Are people less nostalgic for the PS1?

[+save2600]

Don't remember Jumping Flash, Intelligent Cube or Revelations. Mr. Driller I had to look up too... looks to be a goofy Boulder Dash clone. pfft
 

Truly baffling they included that SF puzzle game instead of an actual Street Fighter fighting game.   ? 

 

• 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
• Ridge Racer Type 4
• Super Puzzle Fighter II Turbo
• Syphon Filter
• Tekken 3
• Tom Clancy’s Rainbow Six
• Twisted Metal

 

 

[+jgkspsx]

Jumping Flash sold extremely well at launch and lots of people I know had it and loved it. It’s one of the best platformers on the system.

 

Intelligent Qube was heavily promoted even if it didn’t sell very much. I always wanted a copy but didn’t buy it. Now it’s ridiculously expensive. It’s a great puzzle game in the vein of Catherine, although without the story. I agree they could have left it off, but as Sony owns it 100%, it didn’t cost them anything.

 

Persona didn’t sell squat on the PlayStation but it’s a huge franchise now with dozens of games a year that sell well.The  Shin Megami Tensei universe is arguably more beloved than the Final Fantasy series by gamers of today.
 

Super Puzzle Fighter II Turbo is a lot better than any Street Fighter game, as is Tekken

Namco probably offered up Mr Driller. I like it but I prefer the handheld versions.

 

Nobody played Street Fighter on the PlayStation. It was old and lame and 2D. Alpha sold terribly.

[+save2600]

2 hours ago, jgkspsx said:

Super Puzzle Fighter II Turbo is a lot better than any Street Fighter game, as is Tekken

 

Nobody played Street Fighter on the PlayStation. It was old and lame and 2D. Alpha sold terribly.

As an early adopter of the PlayStation, didn't (still don't) consider SF "old", "lame" or worthless just because it was 2D. On the contrary, and look how well the multitude of 2D fighters were received on the Saturn back then too. Many of which are still fun today.

 

Can't speak to Tekken as I never got into it.
 

Anyway, we're talking about game choices made *today* for a classic mini system. Of which the whole purpose of such a machine, is to invoke feelings of nostalgia - literally its primary selling point. Maybe I'm wrong, but can't really imagine scores of people today wanting to play a kiddie cutesy SF Columns rip-off vs. playing a real SF fighting game. Super Puzzle is not something *I'd* ever bother to play for sure. Do agree that Crash Bandicoot and Tomb Raider would have gone a long way in wrangling up some nostalgia for the system though.  

[CapitanClassic]

4 hours ago, jgkspsx said:

Just recall what the 20 games were:

 

• (No 84) Battle Arena Toshinden
•     (No 7) Crash Bandicoot 2 / (No 8 ) Crash Bandicoot 3
• (No 86) Cool Boarders 2
• (?120) Destruction Derby (1 mil) 
•     (No 29) Driver / (No 22) Crash Team Racing
• (No 2 ) Final Fantasy VII
• (No ? ) Grand Theft Auto (? <250k)
•     (No 34) Dino Crisis / (No 43) Silent Hill
• (No112) Intelligent Qube
•     (No 36) Hot Shots Golf 1 / (No 58) HSG 2
• (No ? ) Jumping Flash (? <100k)
•     (No 9) Tomb Raider 1 / (No 12) Tomb Raider 2
• (No 10 ) Metal Gear Solid
• (No ? ) Mr Driller (? <100k)
•     (No 56) Parappa The Rapper / (No 83) Tenchu Stealth Assassin 
• (No 23 ) Oddworld: Abe’s Oddysee
• (No 21 ) Rayman
• (No 17 ) Resident Evil Director’s Cut
• (No ? ) Revelations: Persona (160k)
• (No108) Ridge Racer Type 4
• (No ? ) Super Puzzle Fighter II Turbo 
• (No 51 ) Syphon Filter
• (No 5 ) Tekken 3
• (No ? ) Tom Clancy’s Rainbow Six (? <100k)
•     (No 18) Spyro 1 / (No 26) Spyro 2 
• (No104) Twisted Metal 
•     (No 52) Twisted Metal 2
• (No ? ) Wild Arms (250k)
•     (No 87) Xenogears / (No 44) Parasite Eve

Those were mostly high-selling games and to me most of the iconic games of the system. Some of the ones that weren’t, Persona and Intelligent Qube, sell for a lot of money, I think. I think it’s a good selection myself, though it needed a Tomb Raider game and a Crash game.

