Play Station 2 Questions

[LisaR]

My son is looking at buying a PS2 from Game Stop or Craigslist. He has a Wii that he rarely plays but he loves his DS. I do not know anything about these gaming systems so I wanted some opinions.

1. Is $50 for the system decent?

2. Does he need to make sure it comes with anything in particular (x number of controllers, etc)

3. Are these still worth it? I know they make a PS3 but he doesn't have the money for one of these. I told him he could wait until his birthday at the end of summer and we would go in half with him on a PS3 since he would have about that much saved up by that point. Is a PS3 really worth $300 over a $50 PS2 if you enjoy electronics but aren't a true gamer?

Thanks for any help you can provide!

PS: I posted this same question about an hour ago and it didn't show up. Hopefully it doesn't end up posting twice.

 

[gallaj0]

I think it really depends on what he wants to play. If he's thinking of playing the latest and greatest games he sees in commercials, he's going to have limited choices. Some games (Madden football for example) will be released for PS2, but they usually won't have the features of the PS3 version.
If he's interested in the "catalog" of games, than he's all set. There's thousands of games out there already (including Playstation 1 games), and they are still releasing some new ones.
That said your questions:
1. $50 is about right. You can still get a new PS2 for $99, so $50 with at least 1 playstation controller is about right.
2. On Craigslist $50 should get him 2 controllers, maybe a memory card and game thrown in. If he wants to do online games, make sure the used console he gets has ethernet; the "slim" models all have it, the older "fat " ones had it as an option. He'll also need at least one memory card and some games.
3. Plenty of people still use a PS2 all the time. There's plenty of fun to be had with the 2 if he doesn't want to wait for the 3. I have a PS2 and PS3 at home, and play them both different times depending on what I want to play or who's using the other machine.

You didn't ask, but FYI- the PS3 also plays BluRay high definition movies, which is worth it by itself. If you have a high def tv he'll be using it with (or are thinking of getting one), and you don't have a BluRay player yet, you may want to think about that also.

Either way, tell him happy gaming.

 

[The Mystery Machine]

Can never go wrong buying a PS2. That system is still good. Plenty of cool games to play.

Since the PS3 is not backwards compatible it will be sought after down the road.

Not sure about the prices. Will Gamestop give you a warranty?

I can get a NEW PS2 for $99.00? That is interesting.

 

[gallaj0]

Gamestop does guarantee their systems to work, but that's it, no extended warranty. (Better than Craigslist, though).
I agree though, the PS2 is worth having even with a new PS3 for the compatibility. There are limited (older) versions of the PS3 systems that play PS2 games. I never thought I'd be so happy to pay what I did when they were first released, they're the only versions that are fully compatible with all PS1 and PS2 games).
PS2's are still available in most stores (Gamestop, Target, WalMart) brand new for $99.

 

[LisaR]

Thanks to both of you. This has been really helpful.

I think a PS2 would work well since DS is not a true gamer and isn't into the latest, greatest game. He is mainly into games like Yu-Gi-Oh, Pokemon and Chaotic. Plus, we don't have an HD TV so the Blu Ray would not be important at this point.

I didn't know about the slim version versus the bigger one but will definitely look into that. He plays Chaotic online on the computer so maybe this is something he could do with the PS2? Can you tell I know nothing about this stuff?

I will have to check into it to see if Gamestop offers any type of warranty. That would certainly be an incentive to buy from them.

Thanks again!

 

[nile455]

I could be wrong, but I don't think they are making games for ps2 anymore, with the exception of major major releases like Rock Band.

 

[debrights]

my son has both, the ps2 for several years, the ps3 since Christmas

we really enjoy the ps2 for its simplicity plus gamestop has plenty of cheap games.
the newer ps3 has wireless internet if you have that available and the graphics really out shine the ps2 on a newer hi def tv, but arent really much better on older standard def tv

 

[RyeCrimsonMoon]

Thanks to both of you. This has been really helpful.

I think a PS2 would work well since DS is not a true gamer and isn't into the latest, greatest game. He is mainly into games like Yu-Gi-Oh, Pokemon and Chaotic. Plus, we don't have an HD TV so the Blu Ray would not be important at this point.

I didn't know about the slim version versus the bigger one but will definitely look into that. He plays Chaotic online on the computer so maybe this is something he could do with the PS2? Can you tell I know nothing about this stuff?

I will have to check into it to see if Gamestop offers any type of warranty. That would certainly be an incentive to buy from them.

Thanks again!

There isn't a Pokemon game for a PS2 (unless someone can correct me), it's strictly Nintendo. I want to say there are some Yu-Gi-Oh games for a PS2. Try Gamestop (Or EB Games) for some used games, they have a huge selection.

The slim vs the "fat" one is just age. Pretty much, they upgraded the PS2 years ago and put out a "slim" one. I had a fat one then I got a slim one. Play-wise, there isn't a difference, just some little annoyances for me. Like the fact the slim one's door opens upwards, so you can't put anything on it, and sometimes it takes a while for make sure you disc is in there right.

BTW, I don't know if anyone has mentioned this and I forgot, a plus for a PS2 is that it plays DVDs! I use it as my DVD player.

Gamestop guarantees there used systems will work, but you might be able to get a good combo from someone on Craigs list.