Like most people I’ve been reliving my favorite games from the original PlayStation era using the magic of emulation. However, I’ve always felt like there was something missing from this experience—and the original hardware promised to fill that gap.
So, I’ve finally found the original hardware retro gaming purists hold in such high regard. It took moderate amounts of effort, and a nominal amount of money, but I am now the owner of a real PlayStation again for the first time in 20 years. Was it worth it?
I Love the PS1 Generation More Than Anything
I grew up in a home without video game consoles, at least not during the 90s. All our gaming happened on the family 80286 IBM-compatible computer, and my dad also had a small arcade with six to eight cabinets—it changed over time. So, in one way, I had a pretty special gaming childhood, but I was also missing out a little. My friends had famiclones and Sega Mega Drives (Genesis to my North American readers), but my parents weren’t going to spend money on a games console, which is why I’m still mainly a PC gamer today, I guess.
My uncle, on the other hand, was practically a console connoisseur. When I first met him, he had a ZX Spectrum, and later he bought an original PlayStation console, which is where I got my first taste of proper 3D gaming. Gran Turismo, Crash Bandicoot, Resident Evil and so many more titles absolutely blew my mind at the time.
While there was no way that I could actually get my hands on a PS1 of my own, my dad did let us rent one every now and then from the video rental store, and, as usual, I had friends who owned the console too.
Resident Evil
- Released
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March 22, 1996
- ESRB
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Mature 17+ // Blood and Gore, Language, Violence
- Developer(s)
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Capcom
- Publisher(s)
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Capcom
- Engine
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RE Engine
- Franchise
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Resident Evil
- Number of Players
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1
I Haven’t Owned a Real PS1 in 25 Years
I wouldn’t own my own PS1 until after the PlayStation 2 had already been released. In fact, it was my uncle’s PS1 that ended up becoming mine. After getting himself a PS2—which has virtually perfect PS1 backward compatibility, he sold us his old console for a good price. My little brother and I went 50/50 on the PS1, but I would later buy out my “share” of the console as he lost interest.
Once I had my own PS1, I was able to explore my own taste in games, and the PS1 has such an amazing game library that I could have spent my entire life perusing it. My cousin lent me a copy of Vagrant Story and another lent me Final Fantasy 8. Both of which became lifelong favorites. This is where I discovered Valkyrie Profile, a game that has never been far from my thoughts since. Like my uncle, I let go of my PS1 when I too got my hands on a PS2. Then, I (in retrospect rather stupidly) sold my PlayStation 2 and used the money to buy a Sony PSP. A wonderful console with games I also love, but, of course, I gave up the ability to play PS1 and PS2 games on original hardware.
I Started With a CRT TV
This all started with my desire to buy a CRT TV. I’d long been convinced of the benefits CRTs have over flat panel displays for retro games, so I was looking for a long time. I hit absolute paydirt with this monstrous 34-inch Sony Trinitron that is better than I could have imagined. When the PS1 was a new console, this TV would have only lived in the most affluent homes—I paid $75.
I bought a PlayStation 2 to go with this TV, which can play PS1 discs of course, but I modded it to accept game backups from an SD card instead. Why? The PS2 is notorious for experiencing drive failure, and I want to avoid using the disc drive as much as possible. However, this also meant that I needed a PS1 console as well. What I ended up getting was the later PSOne console, which is the most refined, youngest, and slimline original PlayStation console you can buy. Just listen to this baby purr.
Incidentally, my PSOne came with an original copy of Xenogears. One of my favorite games of all time, and one that’s pretty hard to get. Sadly, it’s two loose (but scratch-free) discs, but considering I paid another $75 for the PSOne, that seems like a bargain.
So, my total buy-in for the original hardware PS1 experience so far is $150. Not bad considering all the other things I can do with the gear, like watching retro video content.
PS1 Emulation Is Awesome, but Something Is Missing
I have many ways to emulate my PS1 games. My iPad’s gorgeous 4:3 mini-LED screen is a great solution, and I also love my little 4:3 Anbernic handheld, which can emulate consoles up to the PS1 level with ease.
These systems let you “improve” PS1 games by increasing the resolution, frame rate, and removing the signature texture and geometry warping and snapping the PS1 is known for. Running the games without these modifications on a modern LCD is indeed rough on the eyes. It certainly doesn’t scale well, and the motion isn’t great.
It’s a perfectly valid way to experience these games, and I’ll keep playing some games (especially turn-based RPGs) on my emulators when I’m on the go. So what’s the benefit that the original hardware brought to me after 20 years of emulators for PS1?
A PS1 With a CRT Is Simply a Different Experience
The first thing I need to point out is that the Sony Trinitron TV I have now is far better than any CRT TV I ever got to play PlayStation games on during its heyday. So that’s going to color my perception here. The Trinitron is doing some part of the work. The picture and sound are phenomenal.
That said, PlayStation games simply look so much better, running at 240p with real scanline gaps, pumping out those bright and vibrant graphics. The stereotypical flaws of PlayStation game graphics are very muted on this TV.
The other thing I never thought would be something I personally could notice is the reduction in latency. Playing G-Police or Wipeout 3 on original hardware versus emulation are day-and-night experiences. The responsiveness and immediacy are, in my opinion, something anyone would notice. Frankly, I wasn’t able to play Wipeout properly using emulation, but running on original hardware, I started placing on the podium in races!
I almost feel like emulators have fooled me into believing that PlayStation games looked bad, because I’ve been playing them using emulation for longer than I ever did on the real consoles, but now that I have the original hardware, I realize they never looked bad. There’s no rose-tinted glasses involved here. I’m looking at my PS1 games right now—and I don’t think there’s any going back.
