5 Unreleased Video Game Systems You Never Knew About

[wraggster]

via techeblog (http://www.techeblog.com/index.php/tech-gadget/5-unreleased-video-game-systems-you-never-knew-about)

What if Sony had developed the SNES CD add-on? There might not have been the PlayStation. Find that and more in this interesting list. Would you have bought any of these systems if they had been released?

Sega Neptune

The Sega Neptune was basically a two-in-one game system (Genesis/32X), planned for release in 1995. Unfortunately, by the time a working protoype was ready, the Sega Saturn took the spotlight.

Sega felt that consumers would not be interested in the Sega Neptune, so the project was scrapped. Of the two prototypes that were made, neither actually functioned, but were just empty cases. The proposed retail price for the unit was US$200

Atari Jaguar Duo

Like the Neptune, the Jagaur Duo was a dual system, combining the Jaguar and Jaguar CD into one console. Unfortunately, the Jaguar CD didn’t sell as many units as the company had hoped, so they scrapped the idea before a prototype was built.

NanoGear

Basically a portable PC, NanoGear is what the GP2X should’ve been. It allows users to create their own games with the included tools and sports built-in networking.

Pretty high tech handheld that looks like it never got off the drawing board

Sega VR

Sadly, Sega’s answer to Nintendo’s Virtual Boy never quite made it. Basically, it “was based around an IDEO virtual reality headset (HMD) with LCD screens in the visor and stereo headphones. Inertial sensors in the headset allowed the system to track and react to the movements of the user’s head.”

The company claimed the project was stopped because the VR was so real users would move while wearing the headset and injure themselves. The limited processing power of the system makes this claim unlikely, although there were reports of testers developing headaches and motion sickness

SNES CD

What some of you may not know is that Nintendo actually had contacted Sony to develop this accessory, but in the end, the talks fell through.

Ultimately, negotiations with both Sony and Philips fell through, and the two companies went on to develop their own consoles based on their initial dealings with Nintendo (the PlayStation and the CD-i respectively), Philips also gaining the right to release a series of CD-i titles based on popular Nintendo franchises

Screens Via Comments

[Shrygue]

Hey, this is intersting news to hear....

[mavsman4457]

That is some pretty cool stuff but I bet there are a bunch of others that nobody knows about.

[Accordion]

woo!!

i (reverse) remember all of them!!

only really paid attention to SNES CD and Neptune though...

[JKKDARK]

I'm glad that Sega didn't release any of these two machines :)

[hack.fool]

me too ... by the way the SNES CD it's a really hot news for me cause I never heard about it before...dmn I must have it now!!

[acn010]

yeah, cool, i just heard nintendo cd and the sega neptune... but no image i saw from it till now :)

[woods05]

I already knew about the SNES CD, but thats the only one.

[Vendeta]

What about the Microsofts porable xbox it was on selfs but befor the stores open was hurredly recalled because of a big bug...

[Mark30001]

That is some pretty cool stuff but I bet there are a bunch of others that nobody knows about.

Funtech A'Can - Super Color!

http://assemblergames.com/images/acan/acancolor.jpg (http://www.assemblergames.com/forums/showthread.php?t=7614)

[ppo]

[QUOTE=Mark30001;361086]Funtech A'Can - Super Color!

???? what? :confused:

[emuking]

the nanogear looks awesome

[Veskgar]

I remember reading about the SONY/Nintendo Deal many years ago as a kid and being very excited about the CD add on. Rumor has it that they were so close to actually releasing an "SNES CD" that it is the reason why the original Playstation is the same or similar grey color of the SNES.

[jester13]

Im glad they scrapped that Sony-Nintendo thing. If that came out there would be that really crappy Zelda game Instead of LttP >___> But since that never came out Nintendo brought out a great system and probably be one of the best for the years to come.

[JKKDARK]

and that's why Sony is in the console market with PS1/2/3

[robocelot]

CF: Sega Neptune

I can confirm that at least one of the 'Genesis 32-X' (working name Neptune) prototypes were nothing more than photo mockups (and most likely the one you see in the above photo) as I've seen and held it.

