
“I don’t own a PS3 right now but I just heard about the new PS3 Slim so I’m thinking it’s time to join the bandwagon. I have a good collection of PS2 games though, so can the new PS3 Slim play PS2 games?”
The backwards compatibility was taken out of previous PS3 models and there were some rumors early on that this new PS3 Slim would be backwards compatible but Sony had since squashed those rumors.
John Koller is the marketing director for SCEA and here’s what he said about the whole issue during a Kotaku interview:
Now that we’re at a point where we’re three years into the lifecycle of the PS3, there are so many PS3 disc-based games that are available that we think and noticed this from our research that most consumers that are purchasing the PS3 cite PS3 games as a primary [reason]
And it’s not just like 50 or 60 percent. It’s well into the 80 or 90 percentile range who are purchasing it for PS3 [games]. We do know that there are next gen consumers wanting to come over the the PS3. Most of those are consumers who have not utilized their PS2 for a little while and they’re ready to jump into the PlayStation 3

{ 205 comments… read them below or add one }
Next Comments →
I have a PS3 160GB. Will Sony in the future make some sort of accesory that can be installed into the system and allow the PS3 to play PS2 games?
That’s ridiculous they want me to hold on to my ps2 just because they think we don’t want to play ps2 games anymore? Backwards compatability should be the bare minimum you should expect from the next gen console. It’s not like they can’t do it. Really disappointing sony :/
Indeed… This whole lack of backwards compatibility is the one thing which is holding me back from a PS3 purchase. I have too many grand games which I still enjoy playing to want to sacrifice the ‘console’ slot in my meager study for a console which did/could/should still take the PS family media.
I have some good news for everyone, I just bought a new PS3 slim and for fun attempted to put a PS2 game in it, and what do you know it worked. I tried about 10 other games all worked flawless, so I am not sure why Sony says they are not backward compatible but has anyone actually bothered trying, I can tell you it works…
I’ll upload a youtube video to prove it too.
Rejoice……
Dear David Kong, that is really good news. I would be grateful for your uploading the video. Please, post the link when it’s done.
This sony is making a lot of f–ing shit over there they are f–king bitches that don’t know what they wanna do cause everyone wants a console that you can still play old console games,and this is a reason that I prefer to stay with my ps2 and keep playing my nice games as buy a ps3 and cannot play them any more.
The Ps3 should be able to play Ps2 games period. I mean it works for x-box and wii….so y the fuck wud Ps3 not have it? its jus plain unfair….. i have to buy a Ps2 again to play my old games,….sony u guys suck.
Ok so when I heard bout the ps3 slim i was so excited, i mean finally a ps3 that is reasonably priced. But then i found out. No way am i buying a ps3 without bc i mean there are still great games coming out on ps2 and i still want to be able to play my ps2 games in the comfort of my living room (ps2 will go out to the shed). I am really disappointed with Sony. I would happily pay an extra $50 maybe even $100 for bc.
So they should have 2 i think 120 non bc and 120 bc.
sony ps3 slim right on the backside of the box says backwards compatability. so as to say (limited) i might add but can still play ps2 games im sure, and rumor is some ps1 games holla yes, i just bought one today and asked after stupid judgement and they told me it couldnt so i was mega pissed untill i read the back of the box lol.
I can play ps2 games on my ps3 slim 120gb hdd
is any software comming out that will allow the slim’s to be BC? or do we just have to wait for pigs to fly???
just bought a 250gig slim… it has NO backwards comptability and im pretty upset about this because i didn’t know it upfront.
I’ve just tryed Final FantasyX and I had a pop-up telling that this model of PS3 (Slim 120g) cannot read PS2 games.
And yes I’ve install the PS2 comp prog that can download on the PSNetwork…
PS-3 should be compatible with PS-2 software. This is absurd. I was told at Best Buy that the software was compatible. Now I get home and it is not so far in 7 games tried. That just stinks. I am considering taking the machine back.. Sony is FORCING the purchase of new games for the sheer sake of money! I see. Forget the consumer.
For Sony to suggest 80% t0 90% of people don’t care about backward compatibility is either utter stupidity or utter lies. I certainly would like to be able to play my ps2 games on my ps3 and i reckon at least 99% of playsation owners would too. For many reasons but mostly because my favourite games are still on ps2. But the problem is this, Sony are still making most of their profit from ps2 sales. They’re losing big money with tv’s and the ps3. If they made the ps3 backward compatible they’d be cutting their own throats. The fall in value of western currencies against the yen has kept the production cost of the ps3 much higher than Sony would like and all the delays in the ps3 release gave xbox and wii a massive share of the market other consoles never had before. The compatibilty problem is a hardware issue rather than a software issue anyway. The original 60gb ps3 had a “ps2″ chip all the others don’t have. Until Sony can dramatically bring down the production cost of the ps3 (to be able to compete with xbox and wii) they will never make them backward compatible. Because doing so would cost them far too much money in ps2 sales.
Now this is something I see in all next gen consoles, not so much the wii, but the nintendo is guilty to this too… with their handheld systems.