@jgkspsx, it definitely needed a Tomb Raider (series 25 million), and Crash Bandicoot (series 25 million)
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_best-selling_PlayStation_video_games

I agree with putting Persona (and maybe Intelligent Cube), as expensive games that might make purchasing a PSX mini worth it. Some games in the list don’t make any sense, TC Rainbow Six, GTA original, Mr. Driller? No one is looking to play a FPS on the low resolution PSX. The GTA series wasn’t really popular until the 3, and the change to 3D. The inclusion of Mr. Driller is also odd, with two other more popular and expensive puzzle games already on the list.
 

Other than that, looking at the top 100, Sony’s biggest issue is that it doesn’t own the IP of the most popular games.

 

Cool Boarders 2 is there for that reason, rather than Tony Hawk Pro Skater 2 (No 30) (and music licensing). Destruction Derby rather than Gran Turismo (No 1) (or GT 2) (car names, parts, etc) or Driver (No 29) (GT Interactive).

 

If you change a couple things, like Twisted Metal should be replaced with TW 2, drop the crap games, and replace with more iconic games, you could get this system to be worth $60-$80 even without the Dual Shock controllers.

 

 

Edited October 19, 2021 by CapitanClassic

[CapitanClassic]

Additional games for the PSX that could be considered due to Price/Popularity would be (Ignoring RPGs, because already enough in the list)

https://www.pricecharting.com/console/playstation?sort=highest-price&genre-name=&exclude-variants=false&exclude-hardware=false
 

Klonoa

Tomba 1 / Tomba 2

Clock Tower 1 / 2 (not popular, but rare)

Castlevania SotN

JoJo’s Bizarre Adventure

Brave Fencer Musashi

Alundra

Einhander 

 

Popular (but not in top100),

Wipeout

Armored Core 

Bushido Blade

Medievil

Blood Omen: Legacy of Kain

Harvest Moon :Back to Nature

Colony Wars

Mega Man Legends / X4 / X5 / X6

Doom

Fear Effect

Raystorm

There are probably a dozen more that are either popular, expensive, or a hidden gem. Sony just dropped the ball when they announced their game list.

 

[+jgkspsx]

Parappa is sadly unplayable on a modern TV. It’s barely playable on the PSP.

 

I’m not sure any list of 20 would have satisfied people. They could have easily added ten games they owned the IP for (Psygnosis games, Warhawk, Jet Moto, etc).
 

But of all of the half-assed decisions that went into a half-assed system, I don’t think the game selection was the biggest problem. I would have dropped Rainbow 6 and Syphon Filter but that’s just me.

 

(and Wild Arms is better than Xenogears or Parasite Eve :))

[CapitanClassic]

Even using First Party games (not sure if Psygnosis or any others still count. Like Naughty Dog isn’t Sony anymore, I think), there were at least a few other games that would have been better to include that Sony has the IP rights for.

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_Sony_Interactive_Entertainment_video_games

Warhawk

Wipeout

DEFCON 5

Formula 1 (licensing)

Pandemonium ( is Crystal Dynamics still around?)

Bloody Roar

G-Police

Grandia 

Omega Boost

Rollcage

 

 

[+jgkspsx]

The lack of Wipeout was the biggest WTF. Sony bought Psygnosis and all their IP, which is why we see no revivals of any of their incredible home computer classics. It’s pretty disgusting for Sony to just hoard IPs they have no plans to do anything with.

 

Sony sold Spyro and Crash to Universal. Seemed bizarre then, seems bizarre now.

 

Honestly nothing Sony has done in the gaming side of things has appealed to me since 2001. The hardware has been great, but the games… meh.

[NeonSpaceBeagle]

I played Wipeout 2097 for the first time on a sega saturn and crt last night along with the first wipeout.  Ordered some reproductions off etsy.  They are great, and I do like them better than the PS1 versions..  But the PS1 ones are supposed to be better right?  Maybe I was just excited.  Also I take back my earlier statement about horrible early 3d..  I also got Cyber Speedway in the mail yesterday with those discs (along with Out Run) and that is HORRIBLE!  The Saturn version of outrun is MUCH better than I thought it would be!!

 

 

[CapitanClassic]

2 hours ago, CapitanClassic said:

Even using First Party games (not sure if Psygnosis or any others still count. Like Naughty Dog isn’t Sony anymore, I think), there were at least a few other games that would have been better to include that Sony has the IP rights for.

