Consoles with Soul

Forgive me, its late in the UK and I have got to the drunk phase of the evening...

Anyway!

I have been thinking about the "soul" of a console/arcade board... What started me thinking was my modest PS1 and PS2 collections; I have a fair few games for this console and although I like them the console itself seems to have little personality of its own. Its bizarre; I just can't get into the PS2 at all.

I have less games for other consoles but they I prefer them to the PS2 for example. Obviously the Neo has Soul but the N64 is completly souless, I can't "warm" to this console at all - no matter how many games I play on it.

Conversly I warmed to the Dreamcast immediatly when I first played it only a month or two back; its got a great personality in there... even though I have a handful of games for it I prefer it to the PS2 for example.

So, what consoles have soul vs those without soul??? Bizarre and slightly ghay question I know but there you go.. For me those with soul are:

Atari 2600, Gamecube, Dreamcast, PC Engine, Neo Geo and Saturn...

Conversly the 7800, PS2, N64 and Jaguar are souless.

Does this make sense to anyone else or have I been enjoying one too many??

So you mean like soul like james brown and not soul like a ghost right?

Yeah man... Not that thats my thing...

Perhaps personality is a better way of putting it!

Billybox has no soul, that's for sure. Doesn't make it bad, its just a console as generic as it gets.

I can understand what your saying. Maybe it's just nostalgia, but it seems like as console get "cooler" looking, or sleeker, or whatever, they lose more and more personality. When you look at something like the SNES, Genesis, Neo Geo, or even the PS1, you see a game system. Look at the PS2 or Xbox, and it just looks like another piece of a/v equipment. The Gamecube isn't really like that, but I bet Nintendo goes that route with their next console.

Ill6 said:

For me those with soul are:

Atari 2600, Gamecube, Dreamcast, PC Engine, Neo Geo and Saturn...

Conversly the 7800, PS2, N64 and Jaguar are souless.

Does this make sense to anyone else or have I been enjoying one too many??

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Yeah, I agree with you except that I do really like the N64. It didn't have the volume of good games the the PS1 had, but it had quite a few games that I just love and still play to this day. Goldeneye is still the best Bond game out there (and there have been a LOT of tries to dethrone it), Ocarina of Time is at worst the second best Zelda title (many have called it the greatest game of all time), and Excitebike 64, Waverace 64, and 1080 were all (and still are) just terrific racing games.

Dreamcast- Soul of a robot from the 24th century. All its games are sleek in design and aesthetics and have their own bizarre and/or quirky traits.

Gamecube- Soul of a child. All of it's great games are the purest examples of excellent game design in every aspect. They are also the most purely fun and imaginative.

Xbox- Soulless. Especially since mine had its guts ripped out and swapped with non-factory standard components. I use this machine to steal.

PS2- Soul of a greedy man. All of its blockbuster titles are shiny, glossed over, big-budget pieces of shit that are churned out on a yearly basis. The occasional gem in it's lineup (R-Type Final, Rez, Contra:SS) are because the businessman got some bad advice.

Genesis- Soul of a robot from the 23rd century. Just slightly less polished and sterile than the games for the Dreamcast, the bulk of its library are gritty and urban in their appeal, and as such exist in a realm before the purfication of the human race in the 24th century (era of the Dreamcast).

Buro Destruct said:

Dreamcast- Soul of a robot from the 24th century. All its games are sleek in design and aesthetics and have their own bizarre and/or quirky traits.

Gamecube- Soul of a child. All of it's great games are the purest examples of excellent game design in every aspect. They are also the most purely fun and imaginative.

Xbox- Soulless. Especially since mine had its guts ripped out and swapped with non-factory standard components. I use this machine to steal.

PS2- Soul of a greedy man. All of its blockbuster titles are shiny, glossed over, big-budget pieces of shit that are churned out on a yearly basis. The occasional gem in it's lineup (R-Type Final, Rez, Contra:SS) are because the businessman got some bad advice.

Genesis- Soul of a robot from the 23rd century. Just slightly less polished and sterile than the games for the Dreamcast, the bulk of its library are gritty and urban in their appeal, and as such exist in a realm before the purfication of the human race in the 24th century (era of the Dreamcast).

