Top 10 Video Game Accessories That Make You Look Stupid
Video Game Accessories That Make You Look Stupid, Dumbest Video Game Accessories, Embarrassing Video Game Accessories, Embarrassing, worst Video Game Accessories, Video Game Accessories, Konami Laserscope, Power Glove, Frag Master, Aura Interactor, Power Pad, Game Boy Hip Clip, N64 Microphone, “Donkey Kong” Controller Gloves, Sega Activator, DK Bongos, Kid Icarus 3DS Stand, watchmojo, watch mojo, top 10, list, Tech, video games,
Written by Nathan Sharp
Well… that’s not “cool” by any definition. Welcome to WatchMojo, and today we’re counting down our picks for the top ten embarrassing video game accessories that make everyone look stupid. For this list, we’ll be looking at goofy video game accessories that make their users look ridiculous and ranking them based on pure silliness factor.
Back in the day, there were a million accessories meant for first-person shooters, many of which promised better aim or a more immersive experience. Of course, none of them were as reliable as a good old-fashioned mouse. One of the most egregious examples is the Frag Master, a weird, alien-looking artifact that promised intuitive controls. It was anything but intuitive, as you were forced to crouch over, grip it with both hands, and juggle four different triggers and six separate buttons. Meanwhile, your buddy is simply sitting back and popping off headshots the good old-fashioned way.
If there’s one thing parents LOVED to hear, it was their children banging away on a set of plastic bongos. These things were meant to be played with the “Donkey Konga” series and “Donkey Kong Jungle Beat,” and they worked similar to the plastic guitars from “Guitar Hero”. Only… these were infinitely more annoying, seeing as how you had to bang on them to make them work. Plus, you can only look so cool sitting on the floor with a pair of cheap plastic bongos between your legs. But hey, they look fine sitting on the shelf as a piece of DK memorabilia, so there’s always that.
By the early ‘90s, virtual reality was all the rage and was being hailed as the next step in gaming. Problem is… virtual reality is incredibly expensive, so companies released cheap alternatives like the notoriously awful Virtua Boy and the Sega Activator. The latter was a plastic octagon that you sat on the floor and stood inside. It sent beams of invisible light towards the ceiling, and players were required to break these beams with their limbs, which in turn sent a signal to the console. And voila, virtual reality gaming! Only, it never worked, and users looked ridiculous standing inside of a cheap plastic octagon throwing shadow punches and kicks like they were Jean-Claude Van Damme. It’s a period appropriate reference.
The Nintendo 64 controllers were notoriously slippery, and many people had troubles keeping a grip, resulting in many a dropped and broken controller. Wait, no, that rarely, if ever, happened. But that didn’t stop Nintendo from making controller gloves! These gloves slipped over the controller, allowing for a stronger grip. Only, you had to give your controller a literal glove, and the bewildered stares you got from friends probably wasn’t worth the trouble. They also looked weirdly unrefined, as if maybe someone was making them at home? These could be purchased through Nintendo Power, but we don’t know of a single person who actually bought them. That said, they’re probably worth a pretty penny today, so who’s laughing now!?
Silly-looking or not, we have respect for the accessories that were at least attempting to do something innovative. But lazy stuff like this really gets us worked up. Bundled with “Kid Icarus: Uprising” was a ridiculous stand on which you could rest the 3DS. It’s literally just a black piece of plastic with a little ledge to sit the console on. Yeah, you could whip it out every time you wanted to play the game and face some stares, or you could just use your pinky to stabilize the console like literally everyone else.
We’re sorry, but yelling into a plastic microphone in your living room will never NOT look stupid. Like virtual reality, many gaming companies tried making microphones a thing. The GameCube had a grey microphone that looked like a plastic metal detector that was meant to be played with “Mario Party 6” and “7.” Meanwhile, the N64 had the more official sounding Voice Recognition Unit which consisted of a massive grey box, a thin microphone, and a yellow foam ball. To make matters worse, this was designed for high-pitched children’s voices, which meant it often didn’t work for adults. As if screaming into a yellow foam microphone sticking out of your controller wasn’t embarrassing enough.
