1995.
Early '95, April 23: The 'Satellaview' accessory for the Super Famicom launches and flops hard.
May 11: While the next-gen 'Project Ultra 64' is getting delayed due to development hell, rival Sega surprise-launches the 'Sega Saturn' in North America.
July 23: The ambitious next-gen handheld 'Virtual Boy' launches and flops hard.
August 14: The NES (North American Famicom) is discontinued.
September 9: Sony's 'PlayStation', which had been a sensation in Japan since December the previous year and threatened Nintendo's throne, launches in North America. Nintendo's unipolar dominance over the console market collapses.
Holiday Season: Records the worst performance in North American gaming history. Until the 2025 holiday season hit a new low, this stood as the worst holiday season for the industry for 30 years. That year, Nintendo released <Donkey Kong Country 2>, <Yoshi's Island>, and <Virtual Boy Wario Land>. Competitor Sega dropped heavy hitters like <Virtua Fighter 2> and <Panzer Dragoon>. Nintendo's best-performing title was actually SquareSoft's <Chrono Trigger>. SquareSoft then established 'DigiCube' with Sony in '96 and didn't release a game on a Nintendo console for the next 10 years. In '97, they drove the final nail in the coffin by making <Final Fantasy 7> a PS1 exclusive. Source: Nintendo Gallery [View Original]
"Users are revisiting Nintendo's dark ages, comparing the 1995 disaster to the Wii U era and the current 2025 slump, while marveling at how many classic games actually dropped during such a cursed year."
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