10 Video Game Blunders We'll NEVER Forget
3. The Gizmondo Car Crash, Complete With REAL Car Crash
I have actually played a Gizmondo, back in my retail days. It could have been a nifty bit of kit, despite looking like a Fisher-Price toy, especially after the god-awful Nokia N-Gage.
Back when launch parties were a big thing, the Gizmondo had celebrity endorsement (ie. paid appearances) from the likes of Pharrell Williams, Busta Rhymes and, um, Jodie Kidd. Gizmondo executive Stefan Eriksson took part in the 24 Hours of Le Mans to advertise it.
It was going so well for the upcoming handheld. It even played alright, although it wasn't a patch on anything Nintendo had to offer. As an alternative dinky handheld, though, it looked promising.
But the lack of games, delays in overseas launch and the lack of return on the millions spent on advertising had other ideas. It shifted less than 25,000 units, ever. That's not the end of it, however.
After amassing $300 million in debt, it was discovered that several of Gizmondo's staff had connections to the Swedish mafia. Eriksson was then caught and arrested after crashing an extremely rare Ferrari, blaming it on an imaginary German he was supposedly racing.
From proverbial to literal car crash...