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My Favorite Characters That Appeared In Games On The Nintendo 64
some of them

Lemme tell ya, whoever was making games for the N64 back in the day all had one thing in common - creativity. When I look back on games that I played on the system, I continuously find myself diving deeper into remembering dialogue moments between characters or remember a specific character for a specific reason. I know it should be obvious but it is great that not only were the games for the system built with love and care, the characters within them were also treated with the same respect allowing both to harmonize and make great gameplay for us to enjoy. And while I'm sure this list could be endless, I'm going to mention a few of the standout characters for me that appeared in games that I played.

T.T. from Diddy Kong Racing
If you so chose to, after you had completed the game, you could do time trials of all the levels. And if you managed to beat the time that T.T. completed it in, which includes getting the twists and turns almost perfect and never losing momentum, you'd unlock this character. The reason why I like this character so much is because I think for me, it was one of the first times I'd experienced working on something in a game in order to unlock some new content. And boy, when you unlocked T.T. in game, you were basically unstoppable at that point. T.T. comes with nearly perfect stats in turning, speed, everything. He's basically the best character in the game and from what I remember, beating all the time trial levels was actually quite difficult because as I said, T.T. is a near perfect character who manages to beat every level perfectly. You have to try and try again to find the most time saving moments that'll allow you to then beat his time in every level. It's worth it though.

Bowser from Super Mario 64
I think this would only fall on this list if we're talking specifically the Bowser from Super Mario 64, which I am in this case. While not just being an amazing villain in an already amazing game, I simply hold the final fight with Bowser in that game with high regard at all time. It is such a good conclusion from the trials and tribulations that you put yourself through to get to that point, and Bowser is certainly difficult and gets more difficult as the fight goes on. The added fact that the stage turns into the shape of a star is just a nice additional touch.

Jinjo from Banjo-Kazooie / Banjo-Tooie
There are two separate reasons as to why I like this character. One being that you get to see a massive jinjo finish the fight with Gruntilda in Banjo-Kazooie, which is still badass in my book. But also Banjo-Tooie sheds a whole new light on them and it's actually amazing to watch the village fill up again with jinjos that you find throughout the levels. And some of them are tough to get. Also when the almighty jinjo gets his life sucked out of him in Banjo-Tooie, still one of the creepiest characters in either games combined. Absolutely love both games and absolutely love the use of jinjos in both. Even though they are technically just another collectible.

Glover from Glover
When I mentioned creativity earlier, this is specifically what I was referring to. Glover is literally that - a glove. Yet in a game filled with wonder and magic and platforming and whatever else, Glover feels alive and you actually come to care about the character even though it is just a walking glove with a face. Whether that's creative or not in your eyes is a toss up but I think to bring life into something lifeless and have it work very well is a nice thing to see.

Metal Mario from Super Mario 64
I'm choosing specifically metal mario out of the bunch of marios in the game simply because of the music that plays when you pick up the metal cap. You just feel unstoppable when you run through levels with the metal cap and the added bonus adrenaline that the music is pumping out just makes it all the better. I like the other versions of mario certainly, but I get the most enjoyment out of metal mario. I know a lot of people like flying cap and I actually think that would be 2nd in my book, but metal mario is just a little better.

Ganondorf / Ganon from The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time
I'm sure this one gets chosen a lot when it comes to choosing your favorite characters for this game specifically, but I just want to add my 2 cents to the bunch. I absolutely adore all the characters from this game because they have so much individuality that you come to love them all for different reasons. You meet a lot of people throughout your adventure yet none of them ever feel the same. All different motives, all different feelings towards them. When it comes to choosing my favorite, I have to go with the deadly duo of Ganondorf then turned Ganon. You meet this menacing dude from the start of the game but it's filled with so much mystery that you can't even imagine the type of person this will be. And much like Bowser from Super Mario 64, the boss fight against the two of these is one of my favorite gaming experiences of all time. I think it has everything it needs to be a near perfect if not perfect boss fight to finish your adventure off. Everything you have gone through so far has led you to face off with him and man, it really is rewarding when you get the final blow on Ganon and subsequently save the land of Hyrule. Just a stellar set of characters in a great setting to wrap it up nicely.

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Yoshi's Story

I enjoyed this game a lot as a kid and I still enjoy it now despite having not played in for quite some time now. However that doesn't change the fact that I do adore this game quite a bit. Sure it's a little easy and yeah it's got a simple premise but it's also unique in the sense that it takes those qualities and puts it into a little storybook for you to unfold. Literally, the worlds you will go through are pages in a storybook. Games name makes sense now huh?

