Earlier this week, Sony finally announced the lineup for their PlayStation Classic. Due for release on December 3rd, the PlayStation Classic was originally announced with five games, to include Final Fantasy VII. This contrasts greatly from Nintendo’s microconsole releases – the NES Classic and the SNES Classic – where the games were named upon announcement of the respective consoles. While Final Fantasy VII is the main named title on the system, it was also the only noteworthy one besides Tekken 3.

Sony now released the full list of games. And quite honestly, it’s a goddamned mess. 20 games out of the dozens of hits that made the PS1 what it was is simply not enough. While the SNES Classic also sold 20 games, not only did it retail for $80 (compared to the PS Classic’s $100), but it went for the jugular and released most of its very best games. Super Mario World, Final Fantasy VI, The Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past, Super Metroid, Kirby Super Star, Mega Man X, Yoshi’s Island, Super Castlevania IV, Contra III, and even Super Mario RPG made the cut. This includes a cut of their best third-party releases from Square-Enix, Capcom, and Konami.

In this case, Sony went the easy route. Even though third-party titles have traditionally made up the bulk of the PlayStation series’ best games for four generations, this was the one time Sony wanted to play it safe. I’ve seen many arguments over “licensing” and I can tell you it’s flat-out bullshit. Sony has more than enough money to spend on getting licenses from supportive third-parties to release the best games on the system. For $100, it would be getting more than your money’s worth. And yet, the selection couldn’t be farther from that notion.

For starters, releasing Resident Evil: Director’s Cut is a flat-out insult to fans. Why release the original game over its superior sequels isn’t going to help its case. The NES Classic featured Mega Man 2 because Nintendo didn’t want to release the original Mega Man. MM2 was simply a better core experience.

Moreover, why release a game that the creator himself wanted to remake because he deemed it dated? It would have simply been a better move to release the better games, Resident Evil 2 and Resident Evil 3, which featured better controls, among other improvements. Instead, RE2 and 3 were omitted from the collection.

Castlevania: Symphony of the Night, one of the greatest games on the system and my personal favorite, is also omitted. This is likely because of the recent release of Castlevania: Requiem. Well, let’s start with this. Why would someone buy a PlayStation Classic? Maybe some users don’t own a PS4. But we’ll go ahead and omit SotN for fans of Castlevania. Not only that, Requiem’s version is flawed. Not only does the voice acting not come from the original PS1 version, but there’s many audio issues that bog down the game. Not to mention the lack of SotN likely mirrors the reason that Spyro and Crash aren’t on the system. The PS4 releases replaced them, so to speak.

Then you have Final Fantasy VII, the hallmark title that sold the PlayStation. Unfortunately, it’s treated as the only one that matters in the selection. You won’t find VIII, IX, or Tactics. Moreover, the JRPGs helped make the PS1 what it was. But let’s just omit gems like Valkyrie Profile, Tales of Eternia, and The Legend of Dragoon. It’ll be nice to buy a PlayStation Classic to play Mr. Driller, right?

Even if I omit the JRPGs, you’re missing Jet Moto, Bushido Blade, Soul Edge, and Mega Man X4. Yet more third-party hits that don’t make the cut over the original Grand Theft Auto.

In contrast, Japan’s lineup is a little different. One of the most notable inclusions is Parasite Eve. I still haven’t played it myself, but I have heard great things. Despite the amount of praise it gets on gaming forums in the U.S., though, it wasn’t enough to release it in America. It’s as if fan demand plays second priority to selling a good system with multiple fan-favorites.

Finally, even if you consider the gaming lineup, it’s still a waste. To be specific, any 3D game on the system is going to be played on the D-Pad. That’s because Sony chose to go for launch-year nostalgia and release the system without the DualShock controller. If you’re looking to play the original Resident Evil on this, GOOD LUCK.

But since many of these less-than-wanted releases are in 2D anyway, don’t expect much of the 3D games that made the PlayStation.

It’s not that Rayman or Abe’s Odyssey were bad. Rather, there were just other choices that took priority. The SNES Classic omitted Chrono Trigger, Final Fantasy IV, and Donkey Kong Country 2. Despite being an unfortunate lack of addition, you could at least hack them into the system. Right now, there’s no telling if players will be able to hack the PlayStation Classic. But once again, for any 3D games, you won’t be getting along as well without a DualShock analog.

With that said, Sony wanted to hop onto the microconsole fad and make a quick buck. You’re not giving your players the best possible entertainment choices, just the ones that barely pass. It’s going to sell well for anyone with an eye for nostalgia. But its lasting value will not be in its library over its novelty – a micro-sized PlayStation with digital versions of games downloaded onto it for $100.

More games, better choices, and a better controller would have made this system worth owning, even for someone who already owns these games and enjoys collecting or playing on microconsoles. But if you want to play PlayStation games and still support the developers, keep your PlayStation 3 and get on the PlayStation Store. You’ll find nearly every game listed across both the NA and JP releases, plus many more, for $5-$10 a piece. Do yourself a favor and stick to the best gaming option, which is also backwards compatible with PlayStation discs.

With that said, it takes more than Final Fantasy VII, Metal Gear Solid, and a handful of decent to throwaway titles to truly sell a system.

What are your thoughts on the PlayStation Classic? Feel free to make yourself heard in the comments!