Forgotten Gaming Mascots #17: Polygon Man

On 02/19/2021 at 08:15 AM by The Last Ninja

Games: None

Mascot for: Sony

This is a weird one. You might not even know about this one since he was created and dropped in a day. Made by Sony of America, Polygon Man was intended to show off the incredible 3D abilities of the Sony Playstation. He appeared in the console's pre-launch ads commenting on various launch games. He was obviously created to appeal to the "cool teen" demographic, but c'mon, he's just a floating head with yellow eyes--a pretty lazy mascot by mid-90s standards. Apparently SoA thought they had a major winner on their hands, especially since one of their Polygon Man ads read "it's more powerful than God." (hmmmm....don't think so)

What happened: The story goes that when Ken Kutaragi (global head of PS brand) saw Polygon Man for the first time, he was furious. He saw it as a waste of money. According to Phil Harrison (head of Sony's European publishing side), what Kutaragi didn't like the most was that PM wasn't Gouraud shaded, but instead flat shaded (making him look dated instead of cutting-edge). PM was dumped on the spot. He didn't last long. However, he did appear as the final boss in 2012's Playstation All-Stars Battle Royale, but considering that this franchise is now dead, we might never see Polygon Man again.

Cary Woodham

02/19/2021 at 08:48 AM

I thought it was kind of cool that this obscure thing was the boss in PlayStation All-Stars Battle Royale. After I saw it I looked it up and I was like, "Oh yeah, I kind of remember that in ads...I think." I didn't think PlayStation All-Stars was actually THAT bad. I mean, it's no Smash Bros, but I still had fun with it.

The Last Ninja

02/20/2021 at 10:28 AM

Any Smash Bros. clone can't compete with Smash. They might be OK but Smash is in a league all by itself. I never played PSASBR but I did think that the cast didn't completely fit together (and there were some obscure character in there, although I guess die-hard PS fans would know them).

Matt Snee Staff Writer

02/19/2021 at 10:44 AM

Never say never. I definitely don't remember this.

02/20/2021 at 10:30 AM

Well, considering how short-lived PM was, I don't blame you.

KnightDriver

02/19/2021 at 10:18 PM

Seems vaguely familiar. It's a bit like Max Headroom as well.

02/20/2021 at 10:32 AM

I had to look up Max Headroom, but yeah, he's kinda like that, although his face is purple with yellow eyes (just creepy enough to haunt your dreams)

Super Step Contributing Writer

02/20/2021 at 01:27 PM

I'm gonna spend all day looking for this Polygon Man ad now, and I don't even have Internet at home, so it looks like work won't get done at the office today.

How dare you. My inability to focus on things I should is all your fault.

02/21/2021 at 01:07 AM

Don't worry, got it right here

02/21/2021 at 01:09 PM

Ooohhh, it's a magazine ad. That ... clears some things up. lol

PixlBit