Summary
- The PS1 catered to audiences of all kinds, offering a library with both mature and charming titles.
- The PS1 ushered in the golden era of JRPGs, making it a hub for beloved Japanese role-playing games.
- The PS1 introduced innovative gameplay loops and 3D gaming, normalizing mature experiences in the industry.
The story behind the original PlayStation is a fascinating one, with Sony fighting against numerous setbacks to launch a console that altered the face of the gaming industry. All of a sudden, Nintendo's dominance was at an end as the PS1 sold incredibly well and became one of the most successful video game consoles of all time.
There are many reasons why the PS1 became such a major hit, to the point where fans still can't get enough of this legendary console. Some of the things it excelled at have become hallmarks of the past, and are sorely missed in the modern generation of gaming.
7 Best PS1 Racing Games, Ranked
The PS1 was home to several popular racing franchises. These games, however, tend to stand above the rest.
7 A Library That Appealed To All Kinds Of Players
Prioritizing Both Old And New Gamers
Most modern PlayStation games tend to be story-driven, mature experiences that push the console's hardware to the very limit. Such wasn't the case in the past, with PlayStation games catering to audiences of all kinds. There was a push for mature gaming experiences, but fans were also treated to their fair share of charming titles that appealed to all ages. Now, Sony prioritizes mature action-oriented experiences for the most part. This isn't necessarily a bad thing, but it's quite different from the console's early days.
6 Serving As A Hub For JRPGs
The PS1 Ushered In This Genre's Golden Era
With the launch of Final Fantasy 7, the PS1 became the go-to console for fans to enjoy a wealth of amazing JRPGs. SquareSoft opened the floodgates for this genre to become mainstream in a way that no one expected at the time. This golden age of JRPGs ended with later PlayStation generations that prioritized real-time combat and state-of-the-art visuals. It bummed out fans that Japanese role-playing games were not in fashion anymore, which is why they've been glad to see this genre make a comeback over the last two generations.
8 Best PS1 Games You’ve Probably Never Heard Of
The PS1 was a chaotic console, with a bunch of games released for it that are a great time, but remain almost totally unknown.
5 Innovative Gameplay Loops
Developers Would Throw Everything At The Wall To See What Stuck
Modern gaming has fallen into a formula that is hard to shake off, with most PlayStation 5 players expecting certain features and gameplay systems in big-budget titles. This wasn't the case on the original PlayStation, which had its fair share of experimental games that tried something special.
When something stuck to the wall, some developers ran with it, but creativity was at an all-time high in this generation. Thankfully, the rise of indie gaming has allowed fans of older consoles to check out fresher ideas from smaller developers that don't have to follow a template, increasing their chances of selling as many units as possible.
4 Making Cartridges Obsolete
It Was Easy For Devs To Create Games For CD-ROMs
Nintendo has typically stuck to cartridges and alternate forms of media storage to prevent piracy. However, making games for cartridges isn't all that straightforward, which is why the CD-ROM was a blessing for many developers.
This is the reason why major JRPG hitters like Final Fantasy and Dragon Quest shifted to the PlayStation, since it could let them achieve a greater scope. Nintendo's stubbornness was one of the many reasons why consoles like the Nintendo 64 and GameCube didn't sell as many units as the PlayStation and its successor.
3 Ushering In The Era Of 3D Gaming
Later Consoles Carried A Trend Introduced By The PS1
3D was still rare in most video games when the PlayStation was released, but the enhanced space in the CD-ROM coupled with various gaming advancements ensured that this would become a thing of the past. The Nintendo 64 could have made 3D gaming the norm, but most people agree that the original PlayStation was hugely important in this department.
8 Best PS1 Games Turning 30 In 2025
2025 marks the 30th birthday of these games that were released in 1995 for the PlayStation 1. Here's which ones to revisit.
Almost every game on the PlayStation used 3D polygonal visuals that let fans step into a new era of gaming. It was a huge turning point in the gaming industry and showed just how far the industry had come.
2 Normalizing Mature Gaming Experiences
Showed The Promise Of Appealing To An Older Audience
The Nintendo approach was to make games accessible to all, meaning that games couldn't cross the limits of certain ESRB ratings. It's a valid approach that has served them well to this day, but the PlayStation decided to buck this trend. For the first time, fans were treated to an array of darker experiences as the PlayStation made an effort to cater to a mature audience. This approach paid off in dividends and turned Sony into the gaming behemoth that fans know and love.
1 A Fair Share Of Unique Platformers
This Genre Wasn't As Prominent On Later PlayStation Consoles
Some platformers may still appear on the modern PlayStation consoles, but this genre is nowhere near as prominent as it once was on the PS1. Characters like Spyro, Crash, and Dex took part in fun, action-packed platformers that took players on a wild adventure.
Fans are nostalgic about these characters to this day, and it's a shame that this genre's relevance has waned in the modern age of gaming. Still, players can always check out current-gen Nintendo consoles if they want to enjoy a system that has some excellent platforming games.
- Brand
- Sony
- Storage
- 512 KB ROM (BIOS storage)
- VR Support
- No
- Resolution
- 256×224 to 640×480
- Ports
- 2x Controller Ports, 2x Memory Card Ports, A/C In, Serial I/O (SCPH-100x to 900x), AV Multi Out, RCA Composite (SCPH-100x to 5000), Parallel I/O (SCPH-100x to 750x), S-Video out (SCPH-1000)
- HDR Support
- No