Though Sony has kept details of the PlayStation 2's development secret, Ken Kutaragi, the chief designer of the original PlayStation, reportedly began working on a second console around the time of the original PlayStation's launch in late 1994. Sega, spurred on by its declining market share and significant financial losses, launched the Dreamcast in 1998 as a last-ditch attempt to stay in the industry. By the late 1990s Sony had dethroned established rivals Sega and Nintendo in the global video game market. The PlayStation enjoyed particular success outside Japan in part due to Sony's refined development kits, large-scale advertising campaigns, and strong third-party developer support. Its launch elicited critical acclaim and strong sales it eventually became the first computer entertainment platform to ship over 100 million units. Released in 1994, the original PlayStation proved to be a phenomenal worldwide success and signalled Sony's rise to power in the video game industry. New games for the console continued to be released until even shortly after the end of its life and support from Sony. It continued to be produced until the beginning of 2013 when Sony finally announced that it had been discontinued after over twelve years of production, one of the longest lifespans of any video game console. Even after the release of its successor, the PlayStation 3, it remained popular well into the seventh generation. In 2004, Sony released a smaller, lighter revision of the console known as the PS2 Slim.

A total of over 4,000 game titles were released worldwide, with over 1.5 billion copies sold. The PlayStation 2 received widespread critical acclaim upon release. The PS2 offered backward-compatibility for its predecessor's DualShock controller, as well as its games. The highlight of the system was its Emotion Engine processor, co-developed by Sony and Toshiba, which was said to be more powerful than personal computers. It is the best-selling video game console of all time, having sold over 158 million units worldwide.Īnnounced in 1999, Sony began developing the console after the immense success of its predecessor. As a sixth-generation console, it competed with Nintendo's GameCube, Sega's Dreamcast, and Microsoft's Xbox. It is the successor to the original PlayStation, as well as the second installment in the PlayStation brand of consoles. It was first released in Japan on 4 March 2000, in North America on 26 October 2000, in Europe on 24 November 2000, and in Australia on 30 November 2000. The PlayStation 2 ( PS2) is a home video game console developed and marketed by Sony Interactive Entertainment. Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas: 17.33 million sold (as of February 2009)

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