Yup. Looking back, the trident is more of a "what we're they thinking" kinda thing, but back then it was just the next step that needed to be taken. To go from the SNES controllers to N64 was pure mad genius at the time.

With the rear XB and PS buttons now showing up, who knows, maybe Nin will make use of the Z trigger(s) again somehow on a Pro controller.

SNES. Mostly great hardware, and certainly the best of it's era. That sound chip....It may have been my favorite thing about the hardware. Put the Genesis to shame, which was a nice audio upgrade from the NES, and in capable hands, had pretty good audio in it's own right. It was the first time both sound effects and music were close to par with the arcade. It may sound trivial, but at the time, I was blown away. I cared more about sound at the time than your average bear to be sure. It had one main flaw: It's 3.58 Mhz processor. But that was mostly an issue for the launch window.

It's hard , because hardware are close to software/content /games. I probably chose Gamecube in term of power and design, or Snes in term of power superiority. But then again Switch is interesting due to how they can bring console quality to portable form factor without a lot of gimmick .

The Switch by a looooooooooong way. Form factor is perfect, design is fantastic, and console games on the go is a dream.

Only thing is I wish they'd fix the Joycon's fucking joysticks, it's a massive pain in the arse to fix them every few months.

The Wii I guess. It was multifunctional. You could watch videos on it. GameCube backwards compatible and the controllers.

Going on looks and interface, Wii, Switch, and DS Lite.

The Wii was the first console to not only add an interface that allows ALL previous Nintendo software to be played, but also added IR and accelerometer controls which allowed for applications not seen before.

On top of the interface advantages, the Wii remains, to this day, the prettiest console ever released.


The DS Lite looks delicious, especially the different colours. A 20 hour battery life puts it far ahead of the handhelds before and after it. It is the second console to feature a touchscreen, and the first that actually made use of it (the pre-DS Lite games barely used the feature). It is the best looking handheld ever created.

The Switch is a Wii and a handheld wrapped into one, and way more powerful with better chips. From an interface standpoint, it is the best console of all time (minus the bugs, dirt can get under the control stick and cause the sensors to trigger without user intention, drifting). The Switch is also, like the DS Lite, and Wii, one of the most attractive consoles ever made.

Speaking of the control drifting, different generations deal with it differently:

1. Baby Boomers: Buy new Joycons. ~30 minutes because it's the only reason they went out that night, and they'll go to a shop where the clerk does the shopping for them. And they'll pay with a cashier's cheque.
2. Generation X: Buy an electronics contact cleaner and swabs, and take 5-10 minutes to fix the issue.
3. Millennials: Launch a class action lawsuit against Nintendo, but none of them want to do the work or pay the bill, so it goes nowhere. The majority will spend the next 7 years incessantly whining on social media and forums with text screams of “This shouldn’t happen!” And expect that will make the problem go away.

Switch is the best, but for some stupid reason Nintendo cripples its potential by not giving us more Joycon options, which is a damn shame.

The Switch, obviously

For me it's a close race between the GBA, the Wii and the Switch.  In the end I have to give it to the GBA by a hair.  Here are the pros and cons of each.

GBA
Pros - When I think about my absolutely ideal way to play games, the GBA comes the closest. My ideal set up is 2D gaming on a CRT.  I take a GBA and I've found a grip adapter that makes it feel like a Playstation controller in the hands, but preserves the basic D-pad plus 4 button conrols which I love.  Then I plug this into a Gamecube and play GBA games on a CRT via a GBA player.  Every game I play this way feels fantastic.  (Obviously the better the game, the better the experience.)  Even if I don't use this setup though the GBA is great.  For controls, I believe less is more, so the D-Pad plus 4 buttons is what I want.  It's backwards compatible all the way back to the Gameboy.  And with a GBA player, you can play the games on the TV.  So it's very good all around.
Cons - The ideal setup takes a lot of work.  Not only that, but any improvement takes some work.  Playing on TV requires a Gamecube and GBA player.  The original GBA fits the hands well, but is not backlit.  The SP model is backlit, but doesn't fit the hands well.  So there are issues here, but I still consider it the pinnacle of 2D gaming.

Wii
Pros - The was built to be the ultimate gaming machine.  You could play Wii and Gamecube games on it.  On top of that the Virtual Console could play games from earlier generations.  The controls were made to be versatile to accomodate this.  The Wii remote could do motion and pointing (IR) controls, but it could also be turned sideways for NES games and other 2D games.  Then you could also plug in a Nunchuck or use classic controller or Gamecube controller to play all of the other games.  So the hardware was designed so that you could play whatever games you wanted using the control scheme you preferred.  There is a lot to praise about the Wii.
Cons - While it was setup to play every game the Virtual Console was heavily based on the service still being active.  In the pre-internet era, I can keep these consoles forever and still play the old games without needing service from the manufacturing company.  The is the biggest drawback of the Wii.  (And also every other Generation 7+ system.)  Even taking that into account it still plays Wii and Gamecube games with a wide choice of control options.

Switch
Pros - The ability to easily switch from home to handheld gaming is a huge plus.  What isn't mentioned as often is the 6" screen.  As much as I love the GBA I feel the screen is too small for my liking (and this goes for all other Nintendo handhelds as well.)  But once the screen gets to 6" I find I like the picture in handheld mode just as much as playing on my TV.  (I still prefer the sound from my TV though.)  Switch also has a wide variety of control options.
Cons - Joy-Con drift is a huge pain.  Also the controllers are overpriced because of HD rumble.  Those are the main cons, though.  Switch is really a fantastic design from a hardware perspective.

So, to conclude, I prefer the GBA mostly for my personal gaming tastes, but I also feel Wii and Switch are extremely good hardware designs.

SNES on top. Switch is the second best. (in general)