PS3 slim no BC
Xbox 360 Some BC
Wii Yes to BC
DSi No gba slot
DS and DS light BC, but only to the GBA era… which is bullshit, I got tonnes of GB and GB colour games which I can no longer play…
long story short: no company seem to care about what their fans had 5 years ago and say: “fuck you, sell those and buy these!”
You can play ps2 and ps1 games on the new slim. Just pop it in and see.
i wish people like stephen ^ wouldnt keep saying ‘You can play ps2 and ps1 games on the new slim. Just pop it in and see.’
it doesnt. period. sony officials have said in press conferences around the world leading up to its release ‘ PS3 slim will not be backwards compatible.’
go f*cking die
I just got a PS3 for Christmas. I was Hoping it would be like my Xbox and play old games online (seeing as I can’t get the network peice for my PS2) and I was told “This PS3 is not compatable with the PS2 software.” But yet I throw in my old PS1 copy of Diablo and works just fine. all I can say is WTF?!? How can you make it play damn PS1 games just like PS2, but A PS3 can play PS1 but not PS2. That makes -78% sense.(yes, that is a negative.)
OK I just bought a PS3 slim 120g Slim and it definately DOES play ps1 & ps2 games. Its got software that installs a memory card, PS1 & PS2 style, onto the HDD. I only bought this console a few days ago so many the newer slims work.
ok scrap PS2 games. Just completely was stupid and put the ps1 game in again. It DOES play ps1 game still however. Reading through the manual, it says that it can play ps1 games but may not play correctly and that it CANT play PS2 games at all.
Well to STOP the arguing… Each party is right.
The PS3 is AND is not backward compatible.
The PS3 WILL run and play PS1 games, HOWEVER, it will NOT run or play PS2 games. I took the video, and I will post it to YouTube to prove it if needed.
Really people are bitching about this still…………..?
Firstly if they made it 100% BC then it would cost more and would most likely have a higher fail rate, and last i read the 60gig model is the most likely model to get the YLOD (yellow light of death) and is the only model to have BC.
So you know what if your gonna get a ps3 so you can play ps3 games, watch movies use it as a multimedia center then go for it and if you only want to play your ps2 game well i suggest you hang on to your ps2 and stop bitching about ps3 and how it doesnt have BC.
I have the same question will the ps3 120gb play ps2 in the future like what microsoft has done was make a software emulation will sony do the same
Well i’ve read all these comments and agree with all of them lol. I would like to be able to play ps2 games on ps3. 1: because i bought some older i wanted to play again right after i got slim 2: but i still have 2 ps2s so its not that much of a problem. I have 1 that is 8 years old and a ps2 slim that is 4 years and the older one works better lol to my suprise. But i’m neutral it would just be easier if new ps3s were BC.
I can play ps2 games on my ps3 slim.
The main reason why Sony took BC out of the PS3 is because the PS2 is still selling well. So i think that the PS3 really will play the ps2 games in the future because there is a PS/PS2 memory card utility in it and why would sony make it for no reason?
Mine PS2 is broken and i dont want to sell my games yet or buy a new PS2 because i just bought the PS3 so all we can really do is just hope for an update or something…
dude y ps3 we wanna play ps2 games sheesh
Heres how it is PS3 SLIM is PS1 bc but not PS2 this is because PS2 games take more to run a.k.a. costs more to make the software so SONY dosent want to spend the extra money which is I know GAY but atleast u can play ps1 games and download them off PSN and thats another thing atleast SONY could make PS2 ( off subject, and like a games on demand thing like xbox360 for PS3 ) games downloadable so that u could get your favorite ones
IM on my PS3 right now
i tryed it and it didnt work :/
Heard some rumors that PS2 BC on PS3 coming at the end of 2010 but i dont know if theyre true…
really? nobody figured this out? its because they’re still making HUGE money off of the ps2. ever notice how at every target, walmart, etc, they still have an entire section devoted to ps2 slim and ps2 games? they sell the ps2 for $99! if they make the ps3 backwards compatible (to ps2, ps1 games work just fine), they lose all that money they were making on the side.
on the other hand, sony HAS copyrighted the “emotion engine”, which is a “ps2 emulator” for the ps3 (there was a chip inside the original ps3 that acted as the ps2 processor, but they removed it to save/make money). who knows when that will come out though…i heard about that before the ps3 slim was released…still waiting. not like i have a grand collection of ps2 games, but it would be nice to play something when i get bored of codmw2. lol
btw, add me on psn! psn: doinyamom
I honestly don’t see the big deal, I have a PS2 and I plan on purchasing a PS3. Everyone’s so concerned with the PS3′s lack of BC compatibility. Why not do what I did when the DS came out with lack of Gameboy Color compatibility? Or what I did with the DSi when it lacked a GBA slot. I kept my old Gameboy Advance AND my DSi. That way, whenever I crave a classic, I just dust off my old Gameboy Advance and go nuts. Exactly what I’m going to do with my PS2, and if it breaks, there are still people around who can fix it
i have ps3 250g and i got really pissed when none of my ps2 games worked.
another thing, why does the ps3 even have a ps2 memory when it cant play the games???
