Sony invents back-compat device

By Robert Purchese Published 14 September, 2010

External, connects to console via lead.

Sony Japan is trying to patent an invention that would solve backwards compatibility problems on PS3.

The device - a new generation to previous generation console adapter - is external and has its own processor, DVD encoder/emulator, sound chip and graphics chip. It connects to what appears to be a PS3 (memory cards, joypads and discs are all shown beside it) via a cable.

Eurogamer's Digital Foundry blog is investigating further.

But don't get your hopes up, as this is only an application for a patent - nobody's actually said yes, as as Siliconera pointed out.

Sony Europe gave Eurogamer a flat "no comment."

Perhaps this invention may be intended for use with the new PSP2.

The 60GB launch PS3 was natively backwards compatible and could play PS2 games - a feature Sony eradicated from future models. The company has instead favoured Blu-ray conversions of the console's most popular titles: God of War, Sly and maybe ICO and Shadow of the Colossus - that's the word around the proverbial water-cooler.

Picture of Robert.

About Robert Purchese

Bertie is Eurogamer's Senior Staff Writer. When he's not hunting down news stories he's often found playing with his kids or gabbling about fantasy games and strange online worlds. @Clert on Twitter.

Read more articles from Robert by visiting the Robert Purchese archive page.

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Comments (51) Latest comment 2 years ago

Comments for this article are now closed, but please feel free to continue chatting on the forum!

  • stephenb #1 2 years ago

    External device? Like a Playstation 2 then?

  • woodnotes #2 2 years ago

    I'm surprised it's this difficult to emulate the PS2 via software, especially since the 360 was happily emulating many Xbox 1 games from launch. Perhaps it's all that custom Emotion Engine silicon.

  • Widge #3 2 years ago

    And will cost £200

  • FreakyZoid #4 2 years ago

    > the 360 was happily emulating many Xbox 1 games from launch

    It really wasn't. Unless you think 2 is "many"

    [link url=http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_Xbox_games_compatible_with_Xbox_360
    ]http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_Xbo...[/link]
    "An early version of the emulator for playing Halo: Combat Evolved and Halo 2 offline was included with the Xbox 360 hard drive at launch"

  • swissorc #5 2 years ago

    Will they now release another external device to allow you use another OS nowtoo?

  • Silent-Hal #6 2 years ago

    I'd love to have something like this. When I go off to uni I'll be gaming on an old computer monitor (partly to avoid having to pay for a TV license) and my PS2 won't work with it. If I had something that'd plug into my PS3 then that'd be a fantastic substitute.

  • telboy007 #7 2 years ago

    I'm annoyed at MS for stopping the BC stuff as Panzer Dragoon does not work properly on PAL machines. :( Anyway this is a Sony story so err... yeah, stuff.

  • Zomoniac #8 2 years ago

    They might've invented a specific kind of back-compat device, but not BC adapters in general, as the headline implies.

    /strokes Mega Drive to Master System add-on

  • bad09 #9 2 years ago

    Here's a thought why not release a backwards compatible PS3, make it like..oh I dunno a "home of the playstaion brand". I know it sounds crazy but knock that out at a reasonable price and it will sell. What? Really? You tried that already Sony...well what went wrong with that amazing idea? Oh...yeah your asking price was stupid.

    Honestly they rip out full software emulation (which I believe the euro PS3s were as they had no Emo chip) then try to sell us not only PS3 versions of the games we can't play but now trying for add ons to put back what they ripped out. Bloody Sony...

    I could go for this device if they ever release it (overpriced no doubt) or maybe I'll just take a look at how PC PS2 emualtion has come along these days......
    Edited by bad09 at 14/09/10 @ 16:05

  • Psiloc #10 2 years ago

    It would only have been cool if it also used the PS3's disc drive and was just an external GS+EE module. At the moment it's more of a PS2 that requires a PS3 to work rather than a PS3 add-on to play PS2 games.

    EDIT: Failure to read article correctly FTL.
    Edited by Psiloc at 15/09/10 @ 11:16

  • altitude2k #11 2 years ago

    So it's a PS2 that plugs into your telly via a PS3? Why not just use a PS2?

  • tossum #12 2 years ago

    "has its own processor, DVD encoder/emulator, sound chip and graphics chip. It connects to the PS3 via a cable."
    So its a fucking playstation 2 then...
    PS2 emulation is on the cards for jailbroken ps3's anyway, watch this space. Well not this space- maybe a more specialist site.

