I can think of plenty of systems that got even more hype than this.
Nintendo 64: It was a long delayed system that promised a lot of things. This was back when 3D Mario games could sell consoles in the millions and when Wave Race 64 provided the most impressive water physics ever seen in a videogame at the time.
Dreamcast: After the blunder that was Sega Saturn, the public was fascinated because they wondered if Sega really could make a comeback. Also, the promise of online play on a console was a huge deal back then.
PlayStation 2: This was the successor to the most popular game console of all time (at the time) and Sony was promoting the PS2 as the mother of all game consoles. PS2's hype alone overshadowed the entire lifespan of the Dreamcast.
Wii: Like Sega and it's Dreamcast, the public was waiting to see if Nintendo could make a comeback of any kind. In 2004, Satoru Iwata declared that their next console would bring on a revolution. At E3 2005, Iwata showed off the console itself and how tiny it would be. He also said that Nintendo was embarking on a "blue ocean strategy", which made everyone wonder what Nintendo's next console would be all about. At TGS 2005, the Wii remote and Nunchuk were revealed as well as a teaser trailer. It was one of the oddest looking game devices ever. Before E3 2006, the Wii name was revealed At E3 2006, no other console could stand up to the Wii hype. There were new types of games with new forms of gameplay. Zelda was going to be a lunch title. A new Mario and Metroid game was there. It was one of Nintendo's finest E3's ever. Before many doubted the console, but at the same time wondered so much about it.
The PS4 hype is different. It's less about what consumers are hoping for and more about what hope it won't be. They don't want another PS3. The fact that PS4 might be a $400 is part of the reason it's getting a lot of attention.
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