Jubenhimer
Member
The 5th generation of video games was perhaps one of the most important in gaming history. The transition to 3D. While a lot of games from earlier in the gen are hard to go back to these days, there's no denying the impact it had on gaming as a whole. Leading the revolution were the two main consoles that gen. Nintendo 64, from Nintendo Co., Ltd., and industry newcomer PlayStation, from Sony Computer Entertainment, Inc. In fact the PlayStation itself was the result of a sour deal between Nintendo and Sony regarding a CD-based add-on for the Super Nintendo, leading to Sony to take on the gaming market themselves. Both consoles were perhaps the most innovative platforms for their time, helping to define the way 3D games should look, feel, and play.
The Nintendo 64 was rather forward thinking with its odd, but interesting controller design, featuring an analog thumb-stick in the center to allow for 360 movement at various speeds depending on how far its moved, as well as 4 C-Buttons designed for Camera control. Features that were demonstrated in its flagship title, Super Mario 64. As it was the most powerful home console that generation, the N64 allowed for high quality 3D graphics to accommodate its unique control interface. The system innovated in other ways too, such as having 4-controller ports built into the system, encouraging more multiplayer-oriented titles such as Mario Kart, Super Smash Bros., and Mario Party.
The system also hosted a ton of accessories, including the Rumble Pak, which allowed for force feedback vibration in games, put to good use in its pack-in title, Star Fox 64. If that wasn't enough, the console also featured a bay for expandable RAM, IE the Expansion Pak. For as unique and innovative as the N64 was, it's biggest flaw was and will always be, its cartridge format. Only being able to hold a meager 64 MB AT MOST, cartridge size was the biggest limitation developers would have to go through if they wanted to make the most out of the Nintendo 64.
That's where Sony's PlayStation comes in. While CD-based platforms weren't a new thing at the time of the PlayStation's launch, the PlayStation was not only one of the first consoles that used CDs as standard rather than as an add-on, but it's arguably the first console that was actually powerful enough to do the format justice. While not quite as strong as the N64, the PlayStation's specs were pretty impressive for its time, allowing for high quality 3D models and environments. With its combination of cutting-edge 3D graphics and CD format, the PlayStation fundamentally changed how games could be presented. A standard CD could hold 700 MB, which meant characters could be fully voiced, pre-rendered videos could be played, high-quality music could be streamed, and game worlds could be bigger and seemingly limitless.
The PlayStation could finally allow for games to be as cinematic and lengthy as any good book or movie, and the use of the format combined with the console's power, made it appealing to a hip young casual audience who would've otherwise never touched a game controller. Unlike the N64, the PlayStation was able to create interactive Musicals (Parappa The Rapper, Bust a Grove), Sprawling, text-heavy adventures (Final Fantasy VII), Lengthy story driven experiences (Metal Gear Solid), and easily implement popular songs in-game (Tony Hawk's Pro Skater).
The PlayStation also featured other innovations. The Memory Card, while more a necessary evil than a forward thinking feature, was the first time a console allowed for save data back up independently from the game itself, allowing game data to be easily transferred from console to console. After the Nintendo 64 showed what analog inputs can do for 3D gaming, Sony introduced the dual analog and later the dualshock controller for the system. Sony expanded upon Nintendo's design by adding a second analog stick, baking the rumble feature right into the controller, and having each stick also act as another button. While hardly any games on the original PlayStation used the second stick, the addition of a second analog input allowed for a more intuitive means of camera control than Nintendo's clunky C-button solution.
So between these features and how the games utilized them, which console was more innovative for its time?
The Nintendo 64 was rather forward thinking with its odd, but interesting controller design, featuring an analog thumb-stick in the center to allow for 360 movement at various speeds depending on how far its moved, as well as 4 C-Buttons designed for Camera control. Features that were demonstrated in its flagship title, Super Mario 64. As it was the most powerful home console that generation, the N64 allowed for high quality 3D graphics to accommodate its unique control interface. The system innovated in other ways too, such as having 4-controller ports built into the system, encouraging more multiplayer-oriented titles such as Mario Kart, Super Smash Bros., and Mario Party.
The system also hosted a ton of accessories, including the Rumble Pak, which allowed for force feedback vibration in games, put to good use in its pack-in title, Star Fox 64. If that wasn't enough, the console also featured a bay for expandable RAM, IE the Expansion Pak. For as unique and innovative as the N64 was, it's biggest flaw was and will always be, its cartridge format. Only being able to hold a meager 64 MB AT MOST, cartridge size was the biggest limitation developers would have to go through if they wanted to make the most out of the Nintendo 64.
That's where Sony's PlayStation comes in. While CD-based platforms weren't a new thing at the time of the PlayStation's launch, the PlayStation was not only one of the first consoles that used CDs as standard rather than as an add-on, but it's arguably the first console that was actually powerful enough to do the format justice. While not quite as strong as the N64, the PlayStation's specs were pretty impressive for its time, allowing for high quality 3D models and environments. With its combination of cutting-edge 3D graphics and CD format, the PlayStation fundamentally changed how games could be presented. A standard CD could hold 700 MB, which meant characters could be fully voiced, pre-rendered videos could be played, high-quality music could be streamed, and game worlds could be bigger and seemingly limitless.
The PlayStation could finally allow for games to be as cinematic and lengthy as any good book or movie, and the use of the format combined with the console's power, made it appealing to a hip young casual audience who would've otherwise never touched a game controller. Unlike the N64, the PlayStation was able to create interactive Musicals (Parappa The Rapper, Bust a Grove), Sprawling, text-heavy adventures (Final Fantasy VII), Lengthy story driven experiences (Metal Gear Solid), and easily implement popular songs in-game (Tony Hawk's Pro Skater).
The PlayStation also featured other innovations. The Memory Card, while more a necessary evil than a forward thinking feature, was the first time a console allowed for save data back up independently from the game itself, allowing game data to be easily transferred from console to console. After the Nintendo 64 showed what analog inputs can do for 3D gaming, Sony introduced the dual analog and later the dualshock controller for the system. Sony expanded upon Nintendo's design by adding a second analog stick, baking the rumble feature right into the controller, and having each stick also act as another button. While hardly any games on the original PlayStation used the second stick, the addition of a second analog input allowed for a more intuitive means of camera control than Nintendo's clunky C-button solution.
So between these features and how the games utilized them, which console was more innovative for its time?
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