  • Widge #13 2 years ago

    I am with you on that, I tended to play PS3 games rather than PS2 games on my 60GB!

    I would rather that Sony STOP keeping the PS3 price consistent by bulking up the hard drives and slap out either a cheap smaller hard drived PS3 or a moderately priced small hard drive BC PS3.

  • solidSnake04 #14 2 years ago

    dont know if i rather have this and instantly play all my ps2 games or if i would rather pay to have HD remakes of the games.... Guess the HD remake gets the nod despite being more expensive in the long run.

    announce ZOE 1 + ZOE 2 , MGS2 + MGS3 and i will be like \o/

  • callum9999 #15 2 years ago

    Silent-Hal - you don't need a TV license if you don't watch live TV, regardless of whether the TV is technically able to or not.

  • callum9999 #16 2 years ago

    Widge - the cost of the hard drive is minimal. A PS3 with a smaller hard drive would only save a couple of pounds. You can buy 320GB hard drives now for around £35, Sony would be getting them for a lot less as they won't be paying the retail mark-up and are buying in bulk.

  • alcides #17 2 years ago

    *picture of a lonely man lashing at horse carcass.*

    ah yes. beating a dead horse, that's what.

  • roquey Verified Lead Quality Assurance Tester and Compliance Specialist, Universally Speaking #18 2 years ago

    @Callum9999 if you use a TV and they catch you without one how are you to prove you haven't used it to watch TV as its being showed? You dont need a licence if your only watching something that isnt being shown at the time (such as most BBC iPlayer).

  • Yuroko #19 2 years ago

    @noface.

    Same here. I felt like I had to get the 60gig Ps3. Missed out on loads of ps2 games when my console died. Tried playing some of them and there is no going back. It's ok going back to 16 bit gaming (graphically) since the games have a certain charm. Old 3d games just look awful and it's hard to get any enjoyment out of them. There are exceptions of course but generally this type of media doesn't age well. A great book will always be a great book and to a lesser extent great films will always be great.

    Games are memorable but going back often tarnishes those memories. So I don't really care about BC.

  • Jonathan_Fakenham #20 2 years ago

    External, like a PS2 yes, you're totally right stephenb. But the real question is, how is upscaling and future-proofing a part of the picture here?

    edit: Ah, replying to a page I've had open for an hour makes for some timely comments. Nevermind.
    Edited by Jonathan_Fakenham at 14/09/10 @ 16:51

  • 00.00.01 #21 2 years ago

    @noface
    Personal statistic incoming:

    60 GB Launch PS3 owner.

    Have got the 60GB model for 3 years.

    Total number of PS2 Games played: 1 (Gran Turismo)

    Conclusion: Yeah, the BC works fine. But it felt like jumping from a luxurious Lexus LS600 to a Toyota Aigo 1.4 Deezel... Same parent company but not the same product. Decided there and then that no PS2 title was ever allowed in my PS3 again.
    NextGen is named NextGen for a reason....

  • Cappy #22 2 years ago

    Or alternately launch NTSC 60GB owner who has played loads of PS1 & PS2 games on his, such as:

    Persona 3 FES & Persona (No HD JRPGs come close to either)
    Sakura Wars
    God Hand
    Ar Tonelico 1 & 2
    Mana Khemia
    R-Types
    Final Fantasy IX
    Etc.

    I could probably top three figures with ease. I'd rather play something that appeals to me, even if it's old, than waste time with a hyped up mainstream targeted PS3 title that I won't enjoy.

  • jrockey #23 2 years ago

    @bad09 the original 80GB PS3's had the Emotion chip removed but still retained the PS2's graphics chips, so they used partial software emulations. PS3's these days don't have either the Emotion chip nor the PS2 graphics chip, so their lack of backward compatibility is a hardware issue (driven presumably by cost), not a matter of Song "ripping out" software emulation to piss us off.

    Whether they *could* achieve full software emulation - and if so whether they have the will to do so anyway - is still of course a matter of debate. But it is incorrect to imply that newer PS3s are the same as the original 80GB's without the required emulation software - they also lack the required hardware.

  • cw- #24 2 years ago

    RE: TV licence for students..
    http://www.tvlicensing.co.uk/check-if-yo...

