Welcome, to week three of the most amazing (and only) five-week series of editorials that has ever graced Lusipurr.com. In just two weeks and a few days, the Nintendo Switch will have emerged from the depths of overpriced hell to curse all those around it. Last week was Xbox consoles, and this week will be about the fantastic consoles released under the name of PlayStation. First the worst, second the best, and third the one with a hairy chest? Huh. Well either way, it is time to start with Sony’s first console: the PlayStation.
The start of it all.
Released way back when in September of 1995 in North America, the PlayStation launched for $300 and went on to sell over 100 million units (including the PSone and as of 2007). Competing with the Nintendo 64 and the Sega Saturn, the PlayStation was the clear winner with an over 70 million unit lead on the Nintendo 64. The console itself launched with games like Rayman, Ridge Racer, and Battle Arena Toshinden, which took Sony acquiring some studios as well as making deals with arcade game developers like Namco as Sony did not have their own backlog of previously released arcade titles to port to their new console. The other notable thing about the PlayStation was that due to its success as a disc-based console, Sony led the way for other console developers to follow suit by taking the Nintendo 64 into a dark alley and shooting it point blank in the head. This success also led to the the PlayStation 2, the best selling video game console of all time.
Small, but powerful.
The PlayStation 2 (Electric Boogaloo) was released in October of 2000 in North America for the same launch price of $300, and the console went on to sell over 155 million units worldwide. This success can be attributed to a number of factors including backwards compatibility with the previous PlayStation console, numerous revisions and improvements to the hardware, and a ridiculous amount of PlayStation 2 exclusive titles that did tremendously well. Speaking of titles, the PlayStation 2 launched with titles including Dead or Alive 2, TimeSplitters and Tekken Tag Tournament. In total, almost 4,000 different games were released on the PlayStation 2 along with over 1.5 billion copies sold and the console went on to have a life of thirteen years. Sony really showed everyone else how to do a console right, and without the gimmicks of the Wii. The PlayStation 2 was just a really good console (and when the console dropped $100), a very affordable console, and a pretty darn powerful console too.
All the right curves, all the right places.
Next up is the PlayStation 3 (Electric Jubilee), which released in November of 2006 in North America for the price of $500 (or $600 for the 60GB model). The PlayStation 3 also marked the start of a couple new moves for Sony including the PlayStation Network, and the usage of Blu-Ray discs for the console. The console itself went on to sell about 85 million units in its lifetime as of 2016 reports despite a slow start (some people found $500-$600 to be a little much), putting it at about the same place as the Xbox 360. The PlayStation 3’s launch games included: Call of Duty 3, Resistance: Fall of Man and Marvel: Ultimate Alliance. Not to forget that at the time the PlayStation 3 was powerful to the point of 1,760 units being purchased by the Air Force Research Laboratory in order to build a supercomputer. Ultimately, the Playstation 3 was a success and led to the next PlayStation console which blessed the retail market.
Adeki DOES own one.
Last but certainly not least is the PlayStation 4 (Electric…Whore), which was released in November of 2013 for the price of $400. The PlayStation 4 was a drastic improvement over the PlayStation 3, more powerful, a redesigned controller, and more social features built into the console including streaming and remote play. The PlayStation 4 was also warmly received at launch since Sony allowed consumers to share their used games by physically handing them the game, an issue which does not seem like a problem now but had to be talked about thanks to Microsoft losing their minds for about a week or two. The PlayStation 4 was lucky enough to launch with games like Call of Duty: Ghosts, Assassin’s Creed IV: Black Flag, and one of the greatest games of all time, Knack. Stop laughing, Knack revolutionized the video game industry and surely its sequel, Knack 2 will do just the same.
“But what of the PlayStation 4 Pro?” you may ask, but probably will not. Well, the PlayStation 4 Pro will be covered in the last entry in this series of editorials on March 8th. Do you like Sony PlayStation consoles? Do you own one or have you played one? Or maybe you just do not like video games. Whatever it may be, make sure to leave a comment below and let us know what you think! (Bonus: Take a sip or shot every time the word PlayStation comes up, oh look, another one!)
