PlayStation Museum Articafts

If an actual PlayStation Museum does exist, it would definitely need items from PlayStation's 30-year history. Here are some PlayStation-related items that I believe would have belonged in a PlayStation Museum if such a place exists.

Crime Crackers and its sequel Crime Crackers 2 are forgotten Japan-only games for the PS1. It's a huge shame because Crime Crackers was the very first PS1 game developed and published by Sony Computer Entertainment.

Do you still remember the PS1 and PS2 demo discs that came with various PlayStation magazines? They would definitely be great artifacts for a PlayStation Museum.

If you have played PlayStation All-Stars Battle Royale, you would have been familiar with Polygon Man. Before he became the final boss of PlayStation All-Stars Battle Royale, he was the original advertiser of Sony's PlayStation. Therefore, PlayStation advertisement posters featuring Polygon Man belong in a PlayStation Museum.

Other artifacts that would be perfect for a PlayStation Museum would include a Gold PlayStation 2, a PocketStation and a Silver PlayStation 2 Slim. While the PocketStation would be an easier find, the Gold PS2 and Silver PS2 Slim are less common and therefore, are harder to find.

While there are lots of PlayStation-related items that will be featured in a PlayStation Museum, these eight items deserve more respect in my opinion. Especially the Crime Crackers games, the PS1 and PS2 demo discs, and the Polygon Man advertisement posters.

Even more Rare Gems from the Bargain Bin

The Atari 7800 was clearly underappreciated because it was actually the last good Atari console before the infamous Atari Jaguar, and was the best attempt by Atari to win back their customers after the North American Video Game Crash of 1983. Therefore, this underrated console from Atari would be a respectable find from the bargain bin, if they can be found in the bargain bin that is.

Who would have thought the original arcade version of Mortal Kombat would have gotten the Plug & Play treatment? Surely there are some people who would have tried to lay their hands on this piece of video game history if Mortal Kombat was not banned in whichever country they come from...

If you dislike the North American box art for Karnaaj Rally to the point you chose not to pick up a copy of the game, then you have not heard about the European box art for Karnaaj Rally, which was actually good box art design. Karnaaj Rally is actually a decent racing game for the Game Boy Advance. Therefore, ignore the awful box art and go get a copy of Karnaaj Rally from the bargain bin if you regretted your decision to give Karnaaj Rally a miss due to the bad box art.

Another underappreciated console that can be found in the bargain bin as a rare find is the PlayStation Vita. This was a handheld that cost more than the Nintendo 3DS even when these two handhelds had similar battery life. No wonder the 3DS outsold the Vita by a long shot. Gamers are becoming more thrifty as the effects of the 2008 downturn lingers on after 15 years.

PES 2014 was officially confirmed to be the last game released for the PlayStation 2, so you can expect this game to be a rare find in the bargain bin.

Redesigned versions of great consoles often get released near the start of the twilight years, and the original PlayStation was no exception. The PS One was released in 2000, the same year Sony released the Playstation 2. Therefore, expect to find a PS One in the bargain bin, although such an item will be a rarity.

Speaking of bargain bin rarities, Compile's last game, Pochi and Nyaa, is an uncommon PlayStation 2 game that can be found in the bargain bin. But it is not easy to find the PS2 version of Pochi and Nyaa in the Japanese video game store bargain bin because Pochi and Nyaa was Compile's very last game before they closed their doors for good.

Farewell to old friends

Author's Note: This comic was conceived in response to Sony announcing the PlayStation 4 on the 20th of February, 2013. Time constraints mean that by the time this comic was completed, the PlayStation 4 was already available on retail for several years, while the PlayStation 3 is no longer in production. Now that Sony announced the PlayStation 5, this comic will be for commemorating Sony's PlayStation 5 announcement as well as the 25th anniversary of the original Sony PlayStation in all regions outside Japan.

For those wondering why Klonoa is the character saying his farewells to the PlayStation consoles in this comic, that's because the Klonoa series began on the PlayStation, and Klonoa was a prominent Namco character during the PlayStation 2 era. The dates in the first two panels are references to the discontinuation of the production of the PS1 in 2006 and the PS2 on the 4th of January, 2013. As for Klonoa frowning on the PS3 in the last two panels, it's not because the PS3 has no Klonoa titles, but the PS4 is not backwards compatible with its predecessors. Note that Klonoa is holding a PS3 Slim in the last two panels, and the date on the third panel is a reference to the day the PS4 was announced.

The PlayStation 5 will be backward compatible with most PS4 titles, but it will not be backward compatible with any game from the PS1, PS2 or PS3. Therefore, expect Klonoa to shun the PS5 for being backward compatible with the PS4 only, and totally leaving out the PS3, PS2 and PS1.