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Discussion Most underrated Nintendo system

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Chain Chomp
Of all Nintendo's systems to date, which do you feel most deserves more praise and appreciation than it gets, and crucially, what about it in your opinion makes it deserving of more?

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I think pretty much all of Nintendo's consoles and handhelds are loved (hell, we had a thread the other week where people were complaining that people liked the Wii U too much). But no one likes the Virtual Boy. Fair enough, I suppose. Never used one, but staring into a void of red and black doesn't seem appealing. But I think that the Virtual Boy has an interesting, if painfully small, library of games that would be nice to see again like Virtual Boy Wario Land or Galactic Pinball or Jack Bros. The Nintendo 3DS would have been the perfect time, but Nintendo probably figured no one would want to pay for any Virtual Boy titles on the Virtual Console. But as a little NSO bonus? Who knows? I know I'd download that app of the maybe 10 games they'd be willing to dump on there.

Oh, and I guess for the console itself... um... I dunno, it's dumb, but I kinda like the stilts. Makes it look goofy in a good way.

 
Don't know if it's appropriate, but I think that the GameCube, Game Boy Advance, and Wii have large libraries full of "hidden gems". In that respect they are kinda overlooked.
 
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Among all consumers I guess the 64 and the Gamecube, but in the Nintendo fanbase those generally are looked upon fairly highly.

I don't have it in me to include the Wii. It's obviously more than the wagglefest hypercasual box it may be perceived as, but I was so not into what Nintendo was doing overall during that system's tenure that the good games (of which many exist) don't personally outweigh the mixed reputation that thing has.
 
Growing up, I only bought handhelds for select Nintendo first party titles. Generally, they aren’t underrated. For me, they are.

Revisiting the Game Boy Advance catalog 20 years later, I had no idea there were so many bangers on this thing.

Special shout-out to Game Boy Color as well. I never had one (jumping from Pocket to Advance) so I was also surprised by how many games I missed.
 
It’s a toss up between GameCube and Wii U.

GC did not sell well at all, but I’ll be damned if that little thing didn’t have some horsepower tucked away inside. It also brought us great games like Wind Waker, Twilight Princess, Metroid Prime 1&2, Pikmin, Luigi’s Mansion, Super Smash Bros Melee, Resident Evil 4, REmake, Rogue Squadron II, etc…

Same with Wii U. Bad sales, but memorable software. Super Mario Maker, Super Mario 3D World, Pikmin 3, Mario Kart 8, DKC Tropical Freeze, BotW, WWHD, TPHD, etc... Also BC with Wii.
 
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The Game Boy Advance feels like it should get more credit. Perhaps it's how quickly it was overshadowed by the DS. Perhaps it's because this is the only Nintendo console (besides Virtual Boy) to never get a new Super Mario game, though if you want platformers its lineup far outclasses any other handheld. It's got a deep and colorful library that stands alongside the 16-bit consoles, but I think this gets overshadowed by how the majority of its most popular games are ports and remakes.
 
Wii U. You can buy and play games from the NES, SNES, N64, GBA, and NDS on virtual console along with Wii games natively. It also had a great line up of exclusives before the switch and still has some great ones like Xenoblade X and the HD Zelda remasters. Also a great multiplayer console due to asymmetrical multiplayer.
 
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Kneejerk answer for me is GameCube, but as i think on it a little more I'd give the edge to N64. Reason being is bc N64 library, while dwarfed by the PS1 at the time, BY FAR aged the best and that deserves considerable kudos given that 1st generation of 3D gaming generally aged terribly. The games mentioned most from that era are N64 exclusives.
 
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I'd also say N64. The sentiment for the past few years on the internet seems to be "N64 games have all aged badly" and I kinda went along with it. Then last year I got the NSO Expansion Pak and decided to play through a bunch of old titles. Most of them were still fun as heck and playable! I think the only one that really made me feel like "kid me didn't notice all these issues" was Mario Kart 64.
 
