Summary
- Sega Genesis: A simple yet bold startup with a splash of blue and a catchy Sega logo that sets the stage for a vibrant gaming experience.
- Xbox 360: Microsoft's streamlined and visually appealing startup signifies a new era of gaming, welcoming players of all types into a fresh and immersive world.
- PlayStation 3: With a grand orchestra soundtrack and pastel hues, the PlayStation 3 startup promises luxury, new beginnings, and a sense of adventure for its users.
If video games are doorways to other worlds, consoles might be considered the transcendent vessels that transport players to them. Every console manufacturer has always understood the importance of opening with a good first impression, setting the stage for an experience, and cultivating a familiar aesthetic through iconic themes and visual queues.
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Over time, these console startup warmers became an art form in and of themselves, encapsulating video games in a kind of timeless wrapper and marking them as artifacts of a specific video game epoch. Besides nostalgia, these startups ease players into a meditative state and prepare them to experience realms of infinite possibilities.
8 Genesis
Sega (1989)
- Simple, fresh, and to the point
- Uniquely utilized human voice notes
A simple ripple of blue (perhaps an allusion to its most famous spiky speedster mascot) in a pure pool of digital white, which basks the living room or bedroom before "SE-GA!" The console announces itself unabashedly without fear, hesitation, or regard for any sleeping family members in the room next door or upstairs.
Known as the "Sega Mega Drive" outside of North America, the Genesis' startup is sharp, no-nonsense, and minimalistic, besides the singing human voices. Voice acting is taken for granted today, but it would have been seen as miraculous or even opulent by the standards of 1989. The Sega logo itself, now heavily anchored in a dulcet imagining of the early 90s in all its bright neon over-saturation, delivers its short, optimistic cheer, then quickly moves aside to make way for gritty, synthesized bops and vibrant, smooth scrolling sprites.
7 Xbox 360
Microsoft (2005)
- Streamlined, smooth, and with a fresh coat of paint to appeal to a new audience
- Somewhat austere in line with the new Millenial minimalism
In contrast to Microsoft's previous somewhat dingy, acid-industrial console startup, the 360 awes its players with a painterly flow of crisp green hues set against creamy white space. The flow condenses into a sphere, then recedes into itself, confidently forming the (then) new futuristic Xbox logo.
It's clear by the quick, clean animation and upbeat audio icon that Microsoft was aiming at a wider audience beyond the most hardcore gamers. There were a few variations of the animation, but each was designed to convey the manifestation of a new world, a fresh canvas, in which players of all stripes could become immersed.
6 Dreamcast
Sega (1999)
- The entryway to bright, cavernous dreams
- Its audio logo was composed by the legendary Ryuichi Sakamoto
The intention behind this console is in its title, and nothing quite drives this home than its dreamy (if only a little sparse) score, penned by the late, great electronic music pioneer, Ryuichi Sakamoto. The player is meant to be cast into a place beyond waking cognition; a cloistered place deep within some sparkling cavern dripping with slow, wet stone and mystery.
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The eye is drawn to the spiraling logo, which bolsters the image of a safe but mysterious bunker of dreaming. Although the sound design is spectacular, it falls short of impressing the user with its graphical capabilities, which are highly impressive to this day, even those from its selection of launch day games.
5 PlayStation 3
Sony (2007)
- The gentle crescendo of a grand orchestra
- Classy and cinematic
Whereas video games may have been seen as attention-snatching, bombastic distraction devices at their inception, the PlayStation 3 aims to affirm their place as expensive, delicate, and worthy of artistic consideration. The rising strings impress a sense of "tuning up" and anticipation for the great show to come, as an orchestra might flex before the curtains rise on a great symphony or opera.
The pastel hues on a misty stream evoke the breaking of fog against a summer sunrise, the early hours before an exciting road trip or vacation, or the opening night of an art gallery. The PlayStation 3's startup promises a future of untamed luxury, new beginnings, and a fresh breath of life to its users, newly awakened to a sense of adventure and play.
4 The Master System Mark 3 (Japanese Release)
Sega (1985)
- Quite different from the North American and European release
- Opens with a killer beat that is a full bit-tune track
The original Mark 3 version (released as the Master System in the West) was not seen outside of Japan, but a repackaged version did make it to North American shores fitted with a slightly downer startup noise. The original, with its funky startup music, is far and away superior. The uplifting, catchy background track native to the Japanese edition slaps hard and can be appreciated even without any childhood nostalgia for the console.
Some console startup enthusiasts may lament that Japan always gets the good stuff, but the track in its entirety can thankfully be found on YouTube. The startup plays almost like the title screen for a fist-pumping, adrenaline-raising lost-to-time classic. The tune, bopped out over a slow rotation of pixel patchwork colors, might have even given game players pause as to even insert a real game.
3 The Original PlayStation
Sony (1994)
- One of the most recognizable startups, thanks to the console's record-breaking sales
- Deeply atmospheric electronic hum playing to contrasts of light and dark
As the splitting orange crystal makes way for darkness surrounded by the snaking rainbow "PS" symbol, the chimes of this legendary console's startup audiovisual logo ring like the astral body of an enlightened monk bumping against the upper echelons of a dark spirit world, then evaporating into a rain of crystal.
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The deep, synthesized buzz shakes first-time users with a noise like something out of John Carpinter's most otherworldly dreams and is likely lodged somewhere in the auditory part of their brain forever after. As one of the best-selling consoles of all time, this sound and symbol were probably a lot of older players' first glimpses into the entire medium of video games.
2 GameCube
Nintendo (2001)
- Bouncy, playful, and highly polished
- A playful inversion of ominous, dark, and crystalline tones
Ever the masters of understanding their audience, Nintendo presents their players with an almost giddy startup. A playful and slightly sticky xylophone jingle layered thick with expensive strings imbues the immediate atmosphere with infectious excitement. The audio, animation, clean black background, and logo ooze polish and quality.
The darkly magical crystal of the eponymous cube is seemingly wet with mischievous purple paint, with which it prints the outline of a hexagon G, a cube, in a reminder that the experiences beyond are shiny and mesmeric, but not fragile, and are meant to be monkeyed with vigorously, and with gusto.
1 PlayStation 2
Sony (2000)
- The startup changes depending on the fullness of the player's memory card
- Haunting, ominous, but somehow reassuring and satisfying
The PlayStation 2 startup sequence is truly something else. It's a trip to an alternate cosmos through the eyes of some celestial tourist diving into a strange landscape made of raw nebula and laser-cut moonstone. At the base of the void stand monoliths (the population and size of which are determined by the player's memory card fullness and time played) around which four colored spirits dance.
The vision of the drop fades to black and the player is met with a glimpse of white wispy smoke which instantly magnetizes into the "PlayStation 2" logo with a satisfying "vuop" noise. Besides also being one of the best consoles, its audio design, harmony, (somewhat) interactive visuals, length, and implicit storytelling make the PlayStation 2's startup the most immersive of all the gateways.