The YouTube channel Stop Skeletons From Fighting made an entertaining and informative series of videos on the Zeebo and its games. Definitely recommend it.

looks like a console from a 90s pop music video

Zeebo

The Zeebo is a video game console that was released in 2009, primarily targeted at emerging markets. It’s price was 499 Brazilian Reals in Brazil and 2499 Mexican Pesos in Mexico, equaling to around 89 US Dollars.

It had remade versions of games from mobile phones and other consoles, such as FIFA 09, Resident Evil 4, Crash Bandicoot Nitro Kart 3D, etc. It also had several exclusive games, these being the Zeebo Extreme, Boomerang Sports and Zeebo Football Club franchises and the game “Un juego de huevos”, an action game based on the Mexican film “Una película de huevos”.

Preinstalled games were different in both Brazil and Mexico:

Mexico: Crash Bandicoot Nitro Kart 3D, Pac Mania, Tekken 2, Zenonia and Zeebo Family Pack

Brazil: FIFA 09, Need for Speed: Carbon Own the City and Brain Challenge

Some characteristics of the Zeebo included a 3G connectivity and low-cost gaming. When you bought the console you would get 1 hour of free Internet, and you would recharge by buying “Zeebocreditos” (that were used to buy games in the storefront as well)

The console had failed because of it’s limited game library, the competition, perception of quality (the console was made with bad quality materials, and the graphics were comparable to a PSX) and technological limitations.

The Zeebo flopped so bad, that on 2011, Zeebo announced they were going to cease all operations in Brazil and Mexico, and that the online storefront was going to shut down.