Was the PS1/N64/Saturn Generation Actually the Best? - Retro Bird 

Games played: Ape Escape (0:00), Super Mario 64 (0:10), Soukyugurentai (1:15), Panzer Dragoon Zwei (1:50), Final Fantasy Tactics (2:35), Mario Tennis (3:15), Metal Gear Solid (4:35), Resident Evil 2 (5:00), Rayman (5:40), X-Men vs Street Fighter (6:20), Super Smash Bros. (7:25)

The point about open-world fatigue in modern gaming is an excellent one. Exploring “open” worlds in n64 titles were still crammed full of interesting content. Exploration felt productive and didn’t require 16 minutes of horseback riding through monotonous forests/plains.

The intro of this video “staying up to 3am, purple ketchup, yourself” had me cracking up. Love your videos

I would argue that the PS1/N64/Saturn generation is a tie-in with Genesis/SNES for the best generations. The 16-bit era brought 2D Arcade-like games to the home consoles in a way we would never believe it was possible, and the next generation brought the 3D revolution we were long awaiting for. Also, many 2D franchises also transitioned to 3D between these 2 generations.

We desperately need "Mr. Domino STILL Can't Be Stopped" on PS5

I think something that doesn't get brought up as much is how much this generation was a racing game all you can eat buffet. Especially the N64. There are so many legends that began with this era - Need for Speed, Sega Rally, Ridge Racer, Gran Turismo, Wipeout, TOCA/Grid, Wave Race, Chocobo Racing, Crash Team Racing, Rush, and Cruis'n. We also got the first 3D games in long running series like Mario Kart, F-Zero, and Tokyo Xtreme Racer. Plus some standout titles that flew under the radar like Initial D, High Velocity/Touge, Beetle Adventure Racing, V-Rally, MRC, GT 64, Star Wars Episode 1, World Driver Championship, Gale Racer, Motor Toon Grand Prix, and Jet Moto

I absolutely love that era of gaming. So unique and creative. And also the last gen that you can play games without downloading stuffs!

Probably was the best generation of unique and interesting game design. After this era, things started to settle and designers fell into what felt like templates for certain genres. I'm glad to have started gaming long enough before this gen to appriciate what it brought to the table. It's one of the most collectable eras too with tons of classics.

There's a level of nostalgia built up for me with this generation because there were so many games my friends had that I was dying to play. Now I can and even my kids love it.

I think this generation was great, but man, that 6th generation went hard too. dreamcast, ps2,xbox,and GameCube up the stakes and exclusives

My initial reaction was no, for whatever reason. But the more I think about it, it was an absolutely awesome generation. The PS1 finally made being a gamer kinda cool and video games in general were finally accepted by most people, instead of it just being a nerdy thing. The 5th generation was such a drastic leap in technology over the previous that actual arcade ports were much more possible. The PS1 and specifically FF VII gave RPG’s the much overdo respect they deserved outside of Japan. Hard to say if it was the best generation, but I feel like it might be the most important generation, if that makes any sense.

I grew up with pong/Atari 2600/Intellivision in the early 80's, so upgrading to the Sega Master System/Genesis and eventually to the NES/SNES was the best era for me. Also, borrowing my friend's Turbografx 16 was an additional surprise. The lack of media information and no internet made everything seem magical when only hearing aboot games from schoolmates or discovering them myself. Not to knock the generation for this video, but my pick for best time is roughly 1985-1995.

I've never minded the early 3d look that many games had. I find them often sort of charming in their own way. Anyhow, I like all of these consoles. I really like all of the one of a kind experiences on the Saturn like Dragon Force, Silhouette Mirage, Guardian Heroes, Princess Crown and Nights. Yeah I know the PS1 had Silhouette but the Saturn ver. is considered superior. The PS1's library is so massive I could probably spend my entire life playing it and still find games I've never heard about. The amount of variety is staggering. I mean have you ever heard of Carnage Heart or Power Shovel? The N64's biggest drawback at least for me is just its library. As someone who likes RPGs, aside from a few standouts like Ogre Battle and Paper Mario, there wasn't a lot. Still, the combination of Rareware and Nintendo gives a whole lot of fun hours.

