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[Sony Exploits Brazil]

http://ps2.ign.com/articles/104/1048252p1.html

Here's the rundown. Sony's officially releasing the PS2 in Brazil, presumably for the first time ever. It's also releasing a number of excellent games, including God of War II and Gran Turismo 4. Nothing wrong with that, right?

They're charging R$ 799 (USD $445) for the system.

The games range from R$ 99 (USD $55) to R$ 119 (USD $66).

So I guess my question is twofold: wouldn't you expect most Brazillian people who wanted one to have simply imported PS2s by now, and even if they didn't, who on earth would shell out $445 USD for a console that costs $99 USD in America and is 9 years old? Never mind the ridiculous prices for the games.

You're right about the games prices.

The PS2 console system costs about R$ 500 to R$700, depending on the store you buy. Usually people in Brazil tend to mod their systems, so you have to add an extra R$70 for the mod to run pirate games.

Actually, I bought my PS2 in 2007 for R$650 (about U$ 370).

It's way cheaper buy the system in Paraguay, a neighbor country. Stuff there are usualy sold in "black market", one can easily avoid the high importation taxes in Brazil. It also depends on how strong hte Dollar is at the moment.

Well, I guess few people will buy the oficial PS2 release here. And the games...they rot in the shelves.