The Horrifying Secret of the Ps2

Ever since I was young (like 4-ish), I played on the Playstation 2. I had so many different games on it. Tony Hawk, Kingdom Hearts, Call of Duty, Red Dead Revolver, and about 40 to 50 other games.

I had nothing but good memories from this console, but there is one thing that keeps me up at night. One fear that still haunts me to this day.

The Red Screen of Death.

Before I go into detail about what it is, let me lay down some groundwork. For those who never played a Ps2, when you inserted a disc, this would be the startup screen.

Looks normal, right? So, whats the problem? Well, you see, after this startup screen, the game typically begins.

But, what happens if the Ps2 can’t read the game?

Well, my friends. This is where the Red Screen of Death comes in, or RSoD for short.

What in the world was Sony thinking of when they made this? This screen horrified me as a kid.

It felt as though I was falling down in an eternal abyss of darkness. The first few sound at the beginning are nothing more than the moans and cries of those who are being tortured.

Where does the red mist lead to? No one knows, but my guess is that at the end of its trail, your soul is vanquished into nothingness. Gone and forgotten.

This scared me when I was a kid, and even today, it still gives me the chills. In fact, I was so scared by this that when I was young, I would place my stomach up against the TV when the original startup screen started. On the off-chance that the RSoD played, I would turn off my TV immediately.

Its crazy how a simple startup screen can have lasting impressions of someone. Especially when the creators didn’t intentionally mean to come across as frightening as this