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SCMP Reporter

Video game fans are set for disappointment this Christmas, with Sony saying the SAR release date for its smash-hit PlayStation 2 games console has been postponed indefinitely.

PS2, hailed by console game players as the 'ultimate games machine', has failed to make its official debut in the SAR since its release in Japan nine months ago.

Sony originally delayed its release from July to the end of this year. But company spokesman James Ho said the console would not be available in Hong Kong 'any time soon'.

Production problems at a plant in Nagasaki have caused a shortage of the game's advanced graphic chips. 'We are trying our best to bring it here as soon as possible. We hope when it comes, sales will be as good as those in Japan and the US,' Mr Ho said.

PS2 consoles are available in Hong Kong through parallel imports directly from Japan. Sony, however, has warned buyers that it will not service defective products sold on the 'grey market'.

Fans have become impatient after repeat delays of the official release. 'It seems PS2 will never be officially available. By the time it does, it might be considered too outdated,' said Jon Tang Min-kwok, who had lost patience with the official launch and bought a parallel-imported PS2 for $3,200 on Wednesday.

PS2, which can run video games, VCDs and DVDs as well as accessing the Internet, has been a big hit since its March release in Japan, but has been criticised for being compatible with too few computer games.

More than three million have been sold in Japan, and authorised dealers have run out of stock in the US since its debut there in late October.

Stores in Europe have also sold out of the PS2 since the computer game console was launched there on November 23.



Release delay riles video game fans