When you think of excellent consoles, games, and apps, you might name a few popular ones like Nintendo and PlayStation. If you want to know how PlayStation became so popular, this article is for you. The Sony PlayStation company was founded on May 7, 1946, by two Japanese men, Ibuka Masaru and Morita Akio.
Sony did not consider entering the console business until 38 years later, in 1984. This was the year Ken Kutaragi decided to change the video game industry. Before this, Nintendo had a deal with Sony and had drafted the first PlayStation. However, Nintendo realized how much it would benefit Sony, so they canceled the deal, causing Sony to start over.
‘Sony released the first PlayStation in 1994 and launched it in other countries in 1995. The cost of the first-ever PlayStation started at $299, which, adjusted for inflation, is equivalent to $613 today. At launch, 102.49 million units were sold worldwide. Some of the best games that the PlayStation came out with were Metal Gear Solid, Final Fantasy VII, Resident Evil 2, Vagrant Story, and Crash Bandicoot.
Then, over four years later, in 2000, Sony released the PlayStation 2, introducing a slimmer, thinner, and smaller version than its bulky predecessors. The PlayStation 2’s launch price was $299, which, with inflation, is $543 today. It also introduced Gran Turismo, which became the most popular game on the PlayStation 2 and continues to receive remakes to this day. The PlayStation 2 remains the best-selling console of all time, with over 160 million units sold.
In 2006, the PlayStation 3 was released, featuring a new addition that allowed people to play online anywhere through the PlayStation Network (PSN), which supported online multiplayer games and digital downloads. This was a major improvement over its predecessor. The PlayStation 3’s starting launch price was $499, which, adjusted for inflation, is $788 today. Popular games released for the PlayStation 3 were Uncharted, God of War III, and Red Dead Redemption. The PlayStation 3 also became the inspiration for some of the best Blu-ray players on the market in 2024.
In 2013, the PlayStation 4 was released, boasting over five times better internals and much better graphics than the PlayStation 3. The PlayStation 4’s base launch price was $399, which, adjusted for inflation, is $596 today. Popular games for the PlayStation 4 include Uncharted 4, God of War, and Ghost of Tsushima. The PlayStation 4 also introduced the ability to swap out hard drives for increased storage.
Finally, in 2020, the PlayStation 5 was released, becoming the most highly anticipated video game console in history. The base price for the PlayStation 5 is $499, which, with inflation, is $596 today. As of the date of this article, the PlayStation 5 has been running strong for five years. The PlayStation 5 was known for being the largest PlayStation built, though it is lighter than the PlayStation 3. The most popular games for the PlayStation 5 include God of War Ragnarök, Spider-Man 2, and Astro Bot.
We are now up to date with all the PlayStation consoles. In total, Sony has sold 541.7 million consoles. With all the success of the PlayStation consoles over the years, Ken Kutaragi’s vision of changing the video game industry has come true. If PlayStation ever updates its console catalog with a PlayStation 6, it would be one of the biggest video game companies ever.