The BIG Console & Handheld Vote Thread! Top 22 Best and Worst are up.

That's the ones I was thinking of mag of the year, staff member of the year etc as there's no mag any more.

Let Stu sort out the vote of the year stuff. He'll think of something and come through.

Buskalilly wrote:

I was thinking of suggesting a secret Santa actually, so I'm well up for that!

Looks like a Secret Santa would be a do'er. Are you happy to get it up and running? So long as we all agree on rules (i.e. budget, who can be involved etc) and deadlines (i.e. when you'd want confirmation of those involved, when you'd want gift posted out by everyone by), I think it would be quite straightforward to do. Honestly, I'd like to take part in a Secret Santa, but not have to organise it.

Hello!

My plan for the Wii U 1st birthday vote thread was to open voting on November 30th, so that it would be exactly one (potential) year of playing time for people to consider their votes. The official preamble post will probably go up mid-November with at least one point to debate before the vote kicks off. I hope not to get in the way of Stu's vote of the year but might end up doing so!

Also, yes to Secret Santa.

Secret Santa, anyone? I know its a bit early but I thought I'd open up the discussion now so we all know what's what when the time comes.

ZeroJones wrote:

Hello!

My plan for the Wii U 1st birthday vote thread was to open voting on November 30th, so that it would be exactly one (potential) year of playing time for people to consider their votes. The official preamble post will probably go up mid-November with at least one point to debate before the vote kicks off. I hope not to get in the way of Stu's vote of the year but might end up doing so!

Also, yes to Secret Santa.

Wouldn't be any problem if we did overlap. With that in mind, did folk want it to be actually at the end of year, or for the forum's first birthday? Pretty close, but the first post made actually as GNamer Forum and not Messed-Up Cables was 15th January. That would allow Zero's thread to be well underway (depending on his format), and for everyone to get Christmas and New Year's Day out of their hair.

As for secret santa: I are in!

End of Jan sounds good a lot of big sites do there's in Jan for GOTY etc

Also, there'll be Admintendo 4 scheduled for the end of the year, too; so there's lots of great stuff coming.  

And the inaugural podcast and the Santa. I think January would be a good shout.

Since we did this the PS4 and Xbox One will turn 5 this year, the Wii U is dead as my love life and the Switch has been out a year. EofGiz, did recently tweet and ask are fav Nintendo systems now considering Wii U & Switch, would your Top 10 be any different now 5 years on?

Aha, good reading this one back.

As for if anything would change for the overall vote, I can't see the N64 topping it again. I think the DS would probably take the top spot or perhaps even its younger brother the 3DS.

My top 10 would include the PS4 in the middle of the group and the Switch would in the top half easily so far - it's only going to get better, that machine.

I don't remember what my top ten was, but it probably wouldn't change much. I'm guessing that I put the N64, the PSone and the PS2 up high, and they'd stay there. I'd swap out the 360 for the Switch, probably. The Wii U wouldn't make it.

Switch would make it, and even this early on would challenge for top place. Wii U would make it more by default than anything.

I wasn't about for the last vote but Wii U and Vita would definitely be high in my top ten. Not sure if the Switch is yet but Octopath would probably be key to it getting in!

I sort of know what my systems would be and what is number 1

1st Nintendo GameCube, I think I had this second last time but as time goes on the more I collect for it and look at the library it's hard to top it
2nd SEGA Dreamcast, I basically swapped 1st and 2nd around

I can think what 7 others would be but not sure on the order PS1 as it's what really got me into gaming and where most my favourite series truly started
N64 because of masterpieces like OoT & SM64
OG Xbox it was the first system I truly went online with and now with BC on Xbox One I remember how good the library is
PS3 it really did become a fantastic console and gets the nod over the 360 due to exclusives
PS4 this would be near the bottom as much like PS3 I feel it's getting really good near the end but still been great for the last 5 years
Mega Drive, my first console and some greats on it
SNES, I think I would have it near the bottom as we didn't get the great JRPG's but in 2018 that is less of an issue

For an 8th I kinda want to put a handheld in but really not sure what one as I do like the 3DS, GameBoy is the OG, PSP had some top games and I do love the Neo Geo Pocket Colour but the library is rather samey also the VITA could get a nod.

Personally, it's too early for the Switch as I feel it hasn't got enough top games and the ones I would consider top are ports from the Wii U and the Wii U's other games are slightly better.

Hm...

GB
GBC
N64
GBA
Wii U
Wii
DS
Switch
Gamecube
3DS

If I take liberties a bit and treat the Game Boy and its colourful cousin separately, I have a top ten at last! Order very much subject to change.

This thread popped into my head the other day, not really for any good reason, but I guess that now we can start to look back on a few more consoles in their entirety. The PS4 and Xbox One are soon to be usurped by the PS5 and Xbox Series X, and I've got to assume that they'll not be getting any more major exclusives after next month. They'll be yesterdays news, just like the 3DS, which Nintendo quietly ended production of a couple of months ago. 

