In the magical mid-1990s, when we already had got our (second-hand) 486 PC and I had both a NES and SNES, I for some reason got my paws on an old Atari "XE Game System" (8-bit, 1987). It had a cartridge called "Flight Simulator II" which was very fascinating to me, even though I was able to run DOOM.
The reason it was so fascinating to me was the way it drew "real 3D" graphics, albeit very primitive wireframe such, and at a very low FPS. I remember sitting there figuring out how to fly around with this virtual air plane and just watching the scenery and being amazed by how that ancient machine could draw such environments which even the SNES seemed to struggle with. Starwing (AKA Starfox) used a special chip in the cartridge and still wasn't as impressive to me, since it was so limited in where you could go. It was "on rails".
In contrast, this "flying game" was really some kind of simulation, where I could explore the 3D world as freely as the air plane would let me move around. Nevermind the fact that there was virtually nothing in it; the few objects that were there were extremely cool to me. In my mind, not at all understanding technical limitations other than "this is quite old", there was a real chance that I could fly away and find some exciting new areas if I just spent long enough watching the screen and making sure the plane didn't crash. There was truly a sense of wonder, even though it was ridiculously outdated even back then.
But wasn't this machine roughly the same in power as a NES? And the NES not only did never get a port of this game/simulation, but had nothing like it that I know of. And, as mentioned, even the SNES (16-bit, next generation) didn't even have this kind of free-roaming simulation. The "Mode 7" visuals were also very cool, but kind of "cheating" and "flat" somehow. And the fanciest 3D games for that console, such as Stunt Race FX, had to use expensive special chips inside the cartridges.
Was there a technical reason for the lack of a NES port of this? Maybe that primitive computer/console was inferior in every way to the NES (not to mention the SNES), but had the one "pro" in that it was able to draw real 3D environments in a way which both failed to accomplish? But why would that be? I find that difficult to believe.
Or was the reason simply that they didn't think the simulation would be fun to play/attractive for the NES audience? I can think of countless NES games that were released which would've been deadly dull to me as a kid -- far more boring than this 3D world, even if I didn't care at all about the fact that it was a flight simulation.