PlayStation Classic Appreciation Thread

amirfor

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Self-explanatory. This is an appreciation and discuss thread for a mini-console which most would consider to be a failure, but has its dedicated following and players, including me.

These solutions are first-party emulation boxes which companies took advantage of for a short time before the current era of the handheld emulation market boomed (Previously with jailbroken Nintendo Switches and VITAs, now with Steamdeck and its competitors). These were pretty popular, especially with the Nintendo classic line and the MegaDrive minis, however SEGA mostly sold their MG mini 2 in Japan and Asia.

When the PS Classic was finally released, it turned out to be a huge disappointment and caused a general dip in the mini emulation box movement companies were banking on. No more Dreamcast Classic, No more Saturn Classic, No N64 Classic and no more nicely packaged mini/classic consoles :( (the new Atari and Amiga emulation boxes are both great, I do recommend those).

The games were lacking, the controllers were digital-only with no vibration and even reviewers couldn't defend it. Let's just say that eventually, people managed to hack it and turn it into their very own PS minis.

I really started to love it and slowly but surely made dedicated libraries of games I always wished I could play, since these minis can be mostly hacked and turned into emulation machines with more potential. Sure, I couldn't have used a Raspberry Pi, but I already had that for my arcade game emulation and I like the look and profile of the PS classic.

For Those looking to get into PS Classic, here are some sources and a list of pros and cons to keep in mind:

Sources:
https://psclassicmods.com/
https://github.com/autobleem/AutoBleem
https://modmyclassic.com/project-eris/ (Successor to BleemSync)
and Youtube for any further personal research and any new mods or news regarding the PSC.
Example of the two Homebrew options for most people to consider.

Pros:
* Small form factor.
* Ease of setup, though you'd need an OTG micro-USB cable for higher capacity hard drives or USB sticks along with the ability to have both controller ports free.
* Good quality controller with the ability to use them and HID devices on PC (some slight compatibility issues).
* ReArmed core allowing for decent performance from most games.
* Good, stable support for Homebrew options.
* Great for RPGs, with some staples including FFVII, Wild Arm, Persona (granted, it's the minstrel show version) and games like Saga Frontier in the Asian regions and compatibility with other RPGs and JRPGs being very good.
* Third-party support from 8BitDo with their bluetooth wireless dongles allowing a wide range of controller support.
* Generally decent compatibility.
* RetroArch cores for more console and systems such as Dreamcast, N64, Megadrive/Genesis and NES/SNES if you go the Homebrew route, which you should.
* Nice mold and production quality on the physical unit, including the controllers.
* Great sense of discovery when compiling a library of games to play.

Cons:
* Not an enjoyable out-of-the-box experience.
* No analog support outside of Retroarch.
* Awful stock ROMs, with many PAL region games running at cringe inducing framerates and good JP games being locked behind their region-specific console offerings.
* Homebrew is an absolute must if you wish to actually enjoy the PSC.
* More work needed if you wish to get more out of the unit if you wish to go the ProjectEris route or get almost complete compatibility.
* Not advisable to leave OTG cables plugged for long periods if you are using USB drives to load games, as it may overheat and damage the USB sticks.
* A lot of games taking advantage of analog sticks such as Ape Escape can only be played through Retroarch core with specific controllers.
* Select games with compatibility issues require Retroarch cores such as Diablo requiring the music fix patched in real-time.
* Very barebones Rearmed overlay and options.

Despite its many issues and cons, I love this things and since it's been 30 years since the release of the original PS, I thought it was time for us to start appreciating this little box, since most of us probably bought it for a huge discount.
 
I remember pre ordering this and picking it up at launch. Was disappointed with it but kept it in case people would do something with it. While not my favorite mini console it is far from the worst.
 
I like the classic. I plan to review it eventually. It’s got decent stuff going for it.
 
I remember pre ordering this and picking it up at launch. Was disappointed with it but kept it in case people would do something with it. While not my favorite mini console it is far from the worst.
The least I could do with mine was three whole 256GB sticks with Autobleem loaded and a whole lot of games.

I've been actually playing more games ever since I got this thing. Definitely worth a tinker if you have it.
 
They go for about £50 used now. They do look compelling, but I wonder if I can still have 2 controllers work on it with the AutoBleem mod. I also don't like RetroArch, it's annoying to use.
 
Ah mini consoles, love the cute size. It's pretty great for me to bring it everywhere
 
Ah mini consoles, love the cute size. It's pretty great for me to bring it everywhere
They also don’t use a power adapter. Just a usb cable.
 
i wonder what the thought process was behind the psx mini. i just looked it up and they had selected 28 games for it but made the selection variety vary between japan and international sets. it still comes out to 20, but a few games are only available in one group or the other.

ape escape isn't on the roster; crash, spryo, ff8, ff9, and many other games aren't on there either. no dual analog sticks. it's a very good thing that it has usb ports or i think this mini console would be completely forgotten.

the design is good, looking like the classic system.
 
They go for about £50 used now. They do look compelling, but I wonder if I can still have 2 controllers work on it with the AutoBleem mod. I also don't like RetroArch, it's annoying to use.
For £50, if you get the two controllers packed or if you're willing to get two 8bitDo wireless dongles, plus an OTG cable to load a USB drive for games, you can get quite a lot out of the machine, assuming you will be gaming on it regularly, like I do.

8BitDo Bluetooth Dongle
OTG Cable

This is my usual setup at work, usually turned on during breaks or I put it on the large office TV to play Crash Team Racing.

I rarely use Retroarch myself, outside of Diable for the music fix and Metal Gear for performance and to avoid crashes. I never go into the Retroarch menu myself, instead I navigate to my game of choice on the regular carousel, then press square to load the game through the core set on Retroarch. If you're looking to use analog controls, it's recommended to use a PS4 controller ands switch it to D-Input mode with a button combo and set analog controls up on Retroarch.

Alternatively, you can have a long-term setup with ProjectEris with more compatibility and even a stable wifi with a dongle for file transfers.

Despite it's many flaws, I can't love this little box enough. I can even plug it in my car and play on another display.
 
How it was released seemed rushed and sloppy. Once it is modded, the thing is fantastic and a great piece of kit. The USB controllers are amazing for emulating on PC as well.
 
It's a nice PS1 emulation machine but it can have stability issues unfortunately.
 
I do think mini consoles look rather cute, and double as a neat physical collectible, but I don't really get the point if you have a good means to emulate otherwise.
 
I got so much time out of mine by just turning it into an emulation machine that had every ps1 game I was vaguely interested in, lol.
 
Community hacks have really saved the Playstation Classic owners from having another piece of junk in their rooms.
I think it was only worth its price (when it was around 30 bucks brand new) because of the 2 controllers included in the package (and none of them was at least a DualShock)... Sincerely, Sony Playstation could have done it soooo much better... A better selection of games, at least one Dualshock controller, a better emulation system built-in... They forgot about driving games, lightgun games, 50/60 Hz games, analog outputs to match with CRTs... I'm almost sure they didn't really want to release a good mini-console.

But my real PlayStation Classic Mini is my old but lovely PSOne. :)

psone.jpg
 
I picked up several of these on clearance for $19.99. I loaded up some USB drives with different themes (RPGs, Shoot-em Ups, etc) and gave them to friends as gifts. I still have a few left too. Fantastic deal.
 

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