Man, the ‘90s really was a weird time for video game accessories. The Game Boy Color was all the rage back in the day, and like all portable handhelds, people wanted to carry them around so they could play it at their leisure. And what are you gonna do, carry it in your pocket or backpack? Of course not. You’re going to buy the hip clip! The hip clip was a little plastic holster that was placed on your hip so you could carry around your Game Boy Color and pretend to be a cowboy. Sure, it’s convenient, but it looks ridiculous and is guaranteed to turn a few heads. And no… not in a good way.
The Power Pad mat is essentially a primitive form of “Dance Dance Revolution,” requiring the user to step on various pressure-sensor buttons to control the on-screen action. The idea behind the Power Pad really isn’t that bad. After all, “DDR” made an absolute killing doing the exact same thing. Unfortunately, it was released with the NES game “World Class Track Meet,” a game that required you to run in place for minutes at a time. And if we’ve learned anything from this fiasco, it’s that an adult running in place on a cheap plastic mat adorned with colorful buttons looks really, REALLY goofy.
The Aura Interactor actually holds the distinction of being the first commercially available haptic suit. Unfortunately, that is the only cool thing about it. This complicated and obtrusive accessory was a massive black piece of plastic that you wore on your back like a backpack. It converted bass sounds from the game into physical vibrations. It was promoted alongside “Mortal Kombat II,” so users could physically feel the punches and kicks from their on-screen opponents. It was a glorified subwoofer that was strapped to your back and prevented you from sitting, so you really just looked like an off-brand Ghostbuster awkwardly standing in front of the TV.
The Konami LaserScope is truly one of the most baffling things in video game history. It was a wearable light gun that allowed the user to yell into the microphone to control any game compatible with the NES Zapper. It looked absolutely ridiculous, as it was a cheap piece of plastic that you wore like headphones, complete with a massive microphone and a protruding eyepiece that sat over the right eye. You also had to yell into the microphone, ensuring that you both looked AND sounded stupid while playing a relatively simple video game.
Top 10 Embarrassing Video Game Accessories That Make Everyone Look Stupid
Well… that’s not “cool” by any definition. Welcome to WatchMojo, and today we’re counting down our picks for the top ten embarrassing video game accessories that make everyone look stupid. For this list, we’ll be looking at goofy video game accessories that make their users look ridiculous and ranking them based on pure silliness factor.
#10: Frag Master
Back in the day, there were a million accessories meant for first-person shooters, many of which promised better aim or a more immersive experience. Of course, none of them were as reliable as a good old-fashioned mouse. One of the most egregious examples is the Frag Master, a weird, alien-looking artifact that promised intuitive controls. It was anything but intuitive, as you were forced to crouch over, grip it with both hands, and juggle four different triggers and six separate buttons. Meanwhile, your buddy is simply sitting back and popping off headshots the good old-fashioned way.
#9: DK Bongos
If there’s one thing parents LOVED to hear, it was their children banging away on a set of plastic bongos. These things were meant to be played with the “Donkey Konga” series and “Donkey Kong Jungle Beat,” and they worked similar to the plastic guitars from “Guitar Hero”. Only… these were infinitely more annoying, seeing as how you had to bang on them to make them work. Plus, you can only look so cool sitting on the floor with a pair of cheap plastic bongos between your legs. But hey, they look fine sitting on the shelf as a piece of DK memorabilia, so there’s always that.
#8: Sega Activator
By the early ‘90s, virtual reality was all the rage and was being hailed as the next step in gaming. Problem is… virtual reality is incredibly expensive, so companies released cheap alternatives like the notoriously awful Virtua Boy and the Sega Activator. The latter was a plastic octagon that you sat on the floor and stood inside. It sent beams of invisible light towards the ceiling, and players were required to break these beams with their limbs, which in turn sent a signal to the console. And voila, virtual reality gaming! Only, it never worked, and users looked ridiculous standing inside of a cheap plastic octagon throwing shadow punches and kicks like they were Jean-Claude Van Damme. It’s a period appropriate reference.
