EU PS3 backwards compatability

The EU PS3' s backwards compatibility will be handled by software unlike the US and Japanese models.

Basically it means that fewer (far fewer) games will be supported and more graphical/sound issues will arise.

LINK

Thanks a lot Sony

are they doing it on purpose or WTF ?

Well done Sony!! Europe gets screwed once again!
Fuck you Sony!

LOL, I' m sorry but at this point that' s fucking hilarious. I feel like I' m in a South Park Episode and Europe is Kenny that keep getting fucked over.

http://www.linux.ime.usp.br/~abpaula/southpark/412_dead_kenny.gif

That' s a good analogy.

Wonderful. This makes absolutely fucking no sense at all. They didn' t even give a conclusive reason as to why. This also sucks for us folks down under because most of our CE products are exactly the same as Europe' s.

If Microsoft (who is primarily a software company) struggles with many aspects of BC, I' d hate to think how Sony (a hardware company) is going to handle it.

This is a strange move, kind of disrespectful. Especially with PS3 already being much more expensive here in Europe.

It means that they don' t have to use the Emotion Engine + Graphic Synthetiser chip, thus saving money.

Software emulation is a shitty solution though and it' ll be interesting to see what percentage of the catalog will be initially supported. Microsoft have handled it well all things considered because 1:1 emulation of Xbox games like Ninja Gaiden, Conker or Doom 3 etc certainly isn' t an easy task.

I' m curious to see whether games like FFXII, Devel May Cry 3, Shadow of the Colossus and God of War 2 are in the initial batch of working titles and whether like Microsoft they will periodically release further updates.

I' m certainly not happy about the situation. I think it' s a bad move and one that will invite a ton of criticism if it' s not handled very very carefully. I mean, i have a fairly extensive PS2 library and the question i need answering is whether or not they' ll all work, ...and if they do will they work 100% correctly.



The only possible good that can come out of this for the consumer is that via software emulation it may be possible to render the games in HD resolutions.

Yes, saving money AND asking more at the same time. That' s why I thought that it was a bit disrespectful. I guess they want to use Europe to try and recover some money.

ORIGINAL: ys

Yes, saving money AND asking more at the same time. That' s why I thought that it was a bit disrespectful. I guess they want to use Europe to try and recover some money.

I wouldn' t be surprised if they did the same in the US when they start shipping the 65nm models.

Oh boy this sucks, but hell hopefully the situation isnt anything like the xbox Bc

Change is inevitable. Except from a vending machine.

Viva La Revolution! erm, I mean Viva La Wii!

Surely it would cost more to employ a dozen programmers specifically for Europe to emulate most of the PS2 library effectively, than to just bundle in more of the old PS2 hardware??

Just seems silly.. Unless they' re not planning on employing those programmers!

...dam, that means i might strain my wrist reaching over my PS3 to turn my PS2 on...

Currently accepting Article & Review requests

That is........really lame. Honestly, I realise they want to save money, but Europe' s already paying th most, so if anything they should get the best PS3.

It' s really a shame, as its really convenient to have wireless and progressive scan on my ps2 games. My ps2 is still hooked up to my old big screen sdtv, and my new screen doesnt support component inputs, so it would be far less convenient to have to go and use the old beasts to play my fav ps2 titles.

I would think God of War 2 and FFXII would definitely be part of the initial batch of working titles as they are both new and will be great sellers, but who knows, this is Sony, and even though at one time that meant a good thing, lately it means a bunch of stupid decisions, and poor planning.

Great Kenney analogy Ghost.

That' s just... dumb. Plain & simple, they' ve already reduced cost with the new chipset, they should at least make sure they' ve got software emulation under control before they make a jump like this.

I wouldn' t be surprised if they did the same in the US when they start shipping the 65nm models.

Actually now that you mention it, didn' t Sony state months ago that early PS3' s will do BC using PS2 chips while later models won' t have the chips and will use emulation? That being said, I think it' s safe to assume Sony has been planning this from day one and probably made some strides with emulation. Still, just another one of Sony' s fuck ups.

Hurray for having a launch unit. Maybe you guys in the EU should buy some of the ebay units from North America. That is, if BC is important to you. It works perfectly on my enitre ps2 library.

As Avarice said, it is really fucking lame!!!!!!!!

