The NES. Possibly the most important console in history. Without it, it's entirely possible that console gaming as we know it may have never rebounded from the Crash of '83. It revitalized a dead market and established video games as more than just a passing fad. Also, there's everything it did to move gaming forward. It proved that video games could be more than just simple arcade experiences focused on high scores. It helped mainstream the idea that video games could be their own adventures with definite endings and at least a token narrative (usually summarized in the manual, though Ninja Gaiden pioneered the cutscene, and early JRPGs like Dragon Quest and Final Fantasy had in-game stories told through character & NPC dialog). Genres such as the scrolling platfomer were popularized on the NES. The NES gamepad also standardized the D-pad as an input mechanism, to the point where it's been standard issue on pretty much every gamepad since.
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In accordance to the VGC forum rules, §8.5, I hereby exercise my right to demand to be left alone regarding the subject of the effects of the pandemic on video game sales (i.e., "COVID bump").
