Keeping Up Appearances: Best & Worst Looking Consoles

[Ascending Wordsmith]

Some consoles are a thing of beauty; they have just the right size, shape, contour, and color that makes the entire system a pleasant sight to the eyes. Then, there are consoles that impact your retinas like a sandstorm; it's machines like these threw any kind of style and grace into the wind. So, just like human beings, consoles come in all kinds of aesthetic levels. Some are attractive, and others are downright ugly!

One console I think is pretty charming is the PC Engine Duo RX. The gently sloping console casing is colored in a very relaxing, light grey tone. The power button, the CD lid release button, and the machine's logo on the upper left corner of the casing are all powder blue. The same can be said for the unit's controller; the casing is light grey, while the D-pad, and the buttons are powder blue. It all comes together so nicely.
http://nekofan.free.fr/Images/duorx.gif
PC Engine Duo RX



On the flipside, I find the most disturbing console design to be Nintendo's Pikachu Edition N64. I never liked Pokemon (Pikachu in particular), so this machine really makes me cringe. Aside from that giant mass of yellow plastic in the form of Pikachu, the whole thing hurts my eyes to look at it. How can I even play a serious game like Goldeneye with Pikachu disrupting my spy-like mentality? They even made orange models! O_O

http://www.games-guide.de/x_bilder/news/pikachu_n64.jpg http://www.maxoegames.com/pokemon/n64_pika.jpg
Pikachu Edition N64 (Pika? Pika?)

Edit: found an orange version..... ewww.

[molnars]

One of the systems I find very sleek is the PSOne. It just looks very good especially when you have the Sony brand LCD monitor.

One of the worst looking ones around in my opinion is the PS2. Am I the only one who thinks so?

[christianscott27]

sega seemed to take design seriously, other than the game gear every machine they have made has looked very cutting edge at its time of release. i've never cared for consoles that try and look like they are something else such as the PS2 and the goldstar 3do. colecovision and intellivision are both out and out ugly beasts, as is the astrocade.

i like the the psone, toploader NES, gamecube a lot, and the sears video arcade II is my all time favorite.
________
Pissing Vids (http://www.fucktube.com/categories/31/pissing/videos/1)

[congobongo]

Some attractive consoles:

Gamecube (esp. Platinum)
Dreamcast
Atari's black/silver models (Jr., 5200, 7800)

Some ugly consoles:

O2
N64
XBox

[slapdash]

I think the N64 is one of the best looking consoles ever.

I agree, however, that the Pikachu version is one of the ugliest monstrosities ever.

We've done this thread before though...

[omnedon]

I think the original model PS1 is ugly as sin. It's a slab of grey. Bleh.

Real flaws aside, I think the IntelliVision II is very smart looking.
http://www.intellivisionlives.com/bluesky/media/media_pix/intellivision2.gif

[Sylentwulf]

Best looking:
Turboduo
Turbo Express
GBA
NES Toploader
Gamecube

Worst looking:
Channel F - <cringe>
3DO - Big, bulky, looks like a nuclear reactor in there
5200 - ugh
Intellivision - HIDEOUS
Colecovision (LOVE the console, just looks wrong somehow)

[samuraiX]

Best by far:
Neo Geo CD
Neo Geo CDZ
those would be my top pics.
followed by the Duo, N64, and the Jaguar

Worst:
InteractiveVision... the controller, though very odd, is umm.... eww
(original yes; pretty, no)
as for any runner ups: a number of the pong clones, NES, and original PSX

[Gunstarhero]

The best looking console is the Atari 5200. Everything about it, at the time of release, just emitted that this was 'the future' of video gaming. One thing I've noticed about the shape of the 5200, is if you take a look at it from the side, it looks like the car Charlie Sheen drives in THE WRAITH(1984?)

[jaydubnb]

I don't think any system is sexier than the PC Engine Duo-RX. Great design, color scheme, and matching six button pad. Runner up would be the Genesis 3...so small, so compact, so sleek!

[Zaxxon]

I think the Bandai Playdia and the TI-99(brushed stainless steel) are the best looking.

[Alex Kidd]

I'd have to say:
The Sega Genesis.