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_Sony_Interactive_Entertainment_video_games

Warhawk

Wipeout

DEFCON 5

Formula 1 (licensing)

Pandemonium ( is Crystal Dynamics still around?)

Bloody Roar (Konami) 

G-Police

Grandia (GameArts)

Omega Boost

Rollcage (Attention to Detail)

 

Current IP owner is difficult. Going off the Wikipedia page is dangerous. There is a reason most companies don’t want to haggle with other companies over this stuff. Sony would have to deal with 5-10 separate companies to secure the rights. Write them a big check, and hope their PSX mini doesn’t hit the bargain bin for $20 that Christmas and lose millions. 

[+jgkspsx]

Correction: despite all the money they invested in promoting them, Sony never owned Crash or Spyro. Weird.

[CapitanClassic]

4 hours ago, jgkspsx said:

Parappa is sadly unplayable on a modern TV. It’s barely playable on the PSP.

 

I’m not sure any list of 20 would have satisfied people. They could have easily added ten games they owned the IP for (Psygnosis games, Warhawk, Jet Moto, etc).
 

But of all of the half-assed decisions that went into a half-assed system, I don’t think the game selection was the biggest problem. I would have dropped Rainbow 6 and Syphon Filter but that’s just me.

 

(and Wild Arms is better than Xenogears or Parasite Eve :))

Does Sony own Jet Moto? I think GT Interactive (who bought SingleTrac) does, which is a subsidiary of Atari (Infograms / Hasbro / whatever).

 

I am also not so sure they own Twisted Metal 1 (source code / binaries). I think they own the IP (characters, car designs, etc.), but maybe the original software is owned by GT Interactive, so Sony would have to pay them for licensing it (although they mention in the article they were contractors for hire, so maybe Sony got all the rights). So maybe getting Warhawk / Jet Moto / Twisted Metal 1 on the PSX mini is more complicated than I think.
https://www.pcworld.idg.com.au/article/408047/playstation_interview_singletrac_senior_programmer_jay_barnson/

[CapitanClassic]

Games Sony might own, (listed as 1st party, but not sure I trust it). I figure Sony owns anything by Psygnosis or 989 Studio. What about some of the other games on the PSX publisher list?

(No 86) Cool Boarders 2

(No 51 ) Syphon Filter

(No112) Intelligent Qube

(?120) Destruction Derby (1 mil) 

(No ? ) Jumping Flash

Jumping Flash! 2

Wild Arms

Warhawk

DEFCON 5 

G-Police

Omega Boost

Novastorm 

Jet Moto

Jet Moto 2

Krazy Ivan

Motor Toon Grand Prix 2

The Adventures of Lomax

Wipeout 2097

Wipeout 3

Colony Wars

Colony Wars : Rengence

Colony Wars : Red Sun

League Of Pain

Lifeforce Tenka

Monster Trucks

Overboard

Rally Cross

Rally Cross 2

Rapid Racer

Rosco McQueen: Firefighter Extreme

Sentient

Steel Reign

Blast Radius

Blasto

Cardinal Syn

MediEvil

MediEvil 2

Psybadek 

2 Xtreme 

3 Xtreme

Eliminator

Kingsley’s Adventure

Retro Force

Supercross Circuit

Syphon Filter 2

Syphon Filter 3

This is Football

UmJammer Lammy

Covert Ops: Nuclear Dawn

Crash Bash 

Legend of Dragoon

Team Buddies

Wild Arms 2

C-12 Final Resistance

Twisted Metal 3 / 4 / Small Brawl

Jinx

Edited October 19, 2021 by CapitanClassic

[+jgkspsx]

SingleTrac developed Warhawk, Twisted Metal 1 & 2, and Jet Moto 1&2 under contract to Sony, who owned ALL IP associated with them. Then Sony fired them and developed Twisted Metal 3 and 4 and Jet Moto 3 with 989 Studios (all were hot garbage).

 

SingleTrac kept cranking out clones/spinoffs of their old hits for GT: Critical Depth (Warhawk crossed with Twisted Metal underwater), Rogue Trip Vacation 2012 (Crazy Taxi crossed with Twisted Metal), Streak Hoverboard Racing (Jet Moto with hoverboards and no Pepsi sponsorship). I think they were all very good games but they got middling reviews and were unsuccessful commercially.

