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PlayStation 2

PlayStation 2

: The PlayStation 2 (PS2) (Japanese: プレイステーション2) is Sony's second video game console, the successor to the PlayStation and the predecessor to the PlayStation 3. Its development was announced in March 1999, and it was first released in Japan on March 4, 2000 and in the North American market on October 26, 2000. It was released in Europe on November 24, 2000. The PS2 is part of the sixth generation era, and has become the fastest selling gaming console in history, with over [http://www.scei.co.jp/corporate/release/pdf/051130e.pdf 100 million units shipped], beating the previous record holder, the PlayStation, by three years and nine months.

History

The PlayStation 2 had a difficult start. Only a few million users had obtained consoles by the end of 2000 due to manufacturing delays. Developers also complained that it was difficult to develop for the system, with little in the way of reference material from Sony for its exotic architecture. The PS2 launch seemed unimpressive and gaffe-prone, compared to the well-planned launch of the Sega Dreamcast, which was making a genuine attempt to woo developers and which had better launch titles. Yet, the PS2 initially sold well solely on the basis of the strength of the PlayStation brand and its backwards compatibility, selling over 900,000 units in the first weekend in Japan. This allowed the PS2 to tap the large install base established by the PlayStation. Another major selling point over the Dreamcast was the PlayStation 2's ability to play DVDs, which gained it a presence in electronics stores which did not formerly sell video game consoles. Later, Sony gained steam with new development kits for game developers and more PlayStations for consumers. Many analysts predicted a close 3-way matchup between the PS2 and its soon-to-be-released competitors Microsoft Xbox and Nintendo GameCube, noting that the PS2's graphics were inferior but that it had the advantage of a head start, and had a wide assortment of games of every genre (Xbox's strength was in its hardware; GameCube was the cheapest of the 3 consoles). However, the release of several blockbuster games during the 2001 holiday season pushed the PS2 far in front even as the Xbox and GameCube made their impressive debuts. Although Sony placed little emphasis on online gaming during its first year, all that changed because of the launch of the online-capable Xbox. Not only did Sony roll out the PS2 online adapter in late 2002 to compete with Microsoft, several online launch games were first party titles such as SOCOM US Navy SEALS in order to show that Sony was supporting this feature actively. Sony also advertised heavily as well and it had the advantage of being supported by Electronic Arts. As a result, although Sony and Nintendo both started out late and although both followed a decentralized model of online gaming where the responsibility is up to the developer to provide the servers, Sony's efforts made PS2 online gaming a big success. Hardware sales remained strong until 2004 saw the console apparently approaching saturation point. In September of that year, in time for the launch of Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas (the best-selling game during the 2004 Holiday season), Sony revealed a new, smaller PS2 (see Hardware revisions). In preparation for the launch of a new, slimmer PlayStation 2 model (SCPH-70000), Sony had stopped making the older PS2 model (SCPH-5000x) sometime during the summer of 2004 to let the distribution channel empty out stock of the units. After an apparent manufacturing issue caused some initial slowdown in producing the new unit, Sony reportedly underestimated demand, caused in part by shortages between the time the old units were cleared out and the new units were ready. This led to further shortages, and the issue was compounded in Britain when a Russian oil tanker became stuck in the Suez Canal, blocking a ship from China carrying PS2s bound for the UK. During one week in November, sales in the entire country of Britain totalled 6,000 units — compared to 70,000 a few weeks prior. [http://entertainment.timesonline.co.uk/article/0,,14935-1396182,00.html] Shortages in North America were also extremely severe; one retail chain in the U.S., GameStop, had just 186 PS2 and Xbox units on hand across more than 1700 stores on the day before Christmas. [http://www.corporate-ir.net/ireye/ir_site.zhtml?ticker=GME&script=1010&item_id=997399]

Sales Record

When the PlayStation 2 launched in Japan in March 2000, Sony sold 940,000 units over the opening weekend. When the PlayStation 2 launched in America in October 26, 2000, Sony sold 510,000 units within the first 24 hours. With a price of $299.99 per console, Sony made gross sales of roughly $153,000,000. To this day, the PS2 holds the record for the most consoles sold in a single day as well as the record for most consoles sold in launch day in America. PS2's opening day console sales eclipsed the previous record of 225,000 made by the Sega Dreamcast in 1999. The PlayStation 2 holds the record of fastest selling video game console ever, 100 million PlayStation 2 units were shipped in only five years and nine months, shattering the previous record of nine years and six months by the PlayStation. [http://www.scei.co.jp/corporate/release/pdf/051130e.pdf]

Games

: The PlayStation brand's strength has lead to strong third-party support for the system. Although the launch titles for the PS2 were unimpressive in 2000, the holiday season of 2001 saw the release of several best-selling and critically acclaimed games. Those PS2 titles helped the PS2 maintain and extend its lead in the video game console market, despite increased competition from the launches of the Microsoft Xbox and Nintendo GameCube. Critically acclaimed games on the machine are the Grand Theft Auto and Final Fantasy series, the latest two Metal Gear Solid titles, all three Devil May Cry titles, the SSX series, latest three Ace Combat titles, the Square Enix/Disney collaboration Kingdom Hearts, and first-party Sony Computer Entertainment brands such as the Gran Turismo, SOCOM, Ratchet & Clank and Jak and Daxter series, ICO, Shadow of the Colossus, God of War and the Everquest spin-offs Champions of Norrath and Champions: Return to Arms.

Hardware compatibility

Champions: Return to Arms video game console on the right]] The PS2 hardware can read both compact discs and DVDs. It is backwards compatible with older PlayStation (PS1) games, allows for DVD Video playback, and will play PS2 games off of cheap CD-ROMs or higher-capacity DVD-ROMs. The ability to play DVD movies allowed consumers to more easily justify the PS2's relatively high price tag (in October 2000, the MSRP was $300) as it removed the need to buy an external DVD player (indeed, it could be said that the success of the DVD format was partly due to the PS2's ability to play DVDs, as the format seemed to appeal more to consumers after the console's launch). The PS2 also supports PS1 memory cards (for PS1 game saves only) and controllers (the PS2's Dual Shock 2 controller is essentially a slightly upgraded PS1 Dual Shock). When it was released, the PS2 had many advanced features that were not present in other contemporary video game consoles, including its DVD capabilities and USB and IEEE 1394 expansion ports. It was not until late 2001 that the Microsoft Xbox became the second console with (non-standard) USB and DVD support. (This is assuming the Nuon, an advanced DVD player graphics coprocessor, is not considered a console.) Even then, the Xbox required separate remote accessory to unlock the DVD function and Sony could continue to pitch the PS2 as DVD capable out of the box.

Software compatibility

Support for original PlayStation games was also an important selling point for the PS2, letting owners of an older system upgrade to the PlayStation 2 and keep their old software, and giving new users access to older games until a larger library was developed for the new system. As an added bonus, the PS2 had the ability to enhance PlayStation games by speeding up disc read time and/or adding texture smoothing to improve graphics. While the texture smoothing was universally effective (albeit with odd effects where transparent textures are used), faster disk reading could cause some games to fail to load or play correctly. A handful of PlayStation titles (notably Metal Gear Solid: VR Missions) fail to run on the PS2 at all (VR Missions fails to recognise Metal Gear Solid at the disk swap screen, for example). This problem appears to have been rectified in the slimline versions of the PS2, where most of the previously unplayable PSone games can now be played. It is a common misconception that disk swapping in a game (for example, for multi-disk games or expansion packs) is not possible on the PS2. The anomalous failure of the above title at its disk swap screen may have given birth to this rumor. Software for all PlayStation consoles contains one of three region codes: for Japan and Asia: NTSC/J, North America: NTSC-U/C and Europe and Oceania: PAL.

Online play

With the purchase of a separate unit called the Network Adaptor (which is built into the newest system revision), some PS2 games support online multiplayer. Instead of having a unified, subscription-based online service like Xbox Live, online multiplayer on the PS2 is split between publishers and run on third-party servers. However, this comes at a price as any connection can connect to the internet with a PS2, resulting in lag whenever slow connections are present. Most recent PS2 online games have been developed to exclusively only support broadband internet access. Xbox Live exclusively requires broadband internet. All newer online PS2 games (since 2003) are protected by the Dynamic Network Authentication System (DNAS). The purpose of this system is to prevent piracy and online cheating. DNAS will prevent games from being played online if they are determined to be pirated copies, or if they have been modified.

