On This Day in 1996, the Nintendo 64 Dropped and Changed Everything

On September 29, 1996, Nintendo decided that the world (and more specifically, North America) needed to be more three-dimensional. To solve this problem, they dropped the Nintendo 64—and one of the greatest games of all time—creating the blueprint for what modern gaming would become over the next 30 years.

Let’s keep it a buck, the console itself even looked futuristic. That charcoal gray design, with those elegant curves, was something straight out of The Jetsons. And that weird controller? It was literally designed for when humans evolve to have three arms. I think. Maybe.

As if that wasn’t enough, during its lifecycle, Nintendo started releasing colorful, translucent versions of the N64. That’s right, somehow, they managed to make the future of gaming look even more futuristic.

And, let’s be honest, those are still some of the most beautiful consoles ever released.

Remembering the Launch of the Nintendo 64 29 Years Later

The N64 launched with a game that would change the way video games were made for the next thirty years. Of course, I’m talking about Super Mario 64, one of the greatest 3D-platformers ever made.

Nearly every game you’ve played since—from Grand Theft Auto and Skyrim to Breath of the Wild—owes its existence to Super Mario 64. Thank goodness our favorite plumber decided to start jumping into those paintings, because we really needed him to if we wanted to evolve.

The N64 was also a dream come true for couch co-op fans. Thanks to its four controller port design, multiplayer games thrived on the console. Even 30 years later, fans will bring up titles like GoldenEye 007, Mario Kart 64, and Perfect Dark as some of the best games the console ever produced. And they’re totally right.

Don’t forget that the first-ever Super Smash Bros. was also released on the N64. I literally can’t imagine what my life would be like if that never happened. I mean, what game am I supposed to suck at, no matter how many hours I play, if Smash doesn’t exist?

The N64 Was the Peak of Gaming With Your Friends

Perhaps my favorite thing about the 1990s was just how weird and experimental things were. People in all fields of entertainment—from movies and TV to music and sports—were trying new things and doing whatever made them happy. And gaming, especially the N64, was no exception.

Can you think of a game that is more “late 90s/early 2000s” than Conker’s Bad Fur Day? Throw in games like Body Harvest, Ogre Battle 64, Space Station Silicon Valley, and Mischief Makers, and you’ve got a wonderful, delicious pot of weirdness. Ah, what a time to be alive.

Sure, the controller was some sort of mutant fork/trident thing that wasn’t easy to use. And yeah, there were fewer than 300 games released for the console in North America. But if you were there when this thing hit the streets, then you know just how magical it was.

The Nintendo 64 was much more than just a video game console. It was a massive moment in pop culture, the likes of which we’ve only seen a few times since. Who knows if our pal Mario would be dominating the box office nowadays if Mario 64 hadn’t been such a game-changer.

I know one thing for sure, though: life was so much better when all my friends and I spent our free time eating pizza rolls, watching WWF Raw is War!, and playing the N64.