Ahead of its time...

[SeanXTC]

And destined to fail!

 

Today I have been photographing some of my computer collection, which got me thinking... How come these great systems failed. Atari Lynx is one of the first that springs into mind. Colour screen, backlit and yet the gameboy won the war.

 

As I am sure you are all aware there's many more systems like this that were better than the rival but just failed to make the sales.

 

Jaguar yet another one, the rivals were 32 bit while this system was a 64 bit no less!

 

Sega dreamcast with online play (though I am sure being able to easily play copied games was one of its downfalls).

 

The Phillips CDI was another revolutionary beast, again a failure.

 

The list goes on... The way I see it is that most good things ahead of their time are set to flop... I wonder where we would be today in terms of technology if it was the other way around.

 

On a final note to my rant; anyone seen the Amiga Joyboard for the Atari systems? I am sure you will have! That thing is soooo Wii fit from the 80's (though not as technical), I wonder how many were officially sold? I bet it wasn't alot.

[cimerians]

And destined to fail!

 

Today I have been photographing some of my computer collection, which got me thinking... How come these great systems failed. Atari Lynx is one of the first that springs into mind. Colour screen, backlit and yet the gameboy won the war.

 

As I am sure you are all aware there's many more systems like this that were better than the rival but just failed to make the sales.

 

Jaguar yet another one, the rivals were 32 bit while this system was a 64 bit no less!

 

Sega dreamcast with online play (though I am sure being able to easily play copied games was one of its downfalls).

 

The Phillips CDI was another revolutionary beast, again a failure.

 

The list goes on... The way I see it is that most good things ahead of their time are set to flop... I wonder where we would be today in terms of technology if it was the other way around.

 

On a final note to my rant; anyone seen the Amiga Joyboard for the Atari systems? I am sure you will have! That thing is soooo Wii fit from the 80's (though not as technical), I wonder how many were officially sold? I bet it wasn't alot.

 

 

So many things are involved but I think it has to do mainly with the systems software library, money and user install base. In other words, the majority of people have a Gameboy cause they see everyone on the train playing Tetris and only a handful of them know that a Lynx exists. Then only a small fraction of the handful of those people actually buy the Lynx and then some of them or even the former people go and buy a Game Gear instead.

 

Couple that with no internet to spread the word like we have today.

 

Speaking of internet, when the Dreamcast came out most people were still on dial up so the online play was NOT a selling point for the Dreamcast.

 

There are so many reasons but the main thing to remember is just because systems failed to sell doesnt mean the systems were bad. Maybe they were ahead of their time but unfortunately it takes a while for the general masses to keep up or realize that something is good.

[mbd30]

Jaguar and CDI failed because (by all accounts) they lacked good games. Jaguar was also an "in-between" system, perhaps more advanced than the SNES but a joke compared to the real next generation of consoles... PSX, N64, etc.

[mbd30]

Another "ahead of its time" console that failed, the Bally Astrocade... http://www.videogamecritic.net/astroaz.htm

[fiddlepaddle]

No Tetris. Case closed.

[Pyromaniac605]

No Tetris. Case closed.

Yes. Can someone please close this thread it is now useless.

 

-Darren-

[STICH666]

Dreamcast. I mean WTF. Great library, powerful enough to compete with it's rivals and an awesome controller. All that thrown away because some dipshits wanted a DVD player.

[Austin]

You can tack the 3DO on that list (especially if the CD-i is on there ), as well as the Turbo Grafx and Turbo DUO, and virtually every other failed system during the '80s and '90s (asides from the Game.Com ).

 

Dreamcast. I mean WTF. Great library, powerful enough to compete with it's rivals and an awesome controller. All that thrown away because some dipshits wanted a DVD player.

 

Agreed entirely, 100%. One of the saddest moments in gaming history, for sure..

Edited March 12, 2010 by Austin

[mbd30]

Dreamcast. I mean WTF. Great library, powerful enough to compete with it's rivals and an awesome controller. All that thrown away because some dipshits wanted a DVD player.

 

How much did piracy have to do with the death of the Dreamcast?

 

My own experience with the Dreamcast was mixed. Of the games I owned, I enjoyed "Sonic Adventure", "Virtua Tennis", "Soul Calibur" and "Crazy Taxi". I didn't care for "Jet Grind Radio". "Daytona" was a colossal disappointment with abominable controls. "Hyrdro Thunder", meh... a flawless port, but the kind of game that is better in small doses in arcade form.

 

I later sold it. Now I kinda wish I'd kept it along with all the other consoles I'd gotten rid of over the years. The CD mechanism probably would have broke by now anyway.

[SeanXTC]

and then some of them or even the former people go and buy a Game Gear instead

 

Made me chuckle that, but true!

 

I must also admit I bought the Dreamcast in the last 7 years

 

And I must also say I was one of the people who followed the masses... but in recent years I realized the error of my ways and colleted the Lynx, Jaguar and Dreamcast...