Home development

online cheating Sony released a version of the Linux operating system for the PS2 in a package that also includes a keyboard, mouse, Ethernet adapter and hard disk drive. Currently, Sony's online store states that the Linux kit is no longer for sale in North America. However as of July 2005, the European version was still available. (The kit boots by installing a proprietary interface, the Run-time environment which is on a region-coded DVD, so the European and USA kits each only work with a PS2 from that region). In Europe and Australia, the PlayStation 2 comes with a free Yabasic interpreter on the bundled demo disk. This allows simple programs to be created for the PlayStation 2 by the end-user. This was included in a failed attempt to circumvent a UK tax by defining the console as a "computer" if it contained certain software. A port of the NetBSD project is also available for the PS2. It is also possible to listen to MP3 music and watch Divx movies with homebrew programs running in consoles that have a modchip installed.

Hardware revisions

modchip The PlayStation 2 has undergone many revisions, some only of internal construction and others with substantial external changes. These are colloquially known amongst PlayStation 2 hardware hackers as V0, V1, V2, etc., up to V12 (as of November 25, 2004). V0 was a Japanese model and was never sold in Europe or the US. These included a PCMCIA slot instead of the Expansion Bay (DEV9) port of newer models. V0 did not have a built-in DVD player and instead relied on an encrypted player that was copied to a memory card from an included CD-ROM (normally, the PS2 will only execute encrypted software from its memory card, but see PS2 Independence Exploit). V3 has a substantially different internal structure from the subsequent revisions, featuring several interconnected printed circuit boards. As of V4 everything was unified into one board, except the power supply. V5 introduces minor internal changes and the only difference between V6 (sometimes called V5.1) and V5 is the orientation of the Power/Reset switch board connector, which was reversed to prevent the use of no-solder modchips. V7 and V8 are also similar, and V9 (model number SCPH-50000/SCPH-50001) added the Infrared port for the optional DVD Remote Control, removed the widely unused FireWire port, added the capability to read DVD-RW discs, and a quieter fan. V10 and V11 have minor changes. FireWire In September 2004 Sony unveiled the third major hardware revision (V12, model number SCPH-70000). Available in November 2004, it is smaller and thinner than the old version and includes a built-in Ethernet port. In some markets it also integrates a modem. Due to its thinner profile, it does not contain the 3.5" expansion bay, and therefore does not support the internal hard disk drive but due to the presence of USB 2.0 ports an external USB Hard disk can still be used, and now uses an external power supply, like the Gamecube. Although external USB 2.0 enclosures are affordable the lack of internal hard disk has implicated a problem for users with perhaps little knowledge of the software requiered to enable the external disk functionality. For some consumers this is in fact a limitation, especially for the fans of titles such as Final Fantasy XI, which requires the use of this peripheral, and prevents the use of the official PS2 Linux kit. A product named HD Connect can be soldered into the unit giving hard drive support though. It is widely believed that Sony has abandoned support for the hard drive. There are also some disputes on the numbering for this PS2 version, since there are actually two sub-versions of the SCPH-70000. One of them includes the old EE and GS chips, and the other contains the newer unified EE+GS chip, otherwise being identical. Since the V12 version had already been established for this model, there were some disputes regarding these sub-versions. Two propositions were to name the old model (EE and GS, separate chips) V11.5 and the newer model V12, and to name the old model V12 and the newer model V13. Currently, most people just use V12 for both models, or V12 for the old model and V13 for the newer one. The new V12 model was first released in black. A silver edition is available in the United Kingdom exclusively. It is unknown whether or not this will follow the color schemes of the older model. There is also now a V14 model (SCPH-75001) which contains an integrated EE and GS , and different ASICs compared to previous revisions, some chips having a copyright date of 2005 compared to 2000,2001 for earlier models. It also has a different lens and some compatibility issues documented by Sony for earlier PS2 games. Sony has also made a PVR/DVD burning consumer device that plays PlayStation 2 games called the PSX. The device was poorly received, with some major features absent from the first revisions of the hardware, and has thus far experienced very poor sales in Japan, in spite of major price drops [http://www.gamesindustry.biz/news.php?aid=4280]. The machine's future continues to be uncertain, with North American and European launches considered to be distant if at all. Later hardware revisions had better compatibility with PlayStation games (Metal Gear Solid: VR Missons works on most silver models). However the New Slim Silver Models have more issues with playing PlayStation games than the first PS2 revisions.

Screenshots

Image:gt3as.jpg|Gran Turismo 3: A-Spec
SCE (2001) Image:ssx.jpg|SSX
EA Sports (2000) Image:tmblack.jpg|Twisted Metal: Black
SCE (2001) Image:Ace_combat5.jpg|Ace Combat 5
Namco (2004) Image:ffx.jpg|Final Fantasy X
Square (2002) Image:madden05.jpg|Madden NFL 2005
EA Sports (2005) Image:thps3_2.jpg|Tony Hawk Pro Skater 3
Activision (2001) Image:MGS3 scope.jpg|Metal Gear Solid 3
Konami (2004) Image:Sapreview2.jpg|GTA San Andreas
Rockstar Games (2004) Image:ratchet2.jpg|Ratchet & Clank 3
SCE (2004) Image:Godofwar27.jpg|God of War
SCE (2005) Image:Ico07.jpg|ICO
SCE (2002) Image:Tekken5114.jpg|Tekken 5
Namco (2005) Image:Sophitia_Vs_Nightmare.jpg|Soul Calibur III
Namco (2005) Image:Kata27.jpg|Katamari Damacy
Namco (2004) Image:Shadow_Col01.jpg|Shadow of the Colossus
SCE (2005)

Accessories

Technical specifications
The specifications of the PlayStation 2 console are as follows, with hardware revisions: 2005
- CPU: 128 bit "Emotion Engine" clocked at 294 MHz (later versions 299 MHz), 10.5 million transistors
- System Memory: 32 MB Direct Rambus or RDRAM (note that some computers use this type of RAM)
- Memory Bus Bandwidth: 3.2 GB per second
- Main processor: MIPS R5900 CPU core, 64 bit
- Co-Processor: FPU (Floating Point Multiply Accumulator × 1, Floating Point Divider × 1)
- Vector Units: VU0 and VU1 (Floating Point Multiply Accumulator × 9, Floating Point Divider × 1), 128 bit
- Floating Point Performance: 6.2 GFLOPS
- 3D CG Geometric Transformation: 66 million polygons per second (1)
- Compressed Image Decoder: MPEG-2
- I/O Processor interconnection: Remote Procedure Call over a serial link, DMA controller for bulk transfer
- Cache Memory: Instruction: 16KB, Data: 8KB + 16 KB (ScrP)
- Graphics: "Graphics Synthesizer" clocked at 147 MHz
- DRAM Bus bandwidth: 47.0GB per second
- DRAM Bus width: 2560-bit
- Pixel Configuration: RGB:Alpha:Z Buffer (24:8, 15:1 for RGB, 16, 24, or 32-bit Z buffer)
- Maximum Polygon Rate: 75 million polygons per second (1)
- Dedicated connection to: Main CPU and VU1
- Sound: "SPU1+SPU2"
- Number of voices: 48 hardware channels of ADPCM on SPU2 plus software-mixed channels
- Sampling Frequency: 44.1 kHz or 48 kHz (selectable)
- I/O Processor
- CPU Core: Original PlayStation CPU (MIPS R3000A clocked at 33.8 MHz or 37.5 MHz)
- Sub Bus: 32 Bit
- Connection to: SPU and CD/DVD controller.
- Interface Types: 2 proprietary PlayStation controller ports, 2 proprietary Memory Card slots using MagicGate encryption, Expansion Bay (DEV9 or PCMCIA on early models) port for Network Adaptor, Modem and Hard Disk Drive, IEEE 1394 (2), Infrared remote control port (2), and 2 USB 1.1 ports with an OHCI-compatible controller.
- Disc Media: DVD-ROM (CD-ROM compatible) with copy protection. 4.7GB capacity, a few are DVD-9 (8.5 GB) (1) Polygons per second under ideal circumstances (e.g. no texturing, lighting, or vertex colors applied). Some criticize these figures for being unrealistic, and not indicative of real-world performance. The true polygons per second figure with full textures, effects etc. is around 13 million. (2) IEEE 1394 removed in SCPH-50000 and later hardware versions, and Infrared remote port added.
Price history
North America
- US$299.99 (October 26, 2000, Launch Price)
- US$199.99 (May 14, 2002)
- US$179.99 (May 13, 2003)
- US$149.99 (May 11, 2004) Japan
- JP¥39,800 (March 2000, Launch Price)
- JP¥35,000 (June 29, 2001)
- JP¥29,800 (November 29, 2001)
- JP¥25,000 (2002)
- JP¥19,800 (November 13, 2003)
- JP¥17,800 (June 2004) Republic of China (Taiwan)
- NT$10,900 (January 24, 2002, SCPH-30007, Launch Price)
- NT$ 7,980 (January 01, 2003, SCPH-30007)
- NT$ 6,980 (2003, SCPH-39007)
- NT$ 6,980 (October 10, 2003, SCPH-50007)
- NT$ 6,480 (January 01, 2004, SCPH-50007)
- NT$ 5,888 (June 01, 2004, SCPH-50007)
- NT$ 5,888 (November 03, 2004, SCPH-70007)
See also

