No Title Needed [Greatest Video Game Console Ever Write-Off]

I remember when originally seeing the Playstation at its release and joking with friends about it. "What kind of a stupid name is Playstation? Who'd play a thing called a Playstation? Three year olds!? What's it's best games? Groucho In Toyland?!" Those were the original comments I had about this system long before it lowered in price and became commonplace in one out of every four households in the United States. Now on the other hand I have almost nothing but good things to say about it.

When I was approached about the write-off for the greatest video game console of all time, the Playstation (PSX) was the only thing that even came to mind. Then after thinking about it for a little while and comparing it to the closest competing systems (the SNES, NES and Game Boy) I still have no doubt in my mind that this is the best system ever made (to date). First off I have to point out that I didn't even put the Dreamcast, PS2, GameCube or X-Box even into consideration, for the simple fact none of them have been around long enough to prove themselves capable of lasting the test of time, yet. That out of the way I just compared all of the systems that ended up suceeding at beating the test of time and are still capable of entertaining you (lets face the facts, an Atari or Pong system can't hold your attention very long).

The Pros

1. The Games- This is without a doubt the thing that really makes or breaks a system. That's right, you can make a system that has 40 times the power of a Playstation, but with no good developers supporting it, it will wither and die at the hands of the puny little PSX. Much like the case with N64 or Dreamcast, true they aren't dead, but they are still getting their butts kicked by a system with 1/2 to 1/4 of the power, but with 10 times the amount of good games. Namely, Specs mean nothing.

Now that I've got the importance of great games out of the way let me tell you just how many great games are on this system. If you like a genre of gaming (even an extremely elusive one) then, trust me, you can find it here. If you like, oh... say like to play semi-truck cross country driving then you can get it (via an import store in this case). Also all the major genres are extremely well represented.

RPG's- Final Fantasy series, Xenogears, Chrono Cross, etc...
First Person Shooters- Medal Of Honor, Quake II
Racing- Gran Turismo Series, Need For Speed series, Nascar, Ridge Racer series etc...
Strategy- Warcraft II, Command & Conquer etc...
Fighting- Tekken Series, Bloody Roar series, Street Fighter series etc...
Adventure- Legacy Of Kain: Soul Reaver, Castlevania Symphony of the Night, Tomb Raider series etc...
Action- Syphon Filter series, Crash Bandicoot series, ONE etc...
Sports- Madden series, Triple Play series, NBA Live series, Fifa series, etc...
Platform- Spyro series, Rayman series, Ape Escape, Gex the Gecko series etc...

Note: You may have noticed that I did list some games that I rated poorly (Quake II, and Tomb Raider series) but they seem to be pretty popular and I think I'm just in the small minority that doesn't like them.

Those are just the most popular and long lasting genres that I pointed out. Then there are those innovative games that came out on the system that just can't be classified in one of those categories. Like Parappa the Rapper and Resident Evil that just have created their own names.

Rhythmical- Parappa The Rapper, and Bust A Groove
Survival Horror- Resident Evil series, Dino Crisis, Silent Hill
Stealth- Tenchu Series, Metal Gear Solid
Vehicular Combat- Twisted Metal series, Vigilante 8

I'm sure there are others, but those are the only ones I could think of off the top of my head. There are over 1000 games on PSX, so it would be hard to list every good one here.

2. Durability- Yes, you read me right, I say the durability of the PSX is much better than most of the other systems ever made. True, some older versions tend to overheat and my own PSX has to sit on its side, but it's a good 4 years old with extensive use. It still works, which is a ton better than every other system that I've had, like the NES that would quit working if I forgot to dust it and clean the innards twice daily.

3. The Controller- The original controller was functional, and actually one of the best around by it's sheer simplicity. Then Sony was nice enough to copy (steal) one of Nintendo's ideas and then one up it. The creation of the dual shock controller is simply great, you don't need to put new batteries in it and it is twice as effective as most other controllers on any system. The simple fact that this controller has dual analog sticks and dual shock vibration makes it great. It's comfortable and is made for 2 hands (it may sound simple, but some systems don't understand that we only have 2 hands *cough*N64*cough). I could go into great detail about this, but this is a long enough review as is, so I'll stop at that.

4. Peripherals- The PSX being a CD based system makes it nearly impossible to play without a memory card. When I first got my PSX I thought memory cards were a stupid idea. Then came the realization of how much more flexible the games become when you aren't limited to just 4 saves on one game. I could have a 100 different saves if I wanted to, and they wouldn't interfere with anyone else's saves (sweet). Then there are other ingeniously simple peripherals like the multitap, it is another great peripheral that allows 5 people play at one time. The Link Cable is another peripheral with great potential, it allows you to link 2 Playstations together and play head-to-head. The Gameshark (or something similar) is commonplace with every system, but it is noteworthy. Then there are all those other great controllers, like the fishing reels, light guns, steering wheels and all those other great things.

The Cons

What? The greatest system ever has Cons?

1. Only 2 Controller Ports- True you can get a multitap, but sense most people don't have a multitap most games are programmed to support them. Leaving you really scrapping to find a good collection of great multiplayer games. If your soul intention of having a gaming system is to have a party system then go for the N64, which really excels in this area (then falls short in every other area).

2. Lack Of Support For Some Peripherals- As in the case with the Link Cable. This peripheral could have been the best, but no, out of my collection of 55 Playstation games only 3 use it (Wipeout XL, Bushido Blade, and Destruction Derby). I have a Link Cable, have I ever used it? No.

3. Stupid Name- Sorry, but if you really think about it "Playstation" just sounds really childish and stupid. I think that may have been what I called my fort of sofa cushions when I was five. Hey, wait a second... they stole it from me! I'll be a millionaire when my lawyers are done with them!! HA HA!!

Legal Notice: Goldentoe acknowledges that Sony had no prior knowledge of his cushion forts name, and it is merely a coincidence that the names are identical.

With as many good things going for this system I wouldn't delay for a second to recommend it to anybody. Even though it is quickly approaching the status of "dead system" it is by far the best to date.

This was part of a write-off put together by Plat_Ryda. I encourage you to read the reviews of all these excellent writers that are involved in this write-off: Goldentoe, Guile176, Horhay, Orestes84, Plat_Ryda, and Solid_Snake.