 

There was a bit of a happy ending: Sony realized TM3&4 were garbage and hired GT/SingleTrac back for Twisted Metal Small Brawl, which was excellent, but came out after the PS2 launch and was quickly forgotten.

 

After GT bought them, SingleTrac also did the PC port of Twisted Metal 2 (which was AMAZING) and the very fun and unique Microsoft jetpack shooter Outwars, which looks as much like a Halo forebear as Marathon if you squint. That was their last game. Then they dissolved and David Jaffe hired as many people as he could for Twisted Metal Black on the PS2.

 

EDIT: oh yeah, they did a random licensed Animorphs game too that came out in 2000 for the PS1. That was their real last game. I never played it, and I think a lot of the key folks had already jumped ship.

[Lord Mushroom]

22 hours ago, save2600 said:

Maybe I'm wrong, but can't really imagine scores of people today wanting to play a kiddie cutesy SF Columns rip-off vs. playing a real SF fighting game. Super Puzzle is not something *I'd* ever bother to play for sure.

I think it is the kind of game that many women like. Women are crazy about Candy Crush games, for example. Some people must like these Tetris knock offs, or they wouldn´t have made so many of them.

[+save2600]

1 hour ago, Lord Mushroom said:

...Some people must like these Tetris knock offs, or they wouldn't have made so many of them.

Right, like all the me too "munch 'n maze" games before/after Pac-Man that have fizzled out into obscurity. Most of these puzzle games will meet the same fate (or already have), but hey... continue to reinvent the wheel, and cash in quick while the gettin' is good! 

[+jgkspsx]

Super Puzzle Fighter II Turbo is probably the best competitive puzzle game around, and I pity people who don’t know it.

[Tanooki]

I know it, I even own the GBA version which is kind of handy, but I'd argue tetris still is the best of the lot

[+save2600]

Wonder if the day will ever come when most people will think Pac-Man sucks. I mean after all, it's so old and outdated. Especially being 2D and the maze never changes. Thankfully there's Pac-Attack, a far superior game to carry on the legacy!  

 

 

 

[Tanooki]

I guarantee you depending where you live in the US and a few other questionably sane places elsewhere, Pac-Man is already outdated, sucks, and needs to be put in his place.  You know, because Ms Pac-Man should be the one leading with all the credit.  Go woke gamers. ?

[+jgkspsx]

Ms Pac Man IS far superior…

 

(p.s. I would much rather play Pac Attack than OG Pac Man, thanks )

[CapitanClassic]

According to these two lists, there weren’t many Dual Shock Analog compatible games. Ignoring games with licensing issues, the RPGs, you are left with …

 

https://github.com/libretro/libretro-database/issues/64

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/PlayStation_Analog_Joystick

 

Ace Combat 2, 3

Ape Escape

ATV Racers

Resident Evil 1, 2, 3

Bogey Dead 6

Colony Wars 1, Vengeance

Descent 1, Maximum

Crash Bash

CTR - Crash Team Racing

Dino Crisis 2

Gunship

Jet Moto 3

MDK

Mech Warrior 2

Metal Gear Solid

Nightmare Creatures

Need for Speed 2, 3, High Stakes, V-Rally

Parasite Eve 1 , 2

Pitfall 3D

Populous the Beginning 

Rise 2: Resurrection 

R/C Stunt copter

Shadow Master

Quake 2

Saltwater Sportfishing

Steel Reign

Treasures of the Deep

Vigilante 8

Wing Commander 4

Wing Over 2

Wipeout 3

 

Of those, the Sony properties are nice freebies,  Ape Escape, Colony Wars 1 / Vengeance, Jet Moto 3, Wipeout 3, as well as the licensed must-have games Metal Gear Solid, Resident Evil 1 / 2 / 3. Of the remaining games, the only iconic ones are Ace Combat, CTR, Need for Speed, Dino Crisis, and Parasite Eve. With only about half the 20 games you could have included supporting Analog, I can see why Sony didn’t include it. Additionally, I would suspect the bill of materials cost to double from a digital pad (likely only $2-$3) to analog rumble pads. The PS4 controllers cost $18 to build (but those have batteries, wireless, touchpad).

https://www.gamespot.com/articles/ps4-cost-381-to-build-report/1100-6416251/

[DragonGrafx-16]

4 hours ago, CapitanClassic said:

