Sony came screaming into the gaming space with one of the most successful consoles ever released on September 9th, 1995 with the PlayStation, beating out its competitor, the Nintendo 64, in almost ever conceivable way.
The North American launch lineup consisted of eleven titles, a drop in the bucket compared to how many games would make their way to the console during its life. The following list takes a look at these games and ranks them from worst to best. Given the nature of early 3D graphics, few of these have aged gracefully, but most of them are worth revisiting at least as a curiosity.
11 Street Fighter: The Movie
While also an arcade game, it is important to note the major differences between the original version and the console games. The graphics maintain the digitized sprites of the actors, but the gameplay closer resembles a traditional Street Fighter. Unfortunately, it is bogged down by technical issues like slowdown and sluggish controls, making this a hard pass for most gamers on the PlayStation’s launch.
10 ESPN Extreme Games
Several sports games launched alongside Sony’s console debut. ESPN Extreme Games, or 1xtreme Games as it would be renamed, puts the player into several different sporting events, like bicycling and rollerblading. They mostly play the same however, and all come off as a cheap Road Rash clone. With this in mind, it is better to play Road Rash.
9 Power Serve 3D Tennis
For the rest of the decade following the console’s release, many games advertised their 3D capabilities right in the title. Power Serve 3D Tennis was a full-fledged tennis game, and the character models were some the best 3D renders gamers had seen by then.
Unfortunately, the content available in the package is slim, leaving little for players to explore past the simple joy of playing the sport.
8 Total Eclipse Turbo
Flight was big when 3D gaming first came into being. Total Eclipse Turbo is a rerelease of a 3DO from the year prior. Unfortunately, this new version does little to add or differentiate itself from the first edition, doing little to showcase the PS1’s capabilities. It looks nice, but it is not even the best flight game to come out alongside the console’s launch.
7 Kilea: The DNA Imperative
The lack of analog sticks made the PlayStation less than ideal for first-person shooters, but that did not stop Kilea: The DNA Imperative from launching alongside the console. Upon release, praise was given to the graphics, cutscenes, and story, but other aspects like the controls and level design were objects of ire. A sequel, Epidemic, came out the following year, but failed to make as big a splash. Ultimately, better FPS games exist for the console, like Disruptor and Medal of Honor.
6 Air Combat
Despite being touted as a flight sim, Air Combat’s battles are more arcade-like than its contemporaries. This helped it find favor with critics and players alike. It also includes split-screen competitive multiplayer for friends and siblings to shoot each other out of the sky. The sequel changed the franchise’s title to Ace Combat, and six sequels have been produced since, with the most recent coming out in 2019.
5 Battle Arena Toshinden
Street Fighter: The Movie is a complete mess of a fighting game. Thankfully, early adopters had Battle Arena Toshinden to entertain themselves on launch day. Being one of the first 3D fighters ever released, the combat is slow when compared to what would come out later on in the generation. As games like Tekken made their way to the console, Battle Arena Toshinden became more obsolete, but it deserves commendation for playing so well early in the PlayStation’s life.
4 The Raiden Project
This game is a collection of Raiden and its sequel, two popular arcade shoot ’em ups. While the game does nothing to showcase the PlayStation’s power, at least nothing immediately visible, it was still an incredibly visceral experience for gamers to enjoy on the console’s first day. Countless threats appear on screen at once, barely giving the player a moment’s rest during a mission as bullets come flying towards them.
3 Ridge Racer
Racing games are usually a great way to showcase a console’s abilities, and Ridge Racer was more than up to the task. It is a conversion of an arcade game from 1993, and manages to look almost identical to the original release.
Gran Turismo may look and play better, but it came out later in the console’s cycle. Ridge Racer is a launch title, and managed to remain one of the best looking games on the PlayStation.
2 NBA Jam: Tournament Edition
What is there to say about NBA Jam that has not already been repeated a thousand times? It is often hailed as one of the greatest sports games ever made, with simple arcade controls capturing the spirit of the sport while remaining easy to understand. Sony was smart to have this game as a PlayStation launch title, giving owners a great game for parties right off the bat.
1 Rayman
The first game in this legendary platformer series is a full-fledged 2D outing. It also manages to be one of the hardest games ever made. In a time when games numbered fewer, this was a good thing. Many could have this from launch day and probably still would not have beaten it by the time the PlayStation 2 came out. While some appreciate the hardcore nature of the level design, the sequel toned down the difficulty significantly. The reboot, Rayman Origins from 2011 returns to the series’ roots, but adds cooperative play, infinite lives, and forgiving checkpoints to make the difficulty manageable.
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