It would appear that others in the gaming press were also wondering about Sony’s commitment to backward compatibility in the PlayStation 3. A recent article at The Koalition quotes a response from Sony regarding a rumored PS2 emulator for the PS3. Sony states:

I am not sure where you are getting your information from, but at no point did we say that there would be some sort of emulation being brought to PS3. At no point has this strategy changed and therefore I can tell you that there are no plans to bring back backwards compatibility to PS3.

For Sony’s full response, read the entire article HERE. Ironically, the statement emphasizes the importance of the current titles and downplays the need for backward compatibility in general. Yet, the current PS3s are still backward compatible with the original PS1 system.

Yet another article at The Koalition harshly criticizes Sony’s approach as failing to support their “10-year life cycle.” This article is a scathing commentary on the elimination of backward compatibility in subsequent PS3 hardware releases. Be warned, the frustration shines through in some more mature language, but for the most part this is a well-formed argument and not some childish rant. I particularly like the author’s suggestion for Sony in his conclusion.

Perhaps Sony is still hoping to sell new PS2s since they are still publishing new games for their previous generation system. Who knows. All I can say is that as a parent of three who enjoys gaming and expects my kids to continue to enjoy gaming, I need to find any way to stretch my money – especially with our current economic challenges. If Sony and Microsoft still insist on abandoning their previous libraries in hopes of making their audience purchase all new games, I fear that they will alienate their followings and Nintendo will smile as we all abandon our 360s and Ps3s to play our Wiis.