Nintendo's PlayStation Shown Off, Actually Powers Up

When images of the fabled "Nintendo Play Station" console made the rounds over the summer, not everyone believed that the prototype console was actually real, but instead an elaborate hoax. It no longer seems that way, as the ultra-rare console--created as part of a failed partnership between Nintendo and Sony some 25 years ago--has now been opened up and turned on, revealing that it does indeed work.

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The man who found the console, Dan Diebold, along with his father Terry, brought the system to the Retro.HK Expo recently to show it off, NintendoLife reports. Images from the event have been revealed and posted to HKGolden.com, confirming that the system is operational.

This prototype model was found by the son of a businessman (Terry) who at one time worked for Advanta Corporation. Former Sony Interactive Entertainment boss Olaf Olaf was previously the CEO of that company. When it went belly up in 2009, Terry bid on some items from its bankruptcy auction, one of which was the Nintendo Play Station, apparently left behind by Olafsson.

Dan said he and his father were offered some $45,000 for the console, but they have no plans to sell. Instead, they said they're hopeful it can end up in a museum someday.

When it was first revealed in 1991, the system was referred to as the Nintendo Play Station, and Sony was thought to have created some 200 prototypes. The pitch from the electronics giant was that the console would not only play Nintendo game cartridges but also games on compact disks. However, due to a public fallout between both companies, the prototypes were destroyed--but at least one survived.

You can read more about the system's history through our previous coverage. More images of the Nintendo PlayStation are available at HKGolden.com.