Sony stops shipments of PS2 console in Japan

Sony will no longer furnish retailers in Japan with the PlayStation 2 console after nearly 13 years, according to reports.

The iconic console, which helped to pioneer the DVD player, first went on sale in the country in March 2000 and has since gone on to sell over 150m units around the world.

The console survived and prospered long after the launch of the PlayStation 3 in 2006, and continued to outsell the hi-def device for the first three years of its lifespan.

To this day, developers have continued to release games on the platform due to its enduring popularity, with the last title in Japan, Final Fantasy XI: Seekers of Adoulin, due out in March this year.

Now, according to Japanese site Famitsu, the console is being placed out to stud in its homeland, although there's no word on whether Sony plans to do the same in other territories.

A sign?

Of course, the phasing out of the PS2 will lead some to the conclusion that the heavily-rumoured PlayStation 4 console is now a sure thing to arrive this year.

Many observers expect the next-gen console to be revealed at the E3 expo in LA this summer, with the outside prospect of a Christmas 2013 launch on the minds of some gamers.

Check out our PS4: Release date, news and rumours feature for all of the latest news.