PlayStation

Sony · 1994 – 2006

Sony's PlayStation reshaped the games industry with its CD-ROM format, $299 launch price, and aggressive third-party licensing strategy. Selling 102 million units, the PlayStation ended Sega's competition, weakened Nintendo's market position, and established Sony as the dominant console manufacturer of the late 1990s.

The PlayStation originated as a CD-ROM add-on for the Super Nintendo before a falling-out between Sony and Nintendo sent Sony to develop a standalone console. Ken Kutaragi's team built a machine centred on the R3000A CPU and a custom GPU capable of fast 3D polygon rendering. Sony's approach to third-party licensing was the opposite of Nintendo's restrictive model: developers paid lower royalties, had access to the hardware specifications, and were not required to source manufacturing through Nintendo. The result was an unprecedented flood of third-party support. Squaresoft's Final Fantasy VII (1997) defined the PlayStation era culturally, demonstrating that games could be cinematic experiences with mass-market appeal. Tekken, Crash Bandicoot, Resident Evil, and Gran Turismo each defined genres on the platform.