I've seen a lot of hate here for the 3DS lately, which is wild. So many great games from Nintend and 3rd parties! Some of y'all would not be satisfied with all the riches and wonders kf heaven.
 
*deep breath*
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The Wii U had my favorite library since the Dreamcast (until the Switch hit its stride) and my favorite and most comfortable controller ever (one thing the Switch has yet to match). Every time a great game came out for it I saw a ton of "okay but I'm not gonna buy a WiiU for ONE game" takes, meanwhile I have a dozen games for it (which is more games than I had owned for any system ever until again, the Switch) which I'm very happy to have bought the system for. In addition to however many digital-only games I have on it, the number of which I don't know because all I did was count my WiiU boxes.

I loved that thing. I still love that thing. I was replaying Xenoblade X on it just a couple years ago. It deserved a much better rep than it got.
 
I think GameCube was the most underrated at its time, but nowadays? Probably Game Boy/Game Boy Color. People dismiss the Game Boy library these days, saying the games haven't aged well. I don't think that's true. There are several games I consider to be all-time classics, and the fact that most of them are short makes them easy to revisit without committing dozens of hours.
 
GBA for me, didn't sell as well as its older and younger siblings, had a short life. Tones of bangers. And unlike GC/64, doesn't have the massive (justified) nostalgia power. GB/DS/Wii sold too well to think they are underrated. In a few years the 3ds may feel like its in a similar position to the GBA though. The 3ds was pretty rad though.
 
To me, the answer is the Gameboy Color.

The "mere stopgap" between the more popular base Gameboy, and its more powerful successor, the GBC lived its life having very few noteworthy exclusives.

Fortunately, a number of those exclusives are among my all time faves, such as the Zelda Oracles and Wario Land 3.
 
I would say wii. I know it was popular mainstream, but not accepted that much by hardcore games while it contains even more hardcore titles then most other nintendo systems from the 3d area. Even games like pikmin or re4 or metroid that make the wiimote usefull
 
I generally always take a chance to profess reverence to the Wii U. I think the library is tremendous and varied and when it came out, offscreen play was absolute fire.

But in the perspective of enthusiast fanbase appreciation, it feels like the Wii U has had a bit of public eye renaissance lately. (not as big as the GameCube but still)

So I’ll just throw a mention that I feel like the Wii is somewhat underrated in enthusiast fanbase circles. There’s tons and tons of talk about how it fell off the cliff, it was too mainstream, it’s riddled with shovelware, etc.

I guess these factors, along with disappointments like Smash Bros. Brawl and Animal Crossing: City Folk caused the reputation to sort of deteriorate over time.

But still. The console saw two Galaxy games, the Prime trilogy package, Skyward Sword, the first Xenoblade Chronicles, Wii versions of Okami and RE4 as well as gems like MadWorld, Zack & Wiki and Pandora’s Tower. And even though it became gimmicky over time, the first time I held the Wiimote would be a time to fondly remember.
 
I would say GameCube, Game Boy Advance. Though for me both these are consoles/handhelds I enjoyed my time with dearly. But I feel that the GameCube now is pretty loved. The Gameboy family is also getting more love thanks to NSO.

Wii U was also great but as most of its library is now on the Nintendo Switch I feel that it would only be for a few games you would be like: damn the Wii U aint that bad.
 
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It's definitely not the WiiU, which somehow is fast becoming the most overrated Nintendo system. People mention some good games that came out for the system but neglect to mention that those were basically ALL of the games that came out for it...

I would say it's either the Gamecube or the GBA. The GC not only had a slate of amazing first party games, but also saw the return of good third party support one a Nintendo home console (and arguably not seen again till the Switch came out).

The GBA just doesn't get talked about nearly as much, it was a pretty "quiet" handheld, maybe also due to the fact that the GBAs life got cut short by the launch of the DS (remember when Nintendo kept insisting they would try and support three systems in parallel?).
 
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The Color TV-Game.

