What is a best way to talk about Throwback Thursday? How about we talk about the good old PlayStation.

That’s right, the PlayStation is now twenty years old and what would be a better way to give our respects to the little gray box but by sharing our best experience with this gaming console that nobody though would shook the world since the Nintendo NES (or FamiCom) days.

Who would have knew that the failed collaboration between Nintendo and Sony would resulted with the guys behind the Walkman going solo and changed how people see video games today. The PlayStation brought us some memorable moments in the 32-bit era and some of the best gaming experience since Nintendo dominated the 8-bit and 16-bit ages. Back in those days there weren’t any DLCs in the games as the added content can be unlock by completing the game or through secret codes, you don’t need to spend real money to purchase continues or restore your health, all you need is some skills and patience. The internet was still a rare technology so players resort to friends in getting a complete game walkthrough in beating that difficult boss battle or to unlock a secret character, or sometimes they resort in buying gaming magazines that featured cheat codes or tips and tricks in certain games. There is no need to install any additional game data at that time, you just pop in a game disc and watch as the logo of Sony Computer Entertainment kicks in with a nostalgic tune followed by the PlayStation logo, and let’s not forget the patience for waiting some games to load, which could take seconds or even minutes.

And how about those awesome gaming moments? Remember the first time you played Final Fantasy in glorious CGI visuals at the time? Sure there weren’t voice acting and the backgrounds are all pre-rendered, but at that time we were mind blown. Or the time when you played Metal Gear Solid and you felt that you are like watching a Hollywood action flick, how about collecting all 108 characters for Suikoden or the reaction you had when you discover that there is another castle to complete in Castlevania: Symphony of the Night, or maybe the bizarre task of searching for ink ribbons so you can use the typewriter to save your game in Resident Evil or how about anticipating what monster you can acquire from the random disc you inserted for Monster Rancher.

How about the time when you go to your friends’ place and have a competitive session with Tekken 3 or even X-Men Vs. Street Fighter, I’m pretty sure one of you would always pick Eddie Gordo. Maybe your friends prefer explosions and car destructions so they prefer playing Twisted Metal or maybe an intense race with Gran Turismo 2. Or when someone brought a Multi-tap accessory so two more of your friends can join the mayhem with 4-player sessions of WWF Warzone or Crash Team Racing.

And the iconic game controller, in the early years it introduced a unique design where players have a comfortable feel on the game controller, then soon the dual analog stick was introduced to cater more on 3D games with a new kind of controls, then it was followed by the Dual Shock controller where it introduces the vibration feedback to provide an almost realistic feel to games whenever you take damage, land a blow, or scenes with massive explosion, it was a great gaming experience. After four generations of PlayStation, the controller only had minor changes, even with the PlayStation 4, the ergonomic design was retained and the triangle, square, circle and x buttons are still the same.

As the years go by, the first PlayStation then received its slimmer version, dubbing itself as the PSOne, then followed by its new successor; the PlayStation 2, which offered a much powerful hardware and launched a new batch of incredible games which landed the console as one of the best-selling gaming consoles of all time. As another generation ends its cycle, the HD era has begun. However the PlayStation 3 struggled in the first few years until it managed to stand on its own from the intense competition with other gaming consoles from the likes of the Xbox 360 and Nintendo Wii. At the same generation is also launched a portable version called the PlayStation Portable followed by the PlayStation Vita after a few years. And for the current generation we are treated with the new PlayStation 4 that promised more gaming hits and the best gaming experience, and boy they really did commit to their promise.

It was a thrill to become a part of the PlayStation Life, the memorable gaming moments, the excitement of experiencing new and unique games and the fun interaction with your friends in multiplayer sessions. The PlayStation will continue to evolve and entertain more people in the coming years, but right now let’s just sit back and enjoy playing some classic PlayStation games as our little way of saying happy 20^th birthday.

What about you? What is one of your best memorable PlayStation experience?