Best of the 2000’s: The Top 10 Video Game Consoles

We know, we’re dropping “Best of the 2000s” lists on you like rappers drop “at the end of the day” on us. But at the end of the day, you guys are clickin’ so we’re going to keep it going. In light of our most recent countdown, The Top 100 Video Games of the 2000s, we’ve decided that there needs to be a tribute to the consoles that allow us to put our procrastination skills to good work. While it seems more than obvious which consoles have come out, no one has crowned a king just yet. Fortunately for you we like to push the envelope and press buttons. So hate it or love it, here are our The Top 10 Video Game Consoles of the Decade…

10) PLAYSTATION PORTABLE
LAUNCH DATE: March 24, 2005
PRICE AT LAUNCH: $249.99
KEY GAMES: Grand Theft Auto: Liberty City Stories, God of War: Chains of Olympus, Lumines
PROS: A PlayStation 2 in your pocket (pretty much)! The PSP was ambitious. With few awesome titles and an unmatched number of features that we’ve only seen on home consoles, we were pretty happy with the little homie.
CONS: Unfortunately the Nintendo DS just had a better choice of games and while SONY consoles are great, no one wants a huge, low grade, 250 dollar mp3/DVD player.

————————————————————————————————————————————————————-

9) PLAYSTATION 3
LAUNCH DATE: November 11, 2006
PRICE AT LANCH: $499.99 (20GB) and $599.99 (60GB)
KEY GAMES: Uncharted: Drakes Fortune, Little Big Planet, Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of Patriots
PROS: To be honest, the PS3 was looking like a true contender. Memory for days, wireless remotes, online play with the PlayStation Network, and the hype of somehow making the PS2 better. Not to mention some of the best graphics we’ve seen ever.
CONS: All that stuff came with a price, well two actually. The launch prices were $499.99 and $599.99. For some reason, the folks at SONY didn’t get the memo that no one was going to pay that much for anything that didn’t come with a happy ending. Despite all the hype, PS3 has been one of gaming’s biggest disappointments. All those bells and whistles and we still can’t name 10 decent exclusive titles.

————————————————————————————————————————————————————-

8) GAMEBOY ADVANCE
LAUNCH DATE: June 11, 2001
PRICE AT LAUNCH: $149.99
KEY GAMES: Super Mario Advance, Metroid Fusion, Advanced Wars
PROS: The GameBoy is probably one of the greatest things to hit gaming, actually make that life. The GBA offered better graphics, two extra buttons at the top, and game titles galore. With the release of Super Mario Advance rookies and veterans alike went nuts over the handheld. (pause?)
CONS: The only bad thing we can say about the GBA was the ton of cash we spent on those attachable screen lights because you couldn’t really see shit if you didn’t have perfect lighting.

————————————————————————————————————————————————————-

7) NINTENDO GAMECUBE
LAUNCH DATE: November 18, 2001
PRICE AT LAUNCH: $199.99
KEY GAMES: Metroid Prime, Super Smash Bros. Melee, The Legend of Zelda: The Wind Waker
PROS: The Gamecube was Nintendo’s attempt at keeping up with the Sony and Microsoft consoles. It had upgraded graphics–well besides that, it’s weird remotes, and it’s small discs, that’s all it had.
CONS: Sometimes it’s better to be simple then complicated, but this is an example of being too simple. The Gamecube pretty much got tossed aside as that thing you buy for the kids because of its immaturity.

————————————————————————————————————————————————————-

6) XBOX
LAUNCH DATE: November 15, 2001
PRICE AT LAUNCH: $299.99
KEY GAMES: Halo: Combat Evolved, Halo 2, Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic
PROS: The Xbox was Microsoft’s foot in the door of gaming. With a small following and no predecessors like the PS2 or Nintendo Consoles, Microsoft held its own by bringing gamer’s the Halo titles. With that, Xbox really took over shooter games and landed a place in the hearts of nerds that really only comes second to Olivia Munn.
CONS: Other than Halo the Xbox didn’t really have anything that the PS2 didn’t. Oh and the fact that it weighed a ton and was the size of a VCR didn’t help very much either.

————————————————————————————————————————————————————-

5) SEGA DREAMCAST
LAUNCH DATE: September 9, 1999
PRICE AT LAUNCH: $199.99
KEY GAMES: Sonic Adventure, Crazy Taxi, NBA 2K2
PROS: Ah, Dreamcast, we hardly knew ye. SEGA’S attempt at staying afloat was pretty awesome and in a way, ahead of it’s time. The graphics were on point, the games were awesome, and the memory cards were like Tamagotchi’s! *Cough, cough* except you know, manlier and for adults.
CONS: There was nothing really wrong with the Dreamcast, in fact we still have ours. It was simply a victim of poor timing. A little after its release, SONY launched the PS2 and it was just- you know, better.

————————————————————————————————————————————————————-

4) NINTENDO Wii
LAUNCH DATE: November 19, 2006
PRICE AT LAUNCH: $249.99
KEY GAMES: Wii Sports, Super Mario Galaxy, Super Smash Bros. Brawl
PROS: What Nintendo did with the Wii was innovative in gaming. Up until the Wii was actually released most people thought it would be Nintendo’s downfall in the Next Gen. era. Turns out most people were wrong. Gamers found themselves completely stunned by the level of interactive gaming Nintendo presented and hey, the graphics weren’t bad either.
CONS: Ask the millions of broken television sets, windows, walls and oh, not to mention that one girl who got a black eye from a flying remote. The Wii was a little too interactive and everyone really just started accidentally breaking their furniture.

————————————————————————————————————————————————————-

3) NINTENDO DS
LAUNCH DATE: November 21, 2004
PRICE AT LAUNCH: $149.99
KEY GAMES: Trauma Center: Under the Knife, Grand Theft Auto: China Town Wars, Brain Age
PROS: Probably the best hand-held system we’ll ever see. A truly phenomenal piece of technology that doesn’t present any flaws. Nintendo DS brought gamers two screens (one touch screen), a familiar button lay out, refreshing original titles, the ability to play GBA titles, and online gaming. ‘Nuff said.
CONS: It’s the king of hand-helds, fall back.

————————————————————————————————————————————————————-

2) PLAYSTATION 2
LAUNCH DATE: October 26, 2000
PRICE AT LAUNCH: $299.99
KEY GAMES: Grand Theft Auto III, Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater 3, Kingdom Hearts
PROS: With the release PS2, SONY set the bar for gaming. In a time where gamers wanted more realism the PS2 reigned supreme in the graphics department. If we’re talking games, SONY had everyone else playing follow the leader (much like Complex does) and it’s blueprint for success is one to be followed (much like ours at Complex).
CONS: Even though dudes are still playing PS2s, we off that.

————————————————————————————————————————————————————-

1) XBOX 360
LAUNCH DATE: November 22, 2005
PRICE AT LAUNCH: $299.99 (Core System) and $399.99 (Premium Edition)
KEY GAMES: Fight Night Round 3, Gears of War, Halo 3
PROS: Microsoft’s new product was looking a little weak until Fight Night Round 3 was released, but nothing that comes without struggle is worth having. Yes, the 360 has awesome graphics, games, sounds, and all those other console pre-requisites. However, the 360 expanded the function of consoles. Don’t front, the Xbox’s Netflix streaming, DVD/ CD players, memory for videos and MP3’s, and internet access make cable boxes and other electronics obsolete. Everything you really need in one system. Microsoft developed a console that is about more then gaming- it’s about lifestyle. All hail the King, noobs.
CONS: FUCKIN’ RED RINGS!!!

RELATED: The Top 100 Video Games of the 2000s