PlayStation (console)

This article is about the original console. For the PlayStation brand in general, see PlayStation. For other uses, see PlayStation (disambiguation).
Not to be confused with PSX (digital video recorder) or PlayStation Experience.

PlayStation




Top: The original model (1994) with the PlayStation Controller and Memory Card
Bottom: The smaller, redesigned PS One (2000) with its DualShock Controller and Memory Card
CodenamePSX
Also known as
  • PS
  • PS1
  • PS one (redesign)
DeveloperSony Computer Entertainment
ManufacturerSony Electronics
Product familyPlayStation
TypeHome video game console
GenerationFifth
Release datePlayStation
  • JP: 3 December 1994 (3 December 1994)[2]
  • NA: 9 September 1995 (9 September 1995)[1]
  • EU: 29 September 1995 (29 September 1995)[3]
  • AU: 15 November 1995 (15 November 1995)[4]
  • ZA: November 1996 (November 1996)[5]
  • HK/SG/TH/MY: December 1996 (December 1996)[6]
  • TW: December 1997 (December 1997)[7]
PS One
  • JP: 7 July 2000 (7 July 2000)
  • NA: 19 September 2000 (19 September 2000)
  • EU: 29 September 2000 (29 September 2000)
  • HK/SG/TH/MY/TW: November 2000 (November 2000)[6]
  • IND: 24 January 2002 (24 January 2002)[8]
  • KR: 22 February 2002
Introductory price¥39,800, US$299,[9] £299,[10] F1,490, DM599[3]
DiscontinuedWW: 23 March 2006[11][12]
Units sold
  • Worldwide: 102.49 million[11]
    • North America: 40.78 million
    • Europe: 40.12 million
    • Japan and Asia: 21.59 million
MediaCD-ROM
CPUR3000 @ 33.8688 MHz
Memory2 MB RAM, 1 MB VRAM
StorageMemory card
Sound16-bit, 24 channel ADPCM
Controller inputPlayStation controller, PlayStation Analog Joystick, Dual Analog Controller, DualShock
ConnectivityPlayStation Link Cable
Online services
  • i-mode Mobile Phone Connection Cable (Japan only)
  • Lightspan Online Connection CD (third-party)
Best-selling gameGran Turismo (10.85 million)[13][14]
SuccessorPlayStation 2

The PlayStation[a] (abbreviated as PS, commonly known as the PS1/PS one or its codename PSX) is a home video game console developed and marketed by Sony Computer Entertainment. It was released in Japan on 3 December 1994, in North America on 9 September 1995, in Europe on 29 September 1995, and in Australia on 15 November 1995. As a fifth-generation console, the PlayStation primarily competed with the Nintendo 64 and the Sega Saturn.

Sony began developing the PlayStation after a failed venture with Nintendo to create a CD-ROM peripheral for the Super Nintendo Entertainment System in the early 1990s. The console was primarily designed by Ken Kutaragi and Sony Computer Entertainment in Japan, while additional development was outsourced in the United Kingdom. An emphasis on 3D polygon graphics was placed at the forefront of the console's design. PlayStation game production was designed to be streamlined and inclusive, enticing the support of many third-party developers.

The console proved popular for its extensive game library, popular franchises, low retail price, and aggressive youth marketing which advertised it as the preferable console for adolescents and adults. Premier PlayStation franchises included Gran Turismo, Crash Bandicoot, Spyro, Tomb Raider, Resident Evil, Metal Gear, Tekken, and Final Fantasy, all of which spawned numerous sequels. PlayStation games continued to sell until Sony ceased production of the PlayStation and its games on 23 March 2006—over eleven years after it had been released, and less than a year before the debut of the PlayStation 3.[12] More than 4,000 PlayStation games were released, with cumulative sales of 962 million units.

The PlayStation signalled Sony's rise to power in the video game industry. It received acclaim and sold strongly; in less than a decade, it became the first computer entertainment platform to ship over 100 million units.[15] Its use of compact discs heralded the game industry's transition from cartridges. The PlayStation's success led to a line of successors, beginning with the PlayStation 2 in 2000. In the same year, Sony released a smaller and cheaper model, the PS one.

  1. ^ "Business Development/North America". Tokyo: Sony Computer Entertainment. Archived from the original on 27 February 2012. Retrieved 16 November 2015.
  2. ^ "Business Development/Japan". Tokyo: Sony Computer Entertainment. Archived from the original on 22 April 2004. Retrieved 19 December 2007.
  3. ^ a b "Business Development/Europe". Tokyo: Sony Computer Entertainment. Archived from the original on 22 April 2004. Retrieved 19 December 2007.
  4. ^ Healey, Nic (27 November 2013). "Evolution of the PlayStation console". CNET. Indian Land: Red Ventures. Archived from the original on 26 February 2022. Retrieved 26 February 2022.
  5. ^ "Playstation Launch Dates". www.playstation-europe.com. Archived from the original on 3 July 1998. Retrieved 21 September 2022.
  6. ^ a b "Expanded Company Timeline". Sony Interactive Entertainment. Retrieved 3 July 2023.
  7. ^ "Playstation 2" (Press release). Sony Computer Entertainment. 2007. Archived from the original on 6 November 2023. Retrieved 12 December 2023.
  8. ^ "Sony Playstation Touches Base in India". Business Standard India. 24 January 2002. Archived from the original on 20 September 2022. Retrieved 18 September 2022.
  9. ^ McFerran 2015, p. 12.
  10. ^ McFerran 2015, p. 9.
  11. ^ a b "PlayStation Cumulative Production Shipments of Hardware". Tokyo: Sony Computer Entertainment. Archived from the original on 22 July 2011. Retrieved 12 December 2012.
  12. ^ a b Sinclair, Brendan (23 March 2006). "Sony stops making original PS". GameSpot. Indian Land: Red Ventures. Archived from the original on 27 March 2019. Retrieved 2 October 2015.
  13. ^ "Gran Turismo Series Shipment Exceeds 50 Million Units Worldwide" (Press release). Tokyo: Sony Computer Entertainment. 9 May 2008. Archived from the original on 26 May 2008. Retrieved 3 June 2008.
  14. ^ "'Gran Turismo' Series Software Title List". Polyphony Digital. March 2010. Archived from the original on 6 February 2007. Retrieved 24 October 2010.
  15. ^ "PlayStation 2 Breaks Record as the Fastest Computer Entertainment Platform to Reach Cumulative Shipment of 100 Million Units" (PDF) (Press release). Tokyo: Sony Computer Entertainment. 30 November 2005. Archived from the original (PDF) on 3 January 2006. Retrieved 8 June 2008.


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