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What is the best video game console of all time?
- Thread starter Dir Wangem
- Start date
My favourite remains the Dreamcast but, tbh, virtually every major console has had wonderful games; it's almost a shame to elevate one above all others.
My personal favorites:
1. SNES
2. PS ONE
3. PS2
Honorable mentions: N64, PS3, Mega Drive & Master System
1. SNES
2. PS ONE
3. PS2
Honorable mentions: N64, PS3, Mega Drive & Master System
It's the chronological order of PlayStations for me but 1 and 2 are tied. I grew up with them both and they're both hugely dear to me. PS1 and feeling so naughty staying up all night as a 7/8/9/10 year old playing endless hours of Gran Turismo/Tekken/ISS Pro/FIFA/Abe's Oddysee/Crash was the best but I think I spent more time playing the PS2. It really was the do it all console for me. Xbox Live was obviously impressive for that generation but my internet would never have been good enough to support online gaming so I was never bothered at the lack of it on the PS2.
PS3 and 4 I've had multiples of due to falling in and out of love with gaming and depression and various breakages so they're lower down on the list. Somehow they don't have the charm of the earlier consoles either.
Had two 360's and they were good consoles (and neither RRoD'd) but just didn't fall into the Xbox way of things, I'm AOXD until I die I guess, fanboy for life. Even when playing with friends we referred to the Xbox buttons as triangle, circle, X and square, it's just ingrained in our heads.
My first console was the Amiga and I had a GameGear too growing up as a very young child. Had tonnes and tonnes of copied floppy disks for the Amiga so it was amazing the amount of different games you could play.
Sister had a Wii as well but because I was staunchly PlayStation I never really invested much into it. Never had a Nintendo console but looking at getting a refurbed GameCube (love the controller) and N64 to play. SNES and NES are silly money now and you've got no chance of getting the new SNES because it's limited.
Similarly thinking about a Dreamcast and getting the rest of the Sega consoles to try them out. Loved Sonic/Sonic 2 on the GameGear and loved Ecco the Dolphin because it came pre-installed on the first PC I ever had in the family. Crazy Taxi and Virtua Fighter are great too.
PS3 and 4 I've had multiples of due to falling in and out of love with gaming and depression and various breakages so they're lower down on the list. Somehow they don't have the charm of the earlier consoles either.
Had two 360's and they were good consoles (and neither RRoD'd) but just didn't fall into the Xbox way of things, I'm AOXD until I die I guess, fanboy for life. Even when playing with friends we referred to the Xbox buttons as triangle, circle, X and square, it's just ingrained in our heads.
My first console was the Amiga and I had a GameGear too growing up as a very young child. Had tonnes and tonnes of copied floppy disks for the Amiga so it was amazing the amount of different games you could play.
Sister had a Wii as well but because I was staunchly PlayStation I never really invested much into it. Never had a Nintendo console but looking at getting a refurbed GameCube (love the controller) and N64 to play. SNES and NES are silly money now and you've got no chance of getting the new SNES because it's limited.
Similarly thinking about a Dreamcast and getting the rest of the Sega consoles to try them out. Loved Sonic/Sonic 2 on the GameGear and loved Ecco the Dolphin because it came pre-installed on the first PC I ever had in the family. Crazy Taxi and Virtua Fighter are great too.
I still have two working N64's to this day, one Japanese 60hz with a step down converter and a UK machine. I think I've still got pretty much every single classic made for the machine. Problem is, that catalogue of games is sparse when compared to the SNES, PS2, PS1, Megadrive and makes it too much of a niche console.
Nintendo were already getting marginalised and streamlined by 3rd parties and the N64's best is a complete reflection of that with only Nintendo and Rare really supplying its ATG games, for me, and I assume quite a few others, that is costly in retrospect.
Even as far back as the mid 90's, you needed more than a Nintendo home console to have a truly varied collection of games; the consoles above it, you didn't need to buy an additional console to be 'complete' in terms of genres or overall support.
Neo Geo was far too expensive for most to consider it in a thread like this. I had one and managed to play pretty much every game I wanted to on it, but there's fonder memories of quite a few other consoles when I think about this topic.