Thank you retrobird! Best gaming channel on YT!!!

You can say what you want about Sega, but the fact that they had the balls to turn a rail shooter into an RPG, and do it successfully, made me a fan for life. Panzer Dragoon Saga, to this day, is the best game I have ever played or experienced, and I will always be grateful to Sega for that.

Depending on your age, you really got to appreciate the leap in gaming that happened during this gen! I was in college at the time, and we were literally blown away! Still love to come back to these games! The jump in controllers, and 3D was HUGE!!!! then it became refined ever since! "I eat juries like this for breakfast!" Love it! Keep up your gamer thoughts!

I was a PlayStation teen. Although I did pick up an N64 but only had 3 games-Mario Kart64, Super Mario64, and Killer Instinct Gold. PlayStation had more teen/adult themed games that excited me.

you guys need to mention "SIN AND PUNISHMENT" for the N64 a lot more when talking about Treasure etc... Such an underrated amazing game :)

Definitely my favorite generation. Grew up with PlayStation and N64, then later down the road went head first into Saturn.

That opening made me rewind and do a double take. Purple ketchup? That's a thing? 😲

I really like your video essays and you seem such a nice guy.

It was definitely a special time in gaming. Felt like a quantum leap from the 4th generation. Glad I was there for it at a prime age to fully appreciate how special it was

That generation was my favourite time in gaming. With the shift to 3D, everything was new and fresh, and nobody had a clue what the heck they were doing! It lead to wild creativity and technical innovation and a ton of absolute classic games. 3D gameplay was greatly refined in the following generation, but as things got formalized/standardized, the industry as a whole just became less interesting to me. That's continued on to present day, with a few blips of interest here and there (the emergence of the indie scene, VR... that's about it). I miss the days of being able to pick up a videogame magazine (I also miss videogame magazines) and read it cover to cover and find every single game interesting (except maybe some sports or sim games).

While there were very very few truly open-world games in this generation, there are the infamous Virtual Hydlide on the Saturn and the infamous Aidyn Chronicles on the N64. Aidyn Chronicles in particular is a technical marvel - that is if you can stick with it long enough to actually see what it's doing. (It's fairly tedious.)

When I got into the hobby right after college, I knew I’d want a few more N64 games because it was my first modern console and it holds a special nostalgic place. But I never thought I’d find the low poly, simpler games of the era charming. Lo and behold, a few years later, you play enough of them and listen to others’ experience enjoying them and you too can find yourself smitten with the whole generation. Also, couch co-op is best co-op. It’s half the reason I collect.

I've been looking toward to this one. My best gaming memories are in this generation.

That lawyer motif was perfect.

Man that was such an awesome generation. I had the PlayStation one, because that’s what Final Fantasy was coming out on, and my friends had the N64. So when I was at my house, I was playing all the Final Fantasy, games, Parasite, Eve, Tony Hawk, resident evil, and so many other great games and then when I was at their house will be playing Diddy Kong racing goldeneye doom 64, 1080 and so many others. So many franchises either got their start during that generation or evolved into some thing. Amazing. Everything just felt fresh.

8:41 this part really crack me up! XD

Loved it! I skipped this gen but rediscovered games in the PS2 era. And I’ve never looked back since. Rediscovered some incredible PS1 games on the backwards compatible PS3, some of which happen to be 2D shoot ‘em ups: the incredible Einhander and R-Type Delta, as well as the great Metal Gear Solid.

Completely agree that each of these were different enough that they complemented each other. I was lucky enough to own each of them at one time or another in the late nineties, and it's fair to say I was a screaming fanboy for all of them! Nothing but fond memories for such amazing systems. Praise be for modern emulation indeed!

