It might seem like we live in an expensive time. But the truth of the matter is, game systems have always cost a lot of money, and always will. To prove this point, the editors at Defunct Games would like to present a short story about inflation. Oh, don't worry; it's not one of those stories that goes on and on about saving your money, or investing, or thinking about your future. This is a story about how inflation affects our thinking, told through pictures and short sentences. After all, inflation is something that most of us don't even think about, yet it affects every one of us. This article is here to set the record straight, so you don't hold any misconceptions about how cheap the systems of the past were. (This article is current up to 2002 U.S. Dollar. Prices are taken from the original release of the system.) -Cyril Lachel description year highs lows launch price adjusted price Nintendo 64 1996 Mario, Zelda, Donkey Kong, and other Classics! Not that many games, no 3rd party support!! $249.99 $284.27 Nintendo's Virtual Boy 1995 Frankly, there were no highs! High Price, Lack of Games, no 2 Player!! $179.99 $209.79 Sony PlayStation 1995 Metal Gear Solid, Tekken, Much much more! For Every 1 Great Game there are 10 that Suck!! $299.99 $349.66 Sega Saturn 1995 Virtua Series, Great RPGs, Online Play, Sega Rally! Very little support from Third Parties, Early Launch! $399.99 $466.22 Atari Jaguar 1993 Alien vs. Predator and various PC/Amiga Ports! No AAA titles, ugly system, no 3rd party support! $249.99 $307.93 3DO (various) 1993 Hundreds of 3rd parties, Samurai Shodown! One heck of a high price, game/computer blues! $799.99 $985.39 Super N.E.S. 1991 Final Fantasy, Mario, and Metroid, Oh My! Didn't have Gunstar Heroes, one word: slowdowns! $199.99 $264.39 SNK Neo*Geo 1990 Tons of great Fighting games, Metal Slug series! Is THAT the price of the system!?! $599.99 $836.01 Sega Genesis 1989 Gunstar Heroes, Phantasy Star, Sonic, and More! Didn't have the Role Playing Support of the SNES! $189.99 $277.44 NEC TurboGrafx 16 1989 Bonk, Y's, and the first CD system! Not a lot of 3rd Party Support!! $159.99 $233.63 Sega Master System 1986 WonderBoy, Alex Kidd, and Phantasy Star!! Name another three Sega Master System games! $199.99 $320.94 Nintendo Entertainment System 1985 Far too many great franchises started to name here! It's kind of ugly. But then, who cares! $159.99 $265.99