2D Games on the Nintendo 64 

I think my biggest issue with mid to late 90s 2D games was how so many of them ditched beautifully drawn sprites for early CG renders

The Bio Tetris mode in Tetris 64 is for the N64 Bio Sensor, packed with the game. The mode measures the player's heart rate and provides feedback in the mode. Tetris 64 is the only game to support it.

You're a legend Joe! After so many years i'm still amazed by your work here! Keep up!

I love how humble Joe is. I mean, he keeps talking about Tetris, but not once has told us he plays Alexey Pajitnov in the Tetris movie.

A decade plus of incredible vids. We’re so spoiled, thanks Joe.

It's a shame we didn't get a Donkey Kong Country or proper 2D Mario for the N64. It could handle 2D sprite visuals quite well.

Today's episode: How can ONE MAN be so bad at puzzle games?

I love Mischief Makers. The controls are weird, but you do get used to them. The music is great, and I love the bosses. Also, there’s one golden gem in each level, and to get the full ending, you have to get all of them. Add a decent amount of replay value. Shake! Shake!

I'm so happy to hear that you're going to do a separate episode on all the Mahjong games for the N64.

The block sounds on New Tetris aren't lagging, they're meant for the little "integrating" animation after they land... A very strange choice.

Wonder Project J2 shows the N64 had a surprisingly strong 2D potential.

Love to see a new Game Sack episode while winding down on a weekend night. Mischief Makers is one of my favorites on the system. Awesome OST and some of my favorite boss battles in any platformer.

Ok, what did we learn today? I learnt that the N64 in 2d is a puzzle games machine as much as the NEOGEO is a fighting games one.

That disney tetris spritework is amazing. I wish there was so much more. Imagine a metal slyg style game on n64

Yes, you're sane. Your endings are the best and you have the best video game channel since the very beginning

I’m a simple man. I see a new Game Sack video, I instantly watch it.

The New Tetris has an AMAZING soundtrack! One of the best on the console. The songs are tied to which stage you’re playing on, and if I recall you unlock more stages by playing the Single Player mode, so I’m assuming Joe didn’t bother playing long enough to unlock more than what the game starts with. And the Blocks you can make are an additional element for score. You can make a Silver block by using any combination of types of pieces, or a Gold block by using all the same type of piece. If I recall Silver Block pieces are worth 5 lines when you clear them, and Gold Block pieces are worth 10. It adds a huge strategy layer to maximizing your score by including multiple blocks as part of your line clears. And I’m pretty sure there is garbage, but because of the Block mechanic, I think it’s significantly nerfed compared to many other Tetris games as a double Gold Block Tetris is worth an absurd amount of lines and would otherwise more than overfill an entirely empty board.

The Tetris clone people have their day in the sun with this episode.

It was a shame there was no 2d metroid for the 64.

I always wondered how 2D fighters such as street fighter and marvel vs Capcom would have looked on the N64?

17:27 - That "boom shaka laka" is the most 90s thing I've heard in recent memory. That really takes me back.

I think ogre battle 64 can count as a 64 2D game, it has a few polygons on the overworld map mountains but that's it.

I love playing with my sack first thing on Sunday morning. It's the best way to kick off the week!

The New Tetris sound isn't a lag. You just have a bit of leeway to adjust the piece's position and rotation before it's set. I assume you never use the Hard Drop feature.

Best part of staying up late on Saturday night is new GameSack episodes.

Thank you for all the Game sack Joe !! I appreciate you

Edited for the right timestamp Cool video! Around 18:10 the sound of the Tetris pieces is in sync to the pieces "locking in" or settling. Before that, you can still slide them around.

Yoshi's Story is so fun. My mom loved it totally and we even got the OST CD because she liked it so much. As for Tetris 64, the reason there is a Heartbeat Mode is because it came with a sensor players could put on their fingers and depending on their stress level, blocks would change.

64 was good for 2D but the saturn was the true 2D monster, sega had the vision of 2D being the future of gaming for the 5th generation

I can’t believe I’ve been following gamesack for nearly a decade.

Now I want a Game Sack episode all about different versions of mahjong.

15:58 Poor Joe. He got the Charlie Brown kicking the football treatment. 😆

If I'm not wrong, Bio-Tetris mode had a sensor that could check your heartbeat, and the game speed would change according to it.

Bio Tetris supports a pulse sensor that plugs into the Controller Pak slot and makes the game speed up or slow down according to your pulse rate. IIRC, it clips to your ear. Maybe save that for an episode about weird N64 accessories (mouse, microphone, bio clip, AsciiPad64, transfer pak, etc)? Also, they literally pronounce Puyo Puyo in the game as “Pee Yo Pee yo” ;) One more 2D game that definitely deserved a mention is the Japanese Bomberman 64. It was the final N64 game released in Japan and because it has the same name as the American version of a different Bomberman game, many don’t even realize it exists.

