Official word from SCEA comes in this morning that the price of the PlayStation 2 will be lowered at retail to $99.99 starting April 1st. This comes in after rumors of such a price drop started to circulate yesterday when reports from various retail insiders noticed price changes in computer systems. Of course, the other big rumor was that the PlayStation 3 would be the console to receive a price drop.

This was squashed yesterday by an official statement from Sony. The PS2 has sold more than 136 million units worldwide at retail since its launch in 2000.
"Demand for PlayStation 2 remains strong throughout the world, and the new $99 price point will bring in new consumers who will discover how PlayStation platforms are an outstanding choice for their gaming and home entertainment needs.

Just as PlayStation 2 is delivering on a 10-year lifecycle and helped expand and solidify the DVD format for home entertainment along the way, we believe PLAYSTATION 3 offers the same promise by helping secure the Blu-ray format and delivering unprecedented value as the total home entertainment solution for the next decade."
According to Sony, the PlayStation 2's library of games will grow to over 1,900 titles this year with first-party releases including MLB 09 The Show and MotorStorm: Arctic Edge.
Now cheaper than ever before.



Bryn says: Good news and bad news. I was really hoping to see the PS3 take a price tumble. But still, anyone that doesn't own a PlayStation 2 (who are you exactly?) will find this is a great time to catch up on, well, nearly 2,000 games that you may have missed out on.

I'm lucky enough to own a first-gen PlayStation 3 so my PS2 library is backwards compatible. That said, I also own a first-gen PS2 as well. I'm just a sucker for consoles I guess.