BC for XBOX 360 doesn' t mean half as much as it does for the PS3, as let' s be honest, you would want to play a hell of a lot more PS2 games than original XBOX games.

Anyway, I just have one question for you EU guys:

What was it like to have Phil and the boys kick you in the nuts?!!!

Anyway, I just have one question for you EU guys:

What was it like to have Phil and the boys kick you in the nuts?!!!

I think its time us Europeans started to wear a cup....

Right, but be sure to wear it backwards. First threat & all that.

My friends, gather round for I think I have the answer that explains all of Sony' s screw ups.

The theory goes like this; Sony is trying to do everything completely illogical and the opposite of what we would expect, so that when they do things right in a few months time, it will seem that much more amazing. It' s the only way to explain it!

or, maybe they just have some major f*ck ups in charge. Is it really that hard to do things the right way, and listen to customers?

PS2 emulation will be a hell of a lot easier than Xbox emulation, and like i said, through software emulation they should easily be able to render in HD resolutions like 360.

My only concern is that it' ll be impossible to support every game in the library without having to work on games individually and release periodic updates like Microsoft. I' m not convinced they' ll do that.

I kinda think they' re trying to do too much simultaneously. Using a hardware solution was a nice way of achieving 1:1 backwards compatibility for 98% of the catalog. Going software means more work, more problems, more complaints etc.

As choupolo said, I don' t see how this saves them money. Manufacturing methods for the Emotion Engine/Graphics Synthesizer would be so refined by now that production would be incredibly cheap, and integration into the current PCB should only get cheaper over time.

With this they have to employ a dedicated team of dozens to try and program emulation that is extremely difficult. While PS2/1 games may seem simple, any sort of emulation is quite difficult. The PS2 already had a funky architecture that gave developers headaches, so I can imagine emulation would be challenging to say the least.

What makes anyone think they' re actually going to make a committed effort to properly emulate PS2 and PS1 software? They' ll make a token effort for a while, cover some of the top-sellers, and then wash their hands of it. And if your PS2 breaks and you still want to play the old games, you' ll have to go buy another one. More money for Sony.

Motion censor gone aswell...


http://www.tomshardware.co.uk/2007/02/23/euro_ps3/

London (England) - In an effort to scale back the prohibitive cost of the PS3, Sony Computer Entertainment Europe (SCEE) is removing a couple features for the official launch next month. Hardware cut-backs will result in the removal of motion sensitive technology and will limit the backward compatibility of the system.

According to a press release issued today, the PS3 model that will be used for the launch in Europe, Africa, the Middle East, and Australia, will be backward compatible with a " broad range of original PlayStation (PS) titles and a limited range of PlayStation 2 (PS2) titles."

The PS3 launch, which was originally planned to be worldwide, was pushed back for regions that use PAL encoding. The US and Japan use a different format known as NTSC.

In the NTSC versions, which debuted last November, it was reported that there was essentially a PS2 embedded into every PS3 console to maximize the compatibility with back-system titles. SCEE says it will continue to update the firmware for PAL consoles to add compatibility with PS2 titles. This is similar to what Microsoft has been doing with the compatibility of Xbox games on the Xbox 360.

The debut of the PS3 in PAL regions is scheduled for March 23. The price for most of the area is about 599 euros ($788).

Erm no!

Tilt has NOT been removed.

Here is the official press-release....

23/02/2007 10:00
Sony Computer Entertainment Europe Announces Hardware Specification of PLAYSTATION®3 for Europe


London, 23 February 2007 – Sony Computer Entertainment Europe (SCEE) today announced that PLAYSTATION®3 (PS3™) to be launched in Europe, Middle East, Africa and Australasia on 23rd March 2007 would utilise a new hardware specification.

The European PS3 will feature the Cell Broadband Engine™, 60 GB hard disc drive, Blu-ray Disc player, built-in Wi-Fi connectivity, SIXAXIS™ wireless controller. It also embodies a new combination of hardware and software emulation which will enable PS3 to be compatible with a broad range of original PlayStation® (PS) titles and a limited range of PlayStation®2 (PS2) titles.

“PS3 is first and foremost a system that excels in playing games specifically designed to exploit the power and potential of the PS3 system,” said David Reeves, President of SCEE. “Games designed for PS3 offer incredible graphics quality, stunning gameplay and massively improved audio and video fidelity that is simply not achievable with PS and PS2 games. Rather than concentrate on PS2 backwards compatibility, in the future, company resources will be increasingly focused on developing new games and entertainment features exclusively for PS3, truly taking advantage of this exciting technology.”