It's GBA. Or N64, with the way it's talked about nowadays. Or Wii, with how people view it through the lens of being "too casual" or whatever when there was tons of games that got buried/ignored. It definitely isn't GC, which has a lot of fans online nowadays. GBA is my choice though due to how little it's discussed.
 
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The original grayscale Game Boy.

It seldom gets ignored due to limited first party presence on the platform but it IS a legendary system with a legendary library. It got "miracle ports" long before Switch (has anyone played Killer Instinct on Game Boy?) and it did not end up as a port machine, the amount of new games it got still hasn't been matched by any handheld.
 
9-Volt said:
The original grayscale Game Boy.

It seldom gets ignored due to limited first party presence on the platform but it IS a legendary system with a legendary library. It got "miracle ports" long before Switch (has anyone played Killer Instinct on Game Boy?) and it did not end up as a port machine, the amount of new games it got still hasn't been matched by any handheld.
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Yeah good point. I loved my GB, played so many great games on it. Endless licensed rubbish on it too but it’s not like the NES was any different.
 
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It’s still the GameCube imo. And it’s not because TTYD is good or whatever.

I still think it’s Nintendo at their most risky… and not risky in a big, bold, BotW kinda way, just risky in a really quirky way if that makes sense.

Like if you asked someone during the N64 era to predict what would come next for certain series, no one would say Mario would be trapped on an island paradise cleaning up goo with a water gun after being framed by an imposter of himself that turned out to be bowser’s son. No one would say Luigi would get a resident evil-like spin-off where he sucks up ghosts with a vacuum cleaner. No one would say Link would be a cel-shaded cat-eye cartoon character who gets a boat and Zelda is a pirate. No one would think Metroid would pump out 2 god-tier FPS’. No one would predict Pikmin.

It’s biggest weakness was the rushed game mindset that ended up hurting sunshine and Wind Waker a lot, but overall the system’s games were just really quirky and leave me thinking “how the fuck is this a concept that someone even came up with in the first place, everyone agreed on, pitched and got greenlit” more than any other Nintendo system. It was like the whole company was just on drugs during that era lol.

They would just put their characters in really bizarre and random scenarios and genre shifts, I don’t think it’s something we’d see from modern Nintendo - theyre still very ambitious and novel with their franchises, but in a way that feels more in line with the expected tone and tropes of their respective IP. Odyssey for example - using the cap/capture is a massive gameplay shift, but a much more immediately “Mario-esque” idea than FLUDD. Odyssey’s zany worlds feel like they have a self-awareness that they’re zany in context of Mario and that they’re a “twist” on typical Mario biomes, and the story/progression is a typical Mario adventure. Sunshine and all of its weirdness on the other hand is played completely straight.

So yeah, it’ll always be an era I’ll appreciate for that reason. I don’t think that modern Nintendo needs to be more like they were during the GameCube era, but the further away we get from it, the more unique it becomes. Just feel like it was a certain type of creativity from Nintendo that we’ll never see again, and I’ll always have a soft spot for it.
 
It’s the 3DS. People always ragged on it because of the sucky hardware compared to its contemporaries, and rarely gets praised for its games even not considering the DS backwards compatibility. It eventually managed to sell very respectably but that doesn’t mean people don’t look down on it a lot.
But it’s hardware revisions were great, it had a lot of customization and options, tons of amazing exclusives, and was supported very well for years.
 
Chaos Theory said:
The Wii and it isn't even close.
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Actually this. Continually.

Listen to generational narrative and people will talk of a grand fightback of the PS3 to become the winner within that gen. Where in reality, the battle had been done and dusted with the 360's multiplatform title shut out but BOTH living in the shadow of the Wii absolutely romping it all over them.
 
I want to say the WiiU which I would have said if all the games were not given to the
switch. I don’t know how to explain it but , I feel like the switch is the wii u don’t right. So that won’t get my vote, so I would definitely say the GameCube, my god that was such an underrated console but it was so fun too!
 
