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PSX2 Memory Card Recall Ordered
tlhIngan writes "Apparently, the PlayStation2 has shipped with several glaring bugs, that is prompting a recall of the 8 MB memory cards. News of the recall is here. It appears that there are problems with the DVD playback such as skipping video/sound, inability to recognize Japanese region DVDs, and dual layer/dual sided CDs take a while to recognize, if they recognize at all. For memory cards, playing Ridge Racer V will corrupt the 8 MB memory card, destroying the DVD driver (which will have to be reloaded from the utilities CD). Additional problems include overheating and freezing." Okay, it turns out that the cards aren't being recalled, but there's still come severe weird mojo going on here somewhere.
It'll be interesting to see how long these problems stay in people's memories. Sony's marketing, and the fawning Sony tends to get in the media, means that it's likely that in 6 months' time, all the PS2 launch problems will be forgotten.
Compare this with Sega's lot. The Dreamcast is an excellent, solid machine although of course not as cutting-edge as it was at its Japanese launch, oh so long ago -- but the launch problems, which were similar to those Sony are experiencing now, are still dragged out whenever the Dreamcast is discussed.
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A nice touch would be to label the chainsaw. Maybe something nice like `e-chainsaw'. Then you can bust down the door to their offices and hack off their e-heads with the e-chainsaw. Might make an e-mess.
Bad Mojo
Bad Mojo
"If you can't win by reason, go for volume." -- Calvin
Remember that when you think your getting a steal. DVD players are DVD players for a reason, as are consoles :)
On the other hand, i've left my dreamcast on all night long, and got up in the morning and played a few more hours of crazy taxi with no problems
Oh yeah, Chu Chu rocket is out, and online gaming is here with the DC. PLUS PlanetWeb announced V2.0 of the web browser that support jscript 2.0, MP3 Playback, and a bunch of other nifty features. You can read up more about it at http://dc.ign.com
Hey, i wouldn't mind a PS2, but i love my DC, already have a dvd player, and for christs sake i wouldn't want to use a game controller as a remote for my dvd player :)
Overheating is nothing new to the PSX world. I have a solution to share with my Japanese friends. I came up with this during a snow storm last year that caused our Playstation to be on for about 18 hours straight.
1) Get one of those 14" X 14" Rubbermaid sink tubs
2) Fill it with ice cubes and cold water
3) Put a glass baking pan across the top so it sits inside the tub. The water should be just underneath the glass.
4) Put your Playstation inside the baking pan
5) Enjoy some icy cold Parrapa the Rapper
Note: It is possible that this will only work while you are very, very high. It was not tested under sober conditions.
-B
Here's a theory for you - Sony wants to stop exports of the PS2, right? So, they release PS2's with memory cards that have a known problem - for all of the Japanese consumers, it's an easy fix - go down to the nearest store (which will have the "fixed" cards already, manufactured before the launch) and trade in your old card for the new one.
For import users though, you're pretty much stuck - it says on the box that you can't export them, so how do you think they'll treat someone from the US looking for an upgrade?
I estimate four rounds of "buggy" memory cards to shake out most of the import market, staggered every few weeks.
"There is more worth loving than we have strength to love." - Brian Jay Stanley
The release of the PS2 is not a Microsoft-type, bug filled get it out the door now type thing. If that were they case, they would be doing a global launch. Instead, I think it is just some seriously powerful technology having some teething problems. Think about it, putting together a system with the power of some SGIs isn't an easy process. Neither is getting a 300MHz processor into a small box. I'm surprised that there haven't been more problems then there have. Sony makes quality products, and I've heard an interview with their CEO in the US, that their primary concern is quality. It may be later, may not be the fastest or best, but will be high quality. It does make sense, however. Even if you don't read the specs for something, if you just pick up a Sony anything, you'll usually be fine, be it a TV, a computer. They have an image to uphold, and I'm sure they'll get it worked out. Second, all you people saying that a console like this is not worth it, that eventually PCs will do it too, should buy a clue. Even taking into account the current massive growth in computer performance (doubling every year instead of every 18 months) a computer as powerful as the PS2 won't be out for another two years minimum, (if you go by theoretical polygon performance. You're talking 15M polys for a GeForce and 75M for a PS2. They're both grossly inflated, but still, the PS2 has a better chance of reaching its high because games can be programmed extremely close to the metal to take advantage of every naunce of the architecture.) And even then it won't cost the $150 that the PS2 will by then. Take a look at the N64. The thing is an obsene 5 years old, but is still chuging. It blew away the PCs of the time, and is still pretty impressive in terms of graphics, especially the new high-res games. And thats from a crappy console. Even PSX games (the PSX has a 33MHz proc) wouldn't look that bad if they only had texture filtering. There is a correct tool for everything, and if its ultimate gaming you're going after, look no farther than the PS2.
