The PlayStation 2 era is officially over: Sony Japan announced that it will no longer provide service for PlayStation 2 units after September 7. Yes, it's hard to say goodbye to such a beloved console, but Sony Japan believes that the console's time has finally come to an end 18 years after its release.

The PlayStation 2 initially came out in 2000. At the time, its main competitors were the SEGA Dreamcast, Nintendo GameCube and the first iteration of the Xbox. Since its release, the PlayStation 2 has been the best-selling video game console of all time, with Sony confirming sales of 150 million units in 2011, 12 years after its release. Over 10,000 games were released for the system, with more than 1.52 billion units of software sold globally. It was also the first console to integrate DVD technology, with Sony boasting that it helped make the DVD format the worldwide standard for that particular media format.

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Now, in 2018, the PlayStation 2's time has officially come to an end. According to Kotaku, Sony Japan announced that it would no longer offer aftercare service for the console as of September 7. Customer support for the console ended on August 31. Considering that Sony stopped production on the PlayStation 2 in 2012, the fact that the company continued to provide support and service for so long shows that Sony understands how popular that console still is with its fans.

Kingdom Hearts 2

PlayStation fans have many happy memories of titles played on the PlayStation 2, including several in the following popular franchises: Grand Theft Auto, Final Fantasy, Metal Gear Solid, God of War, Gran Turismo and Kingdom Hearts. Many of these franchises launched as exclusives on the console, landing Sony the reputation of having some of the best exclusive games for its systems - a status the company still has today, with both the PlayStation 3 and PlayStation 4.

Although it's sad to see Sony discontinue service and support for such a beloved machine, it has been 18 years since its initial release. The company has released two more consoles since then, so Sony should focus its service and support efforts on the more current PlayStation 3 and 4. Nostalgia, meanwhile, will keep players on the PlayStation 2 for as long as their consoles hold up, although it's fortunate that many of the more popular PlayStation 2 titles have received remastered editions for newer systems.

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Source: Kotaku