In-depth Future Gamer investigation finds out exactly what you get for your 39,800 yen

Sleeping bags on the pavement. Traffic halted by queues of frothing gamers pressing and crushing their way into stores like a heard of wildebeest crossing a river. And for what? Here's what. Here's what you get if you're Japanese and you've got the equivalent of 235 quid to spend - or if you're somewhere else in the world and are willing to spend a cool grand...

For starters, you get a brand new PlayStation2. Well, what did you expect - a Dreamcast? It's a rather nice, black affair with a large blue logo on the lid, and it looks so lovely we'd even recommend using just the empty case as an ornament for the living room.

What else do you get? One (not two - boo! Hiss!) Dual Shock 2 controller. Black as your hat, it looks great sticking out of a hip pocket. You also get an 8Mb memory card (take care of it - they're in short supply at the moment), some quite delightful stereo A/V cables, an AC plug and a utilities disc. What you don't get, according to reports, is a playable demo disc, which is a disgrace.

So there you have it: the PS2 package. Isn't it lovely?

It'll never catch on over here, though.