The 20th anniversary of the Playstation on 3 December 2014 was celebrated with various festive events and activities, and with special offers, of course. However, what is all the more important is that the celebrations were about the most successful game console of the 20th century. The Playstation was released in Japan on 4 December 1994, in North America on 9 September 1995, while in Europe on 29 September 1995. Mainly Namco and Sony were the creators of the first games, which include Tekken, Battle Arena Toshinden, Warhawk, Air Combat, Philosoma, and Ridge Racer. The majority of Namco games were the direct adaptations of arcade games at the time, which also contributed to the success of the device.
Development work on Playstation 2 was announced in March 1999, and it was marketed in Japan a year later. It was released before the rival Nintendo Gamecube, and it came out more than a year ahead of Microsoft Xbox entering the console market. Initially, Sony had a significant advantage over rivals by having a number of game developer teams, which secured a rich supply of games and also guaranteed high quality (for instance Gran Turism). The PS2 soon gained popularity and Sony attracted a great number of developers since the huge market demand resulted in good sales even for games of poorer quality. In comparison to Microsoft’s console, the PS2 could boast with far more exclusive big names, while Xbox offers a lot more multiplatform games.
The operational version of the PS3, the third desktop console, was introduced at the E3 conference held in 2006, and it was first released in Japan on 11 November in 2006. Approximately 81 thousand units were sold on the first day. It featured a built-in 2x speed Blu-ray Disc player, that could play DVDs and CDs alike. Its capability to play HD resolution materials that could only be stored on Blu-ray disks constituted its greatest advantage. Initially, a great number of PS3s were purchased as Blu-ray players as these consoles were less expensive than players at the time.
The PS4 was introduced in February 2013, it was released in North America on 15 November 2013, and on 29 November 2013 in Europe and Australia. The PS4 and its rivals (Nintendo Wii U and Microsoft Xbox One) are 8th-generation game consoles. Sony put more focus than earlier on community games with the share button on the new controller and with the option of streaming video games live. The reception of the console was positive by game developers and tech writers alike.
“But when will Sony change the world again?” asks Verge the question that makes one wonder.
