I combed the depths of history and my memory to pull together a (very subjective) list of the best and worst innovations to hit console gaming. Rather than full systems (with a few obvious exceptions), I chose to focus on peripherals and concepts. Enjoy!
The list is after the jump…
THE BEST:
1. The Wiimote — When the Wiimote was first announced, EVERYBODY was skeptical about how they’d pull this one off. It seemed like the type of gimmick that would inevitably find its way into the peripherals graveyard. However, in just the first generation of Wii games, Nintendo has absolutely obliterated critics. Not only does it Just Work—that incredibly rare grail of any consumer electronics products—but it pumps life into an industry that has been increasingly relying on More of the Same (sharper graphics and more unlockable characters will only get you so far.) The brilliance of the Wiimote is that it forces game developers to think differently about how they approach video games. As a result, innovative and interesting games are almost inevitable. And the fact that Nintendo had the brains to give developers the time and resources they needed to make games that could take advantage of the unique platform didn’t hurt. Now that the obvious uses are out of the way—swords, baseball bats, steering wheels—the next batch of games should show just how creative developers can be with this anything-simulator.
2. Game Boy – Before this granddaddy of portable consoles came around, carrying around a video game meant playing those cruddy bricks they sold for 30 bucks at K.B. Toys. You know the ones—they had a total of about five pixels, and your sprite was a tiny outline of a dude that had a total of two positions (usually “standing” and “jump kicking”). Yeah, they sucked. Starting with Tetris, the Game Boy had games that were actually playable—the animation was smooth, the games were complex, the characters looked like characters. And, for the next few years, battery companies everywhere reaped the profits.
3. Game Emulators — Emulators are crack for nostalgic gamers—they let you play any game, any time, without having to spend 10 minutes blowing the dust off a cartridge before sliding it into your NES at just the right angle to avoid the Blank Screen Of Death. Today, we’re seeing retro gaming demand resonate with the companies as next-gen systems are increasingly adopting support for downloading and playing these once-Abandonware titles.
4. Save Game – Remember the original Legend of Zelda cartridge? If you shook it, you could actually hear the tiny battery that let it store your game bang around inside. So cool! I don’t know about you, but I never once bothered to write down a password to get back to Ridley’s Lair in Metroid, so this was a godsend. Unfortunately, early games were fragile—pulling the game from the system while it was still on just once (which I know they explicitly told me NOT to do) was enough to burn out the battery. Still, not having to spend another three hours getting the Magic Sword was priceless.
5. Nintendo Zapper Light Gun — If you think about it, Duck Hunt should have been the most boring game ever. You shoot a duck, a cartoon dog retrieves it, repeat. But still, we played it… again, and again, and again. Sure the Zapper was used in only slightly more games than the R.O.B. robot, but it seemed like complete MAGIC at the time (I still don’t understand how it worked.) I’ll never know why exactly it was so fun, but there isn’t a person you know who won’t smile when you bring this thing up in conversation.
HONORABLE MENTION:
Power Pad - I might get some haters on this, and I know it didn’t have much use beyond a track and field and an aerobics game, but we wouldn’t have Dance Dance Revolution if it weren’t for this thing, and fat kids everywhere would be without their only source of exercise.
AND THE WORST:
4. Laser Disc Games — I’m aware this was more of an arcade than a console phenomenon, but they simply need to be included. These things were GORGEOUS, but boy oh boy did they suck. Running through Dragon’s Lair or Space Ace was an investment (try getting through with less than 20 bucks!), and really no more fun than watching somone else play. The problem, of course, was that you didn’t control the cartoons so much as press a button every once in awhile.
3. Super Nintendo Super Scope 6 — The follow-up to the NES Zapper light gun LOOKED so cool—it was a freakin’ bazooka! And when I finally got mine, I couldn’t wait to get home and shoot some bad guys. But what did I get when I took this thing out and opened it up? A bunch of cruddy mini-games where you shoot moles and Tetris blocks. I wanted to blow up some Nazis or something, and I was stuck fighting garden pests. Developers didn’t put too much faith in this thing, and barely any games (much less decent ones) ever came off the assembly line.
2. TurboExpress — Instead of buying separate games for a portable system, wouldn’t it be great if it could play the same ones at home and on-the-go? With the TurboExpress, anyone with a TurboGrafx-16 could play the same games they played at home on the go! Wow! Unfortunately, no one bothered to tell developers that shrinking something designed for 19-inch image (as was the standard TV size of the time) down to 2.6-inches is enough to send both of the people who bought this thing to the optometrist.
1. Power Glove — You wanted this thing — we all did. Maybe it was the idea of actually punching Mike Tyson, or perhaps you saw The Wizard and wanted to be like video game maestro Lucas (“I love the Power Glove, it’s so bad.”), able to make Fred Savage and the girl from Rilo Kiley’s jaw drop with a few well-timed wrist movements. Unfortunately, this thing absolutely, completely sucked. It was complicated, hard to set up, unresponsive, expensive. Worst of all, however, was the need to punch in different programming codes for each game. When you inevitably lost the book containing them, you were SOL.
