Hidden Game Consoles You Never Knew About

Published on 1 May 2025

Many players don’t get to experience what the rare game consoles have to offer. These hidden gems in the RPG, Action, and Simulation categories. Some games in that group never made it to the stores. Others were produced in very small numbers. Let’s look at them!

Obscure Handheld Game Consoles

1. Tiger R-Zone

This in 1995 the company which produced it did not do well with this product which featured red graphics on a small screen. Also only a few games were developed for it.

2. Watara Supervision

In 1992 a budget Game Boy competitor was introduced. It came with 48 preloaded games. Most of which were of Action or Sports genres.

3. Gizmondo

This in 2005 we saw the release of a device which had GPS and a camera. It shipped with only 14 games which quickly became available. Developers left it very early.

Forgotten Home Consoles

4. Casio Loopy

In 1995 the company released it only to the Japanese market. It featured Casual games for girls. Today that which they put out is not remembered.

5. PC-FX

NEC\'s 1994 release for the TurboGrafx-16. They did not have strong 3D graphics, instead went with the anime style RPGs.

6. Apple Pippin

Apple’s in 1996 introduced a console which did not do well. We only saw the release of two Multiplayer games. Also it died out quickly due to high development costs.

Weird Hybrid Systems

7. Pioneer LaserActive

In 1993 we saw the release of a laser disc player which came with game add-ons. Each unit sold for over $400. Only 10,000 were put out.

8. VTech Socrates

In 1988 we saw the release of an educational console. This one used simple strategy games to teach kids out at home. Cartridges were designed to look like books.

9. Action Max

In 1987 we saw the release of systems which used VHS tapes. Players shot at the on screen targets. Also all five games which were released that year were light gun titles.

Region-Locked Rare Consoles

10. FM Towns Marty

In 1991 Japan saw the release of what was to become their first 32 bit console. It played PC versions of Adventure games. Only 45,000 were sold.

11. Zeebo

In 2009 Brazil introduced a program for underprivileged areas which made available Sports and Racing games at low cost. No disc purchase was required.

12. Mega Duck

In 1993 a Hong Kong Game Boy clone was released which included a set of 30 poor quality platformers which did very well in South America.

Failed Modern Systems

13. Ouya

In 2013 a microconsole was released for Android which promised to be a platform for indie games but in reality performed very poorly. Many of its backer supporters felt they had been scammed.

14. Phantom Console

In 2002 they announced it but it never shipped. They said it would stream over 1000 games. Scam allegations put it out of business.

15. GameStick

In 2013 we saw the release of a HDMI stick console. Poor control schemes which did little for the few simulation games it did have. It died within a year.

Why These Consoles Matter

Each year the industry sees a see saw of what works and what doesn’t. Some break out with concepts that large scale players still use today. At the same time we see the giants of the field fall. Their out of print games which saw little love in their day are now sought after by collectors.

Conclusion

From country to country which brought us oddball game consoles, in the case of Japan we had Loopy and out of Brazil came Zeebo. Most did not last long, but a few still have a dedicated fan base today. They covered a range from RPG to Racing games. Go out there and seek out these lost jewels!