PlayStation2 Action Value Pack

I couldnt believe the hype it was almost too good to be true. I read most of the reviews here and decided to splurge for a Playstation 2. I found it odd how at most local retailers and on-line retailers required you to buy bundle packs and additional accessories. I decided to get it anyways, although my wallet thought otherwise. The Playstation 2 has a nice sleek design, the additional add-ons and stuff like being able to play DVD movies make it nice, the games are nice, the controllers are the same, but nice, the picture quality is nice. If you can't see a pattern here...I'll explain it: The Playstation 2, while a good console, just isnt what it could be. I was expecting another form of a god, since this was from one of the leaders in entertainment, Sony. What I got was; very very slow load times. Graphics were nice, but you can't expect much from first generation games, but they could've easily been better. I noticed there is no support for my 16:9 widescreen HDTV. The Playstation2 is very very delicate, if you walk near it or if the bass is too loud the game/movie will skip and possibly scratch a disc(i've returned a couple discs already). Audio is not crisp and clear, that could also be the fact of the first generation games. The controllers have no new features. There is no broadband adapter built in and no hard drive as well. The list goes on, you maybe saying I'm expecting too much or being picky with details. But the way I see it, for 450$, I should be expecting everything and so much more. I am not dissing the machine, all I'm saying is its only worth 149$ max. So far I mainly use it to play old ps1 games and DVD movies...as far as gaming and new features has gone, I'm not too impressed. Anyways, if this keeps up, in about a week or so I'm gonna return it. That way I wont have to save up for the Xbox.

I know many people take a look at the hardware specifications and automatically think the PS 2 tops the Dreamcast. Well the truth is as follows: The PS 2 does have a CPU capable of processing upto 12 million polygons a/sec, while the Dreamcast is able to process up to 6 million polygons a/sec. But the difference is that the PS 2 has a preset 4mb of video ram while the Dreamcast has 16mb which it can allocate to video ram as necessary. Why is that a problem you ask? Well 5 million Polygons will take up 3.3 megs of VRAM + 1.2 megs to display the data + the textures to place onto the polygons. In the end, the PS 2 is barely able to produce 3 million polygons a/sec and its' peak polygon game is Madden 2001. The dreamcast on the other hand, is able to process as much as 6 million polygons a sec. Ofcourse, Sony has found a way around this by updating the cache two times a sec, tying the Dreamcast at 5 to 6 Polygons /asec. Then, we get to the point of graphic quality. The textures the PS 2 creates flow directly though the console without being compressed, which only gives you about 10 megs of textures. Sega, on the other hand can only transfer 5 megs of compresses textures, which later extract to show as much as 25 or 30 megs of textures. Overall, both the PS 2 and the DC produce the same peak Polygon rate, but the Dreamcast has all most 3 times the texture capacity of the PS 2. Condering the PS2 costs 3 times as much and produces textures 3 times worse than the Dreamcast, it is a shame to Sony and a huge disappointment... All the information is perfectly legitimate and was created using non-biased reviews and actual specs from the manufacturers websites.

I can't stand to see somebody say that this package sucks or that the dreamcast is way better. Esspecially when they probably havn't even used the ps2 yet. I am not a sony freak but a man of logic. I have to say yes the dreamcast is of course better than the psx or n64 etc. But the specs for the ps2 clearly show that this is a very polygon pushing machine. Lets compare- dvds hold 4.7 gb of space but dc disks only hold 1.5. Hmm, and lets compare processors, 300 mhz for ps2 and 200 mhz for dreamcast. Also the amount of ram in the dreamcast is 32 mb, well you might think gee thats the same as the ps2, but wait, what type of ram is this... RAm in the dreamcast is standard sd (synic D ram)ram which is very common in new computers right now. But in the ps2 it has ddr (double data rate) ram which is twice the speed. And how can you have sinky smooth graphics when you are not using any graphical enhancements like anti aliasing which takes away all the little jackies that you may see in many older systems. But what really matters in the end is the quality of the games, and right now is a good time for sega, but it is not the best time. SCEA and SCEJ have many friends ie-many developers on their side to take advantage of the ps2's power. With the not so good reputation of the Sega Saturn developers have gotten scared of sega. I am not saying that DC has bad games or anything but that Sega Soft corp can only develpo and think of so many games at a time so they pretty much rush many games, and the remaining developers are very small. But with the ps2 they have all the big developers. I was reading the "game of the year" awards on gamespot.com awile ago and seen that there were many DC games that had gotten awards, one was Shenmue which has astounding graphics which really pushes the DC. It got many graphics and story awards. I then checked the worst games of the year awards and there was Shenmue. It was just not fun. Maybe some ps2 games did not get the graphical awards yet but at least they are fun :). Just the amount of power advantages that you get on the ps2 over the dreamcast makes this price for the ps2 bundle very reasonable. Think logic.

