1up.com is reporting that there will be downloadable Playstation 1 games on the Playstation 3 storefront on launch day.

Great. Except for the fact you can't play them.

For some reason, the PS3 will allow you to insert any PS1 or PS2 game CD or DVD and play it using its backward compatibility feature, but the downloadable PS1 games won't run on launch day. Sony's Phil Harrison said you'll be able to play those downloadable PS1 games on your PS3 by the end of the year. What's even more interesting is that, according to Harrison, you'll be able to play the downloadable PS1 games on your PSP upon release.

By my best guess, this means we'll see another PSP firmware update on or before Nov. 17th to allow PS1 emulation.

Harrison also said that the downloadable PS1 games should be $14.99 or less and that they're planning to do downloadable PS2 games as well but at a later date. Sony's overall plan seems to be to release every playstation one game ever released except for the ones with licensing issues.

Not being able to play the downloaded PS1 games seems to me like another case of 'Sony rushed the fucking launch!' but I do like the direction they're going. It's a little disappointing we're not going to see any enhancements to our older games, but I'm happy to see we'll only need to buy these games once to use them on both your PSP or PS3.

My biggest concern is the price. I certainly hope they stagger the price of the games... $15 seems a bit expensive for a title that's over 5 years old. $15 is probably reasonable for Metal Gear Solid or Final Fantasy 7, but not for Jet Moto or Driver.

This sounds like a strong purchase point to me... although, I'm a bit dismayed that the idea of playing 5+ year old titles is more exciting then anything they've got for launch day. Is this type of digital distribution something you're interested in? What is the most your willing to pay for an old game?

This sounds interesting, but I also have a slight problem with the price... well, actually it depends a lot on the game. Will Suikoden II be available for such a download for 15 bucks? If so, many people will cry with joy, because it's almost impossible to buy it now for less than 80-100$ or so. But if they demand the same price for a Final Fantasy - I can find it on eBay, maybe even cheaper. And even if it's slightly more expensive, having an original game with covers & manuals and all the rest beats the hell out of downloadable media.

And then again... I already have "Suikoden II". I actually already have all PS1 games I want to have. So the feature seems kind of useless to me, after all.

I have a formula to calculate the fair price of a downloadable game: split games in three tiers (between good, very good and classic titles), find out what's the average price the media ALONE of those games takes on ebay and the like, and then take some percentage depending on the extras of the original packaging and "modern" value of the game.

This means a Driver would be worth around 3 eur, and a MGS around 10eur, which seem fair prices.

What? Why is everyone looking at me? It's not like I payed $80 for Guardian Heroes... Oh wait...

I seriously don't know what to make of Sony. They've turned into that crazy guy everyone knows in the video game world. It's as though they have this idea that constantly shooting themselves in the foot will make them successful. Weird.

Hey... Believe me ... you're not alone... I payed a premium for the X-Com collection after the fact... and I dropped like $150 on Wing Commander : The Kilrathi Saga...

The point before was made about suikoden 2... and I think its a valid one. Having rare games is always a good feeling because you've got something special - but if playing the game is the important part, isn't it more important that its accessible?