Games nowadays are available everywhere. For example, players who want to play retro titles can find emulators on the web. Moreover, those wishing to play casino games can visit sites such as Roulette77.co.za and test their luck. Even games on consoles are very easy to obtain as they are available via numerous digital services. But all of that wouldn’t be possible if it weren’t for devices such as PlayStation 2 that brought about a revolution in the gaming industry. On March 4, PS2 celebrated a very important anniversary — the 20th one, marking exactly two decades of the day when the revolution started.
How PS2 Changed Gaming Landscape
Many professionals believe that one of the ways PS2 managed to influence the gaming landscape was adding titles that sparked creativity. Titles such as Guitar Hero and Singstar weren’t the usual gamer-focused games. They attracted many people to buy PS2 even though they never actually held a gaming controller in their hands before. All of a sudden, everyone had an opportunity to feel like a guitar-god and a rock star, just by using the guitar-shaped controller and getting energy bursts as they played their favorite songs.
Apart from these “social” games, PS2 also had a lot to offer to gamers. It was titled such as Metal Gear Solid, Grand Theft Auto, and Resident Evil that really expanded and turned into franchises on PS2. The sheer fact that players were able to play GTA 3, Vice City and San Andreas all on PS2 is enough to give you an insight into how popular this device was.
What Are the Numbers Saying?
The device was sold more than 1.4 million times in Japan by the end of March 2020, which immediately showed that it was going to be a huge success. The console became available worldwide later that year, and by March 31, 2001, more than 10 million units were sold.
The demand was higher than ever, and in 2005, more than 100 million units were sold, making PS2 the fastest console to reach that number. However, Nintendo DS managed to beat that record shortly after, when it reached 100 million in four and a half years.
By July 2009, the device sold 138.8 million units worldwide, with 51 million going to PAL regions. The number went up to 155 million by March 31, 2012, when Sony officially decided to stop providing updates on sales, as the workers wanted to focus on their newer consoles.
PS2 remains to date the best-selling video games console of all time. Nintendo DS almost managed to break that record, staying less than a million sales shy of the first place.
The original PlayStation device sold in 102.49 million units, and PlayStation 4 was sold 118.69 million times. PS3 remains the worst-selling console with “only” 87.4 million sales.
The Legendary Controllers
One of the things that many gamers liked the most about PS2 was its controllers named DualShock 2, which were an upgraded version of DualShock controllers that were part of the original PlayStation. The iconic buttons marked with a circle, an X, a square, and a triangle are used even today for Sony devices.
Conclusion: PlayStation 2 Redefined Gaming
Being so popular, PS2 made a huge impact on the gaming industry, as many titles that were released for this device impacted the titles after that. Nowadays, even PC gamers play games that are all heavily influenced by titles released on this two-decade-old console. Meanwhile, Sony continues to push the boundaries of gaming with its innovative products. The company has been monitored closely by millions of fans who are eagerly awaiting news about the upcoming PS5.