Some additional PS2 titles will become compatible on the PS3 system through regular downloadable firmware updates, which will be made available through the PLAYSTATION®Network, from http://www.playstation.com or via PS3 game discs, with the first update planned for the launch date of the 23rd March 2007.

Users will be able to check whether their titles are compatible with PS3 at http://faq.eu.playstation.com/bc. This site will be available on 23rd March to meet launch day.

1. A device compatible with Linear PCM 7.1 Ch is required to output 7.1 ch audio, supported by Dolby TrueHD or a similar format, from the HDMI OUT connector.

2. This system does not support output from the DTS-HD 7.1 Ch. DTS-HD 7.1 Ch audio is output from a 5.1 or lower channel.

3. Usability of all storage media types is not guaranteed.

4. Certain PlayStation 2 format software titles may not perform properly on this system. Visit faq.eu.playstation.com/bc for the latest information regarding compatible titles

Legal Notes:

l Storage media (“Memory Stick”, SD memory card, and CompactFlash®) are sold separately.

l “Dolby” is a trademark of Dolby Laboratories.

l “DTS” is a trademark of DTS, Inc.

l Sony Computer Entertainment Inc. is an authorized licensee of the CompactFlash® trademark.

l HDMI, the HDMI logo and High-Definition Multimedia Interface are trademarks or registered trademarks of HDMI Licensing LLC.

l “Blu-ray Disc” is a trademark.

l The Bluetooth word mark is owned by the Bluetooth SIG, Inc. and any use of such mark by Sony Computer Entertainment Inc. is under license.

l “Memory Stick” is a trademark of Sony Corporation.

l “Super Audio CD” is a trademark.

l “PlayStation”, “PLAYSTATION” and “PSP” are registered trademarks of Sony Computer Entertainment Inc. Also, “Cell Broadband Engine” and “RSX” are trademarks of the same company.

Notes to Editors:

Notes to Editors:

For further information please contact:

Nick Sharples (nick_sharples@scee.net) or Nick Caplin (nick_caplin@scee.net)
Sony Computer Entertainment Europe Ltd
Tel: + 44 207 859 5301(5349) Fax: + 44 207 859 5036



For more information contact:

SCEE Press Centre
Email: scee_presscentre@scee.net
Tel:+44 (0)20 7859 5000





About Sony Computer Entertainment Europe Ltd. As at 30 Jan 2007

Sony Computer Entertainment Europe (SCEE), based in London, is responsible for the distribution, marketing and sales of PLAYSTATION®3, PlayStation®2 and PSP® (PlayStation®Portable) software and hardware in 102 territories across Europe, the Middle East, Africa and Oceania. SCEE also develops, publishes, markets and distributes entertainment software for these formats, and manages the third party licensing programs for the formats in these territories. Between its European debut on 24th November 2000 and the end of September 2006, over 44 million PlayStation 2 consoles have been shipped across the SCEE territories, over 115 million worldwide, making it one of the most successful consumer electronic products in history. Between its European debut on 1st September 2005 and the end of September 2006, over 8 million PSP systems have been shipped across the SCEE territories, with over 24 million shipped worldwide since its Japanese launch in December 2004.

More information about PlayStation products can be found at
http://www.playstation.com and http://www.yourpsp.com or visit the Virtual Press Office at http://www.scee.presscentre.com.

PlayStation, PSP and the PlayStation logo are registered trademarks of Sony Computer Entertainment Inc. UMD (Universal Media Disc) is a trademark of Sony Computer Entertainment Inc. All other trademarks are property of their respective owners.

You' re an idiot.

yeah cause i wrote that article..twat.

ORIGINAL: Dead Saint

yeah cause i wrote that article..twat.

No, you believed it and posted it here you fucking moron.

Next time, try and find a decent source.

well im not keeping up with the mess that is the ps3 and europe. And this was posted on another forum so i simply posted it here.

ORIGINAL: Dead Saint

well im not keeping up with the mess that is the ps3 and europe. And this was posted on another forum so i simply posted it here.

Granted, but common sense tells you that if Sony had done away with tilt, not only would it be all over every gaming site but they also would be forced to call it something other than Sixaxis making themselves look ridiculous.

Anyhoo, nevermind.