Sony's PlayStation 2 turns ten years old today - a console every single one of you has probably played or owned at one point in your life.

With an astonishing 146 million people worldwide owning a PS2 (1 in 3 U.S. residents own the console), the reach of Sony's black-box has known no bounds. You can still buy yourself a PS2 at any local game retailer for the low price of $99, the most recent bundle coming on October 31 with Toy Story 3: The Video Game.

With an extensive library of over 2,000 games, the PlayStation 2 is certainly home to many of the titles we have all come to play and love like the God of War franchise, Ratchet & Clank, Gran Turismo, and lesser known titles such as the Shin Megami Tensei series have also provided gamers with countless hours of entertainment. Even when the original Xbox came out, my library was still full of PS2 games.

My first encounter with PlayStation 2 wasn't at launch, believe it or not. I hadn't bought one until well into the console's second year of dominance, and the reason for that was the release of Metal Gear Solid 2. Prior to that, the first PlayStation I ever bought was because of Metal Gear Solid.

To me, the PS2 is up there with the original Nintendo Entertainment System as what I call a "perfect console."What do I mean by that? It's a console that you can consistently return to and still have fun. There were so many amazing single player experiences that, even with some of today's next-gen offerings, it'd be hard to beat.

So today, even with the releases of Rock Band 3 and Fable 3, maybe you should dust off your PS2 and give it a go once more and be reminded of why it's still one of the most popular consoles around - even after ten years. Personally, I might try to see if I can beat Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time in two hours again.

Today is a huge milestone, given the amazing staying power the last-gen machine still has among the gaming community. Make sure to check out our feature talking about fifteen years of the PlayStation - which also provides tantalizing information regarding the console's history and successes.

Share your favorite PS2 memories in the comments.