Sony-Nintendo PlayStation Prototype finally found

D

DieH@rd

Legend
Great piece of lost history has just be found, the fabled SNES console that had integrated Sony CD reader!
95cVmjz.jpg


Cooperation between Nintendo and Sony suddenly ended in a single day - day when Sony proudly announced brand new cooperation at CES 1991, and the same day when NIntendo announced that they wont use Sony's hardware. :D Furious Ken Kutaragi bursted into the offices of Sony CEO demanding revenge, and the rest was history.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/SNES-CD
http://www.ign.com/articles/1998/08/28/history-of-the-playstation
http://arstechnica.co.uk/gaming/2015/07/fabled-sony-nintendo-play-station-prototype-discovered/
http://www.polygon.com/2015/7/3/8889237/Nintendo-Play-Station
 
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This video popped up after the one in the OP. It says that the original deal between Nintendo and Sony gave Sony the royalty rights for all CD-based content including the games. It seems later and having bring Philips into the mix as well Nintendo was able to renegotiate the games part, but still Sony would have had quite a bit of power over the Nintendo ecosystem, also technically it probably would have sucked :). No surprise that Nintendo didn't want to go through with it. Still they should have made their own CD-based console, instead of the 64.

 
Dr Evil said:
No surprise that Nintendo didn't want to go through with it.
Click to expand...
Then why did they agree to it in the first place? And why wait until Sony had done a ton of work before pulling out? No wonder Sony were p***ed.

Still it worked out well for everybody. Sony were influential in bringing gaming out of the bedroom and reducing the stigma of gaming being a kids pastime. Both PlayStation and Xbox have been good for gaming and it makes you wonder how far things would have progressed if it had been left to the old stalwarts like Atari, Nintendo and SEGA.
 
DSoup said:
Then why did they agree to it in the first place? And why wait until Sony had done a ton of work before pulling out? No wonder Sony were p***ed.
Click to expand...

I'm guessing in 1988 when they signed the deal, Nintendo didn't realize that CD-based games would be major thing on this add on. Yeah Nintendo F'd up, but the original deal between them sounds beyond terrible for Nintendo. (if the video is right)
 
All through that video it basically sounds like Nintendo being dicks. They negotiate deals, then wince on them, change their mind and don't tell anyone, agree a format then ditch it after the other companies have invested, etc. Apart from the poor deal with Sony regards software licensing (which also seems like Nintendo's fault for thinking CD was irrelevant and flippantly giving Sony all rights instead of agreeing a partnership), they played the antagonist in this story. About the only aspect of victim I can find is if Nintendo wanted a royalty share with Sony but Sony were adamant not to, saying it was their peripheral, they should get all the royalties. However, it's phrased as if Nintendo discovered this deal, as if they weren't paying attention and just signed off whatever as if, "Sony want to waste their time on CDs? Good luck to 'em. We'll make some money from the hardware (or whatever Nintendo's part of the deal was)."

That's how it's presented, though reality may be different. I have to say good on Sony for sticking with their plans - we all know the Kutaragi story.

Also, Philips being Sony's rivals. Who?! ;)
 
Shifty Geezer said:
Yep. I'm just thinking how the mighty have fallen.
Click to expand...
They're still quite big, but came away from older audio/video businesses and now seem to be focused on other appliances; they seem to be huge in the medical tech. I should read up on them
 
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It's odd how companies have moved. Where will Apple be in thirty years? Selling holidays and music equipment? :unsure:
 
Shifty Geezer said:
It's odd how companies have moved. Where will Apple be in thirty years? Selling holidays and music equipment? :unsure:
Click to expand...
I was just thinking it's ironic how Philops have already done what many are asking Sony to do. Sell off old unprofitable businesses and profit from the ones they're good at.
For Philips it was healthcare and lighting. They tried to sell of audio/video completely a few years ago but the deal fell through.
For Sony it would be imaging, playstation and maybe some others.
Yes I've been reading up.
 
