Most UNDER-RATED Console of all time...

[Krooze L-Roy]

I've always thought the Sega CD gets unfairly grouped with stuff like the 3DO, CDi or even it's little bro, the 32X. The CD had some terrific titles, and even some of the FMV games were great. Just because it was a failure as a business decision doesn't mean it was a failure as a platform.

[andythebadass]

i would say the best console that was considerably under rated (with time) and that prematurely ended would have to be the dreamcast. no other platforms had such potential and shined so bright for such a brief period of time. it had such amazingly creative support from 3rd party developers (shenmue, chu chu rocket, powerstone, samba de amigo and countless more)... it had such a good launch i dont think anyone would have seen it coming.... sad stuff to say the least.


the only strange negative thing i can say about the dreamcast is this.... the ps2 basically did the dreamcast in.... and the ps2 is still going with new game releases and it even sold more units that the ps3 this past december.... is there anyone who thinks the dreamcast could have stuck around that long or done that well??? i dont...

[Chrono]

Surely it's the gamecube? Everyone calls it a failure but it had great games, yet no massive underground following (Dreamcast style)

[Limewater]

The Master System had great potential just Sega didn't market it properly. It was way more powerful than the NES, looked way cooler, and had 3D glasses! Most kids never even heard of Sega's 8 bit machine. Golden Axe Warrior was a great game for that system.

I really don't understand the Master System's success in Europe. I have one with about 15-20 games, and only a couple seemed really good, like R-Type and Kenseiden.

Where are the fun Master System games? I tried one of the SMS emulators on the Dreamcast, and I found some really beautiful-looking games, but none really seemed particularly fun.

[fox099]

honestly, the original xbox may be the most under-rated. it can be modded, has tremendous power, some great games, but as soon as microsoft discontinued it, it was thrown to the wayside. its not retro, but it is certainly extremely capable, well selling, and totally forgotten.

[DCsegaDH]

It has to be Neo Geo system,it had arcade graphics and they made games for it until 2006,I believe.I like to say Saturn or Dreamcast also because of the great games that most people never played,it's either one of those systems.The Gamecube is really underated also and it had beautiful graphics and unique games.

[corn619]

The Master System had great potential just Sega didn't market it properly. It was way more powerful than the NES, looked way cooler, and had 3D glasses! Most kids never even heard of Sega's 8 bit machine. Golden Axe Warrior was a great game for that system.

I really don't understand the Master System's success in Europe. I have one with about 15-20 games, and only a couple seemed really good, like R-Type and Kenseiden.

Where are the fun Master System games? I tried one of the SMS emulators on the Dreamcast, and I found some really beautiful-looking games, but none really seemed particularly fun.

Developers never really pushed the Master System to the max and its sad. It had every hardware advantage over the NES but never overcame it. It has some awesome games you have to look really hard. Golden Axe Warrior, Master of Darkness, Ninja Gaiden, Cloud Master, Wonderboy Series, Alex Kidd, Phantasy Star I, Fantasy Zone all really good, try them. I know theres more I can't remember.

[crux]

I think we're tripping over semantics in this topic. What we should be looking at is not only the popularity of consoles, but the general opinion of the masses of a console versus those with intimate experience with the same console. Only then can we come up with an evaluation of whether something is underrated versus simply unpopular, as popularity is as much a consequence of market circumstances than it is of public opinion.

Sega Saturn was certainly never popular in America and as such a lot of people regard that generation of consoles as a failure for Sega. On the other hand, Saturn is well received regardless of its population by those that took the time to embrace it. If we're to look at the overall opinion of the Sega Saturn, by just looking at those familiar with gaming in the mid 1990's, I think we'd assuredly see that the Sega Saturn is not well regarded by the masses. In that sense, when comparing the opinion of the masses with the opinion of those who gave the Sega Saturn a chance, it's hard to deny that it's one of the most underrated consoles. We're talking about a console that ranks among many gamers favorite systems, yet was almost completely disregarded by the average gamer of the time. That's a pretty large disparity in opinion. I think the fact that the system did so well in Japan yet not in America is a testament to the treatment of Sega Saturn in America (and though Sega of America deserves much of the blame, that deficit still had a major impact on public opinion).

I have trouble calling Neo Geo underrated, as in terms of longevity it outlasted even SNES and Genesis. The console officially lasted for fourteen fucking years. That doesn't count postmortem releases either (Last Hope was released two years after SNK abandoned the system). It did have a niche market which pushed it into a cult status among gamers, but that's because it had a high entry price and had a robust library of arcade titles which were lost in the approach to 3D gaming in the coming generations. Unpopular by mere conception, sure, but not necessarily underrated. Most people of the time had no idea it even existed and thus consequently could not have an opinion on it (and compare that to Saturn, where most knew of its existence but avoided it).

I also have trouble seeing the Dreamcast as underrated. It didn't achieve the success it deserved, sure, but that was largely due not to a lack of appreciation but to Sega's financial blunders of the past with Sega CD, 32X and Sega Saturn. The Dreamcast was practically doomed from the beginning, lest a financial miracle were to occur (which was impossible when faced against a behemoth like Sony). That didn't stop Dreamcast from performing very admirably when Sega was still supporting it and it still today continues to have a growing cult status like its predecessor. Today's gamers may not appreciate what the Dreamcast did (which is supported by how many people forget that Dreamcast was apart of the last generation), but I like to think of that as ignorance. I like to think that the Dreamcast is well remembered by those that were gaming in 1999, but I could be biased.

Oh, and Virtual Boy certainly is NOT underrated. It's looked at exactly as it should be - a failed idea with a VERY short life span. That a very small number of good games existed for it doesn't change that.

[kingdomheights777]

the dreamcast most definately

[t0yrobo]

I think the one mention of the original xbox list makes it deserving of the most under rated spot. It had a pretty good share of great games beyond having the best version of multiplatform games. It had good online even though all anyone ever played was halo (can still play now with modded boxes), and with all that can be done with modding them they have a incredible amount of uses and lifespan. I really love my DC and Saturn, but I use my xbox nearly every day be it for games, movies, or music. The other thing I like about it, is that while it was pretty mainstream, there aren't hundereds of shit games to wade through in order to find the good ones.