It looks like little Fututristic Power Plant and It has a nostaligia to it of how cool it looked when I was only 12 and the only one around with one!

However I also think that toploader NES is rather snazzy... but maybe a little too abstract art-ish to be number one...

Alex Kidd

[mauigamer]

Best looking.... SuperGraphx


Worst looking.... Sega saturn

[NoahsMyBro]

I'm actually surprised at some of these responses.

I'd bet people's opinions on this vary wildly.

IMO, the 5200 is one of the best-looking systems ever.

And, fwiw, I think the Genesis is one of the ugliest. I also think the NES was pretty ugly.

[Cheese]

I Love the Intellivision 1. i think there should be more wood grain in gaming. I want a woodgrain Xbox. Time to break out the shelf paper.

Ugliest: NES. Actually every Nintendo system is pretty horrid looking. GC is their best, and it's just a freaking box. PS2 is pretty ugly too, I gon't get what the deal was with the slotted exterior.

The ugliest thing I have is the Genesis 1, with the cd2, 32x and the sega wireless controller. It's a beast. I love it.

[WiseSalesman]

I hate the way the Xbox looks. I love the way my GCN and PS2 look. Their consoles I wouldn't be ashamed to have in my living room.

[Nature Boy]

Hmmm. Of the ones I own I think the older ones tend to be the ugliest. Intellivision and Colecovision are just too boxy.

Having just gotten an O2 I will say the first thing I thought was "jeez - this thing is as big as an Xbox" (though not nearly as heavy).

The Xbox is just big - and I like the green/black colour scheme. But it's not my favourite.

As for best looking, I'd go with Dreamcast and Gamecube.

I don't hate PS2, it just doesn't do it for me. I have to agree that the PSone looks pretty slick too (but I still go with DC and GC)

[congobongo]

Out of the consoles I own, here is my rank of best to worst:

Dreamcast
Gamecube
Atari 2600 (woodgrain)
Atari 5200
SMS
Atari 7800
Atari XE
TG16
Genesis I
Genesis II
Saturn
Intellivision II
3DO FZ-10
PSX
Xbox
Jaguar
NES
N64
Colecovision
SNES
O2

Out of Computer-like consoles:
TI99/4A
C=64c
C=64
Vic 20
Atari 800XL

[kainemaxwell]

The design of the Dreamcast always appealed to me. The PS2 has that futuristic look which I like also.

[Raedon]

The Saturn is my Fav. though the ps2 is a really sharp design with those great LED's.
I also like the Sega cd piggyback. IT's like some futuristic space station.. ;)

[Arrrhalomynn]

I think the saturn looks horrible. It's just a big black box. The xbox had at least some color and shape added to it.
The dreamcast is ugly too. It looks like one of those hand dryers in a public toilet.



I like the look of the game cube. It doesn't look like a toy, but it still looks playful. It doesn't matter what color it is.
The 32X looks pretty cool too. Too bad it has to be stuck on top of an ugly megadrive/genesis.
I like the looks of the ps2 as well. It looks really cool and high-tech with the blue light.

[Arqueologia_Digital]

Best looking :D :
Game cube (platinum edition)
Master system
Atari 2600 (woodgrain)
Saturn
Game boy color
Amiga CD 32
Bandai Pippin

The ugliest machines:
Odyssey 2
Coleco vision
Coleco Gemini
Atari 5200

[Kid Fenris]

Of the systems in my collection, I've found the Genesis 2 the most appealing. Monochromatic it may be, but it has a sleek, understated, sports-car style that most consoles can't hope to evoke. It looks even cooler when you attach a second-generation Sega CD.

The ugly plastic mushroom of a 32X obscures the effect, but one can still appreciate the smooth contours of the Genesis/SegaCD union.

http://www.vidgame.net/SEGA/Sega/Genesis/gen_cd_32x.jpg

On the other hand, I don't really care for Atari 2600 or Pong decks that have a wood-paneling look, as it evokes images of ugly 1970s living rooms. I realize that some are nostalgic for that sort of thing, but I'm not among them.

My least favorite, though, is probably the Playdia, due to its use of colors that would fit a teething rattle better than a game console.

