Sony's PlayStation launched exactly 25 years ago today

[Shawn Knight]

A near miss: Sony’s original PlayStation launched in Japan on December 3, 1994 – exactly 25 years ago today. The Japanese electronics giant’s debut console was a smash hit that propelled Sony to major player status in the video game industry but it almost didn’t happen at all.

Nintendo in the late 1980s reached out to Sony to build a CD-ROM accessory for its upcoming Super Nintendo Entertainment System as well as a standalone device called the Play Station that could play both SNES cartridges and optical discs. A licensing dispute between the two companies eventually unraveled the partnership.

Rather than scrap the project, Sony continued to develop the system. The rest, as they say, is history.

The Sony PlayStation wouldn’t make it to North American shores for another nine months – on September 9, 1995. By the time it arrived, Sony had a decent lineup of launch titles in tow including Twisted Metal, Ridge Racer, ESPN Extreme Games and NBA JAM Tournament Edition, just to name a few.

Sony ultimately sold more than 102 million PlayStation consoles, good enough for fifth place in the list of best-selling consoles of all time. The company parlayed its success with the original PS into multiple follow-ups and can now lay claim to three of the top five best-selling game consoles ever released.

Masthead credit: PlayStation 1 by Anthony McLaughlin

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https://www.techspot.com/news/83014-sony-playstation-launched-exactly-25-years-ago-today.html

 

[neeyik]

I remember buying one as a Christmas present to myself in 1995 - played Destruction Derby for endless hours. Bliss...can still hear the start up music in my head, even now. ?

 

[Lew Zealand]

The important thing in life is to surround yourself with good friends.

You know, the type of friends that buy you a Sony Playstation as a wedding present. *Those* are good friends. The hours wasted in front of Tomb Raiders… FFVII… Bust a Move 2…

 

[redhat]

I could not afford to buy it but in my country we were renting it for 24 hours and was amazing experience for someone played Atari NES and Sega Genesis

 

[amghwk]

It is still a wonderful machine. Back when it was released, it blew away the gaming scene. Almost all games had this animated CG cutscenes, which was still in infancy on PCs. Many many memorable games from across all genres - Jap CRPGs, the arrival of arcade fighters like Tekken 3, action-adventures, and so many more. And the last iteration PSOne is so compact and so small yet provides the same gaming experience.

 

[tkabou]

I remember the absolute countless hours spent on Gran Turismo, their brutal endurance races, 300 laps, etc. Tomb Raider was another such peach. Back then accuracy and proper button mashing was critical to making a jump or falling off a cliff...DOS Prince of Persia comes to mind as well

 

[ZedRM]

I was one of those people who preferred the PC, Saturn and N64. However, once Legend of Mana and FF9 hit, I was in. IMHO two of the greatest games released for the system.

 

[Morris Minor]

25 years! God I feel old

 

[Stoly]

To think I was already an adult (and then some) back then.

 

[Stoly]

To think I was already an adult (and then some) back then.

Actually, I was 25.

Go figure...

 

[Puiu]

The important thing in life is to surround yourself with good friends.

You know, the type of friends that buy you a Sony Playstation as a wedding present. *Those* are good friends. The hours wasted in front of Tomb Raiders… FFVII… Bust a Move 2…

I just hope you played with your partner and not alone

 

[grvalderrama]

I still recall ungrapping the box where there were four PSXs (for selling in the family business), then we gave one a try, damn I even remember the first game played: Resident Evil 2... A no-turning-back way... Mind blowing for that time

 

[Lew Zealand]

I just hope you played with your partner and not alone

Bust a Move is a 2 player game and my contribution to FFVII was far less than half. TR was all me, tho.

 

[Danny101]

Glad Sony's and Nintendo's partnership ended in dispute.