Growing up in the nineties and early 2000s was a great time to be a gamer, with the advent of new technology that was sweeping the industry there was a plethora of exciting games and consoles to check out. We all remember having to use the notorious Worm Light on our Game Boy Color systems, and this was just one of the many innovative and off-ball accessories that came about on video game consoles during this period of time. Video game manufacturers were doing anything and everything to sell you their console, and if this meant offering a weird accessory that may or may not be useful then they would.
Mad Catz is one of the most well-known brands that comes to mind when you think about a peripheral manufacturer, as they made most of the accessories that we used to play with during the nineties and early 2000s for everything from the Nintendo 64 to the Game Boy. There were many video game accessories that should not have seen the light of day, and we are going to be taking a look at these sometimes awful and utterly useless accessories that have seemed to flood the market during this time. Everything from a glove for the N64 Controller to a unique infrared fighting system that was way ahead of its time, all of which still managed to be a part of video game history. Let’s take a look at these ridiculous accessories and see which ones were actually useful for the modern gamer.
30 Strange: ASG Video Jukebox
Do you remember what it was like to have to get up and switch a game on a cartridge-based game console? From blowing out the cartridge to having to find your favorite game in a stack of games that were usually dumped in a little tote. Well, the ASG Video Jukebox was a unique product that was designed for the Sega Genesis that allowed you to switch up to six games at once with the push of a button. Unfortunately, this was a massively overpriced device, and with the 32X and Sega CD attached, your Genesis console ended up looking like a monster instead of a video game console.
29 Strange: Skywriter Stick Station
You can tell that things were difficult for Atari during this period of time, because the Skywriter Stick Station was a massive chunk of wood with a joystick attached to it. We’re not sure what Atari was thinking at this point in time, but the Stick Station was a failed attempt at an arcade quality controller that looked more like a child made it. The Skywriter Stick Station will go down as one of the worst Atari accessories of all time, and one that we’d like to forget when we get our Flashback Consoles going.
28 Useful: Nintendo 64 GameShark
There once was a time when finding a game cheat was a big accomplishment, and by finding the game cheat you’d be able to unlock all kinds of secrets. The GameShark was a well-known peripheral that was sold for quite a few different consoles, and the Nintendo 64 model is no different. The GameShark was a revolutionary product that made the entire gaming experience a little better, and who can forget figuring out your favorite parts of a game and getting unlimited lives or money.
27 Strange: Champion Video Game Gloves
So, apparently, gaming was such a sport during the nineties that Champion saw an opportunity for a new sports goods brand, and thus the Champion Video Game Gloves were created. The style was quite unique and totally nineties, as the gloves were brightly colored and looked like the other Champion fitness apparel at the time. We are sure there are some gamers who play so diligently that they might need these, but we cannot see the mainstream use for a pair of gamer gloves and this was a wasted Video Game Accessory, to say the least.
26 Strange: Aura Interactor
Virtual reality has always been a dream of gamers, for as far back as we can remember. The Aura Interactor is a unique piece of nineties game culture that really shouldn’t have existed until it was further tested. The gaming device used infrared motion sensors to read your facial movements, and this proved to be a rather unique device that could have made for a futuristic gaming experience if it had been developed a little further. The Aura Interactor was later surpassed by the Nintendo Wii, in terms of a virtual reality kit.
25 Useful: Sega Dreamcast VMU
The Dreamcast really innovated the video game industry in a lot of ways, by offering one of the most technologically advanced consoles on the market. The VMU was another innovative device that not only put a screen in the gaming controller but allowed gamers to take minigames around with them and earn points toward their progress on the big screen. In a way, the VMU was much like the Nintendo Switch of yesteryear, and we fondly remember how the little device created a buzz around the Dreamcast.
24 Strange: Nintendo 64 Controller Glove
Nintendo was the champion of odd-ball video game peripherals during the nineties, whether it be for their Nintendo 64 consoles or their Game Boy consoles. There was a steady mix of innovative accessories for the console, and there were also quite a few that made us scratch our heads. The Nintendo 64 Controller Glove which was sold in the Nintendo Power Magazine was a unique product and one that we really can’t see serving an actual purpose to any gamer who really put the effort into their Nintendo 64 Console.
23 Strange: Sega Activator
Feel like playing some classic Streets Of Rage in person? Well, the Sega Activator was designed to allow users to fight using their actual feet and arms. This innovative device never managed to catch on with consumers, and thus the motion sensor movement never really took off for gaming until Nintendo released the Wii in 2006. The Sega Activator will go down in history as one of the forgotten gems of the console genre, and we prefer to keep the Activator as a relic rather than something we’d actually play.
22 Useful: Nintendo 64 Rumble Pak
Back when games were still evolving during the nineties there was one accessory that every gamer wanted to really experience the gameplay, and that was a Rumble Pak. The Nintendo 64 Rumble Pak was a must-have accessory for the console that really improved the quality of gameplay and made the gaming experience more interactive for gamers as they enjoyed their Favorite N64 games such as Mortal Kombat and even Super Smash Brothers which was also Rumble Pak compatible.