Everyone seems to be comparing the Dreamcast with the PS2 and making some legitimate gripes. However, I ask this of people... if the PS2 came out before the Dreamcast, would you be making the same gripes? If the PS2 came out over a year ago, I'm sure they would have the full capabilities that Sega presents and then some. Also, many complain about no internet connection, etc... The PS2 is capable. What Sony has not done is sell the components to make it a realization. It's all a marketing ploy so they can build up hype and sales. Give the PS2 a year, and it will surpass the Dreamcast in gameplay, selection, and capability. I personally found the PS2 attractive because of its backward compatibility and the ability to play DVD's. I will say that the games are quite good for being such a young system. Also, the DVD playing is sufficient. Although the controls are awkward because you have to use the analog controllers, it still suffices as a DVD player. There is a third party remote, but I don't trust third part equipment. I'll wait for something better. As some have said, the vent is quite loud at times. The hum will be annoying at first esp. if you place it on a hard surface, but it's something you'll get used to. Should you get the PS2? Yes. Should you get it now? No. The price will definitely go down with time, and it'll be more affordable then. Also, there will be more games later this year. Also, for those who don't have a DVD player, this system will keep you entertained two-fold. If you're going to compare it to the Dreamcast, ask yourself where the PS2 will be in equal time. You can't compare a 5-year-old to a new born and automatically say that the 5-year-old will be smarter in the long run just because it can read and the newborn can't.

This is the biggest dissipointment for a gaming system ever! I mean come on.. Number one.. It's WWWWAAAAAAYYYYY over priced.... espically if your trying to soup it up to the Max (which isn't very far in my opinion) like for instance.. Ps2 ($300) + second control ($34?)+ memory card ($32) + at least 3 good games (nearly $100) ect..... This gets you to a purchace of nearly $500! Who has that kind of money? Dreamcast is SSSOOOOOOO much better. No i'm not doing this because i hate sony, sony has made some (very few) good games on the PSX... But still compare that to Dreamcasts arsinal: Sonic Adventure, Space Channel 5, NFL 2k1, NBA 2k1, Capcom vs SNK, Marve Vs Capcom 2, Crazy Taxi, Chu Chu Rocket, Ect... PS2 Could never Hope to have stuff like that.. really... And plus, Segas been out alot longer than sony in the major gaming industry. They Know the right steps to take. I'll Say that the PS2 the graphics aren't horrible, but some are just plain crap. I can't distiguish the difference between its PSX counterpart games. The Dreamcast Graphics however, are Liquid Smooth.... I'm not kidding.. And if you're not a sega fanatic or something (how could you? =/) Then I recomend that you wait for gamecube or X-box. Those 2 will garanteed have sony bowing before those other companys... Seriously......

PLEASE NOTIFIE ME WHEN THE PLAYSTATION2 GAME IS IN

Well, finally I got the PS2(March 2001) after 6 months of waiting(hunting). And here I give you MY OPINION. First off the system was really...really hyped up, and it is not what really PEOPLE say it was going to be, but it is not far away from that either. It is great...the specs it has are amazing!!! Yes, better than the Dreamcast. One thing I REALLY HATE is how they compare the system to the Dreamcast. I mean HELLO PEOPLE....the Dreamcast has been out longer than the PS2!!!! Of course it is going to have more games and yes, maybe more fun than the PS2. But that doesn't mean it is going to stay like that forever. Dreamcast has CD,internet capablities...very nice!!! PS2 has the following... DVD, CD, PS1 and USB ports, way better. With the USB ports in there, you have many great things comming for the system in the future..like Internet(could be faster than Dramcast's 56K!!!). People complaint about the fan on how loud it can be...c'mon man give me a break on this!!! I' am not defending or mocking any system...just basing my opinion on the REAL facts that are out there. I bet you that 70% of people who talk trash about the PS2 own a Dreamcast. If you happen to own both then good for you!!!! For game availability at this point I give the edge to Dreamcast...but Sony will make up for all of that very soon. Unfortunately I got the system at a point were SEGA had made a very IMPORTANT DECISION!!! SEGA IS GOING TO SUPPORT THE DREAMCAST FOR ONE MORE YEAR!!! This is true, not at all a rumor. Sega is no longer going to support the Dreamcast as much as they do now within a year and that is because they are going to turn themselves into a game developing company only, no more systems from SEGA!!!! That means that we are going to see VIRTUA FIGHTER on PS2(for sure) and maybe SONIC on PS2 and/or different SEGA games on PS2 and in different future platforms(DOLPHIN, X-BOX) So this year the PS2 will have better and brigther things to make up for that 1 advantage SEGA had over them(game availabilty wise)!!! We are going to see later this year for the PS2...GT3, METAL GEAR 2, SILENT HILL 2, RESIDENT EVIL on PS2 and many...many great games. Just give it a year and you will see that it will start to come out with the 2nd generation games that will take more advantage of the system's capabilities. As far as the controller goes, it shouldn't be very hard to get used to. Unless you have never played PS1 before. The demo it comes with does suck. Some great games out there that you might wanna check out are: Teken Tag, Madden 2001, Fifa 2001, Knockout Kings 2001, Armored Core 2, SSX, Star Wars, The Bouncer..etc..etc But in the long run..you are the gamer, the buyer and the one with the cash...check and see for your-self what you like. Then you can really see what everybody is yapping about!!!! The last point is, at the end you are the one who is going to have fun with your new system regarless of what anybody says, right?....PS2? Yes...it's worth it.

ill tell you right now Ps2 is better than the DC. How do you know? you ask. well i own both sytems and i own Dead Or Alive 2 for both sytems and Ps2 has a special shading technic that makes it look like it has about 25 more bits note: the bits for dc and ps2 are the same. so ps2 is way better than the dreacast. and i see a lot of people ripen of the DVD player. What the heck...? a dvd player is a dvd player!! i dont ask for much. just a smooth picture. in which the ps2 has. so the dvd player is good. unless you think you got to have the best in the world. .... and also the x-box is not going to be better than the ps2 its going to be pretty much the same. but the xbox you gotta buy a dvd player seprate with it.and they arent gona have any good games for it eiter. so i wuld forget about it. the ps2 is goin to be at top for a while.