- List of PlayStation 2 games
- List of PlayStation 2 network games
- EyeToy
- PlayStation
- PSX
- PlayStation 3
- PlayStation Portable
- PS2 Linux
External links

- [http://www.PlayStation.com/ Official Site]
- [http://edition.cnn.com/2000/TECH/computing/10/26/ps2.main.story/ PlayStation 2 makes its North American Debut]
- [http://entertainment.howstuffworks.com/ps2.htm "How the PlayStation 2 Works" from HowStuffWorks]
- [http://www.methodstudios.com/mox251 PlayStation 9 (PS9) ad-campaign for the PS2 launch]
- [http://www.1up.com/do/feature?cId=3144956 PS2: Five Years Later] On the history of the PS2 from 1up.com Category:PlayStation Category:Sony consoles
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- Category:DVD Category:Sixth-generation video game consoles als:Playstation 2 ko:플레이스테이션2 ja:プレイステーション2 simple:PlayStation 2 th:เพลย์สเตชั่น 2

Japanese language
Japanese (Japanese: 日本語（にほんご Nihongo, ) is a language spoken by over 127 million people, mainly in Japan, but also by Japanese emigrant communities around the world. It is considered an agglutinative language and is distinguished by a system of honorifics reflecting the hierarchical nature of Japanese society, with verb forms and particular vocabulary which indicate the relative status of speaker and listener. The sound inventory of Japanese is relatively small, and it has a lexically-distinctive pitch accent system. Though the two languages are completely unrelated, Japanese has been heavily influenced by Chinese over a period of at least 1,500 years. Japanese is written with a mix of Chinese characters (kanji) and a modified syllabary, kana, also originally based on Chinese characters. Much vocabulary has been imported from Chinese, or created on Chinese models.
Classification
Historical linguists who specialize in Japanese agree that it is one of the two members of the Japonic language family, but remain divided as to the origins of the Japonic languages. An older view, still widely held by some linguists and many non-linguists, is that Japanese is a language isolate. As for its relation to other languages, there are several theories (presented roughly in descending order of certainty):
- Japanese is a relative of extinct languages spoken by historic cultures in what are now the Korean peninsula and Manchuria. The best attested of these is the language of Goguryeo (a.k.a. Koguryo), with the more poorly-attested languages of Baekje (a.k.a. Paekche) and Buyeo (a.k.a Puyo) hypothesized to also be related. The limited data on these languages, as well as these cultures' historic ties, are the primary evidence.
- Japanese is a relative of Korean. This theory is based on the high degree of similarity between Japanese and Korean grammar. Proponents of this theory have also put proposed Japanese-Korean cognates. The idea of a Japanese-Korean relationship has been largely subsumed into the Altaic theory.
- Japanese is a member of the Altaic language family. Other languages in this group include Mongolian, Tungusic, Turkish, and (according to most proponents) Korean. Evidence for this theory lies in the fact that like Turkish and Korean, Japanese is an agglutinative language. Additionally, there are a suggestive number of apparently regular correspondences in basic vocabulary, such as ishi "stone" to Turkic daş, yon "four" to Turkic dört, kura "saddle" to Turkic kürtün, kiru "to cut" to Turkic kir-, inu "dog" to Turkic it, kumo "cloud" to Turkic köl "shadow", etc. These examples originate from [http://starling.rinet.ru/cgi-bin/query.cgi?root=config&basename=\data\alt\altet this database], which contains a comprehensive list of comparisons and theoretical Altaic etymologies.
- Japanese is a creole language. Phonological similarities and geographical proximity to Austronesian languages have led to the theory that Japanese may be a kind of creole, with an Altaic substratum and an Austronesian superstratum, or vice versa.
- Japanese is a purely Austronesian language. This theory enjoys little currency, since the grammar and lexis of Japanese are vastly different from those of any known Austronesian language.
- Ono Susumu has suggested a possible relationship between Japanese and Tamil, a member of the Dravidian language family spoken in southern India. Specialists in Japanese historical linguistics all agree that Japanese is related to the Ryukyuan languages (including Okinawan); together, Japanese and Ryukyuan are grouped in the Japonic languages. Among these specialists, the possibility of a genetic relation to Goguryeo has the most evidence; relationship to Korean is considered plausible but is still up to debate; the Altaic hypothesis has somewhat less currency, though it has grown significantly more respectable in recent years, primarily due to the work of Sergei Starostin, et al. Almost all specialists reject the idea that Japanese could be genetically related to Austronesian/Malayo-Polynesian languages or Sino-Tibetan languages, and the idea that Japanese could be related to Tamil is almost entirely excluded. It should be noted that linguistic studies, like all fields, can be strongly affected by national politics and other non-academic factors. For example, most linguists would say that Romanian and Moldovan are essentially the same language, and that they are known as two different languages for political reasons. Japan's long-standing rivalries and enmities with virtually all of its neighbours make the study of linguistic connection particularly fraught with such political tensions. However, these tensions are less prevalent among non-Japanese researchers.
Geographic distribution
Although Japanese is spoken almost exclusively in Japan, it has been and is still sometimes spoken in countries besides Japan. When Japan occupied Korea, Taiwan, parts of China, and various Pacific islands, locals in those countries were forced to learn Japanese in empire-building programmes. As a result, there are still many people in these countries who speak Japanese instead of or as well as the local languages. In addition, emigrants from Japan, the majority of whom are found in Brazil, where the biggest Japanese community outside Japan is found, Australia (especially Sydney, Brisbane and Melbourne), and the United States (notably California and Hawaii), also frequently speak Japanese. There is also a small community in Davao, Philippines. Their descendants (known as nikkei 日系, literally Japanese descendants), however, rarely speak Japanese fluently. There are estimated to be several million non-Japanese studying the language as well.
Official status
Japanese is the de facto official language of Japan, and Japan is the only country to have Japanese as an official working language. There are two forms of the language considered standard: or standard Japanese, and or the common language. As government policy has modernized Japanese, many of the distinctions between the two have blurred. Hyōjungo is taught in schools and used on television and in official communications, and is the version of Japanese discussed in this article.
Dialects
Dozens of dialects are spoken in Japan. The profusion is due to the mountainous island terrain and Japan's long history of both external and internal isolation. Dialects typically differ in terms of pitch accent, inflectional morphology, vocabulary, particle usage, and pronunciation. Some even differ in vowel and consonant inventories, although this is uncommon. Dialects from less central regions, such as the Tōhoku or Tsushima dialect may be unintelligible to speakers from other parts of the country. The dialect used in Kagoshima in southern Kyūshū is famous for being unintelligible not only to speakers of standard Japanese but to speakers of nearby dialects elsewhere in Kyūshū as well. Kagoshima dialect is 84% cognate with standard Tokyo dialect. The Ryukyuan languages are spoken in the islands of Okinawa Prefecture. Not only is each language unintelligible to Japanese speakers, but most are unintelligible to those who speak other Ryukyuan languages. Due to the close relationship of Ryukyuan and Japanese, they are still sometimes said to be only dialects of one language, but modern scholars consider them to be separate languages. Recently, Standard Japanese has become prevalent nationwide, due not only to television and radio, but also to increased mobility within Japan due to its system of roads, railways, and airports. Young people usually speak their local dialect and the standard language, though in most cases, the local dialect is influenced by the standard, and regional versions of "standard" Japanese have local-dialect influence.
Sounds
Japanese vowels are "pure" sounds, similar to their Italian or Spanish counterparts. The only unusual vowel is the high back vowel , which is like , but unrounded. Japanese has five vowels, and vowel length is phonemic, so each one has both a short and a long version. Some Japanese consonants have several allophones, which may give the impression of a larger inventory of sounds. However, some of these allophones have since become phonemic. For example, in the Japanese of the first half of the twentieth century, was palatalized to , approximately chi; however, now and are distinct, as evidenced by words like paatii "party" and tii "tea." The syllabic structure and the phonotactics are very simple: the only consonant clusters allowed within a syllable consist of one of a subset of the consonants plus /y/. However, consonant clusters across syllables within the word are common, though limited in type.
Grammar
The basic Japanese word order is Subject Object Verb. Subject and object are usually marked by particles which come after the word. The basic sentence structure is topic-comment. For example, Kochira wa Tanaka san desu. Kochira ("this") is the topic of the sentence, indicated by the particle wa. The verb is desu ("be"). As a phrase, Tanaka san desu is the comment. This sentence loosely translates to "As for this person, (it) is Mr./Mrs./Ms. Tanaka". Thus Japanese, like Chinese and Korean, is often called a topic-prominent language, which means it indicates the topic separately from the subject, and the two do not always coincide. The sentence Zō wa hana ga nagai. literally means, "As for elephants, the nose is long." The topic is zō "elephant," and the subject is hana "nose." Japanese nouns have neither number nor gender. Thus hon may mean "book" or "books". It is possible to explicitly indicate more than one, either by using numbers, often with a counter. Words for people are usually singular. Thus Tanaka san usually means Mr/Ms Tanaka. Words that refer to people and animals can be made to indicate groups with noun suffixes that indicate groups, such as -tachi. Though some words, like hitobito "people," always refer to more than one, Japanese has no true plurals. Verbs are conjugated to show tenses, of which there are two: past and present, or non-past, which is used for the present and the future. For some verbs, that represent an ongoing process, the -te iru form indicates a continuous (or progressive) tense. For others, that represent a change of state, the -te iru form indicates a perfect tense. For example, kite iru means "He has come (and is still here)", but tabete iru means "He is eating". Questions are formed by adding a question element to the end of the verb, usually ka. For example, :Kore de ii desu. "This is OK." becomes :Kore de ii desu ka. "Is this OK?" Negatives are formed with verb endings. For example, :Pan o taberu. "I will eat bread." becomes :Pan o tabenai. "I will not eat bread." with taberu "to