Honest Reviews of the N64 Games I've Played

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The Nintendo 64 gives me flashbacks. You may wonder, how can a console video game system do that? Well, think back to the release of the Super Nintendo Entertainment System (SNES). At that time, the console I owned was the late, not-so-great Sega Master System. Well, the system was good, but the software pretty much sucked all around. So when it was time for the Genesis and SNES to arrive, I was pretty much in favor of the Genesis. I never got one, but rest assured this story will come to a point eventually.

The Sega Genesis dominated the market for a relatively long time, largely due to the bigger number of titles available. The SNES languished a bit because, like the N64, games were slow to be released. Then I played Final Fantasy III. This game sucked me in right from the start. My brother and I rented the deck and game and played it for pretty much three days straight. The SNES had arrived. Title started coming out much faster than before. Things like Donkey Kong Country, Rare's showcase of 16-bit technology. Needless to say, I was firmly set on the superiority of the SNES, with the exception of sports titles. For some odd reason, the Genesis has always held that crown.

By now you may be thinking, "He's defected from Sony. He's now an N-junkie." Wrong. But I'm no longer a PSX disciple like I was when the 64 was released. Yes, the library holds a pathetic number of titles, and a disappointing amount of them are dismal games. But this is not the fault of the system. The Nintendo 64 is a very good piece of electronics, as is the PlayStation (lack of RAM and quality questions notwithstanding). Yes, Saturn too, but there we run into the development problem again. I own a Nintendo 64, I (half) own a Sony PlayStation, and I love them both.

So here is the list of the games I have played on the Nintendo 64, with varying degrees of playing time between each one. Consequently, the validity of each review varies from one to the next. My RPG-bias may also show through. So if you think I'm totally off on a review, blame that.

• Mario 64
• Pilotwings 64
• Cruis'n USA
• Turok: Dinosaur Hunter
• Extreme-G
• Mario Kart 64
• 007: Goldeneye
• Diddy Kong Racing
• San Francisco Rush (updated review coming soon)
• Top Gear Rally (updated review coming soon)
• Zelda 64

An obvious place to start is Mario 64. Mechanically, this game is superb, save for the somewhat annoying problems with camera angles. Graphics and animation are extremely impressive, something I expected the N64 would excel at. It turns out I was right. The 64 bit processor and essentially instant access of a cartride-based system lend the 64 blistering frame rate, I think it's 30 fps for this game, and deep graphical capability. The controls are good to my unprofessional tastes, though the occasionally slippery joystick plagues directional acuraccy, a malady affecting any game played with the standard control pad. The programmers did a wonderful job with Mario's various actions. He has a wider selection of things he can do physically than almost any game character around.

I will now move into some little programming extras that I found interesting and/or amusing.
Mario going to sleep is a variation on a concept that is not exactly new; Sonic the Hedgehog and Taz in "Tazmania" get impatient when you don't do anything. The presentation here is good for a better laugh, though. Granted, the routine loses luster after the first time you've sat through it. For those that haven't seen it, when you don't move for a few minutes, Mario intones, "I'm a-tired." He then proceeds to sit, and later doze off and lie down. The thing that got my siblings and me to chuckle was the "Ah, spaghetti." "Ah, Lasagne." "Ah, ravioli" in Mario's electronic dreams.

I also like the touch of Mr. Plumber being able to lose his hat. When you have no hat you incur more damage. And he looks funny too, especially having seen his head covered in over ten years' worth of games. Then you have to go back to the level where you lost it to get it again, if you even left the level without it.

Moving beyond the technical, Mario is a shallow game. Story is, of course, formula Mario. (The most original Mario plot I've seen is in Super Mario RPG by Square. Don't laugh too hard; it's really an okay game.) Bowser's back, and he's got the Princess, who has a name, it seems: Peach. Levels are creative and well made, an challenge is abundant if one decides to go for all the stars, but this RPG devotee finds something lacking in story/characters/etc. Having now bored you with commentary on this game, allow me to move on.

More Mario 64 images

• Mario 64 box
• Mario with his wing cap

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This isn't really a bad game. But it's not really a good game either. Controls are (I'm guessing) fairly true-to-life, and the graphics are decent. Vehicles are interesting and the pilot selection is rather well done, what with the large differences in performance from pilot to pilot.

The problem is it's boring. Action is sorely lacking, even for a sim. You never really go very fast, and you get bored rather quickly. While I never played the SNES Pilotwings, I imagine it suffered from the same ailments. A good game needs enemies, or at least an opponent besides yourself and the clock. Not a complete flop, I suppose, but a definite rental game. I don't suggest the purchase of this title to anyone.

