Worst Gaming Platform Ever Made

[triggerhappytonks]

The worst is the TI-83's I mean what the hell type of graphics are that.

Like pong and Fall down.

[Valkyrie]

Errr... We're talking about game consoles here. The TI-83 is a calculator.

[Druna Skass]

The TI-83 is a calculator.

Actualy, don't ask me how the hell they pulled his off, but a couple of guys I went to high school with programed a Mario game into a couple Ti-83s. Straight looked like a GameBoy game.

[JB0]

What was the worst gaming platform ever made?

Atari 2600

Okay, it wasn't that bad, especially since it was sold from the mid-1970s to the mid 1980s. But it was marred by a whole bunch of horrible games like Superman and E.T.: The Extra-Terrestrial. The latter title led to the great videogame crash of 1983, when console sales plummeted and tons of E.T. cartridges ended up underneath a New Mexico landfill.

The VCS/2600 was in production into the early NINTIES.

ET was a symptom, not the cause.

It's more an example of the mis-management of Atari under TimeWarner, in that they made more ETs then VCSes in use.

And it's not the only such game to be buried.

Atari Jaguar

On the Jaguar's initial release, Atari's slogan was "Do the Math." Go figure - while the Jaguar claimed to have 64-bit graphics, it actually had two 32-bit chips (or was it eight 8-bit chips?) inside. The only good games coming out of it were Tempest and an pre-PC version of Aliens vs. Predator; every other game just plain sucked. The Jaguar eventually led to Atari's bankruptcy.

That was the Jag's LATER slogan.

It initially had no slogan. You know, because Tramiel wasn't gonna spend money marketing it against the SNES, Genesis, and 3D0.

The Jag hardware is a mess(or complicated, if we wnat to be polite). It has a 16-bit processor, 2-32-bit processors, and 2 64-bit ones.

And it has a quite large # of good games.

Worms, Wolfenstien, Doom, updates of Missile Command, Defender, Tempest, and Breakout, the first Alien VS Predator game, Cannon Fodder, Bubsy, Raiden, and Pitfall all stick out.

Then there's a pile of mediocre games, and then the few genuinely crappy titles.

Why everyone thinks every Jag game is Kasumi Ninja or Fight for Life is beyond me.

And this was just ONE of Atari's bankruptcies.

Alas, due to violation of the merger agreement, it would also be the last.

JTS, who bought it from the Tramiels, who bought it from TimeWarner, who bought it from Nolan Bushnell, immediatly shut down all operations, began liquidating everything, and licensing like tehre was no tomorrow(hence Activision remaking Asteroids and BattleZone), all in violation of the clause in the contract stating that they had to maintain it as a fully-functioning business. When the SEC began investigating them, they quickly unloaded everything on to Hasbro.

Hasbro has since sold it to Infogrames, who is in the process of renaming their company to Atari(the US division has already changed names), so there WILL be a company named Atari again. But they'll likely never again make hardware.

Nintendo Virtual Boy

Every game manufacturer has made a mistake or two in their life. Nintendo really f'd up big-time with this $280 flop. Released in the mid-1990s, the Virtual Boy was merely an oversized, overpriced Game & Watch that had only two colors - red and black - that were a severe eyesore to anyone who used it. Less than a year after it hit stores, the Virtual Boy was canned and every toy store got rid of their units at under $20 each. Games and accessories that sold for $40 went for under $10.

The Virtual Boy was SO much more than a Game&Watch.

For one, it had dot-matrix screens.

For 2, it was stereo vision.

3rd, it had power. Lots of power. GBA-level power.

The VB also had 16 shades of red, not 2.

And as I own a VB, and do NOT find it a severe eyesore, you should amend your post.

Sega 32X

This was supposedly Sega's answer to turning the aging 16-bit Genesis/MegaDrive into a 32-bit system. While the console's version of DOOM was good, everything else sucked. The upgrade died less than a year after its release due to developers moving to more advances systems.

Again, the 32x had good games.

But it WAS just pissing on the fans. The Saturn was already nearing completion. By the time the 32x hit shelves, most

developers were already workign on Saturn titles(or PlayStation, but we don't talk about that). It was still-born, and everyone but die-hard Sega fans knew it.

...

These were the same people that later didn't buy the Saturn because Sega burned them with the 32x.

SEGA CD

Unlike the 32X, this add-on to the Genesis/MegaDrive actually had potential to compete with similar products like the 3DO. The release of the system was just marred by horrible games like Night Trap, Sewer Shark and a series of "Make My Music Video" CDs. It's too bad the Sega CD sold poorly, as it actually had some good games like Snatcher by Hideo Kojima (creator of Metal Gear Solid).

You forgot Sonic CD, widely regarded as the best of the 2D Sonics.

And the Lunar series, whose sales speak for themselves. 99% market penetration.

