In a recent interview with MinnMax, Sony veteran Shuhei Yoshida shed light on an intriguing chapter of gaming history: PlayStation’s first video game was an FMV (Full Motion Video) space shooter developed for Nintendo. This project was nearly complete before the well-known rift between Sony and Nintendo led to its cancellation.
Yoshida, who joined Ken Kutaragi’s team in February 1993, recalled that newcomers were introduced to the Nintendo-Sony PlayStation prototype upon arrival. He had the opportunity to play the nearly finished game on his first day. He described it as reminiscent of the Sega CD version of “Silpheed,” featuring a faux 3D perspective with FMV backgrounds streamed from the disc. This approach allowed for richer graphics than was standard at the time.
Unfortunately, Yoshida couldn’t recall details about the development team or whether the game was produced in the U.S. or Japan. While this particular title never saw the light of day, Sony later published similar games on the PlayStation, such as “Philosoma” in 1995 and “Novastorm,” which had been developed earlier by Sony’s subsidiary, Psygnosis.
This revelation offers a rare glimpse into what the software library for the Nintendo PlayStation might have included. Prior to this, “Secret of Mana” was the most notable game known to be in development for the add-on, which reportedly underwent significant cuts during its transition from CD to SNES cartridge. The existence of this FMV space shooter suggests that the Nintendo PlayStation could have boasted a diverse and graphically advanced game lineup, had the collaboration between Sony and Nintendo continued.
We hope that one day a Rom for this might emerge so we can see what might have been and preserve this for future generations.
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