For those who think Wii is the first revolution in console gaming controllers, think again.
Nintendo did it ten long years ago with N64.
For those who’ve forgotten, it’s been a decade since N64 was launched excitedly into North American, Brazilian, Australian, and French markets. Yes, the Japanese had their hands on it a year earlier, but what else is new?
Originally branded “Project Reality” and then “Ultra 64”, Nintendo’s plastic project felt as if it were in development for an eternity. Few Mario fans know that the group largely responsible for the N64, Silicon Graphics, actually offered the original plan to Sega of America CEO Tom Kalinske.
Kalinske, who reportedly liked the idea, turned the design over to Sega of Japan. Unfortunately, the mid-90s rift between Sega’s East and West operations meant the eventual N64 – which once sat in the company’s lap – was turned down while Sega of Japan pursued other project possibilities.
Is it little wonder that Sega now ties Sonic’s little red shoes, rather than making game consoles?
Instead, the 64 got its “N” from Nintendo, who took on the project shortly thereafter. By 1995, the new gaming beauty was making its first appearances under the title “Ultra 64”.
Cartridges were shown as the format of choice, but few insiders had any idea how the controller might function. This was, after all, a console designed with advanced Computer Generated Imagery (CGI) in mind. If a major step forward in gaming was to be made, then a whole new handheld controller design was expected. After all, 3D graphics demands more than just four face buttons, right?
Nintendo gave us its first ‘revolutionary’ controller ten years prior to its Wii -mote. It gave us something current gamers might feel right at home using. It features an analogue stick in the middle of a wide grip controller with plenty of buttons for complex gaming.
By the fall of ’95, Nintendo was introducing the console under its own name, having dropped the extreme “Ultra” tag. It seems a little company named Konami, makers of NES smash hits Blades of Steel and the Metal Gear Solid series, owned the rights to “Ultra” through its similarly named games division. It wouldn’t be the last time Konami would stick it to Nintendo.
Nintendo 64 Specs (not bad for 1997):
- CPU: 93.75 MHz NEC VR4300
- GPU: SHU 62.5 MHz 64-bit RCP
- Memory: Rambus D-RAM 36 Mbits
- Transfer Speed: Max Speed of 4,500 Mbits/second, at 500 MHz
- Colors: 16.8 million
A significant delay followed in 1996, just as Nintendo fans were ramping up hopes that the system would ship that year. Who says console delays and/or shortages are limited to modern-day PlayStations and Wiis?
As expected, however, the delay helped build anticipation. Unfortunately, the delay was not enough. Sony had launched its first comparably powerful home console two years prior, so the market already had a “Fifth Generation” gaming golden boy.
Although the original PlayStation boasted just 32-bit graphics – technically half the hardware under the N64’s hood – it used compact discs. That made games cheap and turned PlayStation, or PSX, into an instant favorite.
Famicom Fact: Nintendo and Sony actually once planned releasing a hardware product together. Dubbed the “SNES-CD”, it would play Nintendo Entertainment System cartridges and another compact disc format developed by the PlayStation maker. Although planned for unveiling at the 1989 Consumer Electronic Show.
Before Wii, console gamers generally thought of Nintendo as third fiddle to Microsoft’s Xbox and Sony’s PlayStation. Thanks to Nintendo’s ability to strike out in new directions, nobody is thinking third fiddle anymore. What’s doing it for Nintendo today is the unique controller of the Wii. This is only the second time.