When we were in the era, I thought N64.... afterward, I think PS1.... then I started collecting for Saturn and I really like that one, too! But it's hard to compete with PS1's 2000 titles. Great video, as per usual, Mr. Retro Bird!! I'd just like to add, I've been collecting Saturn since 2018 and I've easily spent over $5000 on it. 30 games, 4 cartridges I'm not even sure what they do, 2 3D controllers, 2 regular controllers and 1 Retro Bit controller with a nice long cord! But, damn! 😢 money...

Whenever I think of the N64, I think about how much I missed 4 player local multiplayer. I really wish modern game devs would bring this back since our TVs have gotten so much larger.

I have a CRT with component hook ups and I have an RGB modded N64 with an Everdrive 64 X7, looking to get a Saturn (possibly with Fenrir) and a PS1 with Xstation.

One note about the controls from this generation is that 3d games were a new medium at this point and the optimal control schemes hadn't been discovered yet

Retro Bird you're so funny .. such great videos - I wish we were able to hang out and play lots of retro games together. I just got a 6 TB hard drive full of all the US PS2 games on it to put in my phat ps2. Also a miyoo mini Plus handheld game emulation device .. . And various other recent gaming endeavors. 😉 So much time transferring files though!! Anyway, you have such a knack for comedy and have become one of my favorite youtubers. Hopefully you never stop!! 🏝️🎮📺😊🏝️ Been gaming since around 82' when I was 4yo! Started on the Vic20/C64 a few years prior to continuing forward with the nes, etc etc.

I skipped straight from SNES to PS1. Barely ever played N64 or anything else except maybe at a friends house from time to time. PS1 was amazing for it's time without a doubt. But after playing later Playstations I am too spoiled on the graphics and it is hard to play PS1 sometimes. SNES is still my all time favorite. Great game selection and graphics seem to be good on CRT or HD.

Those banana jurors looked like they were ready for lunch...ba-dum-TSH

I think best generation to take part in when it was happening. So much innovation unique design all over the place.

My absolute favorite generation! Ideas were fresh and everything was fun and different. I’m still diving into the libraries of these 3 consoles finding new games to try all the time!

I was a just starting high school when this generation came out and I remember we were blown away by it. Mario64, running around in a 3D environment? How is that possible?! Sega Rally on the Saturn was amazing fun with friends, sliding the Lancia Delta round the stage! But holy smoke stacks, when Song 2 starts up on Fifa 98 on the PlayStation in crystal clear CD quality? What a time to be alive! The transition from 4th to 5th generation was the absolute peak. We had it all. An amazing spread of consoles aiming at very different targets. Loved it.

I think this gen is now getting the praise it deserves. There were so many haters for the low poly aesthetic and game design, but now the people who grew up and loved this gen have been doing a good job of explaining the appeal in youtube videos and such. People are starting the see the appeal of low poly like they did with sprites. More and more indie games are going for this look. Also, there were just a ton of amazing games from this gen.

A jury of my peer’s was always going to be kind of bananas.

Nothing beats the craziness of this generation. So many consoles entered the fray: PS1, Saturn, N64, 3DO, Jaguar, CD-i, CD32, PC-FX. Pure Madness in the early-to-mid 90s. Never will see that again.

"Just got back from checkin' out dog turds." 🤣 Man, you showed the Xenogears disc case...I lost that in a move. That one hurts!

The Saturn may still be my favorite system. While I sold my original system, I bought a couple of others over the years and have rebuilt my games library. I bought an N64 in Japan on the day it was released just to play Mario 64. Worth it.

I didn’t know a single person with a Saturn... All my friends had N64 and some had a PS1. Loved how very different the N64 and PS1 was to each other.

My kids and I have been playing through Klonoa Door to Phantomile (on a PS2 through a CRT; true old school experience). I've got to say, those graphics with the art style is something unique and beautiful to look at in its own right.

Not sure if it was from Nintendo power but I had a promo video for n64 before it released as a kid I watched that thing every night and was blown away.

saturn is so underrating by the mainstream looking back at its full library.

