TurboGrafx-16: One of the 10 Most Underrated Consoles

[guyjin]

Shitty top ten lists seem to be the chief export of crap magazines these days.

TRU DAT.

Did you know that Super Mario Land (GB) was shit? Yeah, I didn't either.

I did. Probably the worst mario platformer ever. (not counting the CDi stuff, of course.)

Back to this topic, I don't think there are 10 underrated consoles.

I belive there are. Pretty much everything released in a Generation which is a)not dominant, and b)not crap.

if your console is one of the most popular of all time, like the 2600 is, and the NES2 (since its just a NES) it obviously isn't underrated.

I disagree. The reputations of people and things change over time; while the 2600 was #1 in its time, it later became infamous for it's bombs (pac-man and ET spring immediately to mind). You could argue that the NES2 was underrated because, despite it's mechanical superiority to the NES (less suceptible to 'the blinks', better controller) it didn't sell all that well.

Gamecube: it has some*great* stuff and anyone who tells you otherwise either hates games or is trying to sell you something. Sadly the library of great games is really small, and during its day it really couldn't survive as someone's "only" system when the DC and PS2 were around with much larger libraries.

Dreamcast: one of the best libraries ever, and most of it came out in two years. What would it have been like if Sega hadn't been forced to abandon it to move to Xbox and PS2? We'll never know.

The Dreamcast was dead before the Gamecube even launched; they were never competitors. In a way, the 'cube was the Dreamcast's successor.

[Necromancer]

I did. Probably the worst mario platformer ever. (not counting the CDi stuff, of course.)

True, it's an odd little entry in the Mario universe, yet it's easily the second best launch title for the GB (behind Tetris); Alleyway, Tennis, and Baseball were mediocre, facile, and ultimately forgettable.  It's hard to take their opinions seriously anyway, considering they bitch about the 'puke-green' graphics, which obviously weren't exclusive to Super Mario Land.

I disagree. The reputations of people and things change over time; while the 2600 was #1 in its time, it later became infamous for it's bombs (pac-man and ET spring immediately to mind). You could argue that the NES2 was underrated because, despite it's mechanical superiority to the NES (less suceptible to 'the blinks', better controller) it didn't sell all that well.

Following that logic, all consoles are underrated or will be eventually.  Who's gonna give a tin shit about the PS2 in thirty years when the PS69 is sitting on store shelves?  For every person that laughs about E.T. or Pac-Man, there's five more that remember Atari for its dominance of the video game market.  The NES2 didn't sell well because it came out two years after the debut of the SNES and when few new NES games were being released, not because it was unappreciated.

[guyjin]

I disagree. The reputations of people and things change over time; while the 2600 was #1 in its time, it later became infamous for it's bombs (pac-man and ET spring immediately to mind). You could argue that the NES2 was underrated because, despite it's mechanical superiority to the NES (less suceptible to 'the blinks', better controller) it didn't sell all that well.

Following that logic, all consoles are underrated or will be eventually.  Who's gonna give a tin shit about the PS2 in thirty years when the PS69 is sitting on store shelves?  For every person that laughs about E.T. or Pac-Man, there's five more that remember Atari for its dominance of the video game market.  The NES2 didn't sell well because it came out two years after the debut of the SNES and when few new NES games were being released, not because it was unappreciated.

Maybe you're right, but IMHO, the VCS's reputation has suffered more over a similar period of time, compared to the NES.

[Mobius]

How about a "Top Ten Worst Game Magazines" list?

Since so many of 'em suck harder than a black hole, wouldn't it be easier to make a list of great game magazines?  Uhhh, maybe not..... I can't think of any that would belong on such a list. 

Then we're done... Hey, that was easy!

[Lord Thag]

Maybe you're right, but IMHO, the VCS's reputation has suffered more over a similar period of time, compared to the NES

I'm not sure I'd agree with that. Maybe in mainstream magazines (i.e. idiot journalism), but Atari is still very popular. I've been a longtime poster over at Atariage, and let me tell you, it's hugely popular. Hell, there are more homebrew carts for sale today than there were produced by Atari itself back in the day.

