The end is an inevitability. Everything, no matter how great, has to come to a natural, and sometimes forced, end. Video game consoles are no different, and while we look back and celebrate the first games to release on new consoles, we often forget the last games to grace carts and CDs.
Sometimes games consoles go out with a bang and get a huge release to see them off, but more often than not they get games that were either heavily delayed or games only there to make a quick buck off a shoddy downgraded port.
Let’s jump into the list and take a look at a few of the last games to grace classic consoles!
- . Sonic the Hedgehog | Master System (1991)
-
The Sega Master System was a big deal. Well, it was a big deal everywhere outside of the United States where Nintendo ruled the market. In Europe the Master System survived into the early 90s and in places like Brazil it saw official releases into 1999! But in 1991, Sega pulled the plug on the Master System in the United States in order to focus on the 16bit Sega Genesis. With that, Sega released one heck of a swan song as Sonic the Hedgehog hit the 8bit Master System in 1991.
This version held its own against it 16bit big brother and showed the kind of power the Master System really had. It’s a shame Sega could never quite get a foothold in the States until the Genesis, thanks in big part to Sonic The Hedgehog! Not a bad way to call it a day with a game that ushered in the age to video games becoming cool.
- . Creature Shock | 3DO (1994)
-
The 3DO was a pretty interesting video game system that hold a special place in my heart because of all the weird titles it got. I got my hands on several years after it was dead for less than a modern-day fast-food value meal. The days of clearing out video games and consoles at clearance prices will never happen again like they did in the 90s! As for Creature Shock, it was par for the 3DO course; weird and full of FMV. What made it unique in a historical sense was that it was one of the first games to use full-motion video for both cutscene and gameplay sections portions.
It was praised at the time for looking amazing but panned for lack of gameplay thanks to the inherit limitations of FMV when paired with action gameplay. The action parts of the game were repetitive, and it was often hard to hit FMV enemies as they have very specific hitboxes and times when they can be hit. The adventure sections worked better, but because of the FMV nature you were still limited to being on a set track that you “watched” play out with little interaction. The 3DO deserved better but we were in that weird middle ground of trying to figure out what CD technology would bring to gaming.
- . Civilization | N-Gage (2006)
-
This one feels really weird for a lot of reasons. Let’s start with the fact the N-Gage was a cellphone console with a vertically orientated screen smaller than a business card, or the fact that Civilization was already a decade old release on PC, or the fact that this type of old-school PC strategy game wouldn’t work on such a strange mobile platform. But the weirdest thing is that Civilization for the N-Gage is based off of Civilization II with some influence taken from the third entry as well. It’s all such a strange mess.
So. just how does one of the most beloved and important video games of all time fare as a swan song for the taco console? Well, the developers didn’t mess with the core of the experience, so if you like Civ, chances are you’ll love this version. The issue comes from the controls and tiny screen. The screen is cramped, and the lack of mouse and hotkeys make playing a bit of a chore. This one is a great swan song for hardcore Civ fans, but it didn’t do anything to sell more Taco phones.
- . Sweet Fuse: At Your Side | PSP (2013)
-
The PSP was such a great console held back by the insane cost of those damn Sony memory cards. I’m pretty sure everyone complained about the crazy cost of these things, especially as SD cards were dropping in price for evert other digital product. Still, Sony had a hot on their hands and the PSP is fondly remembered and had a good long life. So, when it was time to get its final retail release, Sweet Fuse: At Your Side came to play with a great sense of style and weird as heck story.
Sweet Fuse: At Your Side is a dating visual novel where the player takes on the role of the niece of Mega Man creator Keiji Inafune. There’s also a man in a pig suit that puts people into a SAW-like game. It was one of the first projects Comcept worked on post Inafune leaving Capcom and before the disaster that was Might Number 9. Look, Sweet Fuse: At Your Side is a text-selection game of choosing what to say in order to move the story forward. Not my cup of tea (they both have the same effect of putting me to sleep) and its bog standard, but it looks pretty and people seemed to like it.
- . BattleSphere | Jaguar (2000)
-
BattleSphere is how you close out a console’s life the right way, even if it took an arm and leg to get there. Developed by three people in their spare time over a span of five years, the team faced a mountain of issues with Atari’s lack of support, legal issues with Hasbro, and trying to figure out how to get carts produced after production on them had officially ended. It’s an incredible feat that BattleSphere got released, especially in the age before Kickstarter and any sort of outside funding.
BattleSphere is an arcade space shooter in the vein of something like Wing Commander. You pick your ship from a number of options and take on a number of alien races as you blast each other into dust. The problem with these types of games on consoles is the lack of controller options. That Jaguar controller finally comes in handy here with all sorts of things mapped to the number pad. The only shame is that this is now an incredibly rare game for those Jaguar fans still out there.
About Author
