So Long, Old Friend
I will never forget the first time I met you, it was raining, a soft mist was slowly thinning as London woke up to a new day – Friday, March 23rd, 2007. After months of hearing my US friends talking about the “amazing PS3″ the day was finally here and, after paying a whopping £425 (about $833 back then), you were in my hands.
Sure there weren’t that many games to play on you when I first plugged you in to my ‘cutting edge’ HDTV, and sure, the PSN wasn’t exactly going toe-to-toe with Xbox Live, but I still loved you. Both launch titles in Europe, Resistance and Motorstorm ate up hours upon hours, with my later purchase of The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion guaranteeing an early onset of arthritis. With releases like Warhawk, Uncharted, Killzone and GTA, I grew closer and closer to you. We’ve had our arguments, like when I questioned why you spent so long installing games, what the point was of Home, or why you kept forcing me to download updates that didn’t do anything, but don’t let that detract from what we shared together. Each year you delighted me more and more, treating me to something new, sharing a completely different gaming experience with me on a monthly basis. I watched you render hundreds of different worlds, millions of different situations and billions of frames, all for me.
But I didn’t listen to the warning signs, the chugging as you tried to load up Batman, or the crash playing Uncharted. I didn’t want to believe something was wrong, you’ve stood by me through thick and thin, new jobs, a new home, a burglary – you were always there. I should have done something, and not tried to have one more 24 hour race on Gran Turismo 5, not have tried to hunt down one more dragon in Skyrim. Now you’re gone, and I wish we could go on one last quest together.
You cannot be replaced.
28 Responses to “So Long, Old Friend”
RIP
my condolences…it will be in that digital heaven where my mr.60gig is now:(
“Eligible for Free Super Saver Delivery” is that like the (US) eligible for Prime, 2 day shipping?
Notice how the doller sign looks a little too similar to the sterling sign…
I still have my PlayStation 1 and 2. Sony states there’s a 10 year life cycle on their systems but does anyone see their PS3s (or 360s) lasting 10 years? It’s pretty sad when you have to buy a system 2, 3 times in a life cycle. Can only get worse.
my ps1 and ps2 and every other system pre xbox all worked for many a year. beyond 10 years. sure people had ps2 problems, but not me. lucky i guess. but this gen has been down right bogus on hardware issues. on my 3rd ps3 in 4 years. looking to buy my fourth before the current one dies on me. love the games, hate the hardware failure rates. got an atari 2600 that still works, can’t use it on my current tele, but still. that thing has to be older than most the people here.
Made To Fail would have been a good article name. XD
The reason older systems last longer is due to the lead. It was made a law that they couldnt have lead in their products anymore, with lead being able to withstand the heat with out melting or breaking, we now have less reliable hardware. Gold would be the best solution, high melting point, never rusts or deteriorate. Unless we come across a planet of gold, things arent going to get better.
*pats my 60 gig* My old buddy is still up and running. I only use it for PS2 games and movies now though so it won’t be overused. Sorry for the loss though, the old friend was a beast
Wish mine was… it died a very similar death
my launch 60GB PS3 is still kicking. I don’t know how it could fail. I wonder if people mistake failed PS3′s to failed HDD, what does the PS3 do if the HDD dies? I replaced my HDD a few years back to 180GB
This made me tear up… RIP
awwwwwww bless i feel your pain
My 60 GB officially is brain dead today. It will automatically shut down within thirty seconds of turning on. I feel your pain.
But I will move on and learn to love again. And I will rebuild all my saves that were lost minute by minute the way I did the first time.
Rest in Peace my launch phat lovely PS3.
I feel your pain.. my old 80GB that played PS2 games died two weeks ago. I have a slim replacement and it’s nice but man I miss my old “fat” system. All the hours of gaming, watching blu rays and dvds, listening to music, etc. It was a beast. I never thought it’d die on me… sadness. I’ve thought of getting it “repaired” they say could last anywhere from 2 months to 2 years with the average life span of 7 to 8 months…I just want to extend it’s life cycle…not sure what I’m goingto do. To me the slims aren’t as sexy…and it just doesn’t feel the same. I’ve barely gamed on the new one when normally I’d have played tons by now.
my 60 is on its last legs too. just recently lost all my save data too. sebastian i feel your pain man – really i do. you could not have said it better. and even though i have a new slim uncharted 3 bundle system…. somehow it still does not have that original magical feel that the original fatties have.
NO! DO NOT GO INTO THE LIGHT! DO NOT WALK INTO THAT BIG YELLOW LIGHT! STAY WITH ME, FATTY, STAY WITH MEEE! NNNOOOOOOOO!
I wish my 60GB PS3 was still alive:-( I paid £299 for it but it got YLOD:-/ I F-IN miss that console because i liked PS2 playback. I still hope 1 day PS2 playback will come back to a PS3 but i can’t see that day coming really:-(
I was one of the lucky ones, my 40GB PS3 gave me some warning signs that it was ready to retire.. Disc drive started to keep discs, wouldnt eject them, got that replaced, bought a slim and transferred everything.. Still miss my fat, but I got to keep everything on the HDD. I think of it as an old brain, in a new body lol. Still, great article, anyone who hasnt had at least one fat go out on them just cant understand…
well the problem i had was thinking my 500gb hard-drive that i placed in my fattie would be able to fit in my slim ps3… so wrong there! good thing i bought a 320gb bundle.
He gave the best service, unforgettable fun times, etc. June 2007 – December 2011 RIP.
hello …
no cheers for that …
all my sympathy though!
I know how you feel my 40 gb ps3 died 6 months ago it left me in shock cause it thougt it never would since it was with for 4 years.
My 40GB Phat died on Dec 1st. I didn’t want to let it go, so I followed the guides on YouTube and took it apart. I borrowed a 1000F heat gun from work and reflowed the board. Then replaced the thermal compound. I put it all back together and it’s working again. So far so good. 17 days later and it’s working well. Knock on wood.
It was never built to last.
If they would have gone the extra mile by making the GPU a separate card (like on PC) it would have lasted so much longer, and if it did fail, you’d only have to replace that, and not throw away basically everything.
The Slim came out 2 years after Phatty, which is exactly how long it takes for Sony’s cheap thermal paste to wear out completely.
If anyone has a Phatty reaching 2 years or past it REPLACE YOUR THERMAL PASTE.
Agreed. Mine when 3 years, but when I opened it up and looked at the thermal paste it fell apart like dried mud. I had never seen paste do that before. It just crumbled.
Sorry to hear my 60BG is still with me from day one as i bought it in Virgin Store in london launch day
my 80 gig fat is still running like a champ!
R.I.P