Of all tech industries, video game hardware is one of the most difficult to break into. In general, video game investment is highly risky, with the majority of retail released games ending up as commercial failures. Considering the amount of capital required to launch a console, it is a difficult task to even break even on the hardware. Video game history has seen a huge number of commercial failures, with some disasters big enough to crash the entire industry. Most notoriously, the flop that was the Atari 2600's E.T. directly led to the video game crash of 1983. The tumultuous nature of the video game industry has meant that seemingly indestructible market leaders have been ground to dust, while several unexpected newcomers have risen to the top. This list takes a look at the 10 greatest consoles that you've never played, and in some cases never even heard of. Thanks to sub-par marketing, poor timing, or an overly excessive price tag, these consoles were just never able to enjoy the success of their more popular contemporaries.
10. Sega Nomad
Developer: Sega Release: 1995 Best Game: Sonic the Hedgehog Designed to be a portable version of the Sega Genesis home console, the Nomad didn't have its own game library, instead using Sega Genesis cartridges. The Nomad really seemed like it should have been a big success for Sega. Who in their right mind wouldn't want to be able to play the entire classic Genesis library on the go? A lot of people, apparently. The Nomad was a commercial failure, selling only one million units during its lifespan. Unfortunately, the timing of the device just wasn't great, releasing shortly after the Sega Saturn. Additionally, the console's battery life was notoriously bad, adding endless packs of batteries to the already high cost of the device.
