The 5 Most Impactful / Important Consoles in Video Game History - Retro Bird
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- Опубліковано 13 жов 2024
- There's been a lot of great consoles throughout the course of gaming's history, but which ones are the most important? In this video I pick the five consoles that I feel aren't necessarily the best, but are the most important in shaping gaming into what it's become.
The 5 Most Important Consoles in Video Game History - Retro Bird / Top 5 Most Important Consoles of All Time / Top 5 Most Significant Video Game Systems
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To clarify one more time... this video is not a list of the best 5 consoles or the 5 consoles most important to me personally. This is a list of the 5 consoles that I feel have impacted gaming the most (for better or for worse). Also, a lot of you have mentioned the Super Nintendo's controller, which I think is a solid argument (in addition to the console's overall greatness). Games played: Super C (0:06), Mega Man 2 (0:37), Kirby's Dream Land 2 (1:08), Sonic 2 & Knuckles (2:18), Contra Hard Corps (2:40), Timesplitters 2 (7:18), OutRun 2 (7:50), Mario Kart 64 (8:40), BurgerTime Deluxe (10:00), Final Fantasy IX (16:55), Symphony of the Night (17:40)
A person put xbox series S as no 1 as importance. I know you put the PS4 as a joke in your video. It's very cool that you clarify systems that impacted the gaming industry for better or for Worse.
As much as I don't like XBOX, I do have to agree with you that it deserved to be on this list. Me not liking it is a personal reference but credit is given where credit is due. Great video 👍
Great video
ODDYSY/FAIRCHILD
2600
NES
GENESIS
PS1
XBOX
WII
PS4
SWITCH
PHONE
@@johnsgamingandmore1237 I found the XBOX 360 more impactful. It had a lot going got it. It had a digital store front (that would let anyone make a game), it came with wireless controllers that had headphone jacks), it was heavily focused on online gameplay and it’s success shifted the industry in that direction moving forward and it was HD capable. Much of the same things could be said for the PS3 which came out a little sooner and had a BluRay standard… but it’s online presence was more focused on digital licensed games for a while and the whole “online culture phenomenon” was very much happening in the Xbox Live world on the 360.
Consequently, all these “shifts” is also what got me out of console gaming.
Nailed it. As a Nintendo AND Sega boy (my love reaches no bounds), I think the fierce competition between the two was the perfect storm. 🤓
WCW vs WWF!
@@miamimagicians This isn't a wrestling channel
It was a unique time. I don’t think we will ever see two video game companies go at like that again.
@@leeartlee915 now everything's like, "me angry, me not going to the E3"
man i'm new to Snes and Genesis and i'm falling in love with both of them, and can't for the love of god pick one (but sure can not pick turbografx 16 xd)
Killing it with the longer form content. Thumbs up from me
Speaking of in person multiplayer gaming. I grew up in the 90's I miss LAN parties for games like Tribes, Quake 3 Arena, Dark Forces: Jedi Knight, etc. Every year at our Vo-Tech christmas party it was a huge LAN party for us in IT with pizza, soda, and movies on the projector while we played Quake 3, etc. It was amazing.
LAN parties with PC half-life 1 and CS early versions before 1.6... also so many other LAN games including LAN on XBOX with the original Halo was super fun
I like how you included at least one console from each of the big four console manufacturers. They all had their own impacts on the industry. Even Microsoft.
People still use og box for emu and homebrew;)
I feel like the issue with the Atari 2600 is it just did not hold up well over time. The NES was the first generation where 2D games started to look and play a lot like 2D games still do to this day.
Atari 2600 games are fascinating to play now because they were still figuring this stuff out, but there's only a handful that are still fun, and it's the console I grew up with.
Huge difference in the technology though. That was another one of Atari's many blunders was sticking with the 2600 for to long without looking to the future. Remember the 2600 came out way back in 1977 but it didn't take off sales wise until Atari got the rights to Space Invaders in 1980. Also Atari was actually owned by Warner Communications and they just ran it into the ground and unloaded it after the crash when it became a financial burden for them. Nintendo is an actual gaming company who has for the most part always tried to protect their brand.
@@TheSuckoShowyes I would say there’s maybe 10-15 head to head / multiplayer and 15-20 single player games that are still fun but that’s about it (not counting anything made after ‘92
Interesting list. I think I would debate a couple of these but at the same time, I can see how you arrived at these choices.
NES was the most important in my opinion. The industry was on life support with no signs of recovery and Nintendo found the cure. As good and important as other consoles are; they may not have existed at all without the little grey box.
True. Bringing back a almost dead industry couldn't be much more important to it.
It wasn’t on life support. It was dead in the water thanks to the crappy Atari. The nes resurrected the home videogame industry.
MESSAGE!!!
"The industry was on life support with no signs of recovery and Nintendo found the cure" - the thing is, console gaming might have been doing poorly, but video games in general were still popular (in arcades, and for home computers like the C64 like i had as a kid). It was a matter of time before the console market returned, because people often didn't want to pay for an expensive home computer, or just couldn't afford one (and consoles were a fraction of the price). If not Nintendo, someone else would've been as popular (funny enough, the Sega Master System is actually more powerful hardware than the NES....a handful of better North American launch titles, and Sega could've been the one who utterly dominated the console market throughout the mid to late 80s). Consoles were always going to come back, Nintendo just kind of got lucky with their timing.
wouldnt odyssey be the most important because started it 1972 creating first video game system? followed by the fairchild then the atari. also the fairchild would the most important because that is when cartridges were introduced.
I really like the separation of favorite consoles vs important/impactful consoles.
I actually think that the N64 is one of the most impactful consoles since it fully made the shift to 3D (analogue controls and fully explorable 3D environments), where the PS1 and Saturn games in 3D had been mostly 2.5D until then. While it had few games, certainly Mario 64 and Zelda toot had a disproportionately large influence on 3D gaming after that.
An inciteful list though!
and clearly, youre the most important retro gaming channel, absolutely helped me making my retro setup
without even thanking
I appreciate that! Hope your retro setup is working out great for you!
@@RetroBirdGaming it does, however the speaker in the tv broke and its a crt one so im kind of afraid to open it
Your video output is impressive. Most channels I used to watch are obviously burnt out and just going through the motions at this point.