Anyway, yes, you will go through several different kinds of levels that require you to either fight off some baddies, or land some tricky platforming. The nice thing about the platforming aspect is that you're controlling Yoshi. And if you've played as this character before, you'll know what I mean. Yoshi controls really well in this game and especially given that it's a 2D platformer, it's almost guaranteed a make or break if the character you're controller doesn't do its job well. I never really had any issues with it anyway, but to each their own. While you may run into some challenges throughout, I don't think the game is meant to be or is necessarily that difficult. Which to me is a plus. For a game like this, it's nice that it has a bit more of a relaxed approach when it comes to difficulty and uses that creativity to create cool looking levels and each some really neat transitions as the pop up storybook turns its pages. Everything just has it's own unique charm and really works well together imo.

I like Yoshi as a character a lot but I think he's had his hit and misses when it comes to video games. This one to me despite it not being received well overall is one of my favorites. Nothing wrong with just having a good time going through a relatively easy yet fun experience for old times saks.

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Some More Musical Tracks From Various Nintendo 64 Games

There's no doubt in my mind that the Nintendo 64 came not only jam packed with a lot of great games, but also some of the best video game soundtracks ever made. I'd like to highlight a few that I seem to never be able to get out of my head:

First we'll start off with an easy one and I'm sure it's to no surprise but - Gerudo Valley from The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time



Next up we have the theme from the first level in Turok 2. It's a theme that I always find great to come back to because it really sets the tone for the rest of the game. While the rest of the soundtrack is also pretty great, nothing to me is more satisfying to listen to then this.



Of course, I'll throw in the theme from the Dam level in Goldeneye: 007 as it's definitely up there with tracks like the previous one where it perfectly sets the tone for the rest of what you are about to endure.



Both of the previous songs I mentioned are both of equal caliber when it comes to quality in my book. Perfectly setting the tone and making the games feel epic for the time. Really made both Turok 2 and Goldeneye: 007 a true joy and experience to play. Will always remember these soundtracks fondly.

Going back to Diddy Kong Racing, did you know that this game also has an amazing if not perfect soundtrack truly making the game feel alive and just an absolute joy to play through? Well, it does. And this track right here is to further that point. This particular track is just excellent and really makes the later part of the game feel like an experience and just a joy to go through. Star City from Diddy Kong Racing



I had also mentioned the Grunty's Furnace Fun part of Banjo-Kazooie a few posts ago, and I just wanted to post the theme here for your enjoyment:



A fun yet menacing theme to go along with the challenge that awaits you.

We'll continue this later with part 2.

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The Legend of Zelda: Majora's Mask

This one is always interesting to talk about because depending on the time, either this or Wind Waker would take the spot as my 2nd favorite Legend of Zelda game right under Breath of the Wild, which still sports the helm of my favorite Legend of Zelda game of all time. I would say these definitely take the top 3 spots, and even sometimes I'll switch this out with Ocarina of Time.

Majora's Mask is in a league of it's own as far as I'm concerned, even though it looks a lot similar to Ocarina of Time. Given that they were released on the same console doesn't really make that an enormous surprise. However, if we're talking similarities as far as gameplay and world building, I would relate Ocarina of time closer with Wind Waker. Majora's Mask though takes it's own leaps and in my opinion, is rewarded for it. It takes a much darker tone akin to games like Twilight Princess and often times even moves into the more creepy aspects of life and the world collectively. It's an experience all it's own to go through and it leaves you wanting more each time you play. Storywise, the game of course is excellent but that should be no surprise given that this was release on the N64 which had a good number of great experiences altogether. This just further cements that fact.

When I was younger, the most daunting thing about Majora's Mask that sort of still hold true today is the 3 day mechanic. It's part of the reason why I finally played through this game later in life because I think I was just too young to understand how the game worked mechanically which put me off of it. But, that allowed me to play through Ocarina of Time instead which wasn't a bad trade off. Both are worth playing for their own special reasons and both still hold up pretty good today despite the graphics looking a bit dull. It still works for Majora's Mask though because it meshes well with the darker theme as a whole. Not sure I would think the same if the game looked shiny and brand new.

The thing that I also really like about Majora's Mask which was evident in many other games, is the fact that the developers don't mess around. If they wanted you to know that this game is going to pull at your heart strings, they would tell you outright. Majora's Mask starts you off in a dark forest and you subsequently lose your horse and are basically left to die. Instead though, you're morphed into a deku scrub and have you traverse through the first bit as a character you never played. Thus introducing you to do the mask mechanic which this game does exceedingly well. There were masks in Ocarina of Time, but Majora's Mask takes it to a whole new level which transformations for Gorons, Zoras, Deku Scrubs, etc.

