The ultra-rare PlayStation SNES console has been switched on
Here's what happened.
Four months ago, an ultra-rare PlayStation SNES console prototype was discovered, photographed and revealed online.
Only 200 PlayStation SNES units were ever made - borne out of early plans for Nintendo and Sony to team-up and release a version of the Super Nintendo Entertainment system with a CD-ROM drive.
The vast majority were junked when the companies decided to go their separate ways. So it was a huge surprise when, in July, a surviving relic finally come to light. Now, it has been switched on.
![](https://assetsio.gnwcdn.com/144706164742.jpg?width=690&quality=75&format=jpg&auto=webp)
Engadget tracked down the unit's new owners, father and son Terry and Dan Diebold, who had carefully coupled the console to a power supply.
![](https://assetsio.gnwcdn.com/the-ultra-rare-sony-playstation-snes-console-has-been-switched-on-144706165848.jpg?width=690&quality=75&format=jpg&auto=webp)
SNES games and controllers worked fine, but the unit's CD-ROM drive was not operational.
Attempts have been made to repair it - including X-rays of the machine to check if it had become damaged inside - to no avail. The drive is receiving power fine, which suggests the problem is a software error.
One explanation is that the drive was purposefully disabled before leaving Nintendo's clutches - as the technology inside it was no longer the company's to release.
Whatever the reason, the console is undoubtedly the real deal - and a true piece of gaming history.
![](https://assetsio.gnwcdn.com/eurogamer-0pvo4z.jpg?width=690&quality=75&format=jpg&auto=webp)