The Worst Selling Consoles of All Time

Be it a lack of games, poor strategy, or inadequate marketing, a majority of video game consoles are commercial failures. Here are the 10 worst selling consoles of all-time.

[BubblesDAVERAGE]

Apple mad a gaming system I never knew..10 million...(360 get ready to join this list) jk None of the current consoles will be on this list because all of them are guaranteed at least 20 mill

[TheMART]

The Apple systems sold 42.000 in about 2 years. The Dreamcast sold 10 million in about 3 years.

The 360 sold 10 million in one year. The PS3 has slowed down everywhere in sales (Japan PS3 10k, Wii 80k, USA 360 between 200k-300k a month, PS3 130k a month since 2 months already, Europe sales dropped after fanboys bought it at launch), plus the price of 600 dollar/euro perfectly fits in this list of overexpensive consoles with no games.

It's like the CD-I that also promissed videostuff, like the PS3 is just a BluRay player.

Funny is though the Apple system, never knew that it existed. Logical, almost no one had it so no one talked about it...

[techie]

agenda anyone?

[fury]

never tired to suck up to his beloved M$. Your hatred towards Sony and the PS3 must be linked with a tragedy that happened within your family. Did you father kill your mother with a PS3 and rape you afterwards with it?
oh dear...oh dear...

[Counter_ACT]

lol, as soon as i saw the title I knew that some moron wouldnt be able to resist a flame.

[kingofps3]

This just shows that not even 10 million fans can make it happen for their console.

[EDIT] One more bubble for you, TheMart, for your sound arguments. Also, have you tried the free PLAYSTATION online service? Believe me, it's not "sh!tty" like you may like to believe:)

[JIN KAZAMA]

No matter how much envy you have over about the PS3, it is still selling like crazy. I love my PS3, Its the best console ever built, and i love playing ONLINE for free. Sony is a genious. Things are looking great for sony, and it makes me feel really good that you are dying a little everytime you comment on this site. Keep it up buddy.

TheFart just died a little more. With great games Like GOW and....and....and......and.... ...and...uuuhhhh....with great gmaes like GOW.

Oh, hows that Elite FartyBoy, hmm, Sony copies huh? I cant wait till next year when you tell us about how great the Super-Duper Elite is, which will cost $530, because you have a CHOICE. Keep it up buddy.

[TheMART]

Sorry dude, you died harder then me already being on one bubble ;-)

The best thing is, alive and kicking more then ever. You'll notice soon what I mean. Very soon indeed. You'll be surprised what I'll come up with... Something big and like you can imagine, its nothing positive for the PS3

So which online for free? No unified friendlist, and waiting for home, a rip off Sims/Second Life where we still don't know about if its a gimmick or real stuff? You know Sony always overpromisses and underdelivers, right?!

ah well. I just pointed you out that the PS3 ain't selling like crazy. I gave you the latest numbers. I have no idea where you base your statements on, but it's not on the latest sales numbers. It might be on your wet dream of last night though...

@ XxZxX (below)

Well, for the 360 its impossible to end on this list, because it already sold more then nr. 10 the Dreamcast. The PS3 can still be a candidate though only on 3 million :-)

@ XxZxX (below) again

Nope dude. This list is the worst SELLING consoles of all time. That is in sales numbers of consoles. Not in revenue or in losses on the consoles.

So wrong you are dude. Plus, the 360 has a healthy businessmodel. Follow me on this one:

360 hardware, on each premium is known MS makes 75 dollar profit against losing 185 or so @ launch>

PS3 hardware, on each unit sold is still somewhere between 200 and 300 dollar loss.

360 games, sell 5.7 games per unit attach rate. Which gives what, about 10 dollar out of those 60 for MS per game sold?

PS3 games, 3.4 attach rate per unit.

360 online premium service pays 50 dollars subscription fee a year x millions of users. Plus those points spend on Marketplace.

PS3 online sh!tty service is free, so less features and Sony doesn't earn on subscriptions. They might have some purchases in the shops, but less content to sell then the 360.

Do I need to go on? Funny thing is, even though the PS3 sales in units in Japan are more then the 360 weekly, the 360 sold 18k games last week, the PS3 sold 11k games or so.

You have no idea what investments are, how the losses are accounted and that in the next fiscal year (starting July 2007) will give profits for MS on the 360.