Where would you put those in your top ten consoles/handhelds lists now? Would your list look any different now than it did in 2013?

Think especially on Xbox side and Spencer talking about bringing Xcloud to Xbox One those exclusives will be available for most least with decent internet.

Same with PlayStation we know of one big exclusive next year in Horizon Forbidden West on PS4 and least a few years more support. Maybe a tad like Nintendo with the 3DS post Switch.

I would put PS4 maybe middle of my Top 10 or whatever due to sheer amount of games I'd put in a Top 25 of All Time.

Xbox One tad more interesting as I'm sure I've played like every exclusive with only really Forza Horizon 4 of the quality you'd find on PlayStation or Nintendo but the hardware especially One X is decent along with the services such as Game Pass but that's something that's going bare fruit more so on Series X and S.

Still its a game console that it still comes down to games, maybe like 15th overall of all consoles I've owned.

The Cappuccino Kid wrote:

Where would you put those in your top ten consoles/handhelds lists now? Would your list look any different now than it did in 2013?

It'd look different from how it did in 2018!  

The Switch'd be up top - or down bottom, the way I did it last time.  For all that it's had a couple of disappointing years (for me), for all that its first-party output seems to be half or more Wii U ports, for all that its UI and eShop have the charm of a Re-Dead... it's got a gimmick I love, a great indie line-up, a grand couch multiplayer scene, and my two favourite games of all time.  Between its varied releases, ports remakes and sad-child indie platformers all, it's had enough to keep me playing for the majority of its lifetime, despite being only the one machine.  It's probably not Nintendo's best generation, but it's their best console.

Also I didn't give the DS its due - big developers were developing things with the level of creativity you only see from indies now - last time.  Ghost Trick and Meteos, for crying out loud.  The 3DS didn't have anything as good as those two!  

GB
GBC
N64
GBA
Wii U
3DS
Wii
DS
Gamecube
Switch

There's yer dinner.

---

Buskalilly wrote:

I love the votes but if we did them all the time, they wouldn't be so exciting.

I'd put Switch close to the bottom if I was ranking every console I've owned, as Balla has brought up what I find issues with it and also why Wii U would sort of be high on a list due to it's exclusives.

Balla wrote:

It's probably not Nintendo's best generation, but it's their best console.

This pretty much sums up how I feel about the Switch to. To my mind, it is undoubtedly Nintendo's best ever console. That doesn't mean that I think it has stronger games, pound for pound, compared to other generations, but as a machine there's no contest. And personally, that's how I would grade a machine. Sure a roster of games is important, and if a console had absolutely nothing then that's a major problem, but weighting its library too heavily means you're actually just ranking the games. I prefer to look at how much I loved the machine, and how much I thought the machine brought to the table.

Anyway that's not to say that the Switch lineup is weak. I think it's good! The ports are on the heavy side, but I can understand why there are so many. The user interface is bad, the store in particular is a mess without any charm. Perhaps the Switch gets away with it a little for me because it's a complimentary machine to my PC or PS4, although to be honest maybe those platforms are compliments to the Switch. Physically, it's just a really well executed concept and I think that more than makes up for its problems.

The only major beef I have with the Switch is the joycon drift, which seems to affect everyone at some point. Considering how expensive the joycons are, it's a bit shite. My girlfriend has fixed her drift - which was shockingly bad and genuinely made games unplayable - by using an alcohol gel, I can find out more about it if people want to know.

Anyway, here's a list based on the hardware I have owned, from first to worst.

Switch

Wii - This is a special machine, the little console that made gaming accessible for everyone. It's really the only console that I have ever been able to share with my family, with the exception of games like Brain Training. But good boy wasn't all just about its accessibility, it had a plethora of flavour. Weird, weird flavour. Take seeing Trevor MacDonald rocking up in the Mall stage on Mario Kart to ruin your day. You don't get stuff like that anywhere else.

Oh and get this, it played Gamecube games, read cube memory cards and happily used its controller. What a machine! Great selection of retro games too. Sure, the Wii couldn't hold a candle in terms of fidelity to the other machines of its time but neither of those boxes were special.

Gamecube - Yeah this is just a great console. It boots up fast, it has space for four controllers and it has a world class controller. Pretty sure it's almost indestructible as well. It's not special, in the sense of bringing something new to the table, but to be fair the jump from N64 looks to Gamecube looks was a significant leap!

PS2 - Like the cube, but with fewer controller ports and inferior controllers. It does a lot right, refining those N64/PS1 blocky 3d graphics into something considerably more palatable. You have to mark the fat version down since it seemed to have disc read errors up the wazoo, but the slim is an excellent console. Played DVDs too!

