Should I Get PS2 Slim or XBox 360?

I'm not sure getting both of them is an option, but I'll give you some reasons why I want each system individually. Note, I already have a PS3 and PS4, so I won't be missing out on any modern games either way.

The reason I want a PS2 is for the classics, such as DMC series, MG series, Kingdom Hearts series, Spider-Man series, Final Fantasy Series, X-Men Games, Jak & Dexter and Sly Series. I'll probably pick up the Metal Gear 20th Anniversary Collection, so I can get most games in series. PROS: I can get to play the classics. CONS: I can't play DVDs on high quality and I'll miss out on Modern Xbox exclusives.

The reason I want a Xbox 360 is for the exclusives: The Halo Series, Fable Series, Forza, Gears of War, Plants VS Zombies Garden Warfare, Titanfall, Batman Begins ETC. So, as you can tell, Xbox 360 has some great exclusives I would like to try out too. PROS great exclusives, can play modern DVDs in higher quality then PS2 CONS miss out on classics and PS2 exclusives.

The PS2 costs $59 Australian Dollars, and the XBOX costs about $118 Australian. So, I'm leaning more towards the XB360, but I'd like your feedback. THANKS!

You can't go wrong with either. They both have really great libraries, but if you've been playing cross platform games on PS3 and haven't touched anything from the PS2/Xbox/GCN era, I'd suggest the PS2.

The PS2's game library outshines all other consoles in both quantity and quality. You just can't go wrong with it, unless you only want to play shooters and RTS's.

@believer258:

Well, you and chaser's reply is making me lean more forward to the PS2. There are great games on that console, but I'll wait for more replies. Thanks for the input.

Based on the list of games you mentioned, I would definitely say go with the 360. There are HD collections for either PS3 or 360 for DMC 1-3, all of Metal Gear, Kingdoms hearts 1 and 2, Final Fantasy X and X2. all the Jak and Daxter games, and all the Sly games. That pretty much covers all the PS2 games you mentioned aside from Spider-man and X-men.

In terms of the 360 games you mentioned, some are available on PC (don't know if you have a gaming PC), but most you can really only play on 360. In terms of overall exclusives libraries the PS2 has a much better selection, but out of just the games you mentioned almost all of them have better looking versions available on PS3, not to mention it would likely be much easier to track those down than secondhand PS2 games.

So for those reasons I recommend a 360.

I think the games that you could play on the PS2 would be more interesting. You can already get the same or similar experiences on the PS3 with what you could on an Xbox.

but also maybe check out what PS2 games are available on the PS3 with a US PSN account (you might need to use a US ISP or something though, but that's easy to do) or something because if those games are available there you might just be able to do both? idk

@ll_exile_ll:

I've got the Metal Gear Solid Legacy Collection on PS3, so I shouldn't really worry about that. As for the other games that do have HD collections, well, you're right about that. Most PS2 games are playable on PS3 via ports.

I've got a AW Gaming PC, so I could play Halo on that, but Fable and the other exclusives I mentioned aren't on PC. Right now, they're both great choices. However, might likely go with PS2.

You can get every Final Fantasy from 1-10 on the PS3 now, through PSN and with the HD release of FFX/X-2. The only one you can't get right now is FF12. Ditto for MGS, you can get all those on PSN. The Kingdom Heart series of PS2 games are very good as are the Jak & Daxter games. I think Jak & Daxter is again on the PSN but it's not a great verison on the Vita at least, not sure how it handles on the PS3.

With Playstation Now coming out as well you might end up seeing all those games on your PS4. And there are those rumours knocking about that they'll patch in PS1 and PS2 emulation on the PS4. So you could end up buying a PS2 and have it made redundant in a few months. Already most of the games you want to play you can play on your PS3 via the PSN.

If I was in your place I'd get a 360 for it's exclusives and just hope/wait it out that the games not currently available on the PSN come out via PS Now or emulation on the PS4. Although the only exclusives I liked on the 360 are the Gears of War games (but not Judgement).

Can't you play DVDs on your PS3/PS4? Why are you worried about the quality of them on the other consoles?

@jesus_phish:

True. True. And True.

360 seems like a better choice as of now, but you've all been extremely helpful.

I'm curious about when 360 servers will eventually shut down, and how much will they impact your games. Like will you be hanging on a loading icon to upload stats to a leader boards, or maybe it needs a patch and it's impossible to find. There's still a modding community, so it might be fascinating how the 360 will continue in the future.

Like there's a PS2 server playing Resident Evil Outbreak.

@crithon:

Overall, what do you think would be the better option.

