95/98/ME. Or the USB support for NT. Oh right - it does not exits - screw you - get the new OS. And this is *good*?
ackmondual @ Nov 14th 2006 3:02PM
@ #5
""I have a 360 and to be honest I wont be playing any xbox 1 games unless its the major titles like GTA, Halo1, Halo2, NinjaGaiden, Fable. Anything other than that is not worth playing.
Why would you want to play old games on the 360? Seriously? I would rather play GRAW or Gears or CoD2 and 3 or Lost Planet or Dead Rising. Waste of engineering effort. Just make the 360 not have red lights and I would be happy. :)""
The main reason is b/c they advertise the fact that the 360 have backwards compatibility (albeit not FULL 100%), so when u get a 360, you should be able to play many XB games, plain and simple. Not all the features may matter to everyone, but you should get what you paid for. Otherwise...
1) Would you want have your big-ass, hurtin', cinderblock of an orig XB on your entertainment shelf just to play those 5 XB games when your 360 could've handled them too?
2) Some ppl don't have an XB. If getting a 360 doesn't let them play many of their XB games, thy're not getting the funcionality they were advertised
JT @ Nov 16th 2006 1:59AM
LOL u guys crack me up. talking about how Sony was SO scared to release video of their upcoming games. what a lie! it is Sony that has pumped everyone up for the PS3 console by showing games at the conventions and elsewhere. Just because they're cuurent U.S. commercial doesn't show actual video of the game itself doesn't mean they are "scared".
It builds up the anticipation in my opinion. You need to remember, Sony had the opportunity to launch MANY months ago but chose NOT to. Those who rushed out and got a 360 have wasted their money!! LOL The PS3 will have much more clarity and detail, you'll be able to get just as many great games, and you will still be able to play online for FREE (unlike Xbox where they make you pay a monthly fee).
I can see it happening starting this weekend...hello gamestop..can you please buy my 360 from me? :)
Pince @ Nov 14th 2006 5:10PM
Is there a comprehensive list of games that are currently not working and is there some broad commonality between them? If any of the games are big popular titles, then that seems like a problem.
Also, is it possible that any upcoming PS2 games would not be compatible (I know they would never let that happen with something like God of War 2, but it could still piss some people off if it were to happen unexpectedly with a minor release.)
@35
"Most of us will NOT be playing the old games anyway more than a couple of times. People always say they will but once the new system comes they can't go back!...This is the first time PS2 only people have seen HD on games. They will not go back!"
Dude, speak for yourself. Plenty of people still play ps1 games on their ps2. Friends of mine who never had a ps1 but have a ps2 call me up asking to borrow FF8 or the original MGS and stuff like that all the time. The last 10 games I have beaten were RE4, Banjo-Kazooie, Soul Reaver(the 1st one), Burnout Revenge, Alundra, Gex(1st one), Tomba, Sly Cooper(1st one), FF8, and Halo 2. Maybe most gamers don't play like that, but I know plenty who do. 5 of those games were PSone games played on my PS2. Backwards compatability FTW.
And don't pull that "once you go HD, you don't go back" BS. Plenty of people are not all enamored and starry-eyed over the HD hype. Not every gamer is a mindless graphics-whore. If my PS3 doesnt play Disgaea I will be pissed. I don't care if the graphics are sprites, that has nothing to do with it. The games of the PS2 generation will not just be forgotten when a couple pretty PS3 games come out.
Alex M @ Nov 14th 2006 7:01PM
As a side note, it seems like the PS3 is having trouble running much of anything right now...The link there is to my flickr page with (mildly decent) pics of a crashed PS3 kiosk here in an Alexandria, VA Best Buy.
Jason @ Nov 15th 2006 12:52AM
Has anyone actually *seen* these alleged 8,000 Playstation 2 games? Because I'm pretty goddamn sure I haven't seen that many in the entire 6+ YEARS since the PS2 launched.
I suppose they're out there with the mythical 545 PSP games available now, right?
2.5% my ass...
Burnt Meatloaf @ Nov 15th 2006 2:15AM
How much you want to bet that the developers of these games didn't follow Sony's programming guidelines? Even a simple core resynthesis cannot perfectly reproduce undocumented features.
From what I've seen from a motherboard photograph, the PS3 has the same chip in it as the PS2 slim. Does anyone know if PS3 compatibility is the same as the PS2 slim? It should be.
vikk @ Nov 16th 2006 3:21AM
Wikipedia:
Sony stated every PlayStation and PlayStation 2 game that observes its respective system's TRC (Technical Requirements Checklist) will be playable on PS3 at launch. SCE president Ken Kutaragi asked developers to adhere to the TRC to facilitate compatibility with future PlayStations, stating that the company was having some difficulty getting backward compatibility with games that had not followed the TRCs. It has been confirmed (image) that initial PS3 units will include the CPU/rasterizer combination chip used in slim PS2 (EE+GS) to achieve backward compatibility. Two days after the release of the PlayStation 3 in Japan, Sony announced that some titles had problems, mostly with sound playback. It has also been reported that some scenes from the Gran Turismo racing game might freeze, the game Suikoden III cannot read data from a first-generation PlayStation, and a virtual gun in one of the Biohazard games will not fire properly. Most of the 7841 titles in Sony's database work; future firmware updates will provide mmore compatibility. PlayStation and PlayStation 2 software will still be limited by region-locking and will not be enhanced or upscaled.
The PlayStation 3 does not include interfaces for legacy PlayStation devices, but there will be an adapter for the memory cards so users can save their PS1/PS2 data on to a virtual memory card in the hard drive. USB devices for PlayStation 2 may be compatible with PlayStation 3. PlayStation 3 can use Memory Sticks to store save data for PlayStation and PlayStation 2 software.
mesocool @ Nov 20th 2006 4:04AM
Hmmmm thats funny any game that follows there protocal huh? So Grand tourismo is one of the games that is confirmed by the japanese site kotoku. Wasn't it made by Sony? Sony has always not show realtime video it is the way for the to continue the false hype from FFVXII (which Sony not square promoted in the USA) to the last two E3's They has show fake video as games. Or no video at all. If they showed the actual non-enchanced video of there games it would kill the hype. Because they do not look as good as 360 games. From NBA 07 to COD3 (call of duty 3) to Assasins creed...None of the same game same developer games run as good (60 frams a second for instance on COD3 360 and best case 30 frames on PS3 with lower texture quality). Per the reviews. Of course they where affraid to show there real times ACTUAL NON-ENCHANGED game footage! After all this bull Sony boys STILL believe the lie Machine which is Fony!
mesocool @ Nov 20th 2006 4:04AM
The sound of the lie makes the Sony fanboy giddy and squirmish. Promise them the workd and deliver a worm. And they will be the first in line when you come up with the SAME lie again! And be loyal to boot! I hope Microsoft does not figure if they cant beat um jion em! Then we will all be screwed! Like school girls at a prom ready to be pumped and dumped!
dennis @ Nov 29th 2006 11:20PM
Heres one sony dropped the ball on.I got the ps1/ps2 memory card adapter,transfered my game saves.Try to load game saves to play ps1/2 games.The ps3 can`t find the virtual memory cards.As far as why play old games,have you tried the new Castlevania games.SOTN