By not only creating an alternative way to go about the game, it just adds more substance to an already great game which makes it greater in my opinion. I don't know what the game would have been like without the addition of masks, but the game basically revolves around them and their unique mechanics so I guess the game would be entirely different. Interesting to think about nonetheless though I like Majora's Mask the way it is. Hell, the whole idea of masks is in the name itself.

As far as difficulty goes, for me, Majora's Mask is definitely on the more difficult side for a variety of reasons. One of course being the 3 day mechanic but also adding in the fact that you have to learn new mechanics with new characters as well as beating the game in its entirety, which is it's own reward. From boss fights to dungeons, this game certainly takes the cake. Hell, anything Legend of Zelda has been at least decent, but Majora's Mask is definitely up there with the greats.

Like I said, I rate this one very highly to the fact that it is in my top 3 along with Breath of the Wild and Wind Waker. That wasn't always the case as I always defaulted to Ocarina of Time. But over the years I have warmed up more to Majora's Mask for how much depth they managed to get into this game to create a unique experience all it's own.

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Star Wars Episode I: Racer

I think I talked about this game somewhat recently due to the fact that it has a re-release on the Playstation 4 and yes, it still holds up. I won't go too heavily into it, but Star Wars Episode I: Racer is possibly my favorite racing game of all time. And there are several fairly simple reasons as to why:

First off, level design is absolutely top notch. I knew this back then but it was further held true when I played the re-release but man, the level design in this game is most certainly a peak for the time. Although some level designs get repeated, the game does a really nice job in submerging you into a Star Wars atmosphere to do nothing other than get you to really believe you are the one in the podracer and this is your fight. The game also comes jam packed with an excellent staff of characters whom you can choose to race as at any given time. Some have better stats than others as is typical in games like this, but they also still feel very unique and individual given that they are all so completely different than each other. Though that's more due to the source material than anything else, it's still used quite nicely here to give you a nice selection of racers to choose from. Even the racing aspect that the game is focused on feels really nice to play, and even felt nice to play back on the Nintendo 64 with that janky controller. You basically control your character going as quickly as possible while also dodging oncoming obstacles. You can get a power boost that furthers your lead in the game thus leaving your enemies in the dust. You can cause them to blow up by tricking them into running into a wall. And...you'll do this a lot too. At least I did. Sometimes the speed gets to be too much and you lose control of your character. So...go fast. But not too fast. Fortunately reviving your character doesn't take too long and you can continue to race. Never feels like a chore to wait for your character to come back. It's just done and done.

Star Wars Episode I: Racer is also one of those titles that people absolutely loved back when it released originally, and then people still love the re-release. I know I'm one of those people, and I tend to feel that way because even throughout the years we've had racing games come and go. To have a game like Episode I: Racer still hold up to today's standards is pretty remarkable. When I played through this game recently, I had nothing but an absolute blast. It felt simultaneously amazing to control it on a normal controller but also it was really nice to feel the nostalgic rush all the way through. The re-release to me just further cements the point that this is one of the best games of all time, and certainly falls in my top 10 games on the console altogether. Maybe even top 5.

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WWF: No Mercy (pt.1)

Ever since this one came out, I haven't since then bothered to touch any of the releases that came after it, despite knowing that the franchise still seems to be going pretty strong. Unfortunately, I do not remember as much as I thought I would when it came to talking about this game, because there really isn't a whole lot to it. It's a wrestling game, so you wrestle other people. Pretty simple, really. However, there is a little bit more that could potentially keep you coming back more and more. I know I played more than my fair share of this game.

Upon searching more information about WWF: No Mercy, I was surprised to find that I'm not the only person that seems to have had a good if not great experience with it. More specifically, it seems like it's recognised as a gold standard when it comes to wrestling games. Not too surprising when I remember the good times of creating custom characters and having them fight with each other. Whether it be a cage match or just a simple 1,2,3 pin. Not to mention the entrance music that you could add to your character. That along with so many other things allowed this game to shine when it came to its customization. I honestly don't think I ever made a character that looked like a different character, given that there was enough to add in that made the characters different from one another. It's not too in depth, but it's enough there to keep it interesting. I remember one character I made was simply a bald guy with nothing but tights on and his name was M Mini W Wumbo. I know, real clever and original but don't blame me, blame my innocent young mind.