I agree - great content. Much better than the tired videos the UA-cam fossils keep putting out like "Top 5 Genesis Games You Were Playing in 1992" and stuff like that. Your videos remind me of Scott the Woz a bit - not sure if you're trying to mimic his voice, but it definitely sounds that way.
Retro Bird's channel is great. He just has the avg viewer at 30 years of age.
This is a refreshing channel. There’s so many like it but this has something others don’t. Keep it up.
Great content, and hilariously entertaining delivery. I subbed!
Thank you and glad to have you on the channel!
I love opening my UA-cam and seeing that there is a new #RetroBird video!!!! Truly makes my day and fantastic fantastic content 💯 You need way more subscribers and way more, likes honestly, keep up the amazing work!!!
Right? He is absolutely a genius for his style of keeping the audience's attention...funny clip inserts, all the props that he uses that you know he obviously made ie. "Get on my lawn" hat and the "Back in my day" pants
Yet again, another great subject to chew on in the gaming world. I completely agree with all of your choices as well as the order they came in. The Genesis was more than an edgy competitor, it was proof that you can still have healthy competition despite what Atari and the crash did as long as it was done right. The original Xbox took what the Dreamcast tried to do and turned that dial up to eleven by introducing the very first built-in broadband connection and an online service that literally EVERYONE loved at the time. The Gameboy wasn't just the most significant step into handheld gaming, the entire definition of the phrase "handheld gaming" can basically be summed up with the Gameboy's name alone. The NES took what Atari nearly destroyed and rose it back up from the ashes. Without it, it's very possible we might not even have any home consoles to this day. Finally, the PS1 brought more people into the hobby and introduced a new media type that changed games forever. More storage on a cheaper type of media brought bigger games like RPG's into mainstream attention and into the hands of a growing audience of gamers.
I'd like to add one small fact to the Xbox and say it was also the first console to bring HD level gaming into the living room. Consoles before it couldn't do much better than 480p on its best day, but the Xbox was capable of pumping out resolutions as high as 1080i without breaking a sweat which was HUGE back in the early 2000's. No other console before it could do that. Keep in mind this was also before the widespread adoption of HD flatscreen TV's and HDMI cables to. That means the Xbox was the first and only console to bring HD level gaming into the living room using nothing but whatever analog video connections were available back then (S-Video, Component and even RGB via SCART or JP21 if you were in Europe or Japan respectively). Every console since then... except the Wii because, well, Nintendo... has since followed that example by offering true HDMI at HD resolutions as a standard practice.
In your 2nd paragraph about the Xbox being able to put out 1080 resolution was because it basically was a computer. Think about it...Microsoft 😂
8:20
Easily my new favorite Brad Face.
Personally, I didn't notice that change in gaming finally becoming "cool" until the original Xbox and the PS2. In my opinion, that's when things really started to change and gaming really started becoming more mainstream. It grew a lot during the PS1 era, but by the time the Xbox and PS2 came out, that's when I felt like things really changed and it became seen as normal for anyone to game. It definitely was a big shift away from things like cute mascot characters like gen 4, but I feel like it wasn't until the original Xbox and the PS2 until owning a console became more of the norm. The original Xbox and the PS2 introduced a lot of games that appealed more to more casual gamers that still weren't really there yet.
I would add Neo Geo AES for being the first home console to bring perfect Arcade ports home in an era where that was what all consoles would strive to do and fail. Also for inventing the Luxury gaming market.
I'm not really sure if that would make this top 5 list though.... maybe within the top 10 if the list expanded.
In no particular order:
Atari 2600: Introduced home gaming to the masses. Everybody had one.
NES: Gave us Mario & Zelda, my childhood.
N64 & PS1: Brought gaming into the 3rd dimension.
Gameboy: Made video gaming portable for the masses.
2600 also killed the industry
@@waynesworld1655 no it didnt. People act like video games werent sold in stores between 1983 and 1985. Contrary to what all these UA-cam videos say about "the video game crash", it didn't happen like that. Fact is from 1977 to 1983, the 2600 was joined by the 5200, Colecovision, Odyssey2, and Intellivision, all part of the 2nd generation. At that time, most homes stuck with what they had because there hadn't been a definitive advance in technology to warrant a new purchase. There were only so many homes to sell consoles to, and by 1983, most homes had one of the aforementioned consoles already, predominantly the 2600. The Famicom released in 1984 in Japan, but the NES didnt get a nation wide release in the US until spring of 1986. Nintendo was late to the party. Had they released the NES in 1984 when the technology existed, it still would have sold. There was a drought more than a crash, I lived it, I was there. No consoles were released in 1984. Don't believe everything you see on the internet. Sure, the 2600 had some bad, dated games, but you could always walk into a store in 1984 and buy a Colecovision, which at the time was the best console on the market graphically. Problem was the idea of upgrading consoles every 6 years like we do today just didnt happen back then, and only some of the richer kids in town got one. It took a fresh product with good marketing to revive the industry, and when it gained steam, there was no stopping it. Anybody blaming the 2600 because it's 1977 technology wasnt holding up 7 years later is just jumping on the big lie. No shit it was crappy, it was old. The next gen just took too long to get here.
Really enjoying your videos bro! Great content that is funny and informative
Thank you :) Glad to hear it!
Great list, I totally guessed the first spot. My thinking was the fact that the Nintendo and Sony partnership break up lead to the creation of the PS one. That is some diverging timeline level shit there. Imagine a world with Sony's hardware with Nintendo's solid gameplays...
He’s the retro bird!!! 🎉 that ending song is great!! Is it available for download?
5- Nintendo 64 - A relatively modest commercial success and of little interest to many publishers, its major impact was in how it influenced 3D game design, its utilisation of analogue controls, expanding multiplayer, and branching out into experiments like rumble and handheld connectivity. The SNES was something you might play with a friend, but the N64 was something to crowd around. Making 4-player a fundamental aspect of games like GoldenEye, Diddy Kong Racing and Mario Party was a huge part of its wider appeal, and gave players a taste of what they would enjoy in online gaming in the decades that followed.
4- PlayStation 2 - A console that sold to those who couldn't justify buying a console. A cheap DVD player and two consoles in one, it massively broadened the market, and what kind of games could make a profit. No matter what kind of games you like, there's bound to be dozens of great examples of it on the PS2. It was a console for everybody, and everybody bought one, massively inflating the budgets of games, and setting expectations for what a "Triple A" release was.