So funny to see people talking about stuff they know ZERO about.

@ XxZxX (below) again and again

A loss, WTF is a lost? Yup THIS fiscal year they're still on a loss.

The PS3 is still on a loss. It loses 3 billion freakin' dollars over every 10 million units sold. If they ever reach that. So they lost 1 billion dollar already on 3 million units sold.

That's the way it works that early in a life cycle.

I was talking about the next fiscal year. You can read the stuff I gave you, right? It all points to profits soon. Do you have any further facts to claim that the MS business model isn't good. I supply facts, you start to cry out.

That's the way ignorant people without any knowledge about how investments work think. The businessmodel is healthy in the end. A lot more then Sony's businessmodel at this point in time.

BTW the PS3 is heavily supported by the launch, when fanboys bought it in EU. No one is buying it now anymore that isn't braindead. No one wants a gaming device for 600 dollars.

You can try to get the launch numbers up constantly, but look at todays salesnumbers of the PS3. They're alarming. Whatever you like to dream about, be my guest.

When the newest sales numbers of the PS3 in Europe will arrive, you'll see... Japan and USA already are on an all time low, Europe will just follow. Mark my words

[techie]

Ever thought "what's the point" Mart...because all your spouting makes people like the ps3 even more; unless they didn't like it to begin with. But really your comments are quite pointless.

Well done elite, job well done.

[gta_cb]

well... i AM telling the TRUTH when i say that on thursday (yesterday) i went into a very popular shop in the UK called GAME. i went in to buy MS points (to buy Gears of War maps, which are fantastic btw) and when i was in the que the person in front of me asked something about the PS3, i didnt hear his question but i heard the sales man say they are NOT selling hardly ANY PS3s so he (him or GAME) thinks sony are realising that there products are too expensive, especially soon as though as of today (Friday) there has been a price drop on the PSP from £150 to £130 (not much but still you get the point)

now when i was purchasing my item, i said to him about the PS3s and if the store was doing any deals (as we recently heard of the canadian store doing trade in 10 games get a PS3 for £300 or something) anyway his reaction was something like this "im sorry but no we are not doing any deals, although sony knows there product is to expensive we are not able to provide any deals, although we do always trade stuff in"

i asked him if they where selling many PS3s, he said "we are hardly selling 1 or 2 a week IF that, they did sell on launch"

so although he didnt say how many they sold on launch, how many returns etc, he DID say (and i can give you the phone number to check if you dont believe me!) "we are hardly selling 1 or 2 a week IF that" oh and when i walked in the store i saw 3 pre-owned PS3s, now i dont think anyone would get 2 PS3s for a birthday present or LATE christmas present as this is a major present that would have been discussed in the family, so i DONT know why there was 3 pre-owned PS3s behind the counter priced at about £375 each (dont know if it is with a game or not... prob not as it costs £425 without a game) but with this shop being a MAIN comsumer point in my area (a popular city) it doesnt look like Sony "is still selling like crazy" (JIN KAZAMA's statement)

P.S. you can disagree all you want, but the fact is i went into the shop you didnt, and i can get there number if you dont believe me.

i do like the PS3, just wish the price was lower, anyway thats all i have to say for now.

[EDIT]

i already see someone has disagreed with my comment, which bit do you disagree with? as i know i was one of 4 people in the shop at the time (it was lunch time so not many customers there) and the other 2 was the sales men, so unless your the other customer that was looking at the PC games... lol

[XxZxX]

gta_cb, one or two shop doesn't mean you have got the whole pictures. Let the Chart-Track do the math, not your shop.

[gta_cb]

@ XxZxX
i didnt say that my shop is a prime example of the PS3s being sold everywhere, but with the PS3 being launched here not so long ago, i was personally suprised when the sales man said this, so as this shop was in the middle of town, right near a bus station, trainstation, and near nice locations like a park etc i personaly expected more, thus i had to say this as
JIN KAZAMA said"it is still selling like crazy"

and to be honest i would have rather stuck to the point (the story) especially when theres soo many consoles i never knew existed! BUT there are a selected few members on here that say bogus comments. so i felt the need to say something i found out myself.

also this wasnt on the net BUT in the contribution test theres a question saying should you post bad news against your fav console (not word for word) and the answer was yes, all news should be reported even if its bad (not word for word) so i am not just making up stories etc and im not saying my local retailer is the same as everywhere else but its happened anyway.

