Nintendo has been ahead of the game this generation, with both the Wii and the Nintendo DS being huge successes. Now the 3DS is already looking like it is going to be another massive seller and, though its eventual success is yet to be determined, all signs are looking positive. With the 3DS around the corner, I thought it would be an apt time to take a look back at some of Nintendo’s ventures that didn’t go quite as planned. Here are my Top 5 Nintendo Fails.

5) Accessories

Nintendo has a long history of weird failed accessories. Some of them, at the very least, had the potential to be awesome; The Power Glove would still make most eight year-old boys jump up and down with excitement. Other accessory ideas make us ask the question of why? A printer for your Gameboy seems like fun in the same way spelling boobies on your calculator seems like a productive endeavor. Nintendo hasn’t left its odd accessory-loving in the past either; does anyone remember when the company announced the vitality sensor? Was anyone remotely excited for that? Anyone?

4) Online Gaming

This generation of gaming has seen on-line gaming rise to the forefront of the gaming world. Services such as the PSN and XBOX Live have become huge successes that millions of gamers use as a way to play with all of their friends. Nintendo also has an online service. Almost all of the people I know who have the Wii have never used the online services. Consider those people lucky, as they have never had to use Friend Codes. Friend Codes are lovely little 12 digit codes that Nintendo deemed way easier to understand than simple things such as using a name. Then again, it’s better than its online support for the Gamecube.

3) Creating Sony as a Rival

Nintendo formed a deal with Sony in 1988 to begin working on gaming technology that involved compact discs. Nintendo apparently underestimated the growth of CDs and wanted to back out of the deal, which they now say allowed Sony more control than desired. Unfortunately, this only gave Sony an easier oppertunity to become a direct competitor to Nintendo. Nintendo didn’t plan on helping create one of its main rivals when the company signed that deal in 1988.

2) Phillips CD-I

Speaking of bad deals, the Sony fiasco led Nintendo to turn elsewhere for some CD-based gaming. The company turned to Philips and then gave Philips way too much freedom. Suddenly some of Nintendo’s most beloved franchises, including and especially Zelda, were releasing with none of the quality that was indicative of Nintendo. The Zelda games were notoriously bad. The system and its games were massive failures, and Nintendo does not bring it up very often.

1) Virtual Boy

The Virtual Boy will forever be the greatest black mark on Nintendo’s record. A massive failure, it hurt gamers’ eyes and was uncomfortable to play at almost any position. Trust me: I owned one. The legs on my model broke, so I had to rest it on my knees as I bent over to play Mario Tennis over and over again. This early foray into 3D gained few fans, and soon Nintendo had dropped all support for the system.

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