Launching in 1995, the Playstation is home to hundreds of titles, including some instant classics like Final Fantasy, Gran Turismo, Metal Gear Solid, and Resident Evil. It is disheartening that only a small fraction of the library has managed to make their way onto Sony’s digital distribution gaming portal, the Playstation Store. In about 1.5 years of existence, the Playstation Store only has 20 “PS one Classics” titles. So what is the reason behind the slow output of PS one Classics on the Playstation Store? Let’s take a look at a couple of factors.
Lack of Resources
The Playstation Store is part of the Playstation Network. Sony’s online network for the Playstation 3 and PSP is still in the infant stages of development and a work-in-progress. Resources that can be used to put more content, including Ps one Classics, on the Playstation Store are being used up on other projects such as firmware updates, the Playstation Home and redesigning the Playstation Store itself.
Pricing Issues
Out of the 20 “PS one Classics” titles on the Playstation Store, only 2 are published by someone other than Sony. One of them, Castlevania: Symphony of the Night, is priced at $9.99 compared to the regular $5.99 pricing. In comparison, Nintendo 64 games are $10 on the Nintendo Wii’s Virtual Console (the equivalent to the Playstation Store). It makes you wonder if third-party companies want more money.
Different Region
The Playstation Store is operated differently on different regions. This is because countries have different laws and licensing agreements. The Playstation Store has three main regions to accommodate to: Europe, Japan and North America. As a result, the content for each region are completely different. While the Japanese Playstation Store has hundreds of PS one Classics, the store in North America only has a couple dozen.
PSP/Playstation 3 Compatibility
Unlike the Nintendo Wii’s Virtual Console, PS one Classics are designed for two systems. The titles can be played on both a Playstation 3 and PSP. You can even exchange game saves between the two systems so that you can continue the games you started at home while outside. Even though PS one Classics run on an emulator on both systems, they have to be tested for compatibility, which takes a lot of resources.
Focus on Playstation 3 Games
Compared to the Nintendo Wii and Xbox 360, the sales of Playstation 3 games are lacking. Sony is focusing their efforts on Playstation 3 games and not the games of the pasts and the one more reason is the demand of situs casino online terbaik which has made a huge impact on the sales of them. This explains for the lack of PS one Classics in addition to the removal of Playstation 2 backward compatibility for a cheaper Playstation 3 model. Sony wants gamers to buy the Playstation 3 for next-generation games.
Whatever the reasons may be, Sony is dropping the ball on releasing PS one Classics on the Playstation Store. There may be light at the end of the tunnel, however. Resources are freeing up now that the Playstation Home and the redesigned Playstation Store are close to completion. In addition, several third party titles have been listed on the ESRB, the official ratings website for videogames. PS one Classics on the Playstation Store is still a far cry from its true potential, however.
