5 Best Nintendo 64 Fighting Games, Ranked

Admittedly, fighting game fans were more likely to gravitate to the Sega Saturn and the PlayStation than the Nintendo 64. The Saturn had "Virtua Fighter" while PlayStation had "Tekken" and both had "Street Fighter," all franchises absent on the N64. But the Nintendo home console still had its own highlights in the fighting game genre, even if not as generally well-regarded by hardcore enthusiasts. In fact, several major franchises in the genre enjoyed an N64 release that were each worth checking out.

Whether it's party-oriented fighting games, early 3D fighters, or conventional 2D takes on the genre, the N64 has a robust library of titles to choose from. While the genre would come back in a big way on subsequent Nintendo platforms, the N64's fighting game selection shouldn't be written off entirely. Several of these titles are still available to play on modern platforms, ready to enjoy a positive reappraisal decades after their debut. 

Here are the five best Nintendo 64 fighting games ranked, with each providing their own hard-hitting thrills.

Despite its title, "Mortal Kombat Trilogy" wasn't a compilation of the series' first three games but a composite experience combining elements of all three. Released in 1996, the Nintendo 64 version only has 30 playable characters, in contrast to other releases having up to 37 fighters to choose from. But the gameplay remains fast and brutal, including characters and stages from throughout the series' history at that time. The game's aesthetics and mechanics draw particularly heavily from "Ultimate Mortal Kombat 3," one of the best "Mortal Kombat" games ever made.

While the Nintendo 64 version of "Mortal Kombat Trilogy" is an overall inferior port compared to its counterparts on the PC, PlayStation, and Sega Saturn, it still had its strengths. Most notably, the N64 version is the only iteration to feature a 3v3 fighting mode, ambitiously expanding the action. Thanks to its cartridge-based gaming technology, this version also has significantly shorter loading times than its disc-based counterparts. Remixing the foundations of its franchise, "Mortal Kombat Trilogy" celebrates the series' roots in an delightfully violent way.

The closest that the Nintendo 64 got to Sega's "Virtua Fighter" was the 1997 title "Flying Dragon." The game's single-player combined fighting game sensibilities with RPG elements, letting characters level up and equip upgrades as they progressed. The story has a group of fighters from around the world get involved in a conflict involving the sinister Ryumaou, the ruler of the underworld. While featuring 3D characters and environments, the action unfolds from a 2D plane of combat, like other titles on this list.

"Flying Dragon" is easily the most obscure game on this list, but it stands above many of its third-party counterparts on the N64. Titles like "Mace: The Dark Age" and "War Gods" struggled to bring fighting game fun to 3D, whereas Culture Brain wisely kept 3D strictly to the 1997 game's art style. The RPG elements are still a relatively underutilized approach to the fighting game genre and help distinguish this title further. Worth giving a try if you missed it the first time around, "Flying Dragon" is an underrated N64 brawler.

There were actually several "Mortal Kombat" games released for the Nintendo 64, including the notoriously subpar "Mortal Kombat Mythologies: Sub-Zero." On a more positive note, the console also received a port of "Mortal Kombat 4," the first 3D animated entry in the series. Even with the visual upgrade, the fighters are still confined largely to a 2D plane of movement, but they are able to sidestep. The game features 15 playable characters in all, while introducing the new big bad Shinnok, who would resurface in subsequent entries in the series.

While "Mortal Kombat 4" has one of the worst endings ever, the gameplay surrounding the experience itself is solid for its time. Through the N64's hardware capabilities, the game features a more dynamic sound design than its counterparts on other home platforms, though its polygonal count isn't as high. The gameplay is solid and has aged better than its presentation, more charming through its nostalgic factor nearly 30 years later. A major step in the stunning transformation of "Mortal Kombat," "Mortal Kombat 4" deserves a better reputation than its received.

Of all the best video games like "Mortal Kombat," one of the clear standouts was the "Killer Instinct" series. Developed by Rare, the franchise's sole entry on the Nintendo 64, "Killer Instinct Gold," also happened to be the first fighting game released for the console. Released in 1996, the game maintains the 2D plane of gameplay but with much more richly rendered 3D character models and environments. The game features 11 playable characters in its roster and a hard-rocking and industrial score composed by Robin Beanland.

Rare was firing on all creative cylinders with its Nintendo 64 titles and "Killer Instinct Gold" maintains that winning streak. The game really takes advantage of the N64 hardware, just as the first game's port had done on the Super Nintendo. The sound design has a percussive crunch to it and the combat leans into punishing combos, keeping players on their toes. Another highlight before Nintendo lost Rare to Microsoft, "Killer Instinct Gold" is arguably the best fighting game Rare made for a Nintendo platform.

While some genre purists may still regard it blasphemy to consider "Super Smash Bros." a fighting game, the 1999 title qualifies in our books. The game has major characters from a number of Nintendo's biggest first-party franchises come together for a big brawl in stages inspired by their respective games. To underscore the title's fighting game bonafides, the gameplay revolves around primarily melee attacks while each character gets their own special moves. In contrast to trying to chip away at a health bar, players try to knock off opponents from the stages.

While the original "Super Smash Bros." might not be ranked highly compared to its successors, it's still one of the best party games on the Nintendo 64. The game does interesting things with the fighting genre, and its basic template is still used by the series over 20 years later. What the game itself does brilliantly is keep its gameplay accessible yet maintain a surprising amount of strategic depth. A classic Nintendo 64 game that everyone played in the '90s, there's a reason why "Super Smash Bros." is still talked about while its console contemporaries are not.