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As a mascot, Polygon Man was poorly received, with ''[[PlayStation: The Official Magazine|PSM]]'' magazine commenting that "a lot of consumers found him way too creepy."<ref>{{cite magazine |magazine=[[PlayStation: The Official Magazine|PSM]] |issue=88 |title=Wha' Happened? |date=September 2004 |page=37}}</ref> They elaborated further in a later issue, with Randy Nelson calling the campaign one of PlayStation's biggest blunders and adding "We'd bet there are still people at Sony Computer Entertainment that, to this day, still wonder the same thing we do: What the hell were they thinking?" Nelson further stated the character " looked scary, displayed no emotion, and shouted meaningless phrases in Japanese. ''That's'' how you sell your totally unproven game system".<ref>{{cite magazine |magazine=[[PlayStation: The Official Magazine|PSM]] |issue=110 |title=PlayStation's Biggest Blunders |last=Nelson |first=Randy |date=May 2006 |pages=24-25}}</ref> Other outlets shared similar sentiments, with the staff of ''[[Edge (magazine)|Edge]]'' magazine calling the ad campaign "tacky" and describing Polygon Man as "surely the antithesis of PlayStation's abilities."<ref>{{cite magazine |magazine=[[Edge (magazine)|Edge]] |page=60 |title=Hip or Hype |issue=28 |date=January 1996 |url=https://archive.org/details/Edge_Gaming/Edge%20Gaming%20Magazine%20028/page/n45/mode/2up |accessdate=2023-07-15}}</ref> ''[[Kotaku]]''{{'}}s Caroyln Petite echoed a similar statement, calling the character "a sloppy jumble of spikes whose aim was apparently to depict the system as a home for ugly 3D character models."<ref>{{cite web |website=[[Kotaku]] |title=How Sony Launched The OG PlayStation And Brilliantly Won The Console War |url=https://kotaku.com/sony-playstation-launch-limited-run-press-book-excerpt-1849595486 |last=Petit |first=Carolyn |date=2022-09-29 |accessdate=2023-07-15}}</ref> Jeremy Parish in an article for ''[[Electronic Gaming Monthly]]'' felt that Sony "mercifully came to their senses" by ditching the character prior to the PlayStation's North American release, and further stated "Farewell Polygon Man. We'd miss you, except you sucked."<ref>{{cite magazine |magazine=[[Electronic Gaming Monthly]] |last=Parish |first=Jeremy |title=EGM Retro: PlayStation Turns 10 |page=172 |issue=197 |date=November 2005}}</ref>
As a mascot, Polygon Man was poorly received, with ''[[PlayStation: The Official Magazine|PSM]]'' magazine commenting that "a lot of consumers found him way too creepy."<ref>{{cite magazine |magazine=[[PlayStation: The Official Magazine|PSM]] |issue=88 |title=Wha' Happened? |date=September 2004 |page=37}}</ref> They elaborated further in a later issue, with Randy Nelson calling the campaign one of PlayStation's biggest blunders and adding "We'd bet there are still people at Sony Computer Entertainment that, to this day, still wonder the same thing we do: What the hell were they thinking?" Nelson further stated the character " looked scary, displayed no emotion, and shouted meaningless phrases in Japanese. ''That's'' how you sell your totally unproven game system".<ref>{{cite magazine |magazine=[[PlayStation: The Official Magazine|PSM]] |issue=110 |title=PlayStation's Biggest Blunders |last=Nelson |first=Randy |date=May 2006 |pages=24-25}}</ref> Other outlets shared similar sentiments, with the staff of ''[[Edge (magazine)|Edge]]'' magazine calling the ad campaign "tacky" and describing Polygon Man as "surely the antithesis of PlayStation's abilities."<ref>{{cite magazine |magazine=[[Edge (magazine)|Edge]] |page=60 |title=Hip or Hype |issue=28 |date=January 1996 |url=https://archive.org/details/Edge_Gaming/Edge%20Gaming%20Magazine%20028/page/n45/mode/2up |accessdate=2023-07-15}}</ref> ''[[Kotaku]]''{{'}}s Caroyln Petite echoed a similar statement, calling the character "a sloppy jumble of spikes whose aim was apparently to depict the system as a home for ugly 3D character models."<ref>{{cite web |website=[[Kotaku]] |title=How Sony Launched The OG PlayStation And Brilliantly Won The Console War |url=https://kotaku.com/sony-playstation-launch-limited-run-press-book-excerpt-1849595486 |last=Petit |first=Carolyn |date=2022-09-29 |accessdate=2023-07-15}}</ref> Jeremy Parish in an article for ''[[Electronic Gaming Monthly]]'' felt that Sony "mercifully came to their senses" by ditching the character prior to the PlayStation's North American release, and further stated "Farewell Polygon Man. We'd miss you, except you sucked."<ref>{{cite magazine |magazine=[[Electronic Gaming Monthly]] |last=Parish |first=Jeremy |title=EGM Retro: PlayStation Turns 10 |page=172 |issue=197 |date=November 2005}}</ref>


