Stunning Anniversary Edition PS4 Revealed

Sony’s celebrating the launch of the original PlayStation gaming console with a surprise available to any and all fans who are serious about owning a piece of PlayStation history. This morning the company revealed the Anniversary Edition PS4 and matching extras.

The company provided some information about the Anniversary Edition PS4 on its PlayStation Blog. The Anniversary Edition PS4 includes a PS4 that’s been colored gray to match to match the original PlayStation console that debuted in Japan in 1994. Tiny shapes matching the now famous buttons on the PlayStation controller form a sort of texture on the surface of the Anniversary Edition PS4. Each Anniversary Edition PS4 also has a special badge marking the occasion.

A short unboxing video of the Anniversary Edition PS4 includes a look back at all the consoles that make up the PlayStation ecosystem today. There’s the original PlayStation, The PS2, PS Vita, PSP, PS3 and PS TV. Sony is calling the paint job on the Anniversary Edition PS4 “Original Gray.” A The PlayStation Camera, DualShock 4 controller and PS4 vertical stand are all painted to match the Anniversary Edition PS4. They’re included with the bundle too.

Though Sony left out the word “rare” from the console’s name, that’s exactly what it is. The company says its made only 12,300 Anniversary Edition PS4 consoles. In one country that would be considered limited. That’s worldwide though, making the Anniversary Edition PS4 about the rarest current generation special edition console a gamer can buy today.

To ensure the console is as attainable as it can possibly be, Sony says it will allow users to pre-order the console bundle beginning this Saturday, December 6th. It didn’t provide a price for the Anniversary Edition PS4 though. The company is encouraging interested users to watch its PlayStation Experience Keynote online on December 6th at 10AM for more information.

The original PlayStation is practically synonymous with modern gaming. When it launched in 1994 there wasn’t anything else like it. Games weren’t stored on giant cartridges that you sometime had to blow the dust out of to get working. Consoles didn’t yet do a lot of 3D rendering. The PlayStation brought 3D graphics to the living room and made optical games a house-hold thing. Today, every serious contender in the living room console area has a disc drive and uses that drive to load games. Almost every game revealed has 3D graphics.

If you’re planning on purchasing the Anniversary Edition PS4 prepare for a long Saturday. Typically, limited edition consoles attract a lot of attention. That this console celebrates the PlayStation legacy is only going to make it harder to purchase. That Sony only made 12,300 and then announced that will make them almost impossible to come by. Let’s also not forget that this is one of the few times Sony has offered a complete PS4 bundle with all the extras people might want. Every PS4 comes with a DualShock 4 controller. That being said, the PlayStation Camera isn’t something that comes with the console in a bundle. Sony only allows shoppers to buy it separately.

Since launching last year, the PS4 has dominated sales of living room consoles in most countries. Whereas Microsoft  took a more holistic approach to all forms of entertainment, Sony maintained that it’s console was created to provide the best gaming experience there possibly could be. The company banked on hardcore gamers wanting a machine tailored for just their needs. It also didn’t hurt that Microsoft only had a $499 Xbox One bundle at launch. That bundle included a Kinect 2 sensor, a counterpart of the PlayStation Camera.

Today, the PS4 costs $399 without a game. That price does include a controller, but doesn’t include a vertical stand for the console either.