Gameboy/Pocket - This is where it all began for me. Shoddy backlight and battery life notwithstanding, this thing was my gateway drug into nerd shit. Perhaps I should put it lower on the list for that reason, but playing Super Mario Land and Pokémon Red are some of my most vivid memories. This thing had a solid set of speakers which got me hooked on chiptunes too.

I do have a serious nostalgic fondness for all its peripherals too. The magnifying glass and light which made the screen much better, the link cables (and the idea that pokemon were really traveling through it) and that weird printer (which I never owned but remember the adverts for).

PS1 This was my first home console, and it's a really good machine. It has a near endless library of quality games, a CD player which I used a bunch too. Its 3d graphics were ropey to say the least, but it got a lot right. It was easy to use and its memory cards were usually pretty good storage wise.

PS4 A good box. It doesn't do anything special, it's an evolution of the PS3 (or 1, in many ways). The thing is though, it's online service is pretty good, it doesn't break down, the controller is really nice, and it does all the multimedia stuff well. I'm not sure there's much on it, games wise, that really set my world on fire beyond God of War or Hellblade. Still it's a good social machine that plays things safe but does everything well.

DS/DS Lite This was a damn fine effort. Damn fine. I never owned a PSP, but to my mind the DS kicked the shit out of it. Whenever I played on a friend's PSP, I was amazed at just how awful the loading times were. In the DS, Nintendo made something snappy, fast, ad accessible, which is really the core I want out of a handheld.

Gameboy Advanced SP This was the only Advanced variant I owned, coming to the party pretty late. I never had the issues with the original version's dimly lit screen that many did. Instead, I was happily playing things like Sonic Advanced 2 and having a great time. That it played all the older Gameboy games was a real plus too. A great piece of kit, with a lovely screen, sleek design, and solid battery life.

3DS I've probably put it too low for many people's taste. This is a great handheld. Snappy loading times, quality speakers, a nice screen and a 3D effect that was pretty impressive. There's a lot to love about the 3DS and I don't think I ever got the most out of it. Mine had a weird fault with its power delivery, meaning it would shut off when you moved it in your hands too much. But that notwithstanding, I just never played it too much. If I had commuted with public transport, maybe that would be different, but at the time I just never got the most out of it unless I was on holiday.

Wii U I like the Wii U, I really do, but it's not hard to see why it flopped. I'm actually a really big fan of the gamepad, but when you compare it to something like the Switch it really is night and day. It'll always have a cult following, and it was full to the brim with weird Nintendo flavour - Hello Miiverse! It was a risk that didn't really pay off, was poorly named and was abysmally marketed, but it did have some really good first party titles. For many, this the best thing about it was the lessons Nintendo learned and implemented for the Switch - with its classy marketing, stylish and sleek looks, and a gimmick that is incredible - but this remains a console I had more fun with than the PS3, for example.

Gameboy Colour Don't get me wrong, this is a good piece of kit. It's just that, beyond its colour element, it didn't really make the Gameboy better. I don't feel like the calibre of games which were exclusive to it were really much better than the classics. Maybe I'm wrong, maybe I just got all the bad GBC games, but that's my experience. That being said: Money Puncher.

PS3 Oh boy. Like everything else on my list, this is a good console. It's just that it doesn't really do anything for me. It didn't have anything special about it like the Wii, its online was pretty bad, downloading updates directly was monstrously slow, so slow I had to put them onto a USB stick and install them manually. I came to the party late so mine had no PS2 backwards compatibility either. I was happy with it, but I was also lucky to have computers that played most Xbox games, so I didn't feel like I missed out on things like Knights of the Old Republic. This machine has it's fair share of exclusives, and those tend to look really good for their time. But it was such a mess for developers to work on that we always had the inferior ports. Bethesda games ran like absolute arse on it. Really, this was just a PS2 on steroids with a wifi chip, which was just a PS1 on steroids without a wifi chip. It's fine for your improvements to be predominantly about graphical power, but for all its computer processing might the PS3 never really had any clever games.

Guess that's where we differ Muss as I am going weigh this heavily on the games and I mean exclusives at the time, but I will take things like multiplayer, online and anything else the console has done into consideration. Like I pointed out about the One X maybe one of the best machines made but the games still sort of lack even though it's been my main console of choice since it launched but I would have had the same experience playing something like Celeste on Xbox One, PC, PS4, Switch, Stadia, Mac.




1. GameCube. The little Cube that could with a library of games that rank amongst some of my favourites such as Wind Waker then other such as Double Dash, Melee, Twilight Princess, Resident Evil 4 and more along with local multiplayer being outstanding.

2. Dreamcast. I don't have 200+ games on it for new reason as there's quality amongst them with some like PSO the first time I went online on top of other neat things.

3. PlayStation. The console that really got me into gaming more so than the Mega Drive. Maybe that's down to being able to buy or rent more games, play and borrow from people more so then had it the past but certainly with its games be it Crash, Spyro, Metal Gear, Final Fantasy, Resident Evil, Tekken always going to rank the best for me.

