Systems, In Order of Popularity

[digitalpress]

Let me ask the good people of this fine community a general question.

Put aside your personal tastes for a moment and consider "the most popular game systems of all time". If you were to put them in order, most popular first, what would your top ten look like? If ten is pushing your synapses too far, give me your top five instead.

[Graham Mitchell]

I'd have to say that Playstation 1/2 empire eclipses everything else.

The rest, in my estimated order of popularity, would be the Xbox, Gameboy NES, Genesis, and SNES, followed by Atari 2600. People who aren't real hardcore gamers don't tend to remember much else, so those systems wouldn't be worth mentioning in this thread (even though I personally love the TG-16...sigh! Someday the world will understand...)

[nintendan]

My Top 5:

FIRST PLACE: Nintendo Entertainment System
SECOND PLACE: Super Nintendo
THIRD PLACE: Nintendo 64 (it was those damn Zelda's)
FOURTH PLACE: XBOX (I am addicted to LIVE)
FIFTH PLACE: Atari 2600

I'd love to have the Gamecube on this list, but I have been playing it less and less these past months. Still a great system though.

Nintendan

[digitalpress]

My Top 5:
FIRST PLACE: Nintendo Entertainment System
SECOND PLACE: Super Nintendo
THIRD PLACE: Nintendo 64 (it was those damn Zelda's)
FOURTH PLACE: XBOX (I am addicted to LIVE)
FIFTH PLACE: Atari 2600


I'm confused by this entry. Are you saying that you think the Nintendo 64 is more popular than the PlayStation, Genesis, Atari 2600? I didn't think I'd see anyone mention N64 in a popularity list.

[SebasC]

I personally would go for this (top 5 for now)

1. Atari 2600 (Played my first video game on it)
2. NES (The first console i owned)
3. N64 (For Zelda & Goldeneye)
4. Gameboy (For being there in my vacations when i was younger)
5. GBA (for being there for me now :) )

[digitalpress]

I personally would go for this (top 5 for now)

1. Atari 2600 (Played my first video game on it)
2. NES (The first console i owned)
3. N64 (For Zelda & Goldeneye)
4. Gameboy (For being there in my vacations when i was younger)
5. GBA (for being there for me now :) )

Umm...

I don't think you guys read my post. I'm not asking for your favorite, I'm asking you what you think are the most popular. N64 sales alone should tell you there's no way this is more popular than Game Boy, Genesis, PlayStation, etc.

[PhoeniX]

01.GAME BOY!!! (series)
02.Playstation
03.NES
04.PS2
05.SNES
06.Genesis
07.N64
08.Atari 2600
09.Xbox
10.Dreamcast

This is a tough question. Popularity is a rather loaded term, for instance systems like the VCS and NES enjoyed very large market shares of what is by todays standards a considerably smaller installed user base. Videogames increasingly popular, every subsequent generation builds biger hype around releases. I have tried to answer the question of popularity by considering my conceptions of two major factors, number of consoles sold, and comparative market share durring their "hayday."

[Darth Sensei]

Let me ask the good people of this fine community a general question.

Put aside your personal tastes for a moment and consider "the most popular game systems of all time". If you were to put them in order, most popular first, what would your top ten look like? If ten is pushing your synapses too far, give me your top five instead.

Guys, read the post our illustrious leader created. It says list the most popular, and not our personal favorites.

1. PS1
2. NES
3. 2600
4. Genesis
5. PS2

At least this would be my guess.

