There are so many consoles on the market that it’s easy to forget that there used to be so many more. Not only have big players like Sega come and gone, but Atari has gotten out of the hardware race, as well as Bandai (now part and parcel of game publisher Namco).

Vinnk and Sean reminisce about their favorite failures, from the Dreamcast to the Lynx, and the Wonderswan to the 64DD.

Leave your own voicemail at 608-492-1923, or just share your thoughts in the show notes at FamicomDojo.TV:
http://famicomdojo.tv/podcast/63

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When Nintendo reported two straight quarterly losses in early 2011, followed by a less-than-stellar initial release of its new 3DS handheld console, it didn’t take long for the naysayers to begin spelling the company’s doom.

This is a familiar dance. It started in the ’90s, when Nintendo’s veneer of dominance started cracking in the face of competition with the Sega Genesis. Or maybe it was the decision to abandon the CD format for the Nintendo 64 when Sega and Sony made the leap. Or perhaps it was because, even with the GameCube, no Nintendo console had sold better than its predecessor — that is, until the release of the Wii.

However, despite calls that Nintendo abandon its hardware ambitions — even with the new wrinkle of the ever-rising iOS platform — there are plenty of reasons why Nintendo would never, could never, and should never stop making TV or handheld consoles.

Here are the top five:

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Sindra and Sean meet up with Powet.TV’s Extra Zero, Yertle, and some Famicom Dojo fans to tear up Saturday night at MAGFest X! Sindra crashes the Brentalfloss panel, Nobuo Uematsu does the Colossus roar during his set with the Earthbound Papas, and we tour the arcade room and marketplace!

Region locking is nothing new. It hasn’t taken many different forms, but wasn’t always deliberate either. Many handhelds were exempt from this scheme for the longest time (including the Game Boy and DS series), but with time all things change. SeanOrange and Vinnk discuss the very state of affairs that necessitates the existence of organizations like Operation Rainfall, how they came to be, and where they might go from here.

Direct Link: Famicom Dojo Podcast 09: A History of Console Region Locking

Get a complete rundown of console region lockouts in the show notes:
http://famicomdojo.tv/podcast/9

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