A long time ago – in what we over 30s fondly recall as “the good old days” – a console with a rather unusual controller emerged. On June 23, 1996, the Nintendo 64 launched in Japan. Today marks its 30th anniversary. Here in Europe, we had to wait nearly a full year for this gray box, with its strange three-pronged controller, to arrive on store shelves. We poured over gaming magazines, meticulously studied screenshots, and every bit of news about the Nintendo 64 felt like a glimpse into the future.
And then there were the commercials.
It’s hard to think of the Nintendo 64 without recalling those advertisements that made everything seem incredibly cool. The ad for Super Mario 64, where Mario could suddenly move freely in three dimensions, made it feel like the world of video games had just taken a giant leap forward. And who can forget the person frantically spinning the analog stick on the controller to demonstrate how revolutionary analog controls were?
Today, those commercials have a somewhat dated charm. At the time, they embodied pure future. The vibration functions, now standard, also debuted on this console. Do you remember the shock when you plugged in a Rumble Pak to the controller and, for the first time, could feel explosions in the palm of your hands? As soon as the console arrived, it quickly became a natural gathering point. During breaks, discussions were lively. Someone claimed to have found a secret area. Another had heard you could unlock a hidden character. Goku was in Smash, and Carl Bildt was a secret final boss in Perfect Dark. Rumors spread faster than facts, and it didn’t matter if these stories were true. Imagination filled the gaps. And the gaming didn’t stop once school was over.
Evenings were dedicated to Mario Kart 64, Mario Party, Mario Golf, and Mario Tennis. Friendships were tested, rematches were demanded, and laughter echoed long after the console was turned off. You surely remember, if you’ve ever played Mario Party, who stole your star? Super Mario 64 paved the way for an entirely new generation of games, but it was all these spin-offs that made the Nintendo 64 a social experience.
Spending so much time in front of the console also had an unexpected side effect. After a while, I became a sort of local game guide. Whenever someone was stuck, missed a key, or didn’t know how to solve a puzzle, my phone would often ring. Sometimes, a few instructions were enough. Other times, I had to bike over to a friend’s house to show them exactly what to do. My younger friends, in particular, often came to me when their adventures hit a dead end. Back then, there were no video walkthroughs, no mobile forums, and no searches that yielded answers in seconds. The solution came from whoever had played the game the longest. Or from someone who had bought a strategy guide.
And most of the time, it always revolved around one game: The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time. For me, it remains the greatest game ever made. Not just on the Nintendo 64. Not just by Nintendo. But of all time.
There have been games that were more visually stunning, more ambitious, and technically more advanced. But none have captured that sense of adventure in quite the same way. Ocarina of Time created a world that felt alive, mysterious, and full of possibilities. Hyrule wasn’t just a map to traverse. It was a place you could escape to. I still remember how I felt when Link left the Kokiri Forest for the first time, and the Hyrule Field stretched out before him. It felt like the whole world had opened up to him. Every path led to something new. Every cave hid a secret. Every ocarina melody seemed magical.
The Forest Temple offered an almost dreamlike atmosphere. The Shadow Temple was truly unsettling. The Spirit Temple was grand and epic. And the Water Temple… well, the Water Temple likely caused as much frustration as fascination for an entire generation of players. Even today, I remember exactly what certain rooms looked like, how the music resonated, and the feeling you get when you solve a puzzle you’ve been struggling with for hours. This is also why the phone often rang. Someone was stuck in a temple. Someone else couldn’t find the next clue.
Perhaps this is why Ocarina of Time still means so much to me. It wasn’t just a game I played. It was a game I lived in. And sometimes, I had the opportunity to help others find their way in that same world that I myself never really wanted to leave. We mustn’t forget its direct sequel, Majora’s Mask, either. The smiling moon above and that race against time, those unique side quests where every character had a story to tell. The masks in the game that granted unique abilities… but at what cost? Link didn’t exactly look thrilled to put them on, screaming at the top of his lungs as the metamorphosis occurred.
The console didn’t just offer Nintendo’s games; there was also a leading British company called Rare. For a few magical years, this studio could seemingly do no wrong. Banjo-Kazooie and Banjo-Tooie offered humor, charm, and a sense of discovery that few games have matched. Banjo-Kazooie is on par with Mario 64. GoldenEye 007 gave us countless multiplayer fun nights, where playing as Oddjob could ruin friendships.
Perfect Dark pushed the formula even further and, with the small red memory expansion, the “Expansion Pak,” demonstrated the console’s full remaining power. 4 MB of RAM was no joke. Diddy Kong Racing gave Mario Kart a run for its money, while Jet Force Gemini dared to be both bizarre and ambitious. And how can we forget Conker’s Bad Fur Day? This game was truly unusual and offbeat for a Nintendo console. A real foul-mouthed little rogue squirrel. I remember that huge pile of poop, The Great Mighty Poo, suddenly bursting into opera – brilliant! Even today, I still know that song by heart.
Donkey Kong 64 gave us more collectibles than one could reasonably expect, but also one of the richest adventures on the platform. In addition to Rare’s exploits, Pokémon also made its 3D debut on the console. With Pokémon Stadium and Pokémon Snap, we got to see what pocket monsters looked like in 3D.
And then there were those favorite games, which may never have won critical acclaim. Ocean Software’s Mission: Impossible is one of them. I know it’s far from perfect. But some games find a place in your heart that critics can never measure. I remember the spy missions, the atmosphere, and, most importantly, that completely absurd backflip Ethan Hunt did every time he died.
Mischief Makers was as strange as it was brilliant. A game overflowing with personality, creativity, and ideas that no one else seemed to dare explore. It truly didn’t fit anywhere, and perhaps that’s precisely why it remains so special.
When it came to settling scores the old-fashioned way, Fighters Destiny often did the trick. With its atypical scoring system and emphasis on technique, it offered fights that felt quite unique in a fighting game genre that wasn’t exactly the console’s strong suit. The console also gave birth to the Super Smash Bros. series – a series that has continued to grow and flourish over the years.
Towards the end of the console’s lifespan, Paper Mario also made an appearance – a game that still exudes as much warmth, humor, and charm as it did at its release. Its storybook aesthetic gave this adventure a timeless quality from the outset. The port of Resident Evil 2 was a welcome addition to the console – a port that remains incredibly impressive even today, considering the limited storage space on cartridges.
Thirty years later, it’s easy to talk about polygons, technical advancements, and cult games. But when I think of the Nintendo 64, graphics aren’t the first thing that comes to mind.
I remember the phone calls about Zelda.
I remember the multiplayer nights with Smash, Kart, and GoldenEye.
I remember the quirky music and sound effects of Banjo-Kazooie.
I remember Conker’s epic opera.
I remember Pokémon Stadium and everyone discovering Pokémon in 3D for the first time.
I remember the backflip in Mission: Impossible.
And I remember that feeling that the entire world of video games was opening up before us, ready to be discovered.
The Nintendo 64 may have just been a game console. But for many of us, it also became a place where some of our most cherished childhood memories were made.