The deal with backwards compatibility is that it adds perceived value to the console. Being able to play all your old games on the new console is a great selling point, because it lets people beat those old games that maybe they didn't get to beat in the previous system's lifetime. I know that part of the reason I bought my PS2 back in the day was because it would replace my PS1 outright. You walk into the store, bring in your PS1 and trade it in on a PS2, and then play your old PS1 games when you feel like it. It's great. Not to bash Nintendo, but I don't get a charge out of having to have my NES, SNES and N64 hooked up just to play the games on those systems. I like to keep the games, not the hardware.
silks