Ex-Sony Dev Recalls Unreleased Nintendo PlayStation Title

Former PlayStation executive Shuhei Yoshida recently shared insights into his experience with the unreleased Nintendo PlayStation prototype, including playing a nearly completed game developed for the cancelled console.

In a MinnMax interview, Yoshida recounted his career at Sony, starting with his early work alongside Ken Kutaragi, the "father of PlayStation." Joining Kutaragi's team in February 1993, during the original PlayStation's development, Yoshida and other new recruits were introduced to the Nintendo PlayStation prototype. Yoshida emphasized that this was a functional prototype, with a nearly finished game ready to play.

"Everyone joining Ken Kutaragi's team around that time saw the Nintendo Sony PlayStation prototype first – it was already working," Yoshida stated. "They even had an almost finished game. I played it the very day I joined."

The game itself resembled a contemporary space shooter, possibly similar to Sega CD's Silpheed, utilizing CD-based asset streaming. Yoshida couldn't recall the developer's identity or the game's origin (U.S. or Japan). However, regarding the game's potential survival in Sony's archives, he expressed optimism.

"I wouldn't be surprised," Yoshida commented. "It was on a CD, so... yeah."

The Nintendo PlayStation remains a highly sought-after collector's item, largely due to its unreleased status and the intriguing "what-if" scenario it represents for Nintendo and Sony. The prototype has frequently appeared in auctions and among collectors.

The prospect of this Sony-developed space shooter seeing the light of day is enticing, and not entirely unprecedented. Nintendo's release of Star Fox 2 years after its cancellation serves as a precedent. Perhaps this lost piece of gaming history could yet be rediscovered.