No way! C64 was a computer, not a console! I had a few friends who learnt to code with it or used it for things other than games primarily, same goes for the Amiga. I think computers of those times would deserve an independent thread. C16, BBC Micro, Amstrad 464, Spectrum 48k, Atari ST etc; that's a huge and independent era with only the ST and Amiga overlapping once consoles truly boomed (16bit era).
I should think it's more to do with its comparatively weak catalogue of games when put up directly against its predecessor or rival machines. By the end of its cycle, it was practically abandoned by Nintendo... a trait they've took with them in the the home console market since. The SNES, PS2 and so on were still huge even at the very end of their runs. Not sure anyone can have a bad word to say about such machines whereas N64 was a bittersweet console that left owners hanging even whilst in production.That's a fair point.
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I'm surprised to not see more love for N64. Could it be because the most hardcore N64 fans are in their late twenties and therefore out drinking now?
To the other SNES fans in here: did you ever play 'Biker Mice From Mars' or 'Hook'? They're not so famous, but I enjoyed them a lot.
I think it's only saving grace then and now, is that its classics were astonishing and even to this day, most remain so.
In terms of pure joy and souvenirs, I'd go with the Playstation 2.
- Playstation — Hours and hours of different varieties. Gran Turismo 1 and 2 where I had all the licenses, special cars, and being a millionaire. Gex: Enter the Gecko, Tenchu 2, Syphon Filter 1 and 2, Tony Hawk 1 and 2, Coolboarders, and NFL Blitz were all legendary for me. Then you have classics like Crash Bandicoot, Spyro, Tekken, and Mortal Kombat. There was even a demo disc that I started out with that had great stuff: Jet Moto 2, Parappa the Rapper, Intelligence Cube, Armored Core, Cart World Series, Croc, Raystorm, Steel Reign, Treasures of the Deep, and Ace Combat 2. And I wasn't even into Metal Gear Solid or Final Fantasy.
- PS2 — Didn't play as much variety as the PS1, but Tony Hawk 3, GTA Vice City and San Andreas were legendary. My introduction into Madden (2004) was with the PS2. I know there were other games, but I can't remember what else I played for hours on end.
- Xbox360 — Halo 2 and 3. Xbox Live. Nuff said. This was probably the highlight of my high school times. Also got my introduction into FIFA. GTA4 was also legendary. Then I played other games like COD4 and COD World at War, the respective Madden and NCAA Football games, and some others I'm sure.
Dreamcast for me. Beautiful console, beautiful games.
Loved the innovations too. the VMU, the modem and so on.
Loved the innovations too. the VMU, the modem and so on.
Objectively speaking, I'd give it to SNES. I have a soft spot for the N64 though.
Atari st you philistine.
You forgot the white text.That's worse than when @Lord Megadrive said the Master System was better than the NES.
I bought more games on the PS One than any other console i've owned so it has to be that.
Its obvious that the best games console of all time was the Sega Megadrive
It changed the landscape and although the SNES was better technically I always felt it was a little soulless
Besides for all it's technical advantages the SNES couldn't make music that was a patch on this
It changed the landscape and although the SNES was better technically I always felt it was a little soulless
Besides for all it's technical advantages the SNES couldn't make music that was a patch on this
But I was right
That's worse than when @Lord Megadrive said the Master System was better than the NES.
, the NES was only as popular as it was due to Nintendos monopolistic practices that today wouldn't be allowed.This could have been one of the best consoles of all time .But the high price and lack of third party support killed it.
The Panasonic 3DO
The Panasonic 3DO
Same could be said for the Atari Jaguar and CD32This could have been one of the best consoles of all time .But lacked third party support.
The Panasonic 3DO
SNES for me.
I think it mostly comes down to the console you played growing up. Of course consoles like ps4 are great but I'm not in love with games as I was when I had SNES and PS1.
Tough choice between the SNES, N64 and the PS1 for me.