4. Nintendo 64. I don't feel I give the N64 enough praise as back in the day didn't have mine long and the only times after that was as mates playing MK64 or Goldeneye. Just years later picking up a N64 after the Cube then I realized how good the games it had on it were.

5. PS4. Maybe some recently biased as we're still in this gen just the games on it are superb why so many are in my Top 25 of All-Time, along with it just being a good solid machine with my personal favourite controller.

6. Mega Drive (Including 32X and Mega CD). Where it all began for me and nostalgia does play a big part and why I still put it above

7. SNES. In 2020 looking back at the SNES it's so different to 1994 as I can play Earthbound, Final Fantasy VI, Chrono Trigger if I wish and I can understand why during the hey of the 16-Bit systems why people especially state side why this was the best option for some.

8. Xbox. I really like the OG Xbox as the exclusives where good and offered me something different to what I had on Cube with Halo, Forza, KOTOR, Fable, Otogi and the biggest of them all online play for even 3rd party games out of the box. The only downside was the Duke which got replaced with the S-Type which the Series X|S controller is still based on.

9. PS3. The PS3 is an odd beast but was the console that showed me games that could be art more so than any before it where before gameplay had been key where something like Journey emotions was the key instead. Also, it being HD, Blu-ray Player and the first thing I bought with my first proper paycheck made mine special before talking about MGS4, Uncharted, Last of Us

10. PS2. This may shock some of you as I've said my views on PS2 lots of times but that's really down to it being compared to DC, Cube or Xbox and often hearing GTA San Andreas is so great which is it but I played that on Xbox, it doesn't make the PS2 special. What makes the PS2 special is the DVD player, Metal Gear Solid 2 & 3, Shadow of the Colossus, ICO and only in the last few years I've realized how many great games I did play on PS2.

11. Wii U. Loved the gamepad idea and the games on it, that made Wii Unique.  

12. Xbox 360. The 360 might be getting the PS2 treatment here a bit from me and a tad like now with Xbox One, as you can look at my gamertag and it's where I played most of the 3rd party games of that gen as they ran better most of the time better than on PS3 but that was an option though. That I'm looking what it brought to the table and it was better online which got adapt by a wider audience and digital downloads along with good exclusives but don't think any part from Gears 2 really of that top tier quality.  

13. NES. Didn't get to post Cube, just it did so much for gaming and stuff like SMB3 is still close to a 10/10.

14. Wii. The motion controls really as they work well with Wii Sports and a few others but never really been my thing, just it did a lot for games and still have Skyward Sword & Last Story on it.

15. Saturn. Don't have a huge amount to say on the Saturn, just that it's gone a tad underappreciated over recent years but still a good console.

16. Switch (Not including Lite). I've said what I feel about the Switch many times and both Balla & Muss have highlighted stuff I have issues with and I think it's only got a few quality games and I don't care too much about its unique selling point.

17. Xbox One. This seems mean but I have to look at all 7 years of the Xbox One and a long time it was well the same as PS4 but everything slightly worse. That only in the last few years has it got going and had an identity which is the services it offers.

18. Master System. Didn't have when it was popular, and I've tried to go back just sooner be playing Sonic on Mega Drive then here.

19. Neo Geo CD. Great fighting games, umm yeah that's about it

20. Jaguar. I like the Jag in it's so bad it's good way also AVP banger

21. 3DO. Not had long just better than the next three already

22. Atari 2600. One of the first consoles ever that for history reasons is higher than the

23. CD-I. Pants

24. Intellivision. Had one game for it



1. 3DS (Including New). I'm not a big handheld person but feel I played the 3DS a lot and played some great games on it that I'm giving it the nod at number 1.

2. VITA. I love the VITA and it's so underrated like we're seeing this week the store going which means 1200+ games are now hard to get and amongst them is things like Persona 4 Golden. Ohh and the actual hardware being excellent.

3. Game Boy. Where it all began really and Pokémon alone puts it here.

4. PSP. Excellent library of games and at the time the novelty of watching films and playing handheld games on a big screen as well just with a cable.

5. DS (Including DSi). Didn't play much DS but what I did was fine.

6. Game Gear. Sonic on the go amazing

7. Switch Lite (Not incluidng other Switch). I might not be a big fan of the Switch as a console but the Lite especially this year with Animal Crossing going into 2021 which looks like exactly what I want from the system that I could see the Lite moving up.

