PlayStation 2 games on the PlayStation 4 have prompted the closest thing to a backlash in the PlayStation Nation [Sorry – Ed] for years. Sony's charging between $9.99 and $14.99 for the re-releases, but some people think that they should be free for people that either own the original DVDs or bought them on the PlayStation 3. However, the manufacturer has pointed out that bringing the titles across to its new-gen system is not an inexpensive endeavour.
"We are able to add Trophies; some people really care about Trophies," Worldwide Studios president Shuhei Yoshida said on a podcast. "So we can provide that. And it takes some time for our staff and quality assurance and licensing and everything to bring back these games. So it takes us time and cost. So we felt that we should charge."
It's a tricky one: it also requires time and money to port titles like Journey to the PS4, but Sony offered it as a cross-buy release. As such, it's set the precedent which is coming back to haunt it here. We reckon that disc support is too much to ask, but as this point, if someone already purchased a game as a PS2 Classic on the PS3, then the company should probably consider eating the costs – it's not like it's going to break the bank or anything.
[source psnation.com, via gamespot.com]
Comments 50
They could have at least offered the games at a discount for people previously purchased the game on PSN.
@Teepo Yeah, I think at this point, like, I get what they're saying, but they should do it purely for goodwill. At the end of the day, how much money are they really going to lose? Probably an insignificant amount.
Personally, though, I'm glad they went the up-res with Trophies route - I much prefer this model than lousy, direct ports. It's a really tough one, because I can appreciate it takes time and investment to bring these across.
Even though they're now in HD format and have trophies, I still think some of the prices are a little steep. I ended up buying The Mark Of Kri on the PS3 instead, where I already own 15 of the PS2 classics. At least offer only a few bucks for the ones that I already own. I still love that they put Dark Cloud on, but I forgot how extremely hard that game was with of how fast your weapon breaks, you become hungry and thirsty really quickly...still love how he almost resembles Link from the Legend Of Zelda series though...that was the reason I bought it on the PS2 when it came out (Guess I had sucker written on me)...still fell in love with the game though.
Back to the topic, I already own Twisted Metal Black on the PS3, why would I want to pay another $10 just to get trophies??? I think all of this will change with yet another store update and after the holidays if people continue to complain about it. I also see them starting to go on sale after the holidays, but until then, Sony wants the money for the holidays, and with many people purchasing the PS4 over the holidays...as long as the server doesn't go down...then I think they'll make enough money to be able to do something for their longterm fans.
TROPHIES. Lol. Get bent. Personally I have no desire to play any PS2 titles that haven't been remastered, Bully may be an exception. Why aren't these on PS Now. I'd also like to see Sony defend it's pricing on PS Vita memory cards. Please try it Sony, please.
They should care more about adoption levels, particularly early on with any new idea, be it PS2 games or PS Now. I appreciate things cost but you really need to get people to try these things on the cheap to develop new habits. I'd like to see what a PS2 game would look and play like on PS4 but with these prices and soo many games to play on PS4 I don't think I will get the chance.
Oh, and that makes me a little worried about VR.
Feel they should do an upgrade fee like Nintendo do, if you've had the digital one. It's not exactly possible to fairly track disc purchases and it's not like we were ever promised this at the time of purchase. Digital is different and there is much more a precedent for your library moving with you.
It's at the point now where people are just desperate for something. I'm repeating myself but here are your options
1. Use the PS2 you already own to play the PS2 disc games you already own.
2. Buy a PS2 for next to nothing and old PS2 discs for whatever they now cost
3. Buy PS2 games on PS4
Options 1-3 haven't gone anywhere, option 4 is an additional, new choice. It seems very odd to moan about an additional choice. The core complaint being "Why should I pay again for games I already own?" Why indeed? Just play them on the PS2 you already own, no one is stopping you.
You have been asked several times to watch the language and not to discuss emulation here. -Tasuki-
@Bad-MuthaAdebisi For me, the Trophies do add value, though. I never touched the PS2 Classics on the PS3 because they didn't have Trophies. And maybe I am in the minority here, but I do think they add value.
I understand if that doesn't apply to everyone, though.
Learning from Nintendo
@get2sammyb the main problem is that none of the consoles sell digital on the cheap, I think a couple of quid less at £5.99 or £4.99 and most would be happy. It'll be the usual case of waiting/hoping for a sale.
Colin morarty put it perfectly, should people who bought a movie on vhs get it as a discount on blu-ray? No
Should albums bought on cassette get a discount for mp3's? No
Then why the f do people feel entitled to get ps1/ps2 games for free just because they bought them in the original console, if you still have them on the original console then that means you HAVE the original console to play them on so do that then.
These emulated games have been uprendered (NOT uprezzed), run at consistent 60fps, have trophies, share play, remote play and other features so having to buy them at 7.99/11.99 is entirely justified imo especially when they aren't really that expensive.
