10 Games I Loved For My N64
Now this really is where the list get really hard as far as home consoles go as around this time I really started to read up on games I liked, and it also happened to be the times I was leaving school and had a job so I had more money and the ability to buy whatever games I wanted, really for any gamer that is bad because you will buy every game you want at that point and that really is what I did for two generation which will make the choices very well thought out.
My tastes were also far more refined by the age of about 16 so I was looking for much more challenging games and ones that could test the mind on many levels, and got heavily into RPGs, which sadly the N64 lacked and I would have to find that fix else where, but the games that I got for my N64 really shaped the way I came to appreciate games now because many set the marker for all future 3D games that followed them in their genres.
My tastes were also far more refined by the age of about 16 so I was looking for much more challenging games and ones that could test the mind on many levels, and got heavily into RPGs, which sadly the N64 lacked and I would have to find that fix else where, but the games that I got for my N64 really shaped the way I came to appreciate games now because many set the marker for all future 3D games that followed them in their genres.
10. Tetrisphere
Everyone has played Tetris right? Well you should have, so the unique take on the classic Russian puzzler that was released on the N64 is by far in my opinion the best, and is just as addictive if not more so that the original game on which it is based.
It isn't just Tetris in 3D either it has a very interesting concept where you have to try and get to the center of each sphere to release the robot trapped inside, and with all the levels and modes that there are on offer it certainly kept me going for ages. It really is one of the best puzzle games that I have ever played, and one I would recommend you pick up if you can get a hold of it, until it gets released on the Virtual Console.
It isn't just Tetris in 3D either it has a very interesting concept where you have to try and get to the center of each sphere to release the robot trapped inside, and with all the levels and modes that there are on offer it certainly kept me going for ages. It really is one of the best puzzle games that I have ever played, and one I would recommend you pick up if you can get a hold of it, until it gets released on the Virtual Console.
8. Mario Kart 64
The N64 also had an abundance of good racing games that also fit into most sub-genres of the category, but there is one game that I spent countless days just trying to better every last one of my times on the time trial mode and that was Mario Kart 64.
Despite the fact that the game is so heavily broken with a rather easy GP mode with little challenge to the dozens of glitched short cuts through out all the tracks, it is still a game I always came back to in an attempt to beat those times, and then there was the multi-player which is very arguably better than the original because there are now 4 layers involved, so really it is much much better for parties and general friend get togethers.
Despite the fact that the game is so heavily broken with a rather easy GP mode with little challenge to the dozens of glitched short cuts through out all the tracks, it is still a game I always came back to in an attempt to beat those times, and then there was the multi-player which is very arguably better than the original because there are now 4 layers involved, so really it is much much better for parties and general friend get togethers.
9. Turok 2: Seeds of Evil
There is one kind of game that the N64 excelled at and that was the FPS and right from the early days when Turok: Dinosaur Hunter was released you knew that this was going to be the console of choice for the genre, but it was the sequel that really pushed what the console could do by being the first to make use of the Expansion Pak add on to deliver hi-resolution graphics and it really did make a difference.
It was the massive single player campaign that really sucked me in on this one each level was huge and had loads of different areas to see and explore, not only that the level of detail in the visuals was really unheard of in a console FPS being able to blow limbs clean off, a hole in the enemy or even their head to be blown off, it's a shame that the multi-player couldn't match the solo campaign though.
It was the massive single player campaign that really sucked me in on this one each level was huge and had loads of different areas to see and explore, not only that the level of detail in the visuals was really unheard of in a console FPS being able to blow limbs clean off, a hole in the enemy or even their head to be blown off, it's a shame that the multi-player couldn't match the solo campaign though.
6. Goldeneye 007
Because of the N64 I came to love FPSs and despite enjoying the first Turok it wasn't that game that did it, no it was this one, never before did I think it was possible to have an FPS game on a console that played so well and had such an amazing structure behind it, because despite the levels being very small in comparison to Turok, the managed to seem just as large with all the objectives that need to be completed to progress and even bigger on the higher difficulties. The fact that just beating the solo campaign was never really enough for me I wanted to do it on each difficulty and then try and beat the times on each level to unlock the bonus cheat modes that were on offer.