Sebastian Moss and Dan Oravasaari of ''PlayStation Lifestyle'' both bemoaned the reveal of Polygon Man as the antagonist of ''PlayStation All-Star Battle Royale'', with Moss in particular noting that the choice was baffling due to not only the North American exclusivity of the campaign, but also concerns that the reference would go over the heads of much of the game's target demographic. More importantly Moss emphasized that Sony themselves had rejected the character, adding "Polygon Man didn’t represent [PlayStation graphics], and he shouldn’t represent ''PSASBR''." Oravasaari on the other hand felt that while those concerns were minor, the character reminded him too much of the character [[Master Hand]] from [[Nintendo]]'s ''[[Smash Bros.]]'', a franchise he felt the game was trying to distance itself from. He further added that while Sony did not have a particular main flagship title, other characters from PlayStation-related titles would have made better choices and still fit the game's identity.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.playstationlifestyle.net/2012/11/08/daily-reaction-ps-all-stars-bosses-we-want-instead-of-polygon-man/ |website=PlayStation Lifestyle |last=Moss |first=Sebastian |date=2012-11-08 |accessdate=2023-07-15 |title=Daily Reaction: PS All-Stars Bosses we Want Instead of Polygon Man}}</ref>
Sebastian Moss and Dan Oravasaari of ''PlayStation Lifestyle'' both bemoaned the reveal of Polygon Man as the antagonist of ''PlayStation All-Stars Battle Royale'', with Moss in particular noting that the choice was baffling due to not only the North American exclusivity of the campaign, but also concerns that the reference would go over the heads of much of the game's target demographic. More importantly Moss emphasized that Sony themselves had rejected the character, adding "Polygon Man didn’t represent [PlayStation graphics], and he shouldn’t represent ''PSASBR''." Oravasaari on the other hand felt that while those concerns were minor, the character reminded him too much of the character [[Master Hand]] from [[Nintendo]]'s ''[[Smash Bros.]]'', a franchise he felt the game was trying to distance itself from. He further added that while Sony did not have a particular main flagship title, other characters from PlayStation-related titles would have made better choices and still fit the game's identity.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.playstationlifestyle.net/2012/11/08/daily-reaction-ps-all-stars-bosses-we-want-instead-of-polygon-man/ |website=PlayStation Lifestyle |last=Moss |first=Sebastian |date=2012-11-08 |accessdate=2023-07-15 |title=Daily Reaction: PS All-Stars Bosses we Want Instead of Polygon Man}}</ref>


