Summary
ThePlayStationfarewell event for outgoing Sony Interactive Entertainment CEO and president Jim Ryan had some intriguing party favors, including a one-of-a-kind PlayStation 5 console inspired by Sony’s original PlayStation console. Ryan’s farewell party also had cookies with a design depicting thePlayStationboss' face.
Ryan’s career extends back to 1994 as a Sony Computer Entertainment Europe employee during the original PlayStation’s release year, however. In 2019, Ryan became the CEO and president of SIE during the later years of the PlayStation 4 generation. As SIE CEO and president, Jim Ryan oversaw the formation of PlayStation Studios in 2020 and led the PS5 to sell over 40 million units in less than three years. This past September,Ryan announced his intent to retire from Sonyin March 2024, with Hiroki Totoki selected as the interim SIE CEO.
Sony recently held a farewell party for Jim Ryan featuring an assortment of PlayStation-themed party favors. These party favors include balloons and large cutouts ofPS5 accessories like the DualSense controller. Sugar cookies with a design of Jim Ryan’s face with the phrase “Thank You Jim!” were also handed out at the party to commemorate the outgoing CEO. PlayStation employee and Twitter user InstallBase attended the party and confirmed that multiple industry professionals were in attendance, including Polyphony Digital CEO andGran Turismo 7producer Kazunori Yamauchi. Another highlight of the event is Ryan’s new PS1-inspired PlayStation 5 console.
Althougha smaller PlayStation 5 modelwas released this November, Jim Ryan’s PS5 uses the original model’s design. The PS5 and included DualSense controller feature a gray color scheme just like 1994’s original PlayStation console. Moreover, the DualSense controller has the signature button coloring that was used for the DualShock line of controllers. The DualSense’s USB cable connector also mimics the design of the original PlayStation controller’s connector.
On Twitter, many PlayStation fans are pleased by the nostalgic design of Jim Ryan’s PS5. Others wish Sony would release a new PS5 variant with gray console covers, similar to the PlayStation 20th anniversary PS4 console that was released in 2014. The gray DualSense controller greatly appealed to PlayStation fans in the replies as well, with many hoping that Sony would consider a release of this DualSense controller variant in the future.
The PS5 is primed for long-term success after Ryan’s departure withmajor first-party and third-party games releasing in 2024and beyond. These notable games includeThe Last of Us 2 Remastered,Marvel’s Wolverine, andGrand Theft Auto 6, and many more games will be announced in the new year.
Sony PlayStation 5
The Sony PlayStation 5 console is one of the most popular gaming machines currently with a fast SSD, a custom AMD APU, and 16GB of GDDR6 console memory, making it one of the best options on the market. It also happens to have a surprising number of console exclusives and currently trades at a discount at multiple retailers nationwide.