also wanna say i DO hope the PS3 DOESNT do well at first, cos if you think about it, for those people like me (student) who doesnt have £425 to spend on a console with maybe 1 free game, needs a price cut... so i spose this is good and bad news for me as i hope the next gen console war remains close as then they will have to offer more to the consumer, which then means more features for us :)

(just wanna say sorry if this comment was a bit "all over the place" but alot needed to be said, and i was rushing it)

[XxZxX]

WOW Gta_cb, you dont have to be so nice and apologize in here. I dont think anybody take N4G comment serious. Certainly I wouldn't lose sleep over it. It's just plain out fun and arguin with fanboy(i'm one of them too, no doubt) is fun too, if you dont take this too seriously. Yup. No one here to please and no one here to convince. Just some "DEBATING"

But yeah, according to Europe chart, PS3 is doing better than XBOX 360(when it's started), so I don't think they're not selling badly. Maybe not superb, but certainly not bad.

[gta_cb]

@ XxZxX

"But yeah, according to Europe chart, PS3 is doing better than XBOX 360(when it's started), so I don't think they're not selling badly. Maybe not superb, but certainly not bad."

yeh probadly is true, and there could be loads of people saying that there was shortages, and i dont really know, this time last year, my eyes where set on a PS3! :D but it was delayed, then delayed (for UK) and then i found out the price :( ohwell.

i do hope it goes well for it, but like i said, it wouldnt harm it to have a price cut, and to have one quicker rather then later, it needs to be doing bad.

P.S. i kwow its all about arguing/"DEBATING" but i think when i wrote these comments earlier i was annoyed as in every article/rumour etc there always seem to be a fanboy in this case JIN KAZAMA with his comment "it is still selling like crazy"

the thing that annoys me the most, is that i read this article and its pretty interesting, but i am now wasting my bubbles explaining myself when there isnt really any need to do so, but i am writing comments NOT about the article and its to do with another fanboy with his little 1 bubble, and well i wish we could put an end to it by taking all his bubbles away but we cant =(

but hey not anything to loose sleep over, so im now off to bed after playing Gears of War till... bloody hell look at the time! (04:23)

[XxZxX]

here's something to add into flame. XBOX 360 and PS3 might make it to the list if they don't act up. 360 may have the marginal lead but lost too much momentum even on their homeland, PS3 yet to claim momemtum in US but outside US, thing might looks abit promising. If this trend continue, XBOX 360 and PS3 will make it to the list. Guaranteed.. FLAME on.

at the mart above: Well if they can sell 20 million but if they lost another 5 billion in it, they will be in the list for sure. Sorry to inform you themart, your holy grail is failing.

at the mart(again)
How's Egypt lately, I'm sure you're having good time on the nile? did you read the news lately, MS gaming division still operating on lost. Yes even with each consoles gaining $75 profit, they still operating on a lost. Pull some crappy numbers whatever you want. A lost is still a lost.

[XxZxX]

themart,
LOL, I dont think you can use the word "ignorant" from someone else. Just in case you don't realize it and your home does not have a mirror. You're by far the most MS ignorant supporter. Hey that's a pot there, and damn it's black... LOL you have knowledge, ignorant does not give any knowledge. You just think you have it. That's all.

Investment, well if anything, Sony stock did rose 45%. I'm sure your ignorant mind will make you think that you are actually smarter than all investor.

[Covenant]

I'll skip the already accumulating fanboyism and just comment on the systems.

I can proudly say that I never owned any of the consoles on this list, but I played a few of them. I actually knew a guy in college who had the Pippen...awful, awful thing. Total train-wreck. At least he'd gotten it for free.

Dreamcast was a pretty decent system, but by the time it was released, Sega's demise as a console-maker was a foregone conclusion. The Dreamcast is remembered fondly by some, and in some ways, it was ahead of its time. A friend of mine loaned his to me for a month, and I found it to be pretty decent...but that controller...

After Genesis, I never bought another Sega system, but I played the Sega CD (not bad) and Saturn (another system somewhat ahead of its time, also OK). After the Genesis, Sega found new and interesting ways to screw up consoles, to the point of redundancy. It's a shame, really; there were some good ideas, and some good games created by Sega during that time period. Hopefully, we'll see some of the better ones on Virtual Console.

Never played 3DO, or any of the others.

