10 Year Anniversary of PS1 Launch

1up is reporting on the anniversary this week of the original PlayStation. For many people the system represents a fundamental shift in consumer gaming. From the article: "PlayStation changed the way people played games--the way they thought about them, really. When Sony launched its console, the gaming industry was bogged down by expensive production, too many competing standards, and crippling uncertainty among the mind-share leaders. In just a few short years, PlayStation rose from that morass to become the undisputed champion of the era, not only taking the 32-bit prize but simultaneously paving the way for a comfortable lead in the following generation."

Comments

How is anything different?

[frederec]

"When Sony launched its console, the gaming industry was bogged down by expensive production, too many competing standards, and crippling uncertainty among the mind-share leaders."

Too bad nothing seems to have changed. Articles about the massive expense of making next-gen titles are common these days. Arguments over either DVD, HD-DVD, and Blu-Ray or the differing architechtures of the PC, PS3, and XBox360 are also common (haven't heard much about revolution coding). Uncertainty also seems rampant, if you count that by all the sequels and cheap licenses that come out. But I feel that just like the other issues, the creativity/sequel issue is no more or less prevalent now than any other time in console life. No, what the PS1 did what is propelled games into the mainstream. Though it's awful cliche, the PS1 made it cool for the MTV crowd to play games.

What is the article writer smoking?

[Digital Vomit]

PlayStation changed the way people played games--the way they thought about them, really.

The article just reeks of Sony fanboyism. Sure, the PlayStation was a successful 32-bit console when it appeared near the end of the 16-bit era, when the SNES and Genesis roamed the land, but the writer makes it sound like the PS1 was some sort of monumental occasion worthy of inclusion in the Civilization tech tree (Computing --> PlayStation --> Cure for Cancer).