eat" changing to the negative form tabenai "to not eat". The word desu/da is the copula verb. It corresponds approximately to the English be, but often takes on other roles. A separate function of "to be" is to indicate existence, as in "there is", for which the verbs aru and iru are used for inanimate and animate things, respectively. For example, :Neko ga iru. "There's a cat.", and :Ii kangae ga nai. "I haven't got a good idea." The verb "to do" (suru, polite form shimasu) is often used to make verbs from nouns (ai suru "to love", benkyō suru "to study", etc.). Japanese also has a huge number of compound verbs (e.g. tobidasu "to fly out, to flee," from tobu "to fly, to jump" + dasu "to go out"). There are three types of adjective: #keiyōshi, or i adjectives, which have a conjugating ending i which can become, for example, past, or negative. For example atsui ("to be hot") #:atsui hi "a hot day". #keiyōdōshi, or na adjectives, which are followed by a form of the copula, usually na. For example hen (strange) #:hen na hito "a strange person". #rentaishi, also called true adjectives, such as onaji "the same" #:onaji hi "the same day". Both keiyōshi and keiyōdōshi may predicate sentences. For example, :Gohan ga atsui. "The rice is hot." :Kare wa hen da. "He's strange." Both inflect, though they do not show the full range of conjugation found in true verbs. The rentaishi are few in number, and unlike the other words, are limited to modifying nouns. They never predicate sentences. Examples include ookina "big" and onaji "the same" (although there is a noun onaji that can be followed by da, as in onaji da). Both keiyōdōshi and keiyōshi form adverbs, by following with ni in the case of keiyōdōshi: :hen ni naru "become strange", and by changing i to ku in the case of keiyōshi: :atsuku naru "become hot". The grammatical function of nouns is indicated by postpositions, also called particles. These include
- no for possession, :watashi no kamera "my camera"
- ga for subject, :Kare ga yatta. "He did it."
- o for direct object :Nani o tabemasu ka? "What will (you) eat?"
- ni for indirect object, :Tanaka san ni kiite kudasai "Please ask Mr./Ms. Tanaka",
- wa for the topic and many others. Japanese has many words that are translated as pronouns in English, such as watashi or boku, both meaning "I". Which is used depends upon many factors, including the sex and status of the speaker, who is being spoken to, and the social setting. Their use is often optional, since Japanese is described as a so-called pro-drop language, i.e., one in which the subject of a sentence does not always need to be stated. For example, instead of saying :Watashi wa byōki desu. "I am sick.", if the speaker is understood to be the subject, one could simply say Byōki desu. A single verb can be a complete sentence: :yatta! "(I / we / they / etc) did (it)!".
Politeness
Unlike most western languages, Japanese has an extensive grammatical system to express politeness and formality. Broadly speaking, there are three main politeness levels in spoken Japanese: the plain form (kudaketa 砕けた), the simple polite form (teineigo 丁寧語) and the advanced polite form (keigo 敬語). Since most relationships are not equal in Japanese society, one person typically has a higher position. This position is determined by a variety of factors including job, age, experience, or even psychological state (e.g., a person asking a favour tends to do so politely). The person in the lower position is expected to use a polite form of speech, whereas the other might use a more plain form. Strangers will also speak to each other politely. Japanese children rarely use polite speech until they are teens, at which point they are expected to begin speaking in a more adult manner. See uchi-soto The plain form in Japanese is recognized by the shorter, dictionary form of verbs, and the da form of the copula. At the teinei level, verbs end with the helping verb -masu, and the copula desu is used. The advanced polite form, keigo, actually consists of two kinds of politeness: honorific language (sonkeigo) and humble (kenjōgo) language. Whereas teineigo is an inflectional system, keigo often employs many special (often irregular) honorific and humble verb forms. The difference between honorific and humble speech is particularly pronounced in the Japanese language. Humble language is used to talk about oneself or one's own group (company, family) whilst honorific language is mostly used when describing the interlocutor and his group. For example, the -san suffix ("Mr", "Mrs" or "Ms") is an example of honorific language. It is not used to talk about oneself or when talking about someone from one's company to an external person, since the company is the speaker's "group". Most nouns in the Japanese language may be made polite by the addition of o- or go-; as a prefix. o- is generally used for words of native Japanese origin, whereas go- is affixed to words of Chinese derivation. In some cases, the prefix has become a fixed part of the word, and is included even in regular speech, such as gohan 'cooked rice; meal.' Such a construction often indicates deference to either the item's owner or to the object itself. For example, the word tomodachi 'friend,' would become o-tomodachi when referring to the friend of someone of higher status (though mothers often use this form to refer to their children's friends). On the other hand, a female speaker may sometimes refer to mizu 'water' as o-mizu merely to show politeness; this contrasts with the more abrupt speech of men (though men may also use very polite forms when speaking to superiors). See Gender differences in spoken Japanese. Many researchers report that since the 1990s, the use of polite forms has become rarer. Needless to say, many older people disapprove of this trend. Most Japanese people employ politeness to indicate a lack of familiarity. That is, they use polite forms for new acquaintances, but if a relationship becomes more intimate, they no longer use them. This occurs regardless of age, social class, or gender. Young people usually receive extensive training in the "proper" use of polite language when they start to work for a company.
Vocabulary
The original language of Japan was the so-called yamato kotoba. In addition to this original language, Japanese also has a great number of words that were either borrowed from Chinese or constructed on Chinese patterns. These words entered the language from the fifth century onwards via contact with Chinese culture. Chinese based words comprise as much as seventy percent of the total vocabulary of the Japanese language and form as much as thirty to forty percent of words used in speech. A much smaller number of words has been borrowed from Korean and Ainu. Japan has also borrowed a number of words from other languages, gairaigo. This began with borrowings from Portuguese in the 16th century, followed by borrowing from Dutch during Japan's long isolation of the Edo period. With the Meiji restoration and the reopening of Japan in the 19th century, borrowing occurred from German, French and English. Currently, words of English origin are the most commonly borrowed. In the Meiji era, the Japanese also coined many neologisms using Chinese patterns to translate Western concepts. The Chinese and Koreans imported many of these pseudo-Chinese words into Chinese, Korean, and Vietnamese via their kanji characters in the late 19th and early 20th century. For example, 政治 seiji ("politics"), and 化学 kagaku ("chemistry"). As a result, Japanese, Chinese, Korean, and Vietnamese share a large common corpus of vocabulary in the same way a large number of Greco-Roman words is shared among European languages. In the past few decades, wasei-eigo (made-in-Japan English) has become a prominent phenomenon. Words such as wanpataan (< one + pattern, "to be in a rut", "to have a one-track mind") and sukinshippu (< skin + -ship, "physical contact"), although coined from English, are nonsensical in a non-Japanese context. A small number of such words, such as anime and cosplay, have been borrowed back into English. Additionally, many native Japanese words have become commonplace in English, due to the popularity of many Japanese cultural exports. Words such as sushi, judo, karate, sumo, karaoke, origami, samurai, haiku, ninja, sayonara, rickshaw (from 人力車 jinrikisha), futon, and many others have become part of the English language. See list of English words of Japanese origin for more.
Writing system
Modern Japanese is written in a mixture of three main scripts: kanji, characters of Chinese origin used to represent both Chinese loanwords into Japanese and a number of native Japanese morphemes; and two syllabaries: hiragana and katakana. The Roman alphabet (romaji) is also sometimes used.
Learning Japanese
Learning Japanese involves understanding grammar, pronunciation, the writing system, and acquiring adequate vocabulary. While the sound system is simple to master compared with those of other languages, the writing system poses a challenge for those not used to Chinese characters. On the other hand one learns a lot about Japanese culture by studying kanji characters. Japanese students begin to learn kanji characters from their first grade of an elementary school. A guideline created by the Japanese Ministry of Education, the kyōiku kanji, specifies the 1,006 simple characters a child is to learn by the end of sixth grade. Children continue to study another 939 characters in a junior high school, which totally covers 1,945 jōyō kanji (common kanji) characters, which are usually considered sufficient for everyday life. Japanese can be learned without studying Chinese characters. However, Japanese borrowed thousands upon thousands of words from Chinese, and for various reasons, many of these Chinese-based words are now homophones (words pronounced identically) in Japanese. This may make it necessary to learn the characters if one wants to learn an extended vocabulary, although blind Japanese people who cannot read any characters are able to function in the spoken language without problems, since most words, even if not written down, can be understood by the context. "Nihon" (にほん) can mean "two long, thin objects" (二本) as well as "Japan" (日本). However, these two words have different accents, and are distinct even in isolation. Major universities throughout the world provide Japanese language courses. Moreover, South Korea, Australia, France, Canada, the United Kingdom, New Zealand, Denmark and some states of the United States provide the language course at high schools or lower level schools. About 2.3 million people studied the language worldwide in 2003. 900,000 South Koreans, 389,000 Chinese people, 381,000 Australians, and 140,000 Americans study Japanese in lower and higher educational institutions. The Japanese government provides standard tests to measure spoken and written comprehension of Japanese for second language learners; the most prominent is the Japanese Language Proficiency Test (JLPT). The Japanese External Trade Organization JETRO organizes the Business Japanese Proficiency Test, to test ability to understand Japanese in a business setting. In Japan, more than 90,000 foreign students study at Japanese universities and Japanese language schools, including 77,000 Chinese and 15,000 South Koreans in 2003. Furthermore, local governments and some NPO groups provide free Japanese language classes for foreign residents, including Japanese Brazilians and foreign wives married to Japanese nationals. See also List of resources for learning Japanese.
See also