D

[studvicious]

well, if you want the most popular game systems of all time, I think this is a pretty accurate top 5:

1. Gameboy
2. NES
3. Playstation
4. SNES
5. Playstation 2

[tholly]

1. NES
2. Atari 2600
3. Genesis
4. Game Boy
5. Playstation 1
6. Playstation 2
7. Game Boy Advance
8. SNES
9. N64
10. Xbox

[anagrama]

Edge magazine had a list of the top-10 selling systems of all time 2 or 3 years back. I could try and dig it out to check, but I think it was something like:

1. Gameboy
2. Playstation
3. NES
4. Genesis/Megadrive
5. Atari 2600
6. SNES

Can't remember the rest, but the I know Master System just sneaked into the top 10. I think the Saturn may be in there aswell, thanks to Japanese sales. Computers were also included, and I think the C64 and Amiga may have filled in the other 2 slots.
Their list was done pre-current Gen, so PS2 & XBox weren't included. These days I'd guess that the PS1 has eclipsed the Gameboy at the top aswell.

[richmond]

in cup-o-tea land (uk) id have to say

game boy
playstation
playstation 2
mega drive
master system

[PhoeniX]

I think the Saturn may be in there aswell, thanks to Japanese sales.


DP are you asking about overall world popularity or just the US market, it changes things quite a bit?

[SebasC]

I Apoligize :) guess i was still sleeping :P

[wberdan]

1: NES
2: PS1
3. 2600
4. PS2
5: Genesis

PS- i based mine on popularity, and not sales figures.


willie

[digitalpress]

I think the Saturn may be in there aswell, thanks to Japanese sales.


DP are you asking about overall world popularity or just the US market, it changes things quite a bit?

World popularity. The most popular game systems of all time, anywhere.

[Ernster]

Id say NES was more popular than PSX....due to the fact that NES killed all its competitors (well the few it had). The PSX on the other hand, had the N64 which was popular...not heaps popular but still popular. Dunno if my opinion is valid, but here it is.

Also its not far to compare them as NES was targeted to kids and PSX had kids and Adults...and Id say that more kids bought the NES than the PSX...but who knows.

[Quazick]

1) NES & GameBoy
2) Atari 2600
3) Genesis
4) PSX
5) N64

:)

[Geddon_jt]

Hmm... WORLDWIDE huh?
This would be my take.

1. Playstation
2. NES / Famicom
3. Game Boy line
4. PC Engine
5. Atari 2600
6. Playstation 2
7. Sega Master System
8. Genesis / Megadrive
9. SNES / Super Famicom
10. Sega Saturn

PC Engine especially can't be ignored. This system dominated Japan for years.

[thegreatescape]

PC Engine especially can't be ignored. This system dominated Japan for years.

Worldwide isnt just america and japan :P
Ive never seen ANY of NEC's consoles in real life so IMO that puts them out.

My Top 5 guess:

1. Playstation
2. Nes
3. Gameboy
4. Mega Drive / Genesis
5. SNES or 2600 or PS2 (i couldnt decide)

[Keir]

If we're talking worldwide popularity, I think Atari 2600 should top the list. What other console can be found on 6 continents?

[Chainsaw_Charlie]

No order

Snes
Nes
Ps1
Genesis
Atari 2600
Ps2
Xbox
Master system
________
vapir oxygen (http://oxygenvaporizer.com)

[crazyjackcsa]

I think some clarification is in order, when you say most popular, I think you mean most units sold correct? I think some people are taking it as most loyal following, or just a random personal favorite.


I also think, as everybody knows, that he PS1 Changed the gaming world.

I would think it would go like this, but I'm not sure

1. Gameboy (in all it's forms)
2.PS1
3.PS2
This is where it gets interesting, I know by the end of the life span the Genny and SNES had more than 12 million units sold. I think it would currently be very close for the NES/SNES/GENNY/XBOX in 4th and 5th spot

[jaybird]

1. Gameboy(s)
2. PS1
3. NES
4. Atari 2600
5. PS2

Although I'd like to throw the Gameboy series off the top because I think it's unfair to group all the versions' sales together (Classic, Color & Advance).

That's like saying the Playsation series (1&2 combined) has sold the most units.