8. GBA. It was fine

9. Neo Geo Pocket Color. Nifty little handheld

10. Game Boy Color. Can't really think of any standout games but has to be better then

11. SwanCrystal. Sort like the GBC but for the Swan range which gives it the edge over

12. WonderSwan Color. Hard to play not knowing Japanese

13. Pokémon Mini. Did what it said on the tin

14. Lynx. Only had one or two games

15. Virtual Boy. I kinda like the VB and a lot of the games I've played are good just the problem is the machine itself #remakewario

16. N-Gage. You've all seen it right?

17. game.com. It could go online and had a neat feature where you could insert two games

18. Evercade. Umm yeah bought and sold almost right away as lost enthusiasm due to the wait and Cappa's reviews didn't do anything to make me want to turn it on

Only other things would be stuff like Amiga 500 or Spectrum ZX+2 but I can't even remember which ones I've owned

Muss wrote:

Balla wrote:

It's probably not Nintendo's best generation, but it's their best console.

This pretty much sums up how I feel about the Switch to. To my mind, it is undoubtedly Nintendo's best ever console. That doesn't mean that I think it has stronger games, pound for pound, compared to other generations, but as a machine there's no contest. And personally, that's how I would grade a machine. Sure a roster of games is important, and if a console had absolutely nothing then that's a major problem, but weighting its library too heavily means you're actually just ranking the games. I prefer to look at how much I loved the machine, and how much I thought the machine brought to the table.

I've got to say, I am mostly weighting it on the games. I'm largely ignoring the many ports, but I am including the litany of indies that are playable on a Nintendo machine for the first time. I definitely think that the Switch swings it out of the Nintendo machines. Maybe not if you restrict it to the exclusives, certainly not if you compare it against Nintendo's handheld/home console combinations from gens. past, and it definitely hasn't hit the heights I've hoped; but considered in direct comparison with its fellows based on its library alone, and with nostalgia not counted for, I don't think there's another choice. (As far as machines themselves go the Switch is the most powerful Nintendo machine and its USP is bloody fantastic so it'd win there too.)

Definitely harsh on the 3DS there.

I know the 3DS is a brilliant machine, but like I said I never really got the most out of it and unfortunately for it that's how I've weighted my list. I tended to prefer playing on home consoles, which has always been true, but unlike its predecessors there aren't many memories that I have of the machine that stand out. That's where the genius of the Switch shines, it's there for me as a home system but I can also play it in bed.

Ooh this looks fun. I wasn't about in 2013 for the original vote, but here's mine (only including ones I've owned). *DEEP BREATH*

10. Master System
System: I had a Master System II with Alex Kidd in Miracle World built in and vividly remember it having a Reset button that was stuck. Like it was pressed down and never popped back up. The console itself was solid and for me, a better looking one than the Mega Drive I. There was a nice sliding cover over the cartridge slot too. Nice little system - 8/10

Controller: Similar to the NES pad at the time, it had nice chunky buttons that were a little too spongey, and a horrible D-pad that rolled around. Disappointing. 4/10

Library: I had this in the early 90s and relied on second-hand games that were clearly past their time, but stuff like The Terminator and Off-Road were really enjoyable for a 6-year old. Looking back though, it's clear the library of the Master System lacked in a lot of areas. 5/10

gjones score: 17/30 or 5.7/10

=9. Xbox

System: I had one of those crystal Xbox systems at the time, and it was somehow the prettiest and ugliest thing I've ever put under the TV. It's enormous and bloody heavy too. I liked the chunky controller ports and the internal hard drive was a revelation at the time. No need for memory cards! I recall ripping my hundreds of CDs to the hard drive and buying certain games because of their Custom Soundtrack feature, something that has never been done as well since. Sure, you can play Spotify on consoles now, but it plays over everything. The Custom Soundtrack mode on Xbox would replace the in-game music, so when you were in the menu screen of say Burnout 3, it would play a song. Then when you started a race, it would change song. It just felt great. The OS was disgusting though, a hideous green with a horrible font. The actual Xbox hardware was beefy and most games looked best on the Xbox. It was just so damn ugly. A decent 6/10

Controller: The original "Duke" was horrid and I managed to join the Xbox later in its life (2003?) when the S controller was around. I still rate that controller and its DNA is still present today. The black and white buttons were largely pointless though, and sometimes stuck. 6/10

Library: There are some excellent exclusives on the original Xbox but it excelled in third-party releases. It got a lot of what was on PS2, but they were better versions. Plus, stuff like Burnout Revenge and Timesplitters Future Perfect had online functionality and stuff like Rainbow Six 3 and Project Gotham Racing 2 were important online moments. This was my first foray into online gaming, as I left secondary in 2003 and it became a key part of gaming with friends. Fond memories, but I think the 360 and subsequent consoles have done the online thing better BUT the community in 2003-2004 was great. I remember playing a scouser on PES and having a great chat, then playing PES on PS2 years later and there was no chat function. It was a rare time where you could play randoms and everyone had their mics on. Anyway, the library itself was solid, 7/10.

