PS3 backward-compatibility database online

Fans waited in line--some for days--to be among the first to play the PlayStation 3 on its US launch date of November 17. But if those people were hoping to get home and play their older games, they might be out of luck. The PS3 is having some well-publicised problems playing approximately 200 original PlayStation and PlayStation 2 games. Some games have audio problems, in others the screen flickers, and some games--including any PS2 titles that use the HDD--do not work at all. Sony has acknowledged the issue and stated that it plans to fix the problems through downloadable updates.

Confirming that these issues also affect North American gamers, the company has put a database Web site online for users to search for their games and find out if they will work properly with the new console.

Keying some random games into the database, Need For Speed Carbon, "randomly during gameplay, hangs"; Final Fantasy XI requires HDD and therefore, doesn't work; Okami's "audio stutters during playback"; and for Gran Turismo 4, "the title hangs on a black screen at a random time."

As to the HDD issues, the site advises, "Users are currently unable to play titles that require HDD for the PS2. This condition is planned to be resolved in the future with a system software updater for the PS3."