[Vroomfunkel]

I notice that no-one has voted for my favourite ...

the natty little Multimega / CDX ... what a sexy little beast that is! I just sits there begging the visitors to say "What is that?", thinking it to be some new gen piece of business that they haven't come across before. "oh, that's just a Megadrive and a Mega CD in one" . .. and watch their eyes boggle. Then you casually mention that it can work as a personal CD player too....

Plus, when you put the 32x in the top, it bears more than a passing resemblance to the Starship Enterprise - now who could resist that??

Still looks as sleek and beautiful as the day it was born! I love the way that it can sit next to a cabinet full of modern consoles and look not a bit out of place.

Ugliest... that would *have* to be the PS2 for me. What is it, some kind of breeze block that you can put cds into? Not that I don't like the machine, but it looks like crap. Actually, I think the X-Box might pip it to the post in the ugliness stakes, thinking about it. Followed closely by the Megadrive 2 & Mega CD 2 combo. Then the Saturn (currently my fave gaming system. Just not particularly pretty - although some of the Japanese ones I do like. Especially the white one. And not *just* because it looks right when you put it next to the Dreamcast . . . )

Vroomfunkel

[Phosphor Dot Fossils]

The Odyssey 2, PSone, and Atari 400 are some of my favorites.

Least favorites? I'm not sure any of the current machines trip my trigger.

[jonjandran]

Best looking "Game Console" is a awesome PC like an AlienWare tricked out with neon and a plexiglass see-through window and a sleek Platinum LCD monitor.
O.K. discuss amongst yourselves.

[Retsudo]

Best looking "Game Console" is a awesome PC like an AlienWare tricked out with neon and a plexiglass see-through window and a sleek Platinum LCD monitor.
O.K. discuss amongst yourselves.

NUFF SAID!!! :)

But when it comes to consoles...Best looking would have to go to the Neo Geo and the Japanese saturn.
Worst looking is the N64, first Snes, First Genesis, and Atari 2600

[dreamcaster]

Easily, for me, the best looking console is the Dreamcast. Followed by the PAL/JAP SNES. I hate the first U.S. SNES, it's so ugly compared our one! The second U.S. SNES was a huge improvement over the first!

The PS2 also comes up in my good books, but only in the horizontal position - I hate it standing up (as practical as it may be...)

The white JAP Saturn is also pretty good.

The GameCube, while asthetically I find it neither beautiful or hideous, it wins marks simply because its so small and practical!

The Atari 2600 Jr. is another one I like, but is spoiled by cartridges that stick out so much when inserted.

The N64 I found to be very individual in its styling, but it only looks good from the front. It looks silly from any other angle.

Game Boy Advance is quite nice also.

The aren't any consoles that look particularly ugly to me, but the Xbox definitely isn't sexy at all. Boring, angular brick. The second NES seems a bit awkward - its like all the parts don't fit together correctly!

[Anonymous]

The original genny with a model 1 sega cd is the coolest looking combo around. I have a theory that places this combo at the apex of appeal:

Anotherfluke's theory of electronic equipmnt evolution:


in order to avoid the appearance of obsolescence, a device must choose one of two paths: either put lots of buttons, switches, and sliders on the device, or put NO switches, buttons, and sliders on the device

The genny has a slider, a switch AND a button (more than many other consoles), and the sega cd has NO sliders, switches, or buttons. what more can you ask for?

[Ruudos]

Best looking:
1. SNES (PAL)
2. N64
3. Sega Master System II
4. Atari 2600 Jr.
5. Sega Mega Drive I


Worst:
Atari Jaguar (with a Jag CD attached to it, it will probably looks better)
SNES US (1st model)

[Captain Wrong]

I gotta give it up for the DC and the Saturn, espically the Japanese models. Also I like the 5200, but I was into stereo stuff back in the day and admired the Bang & Olfsun stuff Atari's designers stole their ideas from. It's a love it or hate it thing.

I also really think the Odyssey 2 looks cool. Laugh if you want, it's cool though.

Sidenote: ever notice how dated most consoles look now? I guess that's the risk you run when you try to make it look cutting edge.