3- PlayStation - Through the early nineties, many console manufacturers had made attempts to make a success of 3D design or CD-ROMs, but the PlayStation is what solidified these as foundational aspects of modern games. Bolstered by publishers' frustrations at Nintendo's authoritative approach and high costs, the PS1 offered opportunities for designers to get wild. CD audio allowed for games to tell stories in engaging new ways, and the Memory Card massively expanded their scale. A truly global platform, massively successful in America, Europe and Japan, with developers from each territory contributing must-have titles to its library.
2- Game Boy - Possibly the first truly global success for a video game system, and the biggest breakthrough in portable entertainment since the Walkman. Relevant throughout the nineties until the massive boom of Pokémon completely revitalised it, bringing new releases into the new millennium. Its cheap price and unique functionality made it many people's introduction to buying video games, and an indispensable pacifier for children.
1- NES/Famicom - Until this point, video games were pretty much divided into arcade games and computer games. The Famicom gave us some of the first examples of console games as we recognise them today. Long, fun adventures with clear beginnings and endings, and intricate gameplay mechanics. The system that defined what console games were. Even if it wasn't so marketable in Europe, its approach to game design completely changed developers' attitudes and customers expectations through the late 80s and early 90s.
This is pretty much my list too, but I'd switch the placement of the PS1 and PS2. The DVD element of the PS2 was so huge. Many parents/families justified buying one because it also served as a cheap DVD player. I think the PS2 was the first true system where kids/teens weren't really the target audience. I could go a lot of ways with the 5th spot, but the N64 is a good choice. However, I almost pulled the trigger on putting the Switch in the 5th spot. The Switch is the first true hybrid console and I think hybrid consoles will become the norm moving into the future. But at this point, it's a little too early to judge the impact of the Switch and its influence on console design in the future.
@@happyhollandays Yeah, I struggled to settle on a number 5 spot, and the Switch is a good pick. I feel like a lot of the Japanese games industry struggled to find a place for themselves in the last decade or so, and I've loved seeing a lot of veteran names come back and make profitable projects on the Switch. It's too early to judge its long term impact though.
@@rotallyPumpered Yeah, I think it's a little too early to place the Switch in the top 5, but I have a feeling that it will go down in the future as being one of the foundational pillars in console history. Your top 4 was my top 4 (with spots 3 and 4 switched), I could easily place the N64, Sega Genesis, XBOX 360, Nintendo Switch, or Atari 2600 in my 5 spot. Retro Bird stated the case for the Genesis well (which I agree with), You stated the case for the N64 well (which I agree with), and I made my point for the Switch. But the Atari 2600 should be in the argument for making home consoles mainstream (although it loses points in my book for destroying the console market too), and the XBOX 360 created the blueprint for how online gaming works for a console, as well as setting the standard for how a controller should be designed. If you forced me to choose, I'd probably go N64 or Genesis in the #5 spot.....with the Switch most likely nabbing a top 5 spot when this question is asked a decade from now.
Man I'm so used to playing my OGxbox on a poopy TV seeing whatever TV or monitor he was using looked so nice hahaha
Haha thanks :)
Just started the video and if the PS2 isn’t on this list, I’m making a Retro Bird voodoo doll.
uh oh :(
I remember when the gray original game boy came out. By 1995, I thought the Gameboy was done, there were games coming out but not by leaps and bounds.
By 1997, I couldn't believe going to toys R us and seeing new game boy games coming out. When Pokemon hit the scene it revived the Gameboy until the gameboy color came out and that was that.
I forgot how the PS1 made video games “cool” to the mainstream. I also remember that comic books also were really uncool until (seemingly) Iron Man 1 hit the theatres. So could you say that Marvel Studios is the PS1 of comic book characters?
Thanks for the fun video. Great job
I would agree with that
Blade, X-Men 1, and Spiderman would like a word with you
I'm surprised you didn't mention that it plays music cd's since a lot of people are mentioning dvd's with the PS2 lol.
There were already the X-men and Spider-Man movies plus Batman Begins and The Dark Knight(same year as Iron Man) which we’re critically acclaimed. Iron Man didn’t popularise comic book movies or make them cool. Before that Superman and Tim Burton’s Batman we’re big as well. Revisionist history.
The strategy of marketing the console as being cool goes back to the pc engine in japan and the mega drive in general which both tried to target and older demographic.
You could say that sony succes with that strategy was greater than that of the two other companies but it was not an original thought proces. But that is not what sony does with the playstation.
List is excellent! I would've added the TurboGrafx since it really pioneered multiplayer games on a console (yes the NES has the Four Score--which I have never been able to use); I wonder where 3-5 (or more) player gaming would be without such classic games like Bomberman or Dungeon Explorer. Just an observation. :)
I can't agree with that at all especially given that the TurboGrafx only had one controller port, so you had to buy a multitap (which most people don't buy) just to play a 2-player multiplayer game whereas pretty much all other consoles could at least do 2 players out of the box. If any console deserves credit for its impact on multiplayer games, it is the N64 as that is the console that made 4-player multiplayer games common and mainstream.
You made me laugh and smile today! I needed that. Subbed!
Happy to hear it and welcome to the channel!
@@RetroBirdGaming I love your humor. It's right up my alley. Bananas for the win.
I completely agree with your list.
Hey, great videos dude. Question: what NES game are you playing with the dude slinging a sword please? I'm from the UK and don't recognise it
Hi! Thanks for the question. I have a pinned comment that lists all the games played with timestamps (and I have a pinned comment like that for all my videos except the really old ones). Taking a look at that pinned comment for this video, the only NES games listed are Mega Man 2 and Super C. So, not sure which game you're asking about but hopefully that pinned comment can help you out! You can also just give me a specific timestamp of where you saw the game and I can answer you that way.
Great list. It’s hard to argue the PS1 not deserving a type 5 spot, however, I would have put the PS2. I think the PS2 was truly the first system that was seen as not for “kids/teens”. It also was the first mainstream system that played DVDs (right in the height of the DVD era), so it truly became a family system that parents were more willing to purchase because they could use it as a DVD player. The PS2, in essence, became a more justifiable purchase for so many people because of it having a dual purpose.
ps2 might be the greatest console of all time. very capable, can do anything the ps3 can do, and has a library that rivals alexandrias
Ps1 and Ps2 almost destroyed the video-game "fun" and the industry is not fully recovered yet. Ps1 and Ps2 are piracy staples Sony was very clever and won the market playing dirty.