Not all the reception was negative, with ''Game Players'' magazine stating that the campaign had "dominated" E3, and the staff saddened to see it stopped.<ref>{{cite magazine |magazine=Game Players |issue=87 |page=18 |title=Game Gossip... |date=August 1996}}</ref> The book ''The Golden Age of Video Games'' cited the ad campaign as a positive example of Sony's willingness to "address the teenage crowd" in a direct and aggressive manner,<ref>{{Cite book|last=Dillon|first=Roberto|title=The Golden Age of Video Games: The Birth of a Multibillion Dollar Industry|publisher=A K Peters/CRC Press|year=2016|pages=154|asin=B008KZUPNE}}</ref> and the staff of ''[[Official U.S. PlayStation Magazine]]'' stated that while those that recalled Polygon Man "have few kind words to say about him", in light of the showings from Sony's competitors at E3 1995 they felt the company's advertising "seemed remarkably strong."<ref>{{cite magazine |magazine=[[Official U.S. PlayStation Magazine]] |issue=96 |date=September 2005 |title=PSOne: Happy Birthday PlayStation |page=100}}</ref> Other sources praised the character's role as the villain and final boss of ''PlayStation All-Star Battle Royale'',<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.eurogamer.net/playstation-all-stars-battle-royale-review |website=Eurogamer |title=PlayStation All-Stars Battle Royale review |first=Simon |last=Parkin |date=2012-11-12 |accessdate=2023-07-15}}</ref> and ''Edge'' calling him "a wonderful symbol of the schisms that characterise both Sony's corporate structure and the game that has been designed to celebrate its output," and demonstrated welcome self-deprecating humor on the part of the developers.<ref>{{cite magazine |magazine=[[Edge (magazine)|Edge]] |title=Post Script |page=100 |issue=249 |date=January 2013}}</ref>
Not all the reception was negative, with ''Game Players'' magazine stating that the campaign had "dominated" E3, and the staff saddened to see it stopped.<ref>{{cite magazine |magazine=Game Players |issue=87 |page=18 |title=Game Gossip... |date=August 1996}}</ref> The book ''The Golden Age of Video Games'' cited the ad campaign as a positive example of Sony's willingness to "address the teenage crowd" in a direct and aggressive manner,<ref>{{Cite book|last=Dillon|first=Roberto|title=The Golden Age of Video Games: The Birth of a Multibillion Dollar Industry|publisher=A K Peters/CRC Press|year=2016|pages=154|asin=B008KZUPNE}}</ref> and the staff of ''[[Official U.S. PlayStation Magazine]]'' stated that while those that recalled Polygon Man "have few kind words to say about him", in light of the showings from Sony's competitors at E3 1995 they felt the company's advertising "seemed remarkably strong."<ref>{{cite magazine |magazine=[[Official U.S. PlayStation Magazine]] |issue=96 |date=September 2005 |title=PSOne: Happy Birthday PlayStation |page=100}}</ref> Other sources praised the character's role as the villain and final boss of ''PlayStation All-Stars Battle Royale'',<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.eurogamer.net/playstation-all-stars-battle-royale-review |website=Eurogamer |title=PlayStation All-Stars Battle Royale review |first=Simon |last=Parkin |date=2012-11-12 |accessdate=2023-07-15}}</ref> and ''Edge'' calling him "a wonderful symbol of the schisms that characterise both Sony's corporate structure and the game that has been designed to celebrate its output," and demonstrated welcome self-deprecating humor on the part of the developers.<ref>{{cite magazine |magazine=[[Edge (magazine)|Edge]] |title=Post Script |page=100 |issue=249 |date=January 2013}}</ref>


==References==
==References==

Revision as of 03:16, 16 July 2023

Polygon Man
PlayStation (North America) character
The original design of Polygon Man from 1995
First appearanceE3 1995
First gamePlayStation All-Stars Battle Royale (2012)
Created byChiat/Day[1]

Polygon Man was an early marketing character for the Sony PlayStation in North America.[1] He appeared in the consoles pre-launch ads commenting on various launch games but was dropped before the launch of Sony's first console[1] and replaced by a series of popular game characters starting with Sofia from Battle Arena Toshinden.[2]

History

The creation of Polygon Man originated from strong opposition to the PlayStation brand name from the American arm of Sony Computer Entertainment(SCEA). Market research had shown that the youth audience that was the target market had reacted badly to the PlayStation name. SCEA were firmly in favour of using PSX as the name for the console, so much so that they broke with official marketing and called it PSX on early trade promotions and even commissioned their own marketing character, Polygon Man.[1]

Chiat/Day, SCEA's advertising agency had conducted consumer research and identified a target age of 17; the logic behind the decision was that 12-year-olds want to be 17 and 25-year-olds want to be 17 again. Polygon Man was envisioned as a "next-gen spokesman"[3] to talk to consumers. The character was influenced by the successful anarchic Pirate TV campaign in the UK by Sega in the early 90s. The branding was the opposite of the minimalist branding vision that Sony Japan had for the console. Looking back at the events, Chris Deering, former head of PlayStation Europe, commented that SCEA's actions upset Sony in Japan because they interpreted it as SCEA fighting against the PlayStation brand, whereas Deering said he could see that SCEA's actual aim was to dodge the PlayStation brand.[1]

Phil Harrison, then head of Sony's European game publishing business, recollected the reaction of Ken Kutaragi, global head of the PlayStation brand, when Kutaragi saw the Polygon Man for the first time.

"I remember walking onto the E3 booth in 1995 with Ken and seeing the Polygon Man design on the side of the booth. Ken just went absolutely insane," said Harrison. Kutaragi was upset that SCEA was spending its limited budget on an alternative brand. "But the thing that really upset Ken was that the Polygon Man design wasn’t Gouraud shaded, it was flat shaded! So Polygon Man was taken out into the car park and quietly shot."[1]

In 2012, Polygon Man resurfaced as the main antagonist and final boss of fighting game PlayStation All-Stars Battle Royale. It is assumed that he gathers famous PlayStation mascots to fight each other as a form of revenge.[4]