[kevincure]

Worldwide:

1) Gameboy/Color/Advance (not only was it the first videogame system to be seen being played by a US President (Bush 41 was a Tetris fan), but it's also dominated a number of territories for a decade and a half. As far as I can tell, the GB is the major system in much of Latin/South America, so it seems to have a large following in developing/middle-income countries).

2) Playstation (the PSX is "officially" sold in NA, Europe, Russia, India, Middle East, China, SE Asia, Oz/NZ, Japan. Further, the size of the vg market is much larger today than it was in the 2600/NES era (though the market was more concentrated then - you'd never see something like the Japanese Space Invader craze or the tens upon tens of millions of Mario Bros. sold in this ear). 100+ million units sold, 1 billion pieces of software sold, nearly 7000 releases across the 3 major territories.

3) NES / Fami, which dominated all three regions. Only recently did non-gamers stop calling all game systems "Nintendos".

4) 2600, despite it's poor sales in Asia, easily dominated much of the world for years.

5) Playstation2. The XBox is not even in the running. In the US, XB sales are tens of millions behind, and overseas, the discrepancy is even higher.

I'm not counting computers, but C-64, and x86-based Windows would both have a shot at the top five if you're considering the worldwide market. After this top five, the next five, in no particular order, would be SNES, Genesis/Megadrive, PCE/TG16, Sega Saturn, SMS.

[TRM]

Playstation
NES
Gameboy
Xbox
Genesis

[chadtower]

Wow, not many people have mentioned the Japanese systems yet. I'm going to roll the same systems/region differences in together since they are the same system with region lockouts.

1) NES/Famicom
2) Gameboy
3) TG16/PC Engine
4) PS1
5) Atari 2600
6) GBA
7) PS2
8) Genesis/MegaDrive
9) N64
10) SNES/SFC

[Atarileaf]

If you go by popularity based on current fads, sure all the current consoles would be on top but if you go with all time popular systems you have to give a nod to the 2600, NES, Genesis, etc. My personal list would be this:

(1) Atari 2600
(2) Atari 7800
(3) Colecovision
(4) Atari 8-bit
(5) Tandy Color Computer (I know, not a console)
(6) sorting socks
(7) going to the dentist
(8) cleaning lint out of my belly button
(9 - 99) other meaningless chores
(100) NES, Genesis, SNES, Xbox, PS1&2, etc

Just kidding, I like all the other consoles as well, to one degree or another but my heart belongs to Atari.

[omnedon]

Most popular, not my tastes necessarily:

PS1
PS2
Atari 2600
NES
Genesis
SNES


I'm out of ideas. After the ones I listed, they get far less pouplar sales wise in a big hurry. Saturn..pfft. N64 maybe.

My favourites would read absofreaking NOTHING like the list above. LOL

[Ed Oscuro]

I guess the thinking here is that per capita consumption of game machines occurs at a different rate than it used to? (Of course, not having access to figures doesn't help, either!)

If I had to hazard a guess it'd be:

PlayStation series (if that's fair)
Game Boy series
Atari VCS (or is that 2600/7800?)
NES/Famicom/FDS
SNES/SFC
Genesis/Mega Drive
SMS/Mark III/Game Gear/compatibles
N64
Dreamcast (mind you this is a good ranking! Arguable where it falls comparable to the N64; I'm obviously going by the amount of hype I felt surrounding this machine which was, and still is, admittedly close to zero.)

I'm not adding the GameCube or the XBox 'cuz I'm not sure how those match up against the older systems, because it seems to me that some of these systems' popularity is due to their being "the alternatives" to the PlayStation.

When I think about it, that's all pretty darn fair.

[gavv]

Gameboy
Playstation
NES
Atari 2600
PC (why hasn't anyone included this? ;) )

Playstation 2
Genesis
SNES
Xbox/gamecube (almost by default cause market growth gives them better overall #s than '#2 & 3 systems back in "the days"' like Inty/CV and SMS/TG16, etc)


gavv

[Ed Oscuro]

Including personal computers is asking for a world of trouble ;)

You'd have to include the C64, which would be at the top of any list ever created, really.

