PlayStation2 DVD Details Revealed

Sony Computer Entertainment has demonstrated the features of its DVD player to the Japanese press, and new details have been uncovered.

First off, we have now learned that the PlayStation2 DVD player will be activated by a driver - and DVDs will not play without it. The 634 K Driver file is preinstalled in the memory card that comes packaged with the PlayStation2 and will be required to be in the first memory-card slot of the PlayStation2 in order for it to play DVD movies. The driver will also be found on the special utility disc that comes packaged with the PlayStation2, in case users happen to delete it.

Sony Computer Entertainment showed the movie Shakespeare in Love on its PlayStation2 and other top-of-the-line DVD players from Matsushita, Pioneer, and even from Sony itself. "The image definition is as good as those of high-dollar DVD players," Ken Kutaragi, president of SCE, told the Nihon Keizai Shimbun.

The company also put to rest all rumors of the PlayStation2 not being able to perform extra DVD functions such as multi-angle viewing and multiple language subtitling - all of those features are indeed available.

The DVD player on the Sony PlayStation2 can be controlled by users in two different ways. One of the methods is to use the onscreen display interface that has several icons on it. These icons include chapter jump, title jump, DVD menu, change sounds, change camera angle, change subtitling, and display on/off. Users will also be able to select the language, TV aspect ratio (16:9, 4:3 letterbox, 4:3 pan-scan), audio settings (PCM, Dolby Digital, DTS) and parental locks with pass codes. The other method is to use the Dual Shock2 controller directly. Here are the functions for the corresponding buttons:

Select - summon onscreen display interfaceStart - play/stopTriangle - DVD menuO - OK/yes buttonX - cancel/no buttonSquare - title menuR1 - skip to next chapterR2 - fast forwardR3 - change soundsL1 - skip to previous chapterL2 - rewindL3 - change subtitlingD-pad - for moving the cursor

Asahi News today reported that there will be a special remote available for the PlayStation2 as well, and many functions listed above should be available on it.

We'll have impressions of the PlayStation2's DVD functions direct from the PlayStation Festival 2000, which will be held from February 18 - 20.