  • tatarigami #25 2 years ago

    PS3 “It Does Everything”
    ... but PS2



    Nice way to sell overpriced PS2 slim i suppose
    i thought they rather emulate PS2 and then resale PS2 games on PSN, but now i think HD remake would sell more

  • Spuzzell #26 2 years ago

    Not a lot of love for PS2 games here! I'm a little surprised at that to be honest.

    Try playing a PS2 title on PCSX2 with the internal resolution up-scaled to 1080p (as a minimum) and I guarantee you'll be pleasantly surprised with the quality of the graphics. Dragon Quest VIII and FFXII in particular are stunning in high-res.


  • SpookyTang #27 2 years ago

    Make it happen as i would rather give Sony my cash for PS2 compatibility than getting whatever jailbreak usb that will do it. I just don't have the room or plug sockets for the ps2 to be hooked up anymore.

    EDIT: I'm just lazy is the real reason i want PS3 to play PS2 ^^
    Edited by SpookyTang at 14/09/10 @ 17:25

  • bad09 #28 2 years ago

    @jrockey

    Ah cheers I thought the euro 60gbs had no hardware emualtion, still surely full software emualtion isn't that hard for the Sony bods to do considering PC can do it.

    Part of me thinks those whispers about publishers getting the arse with Sony about all the PS3 owners playing PS2 in it's early life are true ;)

    @ Spuzzell
    Does PCX2 work with most games now? I know years ago when I looked at ti you could only play certain games on it and at the time the emualtion was pretty poor without a super computer!

  • OnlyMe #29 2 years ago

    The question here is, what it connects to. Maybe it's just connected to the PS3 as an example? Wouldn't it be brilliant if it's made like any USB device - as long as there are drivers (and a small program perhaps) for it, it will run. Connect it to your PC, PS3, PS4, etc etc... with potential support for every device ever with USB ports.

  • SpaceMonkey77 #30 2 years ago

    So here's the reason we couldn't have PS2 BC in PS3 anymore, because Sony want to sell it to us, as opposed to giving it to us in PS3 for free, as originally promised. All make bloody sense now, the cheeky bastards.

    Lucky I still have a PS2. Two fingers up in the air at Sony.

  • Spekingur #31 2 years ago

    @FreakyZoid: The list that you put up there actually shows quite a lot of backwards compatible XBox games. The text you refer to points towards emulation profiles on the HDD at launch but says nothing about what other emulation profiles were available via XBox Live update.

  • Spuzzell #32 2 years ago

    @bad09

    PCSX2 works great with most games, providing you've got the processor horsepower!

    A high speed dual core and any video card from a 8600/2600XT up will run almost every game.

    A few games just won't play nicely whatever you throw at them. My i7 860 and HD4870 struggles to get 35fps in God Of War for example.

    Most of my PS2 games run brilliantly at 2048x2048 internal resolution though.

    http://pcsx2.net/compat.php?c=$&p=1 for a complete compatibility list.. give it a go, you won't recognise your old games when you play them at high-res :-)

  • monkfishjoe #33 2 years ago

    So, like a new console then...?!

  • drumbaby #34 2 years ago

    60gb launch console.

    PS2 games played on it since March 2007:

    Onimusha 3 (all of it)
    Onimusha 4 (most of it)
    Devil May Cry 3 (couple of chapters)
    Resident Evil 4 (most of it)
    God of War 1 (one chapter)
    Monster Hunter (finally slew Rathalos in singleplayer after one more 50 minute attempt then never played it again)

    Kids have played Sly Coopers 1, 2 and 3 a couple of times each, for a few hours total.

    We're pretty much done and dusted with PS2 games now. It really is an affront to one's eyes playing PS2 games, with PS3 graphics as the comparison, especially on a 40" plasma....and especially now that the HD remixes are on their way. GOW Collection FTW!

    PS3 BC doesn't really bother us anymore. If/ when my launch model gets YLOD I'll not mind getting a 250gb slim one bit.

  • crickson #35 2 years ago

    Better than nothing I suppose. Still, it'll be ages before it appears, if ever. Maybe they're preparing for the day that the PS2 as is goes out of production?

  • Kaminari #36 2 years ago

    An external device for the PS3? Seriously.

    You're better off buying a new PSTwo and a decent YUV cable.

  • Sevens #37 2 years ago

    ""has its own processor, DVD encoder/emulator, sound chip and graphics chip. It connects to the PS3 via a cable."
    So its a fucking playstation 2 then..."