[thehistorian]

I also think, as everybody knows, that he PS1 Changed the gaming world.

uhhhhh... O_O

Didn't the NES/Famicom dig the console world up out of it's grave? Sorry, but without the NES there would be no PS1...


Gameboy is number one... units sold

[Flack]

Here's my top 10.

Atari 2600
NES
Playstation
Playstation 2
Super Nintendo
Dreamcast
Xbox
Sega Genesis
Nintendo 64
Gamecube

[Ed Oscuro]

Didn't the NES/Famicom dig the console world up out of it's grave?
It would seem the PlayStation was the NES's successor, then, as it did the trick for gaming once again!

[PapaStu]

1. The GameBoy and its evolutions
2/3. PlayStation / PS2 (it can go either way)
4. NES
5. Atari 2600

6-9 are a convultion of the Genesis, SNES, Dreamcast, XBox and Saturn.
10. N64

[hydr0x]

without having looked at previous posts (i did read yours of course joe), and of course heavily based on european experiences...

1. Gameboy Series (by far)
2. Playstation 1/2 (you have to group these as almost any ps1 user did buy a ps2, at least those interested in a new console)
3. NES
4. Atari 2600
5. SNES
6. Mega Drive/Gen + 32X+CD
7. Dreamcast (look at japan damnit)
T8. Gamecube
T8. Xbox
10. N64
11. MS
12. Saturn
13. PC-Engine
14. Neo Geo

i'm not to sure about saturn though as it was quite popular especially in japan

[MegaDrive20XX]

1. GameBoy (The numbers on world wide sales are amazing..)
2. Playstation 1/2
3, NES
4. SNES
5. Atari 2600

[Achika]

1. Gameboy (all incarnations -regular, color, advance)
2. Atari
3. Nintendo Entertainment System
4. Playstation (both incarnations)
5. SNES/Genesis (equal in my eyes....)

[rbudrick]

Just going by sales figures, I would imagine it would be like this:

G-ameboy and all its iterations
-Playstation (1) (though if we include the Gameboy II and III, or GBC and GBA, we may as well include the PS2 here!! They are both backward compatible, so it is a good analogy)
-NES
-Atari 2600
-Genesis/megadrive
-SNES


-Rob

[nintendan]

Ooops, your right. i mis-read what you asked for, and listed my top 5.
However, the N64 was a great machine. Heck, if it wasn't for it, we all wouldn't have analog controllers (as mainstream anyway). Hell, if it wasn't for the SNES, we wouldn't have the L and R triggers either.

A lot of people say the Ocarina of Time was one of the best games ever made (if not THEE best). Not too bad of a system if you ask me, even offering 4 controller ports.

And I think Goldeneye got a lot of console lovers into FPS (it did for me).

But as for your question, the N64 would not be in the top 5 for sales or popularity (except for kids. heck it might even be #1 in their opinions, thanks to the Pokemon franchise).

Nintendan

[jerkov]

1. Game Boy/GBA
2. NES/Famicom
3. PS1/PS2
4. Atari 2600
5. Sega Genesis/Megadrive

[Aussie2B]

This is probably gonna be a repeat of what other's have listed, but I'd guess:

1. Game Boy (all versions)
2. PS1/PS2
3. NES/Famicom
4. Atari 2600
5. SNES/Super Famicom
6. Genesis/Mega Drive
7. Xbox
8. GameCube
9. Saturn
10. Turbo Grafx/PC Engine/Duo

[chadtower]

Folks, the PCE was the #1 system in Japan for a LONG time. Its library is one of the largest of any system in any region... its certainly one of the most diverse as well. The TG may have been a wash here but its Japanese counterpart dominated one of the major markets. It was definitely bigger than nearly all but the top systems in the US.

