Bad Consoles

Video games have come a long way and the industry has seen some fantastic systems and some amazing technologies, but for every NES there is an Atari Jaguar waiting in the wings and in this essay I will go over some of the worst consoles in video game history. We will begin with a system that many people do not remember, and for good reason. The Atari 5200 was the follow up to Atari’s successful Atari 2600, the 5200 was meant to replace the 2600 just like the Xbox 360 is meant to replace the Xbox. The 5200 suffered from a number of difficulties but the most prominent was the controller malfunctions. The Atari’s controller was notorious for not working and it also suffered from the problem of using a numeric keypad which just doesn’t work well for video games. Another problem was the size, it was large enough that there was a compartment that was supposed to be used for holding the controllers. The 5200 didn’t have the games or the support that the 2600 had because of the untimely crash of 1983 that left Atari in shambles. While the 5200 did not do well it was not nearly as bad as some of the failures that followed it.
In the early 1990’s Sega and Nintendo were vying for the top spot in the video game industry and out of the rush to “one-up” the competition, Sega created a CD based attachment for their Sega Genesis/Megadrive console, this attachment plugged onto the side of the Genesis and used CDs to play games instead of cartridges. The CD allowed for the use of “full motion video” something that cartridges were not capable of. But the problem was in the fact that the video was small, pixilated, and took forever to load. Just like other early CD consoles (Playstation, for example) the load times were a big problem, another problem with the system was the lack of good games, for the most part they were second rate productions that used the “full motion video” as a crutch instead of a tool. But the Sega CD itself wasn’t the real failure; the real failure was the follow up attachment the Sega 32X. I actually have a 32X and it really is a waste, the games were supposed to be much better but the graphics weren’t too terribly special and the price tag was pretty high too ($150, a bit steep) not to mention that the 32X was released only about half a year before the Sega Saturn, so it was a real waste of money. Not only was Sega’s marketing shoddy but the system went back to cartridges, a huge mistake. Sega had told the world that CDs were the future but then reverted back to cartridges only to then use CDs for the Saturn, the company looked like they had no idea what they were doing and it cost them when they eventually released a good system, the Sega Dreamcast, but they couldn’t sell it because of their tarnished reputation. The Genesis attachments single-handedly led to Sega leaving the hardware race and only producing software.
If that’s not enough fail to last you a lifetime let’s talk about the Phillips CD-I. Another early CD based console this one suffered from the same problem that the Sega CD suffered from, the tech was not there yet, not to mention the fact that Nintendo allowed them to make three of the worst Zelda games ever to be released, if you want to know more about those you can check out the AVGN’s review, he can actually speak from personal experience, unlike me (although I think I was spared on that one)
While Nintendo was getting the N64 ready for launch they felt that they needed to release a console to tide over the fans, unfortunately they released the Virtual Boy. This thing was the biggest piece of garbage to ever come out of Nintendo, it was suppose to use multiple screens to create a 3D effect and to simulate reality. It was a view screen on a stand, not a very good design and it only had two colors; black and red. There were only about 20 games released and none of them really worked that well because the system itself was garbage. The only memory I have of this thing was when it was in a Blockbuster store and I wanted to play it, I was only 7 or 8 years old, and the dumb thing fell off the stand and gave me a bloody nose, if I never see one of these things again it’ll be too soon. Virtual reality seemed like a good idea, I still like the idea of feeling like I am in the game, but it was more shallow 3D than virtual reality. It’s short life span was indicative of the market reaction and to this day it stands as one of the worst consoles ever.
The Atari Jaguar was another attempt by Atari to reenter the frontrunners of Sega and Nintendo in the early 90’s but it failed for similar reasons to the 5200. The controller was a monstrosity, numeric keypad, fire buttons on the top left and right spaced out as far as possible and it was even bigger than the original Xbox controller. There wasn’t any real third party support and its claim to be 64 bit was too radical to gain enough support to get people away from their Genesis or their SNES.

The final failed console on my list is the 3DO, the failure of this console was the management by the creator, Trip Hawkins, he created a CD based gaming console that was highly advanced for 1993 but he licensed the rights to make it to a third party, so he could focus on producing software. The problem was that the console manufacturer couldn’t make much money on the system itself, the real money was in the games, so to break even they needed to sell the units for $700 each. This was a huge amount of money in 1993 (it still is today) and it didn’t sell, because it didn’t sell people didn’t make games for it and it failed due to a lack of sales and a lack of support from software manufacturers.
Video games have hit bumps on the road but eventually technology is worked out, many times great ideas are squandered by bad business or by lack of support however these consoles will live on as some of the worst to ever be seen. To be fair many of the ideas were pretty innovative and good but either the technology or the management wasn’t there to make the systems a success.

