As of tomorrow (April 1st), you can buy a new PS2 for $99. For more details, check out Sony’s announcement HERE.

I don’t know if Sony feels guilty about the lack of backward compatibility in the PS3, but the fact is that the PS2 is still selling well and it’s hard to ignore the huge library. In fact by the end of this year they claim that there will be almost 1900 titles for the system. Considering that the second PlayStation launched almost nine years ago, that’s quite a feat. Sony is trying to leverage the value of their systems by maintaining a 10-year product cycle. I know that as a parent, I appreciate knowing that if I buy a console a couple years after it has launched, it still has some lifespan before the company tries to convince me to purchase their next system.

Granted, this is a previous generation console. However, Sony and third party developers are still releasing new games for the platform. Factor in the existing library which contains well over 50 A+ titles and the ability to enjoy the original PlayStation 1 library and this becomes a worthwhile investment. Also, unlike the original PS2, the current “Slim” version includes the built-in Ethernet and modem hardware so this functionality does not require an additional purchase. Just don’t forget a memory card!

Wow, now that I’m waxing nostalgic, I think I’d like to put together a top 50 list of last generation’s best games. What do you say, Chris? Are you up for that? I’m guessing that we could find at least one title beyond Rez and Okami upon which we could agree!