Comments
I had a turbo express. It was pretty cool on the playability. Its was just the 4 AA batteries died before I could get anywhere in Axe Adventure (or whatever it was called) that NEC system had some of the most difficult games on it.
I got too more suggestions.
1. The Cd add-on to the Sega Genesis. though I played eternal champions with my bro until the drive started smoking but the sewer rat game and the snatch live action game were unplayable
i will add one more …video game magazines..after Next Gen stopped printing is there a magazine that has any kind of journalistic credibility?
What about Lynx from Atari. I had one of those and it was awesome. Still play the emulator on xbox every once in a while. California Games RULES! How can you resist the classic 80’s lingo - Bogus, Gnarly, Radical, and As good as James…never understood that one.
What about Lynx from Atari? I had one of those and it was awesome. Still play the emulator on xbox every once in a while. California Games RULES! How can you resist the classic 80’s lingo - Bogus, Gnarly, Radical, and As good as James…never understood that one.
“I love the power glove. It’s so bad.”
I couldn’t resist.
I too had an Atari Lynx. There was a racing game I played constantly… ahh fond memories.
My main beef (other than the stated one about small screens/big games) with the early color portable consoles was the battery life was INSANE. Game Gear? SIX AAs and it died in 45 minutes.
I have to vote for R.O.B from the Nintendo 16 as a worst contender. What the hell was the point?
Nice work with the Rilo Kiley reference :)
R.O.B. was excluded for one very good reason–if it wasn’t for that hunk of junk, the NES may never have made it to America! It was right after the video game crash of the early 80s and retailers were reluctant to stock any video games. So Nintendo stuck in this stupid little robot and told them it was a “Robotics toy” and not just a video game. Stupidly, the retailers bit, and the rest is l’histoire…
Does anyone remember that peripheral for the Super Nintendo that was supposed to be “IR” like a set of goggles or something?
I remember always asking my mom to go to Toys R Us so I step up on my toes to peer into that amazing device and watch a red mario run against a black background.
Well that’s what I think I remember anyways. Pretty ridiculous list if you ask me, they all seemed cool when I was a kid. Ah childhood…
Jon — Do you mean VirtuaBoy?
[sniff] you just brought a tear to this nes fanboy’s eyes…
Woohoo, since I admit it, I might as well say a few things :)
1. The powerpad was ‘eh’ even for fanboys like me so no ‘hater’ worries.
2. The powerglove sucked worse than any control device i’ve ever seen, whether it be a game, car, or the light switch at grandma’s that zapped you if you touched it wrong, that thing sucks bigtime. yet, i can’t seem to make myself get fid of it…
3. ROB, without saying anything mean, it was a “collector’s items” the day it was released
4. TLOZ…I can’t wait to play that game with my son (omfg I sound like my dad with [gasp]…atari 2600 football!…wow, just, wow.
5. Without Nintendo, without the NES, gaming may not have died, but it sure as hell wouldn’t be what it is today…recognize fools!
:)
The VirtualBoy is not a SNES peripheral, it’s its own 32-Bit-Console. Pretty fun, too, for a few games of Mario Tennis. Unfortunately, after about 10 minutes of playtime, your eyes generally start to bleed uncontrollably and your brain explodes.
I love that I wasn’t the only one who owned a Lynx and spent endless hours playing California Games. I also love that we are all willing to admit that, hit or miss, Nintendo has always been the true innovater in the video game industry. Maybe they don’t always get things right the first time but without a company willing to take these types of risk the industry will never change/improve.
How about Tiger’s Game.Com does anyone remember that one?
What about the 3D0…
I think one thing left off is the sixaxis ps3 controller. That thing was doomed from the start, under utilized and nothing compared to the wii.
Game.com? yep, they had duke nukem. And an inadvertent porn site.
Isn’t it a bit early to be calling the Wiimote the single greatest console gaming innovation of all-time? The thing has been out for lest than a month and you’re saying it’s better than the idea of a ’saved game’ and the Gameboy? Is there anything that Nintendo didn’t make on here? What about Xbox Live? Ever tried that out?
Give me a break, this list sucks. Please stop digging this nonesense.
What about the Sega Channel…what a rip off
Wii mote is cool and all but come one…………..ANALOG CONTROL STICKS are one of the best proven inventions in gaming
her name is Jenny Lewis.
Stop Digging! is right. Everything on the list is from Nintendo, as much as I like them they are ignoring innovations like XBL. This lists sucks hardcore. Plus they left out game.com, the N64, and Gamecube, 3D0 etc.
Bring on the SNES and Super Mario Kart.
And who can forget the atari and pitfall 2? There are still weekends I plug in my old NES or SNES and play some old games. My Zelda and Link batteries are still going strong.
