After weeks of speculation, Sony announced the list of pre-loaded games included in its micro-console offering. The tiny working replica of 1994’s best piece of gaming hardware follows in the footsteps of Nintendo’s incredibly popular NES and SNES Classics.
Sony had a massive list of games to choose from and what you see is what you get, apparently. No dedicated classic machine has featured downloadable content so far and the Playstation Classic will apparently be no different. We knew Final Fantasy VII and Jumping Flash! made the cut, but Sony listed all 20 games in today’s news.
There are definitely some surprises on this list:
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- Battle Arena Toshinden
- Cool Boarders 2
- Destruction Derby
- Final Fantasy VII
- Grand Theft Auto
- Intelligent Qube
- Jumping Flash!
- METAL GEAR SOLID
- Mr. Driller
- Oddworld: Abe’s Oddysee
- Rayman
- Resident Evil Director’s Cut
- Revelations: Persona
- R4 Ridge Racer Type 4
- Super Puzzle Fighter II Tubro
- Syphon Filter
- Tekken 3
- TOM CLANCY’S RAINBOW SIX
- Twisted Metal
- Wild Arms
That being said, it’s no huge surprise that the original MGS made the cut. But Twisted Metal over Twisted Metal 2? There’s not a soul on earth who doesn’t think the globe-trotting, man-shoving-his-arms-into-giant-wheels-featuring sequel is superior. You could destroy and drive into the Eiffel Tower!
Meanwhile the inclusion of Grand Theft Auto feels like a product of name recognition more than anything. Critics didn’t warm to the franchise until its debut on PS2 with Grand Theft Auto III. I’m pretty sure younger folks will pick up the console and be unpleasantly surprised to see how different the series was at its inception.
Battle Arena Toshinden isn’t even the best weapons-based fighter to grace the console, considering the release of Soul Blade (a home port of Soul Edge) in 1996. Tekken 3 is a much stronger (even essential) 3D fighter and might be the most polished of the series. I would’ve almost expected the entire Tekken trilogy to make the cut above the sluggish, buggy Toshinden—which is only notable for being a looker at launch.
More than anything, today’s announcement highlighted the fact that the PlayStation was a true powerhouse for a handful of franchises. Of course Sony would want a heavy hitter like Final Fantasy VII to on the tiny machine. But wouldn’t the system be even more coveted if it featured VIII and IX? Tactics, anyone?
The publishers that truly thrived in the console’s heyday were Square, Capcom, Namco, and Konami. The PlayStation Classic could be a monument to those four collectives and it’d be arguably more valuable than the real deal.
But hey, the lineup is at least a little quirky. That certainly counts for something. I was shocked to see Intelligent Qube and the OG Persona. So props to Sony for throwing some surprises in the mix. It almost feels like Sony is setting up for multiple Classic releases, but that’s total speculation.
The selection is definitely lacking some undisputed classics from the PlayStation era, but as we’ve seen with Nintendo’s own micro-consoles, it might be fairly easy to load basically whatever you want onto the hardware.
Regardless, you’ll still have a blast sneaking through Shadow Moses on PlayStation Classic when it comes out on Dec. 3. You’ll need $99.99, plus whatever a required “compatible USB AC adaptor” costs, which is bizarrely not included in the package. As a result, you’ll have to shell out a bit more cash this holiday season.
Weird.
