Square responds to PS2 HDD removal

[hey69]

Quote:
When the slim-downed unit was revealed, keen-eyed observers asked, "where's the hard-disc drive bay?" We posed the question to Sony, which confirmed new unit would not have an HDD bay. However, Sony assured gamers that the lack of an HDD bay "was NOT a sign of Sony Computer Entertainment’s change in philosophy regarding the hard disc drive" and that the company is looking into "other memory options." So where does that leave PS2 players of Final Fantasy XI, which requires the HDD? According to Sony, there's no problem, because "consumers who want and use the hard disc drive are typically the more ‘hard core’ gamers, and with more than 27 Million PlayStation 2 units already sold in North America, we feel that a majority of those HDD interested consumers already have their PlayStation 2 units." However, a statement by FFXI producer Hiromichi Tanaka to a British game site didn't sound nearly as upbeat. "We're still preparing, and looking into perhaps even changing platforms, because once the PlayStation 2 is phased out, [the FFXI] population will have to move somewhere," he said.


from gamespot


PS3? or xbox 8)

 

[cybamerc]

You expect Xbox to last longer than PS2 in the market? Anyway, as has been pointed out on other boards the Xbox HDD isn't large enough.

 

[London Geezer]

I wouldn't worry about the "survival"of the FF11 community, since the PC version is going to keep those saddos playing that game 20 hours a day happy.

 

[passerby]

Funny as I was thinking something similar yesterday. I too, believe that PS3 is very unlikely to ship with a HDD.

For one, only 1(FF11) or a very small handful of titles(does Monster Hunter/Bio Outbreak need it?) absolutely needs the HDD to run at all. So I don't see Sony putting in a HDD for backward compatibility just for that very,very,miniscule number.

For those few titles that speed up loading times by installing data to the HDD, I have experienced waiting about 15-20(or more!) minutes for the install. Now consider that blu-ray has 6x storage capacity of DVDs, and studios will be putting that storage to use. Is blu-ray transfer rate getting an equivalent ~6x boost? Because I fear we are facing an install time approaching an hour.

A PS1 memory card is 128kb. 5 years later we have PS2 mem cards at 8mb. Assuming things scale accordingly, 6 years later PS3 mem cards can measure 512mb(OK, I'm making a guess here - is that too much to ask?). There shouldn't be any problem about storage for downloadable content with that kind of capacity.

Besides, mem cards make $$$. Sony wouldn't pass up the opportunity.

 

[hey69]

and think about piracy. i think 90% of ps2 hardiskowners use it just for that

 

[London Geezer]

Funny as I was thinking something similar yesterday. I too, believe that PS3 is very unlikely to ship with a HDD.

For one, only 1(FF11) or a very small handful of titles(does Monster Hunter/Bio Outbreak need it?) absolutely needs the HDD to run at all. So I don't see Sony putting in a HDD for backward compatibility just for that very,very,miniscule number.

For those few titles that speed up loading times by installing data to the HDD, I have experienced waiting about 15-20(or more!) minutes for the install. Now consider that blu-ray has 6x storage capacity of DVDs, and studios will be putting that storage to use. Is blu-ray transfer rate getting an equivalent ~6x boost? Because I fear we are facing an install time approaching an hour.

A PS1 memory card is 128kb. 5 years later we have PS2 mem cards at 8mb. Assuming things scale accordingly, 6 years later PS3 mem cards can measure 512mb(OK, I'm making a guess here - is that too much to ask?). There shouldn't be any problem about storage for downloadable content with that kind of capacity.

Besides, mem cards make $$$. Sony wouldn't pass up the opportunity.

512MB Mem cards sound a bit too big, if all they do is save games... I'm guessing in 2006/2007 512MBcards will be rather cheap, but it just sounds stupid to have 512 or 1GB mem cards when a much bigger HDD would be so much easier to manage. If the HDD is there, devs will find ways to use it. I'm sorry but i think that "disappearing corpses" are soooo 90's... Really don't want to see that in the next gen.

 

[cybamerc]

You need some kind of permanent storage for patches.

 

[London Geezer]

You need some kind of permanent storage for patches.

!!!!

HE SAID THE P WORD!!!!

/sarcasm ON
We all know that next gen material will be so super duper powerful and perfect and CGI-like and GOOOOD that it won't need patches, EVER, in the whole universe!!!!
/sarcasm OFF

 

[Fafalada]

A PS1 memory card is 128kb. 5 years later we have PS2 mem cards at 8mb. Assuming things scale accordingly, 6 years later PS3 mem cards can measure 512mb(OK, I'm making a guess here - is that too much to ask?).

Well 512MB flash items retail prices start at around ~45$ today. I forgot what the makers usually charge for console memcards at the start... 30-40$? By the time next consoles roll around, 1GB memcards should should be priced within that range.

That is, assuming Sony doesn't come up with a new revision of memory stick that quadruples the price and is physically incompatible with all other models, by then... Say, shaped as a tetrahedron, flat rectangle shapes of current memory cards are so last century...

512MB Mem cards sound a bit too big, if all they do is save games...

Bah, nothing a "cool" file system that mandates using 32+MB AVI per icon or something similar couldn't solve. Not to mention you're forgetting some hightech PC games are already eating 10+MB Per save today, surely this MUST grow bigger in 2 years, we wouldn't want the technology to stagnate would we? 8)
Anything as long as it justifies ripping people off on the accessories

 

[London Geezer]

I still think that some form of detachable fixed memory inside next gen system would be nice to have, if not a HDD, flash memory, an abacus, i don't know...

 

[Tiberius]

check this post on GA
it wasn't a reaction to the pstwo lack of HDD support

http://www.ga-forum.com/showpost.php?p=412550&postcount=45

 

[jvd]

Well if rumors are right the xenon is going to have a 80 gig 3.5 inch hardrive.


At least thats the current rumors making the rounds

 

[London Geezer]

Well if rumors are right the xenon is going to have a 80 gig 3.5 inch hardrive.


At least thats the current rumors making the rounds

Is that from your veeeeeeerrrrry reliable "source"? just teasing...

 

[Evil_Cloud]

I wish you could transfer all of your memory files and music soundtracks from Xbox to Xenon...

 

[jvd]

Well if rumors are right the xenon is going to have a 80 gig 3.5 inch hardrive.


At least thats the current rumors making the rounds

Is that from your veeeeeeerrrrry reliable "source"? just teasing...

No it was from one of the stripers !!!! (besides my source is only very reliable when it comes to stripping !)

 

[AlNom]

I wish you could transfer all of your memory files and music soundtracks from Xbox to Xenon...

Xbox Music Maker....2!

 

[London Geezer]

No it was from one of the stripers !!!! (besides my source is only very reliable when it comes to stripping !)

Your source is a stripper? This gets more interesting every day...

 

[jvd]

No it was from one of the stripers !!!! (besides my source is only very reliable when it comes to stripping !)

Your source is a stripper? This gets more interesting every day...

Yes , that is how she gets her info , the big head guys at sony , sega , nintendo , microsoft , all go to the same stip club, she says once they get some boobies in thier faces they talk about everything. Did u know bill gates has a third nipple ?

 

[j^aws]

Just a thought...why can't the new PSTWO use a USB based HDD? Afterall, it still has an USB port doesn't it? :?

 

[London Geezer]

No it was from one of the stripers !!!! (besides my source is only very reliable when it comes to stripping !)

Your source is a stripper? This gets more interesting every day...

Yes , that is how she gets her info , the big head guys at sony , sega , nintendo , microsoft , all go to the same stip club, she says once they get some boobies in thier faces they talk about everything. Did u know bill gates has a third nipple ?

Where?