An exhibition for PlayStation nostalgics: from the first consoles to their iconic titles

That unmistakable little beep indicating that a PlayStation is ready to start a game seemed to resonate louder at the OXO Video Game Museum on the cloudy Thursday morning. Under the name 'For Us, Gamers', the museum has inaugurated a new temporary exhibition dedicated to the history of PlayStation. Supported by the Provincial Council of Málaga and Costa del Sol Tourism, the second floor of the building pays tribute to three decades of history, innovation, and passion for a brand that has marked entire generations.

Santiago Bustamante, the cultural director of OXO Video Game Museum, made it clear from the beginning that the goal of the exhibition is to tell this story from the perspective of those who have grown up playing, and not from the corporate voice of the brand. As he walked through the corridors of the exhibition, he mentioned with a smile on his face that PlayStation is part of popular culture, and it lives in the memories of those who shared their first FIFA game, those who discovered the worlds of Final Fantasy, or those who dove into the chaos of GTA.

The exhibition offers a fully interactive experience where visitors of all ages can play on the original consoles and relive iconic titles such as Call of Duty, Gran Turismo, or Crash Bandicoot. All this in a journey that combines nostalgia and technology, with showcases full of controllers, cartridges, covers, and anecdotes from an era that changed the way we understand digital entertainment.

Electric blue LED lights envelop the space that transports the visitor inside the console itself. The journey becomes a sort of time tunnel where tangled cables from the first models coexist with virtual reality glasses waiting at the end of the room, marking the leap between generations. In each showcase, the original consoles and controllers share the spotlight with a wide catalog of video games, from the classics that defined an era to the most recent sagas that continue to conquer screens. Visitors can play, look, listen, and even get emotional: a 360-degree experience, designed to relive not only the technological history of PlayStation but also the emotional memory of an entire community of players.

Bustamante did not miss the opportunity to defend video games as "the tenth art". He argued that, although those passionate about this sector have been rejected and belittled, video games, just like literature or cinema, have the ability to excite and transcend beyond technology. They are finally being taken seriously.

The presentation ceremony also featured Antonio Díaz, director of Costa del Sol Tourism, who highlighted the importance of this institutional collaboration. He emphasized that OXO is a unique space in Europe, and seeing how the museum has fit into the tourist offerings of Málaga, it is an example of how culture, technology, and tourism can come together. Before concluding his speech, he wanted to remark that the exhibition about the history of Ken Kutaragi's console is a further step in positioning Málaga as a benchmark in technological innovation and entertainment.

Bustamante returned to the lime green podium microphones. From there, in addition to offering attendees a chance to speak, he announced that the Video Game Museum has not forgotten the previous exhibition, which covered the history of video gaming in Spain. Soon, a book will be published featuring interviews with the most relevant Spanish figures, extending the educational spirit of what has so far occupied the second floor.

The final invitation was through the phrase: Enjoy it and play it. Because at OXO, you don't just come to look, but to participate, controller in hand, in a cultural history that remains alive every time the start button is pressed.