See, it is possible to comment on something like this and not create a firestorm.

[gta_cb]

i was just sooo... suprised at

1. what the look like lol, i mean come on they do look pretty bad haha (with the exceptance of a few)

2. apple made one! :O i mean come on! they must have done a pretty bad job of it soon as though they have stayed away from them, and as no one seems to have heard of them before!

[aaquib2]

Now that elite is out, the normal xflop premium will fail. PS3 sold 800 000 ps3s in europe in 2 days and 360 sold less then 500 000 in 1 month of launch! PS3 is month in month out doing better than 360 did in its lifetime. PS2 has over 110 MILLION loyal owners who will all be loyal to the Sony brand. Home beta is freaking amazing, and I have a feeling Halo 3 will be as garbage as call of duty 3. It'll be mgs4, lair, heavenly sword, warhawk, and so much more vs. halo 3. Sorry XFLOP, outside 2007, your finished. GAME OVER.

[neogeo]

He is slowly dieing.

[AppleSlime]

iPippen would sell millions.

[snoop_dizzle]

this almost turned into a flame war, really theMart you don't have to mention the 360 in every post and start a flame war. Expand your horizons really.

But anyways really i didn't know apple made a console. I didn't really originally think apple would do that well(maybe do ok)with a new console, but being #1 for the worst really put a lot more doubt in apple.

but one thing aaquib2, xflop as you call it has too human, mass efect, bioshock. Theres a lot of games for both consoles so really its just preference. All the gmaes have the chance of sucking or doing really good.

Man this xflop thing is really entertaining me for some reason. So will the PS(fart?)3. All i know is i want it all.

aaquib2, really expand your horizons as well.

Dont hate the consoles, appreciate.

[Kastrol]

yo at 4pm today just got my new ps3 went on the network awesome downloaded GTHD and clocked it in time trial mode its GT4 in HD but the game rocks

anyway can someone tell me how to put tracks from my ipod onto the ps3

help a noob out

Apple made a console

[XxZxX]

is pretty simple, connect ur IPOD to PS3, goto Music ipod, click triangle and choose copy music.

[Kastrol]

ok because i couldnt do it i have just upgraded the firmware
but its 2am now and im pretty tired from 10 hours of gthd and Resistance

thanks dude bubble have a bubble

[neogeo]

I have owned ALL those systems. Just not the Apply one.
Yes I owned all of them. I even had 2 or 3 different 3D0's Panasonic REAL 3D0 and I had a Goldstar 3DO. I was in my early teens back then and worked full time in the biggest mall in the east coast of the US.
So I would get whatever was new. If I could go back and do it again I will still rebuy most of those systems....Ok not the JAGFAG thats what my friends would call it. I would have lots of fun with 3D0. I would have parties at my house and we would play Way Of the Warrior. With the music by white zombie. lots of fun....
I still remember the ol days of turbo graphics 16. Its was great! The RPG's were unbeatable. (Cosmic Fantasy2) was a great game on the Turbo Duo. LOL the load times were honestly about 3 minunets long. One time I challenged myself to make a hamsandwitch while the loading screen was pumping away. I almost made it. The stairs slowed me down a bit.

I bought my dreamcast from Japan for $549.99 a year before it came to America. It really broke my heart when Sega went 3rd party. I was so pissed I would not even buy a PS2 for its first 3 years.

@MART I know you are still a young child, new to gaming. I was once blind like you. I used to lie to myself when I saw a system slowly die. But now I just accept it as a part of life and now I'm much happier.

If I had to bet my life right now on predicting what system will win in the next 5 years I would put my life on PS3. Sonys line up is just to strong. Accept this like Microsoft already has and start planning for next gen.

In the meanwhile I will be playing,
Super Rub a dub dub in the god da#m tub! While quietly waiting for,
Killzone2,
Rise of man,
Lair,
Lil big planet,
Calling all cars,
MGS4,
Home,
Heavenly Graphics/sword,

and a big E3 line up:)

(EDIT) I never had a CDI

[BIadestarX]

I know that many of you would love to see the xbox 360 out of the market and have Sony have a monopoly over the games we play. But it will not happen, not even the original xbox made it to that list.

