The Oldest Official PlayStation Games
Without Nintendo, it’s safe to say Sony may have never gotten into the console gaming marketplace. Nintendo and Sony were set to make a console together, but then Nintendo broke the deal. This led to Sony going ahead and making a new console instead, the PlayStation, which was released in 1994 in Japan and a year later in North America. For the PlayStation brand, the rest is history, as Sony is currently basking in their success with the PS5.
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Before they made the PlayStation, though, Sony was a publisher in the SNES era under the name Sony Imagesoft, with a couple of games developed under their brand as well. Because there are so many subdivisions, and these games came out so long ago, it can be hard to piece together accurate information. That said, this list is a good bet on some of the earliest games developed and released mainly by Sony, and not by a subdivision like Japan Studio, unless otherwise stated.
Jeopardy
Before The PS1, There Were Game Shows
- Developers: Sony Imagesoft, Absolute
- Publisher: Sony Imagesoft
- Platforms: Sega CD
- Estimated Year Of Release: 1994 (NA)
When it comes to CSG Imagesoft, or Sony Imagesoft, 90s kids probably played a Sony game on their NES or SNES, like Mickey Mania, Super Dodge Ball, or Hook, but the company developed some games too, like Jeopardy. There are other, non-Sony versions of Jeopardy, like on the NES, but the Sega CD version has an advantage as it uses video, albeit a bit grainy.
Players can compete in a typical game by choosing a category and answering questions, and the best part is that the late Alex Trebek is in the game, voice and all. It may not be the best game show-to-video game conversion, but it was solid at the time.
Wheel Of Fortune
Solve The Puzzle
- Developers: Sony Imagesoft, Absolute
- Publisher: Sony Imagesoft
- Platforms: Sega CD
- Estimated Year Of Release: 1994 (NA)
Wheel of Fortune is another Sega CD game based on a game show and made by Sony Imagesoft that features digitized actors going through the motions of a typical game. Players can spin the wheel, ask for letters, and then solve the puzzle to win (virtual) cash prizes.
The strangest thing about this adaptation is that Vanna White is the lead presenter instead of Pat Sajak. It probably made more sense financially to focus on Vanna, but it’s a bit jarring. Either way, Wheel of Fortune is a fine enough adaptation, just like Jeopardy.
Motor Toon Grand Prix
Racing Before Gran Turismo
- Developer: Poly’s Entertainment (Sony Computer Entertainment, Inc. Development Division 1)
- Publisher: Sony Computer Entertainment
- Released: December 16, 1994 (Japan)
Motor Toon Grand Prix is a racing game not unlike the Mario Kart series, as the vehicles and characters were wacky, but it was still a more focused racing experience than Nintendo’s flagship racer. That’s no surprise given that Poly’s Entertainment developed it, a studio categorized as part of Sony Computer Entertainment, Inc. Development Division 1 in the credits.
It should be noted that Poly’s Entertainment was eventually transformed into Polyphony Digital within Sony, which would go on to work on the Gran Turismo series starting in 1997, making Motor Toon Grand Prix a very important stepping stone in PlayStation history.
ESPN Extreme Games
Way Before Tony Hawk
ESPN Extreme Games
- Released
-
September 9, 1995
- Developer(s)
-
Sony Interactive Studios America
- Publisher(s)
-
Sony Computer Entertainment
Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater would not skate onto the scene until 1999, which is when extreme sports started to become more popular in games. Before that, PS1 players got ESPN Extreme Games, which featured more extreme sports than just skateboarding, including rollerblading, street luge, and mountain biking.
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Players could choose the games they wanted to compete in, but it was more limiting than a Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater game. There wasn’t as much freedom to do tricks in a sandbox, but this series would improve with sequels. Later, the name of ESPN Extreme Games was changed to 1Xtreme to coincide with the new naming convention of the sequels.
A Destructive Derby
Twisted Metal took away the racing from typical driving games and made it all about the sport of blowing up opponents. It was something new for gaming, and was more mature and brutal than anything except for Mortal Kombat. Things would only get darker with the sequels, and the Twisted Metal series would go on to thrive for a time.
Players could choose several racers and compete in destruction derby arenas, armed with rocket launchers, machine guns, and more. It should be noted that Twisted Metal was co-developed with a company called SingleTrac, a studio that also developed the Jet Moto series.
Warhawk
Death From Above
- Developers: Sony Interactive Studios America and SingleTrac
- Publisher: Sony Computer Entertainment
- Released: November 10, 1995 (NA)
Warhawk was released on the same day as Twisted Metal in North America, and it was also co-developed with SingleTrac. It was a typical 3D airplane shooter of the era, with each unit equipped with various weapons. Players would fight tanks on the ground as well as air-based enemies in linear levels.
Warhawk wasn’t a particularly long game, and it didn’t become as big a series as Twisted Metal, which makes sense given that the destruction derby series was more mature and better suited to the PS1 demographic than Warhawk was.
NFL GameDay
Before Madden
- Released: December 4, 1995 (NA)
The Madden series has been the go-to football franchise on consoles and other gaming devices since 1988. That said, many challengers came at the king, including Sony’s NFL GameDay in 1995, which did blossom into a smaller franchise that persisted for a decade.
It had everything Madden did, including officially licensed NFL teams, and the ability to run plays. It’s not an easy game to go back to nowadays, since football games have changed so much over the years, but for its time, it firmly established itself in the football game market.
NHL FaceOff
On The Ice
NHL FaceOff
- Released
-
January 1, 1996
- ESRB
-
everyone e10+
- Released: December 19, 1995 (NA)
NHL FaceOff was Sony’s attempt to develop a hockey gaming series under their belt, and it lasted for a while. It was officially licensed like NFL GameDay, so players could choose their favorite team to compete on the ice with.
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There was multiplayer along with a single-player mode. Multiplayer is a big reason why most sports fans buy sports-related games today, and the same was true back in 1995. NHL FaceOff is not exactly impressive now, but Sony was ahead of the curve in covering all their bases in sports, including hockey.
NBA ShootOut
Play Some Ball
- Developer: Sony Computer Entertainment Europe
- Publisher: Sony Computer Entertainment
- Released: March 20, 1996 (EU)
To complete the sports package, Sony also had NBA ShootOut for all the basketball fans out there. Basketball games are some of the most accessible sports games on the market, as courts are small and the rules are simple to follow: grab the ball, shoot a basket, repeat.
NBA ShootOut is one of the few PS1 games that was released in Europe first, which made sense given that it was developed by the European arm of Sony’s interactive branch, but North America got it a week later, so there wasn’t a huge gap.
Motor Toon Grand Prix 2
One More Lap
- Developer: Poly’s Entertainment (Sony Computer Entertainment, Inc. Development Division 1)
- Publisher: Sony Computer Entertainment
- Released: May 24, 1996 (Japan)
Lastly, the oldest Sony-led PS1 game was a sequel: Motor Toon Grand Prix 2. This was the first game in the series released in North America, as the original never left Japan. It was reviewed well, but the series never quite took off, even with a trio of re-releases in 2002, 2008, and 2011.
Motor Toon Grand Prix 2 plays very similarly to the original, although the racing is a bit tighter, and there are more options for both playable characters and wacky powerups. It would have been interesting to see Poly’s Entertainment continue with the more cartoony racing franchise rather than the more simulation-like Gran Turismo series.
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