So sad that I never got to experience the Sega Saturn during that time. But the N64 was my favorite and loved Final Fantasy and Castlevania on the Playstation. It was truly one of the best time for gaming.

5+ saturn bomberman was the hit, always will remember fondly.

That reset button is quite bangin

I loved this generation. Never owned N64 but it was great for multiplayer at friends houses. And PS1 which I owned was wonderful for RPGs and Tony Hawks Pro Skater as well as many others. Love your channel and videos. Thanks to Red Cow Entertainment for turning me onto you!

I recently purchased a handheld emulator device so have been playing a fair amount of ps1 classics. It's been amazing to not only reconnect with these old games but to also realize just how many laid the ground work of modern console games. Graphically, games have certainly advanced but mechanics wise has only been refined over the last 4 generations.

I had graduated out of high school when this generation happened. I think it holds up for being many people's first intro to 3D gaming.

I love the look of gen 5 games when displayed properly.

My favorite video youve done yet. I love the 5th gen systems (including 3DO and Jaguar) but this is just the perfect topic for me personally. These systems produced games that, years after the 6 gen came out i got rid of most of my 5th gen games and thought i would never want to return to them ever again. 25 years later and I'm absolutely addicted and in love with these systems and games again; i never saw that comin!

Jazz Jackrabbit......I miss this game!

Nearly 53k!!???🎉

Holy shit man, that line about looking at dog turds and not finding any that looked like PS1 games combined with your facial expressions there really just had me DYING with laughter man. Much appreciated brother.

Great video! I grew up gaming during the fifth gen and it was quite an exciting time for video games! The jump from the SNES to the N64 made my jaw drop as I had never seen anything like it! I only could afford an N64 during that time, but it was a blast to play alone or with friends. The multiplayer was a huge draw and the N64 got some amazing exclusives! I eventually got a PS1 and Saturn years later. I loved both of those as well. The PS1 and Saturn had some excellent exclusives as well (quite different than Nintendo's offerings). I still play all three of these consoles and they are just as fun as they used to be. Yes, early 3D graphics aren't the prettiest to look at in a lot of cases, but many of the games still hold up where it counts in terms of gameplay! People underestimate the importance of this generation. These consoles were the gateway into a new era of 3D gaming!

My feeling is that arcade games were the best in the early-mid 80s when I was a teenager, and home videogames were the best in the late 90s during the 5th gen when I was in my late 20s. Most inspiring creativity and newness, astounding visuals and music, and optimistic and joy-loving fun always the top priority. Games could magically transport you back then. Games magazines, E3, and independent videogame stores were also at their coolest point in the late 90s. The scene was a blast, and so positive! There have been plenty of great games since the 90s, and I still play and really enjoy tons of new games ... but once violent and realistic shooting became the main focus of the majority of mainstream gamers in the 2000s, something essential was lost. Also, videogames became mega-big business after the 90s, which is why suits have been doing their best to ruin them, fire people, and chase profit-growth-building microtransactions ever since. So far, we gamers and a few strong-minded developers and publishers have resisted and pledged our time to fun games ... but for how long can we hold out?

The best not sure , but was my first and deserves a special place in my heart. As always , huge greetings from Portugal 🇵🇹

The controls for Rascal on PS1 are the stuff of legend.

I'm definitely a far bigger fan of the PS1 than either the N64 or Saturn, even if there's a handful of my all-time favourite games on either one. It was a really challenging time for game design, and developers took a while to find their stride, with Nintendo having to enter the generation years late, when they had a few games they were happy to release, and Sega unable to produce their promised system selling Sonic game. I'd argue that the following generation was far healthier for everyone (even if Sega called it quits entirely a couple years in), with more varied games made by more experienced teams. I don't know if the GameCube has the same fervour around it that the N64 does, but I think you can find far more great games on it.