gjones score: 19/30 or 6.3/10

=9. Nintendo 64

System: I'm a big fan of the N64's design. Compared to the square Saturn and the rectangular PlayStation, the N64 benefitted from not slicing the owner's hands when you picked it up. From the system to the cartridges to the controller, it all looked smooth and futuristic. You could also drop a nuclear bomb on it and it would survive, maybe that's how they made that bright green see-through edition. The decision to go with cartridges may have hindered the library, but being able to slot a cartridge in and jump right in to a game was always welcome. The expansion pak was fine, but rarely did it feel like a game-changer. Except Perfect Dark because you only got 30% of the game if I remember the boxart correctly. I had a third-party expansion pak that made my N64 look like it had a Hot Rod engine. A thing of beauty. 10/10

Controller: Shite D-pad that had to be used in the wrestling titles, coupled with a weak analogue stick that shamed you with its collection of skin cells, the N64 pad is an experiment that hasn't aged well at all. It also felt like most of its insides were empty, as if it didn't need to be that big. The memory card/rumble pak trade-off was another "thing". I swore by it at the time, but then I also purchased Limp Bizkit albums. 3/10

Library: I think N64 Magazine did wonders in the late 90s - I would read about utter shite and cherish any game that hit that magic 85%+ score. There was actually a lot to like in the N64's library, but a lot of it hasn't held up too well. Goldeneye and Perfect Dark are probably my most played titles on the system, but do I want to play them now? Nah. Even WWF No Mercy feels sluggish and cumbersome (YEAH I SAID IT). The games I love that still revisit would be F-Zero X, Mario 64, Blast Corps, maybe Mario Kart 64. But Turok 2, Smash Bros, 1080 and the like, all feel slow and were superseded by the next-gen. As revolutionary as the N64's heavy hitters are, they feel like a hard sell unless you were there. 6/10

gjones score: 19/30 or 6.3/10


8. SEGA Mega Drive

System: I owned a Mega Drive I but always envied my friend who had the Mega Drive II. It looked so much nicer, although I did have that neat headphone volume slider. While the SNES looked more durable, I think the Mega Drive was the first time a console really looked modern. All the ugly add-ons like the 32X can do one though. 7/10

Controller: A bit like the N64, I loved this at the time but it definitely feels primitive now. For some reason I really liked the small Start button and the loose A,B,C buttons. Is it better than the SNES? No. I didn't have a SNES but did own a PC controller that was basically a red SNES controller, for playing FIFA 97 and Need for Speed II. 6/10

Library: I grew up on about 10 games for this system: Sonic 1, FIFA 96 and the three Mega Games cartridges. Which was Streets of Rage, Golden Axe, Revenge of Shinobi, Columns, Alien Storm, Super Monaco GP, Super Hang-On, Super Thunderblade and Italia 90. Oh and round a mates for Streets of Rage 2. There was much more out there but the nature of SEGA games meant they were open to replayability, yet looking back now, I reckon I'd have preferred the Super Nintendo offerings. 7/10

gjones score: 20/10 or 6.7/10

=7. SEGA Dreamcast

System: I do like the square sleekness of SEGA's swansong, but that disc drive sounds like its built of razorblades. I used to put Shenmue in just to give it a workout. Being white, Dreamcasts are yellow these days which is another knock on it, but the worst part has to be the dodgy reading of discs. Cor the Dreamcast was shite weren't it? Nah I'm joking, but it did have its issues. The fact it could play copied games was a big bonus, mind. 6/10

Controller: Thinking back, the Dreamcast controller was great to hold, but that analogue stick wasn't great was it? Not sure about that wire coming out the bottom, what a pain that was. Loved the memory card slot though. 7/10

Library: Considering it was only around for two years, the Dreamcast has a great little library of games. Stone cold classics like Crazy Taxi, Soul Calibur and Jet Set Radio made up for what was a sleight third-party offering. 8/10

gjones score: 21/30 or 7/10


=7. Xbox 360

System: The original 360 is disgusting. Like a soulless desktop, that needed faceplates to give it some character. Yet I owned three of them during its run - two originals and the E edition later on. Let down by poor reliability, there was lots to like once you had it working. The OS with the blades design, the superb online support, the Achievements, the ability to download demos, the advent of apps like Netflix. The 360 was a reason to buy a new TV. But the console itself was a shiter. Even that power button sometimes needed two pushes. 3/10

Controller: Greatness. Once you had that play and charge kit, you were good to go. I'll never tire of pressing that Xbox button in the middle. 9/10

Library: The 360 has a vast library of titles but aside from Halo and Gears, I don't really associate many games with it. It was heavy on third-party titles that the PS3 also saw so it lacks some identity, but stuff like Dead Space, Bayonetta, Bioshock, Mass Effect, Fallout and Red Dead are stone cold classics. And there's plenty more. 9/10

gjones score: 21/30 or 7/10

=7. Wii-U

System: I really liked the Wii-U. The console itself seemed to get overlooked by the GamePad, but it looks great as the curvier younger sibling of the Wii. The way you could connect old Wii-motes to it, the fact it was backwards compatible and being able to play many games just on the GamePad was an underrated feature. But the hard drives were way too small and almost meant you needed an external, if you went digital. Plus that Wii backwards compatibility mode was a bit odd. Arguably the best eShop though, as far as selection of great games. 8/10