The Wiimote is one of the most innovative experiences I’ve ever had in my 15 someodd years gaming. Second would have to be the Nintendo Duckhunt gun, which WAS magic.
N64 and Gamecube sucked balls.
I have to disagree with the Zapper as being a prolific achievement in video games because there were only like 2-3 games that you could use the peripheral. And those games were just the same objective over and over..
I also think VirtualBoy should be added to worst game innovations. I worked at Toys “R” Us when it launched and we returned tons after people got them home and complained it didn’t work because everything was in red. The console also was very unstable with several antenna-like spokes that served as legs. Horrible!
The NEC TurboDuo should be on the list too for coming out in 1992 at a $300 price tag and few games that it may it impossible to succeed in a competitive market against Nintendo and Sega.
Atari’s Jaguar was equally plagued like the NEC TurboDuo with a price tag of $250 in the mid-1990s. The system was very difficult to develop games and therefore most of the planned games were dropped or shipped with lots of bugs.
For the good, dual analog controllers should be added. As 3D gaming came into reality, dual analog controllers offered a new, ergonomic method for controlling a player’s position and perspective simultaneously.
@brklynsurfer - The game was Golden Axe and it was awesome. I also like Zonk. Its too bad the CEO of NEC made some really bad decisions.
Actually I disagree with a couple of the people on here. Xbox live is not an innovation. The Xband network for the genesis and snes and the sega channel basically offered the same thing many years ago. Microsoft just had enough money to get it to something that was worthwhile.. that and just about everyone has broadband now.
I had a Turbo Express and loved it. And for the record, i was 6 batteries, not 4. :) I still have it and pull it out every once in a while. Yeah you couldn’t read text on it with some games but overall you could still play the games as easily. Sounds like someone didn’t actually own one…
What about the Video Art console? It was like a tv coloring book console where you could sort of draw Etch-a Sketch style…
But it sucked.
I still think that my Coelcovison was great.
The Zaaxon game was rather predictable so that at least you had a chance.
Dudes, read the title. It’s about “console innovations.” The Cube and N64 aren’t really innovations, hence they can’t be the “worst innovations.” And XBL? Give me a break. Sega had a similar service more than a decade ago.
Genesis 32X was a big beef i had, I loved my Sega. but the launch of the 32x was 4-6 months prior to the saturn… grr!!
Sega CD was bleh…
Jaguar was horrid.
Virtua boy was worse than Jaguar….
Turbo FX was about as bad as Virtua Boy
But my no.1 Beef with consoles of all time… *drum roll*
Backwards compatability… I still love Golden Axe and some of the other crappy side scrolling games because well, they were fun in a cheesey way..
PS2 was the first I believe.. Thank jebus my Wii plays TONS of things :)
Interestingly enough the Nintendo Power Glove became a rather sought after item on ebay in later years.
With some relatively simple modifications it could be retooled into an inexpensive PC virtuall reality gear handset controller.
Hmm… I’d have to disagree with you about the Super Scope. The game that I had for the Super Scope was awesome. You shot flying robots and missiles coming at you. In my opinion the best thing available on the SNES. For me at least. I didn’t have much of a collection. Super Mario All Stars 5, Mario Kart and the Super Scope.
I had some crazy game in like 86 or something that was shaped like a space ship with a handle on the bottom. You used a VHS video and shot at the Flashing spots on the enemy ships or whatever and your ship/lightgun/controler kept track of your score. I had 2 video’s , I dont know how many where available.
Hrm what about the Neo Geo? Wasn’t it priced outrageously? Reminds me of the PS3 in today’s market.
The game that came with the Super Scope was bad, but Yoshi Safari was a pretty fun game, especially in Co-op with one player controlling Yoshi and another controlling Mario. Other than that, the picks are decent and worth reading. I’m not sure if the wii-mote is the best thing ever yet, but it’s certainly a good step in the right direction.
LOVE YOUR STORYS PLEAS WRITE BACK
Let see there was that modem for the SNES and Genesis, Dreamcast fishing poll, SNES bazuca, Reactor vest which was giant speaker, Virtual Boy, Genesis portable (play Geny games on your portable), Game Gear TV which didn’t work on all Game Gears, Jaguar CD, Jaguar controller, and the Pro Action Replays that could brick your PS2 id you didn’t have the right firmware.
You forgot the bathroom pouch. It allows a gamer to sit and game without getting up and using the restroom to relieve themselves. I am serious it actually exists.
What about the accessories for adult games? Second Life could use some odd ones. The vibrating pants for instance.
Dragon’s Lair was a great game to look at. I do recall hitting buttons and having no idea if I was actually controlling the toon.
I those consoles suck besides the wii and the gamecube. I not sure about the gamecube. Why you didn’y bring the Xbox 360 in this page. Because thats the best console ever made since the xbox oringinall came out.
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