Poll: What was the best console of all time?

[Matthew Jabour]

There have been tens of videogame consoles over the years. Some were good, some were bad. But I want to know which one you think was the greatest of all time. In addition, I'm attaching a poll here that asks which generation of consoles the best one was in. All you need to know is this: NES=third generation, SNES=fourth, and so on up to generation 8=Wii U.

 

[Rumpsteak]

I'd have to say Gen 6 then as I put the Playstation 2 as being the best console. Not to say I dislike other ones I just really like that one.

 

[Uriain]

Gen6 or Gen2, the choice was very hard. Had to go with Gen6 though, as the PS2 (imo) has the greatest library of games (quality wise) to date

 

[dimensional]

Have to go with the PS2 overall due to the large number of quality games available for it not only from its own extensive library but also from that of the PSX as well, the controller was also good and while build quality wasnt fantastic it was far from the worst.

 

[scorptatious]

I'll have to vote for the PS2 as well.

There were so many good games for it.

Shadow of the Colossus
ICO
Kingdom Hearts 1 and 2
God of War 1 and 2
Ratchet and Clank 1-3 and Deadlocked
Jak and Daxter 1-3
Metal Gear Solid 3: Snake Eater

The list goes on.

Although the other gens are really good as well in their own way.

 

[madwarper]

Gen 5 is the one with the N64, right? If so, that one.

Super Mario 64, Mario Kart 64, Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time & Majora's Mask, GoldenEye 007, Perfect Dark
Bringing console platformers, racers, action-adventurers into 3D, and proving shooters can work on consoles.

Also, since the PS1 is included; Final Fantasy 7, Metal Gear Solid
Introducing the West en masse to JRPGs and showing how cut scenes could be done well.

 

[hermes]

Best overall generation? 4th

Best overall console? PS 2 (6th generation)

 

[Roxas1359]

PS2 was the best selling console of all time so I'd go with the 6th Generation of consoles. The Gamecube was a close second in my book because it had a good amount of games on it. PS2 still wins though for best console as I'm still getting more use out of it than I am from my Xbox 360 and Wii. Only other console that gets this much use is my PS3.

 

[TehCookie]

PS2 hands down. It has the biggest, most diverse library. Not to mention backwards compatibility so you could still play PS1 classics.

I also notice you're missing gen 7.

 

[Chimpzy_v1legacy]

I'd say 6th Gen, due to the sheer number of excellent games available in the PS2 library.

Second place goes to the 4th Gen SNES and its similarly excellent collection of classics. Also, the Genesis/Mega Drive was no slouch either.

Third place goes to 7th Gen. I've gotten a lot of entertainment out of my PS3 and IMO it has the strongest line-up of exclusives.

And then there is the PC, which of course is not a console and doesn't follow the whole generations thing, but I'd say its strongest era was around the late 90's to early 2000's.

 

[Mikejames]

Plenty of gems to find on 360, but I tend to think of the PS2 era as being one of the most innovative. Nostalgia may be coloring it a little, but genre diversity seemed more respected at the time.

PS2 hands down. It has the biggest, most diverse library. Not to mention backwards compatibility so you could still play PS1 classics.

Lord I miss consistent backwards compatibility....

 

[alphamalet]

The PS2 is the best console of all time. Enough said.

 

[Assassin Xaero]

Hard choice between Gen 5 and 6. Gen 5 has the N64, while Gen 6 has the PS2. I still prefer PC to all them. Most backwards compatible system there is.

 

[XMark]

I'd say Gen 3, because it was the one that ended the video game crash and defined game consoles as we know them. The NES proved that the idea of a game console could be successful.

 

[IndomitableSam]

Gen 4 or 5 when there were so many pubishers and Square was Square and made amazing games. Mostly for the SNES and PS1, really. Both had amazing, groundbreaking things because they were firsts. Most of my favorite games come on those two consoles.

 

[mad825]

Gen 6.

The PS2 may have had a big library of games but the Xbox introduced the HDD to the consoles. After the Xbox, I thanked god that I didn't have to buy or lose another bloody memory card and not even to mention not having to delete saves to make room for more storage space, plus I could listen to my own music in GTA.

 

[Voxgizer]

Gen 5.5 - Why? Because Dreamcast chose to reside between the gens.

 

[New Frontiersman]

Seems kinds weird to include the Gen 8 in this poll. I mean so far it only consists of the Wii U, and while I'm not against someday someone claiming that the Wii U is the best console I think it's a bit early to judge either way seeing as though it's only been out for a few weeks now.

On topic though: I think the GameCube is my favorite console ever. The super majority of my favorite games were all for the GameCube, it was fun to play, and I spent countless hours playing it. I still enjoy playing GameCube games, that was actually one of my favorite things about the Wii was that it was completely backward compatible with the GameCube, and similarly one of the things I'm most apprehensive about the Wii U is that it's not at all backwards compatible with GameCube games.