Ten Years of PlayStation

Ten years ago on September 9th, 1995, Sony changed our lives forever with the introduction of the original PlayStation.

(Wow, has it been that long already?)

Weather or not you're a fan of Sony's consoles, you can't deny the impact they've had on gaming. Perhaps only Nintendo has been more influential in the industry's 30+ years. Just take a look at some of the market-defining changes Sony has introduced in just a decade:

- They knocked off Nintendo, which had been the unbeatable market leader for so long.

- They pushed the transition from 2D to 3D gaming, triggering what was arguably the most important turning point in gaming history.

- They took off the kids' gloves, made gaming "cool" to the older demographic, and grew the industry enormously.

- While Nintendo was still pressing cartridges, Sony made disc media the industry standard and ushered in bigger, broader games.

- They've started to move the games-only console towards an all-in-one entertainment hub for the living room, starting with CD music and eventually introducing DVD movie playback and a handheld that does pretty much everything.

I'm sure there's plenty more to add to this list -- what am I forgetting, guys?

Anyway, while I've sometimes been critical of Sony over the years, today I'd simply like to congratulate them on their many incredible achievements. It's no exaggeration to say that gaming as we know it would not exist if not for them.

Happy birthday, PlayStation -- I'm looking forward to your next ten years!

--Chris