Sony has announced the full roster of PlayStation Classic games that will be bursting onto TV screens this Christmas. And it’s a tiiiiiiny bit disappointing. Actually, it’s a lot disappointing, if I’m brutally honest. Strap yourselves in.

If you remember, the PlayStation Classic is a smaller, pre-loaded machine with a host of retro titles to give old school gamers the nostalgia feels after overdosing on turkey and mulled wine this winter. It comes with a built-in hard drive and doesn’t accept discs, so it’s basically a kind of pocket-sized arcade machine in, uhh, “high definition.” 😉 You can read the full low-down here.

Anyway, here’s the full list of titles that the PlayStation Classic will include, in graphical form…

And here is ze written list…

• Final Fantasy VII
• Grand Theft Auto
• Metal Gear Solid
• Ridge Racer 4
• Tekken 3
• Twisted Metal
• Battle Arena Toshinden
• Cool Boarders 2
• Destruction Derby
• Intelligent Qube
• Jumping Flash!
• Mr. Driller
• Oddworld: Abe’s Oddysee
• Rayman
• Resident Evil Director’s Cut
• Revelations: Persona
• Super Puzzle Fighter II Turbo
• Syphon Filter
• Tom Clancy’s Rainbow Six
• Wild Arms

Now, whilst many of these are undoubtedly “classic” PlayStation games, they are perhaps not the top 20 that most people would want on the proverbial desert island. And, if Sony is honest, these titles probably aren’t their first choices either. Whilst I can understand the likes of Final Fantasy VII, Metal Gear Solid and Tekken 3, Revelations: Persona has arguably been included to appeal to Persona 5 fans (sorry Persona) and I can’t help but wonder if Wild Arms has been chosen because of the similarly-sounding Arms title on the Nintendo Switch. (“It’s the same, honest!”)

Notable omissions are: Crash Bandicoot, Driver, Gran Turismo and Tomb Raider, all of which were definitive titles on the original PlayStation. But then, they’re still lucrative franchises for their various publishers, and when you come to other great titles such as Spyro, you have to bear in mind that The Reignited Trilogy is set to hit shelves on November 13th, so, understandably, nobody is going to want to put out the original, unadulterated title as competition.

What we have here, in my opinion, is “the best that Sony could manage under the circumstances,” and I must admit that it feels like a half measure. I’m afraid I’m still not convinced that the PlayStation Classic is anything to get excited about, as I see it as being more restrictive than anything else. That being said, I’ve no doubt that it will be a popular seller over the Christmas period, probably amongst people who haven’t gamed since the 90s and who are in the mood for a taste of nostalgia. Which is fine – I hope they enjoy! Otherwise, I don’t think I’ll be adding this to my Christmas list in 2018. Sorry Sony.

How do you feel about this news? Are these the PlayStation Classic games you were hoping for? Are there any other titles you’d like to see on the list? Or are you happy for Sony to just shut up and take your money?? Let me know in the comments below.

Click here to pre-order your own PlayStation Classic and help support this website. It’s due out on December 3rd 🙂