What is the rarest video game console

[leicamaster]

Ive been thinking and wondering what is the rarest video game console available?

[Snapple]

I'm going to say the Daewoo Zemmix.

EDIT: Actually, I forgot about AdventureVision. It's probably AdventureVision.

[DefaultGen]

.....

[Trevelyan]

For novelty value, the Apple Pippin deserves a mention

[Richter Belmount]

nintendo ds

[blue lander]

Isn't the Pippin pretty easy to find in Japan? I got mine off of YAJ for less than 50 bucks. I wonder how hard it is to find a Zemmix in Korea...

[cyberfluxor]

I'd be interested in knowing about name brand releases that have the least, then a list of just rare, obscure stuff that didn't really see much light.

[xdaytime]

http://www.slipperybrick.com/wp-content/uploads/2007/05/nintendo-wii-leads-console-sales-april.jpg
Seriously, I've never seen a Wii other then mine in a store.

[mills]

RDI halcyon

[swlovinist]

I would second the RDI halcyon in the US.

[boatofcar]

Isn't the Pippin pretty easy to find in Japan? I got mine off of YAJ for less than 50 bucks. I wonder how hard it is to find a Zemmix in Korea...

I've never seen one, and I've looked. You can't even find Comboys here anymore.

[Vectorman0]

I think it would be the Halcyon, as long as you aren't counting mockups/prototypes of unreleased consoles.

[ClassicGameTrader]

I think it would be the Halcyon, as long as you aren't counting mockups/prototypes of unreleased consoles.

And what an awful machine it was

[Gapporin]

The Phantom.

[Rick 2007]

Around here it has been the Vectrex. I have only seen one in 10 years
of thrift shops, etc.
It was working, and set up for kids to play, but not for sale.

[Push Upstairs]

The Phantom.

It is so rare, that nobody has seen it!

It is also one of the most fitting names for a system ever.

[ProgrammingAce]

It is so rare, that nobody has seen it!

It is also one of the most fitting names for a system ever.

I saw one. That was right before they were laughed out of our office when they asked us to "partner" with them to work on the system...

Halcyon is probably the rarest, if it ever actually existed outside of a few prototypes.

Wowow has to be up there, but again probably only in prototype form.

Blackbelt and Dural dreamcasts both had functioning prototypes.

Same with SNESCD.

Alpha Xboxes are rare. They are PC towers running a modified version of the Win2k with the xbox dashboard.

All of the above are probably prototypes. There are a number of insanely rare limited edition consoles too. First i'd look at some of the japanese Dreamcasts, or the game gears.

I know the N-gage only sold about 10,000 units, and a lot of them were returned. A lot more were tossed.

[InsaneDavid]

Nintendo PlayStation. If there were 200 prototypes or whatever of it made then where the hell are they? Don't tell me they were that efficient at destroying them all.

[The Old School Gamer]

Oh god, I think its the AdventureVision, There were few made and most of em ended up in the trash. I had one when i was a kid and it broke for no reason after week or two. Took it back, got another one...broken out of the box. Sad thing was it was cool little system, I really liked turtles.

[diskoboy]

Ahem....


Odyssey 3???

Only a dozen-or-so made for the 1983 CES? I know they were a bit more common in Europe. But in the US... Good luck. And even if you do find one, prepare to shell out some serious cash.

Or how about the Atari Cosmos?

[zemmix]

Minus the prototype stuff I would vote the RDI Halcyon as well. I don't think the Zemmix is that rare. Besides my two I think I've seen two others sell on ebay over the years.

[smork]

I know the N-gage only sold about 10,000 units, and a lot of them were returned. A lot more were tossed.

Maybe in the US, but they're common as dirt in Asia. I've known several people who've used them as phones, poor bastards.

Mazora Dreamcast has got to be up there, I would think. Halcyon has got to be the winner, though.

[FrakAttack]

Willie Higinbotham's oscilloscope.

[smokehouse]

I'm not so sure about how rare it is but I have Hyundai Super Comboy and can honestly say, I've never seen once since. It's even hard to find pictures of it on the web.

It's just a Korean SNES but does anyone else have one of these units?

http://farm1.static.flickr.com/32/97116032_5f3f3aea29.jpg

[rbudrick]

What was that Memorex game system? I was the size of one of those 80s era VCRs, iirc. It was the big bitch. Can't remember its name.