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I haven't played all the 64 games, but so far this game rests on my list as the worst for the new Nintendo yet. Granted it's a cartridge, but better sound, please. Graphics and animation fall well below par. I don't know what happened in the translation (I love the game in the arcade), but something went wrong. Rushed programmers, maybe. I can't say too much about this, because I haven't played it that much. One gets bored after 30 minutes or so. Often less, depending upon the player. I'm cutting this review off here, because I have nothing else to say about this disappointment other than "Do not purchase."

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This is the first game I bought for my console, one of the first released, and still stands as one of the best titles available. It's rather difficult to make a first-person shooter stand out these days since the market is flooded with them. But the world of Turok is much bigger and more open than most, choosing mostly outdoor locations rather than dungeons, caves, and space stations, etc. The major failing in this game is the fogging effect. This is implemented in many games on the 64 to reduce pop-up in the background. It does the job, but can severely reduce how far you can see. It doesn't detract from gameplay, however. Once things have come out of the fog, the textures are very good and provide a high level of realism.

Control in this title was completely original when it was released. A similar setup is also available as an option in Goldeneye. Instead of moving Turok, the control stick controls where he faces. Movement is controlled by the four "C" buttons. This precludes tip-toeing or walking slowly, but it doesn't really matter here. You can, however, use the D-pad to toggle between run and walk.

Weapons in this game are fun. I haven't advanced far enough to have earned any of the more powerful weapons, but the automatic shotgun is a cool piece of equipment. Other fare includes such standards as a semi-automatic pistol, shotgun, assault rifle, knife, bow, grenade launcher, fusion cannon..... OK, so the fusion cannon isn't exactly standard fare. But it looks damn cool. And killing things with these weapons is fun, in part to some of the really good death scenes you get to watch. Sometimes the victims just die, other times they have blood spurting from their neck until falling to the ground, or (my favorite) they DO fall right away, then push themselves along the ground with their legs, and finally turn over and give up the ghost. Some of these guys would get Oscars in a film if they gave Oscars for best death scene.

I'm running out of time for the moment, but rest assured there will be more on this game to come.

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While I haven't logged enough time on this game to afford it a proper reviewing, I can always say what I think anyway. You can do that when you have your own page. First off, this has to be one of the fastest games I've ever played this side of WipeOut XL. Indeed, this game has often been accused of trying to recreate WipeOut for the Nintendo 64. To an extent this is true, and to an extent it succeds, but if you want WipeOut 64, wait for F-Zero X. Or WipeOut 64 even. I personally can't wait. Concept: A racing series with VERY fast vehicles that run on two wheels. They're not motorcycles, being that they're much larger and completely enclose the driver. Races are run on WipeOut-esque tracks, with lots of turns and dramatic changes in elevation. And at 60 fps, you're hard-pressed to not feel exhilirated during a close race.

What struck me was how difficult it was to adjust to the controls. Perhaps it was the controller, but steering seemed overly sensitive to me, having come off most recently playing Top Gear Rally, which has control that is much less quick. Racing in single player mode is fun if not groundbreaking. Admittedly, it's tough to break ground in any genre, particularly racing. You have your requisite time trial, single race, and championship modes as a single player. Multiplayer attempts to recreate Twisted Metal style competition with an XG bent, and succeeds as much as one could expect. I didn't particularly like playing this way for what are largely intangible reasons. This game was concieved as a racer, and does best when racing. Head to head racing is equally good, if not quite as slick as single player.

Overall this is a quality title, and I'm fairly confident in asserting that any racing fan will be happy with the purchase of this title, though its appeal may not reach to those that aren't fans of the genre.

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Mario Kart 64

This is my favorite 64 game yet, and the second one I bought. I love it when I have analog controls in my racing games! By the way, racing is my favorite video game category after RPGs. Space flight games such as Descent and X-Wing vs. TIE Fighter come next. There's not alot to say about this game. Graphics and animation are good. Pop-up in the distance is minimal. Track selection is wide enough to keep the game interesting, and the different classes are well divided for appropriate skill levels. Personal favorite track: DK's Jungle Parkway in reverse. In two-player GP mode. This is because the frame rate has to slow down a bit, so it seems like you're going insanely fast. The effect on this track is more pronounced (apparent speed boost, not frame rate reduction) than on any other track. Only gripe so far: Differences between the racers aren't pronounced enough. Toad and Peach are supposed to be the lightweights and be faster and drift more. Yoshi, Mario, and Luigi fall in the middle. Bowser, Wario, and Donkey Kong weigh in heavy, and are intended to be slower, but drift less. Unfortunately, the difference is not very intelligible, though it is there. Perhaps this was intended by the programmers, but I find it disappointing. Oh, and the AI for opposing racers can get frustrating sometimes. No matter how far ahead you are, they can always catch up. Replay value is enhanced greatly by multiplayer options, though link play (a la PSX and Saturn) would be nice as an option so you wouldn't have that split-screen effect. Alright, I think I've said all I need to on this contribution to the N64 library for now. More will come, I'm sure.

