The PlayStation 3: A Console Ahead of Its Time

Hey guys, this is Austin, and the PS3 is now 10 years old. So this is the OG original launch PS3, I gotta say, things have changed. Man, talk about a console that was ahead of its time. I mean, the first prototype for the PS3 that they showed had two HDMI ports, had multiple Ethernet, USB, I mean in theory, if it actually went completely insane, you could have been doing multiple screens of gaming with PS3.

Oh, it's so heavy too (laughs). So on launch day, there were two editions. There was a 20-gigabyte version which was lacking a few features such as Wi-Fi and this was the full fat 60-gigabyte which had all kinds of extra stuff and you know what, this is actually probably the best PS3 that they ever made.

I mean, there was extra stuff like having memory card readers, so not only could you read SD cards, but you also could do MemoryStick and even CompactFlash on the launch PS3. There were also other nice touches like having four full USB ports, which is actually more than any PlayStation since has had. And even though this thing was a whopping $600 at launch, Sony was still losing money on every single one they sold.

So inside, it was rocking a brand new Cell chip, which in theory was kind of like an eight-core chip but not really, it was a very unique architecture and on one hand it gave the PS3 a ton of power, on the other though, it made it a lot more difficult to develop for, which especially for the Xbox 360 around made a lot of games.

Not. So going from the launch titles to The Last of Us is a perfect example. Not only is this a fantastic-looking game and honestly probably one of the best-looking games on the PlayStation 3 period but it's also an amazing title, this might be one of my favorite games of all time.

WEBVTTKind: captionsLanguage: enHey guys, this is Austin, andthe PS3 is now 10 years old.So this is the OG original launch PS3,I gotta say, things have changed.Man, talk about a consolethat was ahead of its time.I mean, the first prototypefor the PS3 that they showedhad two HDMI ports, had multiple ethernet,USB, I mean in theory, if it actuallywent completely insane,you could have beendoing multiple screens of gaming with PS3.Oh, it's so heavy too.(laughs)So on launch day, there were two editions.There was a 20-gigabyteversion which was lackinga few features such as Wi-Fiand this was the full fat60-gigabyte which hadall kinds of extra stuffand you know what, thisis actually probablythe best PS3 that they ever made.I mean, there was extra stuff likehaving memory card readers, so not onlycould you read SD cards, butyou also could do MemoryStickand even CompactFlash on the launch PS3.There were also other nice toucheslike having four full USBports, which is actuallymore than any PlayStation since has hadand even though this thingwas a whopping $600 at launch,Sony was still losing moneyon every single one they sold.So inside, it was rockinga brand new Cell chip,which in theory was kindof like an eight-core chipbut not really, it was avery unique architecture,and on one hand it gavethe PS3 a ton of power,on the other, though, itmade it a lot more difficultto develop for, which, especiallyfor the Xbox 360 around,made a lot of games looknot quite as nice on the PS3until much later in its life cycle.One of the big advantages the PS3 hadover the Xbox 360 was the Blu-ray drive.So while the 360 madedo with standard DVDs,just like the PS2 and Xboxused, Sony stepped it upwith a full Blu-ray drive on the PS3.And even though thisthing was $600 at launch,that still made it byfar the cheapest Blu-rayplayer you could get when it came out.Not only did that mean thatthe PS3 was ready to watchHD Blu-rays right out ofthe box, but it also meantthat games could have a lotmore space on the discs.In fact, a lot of Xbox 360 games ended upcoming on multiple DVDs,where pretty much allPS3 games were able tofit on a single Blu-ray.This really was a veryclose console generation.So the Xbox 360 had some advantages,but for example, it had memory card slotswhereas all PS3s had at leastsome kind of hard drive.On top of that, this had noWi-Fi at launch, whereas the PS3did, so there weredefinitely advantages here.However, the PS3 also cost a couplehundred dollars more than the 360.So here we have the entirePlayStation 3 line-up.And the thing is, the originalfat one was kinda the best.So there were some smallchanges on the Slimand the Super Slim, likelosing those extra USB portsand the card reader, but thebiggest difference was thatthe original PlayStation 3could also handle PS2 games.Not only does the fatPS3 have all that powerwith the Cell processor,but it also essentiallyhad the guts of a PlayStation 2 inside.So when you wanted to boot up a PS2 game,you were actually runningit on native PS2 hardware.And then we have SOCOM2, so this is a PS2 gamethat is running on the PlayStation 3.So the first thing it doesis it gives us a upscale1080p image, so while itmight not be native HDor anything, this looks a lotbetter than playing on a PS2with something like a component cable.One very cool of the launchPS3 was it was actuallycompatible with Linux,so if you're on a versionof the firmware that's earlier than 3.21,which this happens tobe on, then you couldessentially turn yourPlayStation into a computer.To show what that capable of,in 2010, the U.S. Air Forcetook 1,760 PlayStation3s, tied them together,and basically created a super-computer.These things were no joke.That means that the launch PS3is actually fairly valuable.As well there were some fatPS3s that could do PS2 gamesvia software emulation, by thetime the PS3 Slim came out,there was no way of playing PS2 at all.But of course, it wasn't all bad.The PS3 Slim was a lotsmaller and a lot lighterand importantly, itwas also more reliable.So while the original PS3s were awesome,they were a little bit prone to failure,certainly not as bad as the Xbox 360,however the yellow light ofdeath was absolutely an issue.There are not a ton of these still around.Then in 2012, theylaunched the Super Slim.This was pretty much thesame thing as the Slimbut it was just cheaperand had this terriblesliding door for the discs,not the best upgrade.Ten years later and we havethe new PlayStation 4 Pro.Now this is definitely a faster console,it's actually kind ofimpressive at how closethese are in a lot of aspects.For example, they bothstill use Blu-ray drives,and while the PS4 Pro has justbarely gotten beyond 1080p,the original PS3 stillcompletely supported it.Woo, those graphics though.So this is one of the PS3 launch titles,Resistance Fall of Man.This was cool back in 2006.I mean even today it's not that bad.Sure, it's maybe a littlerough around the edges but...the one thing that isancient is that my triggersaren't triggers, this is how I crouch.Next, we have Need for Speed: Carbon,so this was another one of thePS3 launch titles and again,considering this is 2006,it doesn't look too bad.So honestly, I think the bigthing that really stands outto me are not thegraphics but the controls.It's a little floatier than I'd like,especially out of a racing game.However, again, 2006, this was not bad.Next we have Ridge Racer,so this was another oneof the PS3 launch titlesand something that reallyjumps out to me is that itactually looks noticeablysharper than the others, so I'm not sureif it's necessarily running at 1080pbut I do think it's running at leastat somewhat of a higher resolutionand it also takes advantage ofthe Sixaxis motion controls,you can see by my sick drifting skills.As I drift into a wall.So Sixaxis was essentially Sony's answerto the Wii motion controls.So while it wasn't quite as full-featuredas the Wii remote, you didget some sort of rudimentarymotion controls so youcan see that I'm steeringsort of decently here in Ridge Racer,it really wasn't pickedup by as many games,but it was a nice gimmick to have.And now we have The Last of Us.Going from the launchtitles to this really justgoes to show how muchhorsepower the PS3 had.Not only is this a fantastic-looking game,and honestly probably oneof the best-looking gameson the PlayStation 3 period,but it's also an amazing title,this might be one of myfavorite games of all time.10 years and 85 million consoles later,while the PS3 might nothave been quite as popularas its predecessor, it's hard to arguethat it's not one of thebest consoles of all time.So when was the firsttime you got to try a PS3?Definitely be sure to let meknow in the comments belowand I will catch you on the next one.