None of that amazingness though matches the multi-player mode where running around and shooting all your friends was never as fun, and being able to do it as James Bond, was just the icing on the cake, and in all honesty I am not sure what mode I played more out of the two, but in my mind it propelled Rare even higher in my mind as they were such a high quality developer at the time.
None of that amazingness though matches the multi-player mode where running around and shooting all your friends was never as fun, and being able to do it as James Bond, was just the icing on the cake, and in all honesty I am not sure what mode I played more out of the two, but in my mind it propelled Rare even higher in my mind as they were such a high quality developer at the time.
7. Super Mario 64
Another genre that the N64 had a lot of was the 3D platformer and well it was pretty much all down to this amazing game right here, it was the game that the whole launch of the system was built around and the game that every 3D platform game has since been compared to, and rightfully so as it is an example of how to get things right first time.
Just beating this game was never enough for me though I had to get all 120 of those power stars so it did suck up a good few weeks of my life just doing that and then there was the times I went back just to play my favourite levels over again and I still will to this day as it is still that good.
Just beating this game was never enough for me though I had to get all 120 of those power stars so it did suck up a good few weeks of my life just doing that and then there was the times I went back just to play my favourite levels over again and I still will to this day as it is still that good.
5. WWF No Mercy
Yet another kind of game genre the N64 seemed to have a lot of and many good one too although in all honesty all the best ones all came from just a single developer and that was AKI, and I played each of their four releases that came out side of Japan and each one was quite a huge leap of the last one, and each time they managed to make them better in every last way.
Being that this was released at the highest point of professional wrestlings popularity and I was a huge fan I was always anticipating this one as I love the three previous games, and I can't say I was disappointed as it was everything I had hoped it would be and more and since no wrestling game has lived up to what this has delivered in my eyes anyway.
It was the multi-player that really sucked me in on the being able to do many of the things you could see on TV was what made it fun to try and emulate though, but it was the amazing depth of the create-a-wrestler mode that really got me hooked as with a little creativity you could make many wrestlers from the past present and future, as it really did have such a hidden depth that once you got going you might not have stopped, like me.
Being that this was released at the highest point of professional wrestlings popularity and I was a huge fan I was always anticipating this one as I love the three previous games, and I can't say I was disappointed as it was everything I had hoped it would be and more and since no wrestling game has lived up to what this has delivered in my eyes anyway.
It was the multi-player that really sucked me in on the being able to do many of the things you could see on TV was what made it fun to try and emulate though, but it was the amazing depth of the create-a-wrestler mode that really got me hooked as with a little creativity you could make many wrestlers from the past present and future, as it really did have such a hidden depth that once you got going you might not have stopped, like me.
4. Lylat Wars
Ok so I really like to shoot things and I really like space and talking animals? Who doesn't like them?
I will admit I was watching this a lot and when it came to release I got it straight away and I can't say I was ever disappointed, from the moment the movie like open sequence began I was hooked, the game really does feel a bit like an epic sci-fi move from the cute scenes taking a few passing references from the likes of Star Wars and Independence Day, but the experience is made better by the fact the whole game is fully voice acted, which was really unheard of at the time for a game on cartridge, and few other games on the system managed that feat either.
I remember spending a solid two weeks after school beating this game fully and getting all the medal on both difficulty setting, then there were the insane amount of times I played through the game just to beat my high score, and I did that several times in just one sitting. I can still do that to this day so you can imagine my anticipation for the remake on the 3DS.
I will admit I was watching this a lot and when it came to release I got it straight away and I can't say I was ever disappointed, from the moment the movie like open sequence began I was hooked, the game really does feel a bit like an epic sci-fi move from the cute scenes taking a few passing references from the likes of Star Wars and Independence Day, but the experience is made better by the fact the whole game is fully voice acted, which was really unheard of at the time for a game on cartridge, and few other games on the system managed that feat either.
I remember spending a solid two weeks after school beating this game fully and getting all the medal on both difficulty setting, then there were the insane amount of times I played through the game just to beat my high score, and I did that several times in just one sitting. I can still do that to this day so you can imagine my anticipation for the remake on the 3DS.
3. The Legend of Zelda: Majora's Mask
How do you follow up to a game that is considered by many to be the greatest game of all time?
