PlayStation Classic Review

Since the massive success and popularity of the Classic line of consoles by Nintendo fans have been requesting other notorious console makers to follow suit. The most requested being Sony and SEGA and with the PlayStation Classic Sony seeks to capitalize on the increasing demand for classic gaming systems. Unfortunately, Sony's lackluster choice of games and poor versions of the preloaded selection makes PlayStation Classic worth missing out on.

The PlayStation Classic looks amazing. As a collectible item, the appealing design of the system and controllers replicate the original model. Absent are the iconic DualShock controllers and strangely a power adaptor. For $100 you would assume Sony would've included a power adaptor but the absence of DualShock controllers, since the system comes with 2 controllers, may have been intentional to keep cost down. The controllers also do not have a rumble feature which could have been another decision to keep cost down. 

The selection of preload games ranges from iconic to cult classics. Titles such as Final Fantasy VII, Street Puzzle Fighter Turbo 2, and Oddworld: Abe's Oddysee will likely interest many gamers but the absence of other notorious franchises is perplexing. Tomb Raider, Sypro the Dragon, and Crash Bandicoot are not included and considering these titles were one of the most acclaimed and recognized series within the PlayStation library it's strange to not see them as part of the collection. While we don't know what happened behind the screens not having some of the more known franchises makes the selection of titles feel lackluster.

The interface has that retro theme, with the classic boot-up from the original console. However, the bland interface when selecting a game is less appealing. Unlike the SNES and NES Classic menus, the selection screen for the PlayStation Classic has no life to it, with no music and just the sound of simple sound effects. What's worst is that the many of the games are PAL versions. These versions of the games operate at 50 Hz instead of the NA versions which ran at 60 Hz.

This is a major issue of the PlayStation Classic, every game available here can be purchased elsewhere for cheaper and at a better quality. Other than the convenience of having these games in one place gamers can pick up many of these games on digital stores and have a better experience than here.

Unless you're a major collector of PlayStation commodities it's hard to recommend the PlayStation Classic to anyone but the most diehard fans. The system itself looks great and is well-built but the experience of playing the system eventually loses its appeal considering that better versions of the titles are available elsewhere. Whereas Nintendo's Classic consoles provided a fun and quality gateway into the past the PlayStation Classic is more of a novelty.
 

Adam Siddiqui, NoobFeed
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