Critical reception

As a mascot, Polygon Man was poorly received, with PSM magazine commenting that "a lot of consumers found him way too creepy."[5] They elaborated further in a later issue, with Randy Nelson calling the campaign one of PlayStation's biggest blunders and adding "We'd bet there are still people at Sony Computer Entertainment that, to this day, still wonder the same thing we do: What the hell were they thinking?" Nelson further stated the character " looked scary, displayed no emotion, and shouted meaningless phrases in Japanese. That's how you sell your totally unproven game system".[6] Other outlets shared similar sentiments, with the staff of Edge magazine calling the ad campaign "tacky" and describing Polygon Man as "surely the antithesis of PlayStation's abilities."[7] Kotaku's Caroyln Petite echoed a similar statement, calling the character "a sloppy jumble of spikes whose aim was apparently to depict the system as a home for ugly 3D character models."[8] Jeremy Parish in an article for Electronic Gaming Monthly felt that Sony "mercifully came to their senses" by ditching the character prior to the PlayStation's North American release, and further stated "Farewell Polygon Man. We'd miss you, except you sucked."[9]

Sebastian Moss and Dan Oravasaari of PlayStation Lifestyle both bemoaned the reveal of Polygon Man as the antagonist of PlayStation All-Stars Battle Royale, with Moss in particular noting that the choice was baffling due to not only the North American exclusivity of the campaign, but also concerns that the reference would go over the heads of much of the game's target demographic. More importantly Moss emphasized that Sony themselves had rejected the character, adding "Polygon Man didn’t represent [PlayStation graphics], and he shouldn’t represent PSASBR." Oravasaari on the other hand felt that while those concerns were minor, the character reminded him too much of the character Master Hand from Nintendo's Smash Bros., a franchise he felt the game was trying to distance itself from. He further added that while Sony did not have a particular main flagship title, other characters from PlayStation-related titles would have made better choices and still fit the game's identity.[10]

Not all the reception was negative, with Game Players magazine stating that the campaign had "dominated" E3, and the staff saddened to see it stopped.[11] The book The Golden Age of Video Games cited the ad campaign as a positive example of Sony's willingness to "address the teenage crowd" in a direct and aggressive manner,[12] and the staff of Official U.S. PlayStation Magazine stated that while those that recalled Polygon Man "have few kind words to say about him", in light of the showings from Sony's competitors at E3 1995 they felt the company's advertising "seemed remarkably strong."[13] Other sources praised the character's role as the villain and final boss of PlayStation All-Stars Battle Royale,[14] and Edge calling him "a wonderful symbol of the schisms that characterise both Sony's corporate structure and the game that has been designed to celebrate its output," and demonstrated welcome self-deprecating humor on the part of the developers.[15]

References

  1. ^ a b c d e f "The Making Of: PlayStation - Edge Magazine". Next-gen.biz. 24 April 2009. Archived from the original on 27 May 2012. Retrieved 16 January 2016.
  2. ^ Taves, Scott (1 December 1996). "Crash Course". Wired. ISSN 1059-1028. Archived from the original on 19 May 2020. Retrieved 19 May 2020.
  3. ^ Kent, Steven L. (2021). The Ultimate History of Video Games, Volume 2. Crown Forum. p. 408. ISBN 978-1984825438.
  4. ^ Moriarty, Colin (8 November 2012). "Polygon Man: PlayStation All-Stars' Final Boss - IGN". IGN. Archived from the original on 20 May 2020 – via www.ign.com.
  5. ^ "Wha' Happened?". PSM. No. 88. September 2004. p. 37.
  6. ^ Nelson, Randy (May 2006). "PlayStation's Biggest Blunders". PSM. No. 110. pp. 24–25.
  7. ^ "Hip or Hype". Edge. No. 28. January 1996. p. 60. Retrieved 15 July 2023.
  8. ^ Petit, Carolyn (29 September 2022). "How Sony Launched The OG PlayStation And Brilliantly Won The Console War". Kotaku. Retrieved 15 July 2023.
  9. ^ Parish, Jeremy (November 2005). "EGM Retro: PlayStation Turns 10". Electronic Gaming Monthly. No. 197. p. 172.
  10. ^ Moss, Sebastian (8 November 2012). "Daily Reaction: PS All-Stars Bosses we Want Instead of Polygon Man". PlayStation Lifestyle. Retrieved 15 July 2023.
  11. ^ "Game Gossip...". Game Players. No. 87. August 1996. p. 18.
  12. ^ Dillon, Roberto (2016). The Golden Age of Video Games: The Birth of a Multibillion Dollar Industry. A K Peters/CRC Press. p. 154. ASIN B008KZUPNE.
  13. ^ "PSOne: Happy Birthday PlayStation". Official U.S. PlayStation Magazine. No. 96. September 2005. p. 100.
  14. ^ Parkin, Simon (12 November 2012). "PlayStation All-Stars Battle Royale review". Eurogamer. Retrieved 15 July 2023.
  15. ^ "Post Script". Edge. No. 249. January 2013. p. 100.
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