Rumor: PS3 to stream PS1, PS2 games

Bolstering an earlier rumor, there are now new reports that the PS3 will soon offer nearly all PS1 and PS2 games.

If you’re familiar with the Playstation Store, you know that you already can download a whole bunch of classic PS One titles, and there have been a handful of PS2 games to also grace the digital download platform.

But this latest rumor suggests that instead of Sony needing to upload every individual game and users needing to buy and download specific titles, the entire back catalog will go to a brand new streaming service.

This goes along perfectly with an earlier rumor that Sony was partnering with a “cloud gaming service.”

When it comes to “cloud gaming services,” there aren’t exactly a lot of players. The only ones that really jumps to mind are OnLive and the more recent Gaikai, and a partnership between those two could really be something.

Sony and Microsoft both face a situation that has really never been dealt with before – their competitor, Nintendo, showed off its new console last year and yet there will be no Xbox 720 or PS4 announcements.

For the first time in this industry, the announcements will have to be about new online services and life-expanding features that prove to consumers unequivocally that the console they own today will be different by the time Sony and Microsoft are done talking.

We’ll see if they can do it.