Most UNDER-RATED Console of all time...

[Haoie]

I'm going to vote Virtual Boy.

Nah, I kid. It sucked on all dimensions, not just the 3rd.

[RyaNtheSlayA]

I'm going to vote Virtual Boy.

Nah, I kid. It sucked on all dimensions, not just the 3rd.

Oh boy knee slapper right there

[Zeonik Freak]

I know that this will likely be argued by a number of people, but as one who has been brought up on Nintendo and Sony's machines, I have been completely blown-away by the Sega Saturn. Of course, I know it is easy to really enjoy a machine when you have the advantage of countless online reviews compiled over years to help make great game-purchases and such, but it doesn't change the fact that the Saturn is a seriously worthy machine.

The lack of support for dithering, which was somewhat criticized at the time, is actually a blessing in a number of games. For instance, compare the clarity of both Saturn's highest performance 3D fighters (Virtua Fighter 2 or Dead or Alive) with the Playstation's (either Bloody Roar 2 or Tekken 3). On a clear monitor, the rendering power of The Saturn rather smokes the PSX. Also, the familiar texture warping and clipping of the PSX is very often absent in Saturn titles. In the afore mentioned genre, where Sony's machine all too often sports flat, 2D wallpaper backgrounds, Saturn games have dynamic, parallaxing in the backgrounds, and more often than not, they are animated. The composite video output is so good, that in most games S-Video is actually not even needed for a sharp, clear picture with broad color range. Compare to the crazy-crawlies of the Playstation.

Lastly, while Sega's marketing has been much maligned as some of the worst in history, there are a large number of titles that very much benefited from a greater focus on game-creation than Hollywood packaging. In a number of titles there is a feeling one's request for a ham sandwich was fulfilled with the whole pig. A few great examples are:

Powerslave (Deathtank), Fighters Megamix (where to begin?), Clockwork Night 2 (endless auxiliary modes including one which let's you play against the bosses in from the first game), Guardian Heroes (over 40 hidden characters and blazing 6-player action), and many others.

After spending 6 quality months with this machine, I have no question as to why it lasted so long in Japan. Maybe we could stand to import some of their values when it comes what makes games great.

QFT.

I got my Saturn with NiGHTS for 40 bucks back on 06, and has been a wonderful system to me. Im currently playing Panzer Dragoon Saga (found a copy at PnT for 140 in Colombia SC) and ive been taking my time on that game.

The only huge problem for the Saturn is the 2 main processers, which back then, was a pain to program for to fully utilize the 2 processers (and only Sega knew how to do it) at the same time. Alot of the companies made good just using one processer since Sega didnt feel like giving out the manual on how to use both.

Its still a great system, and a system isnt great without great games to go with it...

[superlarz]

Here are my two cents...

Saturn is underrated as it was a financial and commercial failure. Most people dont remember it and those that do remember (and arent really into gaming) will tell you about how much it sucked....
However, I dont think Saturn is the most underrated of all time.

Dreamcast is not underrated.. Anyone who had one or played one will tell you it was pretty cool, Sega just killed it off for pretty much no reason. I think, if anything, Dreamcast is overrated. It is a very good system, but I dont think it was Uber-amazing.

Gamecube could be considered underrated since to the general public it was the redheaded step child of the last generation. Anyone who plays games that doesnt follow numbers and such would tell you that you were insane if you told them it pretty much sold 1:1 with Xbox.

So with that said, my pick for most underrated console here in the USA, is...

Turbografx-16. This system got no love here, and really should have. There are a bunch of really good games that I never really even knew existed until I got into retro gaming. This one does not deserve to be a forgotten console like it is

Close runner up: Virtual Boy. I am sick of people talking about getting headaches from the thing when most of then never even played it. Sure some people got headaches or whatever, but some people get headaches from reading a book for too long too. There arent a lot of games for it, but there are some good ones. And there was a lot of unused potential. I really wonder what they could have put out if anyone would have put time into the thing. As for the red and black thing, no one complains that the original Gameboy was shades of yellow and green.

[brycester]

Absolutely Agree. Turbo was a neglected treasure and I now sport a healthy library of 30 games. It's actually quite great machine for its day. Better than the Nes and close to the genesis. How NEC and Hudson managed to screw up what should have been a sure thing (the machine was tearing up Japan when released here) is beyond me. I also liked my virtual boy I have long since sold it (damn hindsight should have kept it) I thought the Wario platformer was AWESOME!

[executioner]

the only strange negative thing i can say about the dreamcast is this.... the ps2 basically did the dreamcast in.... and the ps2 is still going with new game releases and it even sold more units that the ps3 this past december.... is there anyone who thinks the dreamcast could have stuck around that long or done that well??? i dont...

Good point, maybe we could have seen 2 addons for the dreamcast. Sega-DVD!!

[Rocketman]

OK, I know this thread hasn't been posted in since June 2009, but I just read through it and feel like adding my opinion. And I'm sure other new users that have since joined this site won't mind contributing too.

Probably 90% of the people here said the Sega Saturn was the most under-rated console of all time. I guess it's because you can look back on it and see how horribly it did, at least on the Western front.

Personally though, I think the Nintendo Gamecube is the most under-rated console of all time. It had great hardware, an awesome controller, and a fantastic game library. Some notable games are; Resident Evil 0, Resident Evil Remake, Resident Evil 4, MGS: Twin Snakes, Killer 7, Soul Calibur 2, Beyond Good and Evil and of couse all the great games made by Nintendo them selves. (Zelda WW, Zelda TP, Metroid Prime 1/2, Pikmin 1/2, Mario Kart DD, Smash Bros Melee, F-Zero GX, Paper Mario, etc)

A few more years from now, when the new generation of veteran gamers (So people that started gaming in the 128Bit era) start talking about under-rated consoles, I think a lot of them will say it was the gamecube, and I'll be the old gamer agreeing with them.

[pepharytheworm]

Thanks for bumping this thread I some how missed it the 1st time. I dissagre with most post here though. The 3DO to me is the most Underrated system. It just sold around 2 mil. yet could have stayed a little longer if it was endorsed by thrid party developers longer then 96. Its 2d capabilities could match the PS's and it 3d could come close to the Saturn. heck most of the early ps/saturn games were 3DO ports and they were better on the 3DO. The system was arguably never pushed to its limits.

[dedalusdedalus]

I'm kind of a Sony fanboy, so it goes against my gaming DNA to admit this.

The most underrated console has got to be the Gamecube. Its game catalog isn't that expansive, but it's got this core of triple-A titles (Pikmin 1 and 2, Zelda Windwaker & Twilight Princess, Paper Mario, Fire Emblem: Path of Radiance, Eternal Darkness) that are unparalleled on any other system.

Sure, PS2 has a longer list of good games, but the Gamecube has a longer list of great games. If game catalogs had an internal philosophy, Gamecube's would definitely be "quality over quantity."

[darthmunky]

I'm saying GameCube. I don't want to type a lot so I'm not explaining why.