Controller: Yeah it was a bit Fisher Price, but the GamePad was a misunderstood little fella. Or big fella. It looks a bit big now, but it felt solid and surprisingly light. The issue now is that buying a used Wii-U can be a risk, as GamePads will become harder to find on their own if one does break. A shout must go out to the Wii-U Pro Controller, what a beauty! 8/10

Library: The Wii-U library is slim, but it did have its moments. Titles like Mario Kart 8, Smash Bros and Splatoon were bangers but the solo gamer was left a little shortchanged. Super Mario 3D World was no Galaxy, and Zelda came right at the end, I personally felt a lot of the first-party games were too safe and often 2D platformers (Donkey Kong, Yoshi, Kirby...) which isn't really my forte. Bayonetta 2 is great, but the Wii-U ultimately suffered from a lack of software. 5/10

gjones score: 21/30 or 7/10

6. GameBoy Advance

System: I didn't own the original GBA, but had the SP and the Micro. The SP's clamshell design, rechargeable battery and small size all make it an exceptional piece of hardware. I know the backlight helped in later models, but there were a couple of flaws for me. The stupid headphone adapter thing was irritating, as was the fact GameBoy games stuck out the bottom like they really shouldn't have been in there. The fact that original GameBoy games could be played was cool, but I don't think I really bothered with them at the time. Also, I had an SP where one of the shoulder buttons died. The Micro however is designed by Gods, but was actually too small for my hands to really suit a gaming sesh. Overall though, a strong 8/10.

Library: Sandwiched between the GameBoy and DS, the GBA's library looks weak considering the Mario titles were ports. I loved Super Circuit and maintain that game should be looked at more fondly, and Advance Wars is a system seller for me. I wasn't a big RPG guy so that side didn't appeal so much - there were many games I thought were fine (Sonic Advance, Minish Cap, Pokemon Ruby) but its short lifespan (5 years) meant the GBA didn't really fulfill its potential as the ultimate 2D portable. 7/10

gjones score: 15/20 or 7.5/10

5. Nintendo Wii

System: Nice and compact, the Wii is a beauty. As long as it's not in white. The endless peripherals were a pain and there's probably a landfill site of Wii Fit boards somewhere, but the Wii is a true great. The iconic menus, the backwards compatibility, the excellent Virtual Console feature, and some expertly disguised loading times for a disc-based system. Sure, it wasn't a powerhouse, but it didn't matter. It was a bit of a pain having a sensor bar though. 9/10

Controller: Motion controls were divisive, but when done correctly, it spawned unforgettable moments. Wii Sports in particular, but the Galaxy games and somehow making Metroid Prime, Resident Evil 4 and Pikmin 1/2 BETTER. No mean feat. The controller however did mean many titles suffered (ie. sports games, platformers that tried to convince you it's an NES pad). 7/10

Library: A ton of shovelware aside, I think the Wii was similar to the N64 in that Nintendo often carried it, at a time when Other Format owners were looking down on the console. The peaks are some of the highest in all of gaming, but stuff like Wario Land: Shake-It and Link's Crossbow Training felt like curious diversions instead of proper games. I love the Wii and enjoyed plenty of its library, but it still feels a little underwhelming. 7/10

gjones score: 23/30 or 7.7/10

4. 3DS

System: I've owned a 3DS, a 3DS XL and a 2DS, and think they are all wonderfully designed handhelds. The shoulder buttons on the 2DS are a little odd, but everything just feels well made and the OS is nice and slick, with some nice touches (like the log that recorded your time on games). I didn't spend a great deal of time with any of the systems I had, not necessarily because of the games, but more because at that point in my life, I just didn't really play many games (not new ones anyway). I think the 3D effect itself was a waste of time and would have preferred a straight-up beefier version of the original DS, but that's just me. As hardware though, it's one of Nintendo's better ones. 8/10

Library: While the 3DS wasn't as innovative as the DS, I actually reckon it had a better selection of titles. There's so many RPGs, it had a great Metroid, a great Zelda, N64 ports, GameCube ports, Wii ports, Wii-U ports!!! The launch was a little iffy, but looking back now, I reckon I missed out on a ton of great titles. 8/10

gjones score: 16/20 or 8/10

3. Nintendo GameBoy

System: I primarily used the GameBoy for Donkey Kong 94 and it was perfect for hurling Mario around. The D-pad is genius and the two buttons managed to satisfying yet not too plasticky (like the original Xbox ones). Relying on batteries was a minor pain, but it couldn't help that. Could the graphics have been better? Sure. Was it genuinely portable? Only if you had them massive baggy jeans. Is it iconic and built from iron girders? You betcha. 9/10

