Getting into the console business is an expensive, risky proposition. The costs are insane, the customer base is hostile to newcomers and putting together a cutting-edge machine means either slapping on a prohibitive price tag or losing hundreds of dollars on every sale. With that in mind, it's no surprise that the history of videogames is littered with forgotten systems that never even had a chance to fail.

Some were the brainchildren of naïve dreamers who ran out of money, others were possibly scams and still others were just deemed a waste of money by their glowering corporate overlords. But all of them have fascinating stories to tell, especially if you need a reason to never try and make your own game console. Here are some of the most notable examples: