Sony PlayStation 2 (PS2) first made its way to shelves in March 2000 as the successor to PlayStation. The Japanese company has already confirmed that it will stop the production of the aging gaming console, and now U.S. retailer GameStop will no longer accept trade-ins for the device starting June 1.
According to a leaked in-store display posted to Reddit, the gaming retailer will no longer accept the 12-year-old gaming console for trade-ins.
The leaked in-store display says "June 1, 2013, GameStop will no longer accept the trade of PS2 games, accessories, or systems."
"We contacted multiple GameStop locations and confirmed the news that all PS2 games, accessories and systems will not be accepted for trade across all US stores at that time," reports JoyStiq.
Sony revealed the successor to the PS2, the PlayStation 3 (PS3), in 2006 and the device was welcomed by gamers. The popularity of the PS3, along with the news that Sony will soon launch the PlayStation 4 (PS4), made Sony confirm in December 2012 that it will cease the production of the aging PS2.
"Due to PlayStation 2 now being over 12 years old, we have decided to stop future production of the console and focus on our newer and more popular platforms, PS3, PS Move and PS Vita. We are very proud of what we have achieved with PS2. Having sold over 150m units worldwide, PlayStation 2 remains the world's best selling console, but with sales understandably declining, we are shifting our priorities to reflect this," said Sony Computer Entertainment (via Engadget).
The PS2 has a library of more than 10,000 titles and the console is still loved by many gamers. The demise of the gaming console at GameStop doesn't mean that accessories, games and hardware won't be available elsewhere; however, as GameStop is a well-known game retailer in the U.S., many gamers will find the news disappointing.
