It's safe to say without Nintendo Sony may never have made it to the console game market. Nintendo and Sony were ready to make a console together, but then Nintendo broke the deal. This led to Sony going ahead and making a new console instead 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 the success of the PS5.
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Japan has received some amazing PlayStation exclusives over the years from the PS2 to the PS4 and beyond.
However, before they made the PlayStation, Sony was a publisher in the SNES era under the name Sony Imagesoft, and several games were also developed under their brand. 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 for some of them the oldest games developed and published mainly by Sonyand not by a subdivision like Japan Studio unless otherwise noted.
Threat
Before the PS1 there were game shows
- Developers: Sony Imagesoft, Absolute
- Publisher: Sony Imagesoft
- Platforms: Sega CD
- Estimated year of release: 1994 (NA)
As for CSG Imagesoft or Sony Imagesoft, 90's kids probably played the Sony game on their NES or SNES like Mickey Mania, Super Dodge Ballor Hookbut the company also developed some games, e.g Threat. There are other versions that are not from Sony Threatlike on the NES, but the Sega CD version has the advantage of using 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, voiced and all. It might 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 created by Sony Imagesoft that features digitized actors going through the motions of a typical game. Players can spin a wheel, claim letters and then solve a puzzle to win (virtual) cash prizes.
The strangest thing about this adaptation is that Vanna White is the main host instead of Pat Sajak. Financially, it probably made more sense to focus on Vanna, but it's a bit of a pain. either way Wheel of Fortune is a subtle enough adaptation, as is Threat.
Motor Toon Grand Prize
Races 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 Prize is a racing game not dissimilar Mario Kart series because the vehicles and characters were insane, but it was still a more focused racing experience than Nintendo's flagship. This is no surprise given that it was developed by Poly's Entertainment, a studio under Sony Computer Entertainment, Inc. Development Division 1 in credits.
It should be noted that Poly's Entertainment eventually morphed into Polyphony Digital within Sony, which would go on to work on Gran Turismo series starting in 1997, production Motor Toon Grand Prize a very important stepping stone in PlayStation history.
ESPN Extreme Games
Way ahead of Tony Hawk
ESPN Extreme Games
- Released
-
September 9, 1995
- Developers
-
Sony Interactive Studios America
- Publishers
-
Sony Computer Entertainment
Tony Hawk's pro skater wouldn't hit the scene until 1999 when extreme sports started to become more popular in the Games. Before that, players got PS1 ESPN Extreme Gameswhich featured more extreme sports than just skateboarding, including roller skating, street luge and mountain biking.
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Players could choose the games they wanted to compete in, but it was more restrictive than a Tony Hawk's pro skater game. There wasn't that much freedom to do tricks in the sandbox, but this series would improve with sequels. Later the name ESPN Extreme Games was changed to 1xtreme to match the new sequel naming convention.
Destructive derby
Twisted Metal took racing from typical driving games and made it all about the sport of blowing up opponents. It was something new to gaming and was more mature and brutal than anything else Mortal Kombat. Things would only get darker with sequels and Twisted Metal the series will thrive for some time.
Players could choose multiple racers and compete in destruction derby arenas armed with rocket launchers, machine guns and more. It should be noted that Twisted Metal it was developed in collaboration with a company called SingleTrac, a studio that also developed it Jet Moto series.
Warhawk
Death from above
- Developers: Sony Interactive Studios America and SingleTrac
- Publisher: Sony Computer Entertainment
- Released: 10 November 1995 (NA)
Warhawk was released on the same day as Twisted Metal in North America and was also developed in partnership with SingleTrac. It was a typical 3D aerial shooter of the time, with each unit equipped with different weapons. Players would fight tanks on the ground and enemies in the air in linear levels.
Warhawk wasn't a particularly long game and didn't become as big a series as Twisted Metalwhich makes sense considering the destruction derby series was more mature and suited to the PS1 demographic than Warhawk was.
NFL game day
Before Madden
- Released: 4 Dec 1995 (NA)
The Madden the series has been a major soccer franchise on consoles and other gaming devices since 1988. This means that many challengers have come to the king, including Sony NFL game day in 1995, which grew into a smaller franchise that lasted for ten years.
It had everything Madden including officially licensed NFL teams and the ability to run games. Coming back to this game is not easy because soccer games have changed so much over the years, but it has firmly established itself in the soccer game market for its time.
NHL Face Off
On ice
NHL Face Off
- Released
-
January 1, 1996
- ESRB
-
all e10+
- Released: 19 December 1995 (NA)
NHL Face Off was Sony's attempt to develop a hockey game series under their belt, and it took a while. It was officially licensed as NFL game dayso players could choose their favorite team to compete with on the ice.
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Multiplayer was available 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 Face Off not exactly impressive now, but Sony has been ahead of the curve in covering all its bases in sports, including hockey.
NBA Shoot Out
Play ball
- Developer: Sony Computer Entertainment Europe
- Publisher: Sony Computer Entertainment
- Released: 20 March 1996 (EU)
Sony also had to supplement the sports package NBA Shoot Out for all basketball fans. Basketball games are some of the most accessible sports games on the market because the courts are small and the rules are simple to follow: catch the ball, shoot the basket, repeat.
NBA Shoot Out is one of the few PS1 games to be released in Europe first, which made sense given that it was developed by the European arm of Sony's interactive arm, but North America got it a week later, so there wasn't much of a gap.
Toon Grand Prix 2 engine
One more round
- Developer: Poly's Entertainment (Sony Computer Entertainment, Inc. Development Division 1)
- Publisher: Sony Computer Entertainment
- Released: May 24, 1996 (Japan)
Finally, Sony's oldest PS1 game was a sequel: Toon Grand Prix 2 engine. It was the first game in the series to be released in North America, as the original never left Japan. It was well-reviewed, but the series never really took off, even with a trio of reissues in 2002, 2008, and 2011.
Toon Grand Prix 2 engine it plays very similarly to the original, although the racing is a little tighter and there are more options for both playable characters and crazy upgrades. It would be interesting to see Poly's Entertainment continue with a more cartoony racing franchise rather than a more simulation based one Gran Turismo series.
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