The making of a legend: PlayStation 1
Does this look a little like a SNES to you? Well, it should. Sony's first steps into gaming came courtesy of its current competitor. Sony was to partner with Nintendo in creating a CD-based expansion for the Super Nintendo. The very first PlayStation would have been a powerful collaboration between two Japanese giants, but a controversial split between the two left Sony sidelined, bitter ... and determined to beat Nintendo at its own game.
Edge Online has a fantastic piece on the history behind the very first PlayStation system, detailing the system's unexpected rise to mainstream popularity. PS1 was a technological marvel for its time, pushing the boundaries of games to what was then considered super-computing. Sound familiar? Phil Harrison reminisced about the past: "This was a super high-end workstation. And Ken [Kutaragi]'s big vision was to take that, apply it in high volume and bring it into the home." Looking at the history of the PS1, it's clear that PS3 follows a heritage of bringing unheard of power to the masses.
