Most Underrated Console Feature?

[8bitgamer]

I've been working on my third book, meaning I've been playing the hell out of my Genesis, which, along with my other systems, is set up in the family game room. If someone wants to watch TV in the game room while I'm playing the Genesis, I simply plug in the headphones and keep plugging away at whatever game(s) I'm playing. This got me to thinking that the headphone jack on the Genesis is a highly underrated feature.

I also think the Super Game Boy on the SNES is an underrated feature (peripheral in this case), since it gives the games color, brightness, and, obviously, a much bigger playfield (making it much easier to see and play the games).

What do you guys (and gals) think are some other underrated console features (and peripherals)?

[Baloo]

Definitely that headphone jack on the Model 1 Genesis. Stereo sound for the time was definitely a breakthrough.

Also, the Sega CD and Saturn's ability to play Audio CDs. At the time, CD players were expensive, and the ability for them to play CDs was actually very good. Sega CD can even play CD+Gs.

[8bitgamer]

Also, the Sega CD and Saturn's ability to play Audio CDs. At the time, CD players were expensive, and the ability for them to play CDs was actually very good. Sega CD can even play CD+Gs.

Perfect example!

Any others?

[onReload]

Exchangeable power/RCA cables. My PS2 and Dreamcast can both use the same power cord (which might even be from a laptop's power adapter), and I have a few of them at that. RCA cables also wear down a lot faster when you're constantly switching them in and out, so being able to replace them without needing specific/proprietary wires is a plus...though right now I'm only thinking of my FC Twin, which has three RCA jacks on the back, meaning it uses Male-Male cables - this sort of feature isn't common between official systems, no?

[TurboGenesis]

Definitely that headphone jack on the Model 1 Genesis. Stereo sound for the time was definitely a breakthrough.

Also, the Sega CD and Saturn's ability to play Audio CDs. At the time, CD players were expensive, and the ability for them to play CDs was actually very good. Sega CD can even play CD+Gs.

this can also apply to the Turbo Grafx CD player… I had mine in 1991 and it served as my music CD player as well! Turbo CD also had CD+G playback, though I never had one to ever use the feature…

as for possibly an underappreciated feature, was the turbo switches on the Turbo Grafx 16 controller… this saved wear and tear on my controller, as well as my thumb and prolonged my playtime and enjoyment!

[Gameguy]

The pause button first included with the Atari 5200(pretty sure this was the first). It's hard to believe that consoles didn't always have a pause feature, it's just thought of as normal today.

[Astrocade]

The built-in game on the Master System was kind of a throwback to the older consoles, and you be surprised how many people I knew that owned a SMS that never had any idea it had such a feature.

I always appreciated the versatility of the 9-pin controller port; it was used on everything from the VCS to the 3DO.

I don't think the NES gets enough credit for having the RCA out on it in addition to RF out. As far as I know, it was the first system to offer both options.

I remember being wowed by the Sega Genesis' stereo sound.

I'm a sucker for the Astrocade's built in cartridge rack, pistol grip controllers, dust cover and common-sense keypad. As far as I know it was also the first system to have four controller ports. That was the first system I recall thinking was built by gamers, for gamers.

I liked that the Colecovision came with a leatherette dust cover. The steering wheel module was also nifty.

The first "real" system, the Channel F, had a pause button. That seemed to be a feature ahead of its time, but sorely needed.

Good luck on the third book, Brett. I eagerly look forward to it (and the second one, which I still haven't picked up yet.)

[Kitsune Sniper]

On-system backup memory.

Useful for those people who didn't want to spend $50 on a memory cart. (Saturn / Sega CD.)

[NayusDante]

On-cartridge backup memory, for similar reasons. You don't appreciate it until the medium becomes read-only.


On a similar note, the expandability of cartridges and the usefullness of the cartridge slot is underrated. You can't put a coprocessor on an optical disk. Until consoles become modular, the launch-day spec is what you're stuck with. On the plus side, we'll never have another 32X...

[The_Chosen_One]

The Neo Geo's Memory Card (I believe the first system with a memory card) could be used in the arcade machine as well as the home system.

So if you saved Fatal Fury just before the awesome Geese Howard fight and went to the arcade and put in your card you could show everyone how badass you were.

[Steven]

By FAR (for me at least) N64's four controller port. Dreamcast did this too, and I thought it would become the standard for all future systems. I found it to be absolutely brilliant, saving us from buying a $25 multitap and also lugging it along. You just need the system and controllers. I remember really being awed by this, lol, especially after all the four player sessions my gaming group had with NBA Jam TE and Super Bomberman 1/2 on SNES

[Sonicwolf]

The 3DO's stereo headphone port and volume knob on the controller.

