Polygon Man

In 1995, when preparing for the unveiling of the PlayStation console to North American audiences during that year's Electronic Entertainment Expo, or "E3", regional branches of Sony Computer Entertainment (SCE) came into conflict with the Japanese branch over how the console was marketed. Market research had shown their consumers had reacted negatively to the PlayStation name and wanted to use "PSX", a contraction of the console's codename. Concerns were raised to SCE president Teruhisa Tokunaka, who dismissed them, noting a similar initial reaction to the Sony Walkman.[1] However, at the American branch (SCEA), president Steve Race was still concerned, and felt the console would need an "edgy feel" to sell it to North American audiences.[2]

Chiat/Day, SCEA's advertising agency had conducted consumer research and identified a target age for their market of 17, with younger consumers wanting to be that age while older consumers wanted to feel that age again. The American branch sought to aim their advertising at that audience, and created the characters of "Polygon Man" to this end. Influenced by Sega's successful anarchic "Pirate TV" campaign in the United Kingdom, Polygon Man's appearance was a floating, purple disembodied head with glowing yellow pupils in black eye sockets and spikes protruding from his scalp.[1] In an interview with Electronic Gaming Monthly, Race stated the character "from a U.S. perspective was the kind of spokescharacter that was leading edge. He never was expected to be a central character like a Mario but rather to be a master gamer who was hip and rather edgy".[2] Prior to E3, print advertisements were run featuring the character alongside full two page previews for games that would launch with the PlayStation, with a speech bubble above Polygon Man's head making a quip related to the game.[3] Meanwhile, at the event itself, press kits, billboards and booth signage featured the character with a speech balloon stating in Japanese "ハマリ度MAX" (lit. 'Addictive to the MAX').[4][5][1]

However, Ken Kutaragi, global head of the PlayStation brand, reacted particularly harshly to seeing the character for the first time at E3. He was particularly critical of the PlayStation's limited budget being used on an alternative brand, but also the presentation of the character itself, which used flat shading instead of the Gouraud shading the PlayStation utilized. SCE had intended minimalist branding for the console, and according to Chris Deering, former head of PlayStation Europe, they interpreted the advertising campaign as the American branch fighting against the PlayStation brand.[1] Race stated on the matter "There was a large disagreement. [...] the Japanese thought it got in the way of the Sony brand. The Sony brand stands on its own—it never uses a character or celebrity endorsement, so culturally I didn't get that." Due to the Japanese branch having the final vote on the matter, the character was shelved and temporarily replaced with Sofia from Battle Arena Toshinden in the next print advertisement.[2] Additionally, previous advertisements were quickly re-run with the same text but Polygon Man removed.[6] Race in an interview with GameFan sought other characters to serve as "spokepeople" for the PlayStation, even reaching out to Marvel Comics before he ultimately left SCEA.[7]

As a mascot, Polygon Man was poorly received, with PlayStation Magazine commenting that "a lot of consumers found him way too creepy."[13] 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".[5] 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".[14] Kotaku's Carolyn Petit 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."[15] 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."[16]

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 [PlayStation All-Stars Battle Royale]." 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.[17]

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.[18] 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,[19] and the staff of Official U.S. PlayStation Magazine stated that while those who 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."[20] Eurogamer's Simon Parkin praised the character's role as the villain and final boss of PlayStation All-Stars Battle Royale,[21] and Edge called 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.[22]