Welcome to 30 Ridiculous Retro Rumors, a brand new series that will run daily between November 26 and December 25, 2015. This is a series where we debunk some of the craziest rumors and predictions of all time. Today we're taking a look at an Electronic Gaming Monthly "exclusive." Everybody knew Sony would follow up their hugely successful 32-bitter at some point, but only EGM had the information. You'll never believe what they said. See for yourself in the fourth episode of 30 Ridiculous Retro Rumors.


This is a real rumor taken directly from the May 1996 issue of Electronic Gaming Monthly ...


Not even a year after Sony's first console showed up on American shores, Electronic Gaming Monthly was already talking about the PlayStation 2. That's impatient, even by 1990s standards.

This "exclusive" insight comes from EGM's May 1996 issue, a full eight months after the PlayStation's launch. This was before the release of most of the system's most iconic games, including Metal Gear Solid, Gran Turismo, Final Fantasy VII and Crash Bandicoot. Hell, PlayStation owners were still rocking their original, non-analog game pads. I think it's safe to say that talk about the PlayStation 2 was wholly premature.

That didn't stop Quartermann, who claimed Sony's second console would debut in 1997. He predicted that it would be a 64-bit bit machine, include more RAM and retail for between $299 and $399. In reality, the PlayStation 2 launched in 2000 with a price of $299. Although it came equipped with more RAM, it was not a 64-bit console.

To Quartermann's credit, he did manage to get one prediction right: The PlayStation 2 was backwards compatible with Sony's first machine. I'm not sure this can be credited to "clever foresight," but it was a nice addition that, along with DVD playback and a solid third-party line-up, pushed the console to more than 150 million units worldwide.