While we had an Atari and a NES, the SNES was the first console we owned where I was really old enough to enjoy it properly. So many good games but some of my favourites that I owned would be Mariokart, Mario All Stars, Castlevania, F-Zero, Street Fighter II, Ghouls n' Ghosts, Metroid, Illusion of Time.... But the one that really made me fall in love with gaming was A Link to the Past. Still my favourite to this day. I remember I used to rent a different video game every weekend too which was great!
Then I got the PS1 and N64 within about a year of each other. The PS1 was better for single player games with my favourites being Metal Gear Solid, the Resident Evil games, Driver, Gran Turismo and of course the Final Fantasy games.
But the N64 probably edges it for me. I'll never forget that feeling of waking up on Christmas morning to play Ocarina of Time for the first time. Probably the most excited I've ever been about a game, mostly due to how much I loved A Link to the Past. Some other favourites were Banjo Kazooie, Majoras Mask, Lylat Wars. But the reason it edges it is because of the amazing multiplayer games like Goldeneye, Mariokart, Mario Party and Diddy Kong racing. So much nostalgia bringing my controller around to friends houses and playing these for hours on end. We laugh now when we see videos of all the short cuts in Mariokart and we literally found every single one ourselves just from playing it endlessly . I still have my N64 but no controllers. Tempted to get some and set up a drunken N64 multiplayer night some time.
Loved the PS2 too, but others I've owned since like the Gamecube, Wii, Wii-U, PS3 and PS4 have all fallen short. I only really game on my PC now, but I feel myself losing interest for the first time. I don't know if it's because there's too much choice now, but I can't find any games that excite me and want to buy them anymore except from the odd gem like the witcher. I find myself just coming back to heartstone every time now
While we had an Atari and a NES, the SNES was the first console we owned where I was really old enough to enjoy it properly. So many good games but some of my favourites that I owned would be Mariokart, Mario All Stars, Castlevania, F-Zero, Street Fighter II, Ghouls n' Ghosts, Metroid, Illusion of Time.... But the one that really made me fall in love with gaming was A Link to the Past. Still my favourite to this day
. I remember I used to rent a different video game every weekend too which was great!Then I got the PS1 and N64 within about a year of each other. The PS1 was better for single player games with my favourites being Metal Gear Solid, the Resident Evil games, Driver, Gran Turismo and of course the Final Fantasy games.
But the N64 probably edges it for me. I'll never forget that feeling of waking up on Christmas morning to play Ocarina of Time for the first time
. Probably the most excited I've ever been about a game, mostly due to how much I loved A Link to the Past. Some other favourites were Banjo Kazooie, Majoras Mask, Lylat Wars. But the reason it edges it is because of the amazing multiplayer games like Goldeneye, Mariokart, Mario Party and Diddy Kong racing. So much nostalgia bringing my controller around to friends houses and playing these for hours on end. We laugh now when we see videos of all the short cuts in Mariokart and we literally found every single one ourselves just from playing it endlessly . I still have my N64 but no controllers. Tempted to get some and set up a drunken N64 multiplayer night some time.Loved the PS2 too, but others I've owned since like the Gamecube, Wii, Wii-U, PS3 and PS4 have all fallen short. I only really game on my PC now, but I feel myself losing interest for the first time
. I don't know if it's because there's too much choice now, but I can't find any games that excite me and want to buy them anymore except from the odd gem like the witcher. I find myself just coming back to heartstone every time nowNah, it was the games. Far, far better on the NES than Master System.But I was right
'Weak catalouge' as in few games or weak games?
If it's the former:
Having a shit-ton of games for your console is overrated. Sure, you need a certain amount of games to satisfy your customers, but let's be real: during the lifespan of a console, how many different games will you try for more than 1 hour, even if you are a so-called "hardcore gamer"? I doubt it's much more than 50. Definitely not more than 100. And out of that amount, you probably only got invested in 20 of them. Probably 90% of the games you invested considerable time in were big titles that spread through advertisement and word of mouth. I get that it's fun to explore hidden gems(i.e. roms) nowadays to see what you missed out on, but back then you probably didn't get to fully enjoy 95% of the games, and thus it becomes an "overkill" aspect. Also, it's not like N64 didn't have variety! They launched 50-60 new games per year. To me, that's more than enough if the games are good.
