An incredibly rare controller for the Nintendo PlayStation prototype has appeared on Heritage Auctions, marking only the second time such a controller has been listed on the auction site. The “Nintendo PlayStation,” or SNES-CD, was a prototype that emerged from a joint venture between Nintendo and Sony. However, the partnership fell through in 1994 as Nintendo ditched the project and partnered with Philips instead, leading Sony to create its original PlayStation console.
The prototypes – estimated to number just 200 units – were believed to have been lost or destroyed until one surfaced on the internet in 2015. It was sold on Heritage Auctions with a controller in 2020 for $300,000. There is currently no word on when the auction for this second controller will go live, with Heritage Auctions currently “continuing to add and correct information as we approach the auction posting date”.
The controller is similar in design to a Super Nintendo Entertainment System controller, but is branded with “Sony PlayStation” on the front. The description reads: “This incredible piece has not been tested, since we have no hardware to test it with, so it’s being sold as is, with no returns. It appears to be in very nice condition, with a few little dings on the back. The buttons appear to have seen little to no use.”
You can see the prototype for yourself in the video below.
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Written by Reece Heather
A lifelong Nintendo fan and a longtime editor at Zelda Universe, Reece will forever be grateful that he somehow dodged the Naughty List of Christmas 1998, when Santa delivered the life-changing gift of a Nintendo 64 with Super Mario 64, Banjo-Kazooie, and Mario Kart 64. When he's not playing games, Reece is usually reading Punisher comics, delving helplessly into the weirdest depths of anime and manga, or spending time with his cocker spaniel Gracie -- the goodest girl ever!
