Video game fans often think about the almighty “what if” scenario. It's fun to wonder how the industry has shaped itself over the years. For example, the launch of Nintendo's motion-based Wii console could have been a disaster. Instead, they set the standard for motion control for more than a decade. If motion controllers hadn't taken off, who knows where this technology would be right now? Would VR exist without good motion tracking systems?
The best games that survived a disastrous launch
A bad launch can sink a game before it even gets off the ground, but these games not only survived their bad launch, they thrive today.
This is an example of how something positive helped shape the gaming industry. Now let's look at the opposite end of the what-if spectrum: failure. Hindsight is 20/20 and thanks to these video game disastersfans can now see how the market benefited in a net positive way.
The 1983 video game crash
Nintendo had to rebrand as a toy, which might have helped them
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Nintendo
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July 31, 1989
The video game market for home consoles collapsed in 1983, meaning: Atari and other consoles became unpopular due to, among other things, the rise of computers. Atari moved to landfill the cartridges, which were later revealed in a Microsoft-funded documentary titled Atari: Game Over. This was more about Atari E.T games, but it's all looped together. Any company looking to release a home console after this debacle would not fare well based on market trends. That said, starting in 1985, Nintendo decided to be smarter and bring their reformed Famicom console to North America as the Nintendo Entertainment System, or NES. It wasn't marketed purely as a console, but as a toy.
This is why so many other accessories were added around launch; ostensibly it was an offer to deceive both retailers and customers. There was the NES Zapper, who worked with light gun games, and ROB, a robot who worked with a game called Gyromite. He was, of course, the star of the show Super Mario Bros.which helped the console take off whether people believed it was a toy or not. If it weren't for the video game crash a few years ago, Nintendo might not have been as successful. Their tactics were like a Trojan horse of the gaming industry and what emerged was Super Mario Bros.which he helped found Mario as a brand.
The failed partnership between Sony and Nintendo
Now we have PlayStation consoles
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Sony
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September 9, 1995
The SNES was an even more popular console than the NES, leading to even more success for Nintendo. In order to keep the console alive and selling, there have been several discussions about how to extend its life. One was to add a CD peripheral to the system, and another was to make an entirely new console, similar in design to the SNES. Nintendo wanted to work with Sony to produce this new console and they ended up producing a prototype that is now one of the rarest consoles in the world. The console was announced at CES 1991 by Sony, but Nintendo surprised them a day later by revealing a partnership with Philips at the show, which was a huge slap in the face.
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Fortunately, cooler heads prevailed that day, and although nothing ever came of this prototype, he led his team to create their own console: the PlayStation. While not a breakout hit at first, the PS1 slowly gained momentum between its release in Japan in 1994 and its release in North America in 1995. Sony dominated the N64 with the PS1 and the PS2 beat the Xbox and GameCube combined and is now one of the best selling consoles of all time. If the ties between Nintendo and Sony hadn't failed, who knows what the market would look like today? The Switch could have been developed by Sony, or Nintendo might never have thought of making a hybrid console.
Bad launch of Dreamcast
Sega got out of the console game
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Sega
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September 9, 1999
There are many reasons why Sega eventually got out of the console market. They had a strong rivalry between the Sega Genesis and the SNES, but their successor, the Sega Saturn, failed to live up to expectations compared to the cheaper PS1. One failure after another can have a snowball effect for a company, and while the Sega Saturn didn't cause the Dreamcast to fail, it certainly didn't help. At the time, the Dreamcast was way ahead of the game, launching in Japan in 1998 and North America in 1999. This was still in the middle of the N64 and PS1 era, so needless to say, its graphics were much better, as well as its online capabilities, which were mind-blowing.
It was a good console, but it was eventually replaced by the PS2 in 2000, which had equally impressive graphics along with a built-in DVD player, which is a key reason why it sold so many units so quickly. The Dreamcast just couldn't compete. Finally, in 2001, Sega announced that it was getting out of the console market, and at the same time, the company announced a discount on the Dreamcast, effectively waving the white flag. Sega helped give Nintendo and Xbox exclusives to compete with the PS2 like Billy Hatcher and the Giant Egg for GameCube and Jet Set Radio Future for Xbox. While these games didn't help either console topple the reign of the PS2, Sega eventually recovered and now both produce and publish some of the best game franchises such as Persona and Yakuza.
Red Ring of Death Xbox 360
No more rushing to market
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Microsoft
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November 22, 2005
The PS2 generation was hot among all three console markets. Not to be outdone, Microsoft launched the Xbox 360 before the PS3 in 2005. There was a huge promotion campaign on MTV, hosted by Elijah Wood, and the marketing of the console was generally out of control. Things were looking up for Microsoft as the launch of Xbox 360 games was impressive for the world's first full HD console. That said, it didn't take long for news of the now infamous Red Ring of Death to surface shortly after its November launch.
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Although Sony's PlayStation has dominated the console industry for years, the company isn't without its fair share of bugs and errors.
There was a fault in the system assembly that overheated the console, causing the usually bright neon green ring to flash red. To Microsoft's credit, they offered to take the consoles back and fix them, costing them about $1 billion in repairs. The Xbox 360, despite this controversy, was still a very successful system and largely the one most gamers had during this first wave of HD consoles. There have been bad console launches before, but never to this level of bad functionality, which perhaps taught console makers that rushing to market is a bad idea.
All-In-One dream for Xbox One
Closed TV studios and the assurance that no console will always require online activation
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Microsoft
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November 22, 2013
Microsoft has also had some issues with its other console, the Xbox One. The idea was that it would be the family's one-stop shop for all media-related entertainment, from TV shows to movies to games, hence the name. Gamers could integrate their cable into the console and watch TV with voice activation, thanks to Microsoft also doubling down on the Kinect hardware. In addition, they also announced that the console will periodically require an online connection to ensure that users are who they say they are. It was seemingly one bad and confusing decision after another. With the console priced at $500, Xbox fans weren't happy with all of these announcements at E3 2013.
Sony's press conference to reveal the PS4 came after Microsoft, and they basically got standing ovations for all of their announcements, some of which seemed to be aimed squarely at Microsoft's bold new hardware. Sony's announcement did not include any online requirements other than PS+ for multiplayer, the ability to share game discs with friends, and an introductory price of $400. It was a metaphorical mic drop moment. Eventually, Microsoft backed away from all-in-one support for the Xbox One, leading to the end of their support for Kinect, the closing of TV connections, and the end of online restrictions. With Xbox fans and gamers everywhere rallying around these restrictions, this controversy is probably why game discs are still being made and why there aren't always-online requirements except for certain services. If the Xbox One had succeeded, the infrastructure of the Switch, Switch 2, PS5, and Xbox Series X/S might be very different today.
The Best Bad Games of All Time, Ranked
Sometimes even a bad game can be a good time. These iconic titles prove it by being so bad they're actually great.