-Rob

[98PaceCar]

What was that Memorex game system? I was the size of one of those 80s era VCRs, iirc. It was the big bitch. Can't remember its name.

-Rob

The VIS? They were still available with a pack of "games" as recently as a few years ago. Great if you want some edutainment, but not much beyond that. They do have the distinction of being the first console to run an MS operating system.

[otaku]

The rarest one I care about? Neo Geo AES never seen one in person but really want one! None around here just online.

[debian4life]

I have yet to find a complete Vectrex.

[vintagegamecrazy]

The Halcyon is factually the rarest console past prototype stages. There were only around 25 or so made and they were only sent to the investers of the company. Only like one or two are accounted for.

[Bojay1997]

The Halcyon is factually the rarest console past prototype stages. There were only around 25 or so made and they were only sent to the investers of the company. Only like one or two are accounted for.

Don't know where you got your stats from, but there are more than one or two accounted for...

[Jorpho]

What about the Wondermega/X'eye? Or maybe the LaserActive TG16 module? Or that other portable PC Engine thing? (Not the Turbo Xpress, but that laptop-styled one.)

[Sweater Fish Deluxe]

So if there were only 25 Halcyons produced and they were never available for sale at retail, why would that be considered "beyond the prototype stage"?

Like other people have said, I think it's difficult to say that systems like the Zemmix or Super Comboy are really very rare. They may be rare in the U.S., but much less so in Korea. In fact, I'd say that if any of them show up in the U.S. at all, they can't be all that rare in Korea. There may be some truly rare systems released in Korea that are more along the lines of the Adventurevision is terms of rarity, but chances are we wouldn't have ever even heard of them over here.

Speaking of obscure clone systems from other countries, has anyone ever heard of this one:
http://www.geocities.com/sweaterfishdeluxe/pics/fullwis.js
It's apparently an SG-1000 clone from Hong Kong. I got that picture from an eBay auction, so I guess it fails my "if you've seen it in the U.S., it's probably a lot more common in it's country of origin" rule anyway and it might be unlicensed, too, maybe you wouldn't count it in a question like this. Pretty cool, though.

Also, there were dozens of regional variations on the 1292 Advanced Programmable, so considering how rare even the most common of them are, I wouldn't be surprised if one of those wasn't the rarest all-time system. Unless you count prototypes, though, I'm sure we'll never really be able to know what the rarest is.


...word is bondage...

[98PaceCar]

So if there were only 25 Halcyons produced and they were never available for sale at retail, why would that be considered "beyond the prototype stage"?

There are indications that the Halcyon was available for public sale, at least in a very limited capacity. I'm sure there are rarer proto consoles, but for the ones that are at least rumored to have had a retail release, it's the king.

[Vectorman0]

There are indications that the Halcyon was available for public sale, at least in a very limited capacity. I'm sure there are rarer proto consoles, but for the ones that are at least rumored to have had a retail release, it's the king.

I was also under the impression that it did get an extremely limited "retail distribution". I can't recall where I read that though.

[98PaceCar]

I was also under the impression that it did get an extremely limited "retail distribution". I can't recall where I read that though.

I've been wracking my brain trying to remember as well. I do recall that it was a stop-gap move to try to keep the investors involved by showing that it was a true retail product.

[leicamaster]

The rarest one I care about? Neo Geo AES never seen one in person but really want one! None around here just online.

I own a Neo Geo AES in the cabinet and everything!

[DJ Daishi]

I own a Neo Geo AES in the cabinet and everything!

don't you mean MVS? I really hope someone didn't mod a AES with a cab since AES was already originally based on the MVS.

[CosmicMonkey]

don't you mean MVS? I really hope someone didn't mod a AES with a cab since AES was already originally based on the MVS.

I've seen a couple of AES systems modded for use in a cabinet. Why? Because brand new AES carts were cheaper than brand new MVS kits. So some of the more unscrupulous arcade operators would obviously choose the cheaper route.

[Steve W]

I know the N-gage only sold about 10,000 units, and a lot of them were returned. A lot more were tossed.
What? Where'd you get that information? Nokia sold something like two million worldwide.

If you're talking about rare portables, the Gizmondo would have to be up there. They only sold around 30,000. I think the Tapwave Zodiac sold something like 50,000.

[leicamaster]

don't you mean MVS? I really hope someone didn't mod a AES with a cab since AES was already originally based on the MVS.