@miko1222: I'd suggest the 360 since you already have a PS3 and PS4. If their cloud system works, you might be able to play some of those older games on the later systems. Though, we'll see.

@truthtellah:

A lot of you guys suggest I get a 360.

I guess that might be the better choice.

@miko1222: Tangentially, have you tried PS2 emulation on your gaming PC?

@truthtellah:

Don't you need the console to do that.

Both have totally fucking killer libraries! Get both!

• PS2s on eBay
• Xbox 360s on eBay

It's not exactly expensive to get into both these days!

Absolutely not. Google "ps2 emulator".

@fattony12000:

I thought I'd do that. I'm getting PS2, maybe next month.

And then I'll get the 360 later on in this year, maybe Christmas.

Thanks for the help, dudes.

Nah. I own a PS2 with a bunch of games, but I have also gotten a PS2 emulator to work on my PC. In general, I would suggest owning a copy of a game before playing it on a PC, but you don't need a physical console or discs to use an emulator. I'd suggest giving it a shot. There won't be good emulators for 360 or PS3 for a few years, but there are already decent emulation options for PS2 games.

(for example: playing FFX on your PC long before the HD rerelease)

I've wondered about the 360 server stuff when it comes to purchased stuff. My first xbox died, and anything I purchased on there needs to be verified by Live on the new console. For a weird example, if I'm not connected to live, I can't play Ninja Gaiden 2 because the DLC won't be recognized. Nor will any XBLA game.

Gonna be weird.

Also, the games won't know they need a patch unless they connect to Live. At least I think so.

@truthtellah:

Alright, but is emulating illegal?

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Emulator#Obstacles

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Console_emulator#Legal_issues

"According to all legal precedents, emulation is legal within the United States. However, unauthorized distribution of copyrighted code remains illegal, according to both country specific copyright and international copyright law under the Berne Convention. Obtaining games through methods not authorized by the developer or publisher is illegal in the United States."

I don't think this is really the place for discussing the murky legality of emulation(which varies a decent bit country to country), but for me personally, as long as I actually own the original game in some form, I don't have misgivings with using emulators to play the games I already own.

There isn't harm in looking at the options and trying it out, but once again, I would encourage buying games and then playing them however you like.

There is a license transfer process you can initiate which downloads the licenses to play your purchased games to a new console, thus eliminating the need to be online. If I recall, they only let you do it once it a year, but once you download the licenses to a console any user on that system can access the content without the need to verify ownership via live.

I had to use the process after some red rings, but after red ring was no longer an issue my brother and I did the license download on each other's systems so we each had access to the other's library of XBLA games and DLC.

I think the way it goes it that the illegal part is the distribution of games etc.

That being said, in the case of the PS2, I want to say that it's also illegal to distribute the bios files necessary to actually emulate the system. The proper legal course is to dump the bios yourself from a system that you own.

Also, you mention Batman Begins as a reason to get the 360, but I don't think that actually came out on that platform. I'm pretty sure that it was an original xbox/ps2 game. As far as playback of DVDs as a pro/con, doesn't really matter if you have ps3/ps4.

I'm gonna say PS2, especially if you don't have an xbox or a gamecube, so then you've got more of that era covered rather than it just being a machine for exclusives. I've personally never found any of the 360 exclusives terribly interesting. The biggest draw of the 360 for me would be the version of Bayonetta that doesn't run like garbage :D

Three years after having a 360 a friend gave me a PS2 and my dreary eyes opened and inside me this feeling started to spread. "I remember this feeling when playing games - it's having fun!" I thought.

The 360 is the worst console for games I've ever owned. Fable 2, Splosion Man and Crackdown are the only good games.

n-gage and ouya = gamer heaven combo

Oh that's awesome! Thanks! I'll do that when I get home today.

In this case, I change my vote. If you can't get a PS2 game on the PS3 through an HD collection, they you can emulate it with a powerful enough gaming PC for the most part.

There isn't a proper 360 emulator and if you haven't played any of its exclusives, then they're mostly worth it. I wasn't originally going to vote for the 360 because most of the games that I care to play on it these days are available elsewhere, though it was my main console for quite a long time.

Out of the two I'd say the Xbox 360 is the better choice, I mainly prefer Sony consoles over Microsoft consoles purely because of the games.

Games like DMC, Metal Gear, Kingdom Hearts (1st game, 2nd is probably coming too), Final Fantasy, J&D, and Sly are all on either PS3, PSN or (some) on Xbox 360.

