Ps2 HDD

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Off the Record 8-23-02
What's the real deal on the HDD?

August 23, 2002 - So, you say you find yourself having too much time on your hands and need to know every single little thing that happens in the world of the PlayStation 2, Sony, and the game makers supporting them? You say you need to have all of the rumors so you can jump to the boards and post the latest news before all of your buddies?

Well, now you've done it. You've located the rumor nerve center at IGNPS2, Off the Record. We know what's happening in the industry before the deals are signed, before the press releases have been written, before you wake your sleepy ass up in the morning. Yes, we have heard it, but at least we admit it. We've got big ears and we know rumors, probably about you, too (and your mom), so just clam up and read. And remember, this is all on the QT, hush-hush, and very Off The Record.

Will The Hard Disc Drive Really Come to the US?
There are several good arguments on both sides as to whether or not Sony Computer Entertainment America will bring its HDD (Hard Disc Drive) to North American shores. Reports have surfaced from Japan that the online campaign there is working OK, but that support for the HDD is not where is should be. Square supports it with its wholly online RPG Final Fantasy XI, but even there, consumers have had problems, technical and also in terms of showing interest, and it's not like US fans are pulling out their hair for Final Fantasy XI, either.

That's point 1. Perhaps it's just coincidence, but we also learned that, surprisingly, a certain Sony online franchise won't use the HDD either. The thing is that this particular Sony franchise (one of the most popular PC series online ever) uses the PC's hard drive, but according to a source close to the development team, this ever-popular quest series is no longer using the HDD. Huh? Are our wires crossed?

That's two points. The third is that SCEA has pushed back its entire online plans at least a year, with the Network Adaptor finally arriving at the end of this very month, and the HDD being pushed back into 2003.

SCEA has said that the HDD, which was loosely scheduled this year, is loosely slated for a 2003 release. But what of it? Can SCEA deliver that kind of online network expertise next year? SCEA might be working out its Network Adaptor kinks for a year or more and it simply may not be ready for the HDD's arrival in 2003, which coincendentally, is just three-plus months away. Also, SCEA has huge plans for the PS2 to become the hub of its online network center, enabling people to download music, movies, and games to the PS2, using encrypted protection data on the 8 MB Memory Card for secure monetary transactions. That's not only major monetary investment, which SCEA no doubt has, but it's also got to be based on a technically solid infrastructure. Well, SCEA isn't even creating an online network with its Network Adaptor -- it's letting third-parties do that work.

Looking back on another hard drive that never made it out, Nintendo fudged around for years with its own HDD, and it was supposed to enable players, at one point in time, to play The Legend of Zelda using a hard drive. Not only did Nintendo's hard drive never come out in the US, it was for all intents and purposes a total failure in Japan, supporting only one game from a cast of many games, which were either canned or transferred to N64.

Still, SCEA has some time, and SCEA works differently than Nintendo, which is a good thing. But when you think about the Network Adaptor's projected numbers (500,000 units projected by fiscal year's end, March 31, 2003), is that really a primer for the HDD's arrival? That's not exactly a plush red carpet with champaign, caviar and fine yound ladies in waiting. We're willing to bet that Sony won't bring the HDD out in the US until 2004, or perhaps not even at all. The whole HDD thing won't really happen until the PS3 becomes a reality, say in 2005.

There is one big if -- Sony won't bring the HDD out here unless Microsoft strikes a popular nerve with its "Xbox Live" online campaign, which then (theoretically) becomes wildly successful enough to push Sony into an inferior position (a position that SCEA dearly hates), forcing SCEA to go through with its HDD plans (which is never publicly admitted was going awry in the first place). It's a pretty bad plot, to be honest, and that's a lot of "ifs" to boot. But still, it's nearly 2003 and the HDD is so far off it hurts.

While the Network Adaptor is finally becoming a reality in August 2002 (at least one year off track), is the even larger prospect of the HDD really going to happen in 2003? Hm... We're still waiting for far more humble hardware from SCEA, like the PS2 keyboard and mouse.

That's all for now, just remember that we love rumors, and if you hear any really good ones, we'll post them. Sent them to Off The Record