Ya sorry an MVS! AES was the home MVS right?

[leicamaster]

I've seen a couple of AES systems modded for use in a cabinet. Why? Because brand new AES carts were cheaper than brand new MVS kits. So some of the more unscrupulous arcade operators would obviously choose the cheaper route.

I also own an AES

[8bitgamer]

The APF MP1000 is a tough one to find.

[Iron Draggon]

how the hell could a system with only 25 units produced be distributed at retail? what did they allegedly do to "release" it? set up a display at some high dollar toy store in New York City, nearly causing a riot as all the lucky holiday shoppers who happened to be there at the time got into fistfights with each other while they scrambled to get one? give me a break... if such a system really was released at retail, it would be well known by now exactly how it happened, and all 25 units would probably be accounted for... so I'd say that the retail release rumor of the Halcyon is just that... only a rumor

[DonMarco]

Anyone have numbers related to the game.com Pocket Pro? That was the second version that one had one cartridge slot. I've only seen two in the wild and almost no one I show it to has ever seen one before. I'm sure a few of us have them, but they can't be anywhere near as sucessful as the n-gage.

[Ze_ro]

It's definitely not the rarest, but I think the Super A'Can (http://www.vanillaicemedia.com/acan/acan.htm) deserves a mention in this thread.

When you're talking about rare stuff, you kind of have to draw a line somewhere between full-release and prototype stuff... the Halcyon toes that line about as well as anything could, but there are certainly some things out there that are even harder to find. Odyssey^3 is definitely up there, though the Videopac G7400 is an easier alternative. How about SNES CD? Atari Panther? Konix MultiSystem? Atari Cosmos? I think only mock-ups of the Jag Duo exist, but have any functional Neptunes ever been found? Were any color Vectrex's made or was that just a rumor? Whatever this was (http://www.atarihq.com/museum/miscatari/mirai.html)? Of course, actually playing games on them is another matter... at least the Halcyon had Thayer's Quest, most of the rest of these are basically useless with no software.

--Zero

[zemmix]

Anyone have numbers related to the game.com Pocket Pro? That was the second version that one had one cartridge slot. I've only seen two in the wild and almost no one I show it to has ever seen one before. I'm sure a few of us have them, but they can't be anywhere near as sucessful as the n-gage.

Is that the second generation one that came in a bubble type package? I doubt they are that rare. I have one and I don't even think I ever opened it (I can't remember ever having an urge to play a Game.com). I remember Toys R' Us having quite a few of them.

[Jorpho]

at least the Halcyon had Thayer's Quest, most of the rest of these are basically useless with no software.

I thought Night Trap and such forth were going to be released for the Halcyon originally. Or did they not get that far with the Halcyon versions?

[98PaceCar]

how the hell could a system with only 25 units produced be distributed at retail? what did they allegedly do to "release" it? set up a display at some high dollar toy store in New York City, nearly causing a riot as all the lucky holiday shoppers who happened to be there at the time got into fistfights with each other while they scrambled to get one? give me a break... if such a system really was released at retail, it would be well known by now exactly how it happened, and all 25 units would probably be accounted for... so I'd say that the retail release rumor of the Halcyon is just that... only a rumor

You are correct, there is no actual proof that it was sent to retail, at least not that has been found. However, I've had discussions with collectors that would know that lead me to believe the situation you describe above is not far from the truth. Just replace New York with California and that's the rumor. At the time, Rick Dyer was doing everything he could to keep his company afloat, so getting units to retail to appease his investors was likely high on the list of things to do. So it's not out of the realm of possibility that no more than a few units were placed there to "prove" that it was a salable console. The last one that sold was complete with everything you would expect a retail unit to have.

Likely we will never know for sure, but at least the possibility exists that it could have been sold at retail.

[98PaceCar]

I thought Night Trap and such forth were going to be released for the Halcyon originally. Or did they not get that far with the Halcyon versions?

There are a few proto games in another collectors hands, but I don't think Night Trap was ever slated for release on the Halcyon. There is that weird precurser version that was shown to Milton Bradley (I believe) and shows up on a video somewhere that I've heard about, but I don't think that was Halcyon related. I could be wrong on that though.

[tom]

Maybe the Nintendo AVS, presented at the CES Jan 1884, and again at the June show. People just went by and shook their heads, nobody cared about that system (source: Game Over the book)

[WelcomeToTheNextLevel]

The Magnavox Odyssey 4305.

