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Ever since the dot and lines created pong, console gaming has been creating magical experiences for players across the world. From the early days of NES and SNES to the modern generation of PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X|S, console gaming has gone through multiple generational leaps.
While most consoles have become fan-favorite over the years, some did not enjoy the same level of success. From developer reluctance to support the device to better competition to lackluster hardware, let’s take a look at the top failed gaming consoles of all time.
Biggest fails in console gaming of all time
Now in its ninth generation, console gaming has evolved a lot over the years. There have been some notable failures amongst the console space. such as,
- Will U (Nintendo)
- PlayStation Vita (Sony)
- Dreamcast (Sega)
- Lynx (Atari)
- OUYA (Ouya)
With that being said, let's take a deeper look at each console and the reason behind their failure.
1) Nintendo Wii U
Launch Date: November 2012
Developer: Nintendo
After the success of the Wii that made motion-based gaming a household, Nintendo followed it up with the Wii U. Immediately after launch; the console caused a lot of confusion where people weren’t sure if it was a new generation or a tablet add-on for their existing Wii. Also, the unapproachable massive size and look of the tablet, especially in comparison to Wii’s Nunchucks, didn’t help the case.
2) PlayStation Vita
Launch Date: December 2011
Developer: Sony
After the success of the PlayStation Portable, Sony followed up their handheld console with the PlayStation Vita. The console did have some amazing titles, both first-party and third-party, like Uncharted Golden Abyss and Assassin’s Creed Liberation. However, the rise of the smartphone and mobile gaming, along with the powerful console generation of PlayStation 4 and the strong competition from Nintendo’s 3DS, caused PS Vita to lose its initial momentum. Sony hasn’t developed or shown interest in handheld ever since.
3) Sega Dreamcast
Launch Date: November 1998
Developer: Sega
The sixth generation of consoles was certainly an interesting one. The four-way war between industry veteran Nintendo’s GameCube and Sega’s Dreamcast against newcomer Microsoft’s Xbox and Sony’s 2nd generation console PlayStation 2 rallied fans across the world. While PlayStation 2 became the most selling console of all time and Xbox was able to establish itself with innovations, Nintendo GameCube and Sega Dreamcast were left in the dust. While Nintendo pivoted and made a comeback in the casual player base with the Wii, Sega left the console market after Dreamcast.
4) Atari Lynx
Launch Date: September 1989
Developer: Atari
Atari Lynx was developed as a direct competitor to Nintendo’s GameBoy and GameBoy Colour, but it lacked in several aspects. While the LCD screen and the wider design was a step in the right direction, it lacked in the game library. After the second revision of Lynx II, Atari totally shifted focus towards the upcoming Jaguar, essentially abandoning the Lynx.
5) OUYA
Launch Date: June 2013
Developer: Ouya
With the rise of smartphones, OUYA attempted to bridge the gap between mobile gaming and console gaming. However, the design and most of the things about the console were extremely lackluster, which resulted in a failure.
