So most of us have our most favorite memories with successful video game consoles. Who doesn’t remember getting the NES, the SNES, or even the Genesis? Not every company knocked the launch of their console, or even the follow up, out of the park though. We have more than Nintendo, Sony, Microsoft, and Sega after all. There are a lot of companies that tried their hand at the video game hardware market, and most of them didn’t succeed. Not everyone can make a Sega Genesis or Super Nintendo. Today we’re going to take a look at the top 10 best failed video game consoles of all time.
Before we start the list let’s start with a few rules (I know, that’s lame but bear with me).
- I’m counting both handhelds and home consoles. There aren’t enough handhelds to make a list of its own.
- I’m basing this off of sales and when the hardware was discontinued.
- Hardware add-ons don’t count! At least in my book. I’ll do a separate feature for them.
With that said let’s get started!
#10. – Atari Lynx
The Lynx has it’s share of diehard fans. I actually had no idea about it at the time of release because literally everything you heard about was ‘game boy this’ and ‘game boy that.’ Atari was losing it’s marketshare in the home console market and so they tried to outcompete Nintendo in the handheld realm. The Atari Lynx had a great lineup of games, most of which were ports from the Atari 7800 (which was also a failure). The big problem though was that the dang old system ate up batteries like Pac-man ate pellets. The Atari Lynx had a decent line-up of games but the heavy price tag, lack of a Tetris clone, and bulky hardware prevented it from being able to compete.
#9. – Bandai Wonderswan
Gunpei Yokoi left Nintendo and brought his inventiveness to Bandai with the Wonderswan. Honestly this handheld had everything it needed to be successful. Squaresoft threw Final Fantasy behind it, Namco their Klonoa series, and various other third parties released handheld friendly games for it. The horizontal and vertical setups for it are very unique and make this one cool as heck. The problem? The Game Boy Advance was on the horizon. Nintendo’s upcoming hardware overshadowed this one, and it was never released outside of Japan. There are however plenty of English friendly titles to play on this one which elevatessc it above the rubbish.
#8. – Panasonic 3DO
Disc based consoles were the future. Also, bits were a thing. The Panasonic 3DO boasted disc based media, and beat both the Super Nintendo and Sega Genesis in bits by double. This was North America’s first taste of 32-bit gaming. I’m actually surprised at how wide a library this system was able to accumulate. You have original games, upgraded ports of 16-bit titles, and software that would eventually release for the Sony Playstation. This pile of chips and bits was very ahead of its time and is still worth playing today. How else can you play the original Alone in the Dark with CD redbook audio? It even has many exclusives. The Panasonic 3DO is a cool piece in any collection.
#7. – Virtual Boy
Okay so I’m sure to get some hate here. I didn’t play the Virtual Boy until decades after it was viable. I picked one up on Ebay thinking it would be a joke, but apparently the punchline was on me. I absolutely love the Virtual Boy. It’s kind of a pain to play because it’s a set of goggles on a stand, and the visuals are in 3D but only red and black. Still, some absolutely amazing games you can’t play anywhere else even now were released for it. Wario Land Virtual Boy is the only installment in the series that I actually like, and titles like Jack Bros and Teleroboxer are addictive and can absolutely be considered classics. Also, this system boasts the most comfortable controllers of all time.
#6. – Turbografx 16
This one is kind of cheating. The Japanese version of this console, the PC-Engine, was highly succesful in Japan. So why is it on this list? NEC absolutely botched the platform in North America. I mean come on. The pack-in game was Keith Courage in Alpha Zones. It’s hot garbage. Many great games were released for the platform, but these were overshadowed by the likes of Sonic the Hedgehog and Mario. There are a lot of obscure great games for the system, but who the heck as even heard of Ninja Spirit, Star Soldier, or Neutopia? Marketing was the real problem here. That, and NEC’s reluctance to bring over the great PC-Engine games.
#5. – Sega Game Gear
If you were a Sega fan and wanted to play games on the go chances are you got the Game Gear instead of the Game Boy. That’s all cool and good, but perhaps Sega was a bit too ambitious. The system was backlit, and more powerful than the Game Boy. With that said it destroyed batteries like no other, and was bulky as all heck. Still, Sega supported it with some great titles and even third parties toned down some of their 16-bit titles for release here. You even have an adapter to allow you to play master system games here (with an adapter of course.) While games looked better here than on the Game Boy the Game Gear wasn’t nearly as portable.
#4. – Neo Geo
This is the console that I sold short. I always assumed that Street Fighter 2 was the be all end all of fighting games. I randomly gave this console, and it’s big first game Fatal Fury, a chance almost at random. I figured that nothing could surpass Capcom’s premiere franchise. The Neo Geo proved me wrong. When I gave into my classic game collecting nims I discovered a whole new range of fighting games. Fatal Fury is one of the best fighting games I’ve ever played. The sequels only proved me more wrong. Then I gave Art of Fighting a chance, Samurai Shodown, and oh goodness I felt like I was introduced to a whole new world. The Neo Geo represents all of the best arcade goodness of the 90s. Seriously, play Metal Slug and tell me it’s not the best time you’ve ever had. I dare you.
#3. – Wii U
The Wii was a breakout success. Mobile gaming was the biggest market at the time. Can you blame Nintendo for releasing a home console with a tablet controller that still used the Wii remote? I can’t. At launch it felt like third parties were finally onboard, and titles like Nintendoland really pushed asymetrical gaming. I picked one up at launch, and my friends I played this one for days at a time. Nintendoland is seriously one of the best multiplayer games of all time. Unfortunately the HD twins gave too much competition, and no one (aside from my friends and I) cared that much about asymmetrical gaming at the time. The reason this one is so high is because of Nintendoland. That is legitmately my most played game of the decade.
#2. – Sega Dreamcast
This is the real heartbreaker. The Sega Dreamcast was the company’s big comeback after a flurry of mistakes. It finally seemed like Sega would be able to compete with Sony. They had the cool console, and with it they brought a myriad of new features we all loved. I’m actually still not sure exactly what went wrong. The Sega Dreamcast had every genre covered. It featured the best sports games, platformers, RPGs, fighters, racers and more! Even exclusive Capcom fighters and Resident Evil. The hype for the looming Playstation 2 played a role, but for years the Dreamcast had the better lineup. This was the last console I literally played til the sun came up (Skies of Arcadia, Phantasy Star Online) and I’ll never forget it. Even the memory cards were innovative in that you could download games to them and play!
#1. – Sega Saturn
Sega did a lot wrong at the start of the 32-bit generation. They were confusing consumers with multiple add-ons for the Sega Genesis, had issues with changing their hardware designs for the Saturn last minute, and even did a surprise launch of the hardware. With that said the Sega Saturn has an absolutely amazing lineup of software. The platform handles 2D games much better than the PS1 and N64. This is the only place you could play arcade perfect Street Fighter at the time. This was Sega at its most creative phase. Instead of Sonic they released NiGHTs which is infinitely better and more magical. Additionally the console has a lot of RPGs which haven’t been released anywhere else even today. The Sega exclusives like Burning Rangers are why the Saturn is still number 1.
