24 polygonal years of glory.
24 years ago, Nintendo released among the United States the Nintendo 64 and you know what? It’s not the best console out there, but it’s still great. Personally the best console crown in my opinion goes to the Super Nintendo, but the Nintendo 64 is such an oddity that you can’t help but love it. It helped pioneer 3-D games, introduced a decent analog stick, and had a wacky ass controller that by today’s standards is odd as hell.
Games like Super Mario 64, Waverace 64, Zelda: Ocarina of Time & Majora’s Mask, Goldeneye 007, Perfect Dark, Star Fox 64….there is bunch of great games on this thing. Also, 4 player deathmatch on Goldeneye? Some of the best memories.
You read a little earlier that it’s not the best console right? Cause yea…it’s not….try playing some of the games that aren’t the super memorable ones and Nintendo 64 really hasn’t held up well over the years. The analog sticks are crusty feeling, the graphics are blocky, most of the games are just awful (aside from the first party stuff)…but that’s also what makes it interesting too! It was such a new technology back then that developers were trying to figure it out as much as we were…you might return to your old N64 sometimes and have some fun for a bit, but eventually you’ll pop in your Super Nintendo and have a little more fun.
Nintendo 64 is actually part of the centerpiece of my sleeve tattoo because it was that last console that I cherished as a kid. I play video games yea, but they no longer have that ‘childhood wonder’ for me…cause well…I’m an adult, with a mortgage and a kid on the way. I put the N64 on that tattoo because it reminds me that at some point childhood ends, but never forget to have fun.
I guess that’s why Nintendo branded it as ‘The Fun Machine.’
