Sony Corp. (NYSE: SNE) announced on Tuesday a list of titles from its previous Playstation 2 game console that will be compatible with its new Playstation 3 system, expected to launch in Europe this Friday.

The consumer electronics manufacturer said in February that units shipped to Europe would exclude specialized hardware offering full compatibility to older titles. Instead, the new game console would mimic Playstation 2 functionality using software tricks.

Our engineers have been working overtime, and have succeeded in delivering a significant number of playable PS2 titles for the European launch, said David Reeves, president of Sony, in a statement.

Reeves reiterated the company's emphasis on creating content for its new Playstation console, saying future resources will be focused on developing new services and entertainment features exclusively for PS3, rather than on delivering PS2 backwards compatibility.

The firm said that in order to play the 1,782 compatible PS2 titles, European owners must upgrade the software on their new Playstations, with a patch offered on their website.

In addition to offering game compatibility, the path will also allow users to connect Bluetooth based keyboards and mice to the game system.

The update also allows PS3 owners to contribute computing power to Stanford University's Folding@home program, a distributed computing project aimed at understanding protein folding, misfolding, and related diseases, such as Alzheimer's, Parkinson's, and many cancers.

Sony Corp. shares fell 50 cents, or 0.96 percent, to $51.82 on Tuesday on the New York Stock Exchange.

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