Summary
- Expensive video game accessories often disappoint consumers with unfulfilled promises and a lack of practicality.
- Innovative technologies like the Power Glove and Activator failed due to poor functionality and an unappealing user experience.
- The PlayStation VR2 is struggling in terms of sales and software support, highlighting the industry’s history of unnecessary accessories.
Accessories for video games have been around for just as long as the products they are designed for. Created either by the company in charge of the hardware and software or by third parties who want to enhance the consumer experience, the quality of accessories can range from “absolutely essential” to “why did I even buy this?”
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Throughout the decades, there have been a ton of expensive accessories that promised “game-changing technology” that ended up being a major disappointment. There’s nothing worse than spending money on something only to put it away after a couple of hours, and these expensive accessories are a perfect representation of that feeling.
7 Chainsaw Controller
- Current value: $350 to $400
Resident Evil 4 is often praised as one of the greatest games of all time with its exciting gameplay, unpredictable story, and satisfying combat. There are a handful of enemies throughout the game that use chainsaws as their primary weapons, and the company NubyTech designed an entire controller around these items specifically for the GameCube and PS2 versions.
Though it comes with a gorgeous display stand that should appeal to collectors, NubyTech also swore that using this device would enhance your experience with Resident Evil 4. Anyone who has held this device for longer than a couple of minutes knows how uncomfortable it is, and using it for an entire playthrough sounds scarier than anything in the actual game.
6 ROB The Robot
- Current value: $100 to $350
The launch of the Nintendo Entertainment System (NES) was a huge deal for the industry. After a collapse in sales in 1983 due to consumers getting fed up with shovelware titles, the console would be instrumental in paving the path forward and building trust back with the market. One of the biggest aspects of the NES’s launch was ROB the Robot, a toy designed to be the bridge between the player and the game.
Despite being at the center of Nintendo’s marketing for the console, ROB the Robot was mostly overshadowed by the software that came with the hardware, Super Mario Bros. There were ultimately only two games developed to be compatible with ROB – Gyromite and Stack-Up – and the accessory is better known these days for being a playable character in games like Mario Kart and Super Smash Bros.
5 Power Glove
- Current value: $100 to $230
The race to innovate how we play video games during the late 80s mostly led to dead ends as manufacturers struggled to create the immersive products depicted in mainstream media like Back to the Future and Tron. The technology to put the player into the game just didn’t exist at that point, and when something like the Power Glove promised to break down the barrier, it always led to disappointment.
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Think of the Power Glove as an early prototype of the Wii controller. After setting up the necessary camera around your television and inserting your hand in it, the device was supposed to allow you to use motion controls to play any game you like. While a couple of games were designed with the Power Glove in mind, its poor response times and complicated setup made it unappealing to most consumers.
4 TV Tuner
- Current value: $35 to $85
To compete against Nintendo’s popular Game Boy handheld device, Sega launched the Game Gear and tried to promote it as the superior machine with better graphics, audio, and games. In truth, the console required six AAA batteries (two more than the original Game Boy) and was so bulky that it required a carry case to bring around with you.
One of the device’s biggest advantages was that it could display colors, something the Game Boy wouldn’t be able to do for a couple more years. With the TV Turner, you can turn your Game Gear into a portable television by plugging other devices like VCRs or game systems into it. Unfortunately, this feature drained the six batteries even faster and wasn’t enough to convince Game Boy fans to switch sides.
3 Activator
- Current value: $55 to $85
Similar to the Power Glove, the Activator for the Sega Genesis was designed to make you feel like you’re in the game by replacing the controller with a device that detects your motions. Unlike the Nintendo product, the Activator doesn’t require you to wear anything to make it work and simply has you stand within a circle of detectors to make it feel like you’re actually in games like Mortal Kombat or Eternal Champions.
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It sounds cool in theory, but the Activator was unreliable and required a lot of effort to make it work correctly. The device on the floor has eight sections that represent different buttons on the Genesis controller (four for the D-pad, the three face buttons, and start) that you need to hover a body part over to activate. Performing accurate combos at a decent pace was exhausting, and the Activator never sold well enough to enter the zeitgeist.
2 Steel Battalion Controllers
- Current value: $330 to $400
Fans of the mecha genre should’ve lined up at the doors for Steel Battalion, a Capcom-developed game for the Xbox that found a way to enhance player immersion to a whole new level. To make it feel like you’re actually piloting a mecha, the game came bundled with a massive set of controllers that include two control sticks, three foot pedals, and 40 unique buttons.
Unfortunately, the only way to play Steel Battalion is with these controllers, and a multiplayer mode was dropped due to development costs, so you can only experience the game’s campaign before you’re finished. Due to the price, not many people bought the game and its massive controller, and anyone who did only got to enjoy it for about fifteen hours before wondering where they were supposed to store something this big.
1 PlayStation VR2
- Current value: $300 (used) or $399 (new)
The PlayStation VR2 is the latest example of an expensive accessory that doesn’t seem to be finding any success with either sales or software. The burst of virtual reality devices during the late 2010s was genuinely exciting (including the launch of the original PlayStation VR), but nearly a decade later, it kind of feels like we’ve reached the technology’s maximum potential until more innovations are made.
Not only is the PlayStation VR2 still incredibly expensive, but it feels like even Sony has forgotten about the product. There don’t seem to be any major games in development for it, and some third-party titles like Minecraft and Beat Saber are removing PSVR support due to a lack of interest. The industry has been full of unnecessary accessories for a very long time, and the PSVR2 is a friendly reminder that you don’t always need the latest gimmicks to enjoy a video game.
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