Magical Tetris Challenge was a Capcom game directed buy Hidemaro Fujibayashi, who went on to direct Capcom's Legend of Zelda titles for Game Boy Color and GBA. Afterwards he went to Nintendo to work on the Zelda series, and went on to direct Skyward Sword, Breath of the Wild, and Tears of the Kingdom.

I can vouch for Mischief Makers as being an extremely fun game, especially if you like mastering games.

32:19 You can attach a Bio Sensor to your Nintendo 64 Controller's accessory slot, and Bio Tetris will make the game easier or harder depending on your heart rate. Your heart rate is measured by attaching the bio sensor's clip onto any of your ear lobes.

Another next level skit, Joe. I bought the Xeno Crisis ROM for my Everdrive 64 and it’s a great 2D game on the Nintendo 64!

Sunday Morning in Germany and a new episode of GameSack is on air. That’s what I call a proper start!

Mischief Makers is one of my favorite hidden gems on the 64.

Ah yes, Mischief Makers, the game where everything has a scary face on it, even the planet itself. What were y'all at Treasure smoking?

Let's tear into that Sack!

My friends and I played the new Tetris all the time. The blocks falling and that delay is more of the block "solidifying" itself when it's finally placed cause you have a moment to move or spin it. Plus, in multiplayer, you can send garbage lines to you opponents, it's an option to turn on. And you can keep playing to build the seven wonders of the world. I still have my copy and we played so much that we got to the final wonder of the world as all the lines cleared are collectively tallied to build them. Plus the special blocks can be silver if it's random pieces into a 4x4 block and gold if it's all the same pieces. And those blocks act as multipliers for your line score.

What a great night when a new game sack episode is released!

You really so sum up Mischief Makers well when you say it's a game worth trying and seeing if it clicks with you. For me it absolutely did, and it remains one of my favourite games to this day. Once you get a handle on the controls you can really get moving in a nice rhythm. Not for everyone, but if it is for you it's a special little adventure to enjoy

What about the 2d goemon game that we did get? I liked the 3D (soft of) prequel better but it was quite good and worth a mention. Though it was more 2.5D I guess.

The N64 port of NBA Hang Time is my all time favorite, even better than the arcade. An all time CLASSIC!

As you probably figured, the reason Susume sounds so CD like is because the music was made by Konami's excellent sound team. Mystical Ninja 64 and Goemon's Great Adventure in particular has some insanely high quality music, and tons of it.

New Game sack AND Console Wars episode today! All is right in the universe.

Axolotl spotting! The pink one looks like mine, that's named Kirby.

Ah yes. Long night at work and Joe comes in to save the day!! Thanks for your Channel buddy!!

I like the new hairstyle. Looks pretty awesome. To me the real beast of 2d is gonna be the Saturn but the Rampage games look really good for a Nintendo console of that era. Cheers mate : )

Awesome vid! Awakened an ancient memory with Mischief Makers. I remember renting that from Blockbuster and having no clue how to play it.

The big blocks in New Tetris is a gimmick to direct the player to get more points instead of simply building a stack and making tetrises. The game will often give you the same piece 4 times in a row in an attempt to make you build the big squares. There also is another gimmick where the stack is affected in different ways is you clear the lines with something like a t-spin, for example.

I absolutely adore the look of 2D games from this era, I wish more of the N64 ones got an international release

Great episode! I never thought of the N64 as having many 2D games, but I was still surprised at the lack of 2D platform games. For me, at least, it really emphasized just how much 3rd party support was lost to the PS1.

Game Sack has been great for a long time. Should be at least 500k subs after so long.

WHOA, they made sequel to wonder project!?? Loved the game on the SNES days. Thanks for the mention, I will look for it.

Thats a awesome weekend when you got a new video from Game Sack and James Rolfe. How can it be better !!!

Capcom releasing Magical Tetris Challenge instead of ANY Street Fighter game on N64 is an all-time head scratcher

KarugaKids should have been on your list. It is a great little 2D fighter that leaves you wanting a Capcom 2D fighter on the N64. After this I was wanting Street Fighter Alpha 2 on my N64. Wished this console had more support back then with more 2D games.

That’s a great idea, the PS1 had some awesome 2D games unfortunately most were only released in Japan and it’s always cool to learn more about the Saturn

There is one thing i think people told you already in the comments: The New Tetris has an infamous message in the hex code by one of the programmers, criticizing the development of the game, and the people behind it...Sadly the guy passed away in the year 2000, but it has a really decent carreer in the industry

32:31 "A jagged piece that can't even be described" that's a nightstick

Yoshi’s Story is a great game. I think it’s worth having the fruit on the screen. It’s nice to see how close you are to finishing the stage. If you want to see more of the level, you can hold off on eating fruit to see it all. Also, the melons (not the watermelons) are special because you can complete any level by only eating them. And I believe you get a point bonus for it. It also makes the game a little more challenging if you want that.