Credit to:

AVGN “Atari 5200” Episode

Play Value “Failed Consoles” Episode

Comic Con Wrap Up Part 2

Sorry for the delay, I got a little tied up but I’ll finish my report now. The second day that I went to the convention I attempted to pull myself away from the Ghostbusters booth and go to some other places to check out the other games. Atari also had the Chronicles of Riddick: Assault on Dark Athena, playable so I went to check that out first. The best part of the game was the presentation, they had Riddick look-a-likes on the outside of the booth and headphone so you could really hear what was going on in the game. However the game itself wasn’t so great, it was a very mediocre first person shooter, not much originality and it was extremely hard. I couldn’t get past the first onslaught of bad guys. The only thing I really liked was at the beginning you don’t have a weapon and you have to steal one, the mechanic is based on good timing and it worked well, but overall this isn’t exactly the cream of the crop.
I passed by Sega’s booth and they had several games on display, Madworld for the Wii was the most visually appealing with a black and white display but the blood was red. It had the feeling of Sin City, visually, but I didn’t get a chance to actually play it. They also had Sonic and the Black Knight, that game looked very similar to Sonic Unleashed, which had pretty good gameplay mechanics but once again I didn’t get to play it, the lines were actually pretty long.
Activision had X-Men Origins: Wolverine on display and their set-up was quite impressive, with a room that had the playable demo and several of the developers were there to guide you through it. They also had cool giveaways but the line for this was unbelievable and I never felt inclined to wait that long.
I know, it sounds like I didn’t really play any of the games but there was a massive amount of game and non-game related stuff to do so I only got to actually play two games. The other game I played was Prototype and I was impressed. I went by the booth and began talking to one of the developers who was friendly and helpful with my questions, I hadn’t heard anything about the game other than the name so I got him to run through the plot. The basic idea is that you (the character’s name has slipped my mind) wake up and have all of these special abilities but no memory of who you are and what is going on. The military is chasing you and to top everything off there is a virus loose turning people to zombies. You need to piece together your life story by the memories of specific people, you “consume” them by killing them and sucking up their life essence to get their memory. You also gain the ability to use their physical appearance to deceive and to command certain unknowing people. The movement is basic, dual stick with a third person camera. You can glide, grow blades out of your hands (like Wolverine) run up buildings, pound the ground to cause damage, and if you charge up your fists and lock on to a target you can slam the ground and spikes will grow up from under the enemy and impale them. That was easily the best move, but there is also an elbow-slam where you jump high in the air and press “Y” you will go WWE on the ground or on objects in the environment and slam into them causing enough damage to level tanks. You can also jump in the air and press “X” to jump onto a person and surf on their body until they are completely crushed. The graphics are very good and the gameplay in smooth, the game is coming out in June, so after I beat Ghostbusters about a million times, I’ll probably check this game out.
Well that’s it for the NYCC 2009, I had a great time and I hope you guys enjoyed my wrap up. I’ll be posting a new review soon, probably TMNT for the Xbox 360 and I’ll be writing a new article about some of the worst consoles ever (Virtual Boy, Atari 5200 etc) So stay tuned.

Comic Con Wrap Up Part 1

So I got back from the New York Comic Con and it was a blast. There was a strong showing of video games and a playable demo of my most anticipated title; Ghostbusters: The Video Game. I’ll start with that demo because I am dying to talk about it. The first thing that I did on Saturday (after waiting in an hour long line to get in) was run to the Atari booth. When I got there I saw this.

The booth had a four sided “locker” type set up with the PS3 version on one side, the 360 version on the other, and the Wii version on the third side. The last side simply had the Ghostbusters logo. On top of each of the sides was a nametag for one of the 4 Ghostbusters: Zeddemore was above the 360 version, Venkman was above the PS3 version, Spengler was above the Wii version, and Stantz was above the side with the Ghostbusters logo. I waited behind some guy to play the demo and I watched the whole demo being played through. I was nervous when he finally handed the controller off to me and I pressed “Start Demo.” The demo began with Ray telling me to stay close and that there was “more fun up ahead” As I moved down the hallway a chair came crashing through a window to my left and I looked over to see a ghost flying away. So I pressed “Y” to pull down the Ecto Goggles and to get out my PKE. The interface on the Goggles was the first change that I noticed. There now was a more involved display. I followed the traces of ectoplasm through a door into a new room. I looked around and moved towards a spike in PK energy. I looked up at the ceiling and all of a sudden marshmallow monsters came crashing out of the ceiling and attacked. I began blasting them and they blew up into marshmallow goo. As I went on I noticed that the marshmallow actually built up on my face and on Ray’s face as we were fighting, a little detail that made the game feel so much more involved. As I shot the monsters they through fireballs at me that I had to dodge, I had to revive Ray a couple of times and the boson dart (the alt fire on the proton stream, a wad of energy goes down the stream and blows up like a grenade) was useful to instantly toast all of the monsters (pun intended) when they were swarming.

