2020 sees Sony launch the PS5, the latest games console in a long line from the technology conglomerate – with a brand new class of shiny launch titles. Starting with the first PlayStation in 1994, their release history includes 4 home consoles and 2 handhelds to date (that’s right, the PSP and Vita are getting a look-in, too). This article looks at the variety of the titles in past launch line-ups, regional differences and general gaming landscape to see what went well, what didn’t work so well, and what we can anticipate for the PS5. But, I won’t be incorporating mid-generation hardware updates like PS4 Pro, model revisions like slim or digital-only editions, nor additional devices like PSVR. So, with a list of the launch games for each console, here are the details of every past PlayStation launch.
Tekken Tag Tournament (PS2 Launch Game)
Original PlayStation & PS2
The first PlayStation started with a small number of games, though quite different across each region. Japan saw the strategy game, TAMA, and anime influenced artstyles like with Crime Crackers. For Europe, a healthy mix featuring on-rails shooters like Novastorm and racing games like Wipeout. And the US got a share of launch sports games such as NBA Jam, ESPN Extreme Games and Power Serve 3D Tennis. The PlayStation was especially easy to code for and Sony worked on establishing good relationships with third party developers. Add in a winning marketing strategy and a competitive price point, and you’ve got a success on your hands with two million units sold after six months on the market in Japan, and a modest 800,000 units during the first four months in the US.
Sony followed up the hugely successful PlayStation with the creatively titled PlayStation 2 in 2000 which, little known fact, since release is currently the highest selling console to date. It boasted the ability to play DVDs, backwards compatibility with original PlayStation games & accessories, and a mighty 29 launch games at launch in the US. The selection was huge, with titles ranging from Dynasty Warriors 2, Madden NFL 2001, Ridge Racer V, Tekken Tag Tournament and more, with Japan getting video game versions of traditional board games like Mahjong & Shogi. The PlayStation 2 lacked the online infrastructure that Xbox Live was blazing the trail in, and its graphical capability was a bit wanting, but the huge library of games vastly improved sales in the US with half a million units on the first day, and over 1.4 million units in Japan in a month.
Gran Turismo HD Concept (PS3 Launch Game)
PSP & PS3
It’s clear to see the next era of PlayStation was fuelled by the supreme confidence granted from releasing the greatest-selling console ever. They set out to wage war in an area that Nintendo had dominated virtually uncontested since the ’80s. The PlayStation Portable (or PSP for short) launched in 2004 with a low seven games in Japan, but a respectable 17 in North America and 24 in Europe. Emphasis was put on delivering technically and visually impressive games on a portable device, with racing games like F1 Grand Prix & Need for Speed: Underground Rivals and sports titles like Tiger Woods PGA Tour & NFL Street 2: Unleashed. Sony’s pocket rocket shot out of the gates in its first few days on sale, selling 185,000 units in the UK in four days, 200,000 units in Japan in two days and 500,000 units in the US in two days! Technically and visually impressive games is a key advancement of the PS5, so the launch titles should be able to emulate the PSP’s initial success.
In 2006, Sony’s bravado really came out when they released the PlayStation 3 for $599 and the CEO insinuated people should work a couple extra shifts to afford one. Programming games for PS3 was a particularly unique and complex task, which led to a perceived lack of quality games spawning the “PS3 has no games” meme. Even with helpful features like Blu-Ray disc playback, early backwards compatibility and launching the PlayStation Network – having a release date a year after the Xbox 360, and lacking the Nintendo Wii’s unique features & broader appeal were factors that led to a sluggish start of only 81,000 units sold in Japan in two days and 195,000 sold in North America in two weeks (although there was a better start in Europe with 600,000 in two days).
And that’s before we’ve got to the games! Japan only saw five games at launch while Europe and North America got 20+ in a range of genres… and quality. Both Elder Scrolls Oblivion and Sonic 2K6 released at launch – some of the best and worst games ever made.
Killzone Shadow Fall (PS4 Launch Game)
PS Vita & PS4
The Nintendo DS (the PSP’s main competitor) went on to become the second highest selling console ever, but that didn’t deter Sony from releasing a follow up handheld in 2011 called the PlayStation Vita, with a varied and similar launch line-up across all the regions. Japan finally gets more than 10 games to start and everywhere else gets over 20, with touchscreen-enabled titles like Dynasty Warriors Next, Little Deviants & Touch My Katamari. It had a strong start with 500,000 sold in Japan in just under a month, with around 300,000-400,000 sold in the first week each in North America and Europe. However the reports around the time say sales slowed quickly after the release date, with Sony shifting the marketing to position it as a supplement to the wider PlayStation ecosystem.
2013’s PlayStation 4 had an almost identical launch lineup across all regions, with various games like Assassin’s Creed IV: Black Flag, Battlefield 4 & FIFA 14 being available on the previous generation and main competitor, Xbox One. However, despite having less games available at launch than the Xbox One (16 in Japan, 15 in Europe, 12 in the US), the PS4 had the fastest selling debut of all time, selling 4.2 million units in Europe & North America in just over a month (1 million of those coming from the US in the first 24 hours). With the Wii U putting people to sleep and the Xbox One reeling from a PR nightmare, the lack of PS4 backwards compatibility didn’t seem to hurt sales in the slightest. Simply dunk on your competition’s games sharing policy and the world is yours.
PlayStation 5
We know many launch titles for the PS5 and games anticipated during the launch window. Action games such as Marvel’s Spider-Man: Miles Morales & Devil May Cry 5 Special Edition, as well as next gen enabled updates for current gen titles like Fortnite & Rainbow Six Siege. However, considering over the last 20+ years of PlayStation they’ve launched with 5 Ridge Racers, 5 Mahjong games and 8 different NBA titles, we can probably expect at least a few more games to sneak in.
Sony’s strong relationships with third party developers has ensured a wide variety of games at every launch, which they have managed to leverage into more console exclusives as time goes on. From courting SquareSoft to get Final Fantasy VII on the original PlayStation, to exclusively securing God of War, Marvel’s Spiderman, Ghost of Tsushima, The Last of Us 2 and more for PS4, Sony’s best selling point are the involved, gratifying narratives that are only to be found on their platform. The games that come out at launch are never the best games technically – it’s usually developers just porting “complete editions” to figure out how the hardware works (looking at you, Grand Theft Auto 5). But maintaining the launch variety, while giving an indication of the high quality narratives that can follow will let everyone know that play has no limits.
PlayStation 5 and the PlayStation 5 Digital Edition has a release date of 12th November 2020.
