What do you guys think?

Debut of Dreamcast in 1999.

I think this will turn into a Dreamcast appreciation thread...

Joe - proud DC owner for 1 week now

Virtual Boy.

Just because the system caused painful headaches and eye trauma for 7 year old kids doesn't mean they should have taken it off the market.

Mario Tennis was great, along with Teleroboxer, Warioland, and that pinball game. Plus a little duct tape allowed me to strap it to my head.

3DO. Tried to do too much at the time and was way too expensive, but it did start the 32bit CD-Rom age. I liked the idea of a game system and movie player in one, but video CD was not a great format for movies. It was also the era when game makers thought FMV was the future of gaming and that also hurt the 3DO. Sony learned from the 3DO mistakes and did a better job with their system.

Dreamcast certainly, considering most people were still satisfied with the power of their n64s and psxs.

Also, NECs Turbo Duo, as one of the first (if not the first) CD based gaming systems.

Chris

Game: Myst for PC - Stunning Graphics
System: Neo Geo - But who could afford it then?

I would have to say Half-Life was most ahead of it's time. For a system I think XBOX may be since it is very powerful, and comes with a hard drive already in it.

3D0 or the Neo Geo cartridge system. Both super expensive, and ahead of their time in terms of graphics (in the NG's case that would be boat loads of RAM).

The price kept it out of reach of pretty much everyone...including myself.

As for the game: Crystalis on the NES
This game was cool, it had sweet playability, graphics, story, and an awesome soundtrack for a NES game, even rivals some games today. Incidentally it was also made by SNK. They changed the music in the GBC version so that one doesn't count.

I thought Doom was ahead of its time. A great looking 3d shooter years before a 3d card was available.

I totally agree with the dreamcast. Built in modem, available broadband adapter, online play. I'd also like to point out that the Sega CD had a "hard drive" of sorts. It had built in memory for save games and you only needed a memory card if A)you filled up that space or B) you wanted to take save games to a friend's place.
Looks like Sega is always ahead of the times, too bad both systems didn't do better.

3DO

TurboDuo.....what a classic system, awesome games, great music, cutting edge technology. I loved my Duo to death and would give almost anything to get one again!

Ian

M.U.L.E.

I agree with Neo Geo. I remember drooling over that system in my day....

However, I think that the game that was ahead of its time was the original Zelda on the NES. The complexity and gameplay of which even today I believe some developers are building upon....

Just my $.02

"Ahead of it's time"

Great question. I don't think the Dreamcast or XBox qualify in that category. They were both incremental advances in technology. (DC--beef up a Saturn, and condense to one main processor; XBox--adapt *current* PC technology into a game-oriented console.)

I think 3DO is a definite candidate--it led the move to the "interactive video" CD-based console with impressive video. (Although I was an early jaguar fan/owner, it was a bit *too* ahead of *it's* time--no one could quite program for it! The 3-D polygonal freedom of Cybermorph was unprecedented at the time, though.)

I'd also lean to the TurboGrafx w/CD. (The CD attachment for the base console came out a while before the Duo combo unit.) CD-ROM based consoles just didn't exist before that, and they're de rigeur these days (until DVD discs take over, at least). BTW, I still have an NIB sealed Turbo Duo with all the pack-ins (Gates of Thunder, Splatterhouse, etc. Just in cse my original Duo ever bites the dust!

I also loved the Virtual Boy, being a 3D junkie, but dunno if it was ahead of its time.

All things considered, I'll cast my vote for the Turbo Express. Now *this* was a handheld! Blew away the processing power of the GameBoy and Game Gear, being the equivalent of a TurboGrafx console. It played the same HuCards (a slick cartridge format!) as the TG16, another great concept. And the screen was *way* ahead of its time! Solid active-matrix, higher res thn any handheld (I forget the exact numbers) and a huge color palette. This screen was beautiful in any lighting condition. And the tv tuner attachment was actually worthwhile, giving a picture that rivaled the best mini tvs of the day (or even today).

Yup, the Express IMO was definitely way ahead of its time. As much as any other console I canthinkof...

I have to say Playstation.... I never owned a PS1 ... but if i remember correctly it came out in what, '94, '95... and lasted all the way up through 2000, games are still coming out on that platform....

I just think the way it performed throughout its lifespan says somethign for it.

Neo Geo

Wave Race 64. The GCN version may have better textures, but the water feels just as real, which is more than can be said for other water based games. No other aqua racer -- home or arcade -- has matched it to this day.

Hanson

I would say Dreamcast. I have no regrets picking one up on 9/9/99 for 199.99.

does "ahead of it's time" correlate directly to "unsuccessful"? if so, a strong case could be made for the neo geo.

if not, the NES seems like a no brainer...followed closely by the PS1. they both completely redefined the rules for console gaming. if everybody else follows what you do...that makes you ahead of your time...right?

Two over look games would be:

Starfox for the SNES! That game was amazing for it's time. It gave you a beginners look to what is next in gaming.

also

Donkey Kong Country for the SNES. This game was one of the first with rendered graphics.

"Ahead of its time" implies that the item in question would have been successfu / had more of an impact if it had been come about at a later date. I think the Neo Geo was just "gut-retchingly expensive". If the Virtual Boy had come out a couple of years later and displayed more colors than just "migrane red", it might have been a hit.

I would say 3DO. I had one these (actually still do, somewhere in a box) and some of the games were great. Road Rash, need for speed etc, that tank/helicopter/jeep capture the flag game was addicting as hell for 2 player games. Dolby surround sound, svideo output.
Dave

Sega Dreamcast