London-boy said:
They're still quite big, but came away from older audio/video businesses and now seem to be focused on other appliances; they seem to be huge in the medical tech. I should read up on them
Click to expand...

There market cap seem possibly similar (well, less than) to Sony's for that matter if I'm reading things right. Around 22 billion Euro (around 24b dollars) vs Sony's 33 billion dollars.

Apparently Sony stock has been on a big run in 2015 as well, or it would be closer.

My previous TV was a Phillips...42" LCD...not sure they even make TV's anymore. I guess they are like IBM, moving away from public facing business's, but in IBM's case still quite profitable.

It's odd how companies have moved. Where will Apple be in thirty years? Selling holidays and music equipment? :unsure:
Click to expand...

I remember Bill Gates in response to anti trust allegations trying to point out how fast moving tech is. He said something along the lines of "in 50 years I am pretty sure Coke will still be very strong in the soft drink business, but I have no idea who will be the tech leaders" or something to that effect.
 
DSoup said:
This is probably a reference to CD being developed by Philips and Sony. So in terms of early expertise with the technology, it was one or the other.
Click to expand...

As far as I know CD was fully developed by Philips, the only addition Sony ended up making was the size of the disk to fit the then president's favorite classical performance.

If I remember correctly the CD was a continuation of the laser disk. Philips didn't have the money to bring the CD to market and that's why they partnered with Sony. They actually flew a prototype to Japan in first class to demo it to them.

laser-disc-0607-lg.jpg
 
tongue_of_colicab said:
As far as I know CD was fully developed by Philips, the only addition Sony ended up making was the size of the disk to fit the then president's favorite classical performance.

If I remember correctly the CD was a continuation of the laser disk. Philips didn't have the money to bring the CD to market and that's why they partnered with Sony. They actually flew a prototype to Japan in first class to demo it to them.

laser-disc-0607-lg.jpg
Click to expand...
afaik Sony and Philips developed different formats, and then developed one together.

I remember there is in-depth article about CD-ROM creation from Philips guy on the internet. Very cool.

I think this is it http://web.archive.org/web/20141104002442/http://www.exp-math.uni-essen.de/~immink/pdf/beethoven.htm
 
Dr Evil said:
This video popped up after the one in the OP. It says that the original deal between Nintendo and Sony gave Sony the royalty rights for all CD-based content including the games. It seems later and having bring Philips into the mix as well Nintendo was able to renegotiate the games part, but still Sony would have had quite a bit of power over the Nintendo ecosystem, also technically it probably would have sucked :). No surprise that Nintendo didn't want to go through with it. Still they should have made their own CD-based console, instead of the 64.

Click to expand...
A failed project but the console didn't look bad at all, it had the 90s look --difficult to explain. And it certainly looked better than the American SNES, although not as beautiful as the European and Japanese SNES, imho.
 
About prototypes.. Did you guys ever see NES in NES era that very slim? The cartridge slot is using the same design as SNES (top vertical entry) but no flap.

Nobody believe me when I tell people it was NES. Now I don't know where I put it (lost after moving house).

Edit :
It looks almost like super NES 2 but smaller, rounder, and grey. The front is thinner and smaller than its back.

I remember used it unplugged as an 'imaginary space car' together with other car toys
 
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orangpelupa said:
About prototypes.. Did you guys ever see NES in NES era that very slim? The cartridge slot is using the same design as SNES (top vertical entry) but no flap.

Nobody believe me when I tell people it was NES. Now I don't know where I put it (lost after moving house).

Edit :
It looks almost like super NES 2 but smaller, rounder, and grey. The front is thinner and smaller than its back.

I remember used it unplugged as an 'imaginary space car' together with other car toys
Click to expand...

That's not a prototype, that's NES-101 and it was officially released: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nintendo_Entertainment_System_(Model_NES-101)

Years later they became in high demand due to being more durable than the original front loaders.
 
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