PlayStation Time Travels with PS2 Emulator - The UpStream

Vowing not to be outdone by Microsoft's backwards-compatibility for Xbox 360 games, Sony soft-launched its own backwards compatibility on the PlayStation 4 recently. Eurogamer discovered the feature when they received their review copy of a new Star Wars bundle, which included 3 PS2 games. When the games were launched, the PS2 logo appeared on the screen, just as if you had booted the console, except upscaled to 1080p.

The games, which were 3D titles, looked better than they ever had on their intended platform. That is because in-game rendering can be enhanced by using the newer processing technologies of the PS4. This is a big deal, because it does not require the developers to remaster the game, simply release it for the emulator on the console. What it does mean, though, is that 2D titles will not look better on the platform, and could potentially look worse, as the sprites were sized to fit on the disc and designed for a much smaller resolution.

An interesting addition to the games is trophies, a feature added to the PlayStation Network long after these games premiered. It is likely that the emulator, knowing about the individual games, is capable of polling the game save file to determine progress in the game, awarding trophies for reaching milestones. However they are doing it, the idea is a novel one, and one that is appreciated by gamers.

Since the creation of Xbox Live Achievements, the idea of public awards for performing certainly tasks or for accomplishing certain feats, has become not only the norm for gamers, but a draw into the games. Little is known about how Sony will implement this feature for the public. They could imitate either Microsoft or Nintendo, or find some alternative. Microsoft allows you to use your already owned titles, or purchase new, for emulation. Nintendo resells old titles on its emulation platform. Sony could go either way, or surprise all of us.

Hopefully they will go with Microsoft's approach, as I and many others have tons of PS2 games and would love to retire the older hardware without having to repurchase those games.