[Oldskool]

The X'Eye/Wondermega's microphone jack and CD+G capabilities. I mean - who actually sang karaoke on the thing?

I do have one CD+G disc, and I highly recommend it.

Information Society - the first CD. The one with "Pure Energy"

And yes, the headphone jack on the Genesis and the 3DO controllers were very innovative.

Another thing that was highly underrated, the Dreamcast VMU. I mean, how awesome is it that it can be used as a memory card, AND a miniture handheld?

TV Tuners for the Turbo Express and Game Gear. How cool is that?! Play games on the go, AND watch TV?

[tmc]

Why was the headphone jack so special? Round here all tv's had a headphone socket anyway and enabled you to just plug directly into it and achieve the same effect.

Or am i missing something?

[SegaAges]

The built-in game on the Master System was kind of a throwback to the older consoles, and you be surprised how many people I knew that owned a SMS that never had any idea it had such a feature.


THIS. I was strangely in love with the maze add-in game that came on mine, but then again, when my family was poor and got a SMS instead of NES because of price, I had to enjoy the free games, hahaha

[kedawa]

One of my favourite features of the Saturn and Dreamcast is the ability to instantly reset to the title screen and system menu in every game using the 'all face buttons and start' method.
It's fast, elegant, and I've never done it accidentally.

[tom]

By FAR (for me at least) N64's four controller port. Dreamcast did this too, and I thought it would become the standard for all future systems. I found it to be absolutely brilliant, saving us from buying a $25 multitap and also lugging it along. You just need the system and controllers. I remember really being awed by this, lol, especially after all the four player sessions my gaming group had with NBA Jam TE and Super Bomberman 1/2 on SNES

Atari 5200 and Atari 800 established this standard the first time around and it didn't take off.

Lynx right and left-handed player option

[Swamperon]

Yay for the Megadrive Headphone jack. Something we never see on consoles these days.

Also the Saturn uses the same power cable as the Dreamcast/PS2. And the Dreamcast VMU is very under rated. Very few the uses made for it were actually any good, but it was something different and inventive.

[crazyjackcsa]

One of my favourite features of the Saturn and Dreamcast is the ability to instantly reset to the title screen and system menu in every game using the 'all face buttons and start' method.
It's fast, elegant, and I've never done it accidentally.

True that. Rarely used, but a nice little feature.

[8bitgamer]

The pause button first included with the Atari 5200(pretty sure this was the first). It's hard to believe that consoles didn't always have a pause feature, it's just thought of as normal today.

The pause button on the 5200 was as great feature, but it wasn't underrated. Every gamer of the era loved it and wished the ColecoVision had it.

[retro junkie]

Why was the headphone jack so special? Round here all tv's had a headphone socket anyway and enabled you to just plug directly into it and achieve the same effect.

Or am i missing something?

At that point in time, TV's did not have the headphone jack as a standard feature. Not sure when they began appearing on TV's. I remember how great it was to be able to use headphones on my Genesis and Turbo Duo. Enjoyed the stereo so much. And at the time, I couldn't understand why it wasn't also a feature on the SNES.

[retroman]

how about backwords compatiblity....a option on a few classic systems..

[zektor]

Easy access to the CMOS battery. The Saturn has the easy open back door and you can swap it out without having to open the system. The Wii also has it on the right side (unscrew the screw and pull the tiny slide drawer). It's always nice to know the battery swap does not require cracking the console open on these, and nobody really says much about it :)

[Auto-Fox]

The audio visualizers on consoles such as the Jaguar CD, PlayStation and Saturn. Not particularly useful, but REALLY entertaining. I could watch those pulsing spheres on the Saturn menu screen for hours!

[Baloo]

The X'Eye/Wondermega's microphone jack and CD+G capabilities. I mean - who actually sang karaoke on the thing?

There was actually also a Karaoke add-on for the Sega CD Model 1 released only in Japan. They REALLY like Karaoke there. Here in the States (and elsewhere I presume) it's really not all that big, but in Japan they love it.



TV Tuners for the Turbo Express and Game Gear. How cool is that?! Play games on the go, AND watch TV?

This right here. I only wish I was able to actually find a TV Tuner for my Game Gear before they killed the analog signal. So disappointing...

[FantasiaWHT]

True that. Rarely used, but a nice little feature.

