The PlayStation Classic has a fair few issues, from the plethora of emulation problems to a lineup that is hardly representative of the embarrassment of riches that was the library on the original PlayStation. That said, you would hardly expect the larger market to care about these shortcomings—to them, the PlayStation Classic would be a cheap nostalgia box to relive their favorite console, and would therefore be appealing, right?

Given how well the NES Classic Mini and SNES Classic Mini did, you would be right to expect at least a bare minimum standard of success from the PlayStation Classic. But the thing is, those two were high quality products with a lot of effort put into them, not quick slapdash cash grabs. It should therefore come as no surprise that as a part of Boxing Day deals, less than three weeks after the PlayStation Classic originally launched, the console is available for $59.99 USD/£49.99–a steep, 40% price drop (via Wario64 on Twitter)—suggesting that sales have not been quite as hot, contrary to what Michael Pachter may have suggested, and in line with the similarly underwhelming Japanese sales. Similarly, the price on Amazon UK is down to £49.99.

At this price, the console starts to approach being worth it, especially given how hackable it is. Nonetheless, given how rapidly its price has dropped, it’s not unreasonable to hold out a few more weeks, and see if it doesn’t go down any further, at the very least.

PlayStation Classic is $59.99 at GameStop https://t.co/9uZn2o0Z7P pic.twitter.com/UbCN8oc2L1

— Wario64 (@Wario64) December 26, 2018

Sony’s PlayStation Classic, their retro mini-console in vein of similar hardware that Nintendo has been putting out recently for legacy consoles, launched worldwide on December 3. Prior to its release, it was being met with negative reception, based on several things, including poor emulation, while reception post-launch has also been lukewarm- however, it doesn’t seem like that affected the console’s sales too much.

Media Create, who track hardware and software sales for video games in Japan, released their latest weekly report recently, as part of which they also revealed the performance of the PS Classic. Since its launch on December 3 up until the end of tracking period for the week on December 9, the system managed to sell 120,000 units in Japan. In comparison, during their own launch weeks, Nintendo’s NES Mini and SNES Mini sold roughly 260,000 and 340,000 respectively, but while the PS Classic’s performance seems quite tepid in contrast to those two, all things considered, 120k units sold in spite of the lukewarm reception it has received seems like a decent enough launch.

In their weekly report, Media Create also reported that Super Smash Bros. Ultimate smashed the charts to take the top spot with a hugely commanding lead, while also causing a massive surge in sales figures for the Nintendo Switch itself. The PS4 also saw a spurt in sales. Read more on that through here.

PLAYSTATION CLASSIC

Let’s kick thing off with the most recent example. While Microsoft has been making strides with backwards compatibility, other leaders in the hardware market ave instead chosen to release classic versions of older consoles. Nintendo kicked off this trend with the NES Classic and the SNES Classic, mini, portable-sized versions of the pieces of hardware that came pre-installed with a library of some of their best games. Quite recently, Sony announced its own take on the concept- except it wasn’t really their own take. From the name to the general core ideas to even the images that were used to promote its announcement, the PlayStation Classic is a hilariously obvious replica of what Nintendo has been doing for a few years now.

Sony’s upcoming PlayStation Classic mini console’s launch is right around the corner, and to amp up the excitement surrounding its release a little bit, they’ve released an official unboxing video, which you can take a look at below. The video, as the word “unboxing” implies, gives us a look at all the contents which will be included in the package.

Those contents, in case you’re wondering, include the console itself, two classic PS1 controllers (not DualShock), and HDMI cable, and a USB power cord. Meanwhile, the actual size of the mini-console, which is about 45 per cent smaller than the original PlayStation, is once again highlighted in the video- it can literally fit into the palm of your hand.

