Nintendo 64 could have been the console time forgot. Nintendo's refusal to accept that the future of home gaming would be written on discs instead of cartridges certainly cost them. Compared to disc-using rivals, N64 was harder to program, and games had to be smaller and graphically simpler. The carts were bulkier and heavier than discs, more expensive to make, ship and store. Yet the Nintendo 64 was, and still is, extraordinarily popular. The reason? Quality. Of course there were the in-house super-powers like Mario and Zelda: these weren't just thrown together because people would buy anything with Mario or Zelda on it, they were some of the best games ever made for any gaming system. Add to that Rareware's inspired adventure games like Banjo-Kazooie and, for the more mature audience, Conker's Bad Fur Day. Tack on the redefining of the first person shooter with GoldenEye and Perfect Dark. Yes, the Nintendo 64 was truly a quality-over-quantity affair.