 

I understand the Jaguar didn't have the impressive libary other consoles had, but it could have so very easily been different.

 

The games for the CDI were very sketchy, coupled with a strange controller But I would like to add one to my collection at some point in the future, with all the Zelda collection (have you seen the price of some of those Zelda games!?!?!)... even though they were no "Link To The Past".

 

And finaly on to tetris... I am sure that matching blocks up to fit in and make a row vanish was around before Gameboy... I may be wrong?

[nester]

Yeah it's not too difficult to see why systems fail, especially back in the early to mid 90s when there would be almost a dozen on the market at once. Many of the systems we love today did not look as good when they were actually out. The Lynx seems like a pretty cool system today, but it is also huge. I doubt that many people who play it today take it on the bus with them or anything like that. If you were looking for portability then Game Boy was the obvious choice.

 

The only thing that surprised me about Dreamcast's demise was that it happened so quickly. I figured they would stick around for a couple more years. I still think it's a little overrated by collectors today. It doesn't seem like there were that many good DC exclusives and the controller really turned people off. I don't remember people saying many good things about it when it was actually out. Now that it's long gone people are in love with the thing. So I guess it all depends on how you look at things.

[+save2600]

Dreamcast. I mean WTF. Great library, powerful enough to compete with it's rivals and an awesome controller. All that thrown away because some dipshits wanted a DVD player.

My impression has always been that Sega pulled the plug too early on this machine. For no good reason I mean. Seemed like a really popular console to me and my friends/family too.

 

Had it been as simple as consumers wanting a DVD machine, Sega could have kept up - but their decision to leave the hardware market, I suspect, was made long before that market poll was taken. Personally, I wouldn't be surprised if Micro$oft somehow tainted the whole Dreamcast deal lol

 

 

[Chris Leach]

One day too this shall pass! PSPgo right out the window, just like the Yugo? Remember those?

 

 

[+save2600]

Speaking of internet, when the Dreamcast came out most people were still on dial up so the online play was NOT a selling point for the Dreamcast.

I'd disagree w/ this statement (unless you're talking about the mainstream's acceptance of the internet thanks to hi-speed). But the internet is the internet, regardless of your connection to it. Think WebTV. Mid-Late 90's were a great time for online gaming and surfing in general (much better experience than it is today, even with "hi-speed"). Saturn was even well setup for it. I logged countless hours playing Duke Nuke'm on that thing - dial up of course. No, Sega was on the ball with those concepts for sure before they handed all of their great ideas over to Micro$soft for play by Joe Sixpack and XBox.

Edited March 12, 2010 by save2600

[STICH666]

Speaking of internet, when the Dreamcast came out most people were still on dial up so the online play was NOT a selling point for the Dreamcast.

I'd disagree w/ this statement (unless you're talking about the mainstream's acceptance of the internet thanks to hi-speed). But the internet is the internet, regardless of your connection to it. Think WebTV. Mid-Late 90's were a great time for online gaming and surfing in general (much better experience than it is today, even with "hi-speed"). Saturn was even well setup for it. I logged countless hours playing Duke Nuke'm on that thing - dial up of course. No, Sega was on the ball with those concepts for sure before they handed all of their great ideas over to Micro$soft for play by Joe Sixpack and XBox.

I saw one of these boxes in a thrift shop and I still don't know what it is. Can you explain a little.

[+save2600]

I saw one of these boxes in a thrift shop and I still don't know what it is. Can you explain a little.

WebTV was a set top box by Philips/Magnavox and came with an infrared keyboard. Hooked to your phone line and television to provide internet access. I used to sell them at Sears. They were great devices, but even back then, I was afraid of what would happen to the internet if too many mainstream dummies hopped online. And I was right Oy what a mess it is now. Still waiting for the internet to crash... lol Maybe 2012?

Edited March 12, 2010 by save2600

[StoneAgeGamer]

Online was not a selling point of the Dreamcast? PSO anyone? I spent many hours online with that game. Not too mention the many 2K titles. The amazing thing about the Dreamcast is that it actually did online pretty well for only 56K out of the box. There were very few times when lag was so bad it made games unplayable for me.

 

The reason the DC doesn't have many exclusives anymore is because when Sega decided to become 3rd party the first thing they did was port over many of their Dreamcast hit games to other systems.

 

The Dreamcast was a pretty successful system for its short life span. The problem was the Dreamcast needed to be much more successful than it was to keep Sega afloat. If Sega wasn't already bleeding money like crazy before it even released the Dreamcast then the Dreamcast would have probably sold well enough for Sega to consider another system, it would have possibly come in 3rd ahead of the Gamecube in last generation when all said and done. The Dreamcast paid for the failures of the 32X and Saturn, not too mention Sega's many other mistakes as a company before that point. Of course the PS2 hype train didn't help sales either.

Edited March 12, 2010 by StoneAgeGamer

[Shawn]

The Dreamcast paid for the failures of the 32X and Saturn, not too mention Sega's many other mistakes as a company before that point. Of course the PS2 hype train didn't help sales either.

