Sony finally confirms one of their least guarded secrets in recent history. After a number of leaks, the Japanese electronics giant has announced that several PlayStation 2 games are coming to the PlayStation 4 on Saturday. In a blog post on Friday, Sony said that a host of popular PS2 games will be playable on the current-generation gaming console.
As of now, users in Europe and the Americas are able to purchase and play PS2 games on their PS4 via PlayStation Store. A total of eight "fan-favorite" PS2 games are now available:
- Rogue Galaxy ($15)
- The Mark of Kri ($15)
- Twisted Metal: Black ($10)
- War of the Monsters ($10)
- Dark Cloud ($15)
- Grand Theft Auto III ($15)
- Grand Theft Auto: Vice City ($15)
- Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas ($15)
War of the Monsters is a PS2 classic and a solid 3D monster fighting game. The Mark of Kri, meanwhile, is a stealth action-adventure game featuring a warrior main character who looks like he was drafted right out of a Disney movie. Furthermore, many GTA fans now have more reasons to spend time with their PS4 as all three Grand Theft Auto games are available.
Sony said that all of these games will feature Trophy support along with "up-rendered 1080p" visuals. They will also be capable of supporting the PS4's other key features such as including Live Broadcast, Remote Play, Share Play, Activity Feeds, and a feature called "Second Screen" for game manuals with PlayStation Vita or the PlayStation App.
Shuhei Yoshida, President of Sony Worldwide Studios boss, notes that each title's Trophy set was "developed in conjunction with feedback from the original creators to be sure that they capture the spirit and feeling of each game."
Yoshida had also been active on his Twitter account answering many questions from fans. He previously clarified that this PS2 emulation does not necessarily mean that backwards compatibility is coming to the PS4 console. It means that even if players still own the PS2 discs, they will have to buy them again to play on PS4.
CNET noted that this appears to be a different strategy from that of Microsoft, Sony's main competitor in the gaming arena. The software giant intends to make all Xbox 360 video games work on its current Xbox One console for "free." As such, users who bought an Xbox 360 game, either on a physical disc or as a digital download, will be able to play that game on the Xbox One without paying any fee.
Aside from the announcement, Sony included a trailer for the fan-favorite PS2 games coming to PS4. Watch it below.
