By using this site, you agree to our Privacy Policy and our Terms of Use. Close
SvennoJ on 12 July 2025
Edit Thread
archbrix said:
SvennoJ said:

Also why is the NES on top. In the end it's just a remodel of the Famicon with added DRM chip, released 3 years later.



Famicon was more ground breaking with a Disk add-on, which ultimately failed due to poor quality of the disk reader.

The Gameboy was indeed a lot more ground breaking at the time as the alternative was mostly game&watch or MB Microvision (which only had 16x16 resolution)

The NES actually released just two years after the Famicom and the reason it's (currently) on top is because games like Super Mario Bros and Zelda created a paradigm shift in the industry away from the standard home/arcade gaming model of just beating the highest score - something that the Famicom's library was largely limited to pre-NES.  Obviously the Famicom certainly profited from this type of software as well but many attribute the release of the NES in America to a "renaissance" in home gaming.

Keep in mind that the entire concept of a home games machine originated in the US, with Atari being the first to create a substantial breakout hit, so it follows that it was here that the home video game crash of '83 had such an impact.  To go from the concept essentially being "dead" with cartridges piling up in bargain bins to everybody wanting an NES was just staggering to see.  We went from garbage like E.T. and Mystique's titles (look 'em up, young'uns) being prevalent as the state of home gaming to a library which consisted of some truly stellar software with several millions sellers, sustainable mascot characters and an effective (even if controversial) 3rd party business model.  Today, there are so many great games with smooth, polished gameplay that it's difficult for some to grasp just how far ahead of the curve Nintendo was at the time.  Further, more subordinate aspects like the NES' retro-stylish design and front-loading mechanism helped contribute to it being such a breath of fresh air for the industry.

"Games like Super Mario Bros and Zelda created a paradigm shift in the industry away from the standard home/arcade gaming model of just beating the highest score"

Err what? Commodore 64 already did that, as well as MSX. 

Home gaming was going fine and well before the NES in Europe. NES was actually not all that popular since the games were expensive and couldn't be copied unlike cassette tapes that C64 and MSX were using. (MSX had both cartridges and tape deck)

Sure they were sold as 'computer models' but their primary function was games: 5,667 video games were released on Commodore 64 from 1982 through 2025. https://www.mobygames.com/platform/c64/ (NES had 1,367 games total)