Time to party like it's 2000. Sony confirmed that it's working on bringing PlayStation 2 games to its most current PlayStation 4 console.In a statement to a statement to WIRED, Sony confirmed that it was indeed working on making PS2 games work via emulation software, which allows the console to run those old games in the same way they ran on the original hardware. This is distinctly different than remastering which usually involves refreshing the game's engines and textures for a newer platform. Sony said that it had nothing else to say at the time, but that's better than a flat out "no."Odd offerings on a Star Wars PS4 holiday bundle PS4 holiday bundle prompted the report. Alongside Star Wars: Battlefront, the PS4 bundle includes vouchers for four other games: Super Star Wars, Star Wars: Racer Revenge, Jedi Starfighter, and Star Wars Bounty Hunter. All of these games, save Super Star Wars for the Super Nintendo, were originally released on the PS2.Eurogamer found that a few technical details gave away the fact that those games were running under emulation, rather than being ported or remastered. The game splashes the old PS2 boot animation, the buttons are mapped precisely for PS2 controller, and the emulator manages PS2 memory cards in the same way PS2 emulation worked on the PS3.This exciting and unexpected news for PlayStation fans because Sony initially swore off backwards compatibility. You can only play PS3 games on the PS4 via the company's cloud gaming service PlayStation Now, which wasn't too well received for its costly rental rates.With PS2 games, it seems, the PS4 will do the work in-console rather than offloading it onto cloud streaming, which can create problems like response delays and video quality.Who knows how long it'll be before I get to cry over Okami again?
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