- Common phrases in different languages (Japanese)
- Henohenomoheji
- Japanese culture
- Japanese language and computers
- Japanese literature
- Japanese name
- The lists of Japanese words and words in other languages that have been derived from Japanese at Wiktionary, the free dictionary and Wikipedia's sibling project
- Japanese dictionaries
External links

- [http://users.tmok.com/~tumble/jpp/japor.html Origin of the Japanese People and Language]
- [http://web.archive.org/web/20030618070124/http%3A//www-lib.icu.ac.jp/LibShuppan/lecture/6-2-1.html North Kyushu Creole] – A hypothesis concerning the multilingual formation of Japanese
- [http://www.ethnologue.com/show_family.asp?subid=1263 Ethnologue report for Japanese]
- [http://www.ethnologue.com/show_language.asp?code=jpn Ethnologue report for language code JPN]
Bibliography

- Bloch, Bernard. (1946). Studies in colloquial Japanese I: Inflection. Journal of the American Oriental Society, 66, 97-109.
- Bloch, Bernard. (1946). Studies in colloquial Japanese II: Syntax. Language, 22, 200-248.
- Chafe, William L. (1976). Giveness, contrastiveness, definiteness, subjects, topics, and point of view. In C. Li (Ed.), Subject and topic (pp. 25-56). New York: Academic Press. ISBN 0-1244-7350-4.
- Kuno, Susumu. (1973). The structure of the Japanese language. Cambridge, MA: MIT Press. ISBN 0-2621-1049-0.
- Kuno, Susumu. (1976). Subject, theme, and the speaker's empathy: A re-examination of relativization phenomena. In Charles N. Li (Ed.), Subject and topic (pp. 417-444). New York: Academic Press. ISBN 0-1244-7350-4.
- Martin, Samuel E. (1975). A reference grammar of Japanese. New Haven: Yale University Press. ISBN 0-3000-1813-4.
- McClain, Yoko Matsuoka. (1981). Handbook of modern Japanese grammar: 口語日本文法便覧 [Kōgo Nihon bumpō]. Tokyo: Hokuseido Press. ISBN 4-5900-0570-0; ISBN 0-8934-6149-0.
- Miller, Roy. (1967). The Japanese language. Chicago: University of Chicago Press.
- Miller, Roy. (1980). Origins of the Japanese language: Lectures in Japan during the academic year, 1977-78. Seattle: University of Washington Press. ISBN 0-2959-5766-2.
- Mizutani, Osmau; & Mizutani, Nobuko. (1987). How to be polite in Japanese: 日本語の敬語 [Nihongo no keigo]. Tokyo: Japan Times. ISBN 4-7890-0338-8; ISBN 4-7890-0338-9.
- Shibatani, Masayoshi. (1990). Japanese. In B. Comrie (Ed.), The major languages of east and south-east Asia. London: Routledge. ISBN 0-4150-4739-0.
- Shibatani, Masayoshi. (1990). The languages of Japan. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. ISBN 0-5213-6070-6 (hbk); ISBN 0-5213-6918-5 (pbk).
- Shibamoto, Janet S. (1985). Japanese women's language. New York: Academic Press. ISBN 0-1264-0030-X. Graduate Level
- Tsujimura, Natsuko. (1996). An introduction to Japanese linguistics. Cambridge, MA: Blackwell Publishers. ISBN 0-6311-9855-5 (hbk); ISBN 0-6311-9856-3 (pbk). Upper Level Textbooks
- Tsujimura, Natsuko. (Ed.) (1999). The handbook of Japanese linguistics. Malden, MA: Blackwell Publishers. ISBN 0-6312-0504-7. Readings/Anthologies zh-min-nan:Ji̍t-pún-oē ko:일본어 ms:Bahasa Jepun ja:日本語 simple:Japanese language th:ภาษาญี่ปุ่น

Sony Computer Entertainment

Sony Computer Entertainment Inc. (SCEI) is a subsidiary of Sony Corporation that was established on November 16, 1993 in Tokyo, Japan. SCEI handles the research and development, production, and sales of hardware and software for their high-selling PlayStation line of handheld and video game consoles. SCEI is also a developer and publisher of video games for their systems. The president and CEO of SCEI is Ken Kutaragi, who is widely acknowledged as the creator of the PlayStation. SCEI is comprised of several subsidiaries covering the company's biggest markets: America, Europe, Oceania and Asia.

Consoles

PlayStation

Asia Sony's first foray into the video game market, the PlayStation (formerly PSX, currently called PS one), was initially set to be an add-on for Nintendo's Super Nintendo Entertainment System and Super Famicom video game consoles as an answer to Sega's Sega CD. When the prospect of releasing the system as an add-on dissolved, Sony transformed it into the PlayStation video game console. The PlayStation was released in Japan on December 3, 1994 and later in North America on September 9, 1995. The system was widely popular and quickly became the #1 selling video game console worldwide of all time.

PlayStation 2

1995 Sony's second generation console, the PlayStation 2 or PS2 was released in Japan on March 4, 2000 and later in North America on October 26, 2000. The PS2 is powered by a proprietary CPU, called the Emotion Engine and is the first video game console to have DVD playback functionality. Some game developers complained that the PlayStation 2 was too hard to develop for, and others also claimed that the PS2 was not as powerful as its competitors. Despite these complaints, the PlayStation 2 had widespread support from third party developers and was very successful in the marketplace.

PSX

third party developer In December 2003 Sony upgraded the PlayStation 2 adding DVD burning and a hard drive with PVR functionality. The upgraded system was renamed the PSX (the former name of the PlayStation). The PSX has extensive media connectivity with the PSP. It is an expensive luxury device (approximately 700 US$). Due to its lack of popularity, it was only released in Japan and was never released in North America or Europe [http://www.gamesindustry.biz/content_page.php?aid=7006].

