With the hint of any new console coming to the market, gaming fans will rush to pore over every inch of every image to determine whether it is going to be a work of art or not. Then, when release comes, there may be initial debate surrounding the look of the console in its new environment, and how best to position it for aesthetically pleasing purposes. But, as should probably happen, this conversation falls behind the important one: whether the console is good for gaming.
Still, while a console’s gaming prowess is certainly the most important topic, it is still nice to consider and compare their designs from over the years. Putting aside one’s extremely subjective ideas of beauty, here are some of the most visually pleasing home console designs that game brands have come up with.
10 Super Nintendo
Released in 1990 and the successor to the NES, the Super Nintendo has two popular models around the world. However, the Japanese and European model top these two in terms of looks alone.
Famous for franchise powerhouses such as Super Mario, Metroid, and The Legend of Zelda, the SNES brought all those titles to a sleek, nearly square-shaped console with rounded corners consoles made up of two tones of gray. With similar colored controllers, this 90s classic is the first example of aesthetically pleasing simplicity.
9 Microsoft Xbox
When Microsoft first announced their intentions to get into the world of home consoles, the talk was rampant about graphics, and power and expectations were high. First released in 2001 and wielding a much-talked-about powerful processor and graphics card, the Xbox’s design was not entirely met with universal applause.
Criticism thrown at the design focused on the heavy and bulky nature of both the console and control pads. On reflection, these are true points. However, the critics do not appreciate the simplistic design of what is essentially an X on a box.
8 Atari 2600 Junior
The Atari Video Computer system first hit homes in 1979, and with relevant aesthetic revamps managed to become the dominant force of 80s home gaming. Famous for classics such as Pac-Man and Adventure, the Atari also played host to other franchises such as Super Mario.
Those efforts to stay relevant included an improved version of what was now called the 2600, and the models known as Woody and Darth Vader due to their appearance. That improvement came in the form of the quaintly-sized Atari 2600 Junior in 1986. The model was a mostly black, small, and oblong, with a gently sloping front with a hole for cartridges. The console included a metal stripe across its face which could be purchased in three colors.
7 Sega Dreamcast
A common theme among visually pleasing consoles relates to the use of few colots. As well as simple design, simple color schemes benefit a system’s aesthetics. One console that benefits from both of these is the Sega Dreamcast.
Released in 1998, this console is mostly square-faced and mostly white, with a gray front. It was the last new console Sega gave to the world. While releasing such classics as Resident Evil: Code Veronica and House of the Dead 2 didn’t save Sega’s console development, they can be proud of going out with a pretty model.
6 Nintendo Entertainment System
The first in Nintendo’s list of home video game consoles, the Nintendo Entertainment System is also a remarkably pleasing piece of kit to use. Released in 1985, the all-gray box with a black strip and neat cartridge flap is a great example of simplicity at its best.
A predecessor to both the SNES and N64, the NES is a much more pleasant console to view today. While this might be a sign of changing views on beauty and modern-day sensibilities, the almost perfect cube nature of the NES’s design gives it an edge over its successor’s curvatures.
5 Microsoft Xbox One
All of Microsoft’s Xbox One models deserve a shoutout for being aesthetically pleasing consoles. First released in 2013, the Xbox One, the One S, and the One X, all hit the spot for simple shape and color schemes.
While all the Xbox One releases are as simplistic as each other in color and very similar in size and dimensions, one among them does stand out. Subjectively speaking, it’s the matte-black sleekness of the slightly slimmer 2017 version, the Xbox One X, that stands out.
4 Sony PlayStation 1
A blast from the past, Sony’s remodeling of their original 1994 PlayStation in the year 2000 was the first example of how to successfully rerelease a console since Atari. Similar to the Atari Junior and a natural progression for most technology, the PlayStation got smaller.
Repackaged at the PS1, this new model lost its most angular edges in favor of rounded and is much smaller in every dimension than its original. Replacing the all-gray of the original with a pastel-white finish, the PS1 is a delight to see.
3 Nintendo Wii
Perhaps one of the most innovative consoles to hit the gaming world since gaming began, the Nintendo Wii not only revolutionized home gaming, but served to get families together and people off their seats.
Released in 2006, Nintendo’s seventh generation console, the Wii, is a ground-breaking, revolutionary, state-of-the-art gaming experience unlike any other. Observing the Wii console itself, fans will appreciate the simple white design, with a pleasant sloping top and narrow face.
2 Sony PlayStation 4
The successor to 1, 2 and 3, the aptly named PlayStation 4, like the Nintendo Wii, is another console to employ a gentle slope and flat surface, though this time in the reverse order.
Released in 2013, the PS4 has a flat black rectangular face and is the shape of a neat little parallelogram. From 2013 to 2016 Sony released three similar-looking PlayStation 4 models, with the standout design being the smaller, PS4 Slim.
1 Nintendo GameCube
At the top of this highly subjective list is a console that strives for a uniquely simple aesthetic among the rest. While Microsoft may have their box, Nintendo has its cube, and it is a feast for the eyes.
Released in 2001, Nintendo’s sixth generation console, the GameCube, looked pretty much like it said on the tin: A cube! First released in two colors, black and purple, both with a gray front, the GameCube was a near-perfect cube. The inclusion of an all-platinum edition of this simple cubic beauty helps to elevate its status to the most visually pleasing console currently on the market.