[DJ Daishi]

I've seen a couple of AES systems modded for use in a cabinet. Why? Because brand new AES carts were cheaper than brand new MVS kits. So some of the more unscrupulous arcade operators would obviously choose the cheaper route.

actually the opposite is true. AES carts usually cost more(depending on the title) than MVS carts...which is why I decided to go the arcade route.

[rbudrick]

The VIS? They were still available with a pack of "games" as recently as a few years ago. Great if you want some edutainment, but not much beyond that. They do have the distinction of being the first console to run an MS operating system.

I thought the MSX was. Sure it's a computer, but there were console-only variatios out there, iirc.

-Rob

[Bojay1997]

actually the opposite is true. AES carts usually cost more(depending on the title) than MVS carts...which is why I decided to go the arcade route.

If you're talking about today, you are correct for the most part. Back in the era when the Neo Geo was new, however, home carts would sell for $300 while a new MVS kit of the same game could go for $1000 or so.

[Bojay1997]

So if there were only 25 Halcyons produced and they were never available for sale at retail, why would that be considered "beyond the prototype stage"?

Like other people have said, I think it's difficult to say that systems like the Zemmix or Super Comboy are really very rare. They may be rare in the U.S., but much less so in Korea. In fact, I'd say that if any of them show up in the U.S. at all, they can't be all that rare in Korea. There may be some truly rare systems released in Korea that are more along the lines of the Adventurevision is terms of rarity, but chances are we wouldn't have ever even heard of them over here.

Speaking of obscure clone systems from other countries, has anyone ever heard of this one:
http://www.geocities.com/sweaterfishdeluxe/pics/fullwis.js
It's apparently an SG-1000 clone from Hong Kong. I got that picture from an eBay auction, so I guess it fails my "if you've seen it in the U.S., it's probably a lot more common in it's country of origin" rule anyway and it might be unlicensed, too, maybe you wouldn't count it in a question like this. Pretty cool, though.

Also, there were dozens of regional variations on the 1292 Advanced Programmable, so considering how rare even the most common of them are, I wouldn't be surprised if one of those wasn't the rarest all-time system. Unless you count prototypes, though, I'm sure we'll never really be able to know what the rarest is.


...word is bondage...

I don't know where people keep getting this 25 figure. I would place it at closer to 10 units and my basis for that is the 30+ packing boxes of documents I have from when RDI liquidated. I have also never found any evidence that any actually shipped to a physical store or were shown at a retailer. The rumors I believe have come from some books that collectors have written over the years and possibly the incorrect recollections of Rick Dyer.
I agree that the Halcyon should be considered a prototype in that every unit was hand assembled and some of the packaging was clearly not retail worthy (the manuals were printed using an inexpensive copy method and the boxes for the games didn't have the final planned graphics), despite the fact that there are sketches and design diagrams for the final packaging that I have in my collection.

[Ze_ro]

I thought Night Trap and such forth were going to be released for the Halcyon originally. Or did they not get that far with the Halcyon versions?
Night Trap was originally going to be for a system called "Control-Vision" (also known as NEMO) made by Axlon, a company of Nolan Bushnell's after his days at Atari. It was a VHS-based system. Sewer Shark was going to be another game for this system.

Add Control-Vision to the list of consoles that probably exist in prototype form somewhere...

--Zero

[loporjai2003]

I'm not so sure about how rare it is but I have Hyundai Super Comboy and can honestly say, I've never seen once since. It's even hard to find pictures of it on the web.

It's just a Korean SNES but does anyone else have one of these units?

http://farm1.static.flickr.com/32/97116032_5f3f3aea29.jpg

Yeh I got one, kind of messed up (works once in a while and it looks like previous owners solders a PS directly into the machine bypassing the
power port. Hack job if I ever saw one !

[CosmicMonkey]

actually the opposite is true. AES carts usually cost more(depending on the title) than MVS carts...which is why I decided to go the arcade route.


If you're talking about today, you are correct for the most part. Back in the era when the Neo Geo was new, however, home carts would sell for $300 while a new MVS kit of the same game could go for $1000 or so.

We have a Winner!!! Mr Bojay, you get a nice English scone and a cup of Tea.