PlayStation 3

Japan The PlayStation 3 is Sony's next-generation video game console with a release date set in the spring season of 2006. The system was unveiled on May 16, 2005 at a press conference prior to the 2005 E³ event. The PS3 is powered by a CPU called the Cell developed by IBM, Toshiba, and Sony themselves. The console has many innovative features such as Blu-Ray disc technology and high-end multimedia interfaces such as HDMI which is fully capable of 1080p resolution. The PlayStation 3 is backward compatible with both the PlayStation 2 and the original PlayStation. Sony defines the machine as "The Super Computer Entertainment Device".

Handhelds

PocketStation

backward compatible Released only in Japan in December 1998, the PocketStation was a miniature game console and also a PlayStation accessory. Compatible games could be downloaded onto the device when connected to the PlayStation Memory Card slot, or via infrared bases in several video game stores. Multiplayer was possible via an infrared connection. Tamagotchi software was available for download in video game stores.

PlayStation Portable

Tamagotchi After a successful run in the console market with both the PlayStation and the PlayStation 2, Sony moved into the handheld market. On May 11, 2004 Sony officially unveiled the PlayStation Portable or PSP during a press conference at E³. The PlayStation Portable is intended as an entertainment platform and can play videogames, video content, and digital audio, as well as display digital photos. The PSP can also surf the web with its built-in web browser. Instead of using traditional cartridges, the PSP uses a proprietary disc medium called the Universal Media Disc or UMD. The system also uses Sony's memory stick for game saves and to transfer content between the PSP and other devices. The PlayStation Portable was released in Japan on December 14, 2004, released in the United States on March 24, 2005, and in remaining markets on September 1, 2005.

Linux

2005 In 2002, Sony released the first useful operating system for a video game console, after the Net Yaroze experience. The kit turned the PlayStation 2 into a full fledged computer system running Linux. The mix of hardware and software cost approximately 149 US$ at launch. According to recent speeches by CEO Ken Kutaragi, the PlayStation 3 will receive another Linux distribution pre-installed on hard drives to better control online and multimedia capabilities. It's also known that the PSP system runs a custom Linux embedded system. In November 2005 Sony formed the Linux Alliance with IBM and Philips.

Game franchises

Structure

In September 2005 Ken Kutaragi announced that all Sony Computer Entertainment studios will be integrated into a new studio called SCE Worldwide Studios, supervised by Phil Harrison. After September 2005, the division names below will be restructured into the new global SCE studio. [http://www.gamesindustry.biz/content_page.php?aid=11531]

Old structure

- Sony Computer Entertainment, Inc. (SCEI)
- Guerrilla Games
- Sony Computer Entertainment Japan (SCEJ)
- Sony Computer Entertainmet Korea (SCEK)
- Sony Computer Entertainment America (SCEA)
- SCE Studios Santa Monica
- 989 Studios
- Naughty Dog
- Sony Computer Entertainment Europe (SCEE)
- Studio Cambridge — (formerly Millennium Interactive), Cambridge
- Studio Liverpool — (formerly Psygnosis), Liverpool
- Studio London, London

External links

- [http://www.scei.co.jp/index_e.html Official SCEI global website]
- [http://www.us.playstation.com/ North America] - SCEA - Sony Computer Entertainment America
- [http://www.scee.com/ Europe] - SCEE - Sony Computer Entertainment Europe
- see global link for other areas Category:Sony subsidiaries Category:Computer and video game companies ja:ソニー・コンピュータエンタテインメント

PlayStation

The PlayStation (Japanese: プレイステーション) is a video game console of the 32-bit era, first produced by Sony Computer Entertainment in the mid 1990s. The original PlayStation was the first of the PlayStation series of console and hand-held game devices, which has included successor machines including the PSone (a smaller version of the original), PlayStation 2, PlayStation Portable, and the forthcoming PlayStation 3. By June 2005, the PlayStation/PSone had shipped a total of 100 million units, becoming the first home console to ever reach that mark. [http://www.us.playstation.com/PressReleases.aspx?id=296]

History

Nintendo asked Sony to develop a CD-ROM add-on called "PlayStation" for the SNES. Because Sony wanted 25% of all profits Nintendo earned from sales of this PlayStation and all PlayStation games, after Sony revealed that they were developing it, Nintendo instead went to Philips. This caused Sony to consider abandoning their research, however instead they used what they had developed so far and made it into a full blown console. This led to Nintendo filing a lawsuit claiming breach of contract and attempted, in U.S. federal court, to obtain an injunction against the release of the PlayStation, on the grounds that Nintendo owned the name. The federal judge presiding over the case denied the injunction. The PlayStation was launched in Japan on December 3, 1994, USA on September 9, 1995 and Europe on September 29, 1995. In America, Sony enjoyed a very successful launch with titles of almost every genre including Toshinden, Twisted Metal, Warhawk, and Ridge Racer. Almost all of Sony's and Namco's launch titles went on to produce numerous sequels. The console was extremely popular, spawning the so-called "PlayStation Generation". Among many other games, the PlayStation is well known for the Tomb Raider, Final Fantasy, Resident Evil, Tekken, Wipeout, Gran Turismo, Crash Bandicoot, Spyro, Parasite Eve and Metal Gear Solid series of games. As of May 18 2004, Sony has shipped 100 million PlayStation and PSone consoles throughout the world. As of March 2004, there were 7,300 software titles available with cumulative software shipment of 949 million. The PlayStation logo was designed by Manabu Sakamoto, who also designed the logo for Sony's VAIO computer products. On November 30, 1999, the Italian eurodance band Eiffel 65 released an album entitled Europop. Track #6 is a song dedicated to the PlayStation, entitled My Console. Written by the band's DJ Gabry Ponte, the song mentions Tekken, Metal Gear Solid, Resident Evil, Gran Turismo, Omega Boost, Bloody Roar and X-Files, in that order. Although this part is somewhat difficult to understand, they also refer to Ridge Racer and Odd World, seconds before spelling out the word "PlayStation."

Variants

Odd World Odd World] Odd World controller]] The first new version was actually a revision in early 1996, produced in response to complaints that Playstations were overheating. Sony did not change the technical aspects or the cosmetics, but did remove the S-video port left over from the Japanese release. Sony produced a redesigned version of the original console, called the "PSone", in a smaller (and more ergonomic) case which was introduced in September 2000. The original PlayStation was abbreviated in Japan to "PS" and was often abbreviated as "PSX" by American gamers, as this was Sony's internal code name for the system while it was under development. This led to some confusion in 2003, when Sony introduced a PS2-derived system in Japan actually called the PSX. The PlayStation is now officially abbreviated as the "PS1" or "PSone," although many people still abbreviate it "PS" or "PSX". There are no hardware differences between the "PSone" and the original, except for a cosmetic change to the console. A version of the PlayStation called the Net Yaroze was also produced. It was more expensive than the original PlayStation, coloured black instead of the usual gray, and most importantly, came with tools and instructions that allowed a user to be able to program PlayStation games and applications without the need for a full developer suite, which cost many times the amount of a PlayStation and was only available to approved video game developers. Naturally, the Net Yaroze lacked many of the features the full developer suite provided. It was unique in that it was the only officially retailed Sony PlayStation with no regional lockout; it would play games from any territory. Another version that was colored blue (as opposed to regular console units that were gray in color) was available to game developers and select press. It had twice the main RAM size (4 megabytes instead of 2 megabytes) and a CD-ROM emulator board connected to a PC. It was also able to run in-development games which lacked region coding (which would be rejected by a normal PlayStation as though they were pirated copies). A few of these units eventually appeared for sale through somewhat dubious channels at high prices. The installation of a modchip allows the PlayStation's capabilities to be expanded. This allows unauthorized copies of games to be played, but it also allows the playing of games from other regions, such as PAL titles on a NTSC console. Since modchips allow playing games recorded on a regular CD-ROM, it created a wave of games developed without official Sony approval, using free GNU compiler tools.

Successors

Sony's successor to the PlayStation is the PlayStation 2, which is backward compatible with its predecessor, in the sense that it can play almost every PlayStation game. This was done by embedding the most important parts of the PSone inside the PlayStation 2 design. Unlike emulators that run on the PC, the Playstation 2 actually contains the original Playstation processor, allowing games to run exactly as they do on the Playstation. For Playstation 2 games this processor, called the IOP, is used for input and output (memory cards, DVD drive, network, and harddrive). Like its predecessor, the PlayStation 2 is based on hardware developed by Sony themselves. The next generation of the PlayStation is known as PlayStation 3, or PS3, and due to be launched in 2006. Sony has stated the PS3 will also be backward compatible with all games that were originally made for PlayStation as well as the PlayStation 2. The PlayStation Portable (abbreviated PSP) is a handheld game console first released in late 2004. Despite the name, it is not compatible with PlayStation games; it only runs games developed specifically for the PSP on the UMD format. The success of the Playstation most likely led to the eventual demise of cartridge-based home gaming consoles. Nintendo abandoned cartridge technology on video game consoles after the Nintendo 64.

