15 Years of the Playstation

[CatInASuit]

it's been 15 years since an innocuous grey box was released in Japan which has become one of the world's biggest brands. It has become part of everyday life and was a very large part of making console gaming a mainstream experience.

It sold more consoles than anything until it's big brother, the PS2 came along, with sales of 125 million units around the world.

Not to mention some of the ever made.

What are your memories of the Playstation?

Mine is of learning every Tekken 2 move I could to beat my friends, of multiplaying Diablo until early morning and of being shocked when Aeris died.

It was and still is an amazing machine full of memories.

[Taumpy]

I got my PS1 for Christmas in 1997 for the sole purpose of playing Final Fantasy 7, and I became obsessed with that game, so a lot of my playstation memories are tied to that.

Well, that and Bushido Blade where I usually opted for the cheap "beserker" fighting style, rather than play how you're supposed to. Not honorable or samurai-like, but eh, I won more fights than I lost that way.

[jali]

I remember my (then) 6 year old son beating my butt, playing Street Fighter. I used to practice while he was at school, but he was a master and I was a mere grasshipper at the game.

2D fights were exciting back then.

[Orual]

I'm not much of a gamer, but back when I lived with someone with a PS2 I thought Katamari Damacy was the shit.

[ivan astikov]

I used to love my PS1.

I was a pretty late starter regarding video games, and only succumbed to buying my own PS1 after becoming addicted to PGA Golf and Tekken 2 on my brother's console. Then I got Gran Turismo and whiled away a significant portion of my waking life trying to get my "all classes" driving licence. At one time, I could drive every track in my head.

Then there was Pro Evolution Soccer's Master League and making your own customised team of giants all called Ceejayo, who once trounced the mighty Real Madrid 14-0 at their own ground(we only scored 10 in the 2nd leg).

I'll skip detailing my obsession with gambling on Chocobo Races in Final Fantasy 7, suffice to say it took me about 100 hrs above the norm to complete it.

After Tomb Raiders 1-3 with all the thrills of entering a new explorable level and acquiring a better weapon, combined with the absolute fury when Lara stepped off a ledge or got trapped in the corner of a room - the stupid bint! - I then decided I was ready for Resident Evil!

So began my love affair with exterminating zombies, which abides - albeit at a more reserved level - to this day. Saying that, I'm glad I never had to learn my survival skills by paying for them in an arcade!

Later, I was stymied by Syphon Filter, mashed by Metal Gear Solid, vexed by Victory Boxing and pissed off by Parasite Eve, but that grey hunk of plastic will always have a place in my heart.

ps. Honorable mentions go to Toca Touring Cars, Toshinden3, Abe's Odyssey, Worms, Driver and Stuntman. Oh, and Ridge Racer 4 and Colin McRae Rally.

[Myrnalene]

I bought the Playstation because of

I remember how blown away I was by the graphics in that ad (I had played the other FF titles on Nintendo) and how excited I was. I'm old.

[pepperlandgirl]

My husband introduced me to PlayStation and gaming, back when we first started dating (11 years ago!). I still remember the first time I watched him play Resident Evil. Holy shit, that thing scared the hell out of me. It makes me laugh now to think there was ever a time when Resident Evil on the PS1 frightened me, but it really did. Silence was also obsessed with Final Fantasy VII, but I could never get into it. It just seemed kind of lame to me. I've still never played that game, but for whatever reason, Final Fantasy VIII really caught my attention. I played that game for hours and hours and hours and hours and hours.

Our PS2 doesn't really get any attention anymore. But I can't play any fighting or racing games on the 360, because I can't make my hands understand that the controls for the two systems aren't the same. I think that my physical memory, and my heart, will always be with Play Station.

[Taumpy]

I have a love-hate relationship with FF8. I liked the story, and the characters, but the fighting system is just ridiculous. Draw, draw, draw, steal. Limit break! Were you into the card game, Pepper? A bunch of my friends at the time were just obsessed with that.

(And Myrna? That should make you feel old. That I'm younger than you are and was blown away by the Super Nintendo graphics in '92? That should. )

[Myrnalene]

Final Fantasy VII was actually a good game hampered by a too-complicated storyline (it didn't help that one of the most vital plot points was revealed in a hidden cutscene that most players didn't see). It had compelling characters and the chocobo breeding / racing that ivan talked about was almost a game in itself.

Final Fantasy VII, VIII and IX were the only games I bought for the Playstation but I did rent quite a few. This was a fun one (so was the sequel). Does anyone remember this creepy little puzzle game?

ETA: Ugh the fucking card game in FF VIII. Hated it.

[pepperlandgirl]

I hate the card game, too. I never, ever played it (unless I couldn't help it). It was really the first game I ever played on my own, and I didn't really grasp the concept of mini-games and side missions. Actually, I still haven't. I had a major problem with FF X because of the under-water polo game stuff--what was it called? Sphere Ball or something?

FFXIII is going to be released for 360 in March, and I still need to finish X-2 and XII.

[jali]

I hate the card game, too. I never, ever played it (unless I couldn't help it). It was really the first game I ever played on my own, and I didn't really grasp the concept of mini-games and side missions. Actually, I still haven't. I had a major problem with FF X because of the under-water polo game stuff--what was it called? Sphere Ball or something?

FFXIII is going to be released for 360 in March, and I still need to finish X-2 and XII.

I was so excited that I ran out and bought X as soon as it was available.

I hated the sphere ball game so much that I ended up letting my son trade X away to buy something else at the game shop.

The sphere ball game made me quit FF forever.

[The Original An Gadaí]

Iwas much more into the idea of the Playstation and the less often remembered Sega Saturn before I actually played either. My brother used to buy videogame industry magazine, Edge, and it had various articles about these upcoming consoles. The transfer from 2D to 3D seemed more startling than any refinement since even though modern videogames are much more sophisticated graphically than first generation PS ones. I read about how you could buy a Japanese PS on import for whatever amount and I really, really wanted one. However, by the time it came to me having the money to buy one a few years later I just didn't feel bothered. My brother bought one and I played it quite a bit but I spent much more time playing games on the Sega Megadrive/Genesis than I ever did on the PS1.