99% of SegaCD owners owned Lunar: Silver Star.

NO non-packin game has ever reached that level, and very few pack-ins(all I can think of is the Vectrex's MineStorm, which had 100% market penetration).

SNK Neo-Geo CD

As a fan of old-school SNK games, I was extremely disappointed with this console. The colors looked completely washed-out and because of its single-speed drive, it took longer to load a game than to finish it.

Okay, this is a lot harder to love.

It's a NeoGeo, only with load time.

...

Really. Aside from a bunch of RAM for loading data from the CD, this was the EXACT same hardware used in arcade machines and cartridge NeoGeo systems.

I see no redeeming value aside from the one exclusive title, Samurai Shodwn RPG. And that's japanese-only anyways.

As far as really really REALLY bad systems...

The Microvision.

Imagine a Dreamcast VMU. Okay, now make it a lot bigger. And remove connectivity with anything else. This is a standalone system.

Ah, no changing the screen! 32*32 in a tiny square.

How's THAT strike you?

[myk]

Virtual Boy...a system so pathetic I had even forgot about it until I happened upon this poll......Can we even call it a system?

[yellowlightman]

Heh, I must be only person who liked the Virtual Boy... Sort of. Mario Tennis and that shooter were kinda fun and with headphones you were able to block out everything around you, and felt more immersed in the game... Even if it wasjust red and black. What I mean is without the distractions around when you play games on the TV.

As for damage, it was dangerous for kids under seven because their eyes or retinas or soemthing aren't finished growing yet, for those older I reccomend you getting a stronger stomach.

My vote for newer "worst" gaming platforms: the Nuon and the upcoming Phantom.

[areaseven]

Oh.. and A7... you fogot the Atari Lynx.... now that was one heck of a craptastic paltform... almost as bad as the Game Gear.

Well, actually, the Lynx had a more powerful processor than the Game Gear and the Game Boy combined. Like the NEC TurboXPress, It had potential to be a great portable console, but it died due to a lack of software support.

[mikeszekely]

You forgot the N64 in your list. It was a really worthless system... specially because someone as good as Nintendo made it.

At least the N64 had GoldenEye, Perfect Dark, and the AKI wrestling games (still considered the best to this day).

I picked "other," and my other choice was the Philips CD-i.

[Vostok 7]

Bwaaaahahahahahaha I remember the Virtual Boy. I think I wanted one.

I have a Game Gear... I love it. I still think it's as good as the GBA... Except for battery life <_<

I just bought a Nomad recently. Anyone have Genesis games they wanna dump?

Vostok 7

Edited September 29, 2003 by Vostok 7

[Ladic]

I want a nomad too to play my genesis games, but they are so expensive on ebay.

[Vostok 7]

I want a nomad too to play my genesis games, but they are so expensive on ebay.

I got one for like $50 with some games. Thrift stores are your friend.

Vostok 7

[bsu legato]

32X, hands down. It's also responsible for my vow to never again purchase a Sega system. I mean, who releases a system that will only ever have a liabrary of 8 games?

[Abombz!!]

Oh.. and A7... you fogot the Atari Lynx.... now that was one heck of a craptastic paltform... almost as bad as the Game Gear.

Well, actually, the Lynx had a more powerful processor than the Game Gear and the Game Boy combined. Like the NEC TurboXPress, It had potential to be a great portable console, but it died due to a lack of software support.

I know... but when a handheld eats through batterries in less then 2 hours, is big enough to be mistaken by a VCR, and gets hot enough to fry an egg (this is a fact) you know something is horribly wrong with it. <_<

[Agent ONE]

Worst console...?

Hmm... Well I have had hours and hours of fun with GoldenEye...

I guess I'd have to say Virtual Boy, because of the "display" I could never tell what was going on.

Yeah, no kidding. I still use my 64 for Goldeneye.

[Abombz!!]

Worst console...?

Hmm... Well I have had hours and hours of fun with GoldenEye...

I guess I'd have to say Virtual Boy, because of the "display" I could never tell what was going on.

Yeah, no kidding. I still use my 64 for Goldeneye.

For one.... every videogame has at least 1 good game. The N64 had Goldeneye (and a few others, but lets just keep it at that), the Lynx had Ninja Gaiden, the Pc Engine (Turbographs(sp)) had DraculaX: Rondo with blood. The Game Gear had Shinobi. The Jaguar had Alien Vs Predator. The Sega CD had the 2 Lunar games. The 3DO had the most faithful port of Super Street Fighter II X, and the best port of Samurai Spirits. The list goes on. Unless we are talking about several games.... a system cannot be bad based on the notion that 1 game makes it good.

[Agent ONE]

Worst console...?

Hmm... Well I have had hours and hours of fun with GoldenEye...