Criticism

On the tenth anniversary of the PlayStation, Sony Italy released an ad which outraged the Vatican. An ad showed a man, who appeared to be Jesus, smiling towards the camera and wearing a Crown of Thorns made of the PlayStation button symbols (Square, X, O, Triangle). At the bottom of the ad it said (in Italian): "Ten Years of Passion". After the incident, Sony decided to take back all the ads and discontinue the printing. Many consumers also were not happy that the PlayStation's laser track, which allowed the laser to move back and forth as it looked for data on the CD, would burn out easily if used extensively over time. This caused many people to start experiencing longer loading times, and other loading problems. Users remedied this by flipping the console up vertically, making the laser access data from the opposite track. Although this proved a temporary solution, the opposite track too would burn out, which usually meant it had to be replaced. Several consumers were forced to buy multiple PlayStations to replace broken ones due to this problem. In the PlayStation 2 this particular problem seems to be solved, but fragile laser mechanisms still remain the main source of problems for Sony consoles. Sony Computer Entertainment provides full technical support for all problems of owners as long as the console has never been opened.

Screenshots

Image:PSX_Ridge_Racer.png|Ridge Racer
Namco (1994) Image:PSX_Wipeout.png|Wipeout
Sony/Psygnosis (1995) Image:PSX_Tekken_2.jpgTekken 2
Namco (1996) Image:PSX_Tomb_Raider.png|Tomb Raider
Eidos (1996) Image:PSX_Madden NFL 99.jpg|Madden NFL 99
EA Sports (1998) Image:PSX_Metal_Gear_Solid.png|Metal Gear Solid
Konami (1998) Image:FinalFantasyVII-Combat.jpg|Final Fantasy VII
Squaresoft (1997) Image:PSX_Gran_Turismo_2.png|Gran Turismo 2
Sony (1999) Image:Tekken.jpg|Tekken
Namco (1996)

Specifications

Main CPU

1996] MIPS R3000A-compatible (R3051) 32bit RISC chip running at 33.8688 MHz The chip is manufactured by LSI Logic Corp. with technology licensed from SGI. The chip also contains the Geometry Transformation Engine and the Data Decompression Engine. Features:
- Operating Performance of 30 MIPS
- Bus Bandwidth 132 Mbit/s
- Instruction Cache 4 kB
- Data Cache 1 kB (non associative, just 1024 bytes of mapped fast SRAM)

Geometry Transformation Engine

This engine is inside the main CPU chip. It gives it additional (vector-)math instructions used for the 3D graphics. Features:
- Operating Performance of 66 MIPS
- 360,000 Flat-Shaded Polygons per second
- 180,000 texture mapped and light-sourced polygons per second Sony originally gave the polygon count as:
- 1.5 million flat-shaded polygons per second
- 500,000 texture mapped and light-sourced polygons per second These figures were given as a ballpark figure for performance under optimal circumstances, and so are unrealistic under normal usage.

Data Decompression Engine

This engine is also inside the main CPU. It is responsible for decompressing images and video. Documented device mode is to read three RLE-encoded 16×16 macroblocks, run IDCT and assemble a single 16×16 RGB macroblock. Output data may be transferred directly to GPU via DMA. It is possible to overwrite IDCT matrix and some additional parameters, however MDEC internal instruction set was never documented. Features:
- Compatible with MPEG-1 and H.261 files
- Operating Performance of 80 MIPS
- Directly connected to CPU Bus

Graphics Processing Unit

This chip is separate to the CPU and handles all the 2D Graphics processing, which includes the transformed 3D polygons. Features:
- Maximum of 16.7 Million Colours
- Resolutions from 256×224 to 640×480
- Adjustable frame buffer
- Unlimited Colour Lookup Tables
- Maximum of 4000 8×8 pixel sprites with individual scaling and rotation
- Emulation of simultaneous backgrounds (for parallax scrolling)
- Flat or Gouraud shading, and texture mapping

Sound Processing Unit

Features:
- Can handle ADPCM sources with up to 24 channels and up to 44.1 kHz sampling rate
- Could perform digital effects including:
- Pitch Modulation
- Envelope
- Looping
- Digital Reverb
- Could handle up to 512 Mbit of sampled waveforms
- Supports MIDI instruments
- PC file name format: .PSF

Memory

- Main RAM: 2 Megabytes (4 Megabytes on "Blue" development console)
- Video RAM: 1 Megabyte
- Sound RAM: 512 Kilobytes
- CD-Rom Buffer: 32 Kilobytes
- Operating System ROM: 512 Kilobytes
- PlayStation Memory Cards have 128 Kilobytes of space in an EEPROM

CD-ROM

Features:
- Originally Single Speed, later replaced with a Two Speed drive, with a maximum data throughput of 300 KB/s
- XA Compliant

External links

- [http://www.retro-style.co.uk/rarityguide.htm Online Playstation Game frequency guide]
- [http://kontek.net/pp/technical/psx/playstat.txt Unofficial Sony PlayStation FAQ] by James Dunford
- [http://www.gameinfowire.com/news.asp?nid=4396 Game Infowire story on 100 million shipments]
- [http://www.vidgames.com/ PS Galleria] Oldest PlayStation fan-site
- [http://www.gamingdump.com/ PS Talk] PlayStation Game Reviews Category:PlayStation Category:Sony consoles Category:PlayStation 1 peripherals Category:Fifth-generation video game consoles ko:플레이스테이션 ja:プレイステーション simple:PlayStation th:เพลย์สเตชั่น

PlayStation 3

The PlayStation 3 (PS3) is Sony's next generation video game console in the market-leading PlayStation series. The PlayStation 3 is slated for release in Spring 2006. It is the successor to the PlayStation 2 and will mainly compete against the Nintendo Revolution and Xbox 360. Sony has announced that the PS3 will be backward compatible with PS1 and PS2 games. At the moment, little more is known in public about the PS3 apart from its hardware specifications and reports that it will be based on open APIs for game development.

History

The PS3 was officially unveiled on May 16, 2005, at Sony's E³ conference, where the console was first shown to the public. The console was in non-operational form (except for `Fight Night Round 3`, which was played before an audience) at E³ and the Tokyo Game Show in September 2005, although videos of soon-to-be released games running on the hardware were presented, such as Metal Gear Solid 4 and Killzone 3.

Cost and release date

Currently, fans are hoping that information on price and release date will be announced on December 15th. More information may be made available at the 2006 Consumer Electronics Show (CES), held from January 5 to January 8 2006 in Las Vegas. The system's retail price has NOT been confirmed. Sony officials hinted that the PS3 will actually cost less than ¥50,000 in Japan, which is currently about US$418 (£244, €356). To compete with the upper price ceiling of the Xbox 360, the PS3 will most likely sell in the U.S. for $300-$400 (£232, €340). Sony Computer Entertainment president and "father of the PlayStation" Ken Kutaragi points out "It'll be expensive" and "I'm aware that with all these technologies, the PS3 can't be offered at a price that's targeted towards households. I think everyone can still buy it if they wanted to," said Kutaragi to a mostly Japanese crowd. "But we're aiming for consumers throughout the world. So we're going to have to do our best [in containing the price]". In contrast Kazuo Hirai, president of Sony Computer Entertainment America, says the PS3 will not be expensive and that it will be competitively priced against the Xbox 360. More recently, however, a report compiled by Merrill Lynch Japan and published in the business magazine Toyo Keizai estimated the total cost of producing a PS3 at launch time at ¥54,000, or US$451 (£263, €385) (the most expensive components, the Cell microprocessor, the RSX graphics processing unit, and the BD-ROM drive are each estimated to cost US$101 (£59, €86), with the additional cost going into the motherboard, RAM, wireless chipsets, and probably system-on-a-chip implementations of the PS1 and PS2 systems for backwards compatibility). Sony is already making efforts to control manufacturing costs, and may even go as far as dropping the system's planned integrated router to reduce expenses. In the same report, Merrill Lynch predicts that Sony will initially sell the PlayStation 3 for ¥44,800 (US$374) in Japan, and US$399 (£232, €340) in the USA, taking a financial loss (as it did with the PlayStation 2) in order to build the console's install base, losing as much as US$1 billion in the first year after release. Sony would later recoup this loss (as well as the Cell's US$1.8 (£1.01, €1.53) billion ( R&D expenses) through software licensing fees and future reduced hardware manufacturing costs. The report also notes that Microsoft may plan to disrupt the normal console business cycle by choosing to cut the price of the Xbox 360 at the same time the PS3 launches, which the report estimates would cause Sony to lose an additional US$730 (£426, €622) million in its second year, and US$457 million in its third. It is not known whether these hypothetical losses would be due to Sony being forced to further cut the price of the PS3 hardware, or suffering reduced revenue from game purchases due to stiff competition from Microsoft. For the consumer this means one will be able to buy a PlayStation 3 at a lower price than its actual manufacturing cost. In the same magazine, Ken Kutaragi was interviewed, and expressed little concern over the PS3's possibly high launch price, believing that customers would be willing to pay extra for a superior product, as they had in the past for the original PlayStation (¥39,800 vs. 12,500 for the Super Famicom). During its E3 presentation, Sony confirmed the PlayStation 3 will be available around early 2006. Reports quoting high-ranking Sony officials suggest the PlayStation 3 may be launched simultaneously in Japan and North America (not worldwide), a tactic that would differ significantly from the PlayStation (launched December 1994 in Japan and September 1995 in North America) and PlayStation 2 (launched March 2000 in Japan and October 2000 in North America). Some industry critics had speculated that due to many of its monumental technical challenges, Sony could delay the release of the PlayStation 3 up to early 2007. However, according to German website Gamefront, chairman and CEO of the European brand Sony Entertainment, Sir Howard Stringer has added confirmation to Sony’s E3 press release that the company indeed launches its next generation console in spring of 2006.

