A beautiful design, but the lack of classic PlayStation Classic cuts deep

It's been almost twenty years since the PlayStation is part of our player lives.

So, while the discussions on the PlayStation 5 are becoming stronger, Sony has decided to launch a small console rather than go big (for now).

The first thing you notice about the PlayStation Classic is the lightness of the console. With only 170g (with a controller weighing 140g), the device seems lighter and more portable than a phone. Perhaps, if you did not need a larger controller and the HDMI cable, you could place it in your computer. comrades for fun and games.

Well, I say fun, but the reality of the PlayStation Classic no matter how you cut it, the game choices are confusing to say the least, disappointing at worst.

READ MORE:
* Sony unveils the full list of PlayStation Classic games
* PlayStation Retro announced
* Sony may be working on a & # 39; PlayStation 4.5 & # 39; more powerful
* Sony launches the retro PlayStation in time for Christmas and your nostalgia
* The return of the retro game is good news for traditionalists
* PlayStation 2 games arrive on PlayStation 4

Problems of rights or licenses, anything, players will not be interested in that – they will simply want to find the nostalgic solution of their kind when they were young and more easily satisfied with the heavy pixel genre. tomb Raider, quick wreck and the hardness of Crash Bandicoot.

The connection of the Handsize console is simple: Its main puzzle is why it is not provided with a jack, the console requires the use of a phone charger to feed it via a USB key.

The HDMI goes to the back of your viewing port and the old school controller connects in the usual way to the front. Until now, so satisfying – and frankly, so easy to put in place.

By turning on the console, it's easy to feel a little goosebumps by remembering the simplicity of the run and the sounds. And from there, it's in a carousel of the 20 tracks of the last 20 years on PlayStation.

It's fair to say that they're a mixed bag – and will be a disappointment, as mentioned, for those who would look at the system to provide the likes of Crash, Spyro and even WipeOut – all of these titles have recently had remasters, but if you publish a retro system to cause nostalgia, you can not really forget the titles that define a console.

Part of that makes up for the loss – there's the original Grand Theft Auto, with its pixelated violence still intact, there's Final Fantasy VII, the Ridge Racer Type 4, the Resident Evil and the ever-wondrous Abe's Oddysee .

Like any emulator worthy of the name, the PlayStation Classic gives a nice appearance to some of them. Some of them have a bad image: Cool Boarders 2, the game remains blocked and poorly controlled, as when leaving the game; and frankly, it's not the case that it would be otherwise. But this presents a paradigm that Sony can not overcome.

The navigation is pretty simple, but you have to press the console reset button every time you want to go back to the menu – it's not a huge burden, but really a sign that Sony was so stubborn about keeping this console such what. it's almost stubborn in its execution.

But the beauty of the physical representation is so minimal that it's almost hard to stay angry at the choices made by the designers. A suspect: the licenses would have been the main obstacle to obtaining certain games. & # 39; would like for that.

Overall, the PlayStation Classic does what it says on the box, but it escapes a little in the "Classic" part of the game.

It's a beautifully executed piece, the size of a hand, which has as much heart as the mark. And if the lack of catch is disconcerting, the fact that there are two controllers means that she is immediately ready to play and play is ideal for socializing with some friends.

It's ironic that, for the game console, some of the games that have shaped a generation are not present in the wonderfully detailed mini-nostalgia of the PlayStation.

The complete list of games included is –

– Arena Toshinden Battle
– Cool Boarders 2
– Derby of destruction
– Final Fantasy VII
– Grand Theft Auto
– Smart Qube
– Flash jumping!
– Metal Gear Solid
– Mr Driller
– Oddworld: Abe's Oddysee
– Rayman
– Resident Evil Director & # 39; s Cut
– Revelations: Persona
– Ridge Racer Type 4
– Super Puzzle Fighter II Turbo
– The siphon filter
– Tekken 3
– Rainbow Six by Tom Clancy
– Twisted metal
– Wild Weapons

The reviewer received a PlayStation Classic PlayStation NZ console.
The console costs $ 169.99 and goes on sale December 3rd.