Though there has been some pre-release criticism for the PS Classic in the build up to its launch, those who’re looking to revisit some of its best games might be interested in purchasing it. You can check out the full library of the mini console through here. The PS Classic launches worldwide on December 3.

https://youtu.be/oxE0RIdxf3Y

20 GAMES

Similar to what Nintendo did with the NES Classic and the SNES Classic, the PlayStation Classic will come pre-loaded with a selection of games from the original PlayStation’s library. The number of games it comes with, however, will be a bit lower than what its competitors have already done- while the NES Classic came pre-loaded 30 games, and the SNES Classic with 21, the PlayStation Classic will have a total of 20 games.

THE BIG HITTERS

That collection of 20 games that the PS Classic comes with is a mixture of big and relatively smaller games- the ones that are big, though, are pretty damn biog. The likes of Final Fantasy 7, Tekken 3, Resident Evil Director’s Cut, Metal Gear Solid, Twisted Metal, and Syphon Filter are all part of the lineup. Other notable titles include the original Grand Theft Auto, Rayman, Tom Clancy’s Rainbow Six, and Ridge Racer Type 4.

THE NOT-SO-BIG HITTERS

Of the remaining games, there are a few that may not be as huge as the ones we’ve already talked about, but were still great games back when they first launched, and will surely have a number of people excited about their return. These include the likes of Destruction Derby, Oddworld: Abe’s Oddysey, Wild Arms, and Revelations: Persona. The remaining six titles in the lineup are Battle Arena Toshinden, Intelligent Qube, Jumping Flash!, Mr. Driller, Super Puzzle Fighter II Turbo, and Cool Boarders 2.

GAMES VARY DEPENDING ON REGION

Just as it was with Nintendo’s two classic consoles, the lineup of games pre-loaded in the PlayStation Classic will vary depending on where it’s being sold. More specifically, Japan’s classic lineup will have eight variations as compared to the rest of the world. The games that won’t be included in Japanese PS Classics are Cool Boarders 2, Grand Theft Auto, Tom Clancy’s Rainbow Six, Oddword: Abe’s Oddyssey, Destruction Derby, Rayman, Syphon Filter, and Twisted Metal. These will be replaced by Arc the Lad, Arc the Lad II, Armored Core, Gradius Gaiden, Parasite Eve, G-Darius, SaGa Frontier, and Devil Dice.

SIZE

So, we know the PlayStation Classic is going to be pretty small, owing to its “mini” stature. It can held in the palm of your hand. In terms of exact numbers, that means it will be about 45 per cent smaller in width and length than the original PlayStation, and 80 per cent smaller in terms of volume, weighing at just 170 grams. So- yeah. Pretty small. Don’t worry though- it’ll still come with two controller ports.

WHAT THE PACKAGE INCLUDES

What exactly is the entire PlayStation Classic going to include, though? Well, other than the mini console itself, the package will also include two controllers, a USB Micro-A to standard USB-A cable, and an HDMI cable. The console will be powered by micro USB, while the controllers will now also be plugged in with USB cables.

ORIGINAL PS1 CONTROLLERS

Speaking of controllers- it’s great that the console will come with two controllers included. These, however, will not be DualShock controllers, and will instead be the original controllers that the PS1 launched with. That means they won’t have analog sticks, nor will they have rumble support. The controllers will both be wired, of course, and these cords will be approximately 1.5 metres long.

OPEN SOURCE EMULATOR

While one would expect that Sony would have built a custom emulator to maximize optimization for the PS Classic’s games, that doesn’t seem to be the case. Pre-release reports that have emerged on sites like Kotaku and Eurogamer have mentioned that the PlayStation Classic makes use an open source emulator – namely PCSX emulator – which means that emulation might not be as crisp and solid as you might want it to be. Which brings us to our next point…

PRE-RELEASE CRITICISMS 

Those who’s had hands-on time with the PlayStation Classic ahead of its release have had mixed feelings about the mini console, to say the least. Criticisms have been levelled at the system’s shoddy emulation, most of all, which seems to be 50Hz versions of games, at least in Europe, while input lag is also something that’s been brought up.