A deep unwavering belief is a sure sign you're missing something...
Looks like Sony is taking a page from Microsoft's marketing playbook. Pretty box, but..no thanks. Time to buy a Dreamcast. :)
Well considering that even if I wanted to get a PS2 I couldn't because they only sell them in Japan and you cannot legally export them. Plus I would rather not have all the technical manuals writen in Japanese characters.
On a related note I have looked at the selection of games for the Dreamcast and all I can say is it's mostly eye candy. I really don't care that I can see realistic interpretations of people kicking and punching the shit out of others. I like the fact that square is releasing at least 2 titles in the Final Fantasy series and other RPGs for the PS2. Until Dreamcast has anything but games that seem to be like crappy copies of their earlier titles with better graphics rendering I won't care. take it for what it's worth but I want a good and very viable reason to buy something (yes $200 is a big deal for me so I like to get all the facts you compare apples and oranges with an already existing product with a partially avaible one).
Slashdot social engineering at it's finest
Just a sec, we can't really hold Netscape responsible... just think.....
UNIX(tm)?.....AmigaDos?.....MS-DOS?....Windows?. ....These go back a lot further than Navigator, than the Web even, and they've all had numerous patch releases over time! It's just unfortunate that buggy first releases have become the de facto standard in the software industry.
But that's off topic. How are Sony going to go about patching/fixing these problems? I guess you could flash the firmware, but that won't solve fundamental hardware defects (heat problems etc.) Are these problems limited to the memory cards, or do they affect the console as a whole? Is this the end for a console/software packege developed in tandem?
As far as software/OS problems go, I suppose putting a well-known and tested OS on a console may have to become the future of console development if this keeps happening. Seems Sega may have got something right for once. (And before the flames start, I didn't say CE was any good..)
It seems that fundamental console design issues may need a radical overhaul here, as this is precisely the sort of headache that most people buy consoles (as opposed to computers) to avoid.
- "How do we do it? Volume!" - The Bursar of Unseen University.
My wife is an avid console gamer, so we have several game systems and probably several hundred games. While I'm not familiar with recalls of any of the systems*, she's certainly run into stability problems.
From our experience, game systems seem to do okay unless compact discs are involved. Somehow basing a system around a CD drive leads to overheating problems. On the other hand, it allows for some visually stunning games.
* From what I understand the early U.S. Dreamcasts had some problems, but I don't know too much about that. My wife mainly plays RPGs, and there aren't enough for the Dreamcast yet for her to buy it.
"Be Happy or Die." -- AoN
1. Dreamcast had a buttload of problems when it launched, both hardware & software. The US launch saw resolutions to problems on both sides. We got the goods good because we were patient.
2. Anyone who owned a Playstation before model #(I forget, but I'm sure someone will help me out here) will remember all the problems the PSX had with overheating, scratching cds, and the laser breaking, etc. And look at it now: the very model of what a gaming console should be?
Erf, I'll shut up now
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Peace,
Lord Omlette
AOL IM: jeanlucpikachu
[o]_O
This was quickly glossed over by the Sony marketing spinners.
I was execting bugs with the PSX II for the same reason, they have rushed it out and will release an updated version for the European market as we are more likely to complain about the quality.
Also at the price, even with them losing approx. 150 dollars per machine they will have to have had very tight development and production costs which is an indication of probably quality issues, ie. you pretty much get what you pay for. Especially with the unit coming in below cost compared to a lot of DVD players.......
Working for the (other) man
Couldn't the tendency to overheat be used to thaw out the frozen games?
that the technology in DVDs used to keep people from watching them..is keeping people from watching them.
First, the DVDs can't be played because of a technically unnecessary region coding scheme (read the article if you haven't). Second, the decrypt key is getting memory fscked and needs to be reloaded from scratch. Both these problems are the PS2 not having the technical muscle to jump through the content control hoops the DVD CCA has created. This situation will only get worse as more and more "features" and complexity are added to control your access to media. Get used to it, now you can take it for granted that the version1 of *anything* will suck (if only because of the legal limitations created by content control lobbyists)
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