According to these two lists, there weren’t many Dual Shock Analog compatible games. Ignoring games with licensing issues, the RPGs, you are left with …

 

https://github.com/libretro/libretro-database/issues/64

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/PlayStation_Analog_Joystick

 

Ace Combat 2, 3

Ape Escape

ATV Racers

Resident Evil 1, 2, 3

Bogey Dead 6

Colony Wars 1, Vengeance

Descent 1, Maximum

Crash Bash

CTR - Crash Team Racing

Dino Crisis 2

Gunship

Jet Moto 3

MDK

Mech Warrior 2

Metal Gear Solid

Nightmare Creatures

Need for Speed 2, 3, High Stakes, V-Rally

Parasite Eve 1 , 2

Pitfall 3D

Populous the Beginning 

Rise 2: Resurrection 

R/C Stunt copter

Shadow Master

Quake 2

Saltwater Sportfishing

Steel Reign

Treasures of the Deep

Vigilante 8

Wing Commander 4

Wing Over 2

Wipeout 3

 

Of those, the Sony properties are nice freebies,  Ape Escape, Colony Wars 1 / Vengeance, Jet Moto 3, Wipeout 3, as well as the licensed must-have games Metal Gear Solid, Resident Evil 1 / 2 / 3. Of the remaining games, the only iconic ones are Ace Combat, CTR, Need for Speed, Dino Crisis, and Parasite Eve. With only about half the 20 games you could have included supporting Analog, I can see why Sony didn’t include it. Additionally, I would suspect the bill of materials cost to double from a digital pad (likely only $2-$3) to analog rumble pads. The PS4 controllers cost $18 to build (but those have batteries, wireless, touchpad).

https://www.gamespot.com/articles/ps4-cost-381-to-build-report/1100-6416251/

Wipeout 3 would still have licensing issues because of the soundtrack. Half if it is music made for the game, but the rest was licensed. Also those Need for Speed games have licensed cars in them.

[NeonSpaceBeagle]

The whole licensed music thing is a big thorn in the side for a lot of good racing games the past two generations.  Finding out I've missed out being able to get large chunks of the games for Xbox one and 360 because they were yanked from the online store and they were digital only.  While not essential, it still makes the experience feel incomplete. 

[CapitanClassic]

On 9/12/2021 at 2:16 PM, Lord Mushroom said:

Someone said in another thread that the Playstation Classic failed because people aren´t as nostalgic for the PS1 as the SNES and NES. I don´t think it is that simple. I think there were several reasons why it failed:

 

- Mediocre game selection

- Many games were PAL-versions (in places where they shouldn´t be)

- Poor emulation

- Controllers without analog sticks

- High price

- Few enhancements

- Potential buyers of the Playstation Classic are not as rich as the potential buyers of the others (because they are younger).

 

But I am open to the idea that people being less nostalgic/interested for/in PS1 was a major contributing factor. So, are people less nostalgic for the PS1 than the SNES, Genesis/Mega Drive and NES? If so, how much less?

 

I will go first. I think so, and here is why:

 

- The PS1 is newer. It is harder to be nostalgic for something which isn´t very old.

- SNES etc. have some of the best games "they don´t make anymore" (sprites). Whereas PS1 has some of the worst of modern games (polygons).

 

Nostalgia

Are people as nostalgic for the PS1 as the SNES. Yes. As someone pointed out, the 4 year difference is marginal, as both systems are very old. They both are within the  age range for nostalgic purchases, 30-45 years, for someone growing up with the system in their teens.

SNES Release Date, 1990 - 2017 SNES Classic, 27 years

PSX Release Date 1994 - 2018 PSX Classic, 24 years

 

Sprites Vs Polygons

I think it might be partially due to Sprites Vs Polygons. Although there were good looking sprite based games on PSX, the system isn’t known for 2D-sprite based games outside of a handful of titles. There are still new sprite based games being released, but the SNES resolution 256x224, and colors on-screen 256 is adequate for a colorful 2D game. The PSX’s normal resolution is the same 256x224, but is capable of a high resolution mode (640x480) that some games used. It could process 360,000 polygons/second, (meaning only 12,000 polygons at 30fps). When compared graphically to modern 3D polygon games though, even the next generation blows it out of the water, with a max resolution of 1920x1080 (only Gran Turismo 4) and a large majority supporting 16:9 widescreen or 640p, and the speed to process 75-16 million polygons/second.