Library: There was definitely a lorry load of wank on the GameBoy, but the fact Nintendo got great Mario, Zelda, Kirby, Pokemon and Donkey Kong games out a glorified calculator is testament to their programming wizardry. When you throw in Tetris, there are some true heavyweights here, but I think later Nintendo handhelds had a better volume of quality. 8/10

gjones score: 17/20 or 8.5/10

=2. PlayStation 4

System: The original PS4 seems to be rare now and I've only had the Slim. I've had three of them, having sold them after a year each time, but my third has stuck and I'm only now starting to discover its vast library. The OS is a bit sluggish but my experience has been that the systems are silent - I understand the PS4 Pro is rather loud though. The wedge design is fine, not particularly impressive but also not distracting. It just kind of is. 8/10

Controller: A refinement on perfection but the battery life on this bad boy is shameful. 8/10

Library: After a rocky first two years, the combination of outstanding exclusives, plenty of indies and pretty much every genre covered, for me the PS4 is the ultimate. Hardcore action titles, plenty of Japanese RPGs, the western RPGs, lots of sport titles, AAA adventures, platformers, FPS, and most importantly, at least EIGHT Yakuza games. 10/10

gjones score: 26/10 or 8.7/10


=2. Nintendo GameCube

System: A classy feat of engineering is our little purple handbag. Sure, it didn't have DVD playback, but as a pure gaming system, I don't think there has been better. The way discs clicked on to the spindle thing, the smooth way the lid opens up and that OS full of Nintendo charm - perfect. 9/10

Controller: Moulded wonderfully to fit your hands, the Cube controller is a true great. The triggers felt a bit loose, and the D-pad was a pile of arse, but I love everything else about it, particularly the Wavebird version. Although that C-stick was never a proper substitute for a second analogue stick. 8/10

Library: Sure, it may have missed some great third-party offerings, but the Cube's first-party line-up is brilliant. Then with Resi 4 and Super Monkey Ball you have two of the best ever. 9/10

gjones score: 26/30 or 8.7/10

=1. Nintendo DS

System: The original DS was a great system, superseded by the DS Lite. I had the original, a Japanese import upon launch, making use of that lack of region-lock. Although I didn't, never importing anything other than Chibi-Robo Park Patrol for it, which let's be honest, isn't that memorable. The DS itself is bulletproof and somehow slicker than a man called Rick bathing in oil. I didn't piss about with Pictochat or even the online features, just using it as I did the GameBoy. Except for Mario Kart DS, which I remember playing at college with friends, because it had that feature where you only needed one cart. How mental is that!? Such a great feature. I lost a lot of styluses (styli?) and kind of wish they were attached, Argos-pencil style. I might have to pick up a DS soon, maybe the DSi XL, as that looks beautiful. 9/10

Library: The DS managed to offer better versions of the GBA line-up (Castlevanias, Advance Wars, Golden Sun etc.) and yet I never played them, so they might not be better! I was playing a variety of titles like New Super Mario Bros., Last Window, Picross and Chrono Trigger. In fact, looking at the lists of Best DS Games online, I've barely scratched the surface and owe to myself to delve deeper. 9/10

gjones score: 18/20 or 9/10

=1. PlayStation 2

System: The original PS2 looks very much of its time, but I quite liked it. The disc read error issues were common, but you just turned your console on its side. Or I did. The PS2 slim though, is one of the most beautiful consoles ever made. I had a silver one in about 2006, as a secondary system to my 360, having sold the original PS2 many years earlier (probably to get an Xbox). The ability to play DVDs immediately without any extra peripheral (looking at you Xbox) was brilliant and as a MiniDisc owner, the fibre optic connection was frequently used to transfer music from CDs. Ah, MiniDiscs... 9/10

Controller: The DualShock 2 is a classic and considering the PS4 controller is essentially the same thing, it's hard to think of negatives with it. The crappy D-pad maybe? And it was a bit small compared to what my gargantuan button-mashers were used to coming off of the Dreamcast. 9/10

Library: For me, the PS2's vast library has only really been usurped by the PS4. A cracking range of exclusives coupled with the endless onslaught of third party titles, I had most of my fun with multiplayer series like Timesplitters, WWE, PES, Burnout and NBA Street. The GTA games, namely GTA 3 was what everyone was playing (if you were a teenage boy in 2002) but it hasn't aged as well as much of the GameCube's library. God of War, OutRun 2006, Guitar Hero, Tekkens, Gran Turismos... 9/10

gjones score: 27/30 or 9/10


After that write-up, I'm happy with the PS2 and DS being my favourites. A rare moment I agree with the masses.

I don't think I've ever enjoyed reading a post on here as much as I did that one. 30/30 or 10/10.