@finalstan
Getting people to try things 'on the cheap' presents a problem too though because than people b*tch endlessly about that too. I complain about a lot of things but I try to keep it consistent and to stuff that makes sense. The constant crying I've seen about these PS2 games is ridiculously. Do I agree $14.99 is a little pricey for some? Yes. $10 for games that do have some work put into them with upgraded visuals and added trophies? If you can't afford that stop buying vidoe games. Period. The crying is more ridiculous when Nintendo still charges $8 for some SNES games on VC and I don't see people crying about that.
@Matroska 1. Use the PS2 you already own to play the PS2 disc games you already own.
2. Buy a PS2 for next to nothing and old PS2 discs for whatever they now cost
3.Buy PS2 games on PS4
We are talking about cross buy with games already purchased on vita or ps3.
1) I don't own a ps2 anymore there's a reason as I left my apartment for a new career where limited space meant less stuff. But I have the games in a wallet.
2) The ps2 games look awful on a typical 32inch plus screen - optimisation is a nice addition.
3) great option - but at $7.50 / £5 each(I know I'm asking alot) I would buy a couple each week.
With all that said I'm happy the option is available regardless of the price. But if the prices were proper budget pricing they would sell loads.
Discussion about emulation is not allowed here I am a fair -Tasuki-
@Bad-MuthaAdebisi Absolutely - I couldn't agree more.
I think that its extremely reasonable to pay $10 to $15 for a re-release of old PS1 and PS2 games. there is a major cost with porting it to the PS4 platform. $10 is extremely cheap, considering the work that it takes. for example, i use to own Final Fantasy 7 for the computer. I have also paid $15 for the steam version, and another $15 for the PS4 version which was just release. when it comes to video games, movies, or music, we vote for what we like with money. there is also the cost of maintaining the game code, for patches, cloud hosting and a ton of other stuff that just keeping the old game on the cloud for download requires. In reality, it would be the same cost as if you went to a used game store and bought it used for the PS2.
@Gamer83 right exactly we should be greatfull that sony is investing in its customer base this way. $10 to $15 is what we would pay for it used on the PS2 anyways.
@viciousarcanum i think alot of the people who are complaining are kids who don't have a job to buy them yet.
I still need to get one of these, but I probably will. For me pricing is not that much of a concern, but I hope variety increases soon.
Give us PSone games with trophies as well and all will be forgiven.
I would laugh if they removed ps3 from the PS+ lineup and replaced them with PS2 games
(or replaced vita).
i hope konami bring the second and third silent hill games.
I think a timed discount for PS+ subscribers (like Sony did for FF7) would go a long way toward solving the issue of overpricing. They could probably even get away with charging $14.99 for ALL PS2 games this way...just make them half-price for PS+ for a week after release. Nintendo did something similar when it started releasing downloadable Wii games for Wii U.
The pricing isn't too bad to me. $15 may be a little much, but $10 is pretty reasonable. To be fair, I haven't paid a lot of attention to which games are priced what, so maybe $15 is justified if the title is harder to find otherwise.
@Matroska Hello. @Tasuki and I are a bit concerned about your language and we'd prefer people not to talk about emulators on this site. We know you don't mean anything bad, but just a heads up for the future.
I believe it's fair to charge a little something, there are costs involved in the process. Having purchased a game before should not be the excuse for these to be free. Nothing works that way in the real world.
If Sony wants to lower the prices though, I won't complain. The PS2 was by far my favorite system.
I wouldn't be so mad if it was cross but for vita & PS4. Just saying, Sony. If you somehow read this.
I don't mind rebuying them if they added stuff like trophies and update the resoultion. Honestly, the people that are complaining just want something for nothing.
@themcnoisy If you have games still but no PS2 just sell the games on like ebay or to a retro game store or something like that and then take that money and buy them on the PS4. That's what I did with GTA: VC and TMB.
Entitled-feeling generation feeling entitled, nothing more to see here.
If you have the PS2 game and don't want to spend money, then just plug in your PS2 and play it.
I've personally never understood the backwards compatibility thing. This at least has a twist in that you get trophies. The pricing structure is like everything else on pretty much any digital store, in that it's a joke.
@Tasuki I might actually, I've also got a baldurs gate compendium which wont work on my pc and a couple of other games I cant play anymore so you are probably right. None of them have cases as they are in a 80 disc sleeve thingy. But its not a bad shout may look over Christmas.
So far I've bought Rogue Galaxy, Dark Cloud and FFVII. I'll gladly snap purchase Dark Chronicle and FFXII if they ever turn up on PS4.
@ApostateMage Thinking about buying Rogue Galaxy right now. I preferred Dark Cloud 2 over 1.
I agree with you, Sammy, but I think a good solution is to just lower the price for everybody. Sony says they have to get some money back, but they would get more money back if more people bought the games, and Sony can boost sales by lowering the current prices. How many people will buy them at $10-15 / €10-15? How many people will buy them at 5-10? There are no manufacturing costs, in between.
Im not impressed with the PAL versions, in effect replicating the slower framerates of the 50Hz versions, as Eurogamer have demonstrated.
I noticed straight away when I played GTA San Andreas on PS4, and Digital Foundry discover its running at 25 unique fps instead of 30fps like NTSC release, which isnt a pleasant experience to play for me.
The PAL PS3 remaster ends up running better than the PAL PS4 emulation.