Well to be fair that is really pretty hard as people are always going to have high expectations for the sequel, and for the most part Majora's Mask lived up to those being better looking and sounding that the original thanks to the requirement of the Expansion Pak to play, as well as the overall game world being much smaller, but it wasn't just from a technical standpoint this game managed to succeed, it had much more variety and challenge than Ocarina of Time thanks in most part to the way the game was structured where you were always up against a clock and if you failed to do it you had to start all over again, including recollecting certain items as you lost many things when starting again.
I personally loved the darker feel of this game and the unique puzzles of the game, and as a Zelda fan in general I loved how different it was to the rest of the main series.
Well to be fair that is really pretty hard as people are always going to have high expectations for the sequel, and for the most part Majora's Mask lived up to those being better looking and sounding that the original thanks to the requirement of the Expansion Pak to play, as well as the overall game world being much smaller, but it wasn't just from a technical standpoint this game managed to succeed, it had much more variety and challenge than Ocarina of Time thanks in most part to the way the game was structured where you were always up against a clock and if you failed to do it you had to start all over again, including recollecting certain items as you lost many things when starting again.
I personally loved the darker feel of this game and the unique puzzles of the game, and as a Zelda fan in general I loved how different it was to the rest of the main series.
2. Perfect Dark
Rare always had a tough task on following up on Goldeneye 007, but not only did they manage it the delivered what was the best console FPS of the generation, not only did it feature a challenging single player but like the expectation that was on it's shoulders it delivered a far greater multi-player experience.
One thing that was need like many late N64 was the Expansion Pak to play the single player mode as all you could get with out it was a cut down multi-player mode, and no one wants to buy the game just for that, and much like many expected the single player mode was much more cinematic thanks to all the cut scenes and the huge amount of in game speech and really just a good overall polish to the game as a whole.
Much like Goldeneye I probably spent equal amounts of time on both the challenging solo campaign and the multi-player mode, as an overall game it surpasses the game that came before and adds many elements that are still used in FPS games to this day.
One thing that was need like many late N64 was the Expansion Pak to play the single player mode as all you could get with out it was a cut down multi-player mode, and no one wants to buy the game just for that, and much like many expected the single player mode was much more cinematic thanks to all the cut scenes and the huge amount of in game speech and really just a good overall polish to the game as a whole.
Much like Goldeneye I probably spent equal amounts of time on both the challenging solo campaign and the multi-player mode, as an overall game it surpasses the game that came before and adds many elements that are still used in FPS games to this day.
1. The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time
There was probably one game that received more hype on the N64 than any other game and it was the game that many people put at the top of their greatest games list too, so does it really come as any shock that it is the game that I loved the most on my N64?
The hype surrounding the game just grew and grew the closer it got to its launch and when it was finally released and the reviews started coming in and they were all pretty much saying the same thing that it was pretty much the best game ever made at the time I knew my anticipation was only going to grow.
When I finally got around to playing the games I was pretty blown away right from the very beginning of this epic quest that was happening in front of me, for two solid weeks I played this game, only stopping to eat and sleep, and explored every little corner with in the game and generally just taking in the whole game as it came and there was a lot to take in, and no matter how many times I go back to the game it never gets boring and never feels old, truly a masterpiece in every sense of the word.
The hype surrounding the game just grew and grew the closer it got to its launch and when it was finally released and the reviews started coming in and they were all pretty much saying the same thing that it was pretty much the best game ever made at the time I knew my anticipation was only going to grow.
When I finally got around to playing the games I was pretty blown away right from the very beginning of this epic quest that was happening in front of me, for two solid weeks I played this game, only stopping to eat and sleep, and explored every little corner with in the game and generally just taking in the whole game as it came and there was a lot to take in, and no matter how many times I go back to the game it never gets boring and never feels old, truly a masterpiece in every sense of the word.
This list overall was very hard to write and just pick ten games for it as I spent the best part of my late teenage years playing my N64, and could quite easily put another 10 games any where on this list from the sheer amount I got out of the console, and for that very reason it probably remains my favourite Nintendo console and even my favourite generation of gaming as 3D gaming was realling at it's very early stage some even those some of the games looked basic they did and still do retain much of their charm, and of course near the end of the systems life span there were some truly refined games that shown you didn't need masses of storage space to make a good looking game that was also large in size.