There have been many amazing consoles that defined gaming generations throughout history. With classic systems such as the Super Nintendo and the PlayStation 2, choosing a favorite console is like forcing a parent to choose a favorite kid. It's a tough choice, but we put ourselves through that trouble here at GameSpot, and here are some of our individual picks for favorite gaming console.
While the editors in this gallery were allowed to choose the same system, there was surprisingly not much overlap. Find out what we chose in the following gallery.
Table of Contents
For a retrospective on all the major consoles, make sure to check out our evolution of console stories.
- The Evolution Of Nintendo Consoles
- The Evolution Of Xbox Consoles
- The Evolution Of PlayStation Consoles
Technology Editor Jimmy Thang's Pick: Nintendo 64
While the Nintendo 64 might be my favorite console, I'll admit from an objective standpoint that it's certainly not the best console ever made. It had some serious flaws. For instance, it was held back by its cartridge format, which offered little storage compared to the burgeoning CD format at the time. It also didn't have the deepest game library or sell particularly well either. Still, with its built-in four controller support (a novel feature at the time) coupled with some larger than life games, it was the perfect console to guide me through my adolescent years.
Even though the N64 had a very dry launch, Super Mario 64 became an eye-opening experience for me. Up until then, my only reference for 3D games were sprite-based shooters like Doom and Doom II. Transitioning to Super Mario 64 rocked my world. It convinced me that 3D polygonal-based games were here to stay. That might sound weird to say in retrospect, but you have to understand that up until the mid 90s, the overwhelming majority of games were 2D. I still remember hearing many critics deride 3D gaming as a fad.
That notion got further obliterated when Nintendo released 3D action RPG The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time, which is one of the best games ever made. But what really made the N64 special for me was its amazing assortment of four-player games. I was in junior high at the time the console came out, and made many friends by inviting them over to my place after school to play Goldeneye 007. The console also released my favorite version of Mario Kart; the battle mode totally rules! In addition, the N64 introduced other amazing party franchises like Smash Bros and Mario Party. When I think back to those times after school, I can easily say they are among my fondest gaming memories.
Senior Editor Peter Brown's Pick: Sony PlayStation
I’ll be honest: with greats options like Super Nintendo, Sega Saturn, and hell, even Nintendo Switch in mind, picking my favorite console of all time is next to impossible. But if I imagine being stranded on a deserted island and I was only allowed to bring a single console with me, it would have to be the original PlayStation. The sole reason: Final Fantasy Tactics. It's my favorite game of all time, with fantastic art, music, and a tragic story that feels ripped from the pages of Game of Thrones. It's also endlessly replayable thanks to the expansive and often broken job class system.
Of course, it’s not the only game that’s helped sway my decision, as other RPGs like Xenogears, Breath of Fire 3, and Final Fantasy VII (that’s right, I love this game and so should you) vie for my attention still to this day. Otherwise the PlayStation is home to dozens of other games that I love despite that many of them fall into that awkward chasm of the ‘90s, when developers had to shy away from 2D graphics and try to figure out what 3D gaming should be. PlayStation was a massive success and thus became the home for nearly every genre and series under the sun, minus exclusives belonging to Sega and Nintendo. They weren’t always elegant, but PlayStation games hold a special place in my heart.
Associate Editor Michael Higham's Pick: Super Nintendo
For everything I know and love about video games, I have the SNES to thank. At first, the console was just a hand-me-down from my brother in the mid '90s during the transition into the 3D era. But for me, it was an opportunity to experiment and find my way through a generation of games that I was almost too young to appreciate.
Above all else, I became wildly fascinated with the systems, music, and stories of RPGs that often top 'greatest of all time' lists today. My memories of elementary school are embedded with multiple playthroughs of Super Mario RPG, Chrono Trigger, and Final Fantasy III (VI); three games I still hold to high regard to this day. Granted, I didn't understand every little detail at the time, but thinking back to that age, I have to give credit to these games for developing my own critical thinking, problem solving, and reading comprehension. What's just as important is that my expectations for what games could be and what I sought out in them were formed by these 30+ hour adventures that stretched my imagination.
Even when I try to take off the rose-tinted glasses, it's easy to look at those games and list off all the things that make them timeless. Having an SNES Classic truly solidified this sentiment; I legitimately wanted to play the entirety of many games in its library, like Super Metroid, Earthbound, and Legend of Zelda: Link to the Past. The foundation for many of the best SNES games is still strong, and I continue see their influence in my favorite games in the modern era.
News Editor Chris Pereira's Pick: Nintendo Switch
Picking a console that's not even a year old reeks of recency bias, and yet for all the fond memories I have of playing online games on Xbox or quirky titles on Dreamcast, I keep coming back to Nintendo Switch as my favorite system. Although cross-buy and cross-save with PS4 and Vita offered a taste, Switch has fully realized a vision that deeply appeals to me.
The ability to seamlessly move from my big-screen TV to the bedroom or bathroom, or to easily pick up my progress wherever I am, has been a revelation. Buying a game for Switch feels like a bargain every time, as it's almost like getting two copies for the price of one. Being able to continue late-night sessions of a game (particularly RPGs) while curled up in bed has been an utter delight.
The sheer convenience is so appealing that I find myself sincerely disappointed every time a game is announced or released without a Switch version. Even as someone with a nice TV and a deep appreciation for the type of technical marvels possible on Xbox One X and PS4 Pro, I'm constantly wishing that I could easily wander off into another room and continue playing.
