PlayStation 2 Consoles, Games and Accessories

The first console of the new millennium (being released in November 2000), the PlayStation 2 competed against the GameCube, the Xbox and the Sega Dreamcast.

It was more than just a gaming device, as it could also handle standard video DVDs, and featured backwards compatibility with games for the original PlayStation, as well as the beginnings of what was to become the PlayStation Network. The console more than doubled the first day sales of the Dreamcast ($250 million compared to $97 million), and become so difficult to find due to manufacturing issues that gaming enthusiasts were paying over one thousand dollars to buy the console from online auction sites. The PS2’s success was so damaging to Sega that they discontinued the Dreamcast after only 18 months on the market – concentrating on software instead of hardware ever since.

Exclusive titles such as Grand Theft Auto and Metal Gear Solid 2: Sons of Liberty helped the PS2 fend off the Xbox (its major competition of that gaming generation) as well as continuing entries in the Final Fantasy series. The PS2 was also the starting point for popular series such as Kingdom Hearts and God of War.

The PS2 is currently the best-selling console in gaming history, sitting on over 150 million units sold (with estimates that the true number is over 155 million). It was so popular that games continued to be made for it until 2014 – even though Sony had moved on to the PS3 and PS4 consoles!