RIP: PlayStation 2 manufacture ceases worldwide

Sony has ceased global manufacture of PlayStation 2, the best-selling console of all time.

Following on from word of the console's production ceasing in Japan last week, The Guardian reports Sony confirmed that the news applies to all territories.

The PlayStation 2, while difficult to develop for, is frequently listed among the best consoles of all time due to its immense popularity and influence. Although its generation also spawned the original Xbox, debuting a new console lineage where nobody expected it, the PS2 clearly ruled the 2000's.

In fact, with over 150 million sales worldwide, the PS2 is the most popular console ever, beating out rivals like the DS by a wide margin. The PS2 has a library of over 10,000 games, and although more recent figures are hazy, in early 2011 it has passed 1.5 billion software sales.

The PS2 may be partially responsible for popularising DVDs, and even took a step towards online gaming with a network adapter which proved reasonably popular among European and Japanese Final Fantasy 11 players.

With production at an end, retailers will soon be unable to re-order PS2 stock - so if you've been thinking of picking up a new one, now's the time to do it.

Sony is expected to debut its newest console, the fourth of the core PlayStation line, this year. It is codenamed Orbis, apparently.

Thanks, Johnny.