And despite its relative youth, Switch already boasts an incredible lineup of games. Whether it's original titles, remastered versions of existing games, or simple ports, I've found there's far more to play on Switch alone than I have time for. And even those mere ports often feel like enhanced versions, because the ability to play Skyrim, for instance, in short bursts is a transformative experience. I don't know where the system will go in the years ahead, but based on the increasingly large number of games confirmed as coming to Switch, I suspect I'll be loving mine for a long, long time.
Editor/Senior Video Producer Edmond Tran's Pick: Nintendo DS
How are you liking your Nintendo Switch? Boy, it sure is a great, portable console, and it really seems like Nintendo is at peak, innovative form.
NO. The Switch is nothing compared to the insane s*** that was the Nintendo DS. Before the Nintendo DS, we thought of video game consoles as buttons and a screen.
Then: BOOM. Nintendo, under the leadership of then-new president Satoru Iwata announces a portable console with TWO SCREENS. Do you realise how absolutely BONKERS of a concept that was 13 years ago? TWO. SCREENS. One of which was a goddamn TOUCH SCREEN. TOUCH. You touch the screen! This was years before the iPhone was even a tangible idea for Apple.
And the games catalog—good lord. The Nintendo DS hardware was the harbinger of some of the most unique, fully realised game concepts to date, as well as the the portable home of beloved classics.
I’m talking the pinnacle of the Japanese-style rhythm-action genre with the Osu! Tatakae! Ouendan games, Elite Beat Agents, and Rhythm Heaven.
I’m talking about mind-blowing visual novel adventures like the Phoenix Wright and Professor Layton series, Ghost Trick: Phantom Detective, and 999: 9 Hours, 9 Persons, 9 Doors, which kicked off the Zero Escape series.
I’m talking about some of the best puzzle games that have ever graced any video game console: Meteos and Picross 3D
I’m talking crazy stuff like Trauma Center: Under the Knife, where you performed surgical operations with a stylus, and Hotel Dusk: Room 215, a stylish-as-hell detective adventure where you hold the DS sideways like a book to take notes and solve puzzles
I’m talking about amazing JRPGs like The World Ends With You, Final Fantasy III and IV remakes, and the best versions of two of the best JRPGs of all time: Dragon Quest V and Chrono Trigger.
Animal Crossing: Wild World. Advance Wars: Dual Strike. Grand Theft Auto: Chinatown Wars. Dr. Kawashima's Brain Training, sure why not. Holy mackerel I have to stop because I'm already over my word limit.
The best thing is that all these games have aged pretty damn well, and everything is backward-compatible with the 3DS. So stock up on some of these classics, and revel in the majesty of Nintendo at its best. Thanks, Iwata.
Managing Editor Justin Haywald's Pick: Nintendo DS Lite
Nintendo makes the best handheld consoles. While they're almost never the most technologically impressive, every generation outperforms its competition by providing the best gaming experiences that aren't just console ports--they're games made to be played on-the-go. And the DS line marked the demarcation when Nintendo shifted to marketing not just to kids (and the young-at-heart), but to all ages.
The DS felt revolutionary in its time, but what makes the DS Lite redesign, specifically, my favorite of console was how it made how it combined sleek design with a battery that seemed to last for months. No joke, I remember finding my DS Lite in a box once after a move and after it hadn't been plugged in for months, it still came to life with a nearly full battery. And the modern design looked less like a toy and more like a piece of technology you'd want to show off.
The DS Lite maintained backwards compatibility with the GBA line, which provided the system with an established, far-reaching library in the days before digital downloads. And many of my favorite games of all time--like Elite Beat Agents and Picross 3D--were DS-exclusives that have never been released for another console.
Digital libraries and portability make the Nintendo Switch a close second-place for me, but it remains to be seen how Nintendo will handle its own massive back catalog of games. So for now, the Nintendo DS stands above as my favorite system of all time.
Associate Editor Matt Espineli's Pick: Sony PlayStation 2
What's there to say about PS2 that hasn't already been said? Sony's successor to its highly successful console gaming debut turned heads when it released in 2000, and for good reason. Over its lifespan, it was home to an expansive library of high-quality games across an abundance of genres.
Platformer franchises like Jak and Daxter, Ratchet & Clank, and Sly Cooper were some of the best on the console. If you were a fan of action games, the PS2 was the birthplace of fan-favorites Devil May Cry and God of War, which each revolutionized the genre in unexpected ways. More importantly, open-world games like Grand Theft Auto 3 and action-adventure games like Shadow of the Colossus redefined the scope and scale of what games could pursue. In addition, there were a slew of 50+ hour JRPGs to sink your teeth into.
The PS2 was the main console I used when I was starting to get more into gaming. I spent hard-earned allowances on many of the games I mentioned above, but my most cherished memory of the console comes from my time spent playing Metal Gear Solid 3: Snake Eater, my favorite PS2 game and the first Metal Gear game I was allowed to purchase with my own money (my middle brother restricted me from owning past Metal Gear games because it was his supposed royal right as an elder sibling). Sony’s second console embodies an innocent era in my life where all I did aside from schoolwork was spend time passionately researching and playing games.
To this day, I still collect and play PS2 games--despite having to deal with its dated resolution on modern HDTVs. While some of its library hasn't aged particularly well, what it represents to me personally immortalizes it as one of my favorite consoles of all time.
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