Yeah, I'm sure this has been done a bunch of times before, but you'll do it again.
Just had a bit of nostalgia for gaming, and thought back a bit - yeah, Nintendo has had a really good run (and not saying that in the way meaning that it has ended). See if you can give a ranking to them, and why. No doubt, it's all about the games, so state which games makes you feel that way, but the hardware important too.
And only list those consoles you've had, so we can get an guess at what your history with Nintendo is. I'm intending this to be a generational thing - i.e., GBA vs GB, not GB-brick vs GB-pocket, but for all means, do list your favourite iteration of that console.
Just a quick listing for me:
1) Nintendo64: Still when Nintendo felt that it was important to be at the cutting edge of tech, I felt this is Where Nintendo were at their ultimate prime. It was at birth of 3D gaming, so innovation, especially from Nintendo was super high, and I got more gaming experiences that I NEVER had seen before. Sure the joypad was janky, and the tech is aged and cumbersome now, but so many memories of both multiplayer and single player unparalleled gaming.
Incidentally, it was also the start of Nintendo falling by the wayside for third-parties, a major reason being their stubborness to adopt optical drive tech.
Highlights: 4-player gaming, 3D-gaming, best installation of some key series, including Zelda, Mario, and Mario Kart. And I LOVED Rare. Goldeneye, Perfect DArk, Banjo-Kazooie were amazing.
You know, it's possible that it was more that I was at the pinnacle of my gaming-life, seeing as I actually found real enjoyment in games like Turok and Shadow of the Empire....Ah, good times.
2) SNES: Pure and simple gaming at its finest. Most of my favourite games ever were created for the SNES, including Super Metroid, Zelda, Mario, Starfox, Yoshi's Island. And such a breadth of gaming experiences. I lost a lot of the experience being in PAL-land, however.
3) Original GameBoy: Sure, I think the games on GBA were 'better', but the original GB for me has an important spot in my history, as it was my first gaming console/unit. I had a few rip-off carts with like 20-30 games, and I spent hours playing simple stuff like Trump Boy, Tetris, and had to figure out all the games on my own. I owned so many games too. I loved that thing. And while I had a GB-pocket, I still love the original GameBoy design and colouring so much.
The GBC was probably the best version, if you count it though.
And come on, don't tell me you weren't blown away by Pokemon.
4) GameCube: Again, nintendo actually being at the top of the heap with tech of that generation. Loads of awesome experiences, showing my favourite series the best that they can look. Oh, and of course, Metroid Prime. The main problem was, that most of the games were just flashier versions of the N64 versions, not a bad thing, but just not as innovative. Gotta put a special place for Res Evil 4, though.
5) GBA: It was kinda hard to decide between DS and GBA. Obviously, yeah, the DS plays GBA games (if you have the right model), but I guess I just love my SP and micro more.
6) DS: Great machine actually, just no space for it above! The first design was terrible, but the lite remains one of their best designs ever. Ouendan will forever be a favourite, but I think games just got ahead of me a little here, playing less and less. A lot of new experiences, but sadly, a lot still felt gimmicky.
7)...and then the Wii. It felt like it had promise but after all these years, there are only very few titles that I think will be ultimately memorable for me. Possibly it's just showing my age, seeing I have all but given up console gaming now. I bought into the hype that the Wii controller was something really all that awesome, but in the end, it never reached the potential it had in my head. There just aren't that many games in my Wii library.
And being SD right in the heart of an HD world was a pretty big downer. Nintendo bowing out of the tech race, but I guess it did them well.
Bonus question: Where do you think the Wii U will fit in your hierarchy? For me, probably a notch above the Wii.
Don't have a 3DS. First Nintendo console I never bought, partially as a cost thing, but mostly just a timing thing. iOS rules my style of gaming these days, mostly as a time thing. A dedicated gaming machine seems a lot less significant these days. I still kinda want it for being a portable N64. If only the design were better, and it had Perfect Dark 64 on it.
So yeah, you don't have to indulge me, I was mostly being nostalgic, but would be interesting to see your views.