It definitely was a great gaming generation for sure, for certain lots of great consoles got released in the 90's, all offering us a different experience and options to enjoy our hobby. 😎👍

This is one of your best videos yet!

Imo 5th Gen is the best Gen, simply because it has the Sega Saturn in it. Which's the best console of all time, this whole Gen was full of bangers too! It had Mario 64 which's the best Mario game of all time, Nights, Mega Man X4, Castlevania: Symphony of the Night, Chrono Cross, Final Fantasy 7, 8, and 9, Crash and Spyro. It's my personal favorite console Gen and I still play them often to this day.

Ocarina of Time is basically the granddaddy for 90 percent of games today. Big open world action RPG. But for me the 4th gen reigns supreme.

5:43 Looking in good shape! The 32-bit generation was my favorite by far. Besides being a teen, there was indeed so much experimentation and each console offered something different. N64: Peak 3D game design. PS1: So many 'cool,' edgier titles. Saturn: Peak 2D and Sega was very profilic.

So many fantastic games between these 3 consoles. It was a great time to play games. Personally I think the low poly look has a charm to it. Some indie games even replicating the look these days.

Honestly I just lump the 4th and 5th generations together and consider it the greatest gaming decade. Most of my favorite console games came out during these two generations, and the only one that came afterwards that came close to recapturing the magic was the 6th generation. At least for me.

I had an n64 when I was younger and missed out on the PS1. Around 2010 my local stores couldn't give PS1 games away. I was on an insane PS1 buying spree. I was getting bangers for $10 a game.

I've thought about this long and hard. I can't say for sure, objectively, that it's the best. I can say, without a doubt, that it's my absolute favorite. I was 9-14 years old during this gen, and man, was it a special moment in time.

8:42 😂 I found this channel recently and omg is therapy 🤣

The AAA industry looks ready to crash so yeah, the PS1/Saturn/N64 era, more than ever, is peak.

between open world fatigue, option fatigue ( side quests VS main line), shovel-ware fatigue, and First person shooter fatigue ... 4th, 5th, and 6th gen ( SNES, N64 Game Cube) were the gaming hay day .... period and i dont wannna fight about it

I don't think I'll ever get that wow feeling again as when I first loaded Mario 64 and sat waiting for the game to start, only to then realise that the graphics weren't an intro but the game itself. I have never been so impressed since

It was a pivotal generation. The kids (anyone under 21) currently saying these games look bad, will find themselves as adults talking about their beloved PS4/PS5 titles and having future kids tell them that their beloved PS4/PS5 games looked like *bleep*.

This was the golden age for Jrpgs and wrestling games

Lets not forget about hidden unlockables like 007 mode in goldeneye which is unlocked through gameshark. (It lets you use sliders, enemies reaction time, accuracy, and hp) AND, it remains after you stop using the game shark. Making it a permanent unlock. Drone guns/turrets still have good aim. But everything will be completed already on 00 Agent. So you, can enjoy yourself and start beating agent and secret agent modes.

This generation of gaming in the mid to late 90s (especially 1997 to 1998) will always be the GOAT for me and this will never change still keep original hardware for PSX, N64, and even Sega Saturn as well as 13in CRT to run them all to this day.

I think the 5th gen is my favorite gen ever. I made a video of my top favorite games of each gen, and the 5th gen has so many bangers. It also has my favorite game ever, Xenogears.

You brought up a lot of points that I have espoused for sometime to the younger generation who didn't live through that era of gaming or give a recency bias check to those who did live through it and are not remembering how things were because they are used to things now. The TV size is a big one for a lot of different reasons, we had a 20 inch TV and that was quite large back in the day, but it also played into how the graphics looked and it is something that can easily be seen in your gameplay footage: scanlines. Scanlines can make a HUGE difference in how a game looks. Too many times I have seen people parrot the line of "N64 games just dont hold up visually" and it's because they just hooked them up to their modern 55 inch HDTV and yeah, it looks horrible. If you can hook it up to play on an old CRT TV it looks pretty good, due to a lot of games during this era being in 240p which a lot of modern TV's cannot display correctly, the slight smoothing that comes from how the CRT TV worked, and scanlines that developers actually designed around knowing that the blocky, pixel characters would transform into some nicely color shaded characters. That's right, people who don't know, modern TV's and razor sharp pixels were NOT how the games looked back then. If you can swing it pick up a RetroTINK 5X or the 4K if you have the money for that beast (I am getting it even though I own said 5X) and put on the scanlines, your retro games will look so much better and closer to how you remember them.