@@tiagofernandes8389 dreamcast come already modded for burned discs, and even has native rgb through vga.
I give it to PS1 because of the quality of games that came out for it. The first GTA when they were top down, twisted metal, resident evil, all the great RPGs before everything became MMORPGs. There was stuff like tenchu, bushido blade, metal gear solid. It was the first disc based system that I remember doing 4 disc games, really pushing out some large feeling titles.
Playstation 2 added a dvd playing capability, which was nice but I would rather wear a DVD player out to do that.
Ok the, "get on my lawn" hat is hilarious! Nice touch.
Now I wanna get a PS1 and NES mini and load them with games.
EDIT-I was born in 84 and lived through these eras and can confirm everything bird said.
Really great list man! Agree 100 percent. I would add PC as a platform (i mean microsoft systems mostly), technically not consoles but you get the point.
But i agree with every bit of that list - Sega did start actuall competition the way we know it today (and kinda shaped SNES), Xbox (or 360) did change the net play, Gameboy did create, actuall handheld market, shaped it, and legitimised it, NES did saved the market and set a new standard, and psx did open the gaming market to large audience with it's mix of old school arcade games, and new more complex, more story driven and often adult games. Perfect picks.
And even though i'm kinda leaning on picking 360 over classic, the groundwork was done by classic just as the groundwork for ps2 was set by psx.
I laughed so hard at the neighbor kid bit. Your face sold it. Been there haha
Good list and good question. Your answer is definitely going to be influenced by where you grew up. I’m fascinated to watch European UA-camrs and their love of the Mega Drive and Master System. I don’t feel qualified to offer much of a ranking but I’ll stick the Genesis at number 1 since there are still AAA games being made for the console today even though it debuted back in 1989. And if you haven’t tried games like XenoCrisis and Demons of Asteborg you are missing out.
just as we love SNES in north, central and south America, excluding the USA and Canada
What? How was I not subscribed? I've been watching for a little over a year and could've swore I was subscribed. Oh well...I am now
The back in my day pants, the get on my lawn hat... what shirt completes the fit? The "sorry dad well be quieter" T shirt? The "I don't care if your friends see, they have moms too now give me a hug" sweater?
I would argue that the Super Nintendo did change gaming, atleast for the Japanese market. Prior to the SNES gamers couldn't download games to carts (the satelliview) or even the controller itself, it set the standard that everyone uses today, 4 face buttons followed by shoulder buttons.
The controller is a great argument for it. I agree with that. I still wouldn't put it in my top 5 personally... but I can see how somebody would.
@@segaforce8310 The SNES is yes, but the Super Famicom is 10 times better!! All my favorite games for that system is Japan only, we got screwed over here. Same thing happened with other retro consoles..
And re-writeable games with the Famicom.
The controller really was groundbreaking. It was close to perfect.
You could also credit the Super Nintendo with providing a way to play handheld games, the super gameboy paved the way for the gameboy player and you could argue that it paved the way for Nintendo to bring back their games via emulation. (NES, SNES minis, the Wii virtual console, Switch online, etc)
Consistent quality content. What a great channel.
Funnily enough, I got to see the Gulf War Gameboy. Its in Nintendo World NY at Rockafeller Center.
I remember in the late 1980s, my relatives on my mom's side of the family would call Nintendo games Nintendo tapes, like a VCR lol! 😆
Lol yeah. That's because back then adults weren't playing video games. It was mostly kids. You can tell cuz there were no adult rating games until the genesis came out with mk 2. Even then it was 99% kid games or everyone
I saw you running in Castlevania SoTN, how do you do that? I had to repeatedly dash backwards to get enough speed in that game (I only beat it once).
EDIT: Oh wait that's Richter you're playing as. If only Alucard had the ability to run like that!
This may be a bit premature, but I think the SSDs in the latest Xbox and PlayStation consoles mark the biggest paradigm shift since the evolution of cartridges to optical media. As Mark Cerny pointed out, this isn't just about loading speeds, but the effect it'll have on game design itself.
I say the part about DK being made as a response to Aladdin on genesis is exactly true as I was just at the Midwest gaming classic show in Milwaukee and Kevin Baylis and David Wise had a Rareware panel where Kevin said exactly that!
My Top 5 Most Impactful would start with Channel F with the introduction of the Cartridge or the VideoCart as they called it. #4 The Original NES as you stated the come back story of ATARI failures. (Don't call it a come back, Gaming has been here for years!) #3 PS2 with backward capability & DVD player. To this day one of my best friends never did buy another movie player ever again! #2 GB Advance SP with plug in power, down with batteries...why are they still here? #1 XBOX One with a computer company Microsoft into the gaming field opened doors for movies to say hey we need to have gaming departments in our studios too! Maybe I went too far on the limb with that, but what I am saying is gaming is everywhere we look now! Would be here if Microsoft decided not to launch the XBOX One? Now for the hard decision, do I play video games or watch another episode of Retro Bird?
I think the Neo Geo AES could get an honorable mention for bringing the authentic arcade experience to the home which no other console had even come close to at that point
But it was fantastically expensive, so it had little real impact.
You deserve way more subs man
Here are my 5 before I watch
1: NES - my first ever game console. MAGIC. Gaming is HARD.
2: Sega Saturn - first 3d console I played. First I remember using discs.
3: Nintendo Gamecube - favourite Nintendo console, pure joy
4: Sony PS2 Slim - greatest valued console of all time. DVD player.
5: Game Boy - Started portable gaming for the boys
Before even watching this video, based on the title alone, I would have put the NES at #1, the Gameboy at #2 and the PS1 at #3. and I think I’ll stick with it. You’ve convinced me that the Megadrive should be on that list, it wouldn’t have made my list before and I’ll also put it onto #5. which leaves fourth place. Here, I’d put the iPhone. Not a dedicated gaming console, but it changed the industry. Nowadays, mobile games make a huge profit and they have brought entirely new demographics to video games.