Me too. A lot of the features here (4 controller ports) are great, but hardly underrated. Soft resets many people didn't know about, but were a great trick for those who did.

[NayusDante]

Information Society - the first CD. The one with "Pure Energy"

What channel is it on? I'm not getting anything... >_<

[Flack]

Although it's a newer feature, I'd say the ability to turn consoles on/off via wireless controllers.

[kgenthe]

Again with the VMU...

It's ability to work as a private screen for selecting plays in the sports games. Made NFL 2k that much better.

[sixwayshot]

One thing I've taken for granted are the LED lights that are on a lot of consoles. For instance, when I need to check of my Genesis is plugged in (sometimes the surge protector comes loose), I press the power button, and the light comes on, showing that it's got power.

If I need to see if my Turbografx-16 is working, I need to grab the remote (which is ALWAYS on the other side of the room), turn on the TV, switch it to channel 3, and make sure Space Harrier boots up. Granted, it's not THAT big of an issue, but sometimes I wish there was a light on the TG-16. Same with a lot of consoles.

[TurboGenesis]

One of my favourite features of the Saturn and Dreamcast is the ability to instantly reset to the title screen and system menu in every game using the 'all face buttons and start' method.
It's fast, elegant, and I've never done it accidentally.

There was some others prior that had controller resets… and I was loving the feature.

the Turbo Grafx 16 had the feature where you held RUN and pressed select - I use this feature too much when I have a bad play and need a quick restart… no need to move or get up - just reset from the controller and start playing again straight away…

also the Atari Jaguar with pressing both the star and pound keys…

lol I am probably coming off as a huge Turbo Grafx fan boy, but I won't deny -the TG16 had many little features that were great for the time…

while in the matter of Turbo Grafx 16, I liked how some games offered both password AND file cabinet saving - paper password could last forever and was a nice way to back up saves…

[ScourDX]

PSP Sleep mode - this allows you to turn off PSP and then resume to the last state you played once is it turn on.

[CapnCrunch53]

As I believe someone else said, I always forget that the toaster NES had RCA out. Pretty neat that it had that as well as coax.

I'm gonna go with something that's not really retro, but pleased me greatly when I bought my system. The Slim PS2 had an ethernet port and 2 USB ports integrated. Now granted, I never saw much action with the ethernet (PS2 online wasn't brilliant, and my buddy and I never got system link in GT4 to work). It did beat having to buy a network adapter for anyone who would have used it though.

The USB ports were also awesome. I don't think the original PS2 had them, but I could be wrong. Regardless, they are awesome for being able to transfer screenshots in GT4 to my PC. I only wish you could put game saves on them, or use them to play your own music ingame. Still, pretty nice feature (and great for hooking up a HDD if you mod your PS2)

[Kevincal]

Jaguar CD VLM is freaking awesome, beats any other music visualizer imo.

[NayusDante]

Phat PS2 does have USB, and it also has an S400 firewire port.


The PS3 can run Lin... oh nevermind.

[Ze_ro]

Lynx right and left-handed player option
Second. This was a great idea that worked perfectly. It was also neat that the Lynx was set up in such a way that vertical games were quite playable too, and several games took advantage of this (and also obeyed the left/right handed switch so you could play with the d-pad at the "bottom" or "top", depending on what you found comfortable).

--Zero

[Richter Belmount]

PSP Sleep mode - this allows you to turn off PSP and then resume to the last state you played once is it turn on.

Thats on my list

[Johnny_Boy]

The GameBoy Advance to Gamecube hookup was an interesting idea that didn't really take off. A few games did make good use of it,*like Pac-Man Vs. I must admit I've never seen such a setup played live.

With each player having their personal screens, plus the main tv playfield, some interesting concepts can be brought, such as hidden commands. Think strategy games, or sport games, especially american football.

[Aswald]

The way chips can just be unplugged and plugged in in consoles like the 5200 and 2600.

[Kitsune Sniper]

What channel is it on? I'm not getting anything... >_<

... It should be on the default CD-G channel. It works in mine.

[NayusDante]

Odd, my disk certainly has the CD Graphics marking, but I can't get anything out of my Sega CD or my Saturn. I found rips of the images, but that's not the same experience...

[dnehthend]

LR and Start to reset the n64 joystick after you discovered your friends were dicking around with their joysticks while plugging in their controller

upgradeable ram for N64... and saturn

3 ways to hold a N64 controller!

dreamcasts amazing copyright protection

[BetaWolf47]

PSP Sleep mode - this allows you to turn off PSP and then resume to the last state you played once is it turn on.

