20 years!
Crazy how time flies. On this date in 1996, the N64 officially went on sale in Japan (it would be followed a few months later with a September 26th, 1996 release in North America).
The N64 is the epitome of nostalgia and bitter-sweet memories for me. It is widely considered the best console ever made (it’s games have, remarkably, stood the test of time. I still play Majora’s Mask). I’ll never forget when my parents bought me an N64 for my birthday in 1997. 007 Goldeneye, The Ocarina of Time, Doom 64, Turok, SuperMario 64, these were the gaming experiences that helped shape my youth and set the bar for console experiences for the rest of my life (and I think most of our millenial readers will agree).
Sadly, and this is the bitter-sweet part, no console has ever lived up to that magic, that majesty, and that immersive experience that the N64 offered. It was so far ahead of its time, both in the technical aspects of how the machine itself performed but also in the deep and provocative experiences that its titles offered. Maybe it’s just nostalgia and youthful wonder, but something about the N64 clicked with me in a way no console has been able to duplicate. That’s probably why N64s are still widely sold and played, despite being 20 years old. It’s a damn shame that Nintendo hasn’t been able to hit another home run since, nothing but foul balls and grounders to first (fuck the Wii).
Anyway, happy birthday N64! Please enjoy some of these crazy Japanese adds from 1996 courtesy of Kotaku;