Never seen a Korean SNES before. That's pretty cool. The Korean Vic-A Neo Geo is pretty cool too. I just like that funky Korean writing.

http://www.dreamcastplanet.de/img/neo1.JPG

[TurboGenesis]

May I mentoin a couple obscure console:

Funtech Super A'Can
and
Bandai Pippen@world (the black USA model)

[extra_anchovy]

the Bang & Olufsen BeoCenter AV5 (http://www.digitpress.com/DP/cmf/game.cmf?gameid=12726) is very rare. no collector is known to have one of these

[Iron Draggon]

You are correct, there is no actual proof that it was sent to retail, at least not that has been found. However, I've had discussions with collectors that would know that lead me to believe the situation you describe above is not far from the truth. Just replace New York with California and that's the rumor. At the time, Rick Dyer was doing everything he could to keep his company afloat, so getting units to retail to appease his investors was likely high on the list of things to do. So it's not out of the realm of possibility that no more than a few units were placed there to "prove" that it was a salable console. The last one that sold was complete with everything you would expect a retail unit to have.

Likely we will never know for sure, but at least the possibility exists that it could have been sold at retail.

well I'm not surprised, cause that would be the only way to do it... release it in limited quantities in a major city or two, as a test market sorta thing, like Nintendo did with the NES... although I'd expect a bit more than a mere 25 units for a test market... it is a cool rumor... proof would be cooler though...

[Zebbe]

I've never seen a pic of the Korean Mega Drive, known as Super Aladdin Boy or Super Gam* Boy I think. That means it is rare!

[leicamaster]

Thanks for all the post and I can now look for these rare consoles!!

[SpiritualK]

http://www.slipperybrick.com/wp-content/uploads/2007/05/nintendo-wii-leads-console-sales-april.jpg
Seriously, I've never seen a Wii other then mine in a store.

lol soo true me either, ive been looking for one for the longest but cant find one, theyve gone extinct. LOL

[SpiritualK]

We have a Winner!!! Mr Bojay, you get a nice English scone and a cup of Tea.

Never seen a Korean SNES before. That's pretty cool. The Korean Vic-A Neo Geo is pretty cool too. I just like that funky Korean writing.

http://www.dreamcastplanet.de/img/neo1.JPG

nice letters :p

[Steve W]

lol soo true me either, ive been looking for one for the longest but cant find one, theyve gone extinct. LOL
I practically crapped my pants when I saw a lady at Best Buy casually taking a Wii off the shelf and putting it into her cart. I didn't think I'd ever see one in a retail store. Or at least a store that wasn't charging $350 for a used one.

[tag274]

Amstrad GX4000 (only marketed in the Uk really)
Atari CD
Tennis for 2

[ssjlance]

Capcom CPS Changer? I've looked everywhere for one of those, as it seems the perfect way to satisfy the wait for the new Street Fighter game. Can't find one anywhere.

[Battlehork]

I've never seen a pic of the Korean Mega Drive, known as Super Aladdin Boy or Super Gam* Boy I think. That means it is rare!

I actually own one of these! The unit itself is in storage, but I have the controller for it with me: http://home.comcast.net/~jlehr2001/samsungmdc.JPG

The set came with the console, controller, really weird looking RF switch, power supply that had a 220v plug on it though it was switchable, and a bootleg of Quackshot. Firrst and last time I've seen one for sale on ebay, and it was from a seller in British Columbia. It went for $10!

[pepharytheworm]

I always thought the FM Towns Car marty was pretty rare. Anyone actual seen one?

[Ed Oscuro]

I always thought the FM Towns Car marty was pretty rare. Anyone actual seen one?
If I turn my head about 110 degrees I can see one. I upgraded to a real Marty II and monitor.

Also, sitting to my left are a couple of the six-button pads, got them when I bought Blandia (aptly named game, but it has classy moments).

Are we gonna count MVS Hotel Units or something? There's variants of that one, too.

[Zap!]

No love for my prized possession?

http://www.zaponline.org/uploads/colorvision1
http://www.zaponline.org/uploads/colorvision2

[tom]

Epoch game pocket computer (1984)

Palmtex Home-Computer Software Super Micro Cartridge System (1983)


Both are released programmable handhelds

[HappehLemons]

onlive

[danny_galaga]

Not absolutely the rarest, because it's quite recent and not too hard to find, is the GP2X from Korea (Korea features a lot in this thread!). There were about 60,000 made.

I bought one new (",)