21 Strange: Hey You, Pikachu!
Pokémon was so big during the late nineties and 2000s that just about every kid knew who Pikachu was, so naturally, Nintendo decided to capitalize on this and give gamers a virtual pet. Similar to Seaman for the Sega Dreamcast, Hey You, Pikachu! was a virtual pet that the gamer could talk to and interact with. We liked the overall premise, but the end product was a boring game that really didn’t feature anything unique to the Pokémon brand such as a battle mode or adventure mode.
20 Strange: Game Boy Camera
Back before there were cell phone cameras or even smartphone apps and games, most of us had a Game Boy for portable entertainment. Whether you had an original Game Boy or the Game Boy Color there is no doubt that you have owned this popular handheld at least once in life, and the Game Boy Camera was the must-have accessory of the nineties. But, we think this device could have been a lot better, as the black and white coloration was quite limited and the device was not compatible with PC for uploads so you could only print tiny black pictures from the Game Boy Printer.
19 Useful: Nintendo 64 Cleaning Kit
Here’s the thing that many gamers tend to forget, and that is how dirty and dusty cartridge-based consoles would get. This was especially true for the Nintendo 64, which just happened to be the last of the Cartridge based consoles. The Nintendo 64 Cleaning Kit was a must have for anyone who really took their console seriously, and this was one of the hottest selling accessories when the console was new because everyone remembers having to blow out your game before you inserted it into the console.
18 Strange: Game Boy Printer
In addition to the Game Boy Camera, the Game Boy Printer was a unique option for the handheld console that would let users print photos that they had taken using the Game Boy, but the paper was only thermal and the printer could not print in color. This was kind of a let down for most users who probably could have made use of the Game Boy Color’s Palette. We still think that the Game Boy Printer was an innovative device, but it could have been better executed to make the device a little bit more useful for gamers.
17 Strange: Sega Dreamcast Fishing Controller
The fourth console generation had some of the most advanced technology and graphics to have been seen in the video game industry, and the Sega Dreamcast was one of the first to display the 128-bit graphics. The Sega Dreamcast Fishing Controller went with only one Dreamcast game, and that was Sega Bass Fishing. While the controller was pretty well executed, we cannot see spending the money on a peripheral that was only useful for one title that was ever released for the defunct console.
16 Useful: Game Boy Player
When the Game Boy Advance came onto the scene in 2001 the console was a revolution, offering the same 32-bit processing power that you would find in a comparable full-size Playstation console. Thus, the Game Boy Advance offered gamers a serious amount of power right out of the box in terms of processing and graphics. We like most of what the Game Boy Advance offered but there was one small problem, and that was the fact that the console was not backlit. Thus, the Game Boy Player allows gamers to play their favorite GBA games right on the Nintendo GameCube Console.
15 Strange: R.O.B.
The Nintendo Entertainment System (NES) reignited the video game industry after a steep decline during the eighties, and R.O.B. was one of the unique peripherals to come with the console. While the robot was an innovative feature, it only worked for one game which was Gyromite and this game was basically boring anyway. We like how R.O.B. was a piece of video gaming history, but that is pretty much all that the peripheral will be famous for as it was pretty much useless for anything else.
14 Strange: Wu-Tang “W” Controller
If there was one thing that the PlayStation Console was, it was way ahead of its time in many aspects. As the first console that successfully pioneered the compact disk revolution, the PlayStation was a blast from the future with many successful game titles that came out. The Wu-Tang controller was a package deal with Wu-Tang Shaolin Style, and for the life of us we cannot figure out why the developers chose the odd-ball shape for the controller, certainly making this go down as one of the weirdest combos for a video game console.
13 Useful: Nintendo 64 Expansion Pak
If you have ever tried to play Donkey Kong Country 64 or Conker’s Bad Fur Day, there is no doubt that you have seen the little red screen flashing that was telling you to insert the Expansion Pak into the console. This very useful little device would give the Nintendo 64 a boost in memory that allowed the console to play the much larger and demanding games that were out for it at the time. Donkey Kong is just one of the many more advanced games just to name a few, and thus the Expansion Pak was a stellar upgrade.
12 Strange: Konami LaserScope
The NES really pioneered gaming peripherals with the Duck Hunt game and controller combo, but the Konami LaserScope introduced another if not the bionic way to play the game. A very futuristic device that the player would wear, used infrared signals to direct the beam where you could hit the ducks on the screen. The Konami LaserScope was a little over the top and we really don’t think that many gamers even remember that this device existed, much less was commercially viable in any market.
11 Strange: SegaScope 3D Glasses
Part of the downfall at Sega was the fact that they released way too many add-ons for their home consoles, and the SegaScope 3D Glasses were another failed innovation. What was supposed to be used with the Master System, the SegaScope 3D Glasses were only compatible with a few choice games and the graphics at the time were not at all astounding anyway. We can only applaud the guys over at Sega for a valiant effort, but the SegaScope 3D Glasses were a major flop for the company.