 

Yep, the DC paying for sins of the father (Saturn, 32x) hurt alot. Add the ease of piracy of DC games for those that actually bought the machine and the huge pop the PS2 was getting months before it was even a reality totally doomed the DC in North America. It' still one of my alltime favorite machines none the less.

[Austin]

Speaking of internet, when the Dreamcast came out most people were still on dial up so the online play was NOT a selling point for the Dreamcast.

 

Well, dial-up was still the standard back then, even in 2000. You were very "priviledged" if you had high-speed back then, so I highly doubt it wasn't a selling point, at least a minor one, anyway, considering the modem came with it for free.

 

Admittedly, I bought mine on launch, so I got it for the single-player (and same-console multiplayer titles).. The online connectivity was in the back of my mind. However, I ended up spending most of my time with the online stuff when it officially launched in full-force.. Quake III, Unreal Tournament.. ah, good times, especially since my PC back then couldn't run either game at full-speed. The Dreamcast versions were excellent alternatives, and judging by how many people were constantly logged into those games, I'd say the online component most-likely had a positive influence on peoples' system purchases (Not to mention other more popular titles like PSO). The DC really had it right back then, paved the way for the future..

Edited March 13, 2010 by Austin

[johnny_boy]

I feel the Dreamcast lacked a "killer app". Sonic Adventure was supposed to fill this role, but instead they made a nice looking tech demo (especially the whale chasing part.) I still can't find a decent game in there somewhere.

 

The console had tons of quality games for a handful of somewhat niche markets, but no head-turning titles.

[Kripto]

"Hyrdro Thunder", meh... a flawless port, but the kind of game that is better in small doses in arcade form.

 

Be still your tongue! I am a recovering Hydro Thunder addict and can honestly say it got the most play time on my Dreamcast when my use of the system was at its height. The real fun comes from having a friend or two to compete with on times against, or in the two player mode.

 

I also love the unofficial arcade sequel H2Overdrive!

 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zfq6--2nd3o&feature=related

[mbd30]

"Hyrdro Thunder", meh... a flawless port, but the kind of game that is better in small doses in arcade form.

The real fun comes from having a friend or two to compete with on times against, or in the two player mode.

 

That might be so. I've only played the game one player.

[godslabrat]

I hesitate to say "ahead of its time", because failed systems might excel in one area, but come up very short in another. The winning system simply had the advantage THAT MATTERED at that point in history.

 

Today I have been photographing some of my computer collection, which got me thinking... How come these great systems failed. Atari Lynx is one of the first that springs into mind. Colour screen, backlit and yet the gameboy won the war.

 

Great example. The Lynx had a better display than the Gameboy, but what would have sold a portable in 1989 would be low cost and battery life-- both of which the Gameboy mastered.

 

Jaguar yet another one, the rivals were 32 bit while this system was a 64 bit no less!

 

Bit count never really amounted to much, we all know it meant more to the marketing team than it did to the engineers. The Jag, as someone else said, was an in-between system. It was ahead of the Genesis and SNES, albeit with a terribly retro controller. However, it couldn't compete against the Saturn or PSX in terms of specs.

 

 

The Phillips CDI was another revolutionary beast, again a failure

 

Using optical discs was a neat idea in the early 90s, but the CDI (and to a lesser extent, 3do) put way too much effort into NOT being game systems. At the end of the day, the CDI wanted to be a home PC, so the game market left it behind.

[Rev. Rob]

 

 

Today I have been photographing some of my computer collection, which got me thinking... How come these great systems failed. Atari Lynx is one of the first that springs into mind. Colour screen, backlit and yet the gameboy won the war.

 

Game Boy wasn't its only rival. NEC's Turbo Express and Sega's Game Gear were also on the market, and left Lynx in a distant 4th place.

 

Jaguar yet another one, the rivals were 32 bit while this system was a 64 bit no less!

 

The "64 bit" part cracks me up. And its rivals weren't 32-bit, they were 16-bit. Genesis and SNES throughly routed the Jaguar. It was poorly supported, poorly design, and has a pretty spartan game library. I'm not sure the Jaguar was ever a good idea.

 

The Phillips CDI was another revolutionary beast, again a failure.

 

Revolutionary? A beast? Have you played one? It's a joke, not much more than a curiosity.

 

Of the consoles you mentioned, none of them stood a chance with the exception of Dreamcast. I wouldn't even call Jaguar or CD-i good. Yeah, I know I'm on an Atari forum so I understand that there are Jag fans here, but is anyone a CD-i fan?

[Rev. Rob]

I feel the Dreamcast lacked a "killer app".

 

 

• Soul Calibur
  
• Sonic Adventure
  
• Grandia II
  
• Skies of Arcadia
  
• Shenmue
  
• Resident Evil: Code Veronica
  
• Jet Grind Radio
  
• Phantasy Star Online
  
• Dead or Alive 2
  
• Crazy Taxi