How to Turn Off or Reset the PS2 With a Controller

Getting up is a necessary evil in the life of a gamer. Changing disks, picking up controllers, and turning off the console all involved physical movement of appendages outside the realm of the thumb and forearms. While newer game consoles like the PlayStation 3, Nintendo Wii and Xbox 360 do away with some of these issues, owners of older consoles aren't so privileged. Fortunately, PlayStation 2 owners do have options available to reset or turn off their console remotely, at the very most asking them to lift a finger.

Connect a PlayStation 2 DualShock 2 controller to the first controller port on your PlayStation 2.

Make sure a fresh pair of AAA batteries are in your PlayStation 2 DVD remote control and that its included IR receiver is connected to the console (if applicable). Older PS2 models need the IR receiver while newer, slim models come with the IR port already built in.

Press the "Reset" button on the top-right corner of the DVD remote control to power on the console. Press and hold the button for roughly one second to reset it.

Power off the console using the DVD remote control by holding down the "Reset" button for roughly three seconds until the console shuts down and goes into Standby mode.

Reset a game during game play using the PlayStation 2 DualShock 2 controller by pressing and holding Start, Select, L1, and R1 all at once. The game resets and brings you back to the first screen you see after the PlayStation 2 insignia appears when you boot up the game. This technique (called a "Soft Reset") works for most, but not all, PlayStation 2 games.