PlayStation has become a household word during it's eleven to twelve year span and a landmark in graphics since the PS1's Japanese release in Winter 1994. The PlayStation started the 32/64-bit era by being the first fully-3D home console on the market and starting Sony's gaming division. The PS1's other rivals (N64 and the Saturn) were overwhelmed by it's success, becoming king of the console market and a name widely associated with gaming. The PlayStation underwent a compact makeover in 2000 as the PSone. It introduced the saving format of Memory Cards and used two thumb joysticks called "Dual-Analog" and later added vibration feedback called "Dual-Shock". As of March 2005, the PS1 has sold over 102 million units worldwide with it's top-selling game being Gran Turismo 2.

The PlayStation 2 later followed the PS1 in 2000 with improved visuals and processing power. The Dual Shock pad returned as the Dual Shock 2, with upgraded vibration feedback, digital control, and button-pressure sensitivity (which wasn't commonly used). The PS2 also had a new "Emotion engine" which was not specifically designed to create realistic emotions for game models but as the name of it's processor. The PS2 launch was bad because of major hardware shortages and a poor lineup of launch games. The PS2 had a few new features besides it's usual upgrades, such as a built-in DVD player, CD player, USB ports, and PS1 backards combatibility. The PS2's online component (Network Adapter) later shipped, but was poorly received and came in a far second to Microsoft's superb Xbox Live support. The Network Adapter came with a harddrive that only worked with two games. It later received a makeover in the Fall of 2004, sporting a new, very slim look. The Slim-line PS2 has a built-in Network Adapter and still offers the same great features as the original PS2. The PS2 still took the lead in the current generation selling over 111 million units as of 2006 worldwide compared to Xbox's 24 million worldwide and GameCube's 21 million worldwide. Gran Turismo 3: A-Spec is so far the PS2's best-selling game, with it's predecessor being the best-seller for PS1.

The PlayStation 3 recently launched on November 17th 2006 in the U.S. with substantial upgrades over the PS2. The PS3 offers mind-blowing graphical upgrades, but introduces the world's most powerful processor, Sony's Cell processor, and a cheap Blu-Ray High-Definition DVD player as well as a "reality synthesizer". We have yet to see if Sony's latest console will be able to live up to it's predecessor's success and take the throne for a 3rd generation in a row, or it will tank and end Sony's gaming division, it is too early to tell but I do have a lot of faith in this console being the best yet.