[badinsults]

This is a tough question, if all regions are applied. For instance, the Master System did well in Europe, but was far behind the NES in North America and Japan. The Genesis was the third system in Japan, behind the Snes and PC Engine, but it pretty much was even with the snes in North America, and was ahead in Europe (or so I have gathered). Atari was top on the first generation. If we separate the video game systems into 5 generations, then it would be:

First Generation: Atari 2600
Second Generation: NES
Third Generation: Snes/Genesis (Tie?)
Fourth Generation: Playstation
Fifth Generation: Playstation 2

Obviously, with games going into the mainstream, the current generation of hardware is the furthest entrenched. If you are looking for an overall winner, then there is no question that the Game Boy and its varients dominate all.

[Avenger]

1. Gameboy
2. Playstation
3. NES
4. Genesis/Megadrive
5. Atari 2600
6. SNES

first 3 are totally right IMO last 3 could be in any order

[Anexanhume]

1. Game Boy
2. NES
3. PSX
4. PS2
5. Atari 2600

[Querjek]

Gameboy (all) > Playstation (all) > NES > Atari (all) > Genesis

[le geek]

Here's my guess (in order)

NES
Atari 2600
Playstation 2
Gameboy/Color/Advance
Playstation
Commodore 64
SNES
Genesis
Xbox
Gamecube

[Ed Oscuro]

Folks, the PCE was the #1 system in Japan for a LONG time...The TG may have been a wash here but its Japanese counterpart dominated one of the major markets. It was definitely bigger than nearly all but the top systems in the US.
Dagnabit! I kept looking over my list, wondering what I'd left out. Now I know. Modified list:

PlayStation series
Game Boy series
Atari VCS
NES/Famicom/FDS
SNES/SFC
Genesis/Mega Drive
PC-Engine (Only because the Genesis was so huge here in the States, and decent enough in Japan that it wasn't crushed by the PC-E)
SMS/Mark III/Game Gear/compatibles
N64
Dreamcast

[NintendoMan]

I guess if its the most popular list, wouldn't that in other wards be considered the highest selling systems? Or the most systems sold? I mean the #'s would speak for themselves.

My List is:
1. NES (By Far)
2. PS1
3. Original Gameboy and GB Pocket
4. PS2
5. Super Nintendo
6. Sega Genesis
7. GameBoy Advance
8. XBOX
9. Nintendo 64
10. Gamecube


And yes, if you combine ALL the gameboys together, they would ABSOLUTELY CRUSH everything by ALOT! I decided to divide the Gameboy's though in my list.

[TNTPLUST]

I'm a little more old school so I have a question to ask. Are we only taking into consideration the original console or do we count clones, knockoffs, and pirates to the console popularity count? Some of you are lumping all the Gameboys together, some the PS1 and PS2, some all the NEC's, Etc, etc...

If we are doing this then shouldn't we put the 7800 with the 2600?

While we are at it add the Colecovision and the 5200 since they had 2600 add on modules.

Include all of the various knockoffs from Brazil, Taiwan, and the US (just take a look at the DP guide to get a feeling for some of them I'm sure the number is large worldwide).

The system started selling in 77 and was STILL selling consoles around the world iin the late 90's. (Still selling if you consider all the compilations that are still being sold for it.)

Probably should add the TV Boys and the Jakk systems too to boot.

another thing about compilcations. Don't all the atari compilations out there make the PC, XBOX, Gamecube, and almost every other game console ever made a 2600 clone? I'm thinking if we are talking POPULARITY here the 2600 wins hands down.

Anyway all joking aside I think only the NES could give the 2600 a run for the money. Soooooo my list would be

1.2600
2.NES (this one certainly has its share of pirates and knockoffs too.)
3.PONG (And ALL it various versions from various companies)
4.Gameboy (and all its versions)
5.Ps1

[mhsy2a]

1. Gameboy
2. NES
3. PS1
4. PS2
5. SNES
6. Genesis
7. 2600
8. XBox
9. GBA
10. GameCube