 

Mediocre Games

This was the biggest reason for the failure. It was likely the reason Sony split the announcement into two press releases.

Introducing the PSX Classic

PSX Classic - Full Game List

 

After the initial 5 game reveal, (Final Fantasy VII, Jumping Flash, Ridge Racer Type 4, Tekken 3, and Wild Arms), most people were very excited. There was some initial rumbling about the higher price, no Dual Shocks, and the lack of an AC adapter, but the general mood was anticipation.  When the final 15 games were released though, most people complained that the most iconic games were missing (Crash, Spyro, Tomb Raider, Gran Turismo, Tony Hawk Pro Skater), and the ones that were included were not the favorites from those series (Twisted Metal 1 instead of 2, Resident Evil DC instead of 2). 

 

PAL version of games

This was a huge issue that was reported before the launch, by DigitalTrends. The biggest issue being that because the emulator was configured for 60Hz games, but was playing a 50Hz game, so you would get obvious stutter. The games would also play slower, which might be a big issue for fighting games like Tekken 3.

 

Poor Emulation 

Mostly wasn’t this due to 50fps games being played on 60fps displays. After configuring the PAL games to run at 50fps, it removed any stuttering. It is true that the emulator, PCSX ReARMed, isn’t the best emulator and Sony has released superior PSX emulation on PSP and PlayStationTV, but I don’t think the emulation quality was a large factor in the PSX Classic failure. It was only after the initial games lineup failure that everyone started to pick apart the quality of the emulation compared to PSP, PSP Vita, PS3.

 

No Dual Analog controllers

While a small disappointment, I understand why Sony didn’t want the manufacturing cost of Analog controllers. Including 2 analog controllers would likely increase the cost by $20, which would put it outside the price range of the other mini systems.

 

High Price

I think this was a big reason for the failure. At $100, each game was $5 each, a 25% increase from the SNES classic game/dollar  price. There was already a way to get 13 of the 20 listed games ($10-$6) though PlayStation Network to play on PS3 / PSP (vita) / VitaTV, and of the remaining 7, only 4 (Persona, Tekken 3, Intelligent Qube, Super Puzzle Fighter 2 Turbo) are games someone might seek out to play. The PlayStation Vita TV ($100) would be the optimal way to play these games on a TV, and those devices were sold for as cheap as $40 in 2015 two years after the product was introduced. While it is true that the software for the PSX Classic would cost about $136 at full price, many of the titles have gone on sale. A more realistic cost would be ($88-$56), or $4.20 - $2.80 per game. Additionally, you could choose which of the 200+ games you actually wanted, and have access to hundreds more for PSP, PSP Vita. Clearly the marketing guys at Sony saw that the NES classic sold for $60, the SNES classic for $80, and assumed they could charge $20 more because the hardware generation increase.

 

Few Enhancements 

I don’t think most consumers of mini consoles expect the ability to enhance the original games. That is more of a feature of emulation on PCs and hardcore gamers, not something the public masses care about. The PSX Classic offered suspend points and memory card saves like the other minis, but didn’t feature rewind, or any display features (CRT/scanline, 4:3 mode, pixel perfect (square pixels)). 

 

Poor potential buyers

Unlikely, since these people would likely be early 30s-mid 40s.

 

The Big Picture

The failure of the PSX Classic wasn’t due to just one thing, but a mass of errors shortly after the announcement. Yes, the biggest problem was the game selection, but that problem probably lead to the press / reviews to judge the system more harshly. Then each mistake snowballed into the next, leading to more and more bad press coverage. Everyone expected the system to fail at that point, leading savy buyers to wait until after Christmas for the eventual price drops. They didn’t have to wait long, it dropped to $60 right after Christmas, and eventually to $20 in July of the next year.

 

Could a PSX Classic be a success? Absolutely, but Sony would likely needed more time to bring it to market, and put more effort into releasing it.  If I had to take a guess, Sony didn’t even consider a mini system until after the SNES sold so well in 2017. They probably only had six to nine months to develop and test the hardware. Who knows when they stated negotiating with license holders, but they needed more time. They clearly could come to some agreement with many of the license holders, because many PSOne Classics appear on the PlayStation Network that could have been excellent candidates for the PSX Classic.  