I thought this ranking was spot on. I think with the PS1 being an easier hardware platform to develop with, not to mention much cheaper for these developers all around, I feel this opened the door for that creative boom in gaming where you'd get a vast variety of genres of games, some of them being born in this era, and others along greatly improved upon the quality of these types of games. There was a game for almost any subject matter you could think of, so anyone could live out their fantasies through gaming. Imagine what a skateboarder experienced playing Tony Hawks Pro Skater for the first time when before there was only Skate or Die and 720. Car enthusiasts playing Gran Turismo getting to drive a 1963 Split Window Corvette with a big block 454 on a realistic racetrack when before all they had was Sega Rally and Daytona USA. No console had offered those types of experiences before IMO.
I agree with your list. Especially what you said about the PSone making it preferred to use CD’s for games. PSone and NES are not only the two most important consoles, but I would also put them as my two favorites. There are more classics on those two consoles than any other console.
It’ll be interesting to see how the Switch is remembered along these lines. Although the wiiU tried it first, the ability to play high fidelity games while in bed, on your big screen, or at your desk at work is AMAZING.
I like your list, but I would make the NES my number one most important system.
Without the Nintendo Entertainment System, we may not be playing games the way we are today. It saved the industry from a terrible crash.
The PS1 would get my number two slot. All of your points are perfect. It made gaming mainstream, which was the next step after the groundwork laid by the NES.
Third, GameBoy. Again, your points are spot on.
Fourth, I’d change the Xbox out with the Xbox 360. Yes, Xbox Live started on the original, but it was the 360 that really made online console gaming a truly realized vision.
At number five, I would agree with the Genesis/Mega Drive and for all the same reasons. It not only gave an alternative to Nintendo, it did so much more. It made gaming cool. It showed that gamers were growing up. Sony may have made gaming mainstream with its 3D system, but the Genesis is where it began. Also, it forced Nintendo to innovate and release the SNES. Lastly, the Genesis was the whole reason (besides the PC’s DooM) for legislation urging the formation of the ESRB with Night Trap and, of course, the home version of Mortal Kombat!
Great list. I was surprised to see PS1 above the NES. However, you made a great point about the PS1 being such a milestone in the widespread acceptance of video games. It was good to see Atari get a nod but for those of us who experienced the rise of Atari, it can only be #1. 😂 I get why people might discount its importance but it almost single-handedly created the home console market. Sure, there were things like Odyssey and Pong units (and clones) available but Atari created a frenzy and a love for home video games that just didn’t exist previously. We were just as ravenous for the next great game or arcade conversion as kids have been from more recent generations. Atari was extremely popular and pervasive in culture in a way that’s difficult to understand for those that weren’t there. It truly was the first home gaming console that mattered in so many ways. Before Atari, it felt like there was nothing. Once Atari hit it big with Space Invaders, nothing was ever the same. The home console generation was started with Atari in a very real way and those of us that started with Atari have enjoyed seeing the amazing progression, since. For my money, there has never been a more important console than the Atari 2600 (VCS). That being said, it’s understandable why everyone sees the history a bit differently.
Great list and great points. Id personally put nes in top spot for bringing the gaming industry back from the crash but 2600 would probably be second bringing gaming mainstream followed by Genesis for bringing major competition to the dominant nes, then ps1 for being the outsider to step in and dominate the industry and lastly the Gameboy for many years of portable dominating.
I think you could make a strong argument that the N64 was the first console to popularize multiplayer in a serious way. With 4 controller ports, games like super smash bros and golden eye were the first games I played multiplayer with more than just one other person. Sony kept 4 player games locked away behind an extra paywall for a multitap which kept devs away from since so few people would bother to get a multitap for PlayStation. I never owned an N64 but I played a lot of multiplayer games on it at friend's houses.
Maybe the SNES didnt have the same impact the other mentioned consoles had, but its controller sure did. Most later consoles, and PC gaming, seem to have taken inspiration from the SNES controller with shoulder buttons, and Playstation took it further.
@@segaforce8310 Wii is
Totally agree with your list although I would put them in a different order.
Thank you for making videos.
Thank you for watching!
I really enjoy you "playing" Final Fantasy 9 by watching the intro cutscenes with the controller still in your hands. XD
Hahah :). Showing off my skills at the game!
Probably the same skills that help you "binge" shows, movies, and videos. XD
Love the Time Splitters 2 gameplay. Thats definitely one of my all time favorites
Green Gameboy with that exact color palette. That’s what I use 👍🏼
I'd go with Snes personally
Great video, as always
The Gameboy color has exclusives, unlike the pocket, and it made the games IN COLOR! It honestly felt like a new console to me, even though it wasn't any more powerful. I still remember being massively impressed by how vibrant everything looked
Colecovision I would probably put at number 1, if for any other reason then it being the main reason the NES, and Master System exist, and why they both entered the market to begin with. The Atari 7800 I would actually put on the list somewhere for introducing backward compatability.
I actually think this list is bang on. Only thing i'd contemplate switching is Dreamcast for Xbox as it laid the ground for an out of the box online ready system.
But I'm also just a massive Dreamcast fanboy so i would say that XD
One of the very rare lists on internet I actually agree with! All the spots, even Atari and Oddyssey. Good work 👍🏻
The Nintendo Entertainment System was designed to remind people of a Video Cassette Recorder, which was hugely popular in America at the time. The boxy shape(compared to the Famicom design) was inspired by the boxy shape of the VCRs. The front loading, another thing the NES had in common with VCRs. Even the fact that the cartridge needed to go down into the machine. Nintendo knew that at the time they wanted to expand into the American market, video games were on the decline(the video game crash). So they made the initial American version of their Famicom to resemble a device Americans absolutely loved. And yes, calling it an "Entertainment System" rather than a "Game Console" was part of this strategy.
It's a strategy Sony later used with their PlayStation 2 launch. Yes, the PS1 could play music CDs. But it wasn't something that was part of their marketing(I think most of us only found out that it could play music by accident, or word of mouth from friends who found out by accident). The PS2 on the other hand, was marketed as a DVD player. Even designed it to resemble one. Even had an accessory that was literally a DVD player remote(not that you needed it as the base controller could control the DVD's just fine) and the unit itself had a dedicated IR receiver. They went so hard on this that people bought PS2s instead of actual DVD players because a single device could entertain the whole family. In the spirit of the video, the PS2 was also impactful in that it started to remove some of the stigma around owning a gaming console based on, it was also a DVD player. Oh, you have a PS2? Probably for watching movies. And it was cheaper than buying a dedicated DVD player. Which is why, at the time of this posting, the PS2 is still the highest selling console of all time. Not just gamers were buying them. Though it also helped that the PS2 was 100% backwards compatible with PS1 games. Which meant that at launch the PS2 had more titles available to it.
