As is now clear to all, the news about Sony's announcement of PSOne Mini was born only to "celebrate" the first of April: in fact there were some clues left just to allow the user to understand the goliardic nature of the article (see Scalebound and Legacy of Kain: Dead Sun among the titles present, and the release date of this phantom console scheduled for February 29, 2019). But one thing was highlighted by the stratospheric number of views to this article: everyone wants a miniaturized version of the most classic of the gaming platforms created by Sony. In fact, with the cathode ray tube TVs out of production and the increasingly difficult availability of one of these working consoles, the retrogamers and the most nostalgic players of the nineties are looking for an alternative to the more classic emulation on PC, to enjoy again those emotions experienced in the own childhood.
First of all we need to make a small note: the idea of rétrogame not entirely foreign to Sony. In fact, through the use of PlayStation Store, the Japanese company allows owners of a PS Vita or a PS TV to play some of the most famous video games landed on PlayStation. What is missing, however, in addition to a complete range of titles of all the most important IPs born on this lucky console, is the lack of an object that recalls the good memories experienced by players 20 years ago.
And it is precisely here that the idea of PSOne Mini, a platform that allows a real leap into the past, while adapting to what yesterday was the future.
So let's analyze in detail how this hypothetical console should be in our opinion:
The first question to be analyzed would be the aesthetic one, the choice in fact would be between the classic PSX and the more "modern" PSOne and, in all likelihood, this would fall on the second option. The original is in fact already a miniaturized version of the PlayStation and offers an elegant and less squared line that is well suited to a modernization of this console. To accompany the body of this object could certainly not miss an HDMI port, now essential to connect to your TV, and a micro USB or Type C port for power supply. If we also start with the assumption that PSOne Mini must be small enough to be placed in any environment (in our article we proposed a size of 16cmx10cm), it comes by itself the impossibility of using the classic optical support. The presence of a CD player in fact, in addition to nullifying the idea of a cheaper emulation, would require an excessive size of the console.
If we then rely on the playful side of this object we certainly cannot forget the games. The question that arises spontaneously is therefore the following: "How many titles should PSOne Mini contain inside?" The answer seems clear to us right away if we compare this console to its counterparts, and we can therefore hypothesize between fifteen and twenty pre-installed video games. Considering their size, the ability to run into multi-disc games and new file compression techniques, 16GB of internal memory may initially be enough for users. Access to broadband internet connection through the use of an Ethernet or Wi-Fi connection could then extend the life of this beautiful object allowing the player to always access “new” titles with which to expand their rétrogamer experience. Precisely in this regard it would be necessary to be able to increase the data storage space and here Sony would have the possibility of acting in two different ways: using the same memories used for PS Vita, thus giving new life to a market now reduced to the bone, or creating a new proprietary support, perhaps with the features of the Memory Cards to which the Japanese company got used to us in the nineties. This second hypothesis would give a real retro touch to this object but, on the other hand, it would increase the final cost making it perhaps less attractive PSOne Mini to the public. A good compromise could be to maintain the structure of the Memory Card, but using it as a PS Vita card reader, thus creating a combination of style and economy.
The most suitable controller for this console would certainly be the first DualShock, a pad that at the time changed the way of playing thanks to its two analogs and the, albeit primitive, vibration. But if we talk about PSOne Mini, let's immediately think of a technologically advanced console, so why not allow PlayStation 4 players to also use their DualShock4 to play? In fact, compared to Nintendo, Sony has not drastically revolutionized its controller over the years, but rather has kept its structure stable, adding only some new functions that can be easily deactivated. The most convinced retrogamers could thus play with the classic DualShock contained in the bundle with the console, while the laziest ones could enjoy the classics thanks to the convenience of a wireless pad.
Let us now deal with the last and most important aspect of PSOne Mini: what games should it contain? This is certainly a choice not to be taken lightly, because its ancestor has churned out hundreds of games worth reliving, but if we had to do a selection we should choose only the most iconic titles of the period. Therefore, the various chapters of Crash and Spyro, Tombi, Ape Escape, Metal Gear: Solid, Silent Hill, Dino Crisis and Gran Turismo could not be missing. Let's not forget the huge amount of RPGs present for this console, of which we would be forced to choose only the major exponents, such as Final Fantasy VII, Grandia, Xenogears and Star Ocean.
But the videogames that the retrogamers would like to replay are much more, it would therefore be necessary for Sony to expand the catalog of PlayStation titles on the PlayStation Store, so as to guarantee players always new games to try and society a good influx of money with little effort. .
The idea of holding this object in our hands, as if it were a relic, amuses us a lot and I think that for most of the "old" gamers it is the same. Precisely for this reason we would be happy if Sony decided to accept the requests of the many nostalgics who live all over the world. Furthermore, the prospect of buying such an item a a figure that is around 90-100 euros it only adds to the hype for a console that doesn't exist yet, but that everyone would like to have in their homes. Perhaps the Japanese company will never put an end to this dream journey, but one thing is certain, if it were to do so, millions of players would wake up from the best dream they have ever had!
