5 Nintendo 64 Games That Still Need to Be Remastered

The Nintendo 64 was a large paradigm shift for most gamers. It was a gaming revolution that moved video games from the limitations of a 2D world, which had been fundamentally built out during the NES and SNES, into a 3D space. The N64 was Nintendo’s first 3D console, and the first video game console with a 64-bit CPU. And the quality of games during the N64 marked a great era in gaming, whether with first-party titles like Super Mario 64 or third-party games like Perfect Dark.

In the current gaming landscape, a lot of publishers and developers have learned the value of remastering games from the ground up for modern players. Not only does this bring in audiences who replay these titles for nostalgic value, but it also serves up these great hits to many unfamiliar with the brand.

To that end, here are five Nintendo 64 games we still think badly need to be remastered for modern platforms.

1) Donkey Kong 64

Donkey Kong 64 was similar to 3D platformers like Super Mario 64 and Banjo-Kazooie, but offered many distinct advantages. Donkey Kong 64 contained many more characters to rotate through and play, like Lanky Kong and Chunky Kong. The game also had distinctive musical instruments and fruit-shooting weaponry for every character in support of building out their unique personalities.

With the latest Nintendo Direct showcasing Donkey Kong Bananza, the timing is ideal to offer fans a remaster of the first 3D Donkey Kong game to drive and drum up hype further for the next DK game. However, given the release date of Donkey Kong Bananza is set for next month on July 17th, perhaps it’s wishful thinking for a remaster of this title in the near future.

2) Pokémon Stadium

LEGO and Nintendo are competing in the market for party games, like LEGO Party and Super Mario Party Jamboree, but games like Pokémon Stadium get missed in the current gaming landscape. Pokémon Stadium wasn’t just a place to battle Pokémon, but was a hub of activities and different modes for all player types. Stadium Mode was featured to battle across four competitive cups, Kids Club was for fun Pokémon mini-games, Free Battle was for multiplayer battles, and more.

Pokémon Stadium truly built an ecosystem for the Pokémon community that was more accessible for bringing friends together. Pokémon Stadium also offered cross-platform play with the integration of Game Boy cartridge games on the Nintendo 64 console (although limited to playing Pokémon Red, Blue, and Yellow). While the integration for Game Boy Tower in Pokémon Stadium is fully aged out, there are other means to remaster Pokémon Stadium for modern audiences on the Nintendo Switch 2.

3) Jet Force Gemini

Rare had a direct link to the hearts and souls of gamers during the SNES and Nintendo 64 era of gaming. So much so that three of the games on this list belong to Rare’s portfolio, but one that often gets overlooked was Jet Force Gemini. It was a shooter that let players fight insectoid enemies called Mizar with a host of different and cool weapons in a semi-open world environment. The largest pitfall of the game revolved around saving the Tribals. The Tribals were a race of creatures enslaved by the Mizar that the player should save; “should” being the wrong word choice. To fully beat Jet Force Gemini, every single Tribal in the game requires saving. This amounted to the collection component of the game being a forced requirement, taking away some of the fun of finishing it.

Despite the Tribal pitfall, Jet Force Gemini stood out well as a Nintendo 64 exclusive and was a unique addition to Rare’s portfolio of games. However, similar to GoldenEye 007, going back and playing the game with outdated shooter controls that feel cumbersome hasn’t led to Jet Force Gemini not aging well, despite its solid foundation.

4) Mega Man 64

Mega Man 64 is an underrated Mega Man adventure that brought much more narrative and story behind the iconic blue blaster hero. This version of Mega Man transferred the game into 3D environments, but still provided Mega Man with a fun host of weapons to acquire, modify, and upgrade. And the boss battles against the Bonne family were exceptionally memorable, like the tanks in the town square battle.

However, Mega Man 64 is more difficult to go back and visit, as the world feels very flat and empty in comparison to how games are stylized and filled out today. Visiting the main city, Uptown, feels empty with the flat walls, locked houses, and so few locals traveling around. These decisions made sense at the time of development for Mega Man 64, but now would require significant updating and polishing to feel appropriate for a modern remaster. Given the significance of Mega Man in gaming history, this would be time well spent for fans.

5) Banjo-Kazooie & Banjo-Tooie

To round the corner on Rare-related games is the one most of us think of immediately with the Nintendo 64: Banjo-Kazooie and Banjo-Tooie. The Banjo-Kazooie games brought to life each world that players could visit. Older games might have the feeling at times of too much space or feeling barren, but Banjo-Kazooie brought a healthy level of depth to each level that still makes the game easy to revisit today. However, considering the sharp polygon angles and the difficult camera controls, the Banjo-Kazooie games are not without showing their age.

The fact that Banjo and Kazooie have been left out in the cold for modern gamers, outside of the cameo in Super Smash Bros. Ultimate, is nothing short of a tragedy. Remastering and rebuilding both Banjo-Kazooie and Banjo-Tooie is a service towards preserving this video game history, as well as offering up a chance to see if there is enough audience appetite to warrant another sequel in the future.