I guess I'd have to say Virtual Boy, because of the "display" I could never tell what was going on.

Yeah, no kidding. I still use my 64 for Goldeneye.

For one.... every videogame has at least 1 good game. The N64 had Goldeneye (and a few others, but lets just keep it at that), the Lynx had Ninja Gaiden, the Pc Engine (Turbographs(sp)) had DraculaX: Rondo with blood. The Game Gear had Shinobi. The Jaguar had Alien Vs Predator. The Sega CD had the 2 Lunar games. The 3DO had the most faithful port of Super Street Fighter II X, and the best port of Samurai Spirits. The list goes on. Unless we are talking about several games.... a system cannot be bad based on the notion that 1 game makes it good.

Well, the first Zelda game on the 64 was awesome also... so theres 2. Oh yeah! Mario Kart.. theres 3.

[Lightning]

damn! the virtual boy caused bad eyesight? no wonder why my eyes are gettin worse....

[niomosy]

You're forgetting that flop that Apple put out for a little while. The Pippin or something like that (it's been a while).

Don't forget the 3D0 machine. Talk about a waste of money for that thing.

As for the Neo Geo CD, that was a great system. If loading times were a problem, you could've imported the CDZ version which has a 2x cdrom instead of the 1x.

[mikeszekely]

Worst console...?

Hmm... Well I have had hours and hours of fun with GoldenEye...

I guess I'd have to say Virtual Boy, because of the "display" I could never tell what was going on.

Yeah, no kidding. I still use my 64 for Goldeneye.

For one.... every videogame has at least 1 good game. The N64 had Goldeneye (and a few others, but lets just keep it at that), the Lynx had Ninja Gaiden, the Pc Engine (Turbographs(sp)) had DraculaX: Rondo with blood. The Game Gear had Shinobi. The Jaguar had Alien Vs Predator. The Sega CD had the 2 Lunar games. The 3DO had the most faithful port of Super Street Fighter II X, and the best port of Samurai Spirits. The list goes on. Unless we are talking about several games.... a system cannot be bad based on the notion that 1 game makes it good.

What's the CD-i's good game? Not that funky Zelda game...

[niomosy]

There are plenty of craptastic consoles to pick from: the PC FX, 3DO, Jaguar, 32X CDi, etc.  But my vote goes for the Virtual Boy.  Not a single decent title, and it's the *only* console that would cause you pain (not the mental type). 

Let's not forget the Amiga CD32.

Also, the FM Towns Marty. IIRC, it was an Intel 386 with a cdrom.

Edited September 29, 2003 by niomosy

[Hoptimus]

The Turbo Graphix sucked only because it had almost no US software support, and the vast majority of the good japanese games were never brought over. Its japanese equivelant, the PC Engine, kicked much ass. It had some awesome games, especially for its CD system.

Plus it had some of the best console designs ever. The original PC Engine was SO much cooler than the TG16. It was like 1/3 the size! To this day, I don't know why they had to make the system BIGGER for its US release...

My pick would have to be the Virtual Boy also. It was obviously a flop in every respect.

The Sega CD sucked, partly because it didn't improve the Genesis's hardware limitations. So all of a sudden you have 650 megs of storage space, but you've still got a slow Z80 processor and a palette of a whopping 64 colors (if my memory serves me correctly). Plus the software support sucked. Everyone was too caught up with full motion video (even though it looked like ass).

The 32x was a bad idea too. They were just trying to get thier system on par with the SNES, in an attempt to tide gamers over til the Saturn came out. And like the rest, the software spport killed it.

What he said!

PC Engine kicked ass if you imported!

[Abombz!!]

Worst console...?

Hmm... Well I have had hours and hours of fun with GoldenEye...

I guess I'd have to say Virtual Boy, because of the "display" I could never tell what was going on.

Yeah, no kidding. I still use my 64 for Goldeneye.

For one.... every videogame has at least 1 good game. The N64 had Goldeneye (and a few others, but lets just keep it at that), the Lynx had Ninja Gaiden, the Pc Engine (Turbographs(sp)) had DraculaX: Rondo with blood. The Game Gear had Shinobi. The Jaguar had Alien Vs Predator. The Sega CD had the 2 Lunar games. The 3DO had the most faithful port of Super Street Fighter II X, and the best port of Samurai Spirits. The list goes on. Unless we are talking about several games.... a system cannot be bad based on the notion that 1 game makes it good.

What's the CD-i's good game? Not that funky Zelda game...

Congratulation..... you just figured out what the real bad console was.

[Max Jenius]

I had some fun with virtual boy, I'd play for hours with no headache. I guess a lot of people had problems though and it kinda died, for that reason I think it sucks. I think CD-i is worse though.

[sidearmsalpha]

I have a couple of friends that bought into Atari's hype of the Jaguar. Not too long after, they both blew up their Jaguar's with firecrackers. Ha! They even taped it!