If it's the latter:
This point is always gonna be wildly subjective, but I think the N64 had the better games. It's a fairly close call when it comes to single-player games, but when it comes to multiplayer and party games, the N64 completely wipes the floor with any other console from that generation. The games were also revolutionary in the sense that they set the standard for future gaming. Goldeneye revolutionized FPS, OOT revolutionizied the adventure genre and invented Z-targeting, Mario Party revolutionized party games(and ruined friendships) and Super Smash Brothers created a whole new fighting game genre. Today, 2 of the 3 most spectated games in the fighting game community are SSB games. The platform games were also the best of its generation(Mario 64, DK 64, Concker, Banjo etc).
I like the PS1, but a big library and a sweet controller doesn't beat superior graphics, performance and revolutionary multiplayer games with 4-player support. I feel that the only way you can claim that the PS1 is better, is if you think the top 20-30 games are better than the top 20-30 games on the N64. But again: that's subjective. However, I do think the N64 exclusives were more revolutionary than the PS1 exclusives.
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Which games in particular do you allude to? I've always played FIFA and fighting games, so having local offline play is always going to be a big part of these games. The online elements have added a new dimension.
A (boring) warning from history: I once had an Xbox Live Unreal Championship match against a player I considered to be quite talented (whereas I'm a hopeless game-player). I was doing really well, and won the first game(!) despite being distracted by shuffling noises from the opponent's side. Eventually a voice came through: "Sorry about that - got caught short, and my sister had to take over. Back now"; he went on to win the deciding games twenty-nil each. Doh.
Jeez, what are you smoking? I made better music than that on my Casio keyboard from 1986
Funny you said that. I'm in my late twenties (as late as possible before saying goodbye to that period of my life in a couple of monthsThat's a fair point.
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I'm surprised to not see more love for N64. Could it be because the most hardcore N64 fans are in their late twenties and therefore out drinking now?
To the other SNES fans in here: did you ever play 'Biker Mice From Mars' or 'Hook'? They're not so famous, but I enjoyed them a lot.
) and I'd just posted in favour of the PS1 before leaving and going out to get pissed. Another thing I liked about the PS1: build quality. I can't remember how many times I accidentally pulled that thing to the ground (controller wires didn't snap out easily so a wrong move dragged the entire thing with it), causing the cd cover to flap open and spill the disk to the ground. Yet I still have the original thing in perfect working condition, god knows how many years later. I've wore out a couple of PS2, and three Xbox360's and PS3's each. Currently on my first PS4 but I'm pretty sure it won't last. That original Playstation was like the Nokia 3310 of consoles.
@Maxii
Your gaming background is eerily similar to mine. I had fewer games and consoles, but I always had close friends who purchased the other consoles in the generation so I didnt miss out on that much. I also switched to PC a bit earlier than you(but I purchased a Wii U last year, so I'm playing that a lot now).
Waiting to get Zelda games for Christmas is probably one of my best childhood memories. Nothing can ever top that anticipation
Your gaming background is eerily similar to mine. I had fewer games and consoles, but I always had close friends who purchased the other consoles in the generation so I didnt miss out on that much. I also switched to PC a bit earlier than you(but I purchased a Wii U last year, so I'm playing that a lot now).
Waiting to get Zelda games for Christmas is probably one of my best childhood memories. Nothing can ever top that anticipation
Yeah. But Atari's bold claim of being the first 64bit console ,when it clearly wasn't and the mediocre games (apart from Tempest) never helped.
PS2 or N64
Ok..Jeez, what are you smoking? I made better music than that on my Casio keyboard from 1986
Or
Compared to
And
I've picked comparable games... honest
The Megadrive may have had slightly better music hardware but there was some cracking soundtracks to some SNES games.I've picked comparable games... honest
Listen to this video in it's entirety (no skipping) and get back to me...
Now if they'd only stop delaying the release of Breath of the Wild...@Maxii
Your gaming background is eerily similar to mine. I had fewer games and consoles, but I always had close friends who purchased the other consoles in the generation so I didnt miss out on that much. I also switched to PC a bit earlier than you(but I purchased a Wii U last year, so I'm playing that a lot now).
