On the threshold of the new generation of consoles, such as the PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X, these are the most important and impressive consoles in the gaming for over 50 years.
20 – Atari Jaguar (1993)
The veteran company's latest console features a powerful and unique architecture based on two chipsets (named Tom and Jerry) and a Motorola 68000 processor. Many explain that it was difficult to code, due to the wide range of games. In addition, it cost $ 249, which was very expensive for the time. This console is known for the excellent shooting games Tempest 2000, Doom and Alien vs Predator.
19 – Sega Master System (1985)
During the early 1980s, Sega made several attempts to bring the arcade gaming to the home console market – the Master System was the most successful. More powerful and with a richer color palette than the mighty Nintendo Entertainment System (NES), the 8-bit machine featured many arcade games, but became known for its scrolling platformers, such as Alex Kidd in Miracle World, Wonder Boy, Psycho Fox and a specialized version of Sonic the Hedgehog.
18 – Sega Saturn (1994)
It appeared on the Japanese market a fortnight before the PlayStation. Sega's 32-bit machine would forever be defined by its unfortunate rivalry with Sony. Its fragmented internal architecture was built around Sega's cutting-edge technology, but developers needed specialized knowledge of console assembly. Sega's studios triumphed with Virtua Fighter, Nights in Dreams and Sega Rally, while a plethora of stunning 2D shooters and fighting games delighted hardcore gamers.
17 – SNK Neo Geo (1990)
Like Sega, SNK was a 1980s video game giant with a desire to break into the home console market, but its approach was much more ambitious. It set out to build a machine using the exact same technology as its previous gaming successes. This led to amazing home versions of Fatal Fury, Art of Fighting, and The King of Fighters. The only catch was the Neo Geo, which cost three times as much as its competitors, and its 330 megabit floppy disks cost up to $200 each. There’s no denying that it’s known as the Rolls-Royce of consoles.
16 – Atari VCS / 2600 (1977)
Following the success of the Pong home console in 1975, the company's designers spent a year building a microprocessor-based system that could play floppy disk-based games. By Christmas 1977, 400,000 machines were on U.S. and sold out almost immediately. The machine's appearance, with its black front, wood paneling, and simple eight-way joystick, set the standard for industrial design. With the infiltration of pop culture through films as diverse as Airplane! and Bladerunner, Atari was more than just a console; it became a legend.
15 – Nintendo GameCube (2001)
Despite the powerful design and technical power of the PS2 and Xbox, with internet connectivity and DVD support (the Xbox via an add-on), the GameCube looked like a giant Lego brick with a handle, and its IBM was pretty weak compared to Microsoft. But Nintendo wanted a fun, feature-packed console that was affordable and easy to use. Plus, Metroid Prime, Legend of Zelda: Wind Walker, Resident Evil 4, and Super Mario Sunshine were worthy competitors to any other major console.
14 – PlayStation 3 (2006)
Aside from the difficulties and delays surrounding the ambitious Cell processor and the addition of Blu-ray, the PS3 was a commendable project from the start. The subscription-free online service was a generous offer from the company for many players. The PS3 left an era with games such as: Uncharted 2, God of War III, Demon's Souls, Heavy Rain and Journey, all developing in fascinating worlds. It is an important chapter for the console.
13 – Nintendo 64 (1996)
Developed in partnership with specialist supercomputer Silicon Graphics Inc and initially given the not-so-humorous codename Project Reality, the N64 was a contradictory beast – stuck to using a floppy disk, rather than having a CD-ROM, but innovative in its use of an analogue joystick to enable precise 3D movement. This, of course, led to Super Mario 64, the defining game of the era, but the console had many other classics, including GoldenEye, Banjo-Kazooie, Wave Race 64 and Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time.
12 – Xbox One (2013)
Designed more like a beautiful boxed computer than a traditional console, the Xbox One featured a multi-core AMD processor, HDR compatibility (and 4K video), cloud storage, game streaming , and a slew of media options that set it apart from other consoles. As the Xbox One began to mature, the new S and X versions came along to beef up its specs. Along with beautiful versions of the hits Witcher 3, Assassin's Creed Origins, and Fallout 4, it also brought us Forza Horizon 4, Sea of Thieves, Halo 5, and Ori and the Blind Forest.
11 – Xbox (2001)
The Xbox, introduced by Bill Gates at the 2000 Developers Conference and designed by the DirectX team (Microsoft's software for PC game developers) as a technological Trojan horse to bring the company's products to our living rooms. Its catalog features more than 600 games and one of the greatest first-person shooters, Halo, as well as the explosive Ninja Gaiden, the surreal adventure Psychonauts and the Star Wars epic Knights of the Old Republic. From its inception, the Xbox understood the growing importance of online gaming, with its built-in ethernet port and powerful Xbox Live infrastructure. The most important console designed by the US since the Atari VCS.