[Captain of the SDF-1 Macross]

Well, actually, the Lynx had a more powerful processor than the Game Gear and the Game Boy combined. Like the NEC TurboXPress, It had potential to be a great portable console, but it died due to a lack of software support.

Let's not forget that all of the non-Nintendo color handhelds before the Neo-Geo Pocket Color are battery guzzlers.

[Captain of the SDF-1 Macross]

You're forgetting that flop that Apple put out for a little while. The Pippin or something like that (it's been a while).

Yeah, it's a collaberation between Bandai and Apple (when it was runned by Amelio), as an effort to promote the PowerPC CPU for home systems. It died not only for lack of support but also Amelio couldn't think of anything to do with it. By the time Steve Jobs returned, the Pippin was canned.

One of the good things about the PowerPC CPU was that it is a joint effort of Apple, IBM and Motorola to make an excellent CPU loaded with great features.

Yet, one of the PowerPC CPUs, a souped-up G3, was made for the Nintendo GameCube.

[Jemstone]

The Phillips CD-i "thing".

I can't even refer to it as a console. While the Virtual Boy seemed to exist only to make children blind at an early age the CD-i only gets credit for having the 3 singles worst Zelda games in existence if anybody even wants to include them in as Zelda titles. Not to mention the worst and most obsure Super Mario title: HOTEL MARIO!!!!

I won't go any further.

[Britai 7018]

just to throw this in... evne though its not out yet, the Nokia N-Gage will soon join this list.

[JRock]

I find it funny that NO ONE mentioned the FM Towns Marty, The Konix system, nor Tiger's Portable ystem

Edited September 29, 2003 by JRock

[McKlown]

No offense, but that whole 'Vitural Boy causes you to go blind' bit is as much an urban legend as the thing about eating Pop Rocks and drinking soda at the same time causing your head to explode. <_<

And I vote for the TurboGrafx-16 as worst system. Why? Any console that has THIS guy as it's mascot needs to rot in hell.

[Jemstone]

No offense, but that whole 'Vitural Boy causes you to go blind' bit is as much an urban legend as the thing about eating Pop Rocks and drinking soda at the same time causing your head to explode.

And I vote for the TurboGrafx-16 as worst system. Why? Any console that has THIS guy as it's mascot needs to rot in hell.

Urban legend? How many people do you know who played a Virtual Boy for over 20 minutes and did not complain of a head ache, trouble focusing their eyes, or simply had a very hard time seeing afterwards?

And wasn't Bonk the the named mascot of the TG-16?

[Abombz!!]

No offense, but that whole 'Vitural Boy causes you to go blind' bit is as much an urban legend as the thing about eating Pop Rocks and drinking soda at the same time causing your head to explode. 

And I vote for the TurboGrafx-16 as worst system. Why? Any console that has THIS guy as it's mascot needs to rot in hell.

Urban legend? How many people do you know who played a Virtual Boy for over 20 minutes and did not complain of a head ache, trouble focusing their eyes, or simply had a very hard time seeing afterwards?

And wasn't Bonk the the named mascot of the TG-16?

The Turbografx mascot was Bonk... the little sd bald headed pre-historic man. Oh wait.... it was hudsons mascot not NECs.

[Captain of the SDF-1 Macross]

And I vote for the TurboGrafx-16 as worst system. Why? Any console that has THIS guy as it's mascot needs to rot in hell.

The comic hero Johnny Turbo is *NOT* the console mascot. He's basically part of a comic ad campeign as a last ditch effort from NEC to get people to buy the all-in-one Turbo Duo, which is a TG-16 and a CD-ROM drive in one package.

I had the whole comic shorts found on EGM magazine. It's basically Johnny promoting the Turbo Duo while fighting against Agent Smith-lookalikes as video game dealers who use hypnosis to get customers buy their game systems. Funny stuff.

[McKlown]

Either way the console needs to rot in hell for inspiring his creation.

Urban legend? How many people do you know who played a Virtual Boy for over 20 minutes and did not complain of a head ache, trouble focusing their eyes, or simply had a very hard time seeing afterwards?

*raises his hand* Me, for starters.

If you want a much more likely and proven loss of eyesight you have to look no further than the electronic gizmo you're currently sitting in front of.

Edited September 29, 2003 by McKlown

[JsARCLIGHT]

For the record the Virtual Boy did not really damage people's eyesight... just little kids. The VB shipped from the factory with this giant red warning on the box:

!WARNING: This product MUST NOT be used by children under the age of seven (7) years.

Artificial stereo vision displays may not be safe for such children and may cause serious, permanent damage to their vision.

As I said before, most parents see the words "permanent", "damage" and "vision" on a toy package and they tend to keep walking down the isle.