Games
Discover facts about games. Small discoveries that change the way you see familiar things.
Games
The PlayStation 2 that could record live TV
In a bizarre attempt to conquer the entire living room, engineers mashed a console and a television recording box into a single white monolith. The PSX…
Discover more
Why the PS4 controller has a bright light
For years, everyone assumed that aggressively bright LED bar blinding them in dark rooms was just a terrible aesthetic choice. It turns out Sony was playing…
Discover more
The Wii sensor bar is basically two infrared lights
That sleek gray bar resting on top of your television contains absolutely zero complex tracking technology. It is literally just two clusters of infrared…
Discover more
Microsoft's HD-DVD gamble died with Blu-ray's victory
Before Blu-ray officially won the optical media throne, there was a bitter, costly battle for living room supremacy. Microsoft boldly produced an external…
Discover more
Switch Lite literally cannot connect to a television screen
The entire selling point of the namesake console was its ability to seamlessly swap between handheld and television modes. So naturally, the company released…
Discover more
Xbox One once demanded a camera in your living room
Nothing terrifies consumers more than a mandatory microphone and camera staring at them from the entertainment center. The console originally launched with a…
Discover more
STACKY FOR IPHONEA bigger world.
One discovery
at a time.
Keep discovering with Stacky. Interesting facts in an app that is always within reach.
Why the PlayStation 3 used a movie font
Brand synergy usually makes sense, unless you just lazily copy and paste your movie fonts onto your expensive electronics. Sony explicitly utilized the exact…
Discover more
Why Dreamcast memory cards screamed at startup
Adding a screen to a storage block was revolutionary until you realized the electrical logistics. The tiny peripheral ran entirely on watch batteries, meaning…
Discover more
PlayStation 2 required a bulky screw-on internet attachment
To take the highest-selling console of all time online, you had to perform minor surgery on the back of the unit. The Network Adapter was a chunky block of…
Discover more
Nintendo once sold a USB stick for handheld internet
Back when routers were complicated and wireless connections terrified the general public, a ridiculous stopgap solution was sold. It was a dedicated USB…
Discover more
Why four-player PlayStation games needed a bulky adapter
While their rivals brilliantly built four controller ports directly into the front of their machines, Sony chose violence. If you wanted to play with a group,…
Discover more
Game Boy Advance SP finally added backlighting to handhelds
After a solid decade of squinting under streetlamps and purchasing ridiculous worm-light attachments, salvation arrived. The clamshell redesign finally…
Discover more
Sony forced Vita owners to use exclusive memory cards
Nothing kills consumer goodwill faster than a hidden hardware tax. To prevent unauthorized tinkering, the company refused to let their gorgeous handheld use…
Discover more
Why Nintendo's Virtual Boy saw everything in red
Who wouldn't want to strap a heavy visor to their skull and stare directly into the abyss of crimson lasers? This infamous hardware failure utilized…
Discover more
Original Xbox shipped with a communicative headset default
By including a cheap microphone in every single box, a legendary era of unfiltered voice communication was born. While other companies treated online chat as…
Discover more
Why the Nintendo Switch kickstand pops off
Flimsy plastic tabs are notorious for snapping when handled aggressively by children. Anticipating this inevitable destruction, engineers designed the tiny…
Discover more
Why the Nintendo 2DS looked like a doorstop
How do you sell a handheld built entirely around a stereoscopic screen gimmick to a younger demographic? You strip out the stereoscopic screen completely,…
Discover more
Nintendo DS utilized resistive touch instead of capacitive
While smartphones were teaching the world to tap screens lightly with their fingertips, this dual-screened brick required actual physical pressure. Resistive…
Discover more
Switch OLED upgraded the screen but kept the exact same chip
Consumers eagerly awaited a massive internal upgrade to fix the aging, sluggish performance of their beloved hybrid console. Instead, they were handed a…
Discover more
The GameCube that also played DVDs
Since Nintendo stubbornly refused to let their tiny discs play standard movies, another manufacturer stepped in to fix it. The 'Q' was a highly reflective,…
Discover more
Microsoft sells a controller with interchangeable magnets
For the player who believes spending two hundred dollars will finally fix their terrible aim. The Elite controller features metal thumbsticks and back paddles…
Discover more
Nintendo 3DS utilized cameras to project stereoscopic depth
Glasses-free 3D sounds like pure sorcery, but it was really just clever optical manipulation. The top screen sent slightly different images to each of your…
Discover more
Xbox turned a console joke into a real mini-fridge
Sometimes the smartest corporate response to internet mockery is to just blindly lean into the joke. After millions of people pointed out that their…
Discover more
Why old Xbox controllers had memory-card slots
Despite having a massive internal hard drive, the controllers were still built with deep, gaping holes in the top. These slots were designed for thick, bulky…
Discover more