The 90s was definitely the funest time everybody got together I remember walking from school meeting up with friends after school 🎒 everyone brought there own controller and difrent games to play we enjoy the graphics now day it's almost like watching a movie 🍿 playing modern games

pound for pound, this generation is definitely my favorite, the Saturn had around 100 awesome games on it, the n64, at least a dozen... the PSX? closer to 500. Sure people can say newer generations had as many absolute gems as this one did, but this gen i feel was the most creative and experimental... before game budgets ballooned and each release was a calculate risk that could bankrupt a studio. if you include PC games that came out during 1995-2001 as part of this generation, we're talking well over 1000 games that are some of the best ever.

You make a compelling argument, thats for sure. I can still appreciate these consoles for laying the 3D ground work, Pilotwings on the N64 was the single biggest leap into 3D I had seen at that time. All 3 have a decent back catalogue to enjoy.

I see you included the most visually impressive scene from any shmup ever. Nice.

Generations 3 4 5 6 Amazing Times

I recently bought an N64, after many years ago, selling my childhood one to contribute to purchasing a Nintendo Gamecube. I've loved playing it, it's an amazing console. In addition, I've been playing quite a few PS1 games on my PS3, that has also been a blast. I've never played a Sega Saturn before, I've heard good things!

I love what RetroBird had to say in this episode. It's like the generations that came after this watered down what this and the sixth generation offered.

It'll always be a special generation to me, even if a lot of the games don't always hold up to modern standards. It was the first generation where I was fully engrossed in gaming culture from the GeniSNES & TurboGraphx, magazines were regularly read on the up coming systems & their games, but most of all I had the chance to play the N64 multiple times before it's release due to a broken arm, air conditioning & a promo setup at a local amusement park called Ontario Place (RIP).

I'd give that honour to the PS2/GC/OG XBox-generation. Online multiplayer started to become a thing, wireless controllers started to come out, 3D-graphics hit a point where they didn't look like low poly abominations anymore, but still hadn't hit the uncanny valley yet. Controls were great and pretty standardised, but not yet too complex for people to have a hard time getting into gaming

This was a weird era. The hardware was very limited, meaning the graphics were mostly terrible and developers were still learning how to make 3D games. That said, there was lots of innovation and new ideas. Everything felt much more experimental.

Yes, i wholeheartedly agree that the 5th gen was and still is the best generation! That's pretty much most of my collection save for some Genesis and SNES. But these 3 systems (incl. 3DO) are just so fascinating and yes nostalgia plays a huge part in my fascination with these systems. It was just a great time to be alive in the 90s and everything just clicked! I think with thenadvent of true 3D gaming this was just such a great leap over the 16-bit systems, but it wasnt perfect, and i came to love a lot of the quirks this gen was fraught with...

For me, it still is, it was also the biggest jump and change in gaming, nothing can actually compare to the 16-bit to the 32-bit generations, the gap is too big.

That opening statement better not have been meant for the game you are shown playing. Ape Escape is a bloody masterpiece and I'll love it until the day I die.

The design of the N64 is beautiful. It looks like a 50s muscle car. Its feet look like curvy wheel haunches, the controller port fascia looks like an aggressive grill and head lights, and who can forget the jumper port on top looking like a V8 Chevy big block when the expansion pak's installed. There's even ventilation for all that extra RAM!

Retro Bird is one of my new favourites, Great Video!