5 Nintendo 64 Games That Defined The Console

As wild as it may sound, 2026 marks the 30th anniversary of the Nintendo 64's launch in 1996. Nintendo's third home console, the platform boasted then-revolutionary 64-bit graphics in comparison to 32-bit consoles like the Sega Saturn and PlayStation. The console revamped Nintendo's popular franchises and introduced some new properties that continue to thrive decades later. Beyond the console and its games, Nintendo also produced peripheral hardware that quietly reshaped modern gaming in their own way.

With that in mind, we're taking a look at the games that went on to define the Nintendo 64 and its place in the gaming history. These aren't necessarily the best games for the console, but they each had a major impact on its trajectory. From first-person shooters to 3D platformers, the N64 brought a lot to the table for gamers to enjoy. 

Here are five Nintendo 64 games that defined the console and its enduring legacy with fans 30 years later.

Let's get the most obvious inclusion out of the way first, because "Super Mario 64" really epitomized what the Nintendo 64 was capable of. The must-have launch title for the console, the 1996 game brought Mario into full-on 3D and a whole range of moves for players to pull off. The broader narrative premise is still very much intact, with Mario leaping into action to rescue Princess Peach from Bowser's latest kidnapping attempt. But the whole thing feels more ambitious than ever, with distinct stages, each with multiple objectives as Mario collects Power Stars, each challenging players in different ways.

"Super Mario 64" became the best-selling N64 game of all time, solidifying its place in the console's wider legacy. But more than just its commercial performance, the game feels like a showcase for what the N64 was capable of. Many 3D platformers followed the game's success, both on the N64 and competing platforms, including "Banjo-Kazooie" and "Glover." But there is no substitute, as "Super Mario 64" stands as one of the best "Super Mario" games ever made.

There were plenty of vehicle-based games for the Nintendo 64, often played from a third-person perspective. Whether it was racing titles like "Mario Kart 64" or smash'em ups like "Blast Corps," vehicular experiences suited the N64's graphical capabilities well. One of the standouts for the console was "Star Fox 64," the 1997 loose remake of the original Super Nintendo game. While primarily an on-rails shooter like its predecessor, the game does feature sequences that lets players explore a full range of 3D movement.

One of the biggest factors that places "Star Fox 64" above other vehicle-based titles was that initial copies of the game shipped with the Rumble Pak. This peripheral provided haptic feedback to gamers that became an industry standard in the years that immediately followed. But more than its accompanying peripheral, as a testament to its generation-defining quality, "Star Fox 64" was directly remade twice on the Nintendo 3DS and Nintendo Switch 2. But there remains something undeniable about the original 1997 title that continues to endure as a '90s game that holds up today.

One of the standout characteristics for the N64 is that it came natively with four controller ports, rather than needing a multitap peripheral like the Super Nintendo or PlayStation. One of the games that utilized this capacity for four-person multiplayer the best was "GoldenEye 007," released for the console in 1997. A tie-in for the 1995 James Bond movie, the game featured an extensive single-player campaign played from first-person. But the real highlight was the game's variety of competitive multiplayer modes, with a selection of playable characters and arsenal of weapons.

There were console-based first-person shooters before "GoldenEye 007," but they were never the same afterwards. The 1997 title spawned an entire wave of shooters that also revolved around competitive local multiplayer and story-driven campaign modes. Rare would later hone its talents for its spiritual successor "Perfect Dark," but the 2000 game still lives in the shadow of James Bond. "GoldenEye 007" was packed with secrets, but beyond the Easter eggs and nods to the cinematic source material, the game is just a straightforward and explosively fun FPS.

Other than "Super Mario" and "Star Fox," plenty of Nintendo properties tried to make the leap to 3D on the Nintendo 64 with varying levels of success. But while "F-Zero X" and "Kirby 64" may have their fans, they don't hold a candle to the critical and commercial juggernaut that is "The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time." Released in 1998, the game retells the saga of Link defending the fantasy realm of Hyrule from the evil Ganondorf. In comparison to its predecessors, the game features a more cinematic quality in its storytelling while offering a more sweeping vision of its medieval fantasy setting.

"Ocarina of Time" makes this list over other 3D translations of classic Nintendo titles because it best realizes the promise of its hardware. "The Legend of Zelda" was completely changed by the 1998 title, shifting to a third-person perspective for its home console releases, while its handheld projects maintained their usual top-down view. The game also saw Nintendo take a major leap forward with its story-driven experiences, something that would carry over to its other franchises. A classic Nintendo 64 game that still holds up today, "The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time" rivals "Super Mario 64" as the console's marquee title.

One last classic Nintendo property to embrace the creative possibilities on the Nintendo 64 was Donkey Kong. Nintendo's original iconic franchise, Donkey Kong and his friends were fresh off the success of the "Donkey Kong Country" trilogy on the Super Nintendo. With 1999's "Donkey Kong 64," developer Rare dramatically increased the scope while incorporating so much of what the N64 was capable of. A game that pushed the N64 to its limits, "Donkey Kong 64" came with the Expansion Pak peripheral, increasing the console's virtual memory.

It's that Expansion Pak peripheral that earns "Donkey Kong 64" a place on this list compared to other 3D platformers for the console. The add-on helped push the N64 further in its technical performance, particularly as competition arose in the form of the Dreamcast and PlayStation 2. The game itself also exemplifies the good and bad from the later days of the console, with 3D platformers amounting to glorified collect-a-thons, but they're not without their entertaining merits. Representing the gradual decline of the N64 as Nintendo prepared the GameCube, "Donkey Kong 64" proved there was still life in the platform, albeit through Frankenstein-ing a peripheral to it.