Nintendo 64

The **Nintendo 64** (commonly abbreviated ***N64***) is a home video game console released by Nintendo. It was first released in Japan in June 1996 and was meant to compete against the Sony PlayStation and the Sega Saturn. It was named after its 64-bit CPU, one of the first in a consumer product. The Nintendo 64 was Nintendo's first console made for 3D graphics. It uses plastic cartridges instead of CDs or disks, making load times faster. Because of this, the games costed more to make than games for other systems during that time. The controller for the Nintendo 64 was shaped like an "M" and had 10 buttons and a joystick. Out of the box, the Nintendo 64 had 4 MB of RAM, and it could be upgraded to 8 MB with the expansion pak.

## History
Nintendo released the Super Nintendo Entertainment System (also known as the SNES) in Japan in 1990, and in North America in 1991. It was a 16-bit console. Most games it played were 2D, and any 3D games it played were not true 3D. Two years later, in 1993, Atari released a system called the Jaguar. It was a 64-bit console, and its marketing made the systems from Nintendo and Sega look outdated. To make matters worse, Sony was working on a new 3D video game system to launch in 1994 that would be known as the PlayStation. By the mid 1990s, Nintendo knew it was time to move on and create their own 64-bit system. Its name in development was called *Project Reality*. The Nintendo 64 released in Japan in June 1996, in North America in September 1996, and in Europe in March 1997.

Because making games for the Nintendo 64 was more expensive than making games for the PlayStation, many video game companies chose to develop only for the PlayStation. Nintendo also did not like games that had a lot of blood or violence in them. Most companies who made these kinds of games made them for the PlayStation instead. Nintendo ended up losing their first place spot in the video game market and Sony beat them because of these two things. Additionally, Sony was inspired by the N64 joystick design to make their DualShock PlayStation controller. The production of the Nintendo 64 ended in Japan in 2002 and in 2003 worldwide, as Nintendo began to move their focus to the GameCube system.

## Reception 
In 2015, IGN named the Nintendo 64 the ninth-greatest video game console of all time. Many great games were released on the system, with many video game series first appearing on the N64. These series included *Super Smash Bros.*, *Paper Mario*, and *Mario Party*. It also had the first mario game in 3D, which was *Super Mario 64*.

### Sales 
5.54&nbsp;million Nintendo 64 units were sold in Japan, 20.63&nbsp;million in the Americas, and 6.75&nbsp;million in other regions, a total of 32.93&nbsp;million units.

## Notable games
**1080° Snowboarding*
**Banjo-Kazooie*
**Banjo-Tooie*
*''Cruis'n USA*
**Diddy Kong Racing*
**Donkey Kong 64*
**Excitebike 64*
**F-1 World Grand Prix*
**F-Zero X*
**GoldenEye 007*
**Hey You, Pikachu!*
**Kirby 64: The Crystal Shards*
**Mario Golf*
**Mario Kart 64*
**Mario Party*
**Mario Party 2*
**Mario Party 3*
**Mario Tennis*
**Paper Mario*
**Perfect Dark*
**Pokémon Snap*
**Pokémon Stadium*
**Pokémon Stadium 2*
**Star Fox 64*
**Star Wars Episode I: Racer*
**Star Wars: Rogue Squadron*
**Star Wars: Shadows of the Empire*
**Super Mario 64*
**Super Smash Bros.*
**The Legend of Zelda: Majora's Mask
**The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time*
**The New Tetris*
*''Tony Hawk's Pro Skater*
**Turok: Dinosaur Hunter*
**Wave Race 64*
**WCW/nWo Revenge*
**Yoshi's Story''

## References