DS has that too. When you close the lid with a game turned on, it suspends the game. Then it resumes it once you open the system back up. A huge, huge convenience.

[Kitsune Sniper]

... So did the GBA.

Well, some games did.

[kupomogli]

PSP Sleep mode - this allows you to turn off PSP and then resume to the last state you played once is it turn on.


DS has that too. When you close the lid with a game turned on, it suspends the game. Then it resumes it once you open the system back up. A huge, huge convenience.

I like both of these features. However, the PSP goes one step further.

If the battery on the PSP dies, once plugged back and the system is turned back on, it will also be at the same point you were at. This works with any game or homebrew that has the option of sleep mode.

This is the only portable system I know that has the feature. I've had my PSP die on me a few times which I haven't saved for quite awhile, so that feature has saved me from having to play back to the point I got up to.

Auto saving while not interupting gameplay is another good feature. It's only based on certain games and not consoles themselves however.

[Baloo]

Odd, my disk certainly has the CD Graphics marking, but I can't get anything out of my Sega CD or my Saturn. I found rips of the images, but that's not the same experience...

For the Sega CD, I know on my Model 1 you have to actually select the CD+G option in the boot screen menu to load the images. No idea about the Model 2 though, or the Saturn.

[Orion Pimpdaddy]

I'd have to say the Game Shark and Game Genie devices. I especially like the one's that allow import games to play on region-locked systems.

[Ze_ro]

The way chips can just be unplugged and plugged in in consoles like the 5200 and 2600.
Uh.. what? Do you mean cartridges? Or are you talking about actual chips being socketed in the motherboard?

(2600 cartridges are not hot-swappable... 5200 cartridges are. Astrocade and original Odyssey also allow you to swap them while the console is on).

--Zero

[dnehthend]

controllers that give a nice confirming click when you push them into the console

colored plugs on controllers so you know who to hand what controller to

the controller expansion slots on n64 controllers

[csgx1]

I always thought the Neo Geo Pocket's horoscope,calendar, alarm features in the system was quite unique.

[kupomogli]

I just thought of something. It seems it hasn't been named because it's become sort of the norm now, but the CD format.

Regardless what system it is, CD technology on a console was a major breakthrough. Nearly all of the early released CD format systems fell through and sold pretty bad. The reason was because almost all the systems were add ons(almost.) It wasn't until the Playstation that the CD format really took off.

So yeah. No one thinks about the format now because we've been using it as the standard for almost 15 years. When you look at a great system like the Sega CD and what it could have did between that time to when the PSX came out, but it didn't get the support. Even Nintendo tried CD games but didn't have much luck.

[crazyjackcsa]

I just thought of something. It seems it hasn't been named because it's become sort of the norm now, but the CD format.

Regardless what system it is, CD technology on a console was a major breakthrough. Nearly all of the early released CD format systems fell through and sold pretty bad. The reason was because almost all the systems were add ons(almost.) It wasn't until the Playstation that the CD format really took off.

So yeah. No one thinks about the format now because we've been using it as the standard for almost 15 years. When you look at a great system like the Sega CD and what it could have did between that time to when the PSX came out, but it didn't get the support. Even Nintendo tried CD games but didn't have much luck.

How is that an underrated feature? I like that feature where they play games. That's a pretty good one.

[tom]

I think it was underrated with PC Engine and early PC. After all, the Atari ST tried to be the first with home computer CDing in the mid 80s, but we weren't ready for it yet.

[8bitgamer]

How is that an underrated feature? I like that feature where they play games. That's a pretty good one.

I think we probably take CDs for granted, which could be a form of underrating them.

[retro junkie]

The "Directional button" on the Neo Pocket Color was just awesome for the Neo Geo portable fighters. A great addition on a portable system. It is like having a joystick for your thumb. No other portable has had one like it.

[Red Baron]

Along the lines of the mention of older CD consoles being able to play music CDs, I have a similiar nomination of the PS2 and 360's ability to play DVDs. They were terribly expensive at the game, so the ability to play them on a game system was my only salvation.

I also second the mention of the Super Game Boy. I never understood why the never made a Super Game Boy 64 considering that they had a GB transfer pack for the N64, for the Pokemon Stadium games.

Also, the Dreamcast's modem and web-browsing features. I ended up buying a DC Keyboard just so I'd have an emergency web box if my computer went kaput back then.


This right here. I only wish I was able to actually find a TV Tuner for my Game Gear before they killed the analog signal. So disappointing...

