9 "Must-Have" Video Game Peripherals (That Instantly Flopped)

What it was: A mid-generational add-on designed to bolster the Mega Drive's raw power until Sega was ready to roll out its dedicated 32-bit console, the Saturn.

Priced competitively and boasting a lineup of both improved Mega Drive titles and its own exclusives (remember Knuckles' Chaotix?) 32x was essentially the 90s equivalent of the PS4 Pro and Xbox One X, only, it never enjoyed the same level of success.

Why it flopped: In order to get the hardware out the door in time for Christmas '94, Sega had to cut a few rather major corners, including a scaled back launch lineup of forty games, many of which ended up being ports of old games that couldn't properly utilize the 32x's hardware.

That, combined with the near-total reluctance of third parties to sink resources into the tech due to the upcoming Saturn resulted in the 32x being essentially DOA, even despite a positive reception from the press post-unveiling.

A great idea poorly executed. The exact same mistake Sega would go on to make with the Saturn's bungled launch.