LACKING IN FEATURES

Another reason that pre-release reception for the PlayStation Classic hasn’t been the best is the fact that, according to testers, it seems to be lacking in features. From early impressions, it looks like PlayStation Classic emulates PS1’s games- and that’s pretty much all it does, with no filters or any other added features to speak of. That would be acceptable, but coupled with reports of shoddy emulation, that does seem a bit concerning, especially when compared to Nintendo’s mini consoles, which were both quite accomplished in both these areas.

RESOLUTION OUTPUT

Resolution obviously isn’t something that will make or break any of these games- they’re all two decades old at this point, ant crisp, cutting edge graphics isn’t what we’re looking for from them. It is, nonetheless, an important factor. All games are outputted at a 720p resolution, upscaled from their original 244p roots on the original PS1, and are displayed with small black borders on the edges.

SAVING

The PlayStation Classic, in case you’ve been wondering, doesn’t come with any memory card slots, and doesn’t support them at all. So how does it save games? Well, essentially, it creates a single slot each for every game in its own memory. What this means is that the save anywhere functionality is also a bit limited- when you hit the Reset button, your game will automatically save in its allotted slot, but doing so again at a later time will only give you the option to overwrite your older save, rather than letting you create a new one. For comparison’s sake, Nintendo’s classic consoles offer multiple save slots.

PRICE

So how much will this entire package cost? The PlayStation Classic will set you back by $99 if you’re in the US, which isn’t too bad a deal if you’re looking for a way to get to revisit the games it comes with (though the criticisms are something that should be considered as well). In Europe, it’ll cost €99.99, while in Japan, it’ll be priced at ¥9,980.

The PlayStation Classic has always seemed like a bit of a hasty attempt by Sony to try and cash in on the popularity of the NES Classic Mini and SNES Classic Mini’s success. Which is fine, of course—the PlayStation brand has a history and a legacy that deserves to be celebrated, too.

But the hastiness of the effort seems to have compromised it. The list of games on the hardware seems to be, well, not the best, while there are basic baffling decisions like the decision to not have the controllers be the DualShock controllers, instead reverting to the no-analog original controllers.

However, now, more shortcomings with the package are emerging. Reports by Kotaku and Eurogamer are mentioning that the device has rather shoddy emulation, and that Sony is using the open source PCSX emulator, instead of a custom built one. Emulation problems include only one save state offered, a lack of filters, input lag, and, most damningly, 50Hz versions of games on PAL consoles, at least in Europe. This means that the games run slower, with distorted sound and squashed resolutions.

Given that this was supposed to be a celebration of Sony’s legacy, the whole package feels underwhelming and surprisingly slapdash. I do wish this was better done overall. PlayStation as a console, and its fans, deserve far better.

Sony recently announced the PlayStation Classic to much fanfare, a mini console that will come pre-loaded with PlayStation 1 games, similar to what Nintendo have recently done with the NES and the SNES as well. Doubtless, there are countless people who’re thrilled about the announcement, and will undoubtedly be picking up the mini console- which is exactly what industry analyst Michael Pachter predicts as well.

We recently had a chance to talk to Pachter about a couple of things, and one of the things we spoke about was the PS Classic, which, according to him, will potentially sell “millions”, if Sony keeps on manufacturing the hardware. “There has been a lot of support for the Nintendo classic hardware, so I presume Sony will see similar success,” he said. “They should be able to sell “millions” (1 – 2 million) without any problem, if they choose to make that many.  It’s priced right, and the game lineup is pretty good for that price.  I wouldn’t be surprised if they sell 2 – 3 million this holiday and a similar number per year so long as they choose to keep manufacturing.”

Pachter also mentioned that the PlayStation Classic won’t likely have any impact on the sales of the PS4. “The target buyer of a PS Classic already owns a PS4,” he said.

Recently, Sony announced that the PS Classic will come pre-loaded with different games depending on which region you’re purchasing it in. Read more on that through here.