Many await U.S. debut of Sony PlayStation 2

By Noah Grand
Daily Bruin Contributor Many UCLA students are hoping to get their
hands on Sony’s new PlayStation 2, which was released
throughout the United States today despite production problems.
“I’ve been waiting for as long as they’ve given a
date for its release,” said Lawrence Givens, a second-year
undeclared student. The PlayStation 2, with a manufacturer
suggested retail price of $300, features the ability to play DVDs,
audio CDs and games for the original PlayStation in addition to
PlayStation 2 games. “PlayStation2 is special because
it’s really the first time you can combine a lot of different
entertainment options in one box,” said Molly Smith,
spokeswoman for Sony Computer Entertainment America. Some students
are looking forward to the PlayStation 2 for its enhanced graphics
capability. It can draw polygons at a rate of 75
million-per-second, compared to its closest competitor, the Sega
Dreamcast, at 3 million. This polygon rate is critical to
processing three-dimensional images as higher polygon rates
translate to improved graphic detail and quality. “I played
an RPG (role-playing game) in Japanese on the PlayStation 2 in
Japan,” said first-year electrical engineering student
Shriram Bhat. “I didn’t know what the screen said, but
the graphics are mind-boggling. The only thing that comes close is
Dreamcast, but PlayStation 2 blows other systems away.”
Getting a PlayStation 2 may be difficult since Sony is only
shipping 500,000 units throughout the United States on the release
date. The original plan announced in May was to ship 1 million
units, but this production plan ran into problems. “We
decided to modify our release schedule after seeing the production
forecast,” said Smith. “There were some shortages on
some parts.” This lack of PlayStation 2s is creating a
shortage for some people who aren’t sure what will happen
with their orders. Smith said distributors purchased various
amounts of PlayStation 2s who then decide how many units go to each
store, rather than Sony deciding. “I don’t know how
many PlayStation 2s we’re getting,” said John Matloob,
former employee of Cosmo Games in Westwood. “I hope there
isn’t a line outside.” Many students feel that lining
up in front of a store is their best chance of getting a
PlayStation 2 before they sell out. “I had a friend offer to
stay in line for me,” Givens said. “That doesn’t
guarantee that I’ll be able to get one, though.” Some
students who either can’t get or can’t afford a
PlayStation 2 will go to a friend’s room or apartment if to
use one. “I think I would be pretty popular if I got a
PlayStation 2,” Givens said. “People are curious about
its mystique. Is it as good as people say it is?” People who
cannot buy a PlayStation 2 locally can turn to buying someone
else’s pre-ordered PlayStation 2 on various Internet sites,
such as eBay. Dozens of them have been sold on eBay already, with
prices ranging from $400 to $660. Selling pre-ordered items on eBay
is acceptable as long as the seller can deliver the item within 30
days of the day of purchase, according to eBay spokeswoman Jennifer
Chu. Because eBay is set up as an auction, site technicians have no
control and very little idea of what prices for a PlayStation 2
will be. “Items tend to go at market value. Obviously, the
hotter the item the higher the price. Items could get bidded up …
there is no way for us to tell what the final price is,” Chu
said. One major problem for Sony is users copying purchased games
since many owners of the original PlayStation have installed a chip
that bypasses the system’s encryption, allowing them to play
games copied with a CD burner. This chip also allowed users to play
import games from Japan. A user can buy these chips over the
Internet or at a video game store. The chips are legal because they
can be used to play legitimately obtained imports. Smith said that
PlayStation 2 games were encrypted, but had no comment about these
chips. Despite many students talking about it, not everyone is
thinking how they can get a PlayStation 2. “I don’t see
why anyone would make such a big deal out of this,” said
first-year student Dan Goods. “It’s a lot of hype over
a simple machine.” To help overcome possible shortages, Sony
is increasing its production capability during the fall from
400,000 units a month to over 1 million units produced worldwide
during the fall. Every week, 100,000 of these units will be sent to
the U.S., with a total of 1.3 million units available domestically
by the end of 2000. Despite this increase in production, news of
the reduced initial shipment dropped Sony’s stock 8.8 percent
on the New York Stock Exchange during the day these figures were
released. The PlayStation 2 may change the way video games in
general are viewed in the future. “It will be something that
not just kids use. Parents would use the DVD feature. It’s
not like anything else out there,” Givens said.

HOW PLAYSTATION 2 STACKS UP Sony
Playstation 2 Sega Dreamcast
Nintendo 64 Graphic capability:
75 million polygons/sec 3 million polygons/sec not specified
Plays audio CDs: yes yes no Plays
DVDs: yes no no Online capability:
planned for 2001 built-in 56k modem none
Processor: 128 bit 128 bit 64 bit
Games: 33 in addition to more than 800 compatible
PlayStation titles 102 256 Price: $300.00 $149.95
$99.99 Original by JACOB LIAO/Daily Bruin Web Adaptation by MICHAEL
BECK