15 Biggest Gaming Risks That Paid off

Sony PlayStation

A long time ago, the console gaming market was considered to have two big players – Nintendo and Sega. Others like Atari had tried to leave their mark but ultimately failed compared to the Big Two. Sony had some involvement with Nintendo, being contracted to work on the Famicom and eventually, a CD-ROM add-on for the SNES called the Play Station. Citing concerns over Sony’s control over all possible SNES CD-ROM media, Nintendo would cancel its deal and ally with Philips.

Following this betrayal, creator Ken Kutaragi and Sony Corporation president Norio Ohga decided to create a standalone console. Despite opposition from its board members, Sony announced the PlayStation in October 1993 and released it in December 1994 for Japan, selling two million units in six months. Several years and numerous successful consoles later (including the PS2 which is the best-selling console of all time with more than 155 million units sold), Sony is still on top of the world especially with the PS5’s success.