Hardware specifications

A simple comparison of the system architectures appears to indicate that the floating point capability of the PS3 is at the very least double that of the Xbox 360. It should be noted that this figure is based on the combined floating point capacity of the Cell microprocessor and the RSX GPU in the PS3 compared to the combined capacity of the Xenon CPUs and Xenos GPU in the Xbox 360. The amount of completely programmable floating point capacity afforded by the Cell microprocessor for general-purpose tasks, like procedural content generation and game physics, is much higher than that of the Xbox 360's CPU, while the floating-point performance of the two systems' GPUs, which are designed specifically for graphics rendering tasks, are somewhat closer to parity. According to a press release by Sony at the May 16 2005 E3 Conference, the specifications of the PlayStation 3 are as follows.

Central processing unit

3.2 GHz Cell processor:
- 1 PPE (PowerPC-derived)
- 32 KB L1 cache
- 512 KB L2 cache
- VMX vector unit (IBM's branding for AltiVec)
- Two hardware threads
- 7 SPE (Synergistic Processing Elements) vector processor units
- 256 KB SRAM local memory for each SPE
- 218 GFLOPS (billion floating point operations per second)
- 128×128-bit SIMD general purpose register files
- 234 million transistors
- 213 million available transistors due to the one disabled SPE
- 2.3 MB SRAM total (512 KB L2 cache and 1.79 MB SPE local memory) Each chip includes 8 SPEs, but one is most likely disabled to improve yields and reduce costs

Graphics processing unit

Custom "RSX" or "Reality Synthesizer" design co-developed by NVIDIA and Sony:
- Clocked at 550 MHz
- 1.8 TFLOPS (trillion floating point operations per second)
- Full high definition output (up to 1080p) x 2 channels
- Multi-way programmable parallel floating point shader pipelines
- 136 shader operations per cycle
- 100 billion shader operations per second (with CPU)
- 51 billion dot products per second (with CPU)
- 128-bit pixel precision offers rendering of scenes with high dynamic range imaging NVidia CEO Jen-Hsun Huang stated during Sony's pre-show press conference at E3 2005 that the RSX will be much more powerful than two GeForce 6800 Ultra video cards combined. Current industry speculation is that the RSX may be based on the G70 architecture used in NVidia's GeForce 7 Series GPUs which were introduced in June of 2005, but implementing many more parallel pixel and shader pipelines than any consumer PC GPU (NVidia's top-of-the-line GeForce 7800 GTX currently contains 24 pixel and 8 vertex pipelines), and clocked higher than any PC GPU based on G70 (with speculation that the RSX chip will be reworked using the new G71 architecture topping 650-700 MHz and an improved vertex pipeline support, as well as an increased 512mb memory) (again, the 7800 GTX is clocked at 430 MHz, compared to 550-600 MHz for the RSX). An nVidia spokesperson was quoted in PlayStation Magazine as saying that the 7800GTX "shares a lot of similar inner workings with the PS3's RSX chip, only it (the 7800GTX) isn't nearly as fast (as the RSX)."

Memory

- 256 MiB Rambus XDR DRAM clocked at CPU die speed (3.2 GHz)
- 256 MiB GDDR3 VRAM clocked at 700 MHz

Theoretical system bandwidth

- 25.6 GB/s GPU to XDR DRAM: 64 bits × 3.2 GHz
- 22.4 GB/s GPU to GDDR-3 VRAM: 128 bits × 700 MHz × 2 accesses per clock cycle (one per edge)
- 35 GB/s GPU to CPU (Aggregated 20 GB/s (write), 15 GB/s (read))
- 5 GB/s System Bus (Aggregated 2.5 GB/s upstream and downstream)
- 300 GB/s Cell EIB
- 76.8 GB/s Cell FlexIO Bus (44.8 GB/s outbound, 32 GB/s inbound) Since the RSX is connected to the XDR DRAM and GDDR3 RAM similar to a Turbo Cached GPU it can access both memory locations at the exact same time. This gives the RSX an effective 48GB/s when sending data to/from GPU and RAM.

Overall floating-point capability

VRAM.]] In a slide show at their E3 conference, Sony presented the "CPU floating point capability" of the PlayStation 3's Cell CPU, and compared it to other CPU's. The presentation shows that one PS3 Cell CPU alone is capable of 218 GFLOPS, compared to the Xbox 360's Xenon CPUs' 115 GFLOPS, and the floating point performance of an "average" PC CPU of about 8 GFLOPS. In their official press release, the same statistic regarding the PS3 as a whole was reported to be over 2.1 TFLOPS. The figures are likely rounded estimations. It was unclear how these numbers were exactly calculated, possibly based on addition of the floating point capabilities of the processing units in the Cell CPU and those of the RSX GPU. Floating point performance is a single-dimensional metric for measuring one computer against another. This means that it should not be taken as the only indicator of one game console's capabilities over another's, but rather as a comparison of one facet of their respective performance.

Audio/video output

- Supported screen sizes: 480i, 480p, 720p, 1080i, 1080p
- Two HDMI (Type A) outputs (Dual-screen HD outputs)
- Optical digital audio output
- Multiple analog outputs (Composite, S-Video, Component video)

Sound

- Dolby Digital 5.1, DTS, LPCM (DSP functionality handled by the Cell processor)

Storage

- Blu-ray Disc: PlayStation 3 BD-ROM, BD-Video, BD-ROM, BD-R, BD-RE, BD-RW.
- DVD: PlayStation 2 DVD-ROM, PlayStation 3 DVD-ROM, DVD-Video, DVD-ROM, DVD-R, DVD-RW, DVD+R, DVD+RW
- CD: PlayStation CD-ROM, PlayStation 2 CD-ROM, CD-DA, CD-DA (ROM), CD-R, CD-RW, SACD, SACD Hybrid (CD layer) SACD HD
- Detachable 2.5" hard drive with Linux pre-installed. Optional but not required for most games.
- Memory Stick standard/Duo and standard/mini slots
- CompactFlash Type I and II slot
- SD slot
- MMC slot for mp3s, ogg vorbis, nokia music, and aacs

Physical dimensions

- 32 cm (L) x 24 cm (W) x 8 cm (H)

Communications

- Three Gigabit Ethernet ports (Sony has indicated that because of cost reduction there is a possibility that the PlayStation 3 may act only as an accessory interface and hub and perhaps not as a router, as originally planned.)
- IEEE 802.11g Wi-Fi
- Bluetooth 2.0
- USB 2.0 (four front and two rear ports)

Controller

USB SCEI's press release indicates that controller connectivity to the PlayStation 3 can be provided via:
- 802.11g Wi-Fi. Integrated for mesh networking and connectivity with the PlayStation Portable
- IP networking (wired ethernet)
- USB 2.0 (wired)
- Bluetooth 2.0 (up to 7 controllers) The design of the controller has been likened to a boomerang or a banana by many observers (or even less flattering likenesses). However, many suggest that the controller, while a little un-traditional in contrast to the