The Disc That Launched the PS2 in Japan

In my previous article, The End of PlayStation Discs, I wrote about Sony moving PlayStation away from the physical media that helped build it. This story returns to the opposite end of that history. When the PlayStation 2 launched in Japan in March 2000, physical media was one of the main reasons Sony could present it as something larger than a game console.

The usual explanation for the PS2’s success begins with DVD. Sony priced the launch-model SCPH-10000 at ¥39,800, placing it in roughly the same range as some of the more affordable standalone DVD players reaching the Japanese market. For roughly $370 at the exchange rate of the time, buyers received a new game console, backward compatibility with original PlayStation software, and access to the fastest-growing home-entertainment format in the world.

The DVD drive did more than make the hardware a good deal. It connected the PS2 to a film industry much larger than PlayStation.

Sony’s Final Rehearsal

In February 2000, Sony held PlayStation Festival 2000 in Chiba. February 18 was reserved for the industry and press, followed by two public days on February 19 and 20. The PlayStation 2 would reach Japanese stores less than two weeks later, on March 4.

The festival was Sony’s final public rehearsal for the platform. Visitors saw working development software, including upcoming games, along with the startup animation and the browser interface used to manage memory cards and discs.

Near the entrance, away from the main presentations, the company had built a smaller stage to explain another feature it kept emphasizing: the PlayStation 2 could also function as a DVD player.

The movie chosen for the demonstration was The Matrix. Promotional signage beside the stage advertised its Japanese DVD release on March 17, thirteen days after the PS2 launch.

The choice carried more weight in early 2000 than it might today. Twenty-six years later, younger readers may know The Matrix through references that survived the origi…