Second only to the initial PS3 launch with the model 1 and 2 being backwards compatible with PS1 and PS2. Meaning the PS3 launch had access to two generations of prior games. A shame they tried to phase that out as that was the biggest selling point going for it at the time. And probably the only thing going for it once the reviews for the system started coming in. Besides it's ability to play BlueRay movies. And still being cheaper than an actual dedicated BlueRay player at the time.
I'm 44 y/o. Gaming was instantly "cool" with Nintendo, sales proved that point. Everyone owned a Nintendo. It was cool even with Atari 2600 (my drug-dealing brother had one in the late 70's, lol). Sega made gaming MORE cool (Biggie smalls even rap about having both). It was the different TYPE of games that separated social statuses. Everyone PLAYED video games and thought they were cool. But the real gaming nerds, back then, were more into RPG type games and games that took longer to play. Some where into PC gaming. The rest of us casuals were into sports games, fighting games and mainstream titles.
1. Magnavox Odyssey (1st proper home console)
2. Atari 2600 (refined home consoles)
3. NES (evolved game concepts)
4. PS1 (first proper 3D home console)
5. Dreamcast (first home console to truly integrate Internet)
Of course there's other important ones (first disc based system, first HD console, etc) but these really changed things majorly.
Your list is very well thought out I agree with your opinion about the most impact for us gamers and I’ve been playing games since 1980
This list is 100% spot on about the PS1. Only if you lived in the era as a gamer can you understand how huge the PS1 was. The PS2 was good but it wasn't such a big deal when you had Dreamcast, Xbox and GameCube. PS1 had complete dominance an no real alternative. The DVD argument I would say is more of a negative and not really a positive, because for the 1st year all you could do is watch movies on the PS2, since 99% of the games were still looking last gen graphically. And also it was backwards compatible so you could play your PS1 games. But the hype was so strong that people were willing to wait. I remember it like yesterday. It was like if the PS1 is this good imagine how good the PS2 will be. People couldn't wait to play Final Fantasy, Metal Gear and Tecken with 10X graphics.
An honorary mention should also go out to The Switch. The first proper handheld/console hybrid. It’s changed how we can play a game by being on our TV and then walk off with the Switch and play it handheld. I wouldn’t be surprised if it ended up being the biggest seller of all time even though it still has about 40 million units to beat the PS2. I think history will show what an important console it was and has already got a PC gaming clone in the Steam Deck. I’ll be surprised if another manufacturer doesn’t try the same within the next few years, especially the rate at which mobile technology is progressing.
Going only by importance, I agree with a lot, but some that I'd add:
N64: Made multiplayer a selling point. Systems had a player 2 option for a long time, more with an external device, but the N64 really made this an identity, with Mario Party (which created the party game genre for the most part), Goldeneye, Turok: Rage Wars, Mario Kart 64, and more. The N64 also introduced the analog stick as a must have feature. It wasn't the first use of analog, but after the N64, Sony had to release an analog controller to catch up, and every system after had analog. Similarly, 3D gaming wasn't really a thing until the N64. It was more a curiosity, or tech demo. The N64 made polygons standard.
PlayStation: Made discs the format to use. Saturn also had discs, but wasn't the success. Before, disc systems were either add ons that didn't go anywhere, or overly expensive flops. After the PlayStation, every console used discs... until Switch... because Nintendo is special.
Genesis: You mentioned attitude, and I just want to add more emphasis. The idea of aggressive marketing, using attitude, wasn't a thing until Sega positioned itself with all the edge that the 90s could muster.
PS2: Did largely just move forward from PS1, but did add something. PS2 made game consoles more than just consoles as a selling point. The PS1 could play CDs, but no one was using the PS1 as a CD player (aside from anyone who did). CD players were everywhere, and more likely to be in a Walkman or stereo system, rather than console. With DVD players, it was different. You'd need something connected to the TV, like a console. The PS2 was my DVD player, and was that for plenty of other people. The first Xbox could play DVDs, but came out after the PS2, and wasn't able to play DVDs by itself.
Great Stuff!
Great video once again Bird. I'd make the argument that PS2 still deserves a spot at top 5. It can't be understated how important that DVD functionality was, it forever set the idea forward that consoles should also be multimedia entertainment devices. It's something that we take for granted these days, so much so that when the Xbox One announced that as its core feature people pretty much responded with "yeah? so what." So yeah, I mean it's also the best selling game console of all time for a reason.
PS2 sold the most because it was out the longest. 2. If not for the PS1 success the PS2 would not sell at that high number that it did. I am not saying it's a bad console, I am saying if PlayStation fails it does not sell that high. Take a look at the Sega Master system that didn't sell well. The Sega Genesis did not break records as Snes outsold them still.
Agreed, i replied to someone else's comment about this same thing, you put it better though.
5. SNES. We still feel the cultural impact of many of the games on this system.
4. GameBoy. First serious handheld with real games and real support. Opened up a large new market and spawned many successors.
3. PlayStation. Made disc-based gaming a must. Brought new blood to the scene. Made gaming much more realistic. Most influential controller ever.
2. Atari 2600. The primary foot in the door for the home gaming industry. Proved that there was a huge market, if it could be properly tapped.
1. NES. The titan. The world-changer. Absolutely mind-blowing at the time. So good that it could not be ignored. All subsequent systems owe much of their success to the revitalization and innovation that the NES brought us.
7:19 I'm one of the odd ducks who's 1st online games on console was Dreamcast, never had my Xbox online 😆, my most important consoles are (no particular order)
NES-we had intellavision and atari but Nes was the 1st I remember enjoying, except I played a lot of burger time on intellavision
GB/GBC-Made trips much more enjoyable, had a Gamegear but it devoured batteries to quickly to be very portable
Ps1-the golden age of JRPGs made me realize games could tell a great story and I would be a gamer forever
N64- Ocarina made me want to explore a game world like none before it
Dreamcast-1st console I bought with my own money and the 1st console I played online
The game on the Odyssey II that was genuinely solid was K.C. Munchkin. Basically a better Pac-Man.