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It's the Gamecube.

It had Melee, Double Dash, Super Monkey Ball and TimeSplitters for multiplayer.

Metorid Prime 1,2, Wind Waker, Paper Mario TYD, Pikmin 1,2, Eternal Darkness, Rouge Squadron 2,3 as single player exclusives

It had the last Wave Race and the last F-zero.

Capcom's bonanza with Re Rebirth, Re Zero, Re4, Viewtiful Joe 1,2.

Add to that, superb hardware, ergonomic (albeit weird) controller, value for money.

It had DK bongoes and Jungle Beat !

Still one of the GOAT systems to me. Yet no one cared about it at the time.
 
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I'm always going to stan for the GameCube, that machine was brilliant and so underrated at its time.

That said, I'm also going to speak out in favour of the Wii, though I'd argue it's "underratedness" mainly is about perception and not the system itself - the system sold fine, but despite all the focus on gimmickry and the "Blue Ocean", it was a pretty solid system for people who are more into video games overall.

And finally, I'm going to agree with the people who have brought up the GameBoy and the N64 here... everyone who says these games have aged poorly is just flat-out wrong and it's more of a symptom of the obsesssion with new and shiny things in the video game/tech biz than anything to do with the games themselves.
 
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GameCube or GBA. I loved the GBA and it had a surprisingly short lifespan, but looking back it has some phenomenal exclusives and tons of great ports/remakes.
 
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Game Cube and it's not even funny.

The console had 6 out of 10 of the best games of that gen

Metroid Prime
Resident Evil 4
Metroid Prime 2
Zelda Twilight Princess
Super Smash Bros Melee
Star Wars Rogue Squadron 2

and several great runner ups

Zelda Wind Waker
Mario Sunshine
Mario Strikers
TimeSplitters
Viewetful Joe
Capcom Vs. SNK
Splinter Cell
Metal Gear Twin Snakes
Tales of Symphonia
Skies of Arcadia
Animal Crossing
Mario Kart Double Dash
Luigi's Mansion
 
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Can I say none? I think all Nintendo systems are rated appropriately and it's reflected in their sales and lasting legacy. These discussions tend to overemphasize the good qualities of those consoles (often because people were much younger when they had them) while downplaying issues with their hardware, software and services.

Now SEGA on the other hand...
 
OctoSplattack said:


I think pretty much all of Nintendo's consoles and handhelds are loved (hell, we had a thread the other week where people were complaining that people liked the Wii U too much). But no one likes the Virtual Boy. Fair enough, I suppose. Never used one, but staring into a void of red and black doesn't seem appealing. But I think that the Virtual Boy has an interesting, if painfully small, library of games that would be nice to see again like Virtual Boy Wario Land or Galactic Pinball or Jack Bros. The Nintendo 3DS would have been the perfect time, but Nintendo probably figured no one would want to pay for any Virtual Boy titles on the Virtual Console. But as a little NSO bonus? Who knows? I know I'd download that app of the maybe 10 games they'd be willing to dump on there.

Oh, and I guess for the console itself... um... I dunno, it's dumb, but I kinda like the stilts. Makes it look goofy in a good way.

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When I was a kid, we rented the whole Virtual Boy console and some games from Blockbuster and let me tell you, people are not exaggerating when they say the eye strain was painful after a few minutes.
 
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All of Nintendo's machines fulfill at least one of the two criteria I think are fundamental to rate them: catalog quality and commercial success. Even the Wii U meets the former, maybe just barely, so for that reason alone perhaps we can count it as underrated.

All of them meet the requirements, with the glaring exception of the Virtual Boy, of course.
 
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It's hard to say because almost every console they've ever released has the die hard fans who stan for it on the regular.

So I wouldn't say it's underrated per say because of what a smashing success it was but the overall library of the Gameboy outside of pokemon probably isn't as propped up by the gaming community at large as it should be. There's a ton of great stuff there that has fallen to the wayside in regards to discussion on Nintendo content than probably any other system they've released. Like a lot of these gameboy games only videos you might find on Youtube talking about them are like Jeremy Parish and a 14 year old video of Mark from Classic Game Room making Truxton jokes while playing it.
 