Waiting to get Zelda games for Christmas is probably one of my best childhood memories. Nothing can ever top that anticipation
Tempted to buy all these old consoles and form a proper judgement.
A lot of it comes down to context and who you were brought up with and what your friends had as well.
I've owned all the play stations and megadrive and Xbox 360. Played on mates N64 and Dreamcast.
You're automatically more attached to the consoles you were brought up on but in hindsight you think feck I have missed out on so many good games by being loyal to one console.
I was checking out Zelda the other day and thinking bloody hell if I wanted to design my perfect video game that would be pretty close and yet I have never even played it.
Before I embark on researching this question in more depth my contribution will be that where the PlayStation has been King is convenience and how seamless the experience is that it provides. Varied array of titles, easy to connect to online and strong replay ability PS2 one wards.. PS1 has no replay ability as the graphics look dire now and even though I still have it I much prefer to use megadrive when I want a retro session. Sonic 2 and Streets of Rage still hold their own but as an overall console PS1 for its time would leave it in the dust.
A lot of it comes down to context and who you were brought up with and what your friends had as well.
I've owned all the play stations and megadrive and Xbox 360. Played on mates N64 and Dreamcast.
You're automatically more attached to the consoles you were brought up on but in hindsight you think feck I have missed out on so many good games by being loyal to one console.
I was checking out Zelda the other day and thinking bloody hell if I wanted to design my perfect video game that would be pretty close and yet I have never even played it.
Before I embark on researching this question in more depth my contribution will be that where the PlayStation has been King is convenience and how seamless the experience is that it provides. Varied array of titles, easy to connect to online and strong replay ability PS2 one wards.. PS1 has no replay ability as the graphics look dire now and even though I still have it I much prefer to use megadrive when I want a retro session. Sonic 2 and Streets of Rage still hold their own but as an overall console PS1 for its time would leave it in the dust.
I see where you're coming from, but speaking from 1st hand experience of that entire era, and all the consoles I had and what would get played by and large, there are issues to contend with regarding the N64 that the other machines simply didn't have.
OOT, Majora's Mask, Jet Force Gemini, Conker, Perfect Dark, Goldeneye, MK64, SM64, ISS - I think any or all of those would be in most/all top 10's people would put up for the console, but after them? The quality across the rest of the machine's run don't hold up, do they?
Those games were huge and all cost me many an hour, but there's no way that's enough when other consoles were getting their own unique run of games plus 3rd party exclusives.
The N64 had no proper: fighting games (K.I alone doesn't cut it); racing games (Gran Turismo and the like were picking up on other consoles) arcade ports (as a whole) and was falling short after its few truly tremendous games lost steam in the face of so much change. This was at a time when those three genres were huge selling points... and then came P.E.S. which is where the machine was truly left behind for me.
Nintendo's nonchalance was odd, given how the SNES was the absolute opposite in terms of support - it had something for everyone, probably the biggest 3rd party coup of all time (SFII) and was still choc-a-bloc with in-house brilliance that was 'merely' followed up on the N64 - brilliantly, mind, but still just continuations. If it wasn't for Rare, the console would look incredibly thin, don't you think?
The Dreamcast was also a kick in the teeth for the console as a whole.
Quantity over quality is one thing, but the N64 got to a point where its lack of support at the top end felt like a piss-take.
I'm going to not read all these long analytical posts and tell you it's a toss up between the N64 and Megadrive and if you disagree you're wrong.
The SNES was miles better than the Megadrive, and I say that as someone who had a Megadrive as a kid. I always used to look forward to going to mates' houses if they had a SNES. Everything from the games to the controller was superior.
I think games improve every gen to be honest and I've played very gen since the nes and mastersystem
So I think the current gen is the best
But for nostalgia reasons I would go for the SNES
So I think the current gen is the best
But for nostalgia reasons I would go for the SNES
Megadrive had Kings Bounty. The only game i've never completed despite many, many, many hours of sheer agony.