By the way there are people today that love the dreamcast and even consider it to be a better console than the PS was. What kill the console was not the console itself but more Sega inability to keep up with the market and that's one weakness that Microsoft does not have. They surely don't have a problem marketting their products and we can see that with games like Halo, Gears, etc. Also, microsoft large bank account and their stuborness in breaking thru any market they believe they can expand that can bring them revenues. Now microsoft reach the point where they forthsee protis in 2008, why would they quit? I think most of you understimate the stability or large corporations like Microsoft and Sony, they are not going anywhere, specially since they are able to bleed money for years before pulling the plug, since they have so many revenue streams.

[neogeo]

It would take a Natural diaster, such as a Comet hitting Microsoft headquarters, killing Bill gates and much more to stop this monster company.

And that still may not be enough,

I can see everyone feeling so bad about Gate's death, So the world donates so much money while people buy 360 out of pity that it put them in first place.

Just look at Sony and Microsoft as a company.
they could truly lose money on the next 5 systems they put out and still be just fine.

Nintneo on the other hand can not afford to lose alot of money.
they only have 10 billion in the bank not including liquid assets.

10 billion may sound like alot, but with no other products to fall back on they are walking a thin line always.

Picture this...
Nintendo's Wii slows in sales as PS3 and 360 takes off.
Then The PSP2 comes out and is a smash hit,

Next Microsoft makes there own handheld system thats really kicks ass.

So Nintendo takes some of that money they have saved up and makes a new system. Only there they go TOO far this time and make some goofy toy that does not sell, and they DS2 can't hold market share.

Nintendo DIES!!! <--and me with it:(

[ITR]

Remember Nintendo still gets money from card games, anime, toys, majority owner of the Seattle Mariners, part owner of the Atlanta Hawks, and arcade games.

I doubt Nintendo will go away anytime soon.

[ITR]

Game Pro didn't research the TG16 too well.
Dracula X(same game getting remade on the PSP) was what the sys was known for.

I owned the Japanese PC Engine Duo and GT

And whats the crack about the Jag's controller? Hell it wasn't too far off from that new Xbox 360 controller with qwerty keyboard built-in.

I owned the Atari Jag and CD.

I owned the Sega Mega Drive and Mega Drive CD.

Me and my cousin both owned the 3DO.

My gaming consoles:
Atari 2600, Atari 7800, NES, Gameboy, Super Famicom, PC Engine Duo, PC Engine GT, PC-Engine SuperGrafx, Mega Drive w/MD CD, Atari Lynx, Atari Jaguar w/CD, 3DO, PS1, PC Engine PC-FX, PS2, GameCube, Panasonic Q(GC with a region-less DVD player) Xbox, DS Lite, and Wii.

Too much money...lol

I always wanted a CD-i, FM Towns Marty, and a Neo Geo, but I never got one.

[sumfood4u]

It's krazy how thoes games flopped! but 3DO took the cake, lmao they costed more than the ps3! u know no one had that kinda money back in the days, like people hardly have that kinda money for the PS3 now! LMAO THAT'S THE GIST OF IT!

[JasonPC360PS3Wii]

The PS3 will be gone just like the guy that created it.

360= playing with others
PS3= playing with yourself

PS3 the antisocial console

Their new slogan should be "We Play Games Worse Than The Other Guys"

PS3 fans get used to the screen below, that is your true calling.

[LoydX-mas]

I thought this was about the ten systems "actually" in the article, not the ones that people "wished" were in it.

[chrno6]

From Mart's remarks I can tell that he's

1.) An American
2.) is Bill Gate's b1tch
3.) hates Sony because he got raped by a ps3

[GameJunkieJim]

I own everything on that list except for the Pippin

And it was Apple and Bandai that made that, not Apple alone. It just got branded Apple in the US because they thought it'd sell better.

It didn't.

[mcgrawgamer]

I just want to say that the dreamcast should not be on this list, but alas the dreamcast is proof what poor marketing and bad rep can do 2 u. The dreamcast was the most innovative console of it's time. First to have online (SegaNet) which I personally belive to be the ancestor of xbox live. For those of you who don't know Peter Moore is a former Sega executive. Everything else on the list is true I had a sega 32x sucked! My bestfriend had a 3do pretty good, but no library, controller sucked, so it sucked.

[InMyOpinion]

Thanks for actually commenting on the article. It surprised me that they did'nt mention Shenmue or Jet Set Radio as key games for the Dreamcast. Akumaju Dracula for the Turbografx 16 as well.