10 – Nintendo Wii (2006)
Many gaming industry insiders looked at the tech specs for the Wii in 2005 and described it as “two Game Cubes rolled into one.” What they didn’t realize was the unique controller, which combined motion controls that provided seamless access to simple, perfectly designed games like Wii Sports, Wii Play, and Wii Fit. Suddenly, entire families could compete against each other, from the youngest to the oldest—and Nintendo sold more than 100 million units as a result. A victory for utilitarian design over console technology obsession.
9 – Sega Dreamcast (1998)
With its built-in modem and highly innovative controllers, the Dreamcast was a futuristic console, backed by Sega's amazingly creative development teams. The machine delivered a string of great titles – Jet Set Radio, Shenmue, Seaman, Rez, Phantasy Star Online – that created new gaming genres or revolutionized old ones. But the lack of support from Western developers and the sheer power of the PS2 ensured that its life was as short as it was beautiful.
8 – Nintendo Switch (2017)
The next generation of the interesting but flawed Wii U replicates the console's dual-screen approach and makes the built-in HD screen truly portable by adding two motion sensors. The Switch is an incredibly versatile home console, alternating between local multiplayer gaming and online, combining the clever functionality of the Wii and Game Boy. Its best games: Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild, Animal Crossing: New Horizons, Super Mario Odyssey, Mario Kart 8 Deluxe, Super Mario Maker.
7 – PlayStation (1994)
By 1993, Sony had failed to break into the console business through partnerships with Sega and Nintendo, so the company's genius Ken Kutaragi thought they would build their own machine. He designed an architecture that was powerful, yet easy to manage, and focused on pushing 3D shapes onto the screen as efficiently as possible. Sony then bought the UK studio Psygnosis and struck an exclusive deal with Japanese arcade veteran Namco. The resulting console triumphed in the 1990s, with games like Tekken, Gran Turismo, and Tony Hawk. This machine changed everything.
6 – Famicom / Nintendo Entertainment System (1983)
It's an oft-repeated fact, but it's always worth remembering: throughout the 1980s, you didn't play "video games," you played Nintendo. The brand was so synonymous with the activity that it became the norm. That was the NES, a box-shaped console that featured jokes, levels, small controllers (largely inspired by Nintendo's successful Game & Watch handhelds) and large cartridges. With games like Super Mario Bros, Legend of Zelda, Contra, Mega Man, Final Fantasy, Excitebike, the console was forever etched in gaming history.
5 – PlayStation 4 (2013)
Based on similar technology to the Xbox One, which launched around the same time, the PS4 saw Sony focus on gaming rather than media features, immediately winning the PR war against Microsoft. With its excellent controller, vastly improved online infrastructure and seamless sharing and streaming features, it's an innovative system, but where it really shines is in co-op gaming. With titles like Uncharted 4, Horizon Zero Dawn, Marvel's Spider-Man, God of War, Bloodborne, Death Stranding, it's sure to provide hours of entertainment.
4 – Sega Mega Drive (1988)
By designing a console that could accurately transform arcade games like Golden Axe, Strider, and Altered Beast into new experiences, Sega made Nintendo look old-fashioned. This tradition was further reinforced in 1991 with the arrival of Sonic the Hedgehog, a speed-loving, spiky-haired hedgehog who perfectly meshed with the MTV culture of the early 1990s. The Mega Drive was sure to sell 35 million units and host a wide range of experiences, from romance to military role-playing adventures, in real time.
3 – Xbox 360 (2005)
The first console of the broadband era, the Xbox 360 put online multiplayer at the core of its design from the start. Innovations like achievements and player rankings transformed its global user base into a massive competitive community, whether the battlefield was Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare, Halo 3, or Forza Horizon. Arguably, this was also the console that saw the greatest releases of epic adventures, like Mass Effect 2, Elder Scrolls V, Bioshock, and Read Dead Redemption, ushering in the modern era of mature narrative game design on consoles and beyond.
2 – PlayStation 2 (2000)
It's hard to win the "console war" for two generations in a row. The PlayStation 2 didn't just match the success of the PlayStation – it became the best-selling console of all time, selling 155 million units. Its sheer dominance, technical prowess and familiar development environment allowed studios around the world to be wildly creative. This was the golden age when mainstream blockbusters Grand Theft Auto, Metal Gear Solid, Gran Turismo, Pro Evo Soccer, Burnout and Ratchet & Clank rose to the top of gaming, but the console also hosted special treasures such as Katamari Damacy, Ico and Okami via Guitar Hero and Singstar.
1 – Super Famicom / Super Nintendo Entertainment System (1990)
Days spent playing Street Fighter 2, living rooms filled with friends, tables filled with coffee, snacks and soft drinks. Evenings spent playing Legend of Zelda: a Link to the Past, Super Metroid and Secret of Mana, explosive moments in the Star Wars series, discovering the land of Donkey Kong. Millions of us have these memories. The SNES arrived in an industry that had already changed since the Mega Drive, but Nintendo stuck to what it knew – solid technology and amazing creativity. The machine produced beautiful, colorful graphics and rich sounds, and had the flexibility to accept improved cartridges when technology took steps forward. It deservedly ranks at the top of this article with the best consoles.
