<< From what I've heard, yes, you will have to have an AOL account to be able to play PS2 games online. You also have to buy their $100 peripheral that has the modem and hard drive for playing online. >>
If the AOL part is true they might as well forget about anyone playing online with a PS2. first a $24 fee just to be able to play online, plus $10 charges for the online rpgs. It's almost like Sony wants to get their ass handed to them by Microsoft.