The owner of this gem is an ex-Sega employee friend of mine who ended up with the desk of the guy who was responsible of the 32-X after he was sacked. Amongst the other stuff found in that desk included a Venus (Nomad) prototype with a different battery pack scheme than the released version and also the prototype VR helmet with a cartridge proto of Nuclear Strike for the helmet. Sadly, the VR helmet stuff had to go back to Japan. :-(

[emuking]

and that's why Sony is in the console market with PS1/2/3

dont put the horrid ps3 with the ps1 and ps2 thats a horrible insult to the ps1 and ps2 and a joke to this gens war, wii and especially 360 are kicking ps3 ass :thumbup:

[quzar]

SNES CD never existed. period. It's pure rumour that it was developed then tossed away to become the PS.

[Mark30001]

There was some discussion about a proto SNES-CD being "found" at the Classic Gaming Expo 2002 on ASSEMblergames.com.

Here's the wiki entry (with source):
http://assemblergames.com/wiki/dogatemysnes/pmwiki.php?n=Topics.SNES-CD-ROM

http://i70.photobucket.com/albums/i107/mark30001/snescd.png

[Veskgar]

SNES CD never existed. period. It's pure rumour that it was developed then tossed away to become the PS.

I'm pretty sure that there was at least a prototype developed or in the works. This was no rumor. It has been discussed many times by many reputable gaming news sources.

[quzar]

Well, well. My second point stands. There was some sort of interview with someone working at phillips at the time who described how the tech was pitched to a few companies (first sega, then nintendo) but nothing much came out of any of them.

Odds are that was designed outside of the whole fabled "oh, nintendo didn't want it so they threw it away and Sony took it".

[Deathnix]

I remeber seeing teh sega VR thing in an old isue of sega mag *sigh* now that was a great mag.

[shorty_carnage]

thankl god these didnt get realesed

[MANCHESTERUNITEDDAN]

i remember being really excited when the SNES CD was announced!!!

[caseyh]

it's cell phones. the coolest one you never heard about until you sign a two year contract for one everybody's got.

[I heart Nintendo]

I'd always heard about the SNES CD thing, but none of the others. Cool find!

[J_Villa1983]

I knew about all of these.. i actually liked the idea of the sega neptune and was hoping for its release. I really wish sega would have done more with the 32x platform rather than just letting it rott and become not much more than a worthless peice of plastic...(I know this, because I own a 32x.)
Around the time of Sega VR there was another company looking into VR and that was Atari. Atari had the Jaguar VR that was actually pretty close to seeing the light of day. In fact, there was one game released called "Missle Command 2000" that was designed to take advantage of it. Atari also had 2 other unreleased systems called the "Panther" and the "Jaguar 2".
The panther was a 32bit system that was being designed at the same time as the jaguar. The jaguar was progressing so fast that Atari scrapped the 32bit system and went full force behind the jaguar.
The Jaguar 2 has prototypes out there, its backwards compatible with the orignal and thats all I know about it.
The Jagduo that is pictured is probably of the mockup that Sam Tramiel was showing off when presenting the idea of the jag duo. To my knowlege it never progressed further than the mockup unit.

-JV

[VampDude]

I only knew of


Sega Neptune

The Sega Neptune was basically a two-in-one game system (Genesis/32X), planned for release in 1995. Unfortunately, by the time a working protoype was ready, the Sega Saturn took the spotlight.

Sega felt that consumers would not be interested in the Sega Neptune, so the project was scrapped. Of the two prototypes that were made, neither actually functioned, but were just empty cases. The proposed retail price for the unit was US$200

-&-


SNES CD

What some of you may not know is that Nintendo actually had contacted Sony to develop this accessory, but in the end, the talks fell through.

Ultimately, negotiations with both Sony and Philips fell through, and the two companies went on to develop their own consoles based on their initial dealings with Nintendo (the PlayStation and the CD-i respectively), Philips also gaining the right to release a series of CD-i titles based on popular Nintendo franchises

I did'nt actually know the name of the 32X console thou, but I remember seeing it in a magazine around 1995/1996 thou

as for SNES CD, I did'nt know about it until sometime in 1997 2 years after the Playstation was released. In which the Playstation went on to sell over 100,000,000 (100 million) console units worldwide, even thou the Playtation sucked compared to the SEGA Saturn!

[SpooForBrains]

SNES CD never existed. period. It's pure rumour that it was developed then tossed away to become the PS.

I'm sorry but my copies of Edge magazine disagree with you on that point. Sony and Nintendo were some way into developing a viable product before the deal fell apart and Sony went on to use the technology themselves. It's not rumour, it's history.

And, back on to the point, what exactly is wrong with the GP2X? I mean, I don't own one (why would I need to with a PSP?) but it seems to me that it fulfills its stated goals pretty much perfectly.