Sony‘s PlayStation brand has been around almost 20 years now, in the United States. And in anticipation of its Wednesday “#PlayStation2013″ event, at which it is widely expected to unveil its next-generation PlayStation console, Sony has published a series of “Evolution of PlayStation” videos on YouTube and its own site. These videos present a (somewhat one-sided) history of the PlayStation brand, and its consoles and major highlights through the years.
Here’s a timeline with links to the videos, for those who could use the recap:
1994 — The First PlayStation
That’s what it was called: Just “PlayStation.” Launching at $ 299, $ 100 less than the competing Sega Saturn, the Sony PlayStation — originally developed as a CD drive add-on to one of Nintendo’s consoles — soon became a major force in the video game industry.
Partway through the PlayStation’s lifecycle, the DualShock controller added twin analog sticks and a built-in vibration feature, echoing similar features found on Nintendo and Sega’s consoles. Meanwhile, the hard-to-find black Net Yaroze PlayStation console let people make their own games.
Sony would continue to sell slim, redesigned “PSone” consoles during the PlayStation 2‘s heyday, until production was finally stopped in 2006.
2000 — The PlayStation 2
Known as the PS2, Sony’s next PlayStation would go on to become the best-selling game console of all time, with more than 150 million sold. Production of new PlayStation 2 consoles just stopped this January, and while some PS2 games have received HD re-releases on the PlayStation 3 the vast majority can’t be played on Sony’s current console.
The PS2 played new games designed for its “Emotion Engine” processor, and could improve the graphics of PSone games played on it. It also played DVD movies, and the original large PS2 had optional network and hard disk add-ons, which let enthusiasts install Linux on it or play online games like Final Fantasy XI. (The “slim” PS2 has built-in networking capability, but can’t be upgraded with a hard disk.)
2006 — The PlayStation 3
The PS3′s disastrous North American launch became a veritable fountain of memes, as Sony showmen’s lines were quoted and remixed endlessly afterwards. Sony exec (now CEO) Kaz Hirai’s announcement of the PS3′s launch price tag — “$ 599 U.S. dollars!” — was met with stunned silence, and the console debuted to mediocre sales numbers.
The PS3 soon rebounded, however, and with a retooled interior design (which now lacked the processor chips necessary to run PlayStation 2 games) it also became much smaller and cheaper than its launch model. The DualShock 3 controller added force-feedback support to the original SixAxis, while the PlayStation Move controller challenged Wii MotionPlus and Kinect.
According to an IDC report, after being on the market about half as long as the PlayStation 2 the PS3 has sold roughly half as many consoles, with “about 77 million” sold.
2013 — The PlayStation 4?
Code-named “Orbis,” Sony’s next-generation PlayStation console is widely expected to be unveiled Wednesday. Dan Graziano of BGR News says that it may use a Move-enabled controller with a PS Vita-style touchpad, and that while it probably won’t be compatible with PS3 games it may be able to stream them online.
Jared Spurbeck is an open-source software enthusiast, who uses an Android phone and an Ubuntu laptop PC. He has been writing about technology and electronics since 2008.
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Sony’s “Evolution of PlayStation” Videos Lead Up to Wednesday’s Event
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