8 Failed Video Game Consoles That Had One Incredible Game

Top of the flops.

Alien Vs Predator
Fox

Some gaming consoles defined our childhoods, sold millions of units and reinvented the medium as we know it. Others... launched a desperate bid to compete with the market leaders, only to top the scrapheap rather than the sales charts.

There are many reasons why a system might flop, such as poor third-party support, intense competition and botched marketing campaigns, but the end result is always the same: nobody buys the ill-fated machine and its games end up mostly forgotten.

In many cases, the software that time forgot is no great loss. Let's face it, if it was all killer content, the console it belonged to wouldn't have bombed, but over the years, a few gems have gone down with the ships. Several of the systems which failed to seize enough marketshare to stay afloat played host to at least one incredible game.

From quality ports that brought arcade gaming to living rooms, to handheld trailblazers that were years ahead of their time, these are the best games you've probably never played, because the system they were on didn't quite cut it.

8. Atari Jaguar: Alien Vs. Predator

Alien Vs Predator
Atari

The Atari Jaguar was marketed as a 64-bit console in a world where 16-bit machines were the norm, but the marketing department's embellished boasts weren't enough to save it from silicone heaven. What it needed was more games like Alien vs. Predator.

The term 'Doom Clone' was bandied about a lot in the early 1990s, but Rebellion Developments' AvP was a first-person shooter that avoided being tarred with this brush thanks to its focus on atmosphere and tactical gameplay.

Long before Xenomorphs did battle with Predators in bad movies, they locked horns in this Jaguar title with mankind caught up in the middle. The game gave players the option to play as either an Alien, Predator or a marine, and pitted them against different challenges depending on which side they selected.

AvP's graphics were a cut above other console shooters at the time. Although Atari's claims that the Jaguar was 64-bit were dubious, Rebellion got the most out of the hardware, using it to create immersive and frightening 3D environments.

It was one of the most atmospheric games of the '90s, using the same tricks the original Alien movie employed to build a sense of creeping horror, and the focus on strategy set AvP apart from Doom and its shoot-anything-that-moves mentality.

 
Posted On: 
Contributor
Contributor

Been prattling on about gaming, movies, TV, football and technology across the web for as long as I can remember. Find me on Twitter @MarkLangshaw