Veteran gamers are rejoicing at the news Sony is working on a way to play PlayStation 2 games on PlayStation 4 consoles.
"We are working on utilising PS2 emulation technology to bring PS2 games forward to the current generation. We have nothing further to comment at this point in time," Sony said in a sharpe and mysterious statement to Wired magazine.
An emulator recreates the digital environment in which a program is read, in this case a PlayStation 4 console will render a PS2 game playable on the PS4.
The blunt and long called for announcement from Sony has inspired more questions than answers. How will the emulator go live? Will it be only available on a new released PlayStation 4? Will gamers need to download PlayStation 2 games from the online PlayStation Store, or will they be able to play original disks on their PS4? And will the games be played in HD or in their original quality?
Further details about the emulator are sketchy, but the idea of having access to the entire PlayStation 2 back catalogue will make any gamer's eyes water.
Here are some of the games we can't wait to play again on the PS4:
Kingdom Hearts
Initially gamers were sceptical about a game from Square Enix and Disney, but as soon as it dropped the world fell in love. The game follows Sora and a trove of Disney characters in his quest against evil. It would be great to see the game fully rendered and ready for PlayStation 4.
Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas
Before everyone hated GTA: IV and everyone loved GTA: V there was GTA: San Andreas. Taking on the character of CJ, players could eat pizza until they threw up, pick up hookers in stolen cars and do missions for a crooked cop voiced by Samuel L. Jackson. This game had scope and depth as well as a killer soundtrack.
God of War
God of War is a button mashing masterpiece of gore and Greek myths. Fight, climb and combo your way through a mess of ancient Greek history as you work your way towards the final boss level, where you fight the God of War and effectively take his place on the bloody throne. The gore and visually stunning set pieces would look great in HD.
Star Wars: Battlefront 2 (The original Battlefront 2)
Like the Star Wars films, the originals are best. The new Battlefront has been criticised for being "underdeveloped and hollow" but the originals offered adventure and a compelling story. If the original Battlefront 2 was downloadable for PS4 it would sell better than the new one.
Burnout 3: Takedown
Unlike other driving simulators, the Burnout series encouraged players to do the kind of thing that would land you with a loss of license for life. In the fender-bending third instalment players complete missions by driving erratically into oncoming traffic and are tasked with smashing other players into hard objects until their cars are no longer in working condition.
Tony Hawk Pro Skater 4
Before Pro Skater turned into Underground and become a watered down PG version of GTA, it was a combo crunching, leg snapping good game. Skate your way across the world to a soundtrack featuring songs from AC/DC, N.W.A., the Sex Pistols and more. Pro Skater is a classic and would fit well on the PS4.