I was pretty into WWF growing up as a kid thanks to my older brother always watching it, so I knew the likes of The Undertaker and Kane and others, so it was always cool to see them represented in the game. It also always felt cool to use the people you liked and learn how they play to achieve cool combos and the like. I will always cherish the memories of playing this with my two other brothers and learning the way the characters worked. I would always use Jeff Hardy, my brother would use Kurt Angle, and I honestly don't remember what my older brother used. He was good though so it was sometimes not the most fun playing with him, but I digress.

As much as I would like to say I'd enjoy this game if I were to play it today, but I also remember the controls being somewhat clunky given that you were playing a wrestling game on a controller that didn't work well it.

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WWF: No Mercy (pt.2)

One of the things I remember really enjoying the most when it came to this game was the music, more specifically entrance music. I always remember always liking this stuff too when I watched it on TV because it always hyped up the crowd. And it even felt like that in this game, though vastly scaled down. I played with a lot of the characters in the game, but the ones I ended up playing with the most always seemed to be the ones that had the coolest (in my book) entrance music. It just made playing those characters way more fun because from the get-go you know you've got someone cool. Here's just a few that I remember liking the most:

Jeff Hardy

Here's one with a little bit of gameplay so you can see the glory that is this game:



Kurt Angle

Even today, this song is still a bop



And going away from the entrance music, this is just a cool thing to watch:



The game may not have had the best graphics especially when put against today's standards, but there was so much charm and so much creativity to be found within it that the game was truly one of the best on the system.

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Goldeneye 007

Goldeneye 007 is one of those games that no matter when you look back on it, you just remember having good times with it. Whether it be playing split screen multiplayer with your friends or going through the main game, I just remember having a good time going through it time and time again.

Either it was the music playing in the background or simply being amazed at the level design and what had stood before you, the game continuously oozed with originality and has, in my opinion, held up to even today's standards as a beacon for what the genre should strive for. Obviously, graphically the game did not stand the test of time, but I remember going through this game again in recent years and having a great time. I didn't remember over half of it so it was kind of like going through it again for the first time. The level design certainly held up and I would highly recommend anyone play this if they haven't dipped into the 007 genre as far as games go.

Of course, who can talk about Goldeneye 007 without talking about the experiences of multiplayer. I certainly have many fond memories of this particular game because of the experiences I had with multiplayer. It was always fun to go through the levels and find hidden areas to squeeze yourself into, only to be found out by someone right around the corner. And seeing those silly blocky models running towards you to your inevitable demise was not always hilarious back then, but looking back on it certainly makes me laugh. The character models were not always the best in these kinds of games, but I'll take great gameplay and great opportunities for experiences over graphics any day.

The game is basically laid out as one long story told through various different missions, and as par for the course, the game never felt like it dragged on unnecessarily. Each mission felt fully fleshed out and always felt like you were going through one long chapter after the next. Each level also oozed with originality and was always fun to go through time and time again. Plus, the level select screen was cool in the way that more was revealed the further you go. Just a small tid bit that I remember, for some reason. Of course if you were to ask me which level I deem as my favorite? It'd be a toss up because each of them are great in their own way. If I were to choose though, it'd be between Surface (the one that comes after Facility, Runway, and Dam), Dam, and Train. But again, that could easily change if you asked me on a different day, but as it stands right now, I would easily choose 1 or all of these as my favorites.

Along with great level design, you've also got a lot of different kinds of guns at your disposal to take on the enemies before you, and I'm sure we all remember the one that looks like a giant pen. Whenever I think of the design of the guns and how they worked in game, I just remember the big pen gun, as we all do, surely. Not much else to say other than that. Again, just another tid bit that stays in my brain for one reason or another.

If my memory serves me right, I believe there is a server somewhere online that allows you to jump back into an active community of Goldeneye 007 era multiplayer. And lemme tell ya, playing that multiplayer with updated controls feels so natural you think they knew that style of gameplay was going to happen in the future. As I'm sure you guessed by now, the only big drawback of this game is that if you want to play on original hardware, you'll have to fair against that awful controller once again. And using the joystick on that controller for long periods of time will surely make your thumbs hurt.

This is a lot of people's favorite games when it comes to that era of gaming and it's very easy to see why. It's got everything it needs to continuously stand out as one of the best. I mean, even the pause menu music is great:

Saulaac

I defo enjoyed that soundtrack when playing the game in the 90s.

That was around the time Propellerheads were releasing good songs like “History Repeating - feat. Shirley Bassey” and “On Her Majesty's Secret Service”.

Often wondered what happened to them. I can’t find them on social media. If only there was a music detective agency out there somewhere..

The Batlord

Remote mine cheeses are gay.

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