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Flawless description.

galfordo said:

Yeah, I agree with you except that I do really like the N64. It didn't have the volume of good games the the PS1 had, but it had quite a few games that I just love and still play to this day. Goldeneye is still the best Bond game out there (and there have been a LOT of tries to dethrone it), Ocarina of Time is at worst the second best Zelda title (many have called it the greatest game of all time), and Excitebike 64, Waverace 64, and 1080 were all (and still are) just terrific racing games.

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The day that Ocarina of Time is the best Zelda game is the day I shoot myself with a taser.

Its about 5th or 6th on my list, you know under all the good zelda games.

genjiglove said:

Maybe it's just nostalgia, .

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It is
at least for me old fucker

so which one?
as every european of my age I'd say C64...yeah I know It's not a console, but It's what I've spent more time with

then Pong....I was kinda 4-5 years old and used to play with my older cousins
you can't imagine the meaning of that brownie box, hooked up on a TV and producing something you just didn't believe

then I'd say Intellivision, the real first console I ever owned
and one of few presents I ever received from my father

finally NES, MD, SNES, Neo.....

here we go again with more of these "nostalgia" threads.

The day that Ocarina of Time is the best Zelda game is the day I shoot myself with a taser.

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ocarina of time isn't just the best zelda game, it's the best game ever.

kaos said:

It is
at least for me old fucker

so which one?
as every european of my age I'd say C64...yeah I know It's not a console, but It's what I've spent more time with

then Pong....I was kinda 4-5 years old and used to play with my older cousins
you can't imagine the meaning of that brownie box, hooked up on a TV and producing something you just didn't believe

then I'd say Intellivision, the real first console I ever owned
and one of few presents I ever received from my father

finally NES, MD, SNES, Neo.....

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Dude, my cousins had a C64. That thing was awesome for its day.

And the Intellivision was probably my first game console. It had some of the most enjoyable sports games I've ever played, and Las Vegas Poker & Blackjack. And of course, I can't forget The Electric Company Word Fun or the D&D game.

Buro Destruct said:

Dreamcast- Soul of a robot from the 24th century. All its games are sleek in design and aesthetics and have their own bizarre and/or quirky traits.

Gamecube- Soul of a child. All of it's great games are the purest examples of excellent game design in every aspect. They are also the most purely fun and imaginative.

Xbox- Soulless. Especially since mine had its guts ripped out and swapped with non-factory standard components. I use this machine to steal.

PS2- Soul of a greedy man. All of its blockbuster titles are shiny, glossed over, big-budget pieces of shit that are churned out on a yearly basis. The occasional gem in it's lineup (R-Type Final, Rez, Contra:SS) are because the businessman got some bad advice.

Genesis- Soul of a robot from the 23rd century. Just slightly less polished and sterile than the games for the Dreamcast, the bulk of its library are gritty and urban in their appeal, and as such exist in a realm before the purfication of the human race in the 24th century (era of the Dreamcast).

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but what about golden-boy-in-it's-day SNES, grumpy-old-man NES, or old-but-still-kicking grandpa 2600?

Nesagwa said:

Its about 5th or 6th on my list, you know under all the good zelda games.

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No way dude.

NeoTheranthrope said:

but what about golden-boy-in-it's-day SNES, grumpy-old-man NES, or old-but-still-kicking grandpa 2600?

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SNES- Soul of a schizophrenic. Not only do some of the biggest and most classic games in existence call this console home, but so does the largest body of cash-in, tie-in, cookie-cutter, "me too" type games. I've never seen a system library more unbalanced.

NES- Soul of a pioneer. Completely revolutionized the world of gaming as everyone knows it. Some of today's top games owe their honors to the new paths in gaming forged on this system. Unfortunately, like any soul from a distant era long gone, its stories (games) are long-winded, and upon reflection, really boring and shitty.

Atari 2600- Who cares.

Those with the Funk:

Neo Geo: Hard Ass beauty

Mega Drive: Balls to ya!

PC Engine: Modest goodness

Super Famicom: Smooth Crescendo

PS2: Dark Revelations


Those without the Funk:

XBOX: The social shape-shifter

Jaguar: Yelp

N64: No go Boss

3DO: Made in the USA

Nash said:

ocarina of time isn't just the best zelda game, it's the best game ever.