 

They probably manufactured half a million to a million units, and at those numbers they likely could have negotiated economical prices for each of the games. If you consider that Sony takes 30% of all PSN sales, and paying for a million licenses up front for each game, at half price those companies would only make $26 million through PSN (Sony would make $30 million from the 30% + IP they own). With Sony paying for a million copies up front, I don’t think they would pay anywhere near that price (Metal Gear Solid to Konami would be $3.5 million alone). 

 

For starters, they needed to include 25 games to justify that $100 price point. Customers would be fine with $4 a game, and at that price the games are 33% cheaper than the base PSN price. The additional space could possibly be achieved by saving the games in EBoot.pbp format (used for PSP) rather than bin/cue files.

 

For a minimal increase in licensing costs, Sony could likely negotiate with the music/soundtrack owners of games like Wipeout (CoLD SToRAGE), Omega Boost (CMJK most tracks, and a few other artists Loudmouth in US, unless using UK soundtrack), Colony Wars (Tim Wright, unless Psygnosis/Sony owns the music outright). A minimal licensing cost version might look like.

 

Original List

• Battle Arena Toshinden (No PSN)
• Cool Boarders 2 ($6)
• Destruction Derby ($6)
• Final Fantasy VII ($10 -$3) 
• Grand Theft Auto (No PSN)
• Intelligent Qube (No PSN)
• Jumping Flash ($6 -$3)
• Metal Gear Solid ($10 -$5)
• Mr Driller (No PSN)
• Oddworld: Abe’s Oddysee ($6 -$1.50)
• Rayman ($6 -$1.50)
• Resident Evil Director’s Cut ($10 - $2)
• Revelations: Persona (No PSN)
• Ridge Racer Type 4 ($6)
• Super Puzzle Fighter II Turbo (No PSN)
• Syphon Filter ($6 - $3)
• Tekken 3 (No PSN)
• Tom Clancy’s Rainbow Six ($6 -$1.50)
• Twisted Metal ($6 - $1.50)
• Wild Arms ($6 - $2.40)

 

Minimal Licensing List

Best Selling Games (10 games) [IP Owner] #SalesRank

• Final Fantasy VII [Square/Enix] #04
• Tekken 3 [Namco] #05
• Metal Gear Solid [Komami] #10
• Resident Evil Director’s Cut [Capcom] #17
• Rayman [Ubisoft] #21
• Oddworld: Abe’s Oddysee [Oddworld Inhabitants] #23
• Hot Shots Golf [Sony] #36
• Syphon Filter [Sony] #51
• Twisted Metal 2 [Sony] #52
• PaRappa the Rapper [Sony] #56

Black box Originals (5 games) [IP owner]

• Destruction Derby [Ubisoft]
• Intelligent Qube [Sony] #113
• Jumping Flash [Sony]
• Warhawk [Sony]
• Wipeout [Sony]

Expensive Physical (1 games) {$Cost}

• Revelations: Persona [Atlas/Sega] {$155}

Remaining Titles (9 games) [IP Owner] #SalesRank

• Cool Boarders 2 [UEP Systems] #86
• Colony Wars [Sony]
• Jet Moto [Sony] #79
• MediEvil [Sony]
• Omega Boost [Somy]
• Rally Cross 2 [Sony]
• R4: Ridge Racer Type 4 [Namco] #108
• Super Puzzle Fighter II Turbo [Capcom]
• Wild Arms [Sony]

 

Possible swap in games [IP Owner] #SalesRank {$Cost}

• Blasto [Sony]
• G-Police [Sony]
• Krazy Ivan [Sony]
• Legend of Dragoon [Sony] #74
• Motor Toon Grand Prix 2 [Sony] 
• Rally Cross
• Team Buddies [Sony] {$125}
• The Adventures of Lomax [Sony] {$90}

 

The above list doesn’t change any of the 3rd-party games. With added time for licensing negotiations, development, and testing, it should be possible to change some of the above games for more iconic releases from the same companies. For example, Destruction Derby [Ubisoft/Reflections Interactive] music by Tim Swan & Elliot Sumner, could be changed for Driver [Ubisoft/Reflections Interactive] #29 music by Allister Brimble, Resident Evil DC [Capcom] #17 with the more popular Resident Evil 2 #14 if space allowed, R4: Ridge Racer Type 4 [Namco] #108 slot with expensive Klonoa Door to Phantomile [Namco] {$256}.  Super Puzzle Fighter II Turbo [Capcom] could be replaced with Street Fighter Alpha 3 [Capcom] which was a technical feat for PSX due to limited memory, but either game is a fine addition.