The Christmas of 1996 may have been the best of all time for Millennials, thanks to Nintendo. As kids rushed out of bed to rip open all their shiny presents, secretly, a corporate war was being waged behind the scenes. Were you going to become part of the Sony PlayStation team or were you going to join the Nintendo 64 squad?
The anticipation was built from the release of the N64 just a few months prior, in September. The “64,” as we called it (referring to the groundbreaking bits of the console), allowed four friends to level up their game for ultimate bragging rights.
Nintendo 64: The Ultimate Party Console
Imagine a Friday night in late ’96. You rush home from school, throw your backpack to the side, grab a Sunny Delight from the fridge, and beg your mom to take you to Blockbuster. Of course, she takes you because you have the boys coming over for a sleepover, and you want to rent a couple of video games for your new Nintendo 64.
In addition to renting the games that you and three of your buds are going to spend all night talking smack and slamming the “sticks,” Mom also made sure she ordered a stack of pizzas and all the salty snacks and sodas you can drink.
The N64 was the first console to adopt a party-like vibe, allowing up to four players to play simultaneously. Yes, I know; the Sega Genesis had an adapter called the Four-Way-Play, but that thing was faulty and sometimes a pain in the a**. Anyway, Nintendo provided us with a system where it was easy to plug in your favorite color controller and get to gaming in no time.
Games like Mario Party, Mario Kart 64, Perfect Dark, Goldeneye, and various wrestling games would allow kids to bring their A-game when picking up the controls. Whether you were 10 years old or drinking underage in your dorm room, don’t you dare come in last in Super Smash Bros if there are more than four of you. Sorry Charlie! You just lost your spot until the next game!
Nintendo 64’s Cultural Impact
Although Nintendo did not outsell the original PlayStation, it had a cultural impact that can’t be denied. The console was the second highest-selling video game system in its era. It made such a lasting impression that it was recently announced that the N64 will be available on a new release with a 4 K adapter, allowing gamers to now play their favorite retro games with modern technology. Say goodbye to the yellow, red, and white audio/visual cords and say hello to 4k!
The N64 brought a new light to our favorite plumber, who happens to be our brother from another mother, Mario. The chubby Italian plumber was busy as we saw him racing, playing golf, or tennis, smashing bros, all while still trying to save the Princess from the evil Bowser. Not only did Mario shine on the console as expected, but so did Zelda, Star Fox, Pokémon, and Donkey Kong.
Final Thoughts
Growing up, I was a PlayStation kid, but that doesn’t diminish my love for the N64! I’ve spent countless hours with groups of friends drinking way too much caffeine or alcohol, playing some amazing video games on this system.
The drinking game version of Mario Kart may be the greatest drinking game of all time, but remember, you can’t drink and drive, and you must finish your can before the end of the race! And if you want to challenge me to WCW’s Revenge or WWF’s No Mercy, make sure you bring it, because just like “Stone Cold” Steve Austin, I will be opening a can of whoop-ass!