You always come through with a new video when I need it the most. Thank you!

thanks to you i have discovered a couple of new n64 games...those rintaro 64 and taisen dama games...thanks again!

Fun fact. I used to go to a bar in Bournemouth (southern England) that was owned by the creator of the Worms games. If you bought a drink and asked nicely, he’d do some of voices from the game for you. Was a really nice guy.

Starcraft was a massive hit on PC. I never played the N64 version, but people said that the 4 players on the same screen (while on PC you can play 8 players on each own PC) offers a funny and different way to play!

18:20 This game has lock delay when the tetrominoes hit the bottom, and you are given a short amount of time to turn or move them before they lock into position. Hitting Up triggers a Sonic Drop where it simply touches the bottom, but you have to be aware of the lock delay, so if you Sonic Drop by accident, make additional moves before the tetrominoes lock in place.

37:56 The twisty dragon from Super Mario Wonder!!!... or at least some variation of it!

Nice to hear a little Mystical Ninja Starring Goemon music play during the intro of the video. Game doesn't get enough love. One of my all time favorites for the system. Play it now if you never have.

"Magical Tetris Challenge" was my jam growing up! Capcom used the N64 hardware like a CPS2 on steroids...amazing stuff, and it still holds up.

Nothing makes a Sunday better than a new Game Sack!

Thank Joe!!!!! We love you don’t stop

I had N64 MK Trilogy that I ought back in he day- I remember it being pretty rough to play because of the controller and the scratchy muted sounds, but tolerated it.

The music in that Disney Tetris game is awesome as hell, I was not expecting that!

I like that the sound of the N64 has a lot of echo and\or reverb. I can recognize a n64 game just by listening to it.

I've always considered Mischief Makers the definitive Treasure game

Nice hair Joe! Thanks for your work! Love em!

The best part of Sunday morning is a new Game Sack episode

New Tetris was mad trippy with the music and we had a blast playing 4 player modes

There is a Japanese Bomberman 64 that uses sprite art and plays like the old Bomberman games on SNES and Genesis. The Bomberman 64 in the US is called Baku Bomberman in Japan.

Bangai-O got a semi sequal on the DS as Bangai-O Spirits.

So many Japan-only games, no doubt in part due to how bloody expensive N64 games were to manufacture. Glad they rectified the whole cartridge decision with GameCube.

Thx joe for the always on time upload I stay up late on Sat for these!

“In this game, Mario uses drugs to make problems go away” 😂😂😂

I absolutely loved Mischief Maker when growing up. I bought it when it came out as I thought it resembled the Mega Man X series at first. lol... But what I discovered was a wacky world with lots of of characters and things to do in. All the stages are pretty unique, each have their own different goals. In each stage you need to find the "Golden" gem, which adds up time during the ending! You cannot see the whole ending without all the gold gems. XD You didn't mention the EPIC bosses and characters when you talked about it. Also, you talked about how the movement and the jumping doesn't make much sense but boy you're wrong -- The C-stick(all 4 buttons) controls Marina's Jet pack. If you jump, then press UP-C button, she'll boost up. You can jump and press right or left many times to make her "hover/fly", you can dash on the ground. It's amazing once you master it. Give it another try and try to get farther, it's worth it. :)

What a fantastic episode! During this generation of the Nintendo 64 I remember how much 2D games were looked down upon. A few days ago I was playing Mischief Makers and I always found it to be a very unique game, especially the boss battles that used a lot of the Nintendo 64 hardware. Oh, Bangai-o has a excelent Dreamcast version.

Did you ever try Bomberman 64? It was only released in Japan, not to be confused with the 1997 one.

N64 is having a moment right now! Really nice haircut btw!

You are wrong about the sound in the new Tetris. When the block hits the bottom you can still move it left and right, when it makes that sound the block is locked in place. You can see it even has an animation when the sound plays to show it's locked in.

Always a great weekend when we get a new Game Sack video.

StarCraft 64 is actually amazing, had upgrades even over the PC one in a lot of ways.

31:00 so that’s basically the exact same game as tokimeki memorial puzzle dama on the arcade/PS1

Thanks for the new video Joe! Awesome job as always. Me and my brother played hangtime for hours. One of the funnest games of all time. We would create our own characters, take off goal tending, and play seasons.

Thanks for all the content Joe, sometimes these videos are the only things keeping me sane. If you ever do retire though don't worry, I'll just keep em all on repeat!

Nice haircut Joe. Thanks for showing us your sack again.

This channel is awesome. I love the topics you cover, and you make them interesting to watch. Great stuff, keep doing your thing.

Been waiting the GS subscriber count for a long time and I’ve noticed that they’ve gotten a few thousand in the last 2 months or so. Perhaps the algo has finally loosened its death grip on this channel a bit? Happy for you Joe. Here’s to 300k!