There is a lot of E.T. and Pac-Man bashing in the press though. 

[Black Tiger]

Maybe you're right, but IMHO, the VCS's reputation has suffered more over a similar period of time, compared to the NES

I'm not sure I'd agree with that. Maybe in mainstream magazines (i.e. idiot journalism), but Atari is still very popular. I've been a longtime poster over at Atariage, and let me tell you, it's hugely popular. Hell, there are more homebrew carts for sale today than there were produced by Atari itself back in the day.

There is a lot of E.T. and Pac-Man bashing in the press though. 

This is one of the lamer cliches of self-proclaimed "hardcore" game mags. Its always either a reference to E.T. or Adventure(the character icon or the ducks/dragons).

[SignOfZeta]

Did you know that Super Mario Land (GB) was shit? Yeah, I didn't either.

I did. Probably the worst mario platformer ever. (not counting the CDi stuff, of course.)

I...just don't know what to say about that. I loved Mario Land to pieces. Its a top 5 Mario game for me, easily. I don't understand why anyone could say its bad at all since it plays almost exactly like Super Mario Bros. (in other words, really really *really* great) and it has the shooter levels, and the one of the best ending theme's from a game I can think of. In an era where Tiger LCDs ruled handheld gaming, SML brought the exact same killer control of the NES/arcade Mario to a handheld. Because of this it is beyond criticism, IMO.

Seriously, what is terrible about SML? What is even less that great about it? And don't say the length. That would just be lame.

[Turbo D]

I liked SuperMarioLand too! My buddies at skool had it installed on there scientific calculators!?!?! lol, it was awesome!

[Keranu]

I love Super Mario Land; simple, addictive, fun.

And I also happen to really like the Atari 2600 port of Pac-Man. It's the same Pac-Man gameplay, but I just love the sound effects used in the game and since Pac Man doesn't actually face a different direction when turning up or down, it gave it a fun feel, to me at least.

[Black Tiger]

Super Mario Land felt like the first real game on Gameboy. Tetris was nice for what it is, but my friends and I weren't puzzle fans. Although SML has early made-for-Gameboy graphics, at that point it was amazing to get something so close to a real console game on a portable system.

[Necromancer]

What is even less that great about it?

The controls; SMB on the NES was much more precise.  Beyond that small flaw, it was a great game; great enough to be the third best selling Mario game ever.  Not too shabby, especially considering that it wasn't a launch pack-in like SMB and SMW (#1 and #2 spots, respectively).

[Lord Thag]

I loved Super Mario Land as well. I remember beating it on the ride to school way back when. Anyone who says it sucks is blind.

I agree that most of the 'zines seem to cater to the type of tool-bag who works at gamestop and thinks they are the gaming 'elite'. You know, the idiots who sneer at you for buying something that's not 'hardcore' and brag about how they played Disgaea for two years straight. I call 'em goombas. You know, semi-sentient fungus whose only purpose in life is to be squashed 

I flip through Game Douchebag ... err, Informer to check out the previews of what's coming out, but that's about it.

[guyjin]

Seriously, what is terrible about SML? What is even less that great about it? And don't say the length. That would just be lame.

Tiny character sprite on a tiny, low-contrast screen with loose controls and lots of delicate jumps. At least that's what I remember - I probably haven't played it for almost 20 years.

[Black Tiger]

Seriously, what is terrible about SML? What is even less that great about it? And don't say the length. That would just be lame.

Tiny character sprite on a tiny, low-contrast screen with loose controls and lots of delicate jumps. At least that's what I remember - I probably haven't played it for almost 20 years.

What I remember about it, is that the simple (compared to NES) graphics and slower, simpler (compared to SMB) gameplay made the game more playable on the original Gameboy's rotten screen.

[nodtveidt]

SML was fun. Sometimes I play it even today, on an emulator of course. Sure it's not as technically precise as SMB on the NES, but it's a good game anyways.