Breetai wrote:I guess if I had to choose, I'd go with the Famicom over the NES.
Aw, we're not going for region-free here?
Let's see, not counting the PC/Apple/Commodore/Amiga systems, emulation (no GP32, bleem!cast, etc.) -- and what the heck, I'm going region free here (because I'm too lazy to research which region had which exclusives.)
--. ZX Spectrum
Here's a console most people tend to forget. I know of Sinclair's system for its bevy of adventure games and puzzlers: The Great Escape, Atic Atac, Gunfight, Dizzy's Adventures, and Where Time Stood Still. Great-looking arcade ports like Deathchase, R-Type, and Tempest. Some of the earliest PC ports like SimCity, Archon, and Lemmings. Exclusives Manic Miner and Chaos. And even though they look like Virtual Boy games, check out the psuedo-parallax in Decathalon and Thundercats! (Pumps arms in victory.)
--. Mega Drive/SegaCD/32XJust for honorable mention (could have sworn I saw an image where they had the model 1 SegaCD) -- the most convoluted set-up for a console with add-ons that I had ever seen (including the GameCube tilt-n-tumble) shouldn't take away from what the system(s) had to offer. From Sonic to Vectorman to Phantasy Star to Kolibri to Panorama Cotton, the SEGA! era showed just how much the Genesis did. (And lets not forget the SMS card adapter.)
10. Neo Geo Pocket Color
A footnote to my personal top-10. I still think the TurboGrafix Express with its TG16 library was the most powerful (and expensive) competitor to the GameBoy, the Wonderswan with its economic and ergonomic design was the most innovative, and the Game Gear with its SMS converter and TV adapter was the most successful (and the southpaw-friendly LYNX has tons of homebrew right now). But the Neo Geo Pocket had the most class. SNK pretty much made 90% of its library, which means unlike most consoles, the NGPC had a library that was 90% cream rather than crap. The NGPC was light, responsive (thanks in no short part to the click-stick), and had its own plethora of 1P and 2P games. Biomotor, Faselei!, Neo Poke-kun, SNK vs Capcom... The only two things the system lacks were a backlight and more players.
9. ATARI 2600 
For being the original arcade home machine and a piece of gaming history. The library of good games for this console is rather small. Some of the more notable ones: Montezuma's Revenge, HERO, Swordquest, and Pitfall were great adventure titles -- Battlezone, Pole Position, Berserk, Solar Fox, Missile Command, Demon Fight and Warlord were great arcade titles. You could play 1-4 player games with the nifty one-button joystick and have a grand time.
8. PS2
I don't own the console, but I have to admit it has one of the largest and most diverse libraries ever. Backwards compatible (almost flawlessly) with the original PSx, thanks in part to how small and cheap the original hardware became, it made its way into homes as a DVD player and made its way into gamers' hearts as a DDR machine. Seriously though, no matter how much I rag on the controller, the DVD remote, the vertical stand, how early AC adapters blew up, many companies made many games for the black monolith; many of which were just great (Ape Escape 2, Ico, Katmari Damacy, Disgaea, and that's not even entering the PS1 library).
6. XBox 360
This is where the Xbox Live took off. The fact that it's emulating classics (akin to the Wii's Virtual Console), it's got a strong indie scene, and it doesn't hurt that its stupid controller (Kinect) is better than the other stupid controllers out there (though I still prefer the GC WaveBird over the 360's) -- it also has
Steel Battalion.
5. SNES
Let's be honest. This is probably what our systems look like and we don't care. Ditching multi-channel synthesizers Nintendo commissioned SONY to create a wavetable soundfont generator for the console and that created dozens of audible memories for gamers everywhere. Paired up with vibrant and colorful games, the SNES has such a rich library of games from across the globe. Terranigma, Umihara Kawase, Super Metroid, Super Mario, F-Zero, Chrono Trigger, Earthbound... and that's not including authentic-looking arcade ports like Street Fighter II or TMNT IV. Be it the ergonomic controller (with shoulder triggers!), mouse, or giant bazooka of a light-gun, the SNES still provides top-quality games to the masses from vintage games to fan-translations that we can plug in our nigh-indestructible console. (Seriously, saw a friend swat his off the TV 6'+ clear across the room yanking the cables out. We plugged it back in and restarted the game.)
4. Dreamcast
It was hard notching this at #4. I actually wanted to put it up higher. It was the birthplace of an online community for consoles. It had its own web browser, supported broadband before broadband became popular, supported 480p output before HD became popular, continued the push for 4-controller ports, had 3rd party VCD and MP3 software that were perfectly legal... but for every great Dreamcast game (Skies of Arcadia, Alienfront Online, Dead or Alive, Marvel vs Capcom 2, Space Channel 5, Typing of the Dead, Grandia II, Samba de Amigo, Jet Grind Radio, Project Justice w/board game, Phantasy Star Online, Soul Calibur, Virtua Tennis, Crazy Taxi, Power Stone 2, ChuChu Rocket, BANGAI-O, 2K Sports...) this just wasn't SEGA's future. And that's just another reason to turn to #3.
3. Saturn
I feel like I'm watching the SEGA Fantasy credits right now.
Explore everything in Magic Knights Rayearth. Watch huge armies clash across the open field in Dragon Force. Embark on an epic 3.5-disk quest against darkness from the viewpoints of three different princes. Fly around a dazzling 3D world throwing fat singers through walls in NiGHTs. Learn lessons in love as you fight for steampunk Japan in Sakura Taisen. Go against 9 others in the ultimate in Bomberman mayhem. Fight with 5 other friends in Guardian Heroes, the world's first 6-player head-to-head fighting game. Show off your tag-team skills in Firepro: Six Man Scramble. Enter the exciting world of Marvel Super Heroes vs Street Fighter. Give evil Raccoons the finger in Keio 2
(seriously). And if you can afford it, the cinematic Panzer Dragoon Saga. Even without hardware revisions, like the HiSaturn or the VCDcard, there were more reasons the Saturn was
just cool.
2. NES
No matter what form you know the system, you will love the system. You want a giant GTA world? Play River City Ransom. You like Smash Bros.? Import Nekketsu Kakutou Densetsu. You think you're a hardcore TATE SHMUP fan? Find Summer Carnival '92 Recca. You want a never-ending RPG? Translate Metal Max. Whatever taste you have, there is an 8-bit equivalence. No exceptions.
1. GBSP
How fitting that my list is bookended by portables -- gaming is truly boundless! When your entire library spans nearly
two decades (4/1989 JP-2/2008 US), you get to sit on top of the throne. Having the best of multiple generations -- back-light, slimmer form, built-in battery, link-cables, WiFi units, TV-episodes-on-a-cart, cameras, printers, etc. -- the GameBoy Advance SP has a lot to brag about (even if Tilt-n-Tumble still doesn't work and there needs to be an AC/Audio adapter). The sheer amount of games available trumps most home consoles, and that's why I believe the SP rules the roost over game consoles.
My scheduling skills have died of dysentery; I hope to visit at least on a monthly basis.
Still, don't forget to tip your waitress.
)
