This is what critics think

Picture: sony

Has Sony managed to win gold with the PlayStation Classic? Or is it just a big piece of pyrite wrapped in a vintage style plastic shell?

Critics are here for the latest micro-console sensation and the first Sony. Just like the NES and the NES Classic SNES, the PlayStation Classic is a replica of the size of a pint of the original PlayStation (or PS One, as it is now called). It already contains 20 games and contains a list of authentic favorites and surprising deep cuts.

But is it correct? The $ 100 article is certainly adorable just like the competing products of Nintendo. It is also more expensive than one or the other. And while the combination of games covers a wide range, some have criticized some notable absences and others have pointed out that the games of the PS One period did not deserve a "classic" status yet.

Let's see what the critics think.

This is adorable

Michael McWhertor, Polygon

The PlayStation Classic is a cute and simple little thing, measuring 4 inches wide by 5.75 inches by 1.25 inches, which is about the same footprint as any of the two PlayStation joysticks included. I love his appearance. It is the faithful reconstruction of a classic console, on the diminutive scale.

Adam Ismail, Tom's guide

With a footprint of about 6 x 4 inches and a precise plastic shell reproducing each label, button and space of the original system, the PlayStation Classic could not be more adorable. Well, unless it's a vivid picture of the PSone redesign, but we can forgive that – the 1995 profile has a more historical significance.

The reset button is a pain

Chris Kohler, Kotaku

The PlayStation Classic also replicates one of the slightly annoying features of the Nintendo boxes: to return to the game selection menu, you have to reach out to the console and press the reset button. The button that would have opened the disc player on the actual PlayStation is also functional on the Classic; you use it to change discs during multi-disc games. Power is always power.

Andrew Webster, The Verge

[T]there is no home button or any way out of a controller game. Whenever you want to change the game, you must get up and physically press the reset button on the PlayStation Classic. This is an unnecessarily frustrating feature, especially since this is probably the main problem of NES and SNES Classics. If Sony wants to copy the idea of ​​Nintendo, the least we can do is solve some problems.

But maybe the point

Michael McWhertor, Polygon

The PlayStation Classic has a set of virtual memory cards that store the saved games, mimicking the physical maps of the PlayStation. Save States allows you to quickly jump into an ongoing game, which means you will not have to struggle to find a typewriter. Resident Evil: director's break if you are pressed for time. Simply press the Reset button on the console and you will be returned to the game selection menu, where your game will be saved. This is the most interesting feature of the system.

Samantha Cole, motherboard

Other commentators have complained that having to press the physical reset button on the PS Classic console to return to the main menu and change the game, instead of using a controller button, is a task arduous. I agree, but again, it's probably part of the experience. Besides, I'm already sitting, very close to the thing; I want to press the button. I pressed the button just for fun.

It's light on the features

Adam Ismail, Tom's guide

In fact, there is no option to adjust the visuals of the 20 games whatsoever. I was desperately looking for a way to choose between sharp pixels and some sort of CRT mode, as NES and SNES Classic modes allow. Given all the attention given to accuracy in the retro gaming scene nowadays, I am surprised that Sony has obviously made no provision in this regard.

Chris Kohler, Kotaku

"The least possible" is probably the most accurate summary I can make of the PlayStation Classic up to now. There is no special screen edge or graphic display options. A QR code allows you to load the manuals on the PlayStation website, but it did not work during the preview. There is a screen saver option that darkens the screen after a few minutes. Even the game selection menu itself is strictly utilitarian; There is no nostalgic theme song or other cute additions.

Most seem to agree: the games are the big missing piece

Anthony Ha, TechCrunch

[There’s] Which is fundamentally embarrassing about the place of these games in the broader evolution of the sector: they do not have the aspect "classic" nor a game easy to learn titles Nintendo 8 or 16 bits, but they feel always primitive the standards of the consoles of today. Thus, you do not feel nostalgia for an older game, nor the truly impressive visuals and the depth of a new game.

Michael McWhertor, Polygon

The system is hampered by a list of games that do not fit its "classic" distinction, presumably for business reasons – such as licensing issues or recent remasters. In the end, the absence of so many PlayStation classics harms the experience of the PlayStation Classic.

Adam Ismail, Tom's guide

And then, there are the games themselves, which give the PlayStation Classic the feeling of being a perfect representation of the worst years of a prolific corpus. The plastic shell is a nice tribute, but it sounds hollow without many of the titles that defined the system.

Tristan Ogilvie, IGN

It's basically the game-equivalent of getting first row seats at a Guns 'n' Roses concert and letting the band play without anything Appetite for destruction.