A reader muses about the opening of the Nintendo Switch 2 and whether the console can live up to the impact made by the N64.
With Nintendo and Xbox both announcing they’ve got next gen fun on the way it probably won’t be long until PlayStation does the same – Sony is probably just waiting until the PS5 Pro comes out. Man, I think it’s far too early for the new Xbox, but I understand why they did it, and I can’t say I don’t want to see what massive leaps are going.
However, I’m more optimistic about the Switch 2, until Nintendo has to do a lot to keep me from buying one, because of how the Switch works now. Even so, it wasn’t my favorite Nintendo console and when I thought about the start of the new generation, I realized that it never got better than the N64 and probably never will.
I am, of course, referring to the ground-breaking 3D graphics of Super Mario 64 which, for me, is the biggest leap forward in visuals that video games have ever seen. They’re also the biggest we can do, because we’re already in photorealism and the only step we can take is to put the head in or something.
In terms of everything that has happened so far, and now it seems to be believable, the N64 is the best, relative to its time. I imagine that it is hard to appreciate if you are no longer there in the day, but you only have to look at the quality of graphics PS1 to see how far ahead of Nintendo games. Mario has a better 3D camera than any other game in years and is actually a generation ahead of everyone else.
We won’t be seeing anything like that again, as that ridiculous PS5 Pro video has proven, with side-by-side comparisons looking like identical footage. With the N64 there is night and day between it and the PS1, and especially the Saturn.
But not only that, the popular N64 analog control as well. Most people forget, but the original PS1 controller didn’t have analog sticks or rumble. Nintendo also popularized noise, with add-ons that came with Lylat Wars, so one of them would not be standard now without N64.
Then there’s Zelda: Ocarina Of Time. It’s still the frontrunner for the best game of all time and being far the head of the field (Hyrule) is like any other game and fun still stuck in the stone age. Rockstar said they saw inspiration in how GTA 3 worked, but Ocarina Of Time’s controls and camera were better than that, even all those years later on the PlayStation 2.
People complain that the N64 doesn’t have enough good games, but when it comes to quality over quantity, almost every first-party release is a classic. Even if it’s just Mario and Zelda, the console is worth it, but you also have GoldenEye 007, Lylat Wars, Wave Race 64, Zelda: Majora’s Mask, F-Zero X, Mario Kart 64, Sin & Punishment, Paper Mario, Super Smash Bros ., Banjo-Kazooie, and Mario Party.
OK, there is not much on top of that (but there are some other notable ones, like Star Wars: Rogue Squadron and Blast Corps) but with the classics, you don’t need anything else. It reminds me a lot of the Switch line-up, as these are all the best versions of the franchise to date – while the others are still new and still current.
The move to 3D graphics will surely be the biggest milestone but the N64 did better than the PS1 and the game that lasted in terms of impact and quality. We will never see a generational leap like that again.
By reading Gambit
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