Just had a bit of nostalgia for gaming, and thought back a bit - yeah, Nintendo has had a really good run (and not saying that in the way meaning that it has ended). See if you can give a ranking to them, and why. No doubt, it's all about the games, so state which games makes you feel that way, but the hardware important too.
And only list those consoles you've had, so we can get an guess at what your history with Nintendo is. I'm intending this to be a generational thing - i.e., GBA vs GB, not GB-brick vs GB-pocket, but for all means, do list your favourite iteration of that console.
Just a quick listing for me:
1) Nintendo64: Still when Nintendo felt that it was important to be at the cutting edge of tech, I felt this is Where Nintendo were at their ultimate prime. It was at birth of 3D gaming, so innovation, especially from Nintendo was super high, and I got more gaming experiences that I NEVER had seen before. Sure the joypad was janky, and the tech is aged and cumbersome now, but so many memories of both multiplayer and single player unparalleled gaming.
Incidentally, it was also the start of Nintendo falling by the wayside for third-parties, a major reason being their stubborness to adopt optical drive tech.
Highlights: 4-player gaming, 3D-gaming, best installation of some key series, including Zelda, Mario, and Mario Kart. And I LOVED Rare. Goldeneye, Perfect DArk, Banjo-Kazooie were amazing.
You know, it's possible that it was more that I was at the pinnacle of my gaming-life, seeing as I actually found real enjoyment in games like Turok and Shadow of the Empire....Ah, good times.
2) SNES: Pure and simple gaming at its finest. Most of my favourite games ever were created for the SNES, including Super Metroid, Zelda, Mario, Starfox, Yoshi's Island. And such a breadth of gaming experiences. I lost a lot of the experience being in PAL-land, however.
3) Original GameBoy: Sure, I think the games on GBA were 'better', but the original GB for me has an important spot in my history, as it was my first gaming console/unit. I had a few rip-off carts with like 20-30 games, and I spent hours playing simple stuff like Trump Boy, Tetris, and had to figure out all the games on my own. I owned so many games too. I loved that thing. And while I had a GB-pocket, I still love the original GameBoy design and colouring so much.
The GBC was probably the best version, if you count it though.
And come on, don't tell me you weren't blown away by Pokemon.
4) GameCube: Again, nintendo actually being at the top of the heap with tech of that generation. Loads of awesome experiences, showing my favourite series the best that they can look. Oh, and of course, Metroid Prime. The main problem was, that most of the games were just flashier versions of the N64 versions, not a bad thing, but just not as innovative. Gotta put a special place for Res Evil 4, though.
5) GBA: It was kinda hard to decide between DS and GBA. Obviously, yeah, the DS plays GBA games (if you have the right model), but I guess I just love my SP and micro more.
6) DS: Great machine actually, just no space for it above! The first design was terrible, but the lite remains one of their best designs ever. Ouendan will forever be a favourite, but I think games just got ahead of me a little here, playing less and less. A lot of new experiences, but sadly, a lot still felt gimmicky.
7)...and then the Wii. It felt like it had promise but after all these years, there are only very few titles that I think will be ultimately memorable for me. Possibly it's just showing my age, seeing I have all but given up console gaming now. I bought into the hype that the Wii controller was something really all that awesome, but in the end, it never reached the potential it had in my head. There just aren't that many games in my Wii library.
And being SD right in the heart of an HD world was a pretty big downer. Nintendo bowing out of the tech race, but I guess it did them well.
Bonus question: Where do you think the Wii U will fit in your hierarchy? For me, probably a notch above the Wii.
Don't have a 3DS. First Nintendo console I never bought, partially as a cost thing, but mostly just a timing thing. iOS rules my style of gaming these days, mostly as a time thing. A dedicated gaming machine seems a lot less significant these days. I still kinda want it for being a portable N64. If only the design were better, and it had Perfect Dark 64 on it.
So yeah, you don't have to indulge me, I was mostly being nostalgic, but would be interesting to see your views.
