A fun console to collect
When I started collecting retro video games, about 8 years ago, I was mainly looking for games from my childhood and popular games on 3 consoles in particular: Nintendo, Super Nintendo, and Nintendo 64. I quickly became attached to the Nintendo 64 platform; not because the games were particularly fun or because I had fond memories attached to this console, but rather because it is fun to collect! Indeed, games and consoles have many variations; the game library is rather small; the game boxes and labels are very beautiful; there are beautiful colors and shapes; … I’m re-reading myself and it's almost sensual [HAHA]…
At the time of writing this article, I am now at 276 games out of 296 officially distributed in North America. I'm also missing the gold console ("Gold Limited Edition") which was on sale exclusively in Toys"R"Us store and the neon green controller ("Extreme Green"). For now, I am not looking for the 4 other rarer controllers and offered in very limited quantities in Nintendo Power magazines or at events organized or "sponsored" by Nintendo.
Although the console's library is rather short, I try to complete my collection slowly (wisely) by making trades or finding good deals. I have the unfortunate tendency to scatter and start many collections, which too often takes me away from my main goals [OOPS]!
Wanted Nintendo 64 games list
So here are the last 20 games needed to complete my Nintendo 64 fullset. I am obviously looking for copies in excellent condition and without box (cartridge only). If you have one of these games and would like to make a trade, don't hesitate to contact me!
- Castlevania: Legacy Of Darkness
- Chameleon Twist 2
- Duck Dodgers Starring Daffy Duck
- Elmo's Number Journey
- Gex 64: Enter The Gecko
- Golden Nugget 64
- Hercules: The Legendary Journeys
- Jeopardy!
- Magical Tetris Challenge
- NBA Jam 2000
- NFL Blitz Special Edition
- Off Road Challenge
- Polaris SnoCross
- Rat Attack!
- Rocket: Robot On Wheels
- Starshot: Space Circus Fever
- Tigger's Honey Hunt
- Top Gear Overdrive
- Transformers Beast Wars: Transmetals
- Virtual Chess 64
What is my favourite Nintendo 64 game?
It might be a surprise to some people , but I don't know very well the library of the Nintendo 64 platform. In fact, I have very few memories attached to this one. I have of course played the more popular games like Super Mario 64, Donkey Kong 64 and Banjo Kazooie, but for the originality and its mature side, I would opt for Conker's Bad Fur Day!
What was my best luck during an acquisition?
Over the years, I have obviously managed to make several good deals to quietly expand my Nintendo 64 collection. I remember one time where I was extremely lucky. A few years ago, a person had a batch of 40 different games on Nintendo 64 for sale. I accepted his price even though we did not see half of the titles on the pictures provided … Once home, I started digging deeper and realized that I got my hands on a rather rare game: Super Bowling!!! Today, this game cartridge alone is worth more than $750 CAD; needless to say, I'm very glad I found it like that.
What is my favorite console variation?
In North America, nine different variants of the Nintendo 64 system were released and available at service points. My favourite variantion is the Pokémon Special Edition. While all the others are identical but in different colors, this one is completely unique in shape: we find Pikachu in relief on the console. The foot of the yellow creature serves as the "reset" button and its cheeks light up when the console is on!
What will be my next goal as a collector?
As I am addicted and passionate about retro video games, I don't risk stopping accumulating stuff related to the video game universe. Nostalgia and madness prevail over reason!
Once my Nintendo 64 collection is completed, I may want to improve the condition of some game cartridges … I am indeed much pickier than 8 years ago, which implies that 20 cartridges no longer meet the criteria of admission to my collection.
I may also be tempted by the different possible variants of N64 game such as gray cartridges for those normally in color (black, green, yellow, red, and blue) or labels with the mention "NOT FOR RESALE" which were most often used to differentiate the "demos" in store at the time.
I would like to devote myself to my Super Nintendo collection; my favorite console of all time and to which I am the most nostalgic! I already have more than 325 games on my counter, but I don't think I have the ambition to make a "fullset" for this console. There are too many sports games and I'm not interested in accumulating them… I prefer collect video games that shape my childhood or that seem to be fun!
Finally, my partner would probably add “a bigger house” as an answer [HAHA]… Space is indeed starting to run out [OUCH].
Last word
The best advice I can give you to complete your quest as a collector is: give yourself clear and precise rules, don't deviate from your main goal, try to find lots that include rare games and above all, take your time to enjoy each conquest. Otherwise, you will never see the light at the end of the tunnel, and you may get bored!