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Nah, Best game ever=ICO. Too bad this simply beautiful and pure game has its home on one of the most soulless systems out there. ICO was just one of the greatest gaming experiences i've ever had.

xbox can never have soul. anything sony can never have soul.

saturn has soul shooting out of its ass. snes has soul in its fucking brains coming into its eyes. genesis/cd has soul everywhere you can think of. its hard to me to think a next gen 3d console to have soul, but dreamcast is very good. it is wannabe soul, too bad its a white boy.

Wow, this thread has some truly interesting shit goin' on.
Here's my take:

NES/Famicom: The seed of everything. Yeah, my first console was an Atari 2600, but much like most people's first fuck was a forgettable experience, the NES was like the first really good shag with a cute girl who howled like a wounded coyote 'cause you fucked her right. Something awakened, and you knew it just wouldn't be the same.

SuperNES/Sega Genesis: The Larry Bird/Magic Johnson rivalry of consoles. One cannot exist without the other. They pushed each other to greater heights, while using vastly different methods. One was very pretty, flashy, and got lots of attention, while the other was a dirty workhorse of an underdog that forced you to respect it.

Neo*Geo: The Tycho Magnetic Anomaly of consoles. Large, black, and giving you a glimpse into a beautiful alien asthetic that still continues to amaze.

Dreamcast: The Luke Skywalker of consoles. Last of the Jedi (or in this case, the last true enthusiast console). Also like Luke, must pay for the sins of it's father (or parent company's hardware gaffes like the Sega CD and Saturn).

XBox: This is tough. Do you allow the monopolistic fervor of it's parent company to color your perception of this thing? Or do you celebrate it because it represents the point of unity between long-separated PC and console gamers via integrated philosophy? Or do you hack the damned thing and fill it chock full of ROMZ? I guess just like real life, your image of the XBox is whatever you make of it.
Perhaps the most aptly named console.

PS2: Turd. Mainstream dumping ground. The epitome of all that is wrong with modern gaming.

Ill6 said:

the N64 is completly souless, I can't "warm" to this console at all - no matter how many games I play on it.

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You are so wrong. While PS was crowned the new king of the hill, the N64 sat in the corner, occasionally releasing games that shaped the gaming world. Mario 64 (pioneered 3D), Goldeneye (pioneered console-FPS), Zelda: Ocarina of Time (Pioneered the rest!).

Comparisons to Neo can also be made. They both were, by far the most powerful console around, but the prohibitive price of their cartridge medium left them out of the big leagues.

From which we come to the last point; No console, that uses cartridges, can never be soulless. And the N64 was the last.

Nash said:

here we go again with more of these "nostalgia" threads.

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Some great replies people!

I don't think that this is a nostalgia thread, I only recently bought a Dreamcast but immediatly warmed to it.... Nostalgia is a factor and its hard to be objective because of it but really there is still personality to a machine (or not as the case may be).

What about handhelds and home computers. For me the Spectrum (UK thing) always had more personality than a C64 - although a C64 had better games. The Amstrad was horrid and I never got the MSX thing, couldn't figure it out?

I think the Xbox wants to have a personality but misses somewhere along the way.

FeelGood said:

its hard to me to think a next gen 3d console to have soul, but dreamcast is very good. it is wannabe soul, too bad its a white boy.

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That last line was so random and out-of-nowhere....beautiful. You make me feel good, feelgood.

Ill6 said:

Nostalgia is a factor and its hard to be objective because of it but really there is still personality to a machine (or not as the case may be)..

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...and that's what case mods are for. BADA-BING!

I'll be here all night. Try the fish.

I think everything prior to the 32-bit era had some semblence of soul (the Jaguar has a whole community of people who make games for it for instance), but once the 32-bit era comes into play only the Saturn, DC, N64, and Gamecube showcase any kind of soul. Of course, the Saturn has more soul than all of them combined...

Baseley09 said:

Billybox has no soul, that's for sure. Doesn't make it bad, its just a console as generic as it gets.

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but it emulates soul which is good enough for me