The 6 Best N64 Games Your Dad Used To Play

July 31, 2018

The Nintendo 64 was released in 1996, back when many dads were in college and more than eager to play the latest gaming system in their spare time. And if your dad was one of those N64-loving guys, he almost definitely played these classic games.

6: Super Mario 64

For many, the game that came with the N64 was also the best game they got to play. And while Super Mario was great, and remains an all-time classic game, its lack of multi-player options drops it down on this list. But still, many a dad frittered away dozens of hours in this engrossing game.

5: NFL Blitz

Listen, Madden has always been the top football game ever since it came out, but we have to give love for its insane, on-steroids cousin, NFL Blitz. N64 dads have all celebrated that final sack that set them on fire, and God have mercy on the soul of whoever decides to punt on fourth down. Was this game silly and unrealistic? Of course! But it made for some of the best two-player competition of any game.

4: Mario Kart 64

Speaking of multiplayer, one of the best games to play with a group of friends will forever remain the N64 version of Mario Kart. While many dads might prefer the SNES version from their heyday, they’ll still admit to having nightmares about having to go through Rainbow Road.

3: Super Smash Brothers

Another classic multiplayer game, every dad who played this game has their default go-to character that they swear by, and no dad claims that character is Peach. But where else can you watch Link battle it out with Donkey Kong while everyone gets mad at Kirby who constantly smashes you as a brick and then keeps everyone from getting back into the field of play by using that laser-sword-thing move?

2: The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time

Yes, we dinged Mario 64 for its lack of a multiplayer option. So why is Zelda so high? Well, because it is probably the most engrossing, engaging, and enjoyable (if sometimes confounding) game that N64 ever released.

The game play is great, the story is well thought out, and the world is sprawling. Every dad can remember how excited he was when he finally managed to get a horse, so going from area to area could stop taking twenty minutes each time. This is a great game, but it’s not the best. That forever will go to…

1: GoldenEye 007

GoldenEye 007 set the gold standard (had to work a bad dad pun in there) for N64 shooter games. It took one of the most popular Bond films of the past twenty years and seamlessly translated it to work both as a single-player as well as a multiplayer game. Ask your dad about his opinion of Oddjob, or if you’re allowed to peek at the map during multiplayer, and you’ll be in for a lengthy argument.

As great as all the other games on this list are, there can be only one GoldenEye.