Most gamers have their favorite consoles, but to experience all the best new games, many people end up owning more than one system. Nintendo, especially, has a lot of games you can’t play on any other console, which often means families have a Switch in addition to a PlayStation or Xbox. Despite this, the debate over which console is best – the so-called “console wars” – continues. It’s interesting to remember, then, that the very first PlayStation actually started as a project within Nintendo.
Sony’s Shuhei Yoshida recently reminisced about the beginnings of the PlayStation. Having worked at Sony since the 1980s, he witnessed the original PlayStation’s launch firsthand. To celebrate the PS1’s 30th anniversary in Europe, Yoshida shared some surprising details about how the console first came to be in an interview with Game Industry Biz.
The PS1 Began as a SNES Add-On, But Nintendo Scrapped the Project
I grew up with a Super Nintendo, but I really started gaming with the Nintendo 64 and PlayStation 2. Those two systems felt completely different to me, and they had very different kinds of games. The N64 was all about fun party games like *Mario Kart* and *Super Smash Bros.*, while the PS2 was where I played epic role-playing games like *Kingdom Hearts* and *Final Fantasy 10*. It’s surprising to find out that the PlayStation 1 actually started as a project Nintendo abandoned.
So, I was reading an interview with Yoshida, and he was talking about how the PlayStation actually started as a CD-ROM attachment for the Super Nintendo! Apparently, it wasn’t just a quick idea – they actually built several working prototypes and even had plans to start making it and some games for it. It’s crazy to think about! He said it was built using Nintendo’s technology, which, looking back, really held it back compared to what the PS1 eventually became. It’s wild to think the PS1’s origins were so tied to Nintendo!
Originally, Sony and Nintendo were working together on a CD-ROM add-on for the Super Nintendo. However, Nintendo unexpectedly decided to partner with Philips instead, abandoning the project with Sony. This led Sony to develop the add-on into its own independent console – the PlayStation – and began a long-lasting competition between the two companies. Ultimately, the CD-ROM add-on for the Super Nintendo never launched with Philips, partly because of licensing conflicts with Sony.
The original prototypes of the PlayStation add-on for Nintendo consoles are still around, though they’re very hard to find. Yoshida personally still owns one, and they sometimes appear for sale on eBay. It’s fascinating to imagine a Super Nintendo with a PlayStation CD-ROM attachment, but most gamers probably agree that Nintendo and PlayStation developing independently has created a more diverse gaming landscape. Both companies have since released hugely successful game franchises, and the gaming world is better off because they didn’t remain partners.
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2025-10-14 17:15