LogFAQs > #880792991

ParanoidObsessive posted...

It was still basically the third-best selling console of its generation, and fourth place (out of four) in terms of critical acclaim.

Which has nothing to do with the strength of the console. That's a matter of popularity.



ParanoidObsessive posted...

I get that lots of people still have a bit of childhood nostalgia affection for the GameCube, but I can count on one hand the number of games I thought were worth playing on it at the time (and still have fingers left over), and you wind up with even fewer if you discount stuff like Resident Evil 4 (which eventually wound up on other consoles anyway).

About the ONLY positive thing I've ever had to say about the GC was that, while its controller was still kind of terrible, it was at least somewhat less terrible than the monstrosity that was the N64 controller (which I still say is the worst controller to ever exist, even in a world shared by the IntelliVision controller that literally used to make people's thumbs bleed).

Its controller was great other than the stupid asymmetrical face buttons and its hardware was superior to the other two consoles (although the xbox supposedly had better graphics components?). Plus it had native 4p support again although, unfortunately, it didn't have as many insta-classics to support it.


Raganork10 posted...

Coming from someone that grew up with the N64, I can safely without any nostalgia goggles that it was a terrible system. The 3D platformer was a genre that I have long since grown out of, and lord knows you needed to love the shit out of them if you owned an N64, because that comprised most of its library. Never mind that I don't think Super Mario 64 was ever better than Super Mario World, I hated the N64 Castlevanias, almost all of Rare's games were as fun as pulling teeth, and stuff that I did like (Kirby 64, Chameleon Twist, Bomberman Hero, Yoshi's Story) I can fully admit were/are pretty bad games that I would absolutely never play again. Outside of platformers, the only other games I played on the thing were party games with my brothers, which were terrible if played by yourself, and I would never play them again on account of how horribly outdated they are. Just about the only game I regret never playing was Ogre Battle 64.

And you'd have to be wearing drunk goggles to knock it. Honestly, in terms of aging, I'll say that the ps1 did a far worse job of it since there are quite a few ps1 games which almost look graphically unplayable whereas the N64's are merely overly simplistic or ugly. As for the 3D platformer complaint, it overlooks the console's actual variety where you're just remembering a tiny fraction of what it was. It's a shallow, superficial complaint that doesn't scrape the surface of the library.

But let's fairly examine that complaint. Rather than list the whole library, let's just quickly look at the 10 best-selling games:
Super Mario 64 - 3D platformer
Mario Kart 64 - Racing game
GoldenEye 007 - Shooter
The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time - Action/adventure but, if pressed, you could call it a platformer
Super Smash Bros. - Fighter
Pokémon Stadium - Quasi-RPG variety pack
Donkey Kong 64 - 3d platformer
Diddy Kong Racing - Racer
Star Fox 64 - Flight sim?
Banjo-Kazooie - 3d platformer

Out of the top ten, maybe 3.5 fit that description. Hardly an overwhelming number. By %, that number shrinks when you go out to the top 20 which includes more racing games and shooters.

Granted, judging from the games you list, it seems like YOU only bought platformers which colored your perception. Personally, out of the top 20 games, I played all but 2 or 3 of them which is probably why I remember the variety which, along with multiplayer with friends, is why I remember the variety.
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