The PlayStation 1 was first launched in Japan 27 years ago today

The first PlayStation was released in Japan on December 3, 1994, and video games have not been the same since then.

It’s hard to underline the impact of the PlayStation. Graphics and sound were cutting-edge for their time. Compared to Sony’s competitors’ cartridge-based games, the PlayStation looked like the future.

But it might never have happened. With the PlayStation it was almost completely different. Sony had originally partnered with Nintendo to create a console that never existed. The partnership was a failure, and Sony made plans to develop its own CD-based game console to tie it to the SNES. The Tokyo-based electronics giant continued with prototypesincluding several uncomfortable looking controllers, before opting for the now iconic controller design.

When it was released in Japan, the console was a huge hit. There were long lines at the start and excitement among the Japanese players. Sony has marketed its slot machines as high-end electronics aimed at older gamers who may have grown up with the Nintendo Famicom. The PlayStation was cool

. It’s 32-Bit graphics wowed gamers who were used to 16-bit. The console was so impressive that it beckoned Place’s Final Fantasy Train away from Nintendo. The fans were also more than happy to follow them. The console would house a number of classic games, including the above Final Fantasy VII , as well as Castlevania: Symphony Of The Night, Resident Evil 2, PaRappa The Rapper, Tomb Raider, and Solid metal gear, among many others.

By 2005, Sony had shipped over 100 million PlayStation 1s, making it the first console to reach such a milestone. “PlayStation” was not just the name of the console, it was a brand. The PS1 paved the way for the PlayStation 2, the best-selling console of all time. But that would never have happened without the PS1. And it all started 27 years ago today.