Number one is the Atari 2600 Video Computer System. Without that one, none of the rest may exist. Atari was already working on home Pong consoles when the Magnavox Odyssey was released, so Atari still would have released the 2600 without the Odyssey.
Sega Genesis will always be my desert island favorite.
Play it like Jake forever 👍
I would argue the Xbox also had a strong benefit of being one of the first if not the first console with storage that wasn't simply a memorycard or battery on the cartridge itself. Having on-device storage was a big game changer too.
A strong argument could also be made to socket the PSP into the list somewhere before (or after?) the Gameboy for a few reasons. It being among the first consoles to support downloadable demos/games, an online marketplace (keep in mind, it predated the PS3) while supporting multimedia playback (ala smartphones that would come in years following) and had current gen console-like experiences on the go. And even more so, was one of the first consoles to support emulation. Even beyond hacking, PS1 classics could be run on the PSP and purchased from the playstation network (Albeit this came along later in its lifespan) but it was a combination of being able to experience old console games on the go, some ports of current console games, and should you hack it, even games from some of the competition, as well as your music, videos, browse the web, and more.
I suppose Dreamcast could be considered somewhere in there too for being the first console to include the hardware for online gaming, and the first console to have access to an MMO (Phantasy Star Online) but in that same breath, PS2 had a more true MMO scene with FFXI and Everquest, and even the PSP later had a demi-MMO in the form of the Phantasy Star Portable games.
I would say
Honorable mention: the Odyssey
-First home gaming console, but is pretty rare and not really anything that special, outside of being the first. It is incredibly primitive, even in the definition of a videogame console. It's more like an experiment.
#5 Atari 2600
-First gaming console that had popularity, and actually had a decent gaming library. It's the console that truely brought gaming to people's homes, and was not just an experimental console.
#4 Sega Genesis
-Literally everything you said, and I will add, it was also the gaming console that brought games like Road Rash and the Strike series that would revolutionize gaming forever. The gaming library was more experimental and often for the best, giving us more unique games to try, like Toe Jam and Earl.
#3 Playstation 2
-It did what Sega said the Dreamcast would do, and capitalized on that. I believe the PS2 is more significant than the Xbox, despite the Xbox having revolutionary things like a harddrive and launched Xbox Live. One, the PS2 launched the headset for games like SOCOM, allowing better communication. The console was a home entertainment center, as it not only played CDs, but it also played DVDs which sold an insane amount of consoles, as it was a cheaper DVD player. It became the one thing outside of literally Cable or Satellite TV to do it all for you home entertainment setup. It also continued where the PS2 left off and gave us some of the most iconic games ever made like the GTA III that showed games are no longer just games, but a MAJOR entertainment industry that would start employing professional actors to do voice work for games. It was the competition that the Xbox needed to be what the Xbox became.
#2 Playstation 1
-This was the console that revolutionized adult/mature gaming, simulation racing, continued on the successes of the 16 bit era and showed Sega and Nintendo after they both turned Sony down, that Sony was not a company to dismiss like they did. Nintendo turned down Sony after the Nintendo Playstation, and then Sega turned them down immediately after. So Sony became the underdog that beat out its competition. Even more strange, Sega would also turn down Microsoft on a joint built console when the Dreamcast was in development. Sony also revolutionized the CD based console, more so than the Sega CD or Turbo Graphx CD ever did, and gave us games that were impressively large, like Final Fantasy 7, or games that influenced Grand Theft Auto, like Driver 2. All in all the PS1 was a perfect first console in my opinion.
#1 Nintendo Entertainment System
-I put this one at number 1, because it is the first successful 8 bit console that started off the reintroduction of the videogame console. It was the first console to have games with a proper scrolling screen, and far more detailed levels, with a goal in the end versus a simple high-score. Like games like Asteroid, Centipede, Pac-Man, and more on the Atari were just a single screen where the point was to get a high score. Games like Super Mario Bros, Zelda, Castlevania, and Contra are games that had layers to them, levels, vivid colours, goals, and an actual ending to the game. These games expanded how we would view home gaming forever, and restored the gaming industry nearly single handedly in North America. To this day, it's collectibility is still significant, where consoles older than it, are no longer sought after. Despite the fact they paved the way for the NES.
Great video as always.
Matt, you should start a discord! Maybe then your fans can start playing some of these games together :) EDIT: Pretty sure retroarch has online play via emulation? might have gotten too excited in this posting lol.
He does have one. I think you can find it somewhere in the community tab.
Seems like we have a very different definition on what "impactful" means. For me personally, I'd say the 5 most impactful consoles would be 1) The Odyssey for being the first commercial home console. 2) The Atari 2600 for putting gaming into the mainstream. 3) The NES for singlehandedly reviving the US gaming market following Atari's BS. 4) The PlayStation 2 for being the unsurpassable juggernaut that it is. 5) The Xbox 360 and its refined Xbox Live functionality for shaping the all-digital/online multiplayer era that followed. (Handhelds are a different story.)
NES I count for the US after the crash but otherwise I wouldn't the world as Europe cared about PCs then so it didn't effect them.
PS2 sales sure but I think other innovations count more like media playback on CDs (CDI or 3DO otherwise Sega CD/Turbo CD, PC-FX the Turbo Grapx successor that failed. I mean it has some cool demos. Can point to many examples around the time) was the push to music/movies and now streaming and media content is major for consoles today outside of Nintendo consoles but PS/Xbox it's a big deal for them.
Other than that the rest I agree with.
I was torn between PlayStation and PlayStation 2, to be honest. On one hand, and because of its sales, PlayStation 2 is a console that pretty much everyone has experienced. It made gaming not seem nerdy anymore. Maybe you could put Wii in its place. They might seem dissimilar, but in retrospect they served a similar purpose, though the PS2's library is vastly superior.
On the other hand, the original PlayStation was a console which simultaneously broke the Nintendo cycle, pioneered 3D graphics development, and brought countless new and returning franchises into the 3D era.
@@yoshinatsu I would too be torn between them for sure. PS2 or Wii for sure as mainstream appeal. The other I too agree with. Though Sega/NEC did push in somewhat for prescene or marketing in the 16bit era. For 32 bit systems I agree for 3D popularisation compared to others attempts.
We may see it differently but that's okay. I can understand where you're coming from with your choices 🙂
Spot on and similar to my list.