Other Mario Kart 64 images

• A poster for the game
• Image of the Calimari Track

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The time I've spent on this game ranks next under Mario Kart. And I feel it's time justifiably spent. Money well spent, too. Goldeneye is a great game. It may be the first-person DOOM-like perspective, but it is by no means a DOOM/Quake clone. This game involves thinking and stealth. Coming out guns blazing is a last resort here. And one I had to use much too often.

A big plus for this game is the weapons. Namely the sniper rifle and the Golden Gun. The sniper rifle is my favorite. Those who have played may ask, "Why not the Golden Gun?" One reason is that I rarely choose "special" weapons as my favorites. (FYI: My favorite DOOM weapon is the double-barrel shotgun.) The sniper rifle is the most fun to use. I love the zoom and the laser sight. I'd much rather lie in the shadows and pick people off than run in the middle of the crossfire firing randomly. Which, as I said, I have had to do WAY too much. I havent' exactly spent enough time on the game to become at all good. Case in point: I can't seem to complete the Statue Park level yet. But give me time.

Audio conversation would have been interesting. But then again, vocals is the 64's second-biggest shortfall. (Memory space, or more precisely lack thereof, comes in 1st.) Text is fine, though, for most purposes. It's worked for years. No reason to start complaining now. Especially since it's cart format.

It's easy to point out a good game's good points, and frustratingly easy to spot bad points in a bad game. My inability to find glaring inadequacies in my relatively brief sessions lends itself to the conclusion that this is a very good game. Detractors of the 1st-person platform will obviously give it thumbs down. But impartial observation reveals an extremely solid offering. I see this as pretty close to a required purchase for any N64 owner.

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I, um, lost part of this review before I got it posted, so it's a bit incomplete. Sorry.

A part of this game that I like alot is the vehicles. In addition to the requisite cars, you can have a plane or hovercraft, depending on the course you're racing. Each of the eight playable characters behaves a bit differently in each vehicle, but I didn't play the game enough (and had no instruction manual to tell me) to determine exactly how each one acts. Come to think of it, I didn't even play every character. One thing I can say is that Diddy works well in any vehicle, and the yellow mouse-looking creature simply sucks in the hovercraft. But overall the plane and hovercraft are pretty fun to use. The car is nothing special, but does have a neat trick. When using the R-button slide, you can hit the brake and do a reeeeally tight turn.

This game has suffered from endless comparisons to and accusations of ripping off Mario Kart. This is, to an extent, justified. But I think in execution it differs enough from its precursor to avoid being a copy. Granted, this is kart racing with weapons that do no permanent damage. But Mario Kart does not include more than one vehicle, DOES include different race classes, and sports a multiplayer mode. The last aspect is where DKR has taken a lot of criticism. A huge part of what made Mario Kart and Goldeneye such marvelous game was the multiplayer modes. Any gamer will tell you that the ability to play against or with a friend on a game increases replay value tenfold if not more. Replay value is a very important aspect in today's extremely competitive game market, and ultimately gives Mario Kart the nod for the prize of Best Kart Game on N64. But if you're a fan of Mario Kart and have some funds on hand, I doubt you'll regret the purchase of this one.

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This game has to be one of the best arcade racers ever. I just wish arcades weren't so friggin' expensive. So when I heard it was coming home to the 64, I thought to myself, "I've got to get my hands on this game." Then I played it, albeit extremely briefly. I have never played a racer with such touchy controls. Then again, I played it in a Best Buy, so the controller may be to blame. I'll try it again soon, but for now I say leave it in the arcade, stunning graphics aside.

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I've logged very little playing time on this sucker, but what I've seen I like. Controls can seem touchy at times, but can be customized to an extent and are fairly easy to adjust to. I also like rally-type racing, and road racing has been done to death lately. Of course, with MRC (Multi Racing Championship), Rally Cross (PSX), Need for Speed V-Rally (PSX), this may be overdone soon as well. I'll play it more soon; look for more info then.

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Yes, I know I can't review it because it's not released, but I have some words to say about it anyway.

This game and Square (who developed exclusively for Nintendo before the release of the PSX) were the reasons I intended to buy an N64 when I heard about it, but Square's defection to Sony locked me into a PSX. I still look forward with anticipation to Zelda 64, especially since I now own the system for which it's intended. There are also enough other decent titles to justify the decicion.

Go to The N64 Gallery to see great images like this one and also get tons of other N64 info and pics.

That wraps up my current reviews of N64 games. Look for some more to come as I play more titles.

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