I had no idea the GG had a TV tuner. I wish I had known about it years back, I would have grabbed one and my poor GG would have seen a LOT more usage. Hell, I'd probably try to track one down now and use it, were it not for the tragic death of analog.


I'd have to say the Game Shark and Game Genie devices. I especially like the one's that allow import games to play on region-locked systems.

Ditto. One of my biggest lamentations with modern consoles is the lack of this. How are we supposed to see neato programmer's rooms now or play as General Leo?


Although it's a newer feature, I'd say the ability to turn consoles on/off via wireless controllers.

To add to this, I like the 360's ability to open/close the tray with the controller. When you buy a lot of used games like I do, it's nice to not have to constantly get up and down while trying to get them to work.


dreamcasts amazing copyright protection

Amen, brother. This has really expanded my DC's usage during the down seasons.


I just thought of something. It seems it hasn't been named because it's become sort of the norm now, but the CD format.

Regardless what system it is, CD technology on a console was a major breakthrough. Nearly all of the early released CD format systems fell through and sold pretty bad. The reason was because almost all the systems were add ons(almost.) It wasn't until the Playstation that the CD format really took off.

So yeah. No one thinks about the format now because we've been using it as the standard for almost 15 years. When you look at a great system like the Sega CD and what it could have did between that time to when the PSX came out, but it didn't get the support. Even Nintendo tried CD games but didn't have much luck.

CDs brought some negative aspects along with them, however.. As mentioned earlier, some cartridges had extra chips or such in them, which CDs cannot do. CDs also introduced noticible load times and fragility to video games.

Even someone who is particularly careful with their games often finds new scratches(in fact, sometimes the system running alone scratches them), and buying used games can be a total crapshoot.

In buying dozens of catridge games over the years, I've only had three or four used ones with problems, while when it comes to CD-based games it's infinitely worse. (I'm STILL looking for local copies of Star Wars: Battlefront or Xenosaga that work.)

[Auto-Fox]

A great, and completely underrated, feature of the Sega Saturn: direct-dial online gaming.
The Sega Saturn's NetLink modem peripheral, one of the world's first console-based online gaming devices, didn't use servers to facilitate online play. Instead, you entered the phone-number of your friend with a NetLink, and your NetLink dialed them directly over a regular telephone connection.
The advantage to this? As long as you still have a phone-line, it STILL WORKS. You just have to know somebody with a Saturn and a NetLink, and tolerance for high phone-bills.
Unfortunately, very few, if any, modern consoles use a feature even remotely like this. This is bad, because as soon as the latest generation of online games loses their servers, they'll be useless.

[Astrocade]

One thing I forgot to mention, and I've not seen anyone else bring it up, was the fact that in 1981 you could go online with an Intellivision and download exclusive games via cable broadband. It was an idea that was what? Twenty years ahead of its time?

[Gavica]

the sega genesis modem, hands down.

http://www.retroist.com/wp-content/uploads/2008/03/segagenesis.jpg

[Auto-Fox]

Yeah... except it was only released in Japan and Brazil.
You wanted online play for the Genesis stateside, you had to by Catapult's XBAND modem, which, in itself, was pretty awesome. No direct-dial though.
HOWEVER, another AWESOME feature on the Sega Genesis, Sega Channel. Basically, it was a cable subscription service that let you download games for a monthly fee.
At its peak, it had something like 250,000 subscribers. The only reason it was eventually taken down, in 1998, was because nobody was putting out games for the Genesis anymore.

[Red Baron]

A great, and completely underrated, feature of the Sega Saturn: direct-dial online gaming.
The Sega Saturn's NetLink modem peripheral, one of the world's first console-based online gaming devices, didn't use servers to facilitate online play. Instead, you entered the phone-number of your friend with a NetLink, and your NetLink dialed them directly over a regular telephone connection.
The advantage to this? As long as you still have a phone-line, it STILL WORKS. You just have to know somebody with a Saturn and a NetLink, and tolerance for high phone-bills.
Unfortunately, very few, if any, modern consoles use a feature even remotely like this. This is bad, because as soon as the latest generation of online games loses their servers, they'll be useless.

Wow. I totally didn't know that. Maybe in a few years when I have the spare cash, I'll get into more of the mid-era Sega systems and try to give this a shot, just to say I did it once.

It'd be nice if more systems would do this, but alas.. I remember being rather sad at the X-Box version of Live finally going down for good recently, and thinking of all the games that would never be played online again(or played multiplayer period, in some cases.)

