In the beginning, PSM had an anime-style mascot named "Banzai Chibi-Chan", created and illustrated by Robert DeJesus. He was featured prominently in early issues and even inspired apparel and other accessories. He was later dropped, with the supposed reason being that the character was too childish and gave some the wrong impression about the magazine's intended audience.
A smiley face featuring an eye patch with a star on it was also used, but it too was eventually dropped after the magazine went through redesign in later years. The PSM Smiley Face was notable for its appearance throughout the magazine, as well as on "lid-sticker" inserts (large, circular stickers that could be placed decoratively on the lid of a PlayStation console), including one found in the first issue.
Some lid-stickers promotionally featured characters from PlayStation games being covered in the magazine. Other inserts included PlayStation memory card label stickers featuring visual themes similar to the lid-stickers, as well as video game tip sheets, instead of the demo discs that then-competitor Official U.S. PlayStation Magazine was known for.
As PTOM, from the July 2008 issue to the June 2009 issue, the magazine included promotional codes for free downloads of Qore, a subscription-based interactive online magazine for the PlayStation 3, available through the PlayStation Store. These free, promotional editions of Qore did not include some of the features available in the paid-for edition, such as playable demos. PTOM also had promotional pullout-style posters from time to time, to help advertise upcoming video game releases.
