Former PlayStation executive Shuhei Yoshida recently shared insights into his experience with the infamous Nintendo PlayStation prototype, including playing a nearly completed game developed for the cancelled console.
In a MinnMax interview, Yoshida recounted his career at Sony, starting with his early work alongside Ken Kutaragi, the "father of PlayStation." Joining Kutaragi's team in February 1993, during the original PlayStation's development, Yoshida and other new recruits were introduced to the Nintendo PlayStation prototype. As Yoshida emphasized, this was a functional prototype, with a nearly finished game ready to play.
"Everyone joining Ken Kutaragi's team around that time saw the Nintendo Sony PlayStation prototype first – it was already working," Yoshida stated. "They even had an almost finished game. I played it on my first day."
While Yoshida couldn't recall the game's developer or region of origin, he likened the gameplay to a contemporary space shooter, possibly Sega CD's Silpheed, which utilized streamed assets from a CD. Regarding the game's potential survival in Sony's archives, Yoshida expressed optimism:
"I wouldn't be surprised," he commented. "It was on a CD, so... yeah."
The Nintendo PlayStation remains a highly sought-after collector's item, largely due to its unreleased status, representing a fascinating "what if" scenario in gaming history. Its prototype has frequently surfaced in auctions and collector circles.
The prospect of this Sony-developed space shooter seeing the light of day is enticing. It wouldn't be unprecedented; Nintendo famously released Star Fox 2 years after its cancellation. Perhaps this lost piece of gaming history could still emerge.