Atari 2600: The OG
NES: Started the Nintendo franchises. Also saved gaming in North America.
Xbox: Built-in Hard Drive, Online service, popularizing PC genres in consoles. It was pretty much a gaming PC.
PSOne: The marketing push Sony did popularized gamibg and made it mainstream. First console to surpass 100 million units sold.
I'd say that he SNES makes the influential list just because every extant system's controller is based on the SNES controller.
I’d list the PS2 over PS1 for one simple reason: it was the first true multipurpose console.
The PS2 was a DVD player right out of the box, during a time when dedicated DVD players still cost as much as a gaming console. This was a major reason why the console remains the biggest selling console of all time and set the tone for consoles to be for more than just gaming.
Excellent list sir. I remember the playstation effect very well.
“Back in my day pants”….hahaha
Agree, the psx is also my #1, followed by game boy, ps2 at #3, snes at #4 and saturn at #5
Thanks for the video. I appreciate the time involved. I must say I an quite surprised by having the original PlayStation console on the list.
I would think the only thing the original Playstation did was create a way for more Playstation consoles. lol.
I know the Playstations are much loved but for me give me Nintendo or SEGA anyday !
In My Opinion 5 Of The Most Important Console's / Handhelds I Agree With Atari 2600 It's Maybe The Most Important But I Would Also Have To Say Sega Dreamcast Because It Was The First Console To Realize The Potential Of Online Such As Phantasy Star Online. And With Games Like Soulcalibur Would Surprise The Arcades.
3rd In My Opinion Yes Gameboy Was 1st But The Neo Geo Pocket Color Would Leagues Above Any Other Handheld Of The 90's .
4th The Original Xbox Or As I Called It Dreamcast 2 It Would Take Many Things The Dreamcast Did With Online And Take It Farther With Xbox Live. Plus The Only Console You Could Get Some Games In 720p Like Soulcalibur II In 2002 That Was Crazy & A Hard Drive. Last I Would Say PS4 For Being In My Opinion Because It Is The 1st To Make VR Experience You Could Have At Home And More Affordable I Think In The Future People Will Look Back At PS4 As Being Revolutionary For The Time. Speaking As Someone Who Has Experienced Resident Evil 7 In VR It's Crazy How Fun And More Immersive Experience You Get.
A handheld console I would consider to be extremely important RIGHT NOW is the Steam Deck. That was a game changer for me. I have a top end gaming PC and I find myself using the Steam Deck more than that! Being able to take PC games on the go and have it be as easy as a console to use is nothing short of amazing. Kudos to Valve. The fact that Valve is encouraging other manufacturers to enter the handheld PC space is amazing. I really think this will open up PC gaming to millions and allow people like myself to actually play some of the hundreds of games in their Steam library.
Did this before watching your video to see if any of our thoughts were the same.
1. NES - Not only did the NES save the video game industry from a crash, it was a cultural phenomenon. By the end of its life, Nintendo was synonymous with “video game” so much, moms and dads called future consoles “Nintendo’s”.
2. PlayStation 1 - I picked this because of what Sony accomplished in a brutally competitively market. They made no mistakes and crushed the competition, humbled Nintendo and nearly put Sega out of business and eventually did by the PS2.
3. XBox 360 - While it’s not the first online gaming console (Dreamcast probably is) it was the console that made it so mainstream, that most of the library had online play. It also had a digital storefront which was vast and impressive… not to mention was HD!
4. Sega Genesis - The Genesis stood toe to toe with the seemingly unstoppable Nintendo and while it didn’t win the console war, it had done something far more impactful. It made Nintendo feel… mortal.
5. Atari 2600 - My first console… this was one of the first consoles that brought video games to your home TV. While not nearly powerful as an arcade machine, it had it where it counted… gameplay (at the time), accessibility and affordability.
Our thoughts and choices were very similar!
An excellent case could be made for the DS and Wii, but overall good choices
While I personally love the SNES most, I will admit that it's not the most "important" Console out there. I tend to agree mostly with what you mentioned although I'd say the Genesis & Playstation can share a slot as they effectively did the same thing at different points in time & the Playstation leaped off the back of what the Genesis had done previously.
Glaring omission as far as I'm concerned: Nintendo 64. It's an easy oversight, but I did one thing really importantly "Analog Stick" specifically in relation to 3D movement it was a game changer. While analog sticks existed before, they weren't used for 3D movement & bundled as a standard for a console in the mainstream. Without it we may have never had analog sticks on the Playstation, Saturn or any other console, which would mean a big divide between a "Console" game & "Computer" game compared to today where they're almost ubiquitous.
Agree ps1 stole genesis marketing strategy for its time and when sega threw a ps1 out window it was too late, like kobe beating Jordan even though Jordan created the moves
@@rustymixer2886 lol, this completely confirms why I stopped watching Basketball after Jordan retired. I was there for the golden age, same thing with Tony Hawk getting old.
@@Ty-douken 😆 indeed
Just this year alone there are a lot of Super NES activities happening. A majority of remakes and remastered that got re-released or will be re-release are from the Super NES platform. Tactics Ogre Reborn is a remastered of the PSP game which is a remake of the Super NES/SFC original. The two Front Mission remakes are based on their Super NES/SFC originals. Just last month Live-A-Live a remake in 2D HD was originally a Super NES/Super Famicom game. The upcoming Cowabunga Collection had the Super NES version of Tournament Fighters with online rollback netcode. There are Super NES tracks planning for the Mario Kart 8 Deluxe Booster Pack, there are rumors of Nintendo planning to bring back popular Super NES IP likely a new F-Zero, there are leaks of Nintendo making a new Donkey Kong game probably in the style of the DKC series which started on Super NES, a modder in Japan even made an RGB tv built-in with a Super Famicom and just a few days ago someone found a secret 2-Player Mode in Super Punch-Out showing that even the Super NES is still being play to this day. You can doubt the Super NES being the least important console all you want but if it was that least important how come the Super NES is the most retro focus of this modern era? Even fans still clamoured for a Super Mario RPG, Final Fantasy VI, and Chrono Trigger remake to this day, all which are Super NES classics. 8BitDo who makes third party controllers based their main controllers with the Super NES in mind over everything else. It's not least important if people kept coming back to it heck on this video alone it was the first console to be mention before the actual list.