[Auto-Fox]

...meep...
Anyway, about NetLink, I SHOULD mention that it's at risk, these days. All modems are designed to deal with a certain amount of lag-time. However, the NetLink, being designed during the mid 1990s, was designed to work primarily with analog phone service.
For long-distance play (outside your local area code), it can't deal with the high-latency connection afforded by digital phone service.
So, you either have to have to still have an analog telephone line, or you can only play against people in your own area code.
Outside that, the connection is too buggy these days to be workable.
^^ Still, the concept is pretty awesome. Online multiplayer that NEVER goes offline!
Take THAT, Microsoft!

[Press_Start]

A shoutout to a very overlooked aspect of controllers....wings! Without them, where will we put our palms? :D

http://www.jwnyc.com/games/images/psx04.jpg

[Sonicwolf]

A shoutout to a very overlooked aspect of controllers....wings! Without them, where will we put our palms? :D

http://www.jwnyc.com/games/images/psx04.jpg

I salute the rare PlayStation Dual-Analog controller and its elongated wings for being the best. That controller died so fast and is very unappreciated.

[garagesaleking!!]

the xbox hard drive, not having to use memory cards, an amazing upgrade.

[The 1 2 P]

the xbox hard drive, not having to use memory cards, an amazing upgrade.

Thats an excellent answer but I'm going to go one better. The original Xbox had the ability to burn your music cd's to the hard drive and then listen to the music in game(for some games). Then the 360 took it to the next level and let you use custom soundtracks from your hard drive for pretty much every 360 game thats released. Although I mostly use the feature in racing games, it's nice to have it available for every game. You know, for that occasion where I'm playing a good game with crappy music.

[crazyjackcsa]

The Xbox hard drive, the CD format, the DC's VMU and others aren't really underrated. They were heavily marketed as the "next big thing"

How about the Gamecube's disc brake, or that the music when the system turns on differs depending on which button's you hold on the controller.

[Astrocade]

The Xbox hard drive, the CD format, the DC's VMU and others aren't really underrated. They were heavily marketed as the "next big thing"

I agree. "Underrated" to me is something that you rarely hear mentioned in the same breath as the other data regarding the console. The Sega Genesis being 16-bit was not overrated, but you rarely hear about its ability to go online or its unique headphone jack. Those are underrated features.

That's like saying that the Virtual Boy was underrated because it was 3-D. 3D was kind of its whole point, unlike the dual D-pads which were unique to that system at the time, and as such an underrated feature.

[Goodwill Hunter]

Jaguar CD VLM is freaking awesome, beats any other music visualizer imo.

I second that...I always play CDs on my JagCD for the on-screen display. I can't image the programming is that difficult for geometric designs set to music...don't know why all of the CD-playing systems since don't do something similar or better than the Virtual Light Machine.

Rich

[shopkins]

Others have said it, but it's very nice when consoles use standard AV connections instead of special AV ports. I can hook my 3DO up with any cables I have around the house, RCA and S-Video. Heck, even the power cord is a very standard model that's easy to find and compatible with several of my consoles. It makes it easier to switch things out if all I have to do is take the cables out of, say, my DVD player and plug them into the 3DO.

I also really like when consoles have the soft reset button combo. It's a lot faster and easier than getting up to cycle a hard reset.

[Nintega Grafx-16]

The original Xbox can be a very useful paperweight. A lot of people overlook that feature ;)

[Enigmus]

The original Xbox can be a very useful paperweight. A lot of people overlook that feature ;)

So, you're saying the Xbox is meant as a ballast and not a game system with a library of great games?

That's like saying a SNES can machine wash my pants.

[tentencanidae]

How bout the use of the so called "Fourth Wall" on the Sege Genesis/Megadrive. When playing XMEN, at the end, you have enter a door by breaking the fourth wall (or something of that nature..), which literally involved the gamer quickly hitting the reset button. I know that plenty of consoles HAVE a reset button, but I don't know of two many that have incorporated it into the gameplay. I never beat XMEN because of that. I found out about it years later.

[Nintega Grafx-16]

So, you're saying the Xbox is meant as a ballast and not a game system with a library of great games?

That's like saying a SNES can machine wash my pants.

The original Xbox was an overrated PoS system. 360 however....

[Enigmus]

The original Xbox was an overrated PoS system. 360 however....

You, sir, are overrated.

The 360's a finnicky piece of crap compared to the first Xbox. You want overrated? Look at most of the 360s fanbase.

Case closed.