#7: “Donkey Kong” Controller Gloves
The Nintendo 64 controllers were notoriously slippery, and many people had troubles keeping a grip, resulting in many a dropped and broken controller. Wait, no, that rarely, if ever, happened. But that didn’t stop Nintendo from making controller gloves! These gloves slipped over the controller, allowing for a stronger grip. Only, you had to give your controller a literal glove, and the bewildered stares you got from friends probably wasn’t worth the trouble. They also looked weirdly unrefined, as if maybe someone was making them at home? These could be purchased through Nintendo Power, but we don’t know of a single person who actually bought them. That said, they’re probably worth a pretty penny today, so who’s laughing now!?
#6: The “Kid Icarus” 3DS Stand
Silly-looking or not, we have respect for the accessories that were at least attempting to do something innovative. But lazy stuff like this really gets us worked up. Bundled with “Kid Icarus: Uprising” was a ridiculous stand on which you could rest the 3DS. It’s literally just a black piece of plastic with a little ledge to sit the console on. Yeah, you could whip it out every time you wanted to play the game and face some stares, or you could just use your pinky to stabilize the console like literally everyone else.
#5: The GameCube & N64 Microphones
We’re sorry, but yelling into a plastic microphone in your living room will never NOT look stupid. Like virtual reality, many gaming companies tried making microphones a thing. The GameCube had a grey microphone that looked like a plastic metal detector that was meant to be played with “Mario Party 6” and “7.” Meanwhile, the N64 had the more official sounding Voice Recognition Unit which consisted of a massive grey box, a thin microphone, and a yellow foam ball. To make matters worse, this was designed for high-pitched children’s voices, which meant it often didn’t work for adults. As if screaming into a yellow foam microphone sticking out of your controller wasn’t embarrassing enough.
#4: Game Boy Hip Clip
Man, the ‘90s really was a weird time for video game accessories. The Game Boy Color was all the rage back in the day, and like all portable handhelds, people wanted to carry them around so they could play it at their leisure. And what are you gonna do, carry it in your pocket or backpack? Of course not. You’re going to buy the hip clip! The hip clip was a little plastic holster that was placed on your hip so you could carry around your Game Boy Color and pretend to be a cowboy. Sure, it’s convenient, but it looks ridiculous and is guaranteed to turn a few heads. And no… not in a good way.
#3: Power Pad
The Power Pad mat is essentially a primitive form of “Dance Dance Revolution,” requiring the user to step on various pressure-sensor buttons to control the on-screen action. The idea behind the Power Pad really isn’t that bad. After all, “DDR” made an absolute killing doing the exact same thing. Unfortunately, it was released with the NES game “World Class Track Meet,” a game that required you to run in place for minutes at a time. And if we’ve learned anything from this fiasco, it’s that an adult running in place on a cheap plastic mat adorned with colorful buttons looks really, REALLY goofy.
#2: Aura Interactor
The Aura Interactor actually holds the distinction of being the first commercially available haptic suit. Unfortunately, that is the only cool thing about it. This complicated and obtrusive accessory was a massive black piece of plastic that you wore on your back like a backpack. It converted bass sounds from the game into physical vibrations. It was promoted alongside “Mortal Kombat II,” so users could physically feel the punches and kicks from their on-screen opponents. It was a glorified subwoofer that was strapped to your back and prevented you from sitting, so you really just looked like an off-brand Ghostbuster awkwardly standing in front of the TV.
#1: Konami LaserScope
The Konami LaserScope is truly one of the most baffling things in video game history. It was a wearable light gun that allowed the user to yell into the microphone to control any game compatible with the NES Zapper. It looked absolutely ridiculous, as it was a cheap piece of plastic that you wore like headphones, complete with a massive microphone and a protruding eyepiece that sat over the right eye. You also had to yell into the microphone, ensuring that you both looked AND sounded stupid while playing a relatively simple video game.
Have an idea you want to see made into a WatchMojo video? Check out our suggest page and submit your idea.
Step up your quiz game by answering fun trivia questions! Love games with friends? Challenge friends and family in our leaderboard! Play Now!