Its mostly because ps2 still sells well and when it stops sellin they release the ps2 BC. Or at least thats what i heard…
it just sucks ass! i got my 120gb slim 2 days ago. So today I decided to try playin some metel gear solid 3 on it. it didnt work! Then I tried Sly 3 and kingdom hearts 2. still nothing, and those are pretty well known games. i had hoped to get some of the online stuff from MGS3. i heard that there are certain modle types that are BC. That might be why some PS3′s don’t have it. If you dont have any of these codes next to your serial #, then your just like me. SCREWED. CECHA01; CECHB01; CECHE01
just this christmas i bought a ps3 250g. it says on the back that the model has limited backward compatibility. i would like to try playing ps2 games on it but am worried i would ruin either the system or disk. or would it just tell me it isn’t compatible?
>Its mostly because ps2 still sells well and when it stops sellin they release the ps2 BC
But PS3 more profitable! Where is a logic? I’ll buy PS3 and buy only license games for PS2, Ps3, because there is no loader or hacked firmware for PS3. Also, because blu-ray writer costs a fortune.
I want it only to play Silent Hill and MGS series. Sony disappoints me.
I think we all get the point: Sony is being annoying and we’re all upset that you cant play ps2 games on the ps3 slim. Can we just get over it??? Yeah, I guess Im disappointed, but cmon, theres no use crying over it! Just wait and see what’ll happen. Gawd.
Whats going on here! In an earlier post there was disscution that PS2 games work onthe PS3 so I’ve bought aNEW PS3 slim tried a PS2 game on it and It didnt work! Sony have really messed up now
sad face
Im sure as said earlier, that the slim will soon be BC. Why else would it still have the internal PS2 memory card? There is word that it should AT LEAST, be out before the new year. Just hold on to your PS2 till then.
I hope Sony does something about the BC soon. I want to play many ps2 games on my 120 GB PS3 slim. I am not buying a ps2! At least put ps2 games on the psn for us fans to buy. And I want Manhunt for my ps3 slim. Don’t make me sell it, because I will!……..well I won’t sell my ps3 slim, but I will be dissapointed. Sony give it up with the ps2 already and move on.
i have ps3 slim 120 gb, it said on the manual that it can’t play ps2 games, but it can play ps1 games, and it have ps2 memory, but my ps3 can’t play ps2 or ps1 games,,,suck…
I am a diehard plystation gamer and have been since the introduction of the ps1. I am one of the poor bastards that waits overnight in line for the new models (ps2&ps3). I waited in line overnight and paid just under $700 for the 60 gig ps3. I absolutely love my ps3, but after playing it on daily basis since buyin it I got the dreaded (YLOD). When I got my new ps3 I gave my ps2 to one of my less fortunate freinds that didnt have one of thier own. I have roughly 30 or so ps2 games that my kids play all the time, and a few I still play. I am absolutly furious that there is no option to buy a new ps3 that has bc. I will not buy another ps2 or ps3 without bc. I will have to keep watchin eBay and take my chances on giving a perfect stranger my money for a used 60gig system, instead of giving Sony money for a halfassed system. If Sony wants to keep making money for ps2 related hardware, they should atleast offer a new slim model with all the features the 60gig had for a higher price. I personally would pay 100 more for those features on the new slim model. I know for $100 more I could just buy a ps2, but I really don’t need another console clogging up my tv stand and the ps3 offered smoothing for ps2 games that the ps2 system doesn’t offer which gave the games a better apperance on high def tv’s. So unless Sony offers a ps3 with bc in the future they lost at least one diehard ps fan boy along with all the money I waste on there products ( at least 3-4 games a month minimum).
I still have PS2 slim and I just got PS3 Slim(120GB) last week ago. I was little upset about that you can’t play PS2 games on PS3 slim. Well, I have PS2, but the screen flickers when I play PAL games. Doesn’t flickers on PS2(NTSC) games, only flicker at PS2 intro thing. So I have this PAL PS2 game and I want play it so bad, but the screen flicker whenever I play it. I can’t see the screen properly. I got the game 5 years ago, and I still haven’t finish it. Now that I have PS3, I want to play it there since the screen won’t flicker. It’s too bad it won’t play. I tried downloading the PS2 add-on thing for my PS3 to play PS2 games, but it doesn’t work
Sony is just making excuses for a sub par product. Saying that 90% of people don’t want to play old ps2 games is completely ignoring the very high replay value in a lot of old games. Screw you, Sony. Screw you.
PS: You used to be cool, Sony. =__(
I also think its crap that ps3 will play ps1 games but not ps2
My guess is this, the all ps3s is bc but there’s something in the software blocking ps2 games until later updates japanese americans are smarter then we think I noticed the ps2 memory and I’m sure the BC is alrede installed just blocked as of right now
The Ps3 slim with 250 gb can. this is how you do it. go to game card utility (PS/PS2) if you havent made storage for PS or PS2, go to create one. you dont need acessories. I just made one tonight. Then Put The game in, and it should play !
Next Comments →