    Yeah, sure if you consider a "DVD encoder/emulator" a disc drive then you're probably right. You're wrong, though. Take look at the schematics.


    P.S.:

    "An external device for the PS3? Seriously.

    You're better off buying a new PSTwo and a decent YUV cable."

    How so? Because the PS2 slim is (presumably) larger, doesn't have a proper wireless controller, lacks the qualities of HDMI and doesn't allow for any specific features of the PS3/PSN? That aside, the exact and complete capabilities of this (preliminary) device aren't evident.
    Edited by Sevens at 14/09/10 @ 19:19

  • Quixz #38 2 years ago

    I'm sure emulating Xbox games is lot harder than ps2..

  • disappointed #39 2 years ago

    To all those saying Sony took away BC just so they could sell it back to us:

    1. If that was the plan, they needed to get this thing out ages ago. There's much less interest in the PS2 now, especially since most it's best games are getting hi-def re-makes.

    2. Read up on the hardware side of emulation. There was never full software emulation. The hardware involved is believed to have been associated with reliability/over-heating. Reliability was considered more important than BC.

    3. There have been various stories over the years regarding Sony's difficulty in making a profit on PS3s. They certainly can't be accused of profiteering. They've struggled to keep the price competitive with the 360 and Wii.

  • Ashcroft #40 2 years ago

    This would also allow them to sell PS2 games on the PSN. I already have an EU partial BC PS3, but I'd probably get this just for that, since you could presumably buy non-EU PS2 games off the PSN. It would be better if they let you rip your PS2 discs to the PS3's HDD and play them with the disc in the drive (like the 360) rather than playing it over LAN though. I don't want to use a slot on my router just for PS2 games.

  • butler` #41 2 years ago

    I would fucking flip if they tried to sell this shit.

  • Sunworship #42 2 years ago

    I have a tv for dvd/ps2 use only. I read somewhere years ago that you prove non broadcast use by not having it tuned in so thats how i keep mine.

    Of course its also an old analogue tv and i have no digibox so itll be doubly licence-safe in a few days.

    Btw the tv licencing site is the last place to look for impartial info on these matters.

  • zedzee #43 2 years ago

    And how the f*ck is Sony going to word the press release for this embarrassing and abysmal 360 (as in direction, not Xbox) decision?!
    Edited by zedzee at 14/09/10 @ 23:07

  • Retroid #44 2 years ago

    @FreakyZoid: "> the 360 was happily emulating many Xbox 1 games from launch

    It really wasn't. Unless you think 2 is "many""

    I played Fable: Lost Chapters on my launch 360 so it was more than just Halo 1 & 2. There were other games too but I can't remember them.

    Ah, here we are - over 200 at launch. Most of them crap, but that's not the point ;)
    Edited by Retroid at 14/09/10 @ 23:41

  • Azilis #45 2 years ago

    @all the people saying PS2 games are not worth playing:

    Some people care more about a game's gameplay and story than graphics. A lot of PS2 games hold up well today (particularly RPGs), even compared to the PS3 graphical powerhouses. I'd be irritated if Sony starts selling this device for a ridiculous price considering it seems to simply add back a feature that was stripped from the PS3, but if it allows PS2 games to look decent on HDTVs, it's worth considering.

  • Retroid #46 2 years ago

    Oh, and to clear up the misconception: there's never been software-only PS2 emulation on PS3s. The euro 60gb machines (and Japanese / US 80gb models) still had the PS2's GPU hardware & a few other assorted bits, the emulation was only for the CPU & holding the system together. Hence the removal of the GPU hardware meant the end of the PS2 support.

    There are plenty of PS2 games still worth playing, BTW - I've recently set my PStwo back up to play some of the games I'd bought to play on my original 60gb PS3 before it got the YLoD.
    Edited by Retroid at 14/09/10 @ 23:44

  • dsmx #47 2 years ago

    Anything that lets people play Burnout 2 and 3 again is always welcome news.
    Edited by dsmx at 15/09/10 @ 00:18

  • Retroid #48 2 years ago

    Agreed about the Burnouts, but no online stuff as EA shut down those servers ages ago :(

  • djed #49 2 years ago

    full software emulation of the ps2 on the ps3 is impossible.

  • alcides #50 2 years ago

    how about "buy a PS2"?

  • crickson #51 2 years ago

    Sigh. It's all academic for me now some thieving b*stard relieved me of EVERY SINGLE ONE of my Ps2 games.