It's not the Gamecube. That system has had at least a decade of praise, focusing on the few amazing games it had and not how barren the rest of the library was.

The N64 is the most underappreciated. This system had the burden of establishing how 3D gaming would work and set the standard for the industry that exists today. It was a time of unprecedented creativity and discovery and every game was in uncharted territory for a time. You had to be there. The jump from SNES to N64 will never be replicated again and I feel lucky that I was able to experience it.

The disrespect that OOT gets post BOTW/TOTK is the most annoying part for me, there was no other game on the planet like Ocarina of Time. It was an alien life form in 1998 and for a long time after.
 
FrostyLemon said:
It's not the Gamecube. That system has had at least a decade of praise, focusing on the few amazing games it had and not how barren the rest of the library was.

The N64 is the most underappreciated. This system had the burden of establishing how 3D gaming would work and set the standard for the industry that exists today. It was a time of unprecedented creativity and discovery and every game was in uncharted territory for a time. You had to be there. The jump from SNES to N64 will never be replicated again and I feel lucky that I was able to experience it.

The disrespect that OOT gets post BOTW/TOTK is the most annoying part for me, there was no other game on the planet like Ocarina of Time. It was an alien life form in 1998 and for a long time after.
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To this i want to add its controller. The N64 controller is a laughting stock left and right, but it's probably one of the most risky and experimental, while at the same time, well thought controllers of its time.

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Designed for Mario 64, but still took in account 2D games and allowed to take all inputs as primary, it even accidentally mimics WASD+mouse with the left position, wich makes it perfect for FPS and explains why they were so prominent in the console!

It's the best 3D controller before a standard was set, and in all honesty i think it's still unmatched in some aspects of its design.
 
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Dardan Sandiego said:
Can I say none? I think all Nintendo systems are rated appropriately and it's reflected in their sales and lasting legacy. These discussions tend to overemphasize the good qualities of those consoles (often because people were much younger when they had them) while downplaying issues with their hardware, software and services.

Now SEGA on the other hand...
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Yeah Sega is completly underrated especially the Saturn, considering that it was one of the reason of 2D survival on console
 
I'd say the Game Boy or the Game Boy Advance. Everyone always goes to bat for consoles, but Nintendo's been cooking on portables since the good ol days, they're just always perceived as lesser than-also-rans. Probably doesn't help that much of their portable libraries has been third parties and series that aren't quite the big guns that home consoles tend to have
 
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Gamecube and N64 are not that underrated. N64 had amazing 1st party games, support from RARE, and a decent amount of third party support before it dropped off on GC.

I will say GC is one of the most underrated Nintendo consoles, but not the most. It has a lot of quality 1st party games and a decent amount of 3rd party games.

I say Wii U because while it's the least sold Nintendo console and the most polarizing, it has a good 1at party library and good 3rd party support (in the beginning at least).

Smash 4, Mario Kart 8 and the insanely cheap $11 DLC pack, Nintendo Land, Pokken Tournament, Pikmin 3, Tropical Freeze, Super Mario 3D land, Xenoblade X, Botw, WWHD, TP HD, Captain Toad's Treasure to name most.

Bayonetta, Rayman Legends, Dues Ex, Two cod games, Zombie U, Assassins Creed games, Batman to name a few.

Also it was backwards compatible for Wii games and was the last console to have purchasable VC games. Miiverse was amazing, and it was awesome not having friend codes needed.

It might be the worst 3D Nintendo console, but it's the most underrated because it does have quality games, despite barely anyone (relatively) owning it. Even if it's less than GC in amount for 1at party. I had a really good time with it. Especially Cod games, which was the last console we had those fsper games games, and at near 60fps (BO at least) and with voice chat supported.
 
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