As I was playing I was treated to bits of dialogue from Dan Aykroyd that sounded great, you can really tell that he was extremely energetic and excited about this project. After defeating all of the monsters some more popped out of a door and as I went through it I saw windows to the outside of the building. I then saw Stay Puft walking by the windows and the glass shattered and the building shook as he went by. Some more monsters attacked as Ray called Peter saying that we needed assistance, Bill Murray’s voice came out loud and he delivered a great line about the marshmallow monsters that have blocked his path (they’re disgusting and they’re unhealthy) Ray then persuades him by telling him there is a lady in distress and Peter says “I’ll be right there.” Ray kicked open the door and I heard a woman screaming and I saw a bit of the wall torn out. Stay Puft was looking into the room and Ray said “no sudden movements” but Stay Puft grabbed at the lady and we let him have it, I fired a boson dart at his face and he backed off shooting some of his minions at us before leaving. After dispatching with them Ray and I left the room to follow after the lady and she was there with Venkman. At this point a cut scene would have taken place but to keep the demo moving it was removed and we went straight to the rooftop where we finally got to trap some ghosts. The ghosts of construction workers bursted out of the roof and attacked, these ghosts were animators and they could possess objects and hurl them at me. They went into air conditioning units and flew straight at me. I had to use “B” to get out of the way and then I fired with the right trigger to start to wear them down. There was a green circle that formed around the crosshairs when I was shooting at the ghost and the bars making up the circle disappeared the longer I shot, eventually they turned red and I captured the ghost in my stream. It was now a matter of pressing “X” to toss out a trap and then holding the left trigger to slam the ghost into objects to weaken them. Once I felt I had softened them up enough I guided them over the trap and the funnel opened up to suck in the ghost. But the battle wasn’t over, the ghost began to try to get out of the funnel so I had to compensate to keep him in the funnel long enough for the trap to close on him. The mechanic is so fluid, it has a great feel to it, it isn’t too easy or too hard. Trapping the ghosts was so satisfying that I never wanted it to stop. But after about 5 ghosts were in the can Egon came on the radio saying that he had “lost sight of Stay Puft.” I moved towards the ledge with Peter and Ray and the building began to shake. Finally Stay Puft popped up and roared in our faces which, to a person who didn’t know it was coming, was pretty frightening and funny at the same time. Then the demo ended on that cliffhanger.
This level appeared on PlayrTV a few months back and you can still see it on youtube. However the level has improved a lot since the earlier build, with the graphics being much more clean, the gameplay mechanic being tweaked, and the Ecto Goggle interface being updated. The VO work was fantastic, there was a bit of concern after the trailer that Bill Murray sounded lackluster in his performance but that wasn’t true at all, he was so dynamic that I couldn’t help but laugh every time I heard the same line because he delivers it perfectly. The booth had a large backdrop that featured art of Stay Puft, the librarian ghost, and slimer among other new ghosts. There was also an ice sculpture of slimer that was real "cool."

There was also a TV playing the game trailers in a continuous loop. The booth was buzzing all day both days but I was lucky enough to play the demo a total of 7 times. I met Glenn Gamble, the lead artist on the game, and he said that he had researched and designed the game pack which looks fantastic. He was buzzing around all day both days to answer questions (or at least the few that he could) He did say that there was a lot of secret content in the game that they want to keep away from the public until release. Atari hired some guys to appear in Ghostbusters costumes and their stuff was quite impressive. They handed out game stickers and I grabbed a few. I also got to talk to another Atari rep (whose name I did not catch) and he asked me for feedback on the game, it was fun to talk to someone from the game and to let him know what I thought. After watching many people play the demo and talking to several passersby I can safely say that the game was well received, I asked about a demo and was told that most likely it would come to Xbox live and PSN 1-2 weeks before release, so early June. The game was so incredible that I couldn’t believe it, I loved it so much that I spent more time at that booth than at any other place in the convention. This report is going to be long so I’ll break it up and post part 2 tomorrow, I’ll talk about my experiences with Prototype and The Chronicles of Riddick.

