In a trailer from 1999, Sony presented us the PlayStation 9. The video shows futuristic features of the console. The release date mentioned is the year 2078.
Trailers for upcoming console generations are nothing unusual. Manufacturers have been ramping up their advertising campaigns long before the actual release of a product. This is intended to increase public interest, which is ultimately supposed to have a positive effect on sales figures.
Console manufacturer Sony produced a trailer 25 years ago to advertise the PS2 game console, which was released in 2000. The curious thing about it is that there is no trace of the PS2 in the video. Instead, we are shown futuristic images of how the PlayStation 9 is supposed to work in 2078.
25-year-old trailer announces the PS9 for the year 2078
What does the commercial show? In the one-minute trailer, we see a young man in a futuristic-looking city. He holds a glass sphere with the inscription PS9 in his hands. He opens the sphere and releases a kind of electronic spores. These then enter his body and activate various features.
Meanwhile, the player goes through various scenarios. He gets involved in a confrontation with various fighters, among other things. Shortly after, he dives underwater and encounters a giant octopus.
After that, he finds himself as a passenger on a motorcycle, wearing a racing suit and helmet. At full speed, he fires a glowing projectile, only to catch it again seconds later. At the end of the spot, he holds the now closed PS9 sphere in his hand.
Which features are mentioned in the trailer? During the player’s journey, an electronically sounding female voice mentions several technical features of the PS9. All features sound futuristic and are supposed to provide a completely new experience in video gaming:
- Retinal scanner
- Mind control system
- Holographically Burgund vision
- Telepathic personal music
Whether these features will actually become a reality in 54 years can probably only be answered then. Until then, one should not take the content of the trailer too seriously.
Advertising campaign for the 78-year younger predecessor model
Why did Sony produce this commercial? The video was shot and released for a PlayStation 2 advertising campaign. The black PS2 was still several months away from its market launch in 2000. This was, however, not Sony’s first console in this color.
Sony wanted to generate interest for the successor to the first PlayStation early on and decided to create this nowadays oddly seeming video. With over 157 million PS2 consoles sold, Sony seemingly did everything right at the time. Even Steve Jobs recognized the potential in this market and wanted to claim a part of the console business for Apple.
Is the release date realistic? If Sony remains true to the previous life cycle of 6 to 7 years of a PS generation until the release of the successor, the PS9 could theoretically appear as early as 2048. That would be a full 30 years earlier than indicated in the video. Whether we will actually enjoy the mentioned features remains to be seen.
Considering an average life expectancy of 78 years for men and 83 years for women (via destatis.de), many would probably not experience a release in the year 2078. So let us hope that Sony maintains its current release rhythm.
This way we could already hold a potential PS6 in our hands in 3 years. Followed by a PS7 in 2034 and PS8 in 2041, until the release of the PS9 in 2048.
Even before the PS1 and PS2, Sony had a foot in the console business. However, the joint project with Nintendo was never officially sold. As there is only one known example of the joint console from Nintendo and Sony, a YouTuber has taken the last known prototype as a template to build his own Nintendo PlayStation: Sony and Nintendo buried their joint console project 33 years ago – A YouTuber simply builds his own version
