While Apple and Bandai had high hopes for the console to succeed not only on the strength of its game software (which turned out to be weak), but also the unique and accessible nature of its computer technology (lackluster), an unforgiving consumer market had no interest in a piece of hardware that it saw as trying to do too many things.
In 1997, newly reinstalled Apple exec Steve Jobs put an end to all Mac clones. The Apple Pippin platform ceased development, and Bandai ended all production of its consoles later that year. All remaining @World units were sent back to Japan where they were rebranded as Atmark and dumped in stores.
Today, collectors interested in testing Apple’s first attempt at a game console should look to eBay, where rare, boxed units of both the @World and the Atmark consoles can go for more than $700.
The Pippin remains Apple's only foray directly into gaming, a stunning misfire for a giant with an otherwise sterling success rate. The tech giant shifted its focus back towards innovation in the computing and consumer tech realm.
Fast-forward 20 years from the console’s debut. A new console launched in 2015 would be dead in the water if it lacked the same capabilities that the Pippin failed to popularize. The world was not quite ready for a console that saw itself as not just for games, but as a multimedia platform.
After striking gold with gaming on its iOS devices, though, Apple is beginning to demonstrate a renewed interest in the video game industry. At this year’s DICE, Apple’s vice president of the iPhone Greg Joswiak told Polygon that "the success of the App Store is really tied to this incredibly diverse developer community we have [and] their amazing games."
Will its next attempt at reinventing video games prove more successful than the Pippin? We may be finding out sooner than later: big news is likely to come out of this week’s annual event. A new report suggests that the next Apple TV will have a huge emphasis on gaming. Like the Pippin, it looks to be another multimedia machine trying to do it all. This time, however, game consoles as multi-purpose entertainment systems are the norm.
Either way, with the Pippin as Apple’s benchmark, there’s nowhere else to go but up.