I would wait to see how PlayStation Now turns out. You might be playing very nice PS2 games on PS4 very soon. Then again when the games come out and on what sort of schedule is up in the air.

I would say - if you can wait, then do wait at - least to see how PlayStation Now turns out.

The PS2 is awesome. Tons and tons of great games for it. It also has Persona 4 so it wins.

Considering that the PS2 in no longer in production if you wait on getting a PS2 it may be harder or more expensive to buy. But a 360 will only get cheaper for a time.

@crithon:

I don't think there are too many games that require an internet connection to play, so you would think that if the servers go off the games would just function normally without the online aspect and without getting patches.

Almost all the big PS2 games have been re-released on HD collections and on PSN. Plus Playstation Now is coming soon and there have even been rumors of PS2 emulation coming to the PS4... Unless you're a huge collecting buff or there's a bunch of games that haven't/probably will never get re-released, the 360 just seems like a much better investment to me.

save your money

OPTION C: A bag of coke.

I'm pretty sure a bag of cocaine would make you happier than either of those consoles could.

If you really enjoy the PS2 games and the amount is about the same as the 360 then I'd say the PS2 just because of the price. Those games and consul are probably insanely cheap. Honestly though if it were me I'd go with the 360 because a lot of the games that I want for the PS2 are either available on the PC or they have been remastered on the PS3/Vita. So for me the 360 would be a better buy.

All of those have classics on the PS3, and the spider-man and x-men games are backwards compatible on 360, so... get a 360!

@miko1222:

The thing about PS2 catalog of great games is they are less reliant on online multiplayer than the 360 catalog. So in way despite being older and less graphically interesting they will probably hold up better in the longrun.

but on the otherhand Playstation Now might make them available again on PS4 and as others have pointed out a lot of what you listed has had HD rereleases.

Really it coms down to how much like you multiplayer and especially shooters while keeping in mind some of those servers won't be up forever. If online shooters are your thing go 360, if you like Japanese games and sheer variety go PS2.

the PS2 is definitely worth it if you're willing to venture out into not-so-well-known franchises (There are some fantastic games that never got enough acclaim to be remade or further sequels made post-PS2). If you aren't then most of the well known titles have been released sometime down the line anyway in some other way meaning it's probably not worth it. (Heck, going by the rate of things, in a couple years we'll be getting PS2 games released on iPad or phones - they;ll probably be annoying to play, but that won't stop them releasing them if they could).

Nevertheless, it still remains the only way to play FFXII and that is a travesty! (ignoring obviously emulation - because that's platform-independent)

That's one extremely sad list of "exclusives" for the 360. This isn't even a contest if you are going into either console fresh, the PS2 library is just massive. With some good goddamn games in it.

I say buy neither; spend the money you would have spent on a PS2 or Xbox 360 on HD collections for PS3; unless you want a PS2 for less well-known games. If I had to choose I'd buy a PS2.

@dylangw:

Looks like I'm going with PS2.

Mainly for the lesser known games and the collecting.

Persona 4 is better than anything on the Xbox 360 and hell the 360 never had very good exclusives to begin with, unless you like Halo or Gears of War.

@sooty:

Looks like I'll be getting a PS2 soon.

360 can wait for Christmas.

@miko1222: There is another thing on why you should go ps2. 99% of the games didnt have online, so 99.8% wasnt multiplayer. Meaning you can play the FULL game. Unlike alot of 360 games were half if not ALL of the game was online or Multiplayer.

someone said about HD collections on 360, sounds nice and in some cases its good. MGS collection perfect, Zone of the Enders Collection terrible. However if you play on the ps2......perfect both!

Those games you mentioned on PS2 already have HD remasters... And when it comes to Xbox 360, it's not different than PS2 since it's not blu-ray, they're both just DVD, though I guess it differs since you can use an HDMI... You'd have to be into other titles than the ones you've mentioned for PS2 for me to recommend over 360, since it seems you didn't play the 360 ones, and that's the only place you can play those. Furthermore... Batman Begins? If you mean the Arkham series, you can already play those on PS3, and while I played them on 360, they're arguably better on PS3 due to exclusive content.

@ntm:

Nah, I'm talking about Batman Begins The Video Game.

It's on PS2 and XB360.

@akyho: I've settled on getting a PS2. I'll pick one up sooner or later, but I just feel like its the right option to go with. Thanks for the help, all of you guys.

@miko1222: It's not on 360, that's for sure, it is on PS2 though. It's on the original Xbox, GameCube and PS2 as well as GBA. And why that game of all games? It wasn't that good then, so after all these years... Well, yeah.