I won't be buying any other PS2 games off the PAL PSN store.
There are only 2 games I'm interested in buying so its not a big issue for me. I personally have a hard time going back to those kind of graphics and less refined gameplay, just not old school enough to do it . No one should be too surprised by corporate greed though, look at all the retail workers who have to work until nearly midnight on christmas eve, its everywhere, Sony isn't the first and won't be the last.
Trophies are absolutely meaningless though... unless you use them to spy on friends and see how they're progressing in games or something weird.
I don't mind the pricing. Doesn't bother me. If you're willing to pay, you're willing to pay.
@betzelel
I still say $15 is a stretch, but I'm willing to go $10 for the really good games. Still, the reason I can understand the higher end pricing is Nintendo charges $8 for SNES games, and I believe N64 games on the Virtual Console were $10 and none of those had any upgrades. That's ok, yet when Sony charges $10-$15 for games from its greatest console that have some work put into them it's a sin? This crap is why I laugh when the other fanbases, especially Nintendo fanboys, accuse PS fanboys of being hypocrites, arrogant, etc. The hypocrisy across the board by all corporate slaves is laughable. I wear it as a badge of honor that I have been accused by all 3 groups at some point or another of being a 'hater' and labeled a fanboy of a competing brand.
@Matroska 100% agree. 10-15$ is a good price, of you wish to play on ps4.
There seem to be a lot of arguments and justifications happening here.
But I think its a bit simpler than all of that makes it seem. These prices are too high for most people for these games. For most people these games need to be priced in impulse buy territory.
@Grawlog Agreed - I think this is the crux of the argument. If you have it on ps3 you should get the ps4 version heavily discounted.
@Kellanved why is it so entitled to ask for reasonably priced old games? These games have already made money in a previous generation 10-15 years ago.
@betzelel well no - almost everyone complaining is over 20 due to the nostalgia factor in buying these games. I presume in national statistics that 85% of this group are in work. (not counting anyone over 65) so presumably have cash.
@sonicmeerkat That argument is a fair one but I enjoy trophy hunting - its an extra meta-game within a game. Occasionally offering additional incentive to beat a super hard boss in rogue legacy for instance, or finishing game of thrones. As you have mentioned I do 'spy' what other people are upto bit thats part of the fun. That said when I moved over from xbox (where I went a bit achievement crazy) I purposely avoided trophies for five months to detox.
just picked up a used ps2 and 6 games for less than £30 simple solution where i live we have a great retro games shop ps2 games go from £1
@get2sammyb Sorry, what exactly did I say before it was edited that was so bad? I don't remember swearing. As for the emulation, that's fair enough, your place, your rules. I don't think acknowledging its existence is a bad thing, it's like equating someone mentioning that murder happens with condoning or even facilitating murder. It's also not illegal in every country, even in Europe, but again, your place, your rules.
Edit
(Re-reading this, it might seem like I'm being dismissive or standoffish. I didn't mean it like that. I was genuinely shocked to see your message and confused by what I'd done. It's in no way my intention to be a bad user or to annoy the staff of this website.)
@Matroska It's fine, just a friendly warning regarding emulation and language. Don't sweat it - we know you're a good poster.
I don't think anyone asking for a free upgrade because they have the physical copy of the game has any right to ask. I actually think it's outrageous to even consider the option. However I think people who purchased the games digitally on the PS3 should be offered an upgrade option much like Nintendo does with their Wii U VC.
I don't like that digital games don't carry over generation to generation with any of the consoles, which was something I always assumed would happen. It eased my mind when buying digital as I was left thinking I'd "have the game forever", even if I just had to redownload the games when the next system came out. Instead this isn't happening. However upgrade fees at about half price is a reasonable compromise for consumers IMHO
@themcnoisy Because it takes Sony "Time and Cost" to put up these PS2 games. You're expecting them to lose money now because of profits they made years ago?
That's not how business works.
@Kellanved Who said they will lose money by selling the games cheaper but at higher volume? We are already seeing that the PS2 games are flying over to the PS4 so what work is really required? Picking some trophies and erm, that's it.
As for not understanding business, I may take that to the markers who awarded me an 86% score for my dissertation within Business Administration and ask them to alter my score accordingly. Thanks.
@themcnoisy To quote you, "These games have already made money in a previous generation 10-15 years ago".
Thus, you're implying that its wrong for them to be profiting off of games that they've already made money off of many fiscal years ago. Which, as you should know then, is a terrible, unrealistic business strategy.
I didn't imply at all that they'd lose money by selling them cheaper, I was responding to your statement.
@Kellanved to quote myself.
why is it so entitled to ask for reasonably priced old games? These games have already made money in a previous generation 10-15 years ago.
Ok the end part of that statement is unnecessary, point taken. But you have taken the statement out of context of my main issue. They should be a touch cheaper. Reasonable is also in the eye of the beholder - Disgaea 5 is easily worth £50 for instance to me as an example. But at £12 ($18) in the UK its a tad too much for a 15 year old game. Lets be honest at £7.50 or even £5 I would of bought all of the GTA games.
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