Now, more than two decades later, Imgur user DanDiebold has uploaded images of the unreleased console. This particular model (about 200 Play Station prototypes were created) confirms that the system was supposed to be compatible with existing SNES titles as well as titles to be released in the SNES-CD format. In other words, it would have been the world’s first hybrid console: game developers and gamers alike would be able to use both SNES cartridges and CDs.
Without further ado, here is the front:
The back:
And the controller:
If you’re curious how the partnership ended, the short answer is that it came down to licensing disagreements. The long story is a lot more controversial.
Nintendo president Hiroshi Yamauchi didn’t want Sony to control the SNES-CD format. As a result, Nintendo formed a partnership with Dutch electronics firm Philips, a particularly bold move as it meant abandoning a fellow Japanese company for a European one.
A day after Sony announced its SNES-compatible “Play Station” at CES, Nintendo made the surprise announcement: a partnership with Philips to produce an SNES-CD add-on for the SNES. It was a massive blow to Sony, but in the end it proved more problematic for Nintendo.
Sony continued development of its own console and released the PlayStation in 1994. Nintendo did not release a CD-based console until 2001, when it launched the GameCube. The rest, as they say, is history.
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