Nintendo’s PlayStation Shown Off, Actually Powers Up

Created before the original PlayStation, the machine was the fruit of a partnership between Nintendo and Sony, and featured both a SNES cartridge slot and a CD drive.

The legendary Nintendo PlayStation console was, until earlier this year, considered to be nothing more than a mythical creature – born out of an terrible collaboration between the two gaming giants. It was there that they powered it up and had visitors look at the extremely rare console while it was up and running, and it was even taken apart.

However, a few SNES/PlayStation prototypes were produced.

Dan Diebold – son of Terry, who unwittingly purchased the system when the company he worked at went bust – has now posted a video of the moment when the console was turned on for the first time. But if it could actually run discs, that would mean that if any prototype games were ever found, we’d be able to play unreleased Nintendo software. Terry Diebold ended up with the prototype after winning it at a bankruptcy auction where former Sony Interactive Entertainment CEO Olaf Olafsson was previously employed. Engadget followed the device to Hong Kong, where it’s going to be shown off at an upcoming retro gaming expo, and was there to see it switched on. He paid $75 for the vintage console. At the Chicago CES in 1991, Nintendo retaliated by surprisingly announcing its breakup with Sony in favor of Philips, Engadget wrote.

If it were working then any prototype games discovered later could be played on the SNES/PlayStation prototype, according to Wired. That would include Squaresoft’s development of the classic SNES game “Secret of Mana” for the CD-ROM platform.