Retro Review: Ghostbusters on the Sega Genesis

The Ghostbusters game that came out for the Sega Genesis in 1990 is the best Ghostbusters game to date (hopefully the new one will be awesome but we’ll have to wait until June to see) The game improved upon the previous Ghostbusters game by including a better use of the characters, an original storyline, and gameplay that was exactly what you would expect, blasting ghosts. Unfortunately my favorite Ghostbusters, Winston, is absent from the game which is probably my only real problem with the game. At the beginning you get to choose if you want to play as Ray, Peter, or Egon. Each has their own traits with Ray being the fastest but with the least stamina, Egon being the slowest with the most stamina, and Peter being moderate on both, so Peter is usually the best choice. The plot follows a surge of ghost activity in New York after an earthquake that took place just before the game begins. You get a call and can choose one of four locations to go to first to bust. There is a small house, an apartment building, a larger house, and a high rise. You can choose what order to do the busts in and you get more money for the harder cases.
When you enter a house you immediately have a proton pack but it works slightly differently than in the movie, instead of wrangling a ghost into a trap, you fire proton darts and the ghosts disintegrate. You get small amounts of money for each little ghost that you bust. There is a wide variety of ghosts so you won’t get bored with the same old enemies. There are safes scattered throughout the levels and if you shoot them open there will be either a bomb or a bag of cash. Obviously you want the cash but if it is a bomb you better get away. The controls are great “A” throws your bombs, “B” shoots your proton darts, and “C” jumps. The “start” button pulls up a menu where you can see a rudimentary map of the level and how much money you have. You can also equip your special equipment here.
As you make money you can spend it at one of two shops and items shop and a weapons shop. Both are useful and I have found that the peking duck in the item shop and the three way shot in the weapon shop are the best. There is a abundance of other weaponry but I usually don’t use much other than the standard beam, the three way shot, and the bombs. One more item that you should buy is the extra energy packs in the weapon shop, it will make your energy bar bigger, but the upgrades get more expensive as you buy them.

Depending on the size of the house here will be one or more “encounters” with mini-bosses. After you defeat these bosses you will get to attempt to capture the ghost like in the movie. You will try to pull it over a trap and it really isn’t too easy, plus you won’t have more than maybe two or three cracks at it because the ghost will eventually flee. If you catch the ghost you get a $1000 bonus. Then after all of the mini-bosses are defeated you move on to the final boss and once the final boss is defeated you get a piece of a stone tablet and the money for the case. You then return to headquarters and go to another assignment.
The game does a great job of incorporating Ghostbusters movie characters, Stay Puft is the final boss of the high rise and slimmer fly overhead every now and then. If you shoot him he will drop either a blue or red drop which will give you either health or energy for your equipment.
The graphics in the game are very good for a 16 bit cartridge, they are very colorful, include a wide variety of different environments (from a house on fire to an apartment building frozen in ice) The characters have large heads and small bodies but the heads are made to look like the actors and it gives a god cartoony feel, they seem to fit in well with the rest of the game. The sound is also impressive, the Ghostbusters theme plays at the beginning and in the headquarters but there is new music for each case and special boss music as well. It helps give some variety unlike the Ghostbusters NES game where the theme music constantly plays all the time.
There isn’t a whole lot to complain about in this game, the fact that Winston isn’t in it is the largest problem with it but the game also has too many weapons that seem to be completely useless, like the explosives or the bubble shooter. When you die you turn into a mummy which is kind of weird but doesn’t really bother me. One last thing I don’t get is the bombs, I know they wanted a proximity weapon but why would a ghost be susceptible to a bomb? If a bomb works then why not a gun? How about we just send in the army? Of course I’m kidding but the bomb doesn’t make a whole lot of sense, and it looks like the classic bowling ball with a fuse bomb, not some high-tech “ghost bomb.” The game is a lot of fun to play because of its fluid control, enemy variety, and a pretty good storyline that isn’t a regurgitation of the movie plot. If you can find I would definitely recommend it.
Gameplay: 9.5
Story: 9
Replay Value: 10
Graphics: 10
Overall: 9.63

The New York Comic Con

Hey everybody, as you may or may not know the New York Comic Con is coming up this weekend and I'll be there on Saturday and Sunday to check everything out. There will be a strong showing of video game companies including Atari, Namco, Ubisoft, and THQ among others. I'll be checking out all of the video game booths and will report back on what I saw, so look for that write-up sometime the week of Monday February 9.

I'll be posting a retro review of the Ghostbusters game for the Sega Genesis sometime this week in honor of the 25th anniversary as I mentioned earlier. So be sure to check back soon, I hope to have a lot of news to relay after the convention.