Last Updated: May 19, 2022

WHAT WE HAVE ON THIS PAGE

The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time was officially inducted into the World Video Game Hall of Fame along with Ms. Pac-Man and Dance Dance Revolution and Sid Meier’s Civilization. These games join 32 other inductees since The Strong National Museum of Play, New York, in 2015 when the World Video Game Hall of Fame was established.

The list currently includes Grand Theft Auto 3 and the original Legend of Zelda. The 2022 winners beat out a strong group of nominees, including Assassin’s Creed and Candy Crush Saga. Both The Legend of Zelda Ocarina of Time (Ms. Pac-Man) and The Legend of Zelda Ocarina of Time (#34 and #53 respectively, made it to our top 100 video games of all time. Sid Meier’s Civilization and Dance Dance Revolution didn’t make it to our list, but Civ IV did at #35! It’s difficult to overstate their significance in the history and evolution of this medium.

We are updating our Top N64 Games List, which was originally published more than 21 years ago to commemorate the 25th anniversary of IGN.

It’s essential to define our criteria so we can explain why certain games made it on this list. We didn’t set a strict rule that games should only be included on the Nintendo 64. However, we did not want to exclude games that are simply better on other platforms at that time, such as Resident Evil 2 or Rayman 2.

We also considered historical significance and how it played back then. Finally, we looked at how it looks today. We consider the games at the top of the list to have the best combination. The ones at the bottom or those that didn’t make it onto the list might be stronger in one aspect but weaker in the other. Conker’s Bad Fur Day and Mario Party 2 are honorable mentions. Pilotwings 64, Pilotwings 64, and Rocket: Robot on Wheels are also honored. There are too many greats for a list of 25.

Last note: Because our staff consists mainly of people who have played Nintendo 64 games only in North America, it was decided that this list would remain import-free.

TOP 5 N64 Games of All Time

Banjo-Tooie

The sequel to Banjo–Kazooie continued the legacy of the original, adding 8 beautiful (but stuttery for the Nintendo 64) levels that will keep the collecta­a-thon alive without too much disruption. Tooie continued Kazooie’s legacy. Although the original plan to physically swap cartridges between the N64 and N64 was dropped by Nintendo, Tooie retained the mystery of Kazooie. Tooie also featured some of the same mysteries as the original game, including the well-hidden and literal Easter eggs, and the mysteriously difficult Ice Key. This made the two games feel more like one adventure.

Banjo-Tooie faced off against some of the most beloved platformers, including Conker’s Bad Fur Day, Donkey Kong 64, and Conker’s Bad Fur Day, both developed by Tooie’s developer Rare. Tooie’s platforming was more refined than DK64 and its explorable areas were larger than Conker’s, giving it an edge. – Samuel Claiborn

Pokemon Stadium 2

Although Pokemon Stadium 2 didn’t have a story, it provided an amazing expansion for Pokemon Trainers who had Pokemon Gold, Silver or Crystal on GameBoy Color. You could use the Nintendo 64 controller’s transfer pak to fight with your Pokemon in the Gym Leader Castle, most tournaments in Stadium, as well as see 3D Pokemon models in the Lab. Once you had unlocked Doduo and Dodrio modes you could play the Pokemon GameBoy Games at twice or triple speed.

The quiz mode and 12 mini-games provided hours of entertainment for friends. And, new to Pokemon Stadium 2, the Pokemon Academy was a strategy guide with test-based strategies that helped you learn useful tactics. Pokemon Stadium 2 was a welcome addition to the Nintendo 64’s Pokemon fandom.

Blast Corps

Rare’s brilliant Blast Corps is about clearing a path to a runaway nuclear missile ship carrier. It is one of those wonderful games that appears one thing but is another. Although the game’s assortment of deadly hardware, such as giant bulldozers and dump trucks, seems to be primarily about cruising around and blowing up stuff, Blast Corps is a puzzle-based game.

We praised the movie’s disaster movie vibes, its imaginative bonus games, and sharp graphics at the time. However, we only had to criticize its shortness, which at 11hrs for the story and side mission according to How Long to Beat isn’t too bad today. Blast Corps, like many other games on this list, is still in great shape today. It begs the question: why haven’t there been more games that take inspiration from it?

Space Station Silicon Valley

While Nintendo 64’s library is dominated by strong first-and second-party efforts you will find genuine third-party gems, from some of today’s most respected developers. We enjoyed Sucker Punch’s strong debut with Rocket on Wheels and Paradigm/EA’s Beetle Adventure Racing. But we want to highlight a little gem called Space Station Silicon Valley. DMA Design’s 1998 puzzle game casts you as a broken robot, a microchip that can take control of many robotic animals and solve clever and sometimes hilarious puzzles.

Every animal, including super-fast mice with wheels and missile-firing hot rods from the Hyena Hot Rods, had unique controls and abilities that allowed them to defeat enemies and solve difficult levels. Space Station: Silicon Valley’s lead programmer Leslie Benzies and its designers came up with an intriguing formula. A sandbox was filled with different “vehicles,” each one feeling unique and just plain fun to play with. We never saw the sequel because of its low sales. The team was not discouraged and began work on Grand Theft Auto III. We will forgive them for not returning to Silicon Valley.

Beetle Adventure Racing

1999’s Beetle Adventure Racing could be dismissed as a licensed game that was purely designed to promote the Volkswagen New Beetle. It would be a mistake to ignore a crucial moment in the evolution of racing games, which has brought us to the current point with Forza Horizon and Need for Speed.

It made up for the lack of car variety with its level design. EA Canada and Paradigm Entertainment, the Pilotwings 64 developer, were able to help it focus on six tracks that had so many sideroads and shortcuts that exploration was essential to winning races.

This article tells us about the top 5 games preferred by the gamers of today. If you want to be one among them then review them and bang a new record.


ABOUT AUTHOR

Devoted my whole life to words - reading, writing and trying to be original on social media. Got certified in digital marketing - still not cool enough to be an influencer. Finished a master’s degree focused in Literature, Publishing, Mass Media. Hobbies include traveling, reading and hoping that yoga will be the thing to finally teach me some patience. Would like to take over the world at some point, but that’s an optional dream. Maybe modern tech can help me do that?