PlayStation 2 repair services close in Japan Published duration 4 September 2018

image copyright Getty Images image caption The PlayStation 2 is the best-selling console of all time

Sony has ended its repair service for the PlayStation 2, more than 18 years after it first went on sale.

The console was first released in Japan in March 2000 and remains the best-selling games console ever produced.

Manufacturing of the device ended in 2012, six years after the follow-up PS3 console had been released.

Sony said it was no longer able to offer repairs because it was running out of replacement parts for the ageing console.

In a statement, the company thanked customers for their "continued patronage".

Gamers seeking repairs will now have to try their luck with unofficial services.

More than 150 million PlayStation 2 consoles have been sold.

The latest model, the PS4, has sold about 80 million units.

Rival console-maker Microsoft no longer reports sales figures for its Xbox One console. But the consultancy IHS Markit estimates more than 40 million have been sold.