N64 vs PS1 vs Saturn

Which console was the best? Best specs, games, legacy, sales, all of it.

N64 was more powerful. PS1 had the sales. Saturn was....just there.

My favorite was the PS1 because of the number of great games. I think that the N64 games that were amazing really stood out, even more so than the PS1 greats. But PS1 had way more.

Saturn had the best 2d, not sure if the potential was ever realized in 3d games. Sega gave up on the console before developers ever really figured it out.

All three were awesome.

I like all 3 consoles, but the PS1 takes it for me. One of my favorite consoles of all time, so many good games.

N64 has such a small library. There are games that can't be missed. That's the big catch with this comparison. Comparing Mario 64 to any comparable game on saturn/psx is like comparing Street Fighter to Pit Fighter.

There's a few psx games worth mentioning but the real comparison is between Saturn and N64. They've got the best games.

N64. Saturn has some gems though.

The N64 had revolutionary games and the most fun local multiplayer ever. It was by far my favorite of that generation.

Burning Rangers, Panzer Dragoon Saga, Sega Rally, Virtua Fighter series, Daytona USA, Nights, Guardian Heroes, Shining Force 3, among many, many others, the Sega Saturn kicked butt imo, and I owned all 3 of those consoles.

Each console had strengths and weaknesses, but I would say the top-teir N64 games have aged best of the three.

The N64 for me

I dunno, the RPGs on PS1 and Saturn aged pretty well also. (which Saturn has less of but also has more 2D fighters and such that have aged gracefully imo)

I agree, which is why I think it is between Saturn and N64. N64 has some mind blowing games, but Saturn has perhaps the best versions of a select group of fighters and shooters. Saturn also has Virtua Cop. PSX has Twisted Metal, though.

All 3 were great! You cannot go wrong with buying any one or all 3.

Back then: N64>Saturn>PS1

Today: Saturn>PS1>>>>>>>>>>>>>>N64

The Saturn and PS1 just have way more timeless games than the N64.

Maybe this should've been a poll...

I loved both my N64 and PS1, but man I probably had 5 jaw dropping N64 games for every 1 good PS1 game. I know that isn't an accurate representation of their libraries, but as a kid I felt like nothing could match my N64. To this day it's still the console I've enjoyed the most by a considerable margin.

@Renegade_Fury:

N64 has the most classics. Fzero and Wave Race are leagues better than anything on psx/Saturn. Nothing on those consoles touches the quality of Mario64 and Ocarina/Majoras, either. N64 easily has the cream of the crop.

@Heirren:

lol. It's not worth saying anything more if you truly believe that.

@Renegade_Fury:

In terms of unique titles? Definitely. Fzero X is incredible, as is wave race. No Saturn or psx racer is even close.

@Heirren:

Again, lol. What I find extra funny, is that it's not just one of them you're putting the poor N64 up against, but both.

@Renegade_Fury:

Because its the truth. The best racers were on n64. These games are still the best there is in the respective genres. One could go either way on X or gX, but the point is that these games play better than what is even coming out today.

@Heirren:

You're being all over the place. So, we're talking, what, arcade racers? Back then, I liked Cyber Speedway, Manx TT Super Bike, VR Virtua Racing, SEGA Rally, Daytona USA, Wipepout 2097, Ridge Racer, etc. Then there's stuff on the PC, but I won't get into them.

As for today, I'll take DiRT, GRID, and Sonic & ASRT over anything from the 5th gen. Racing games from that era just don't compare.

@Renegade_Fury:

Racers in general. Just about all of the Saturn/psx racers are barely passable. Bunch of so so arcade ports. Fzero is incredible design. It just demolished any competition with its speed and technique. Even to this day there's nothing quite like it. N64 had a limited library but the good stuff is just classic, and unique to the console.

@Heirren:

K? F-Zero X became outdated to me the second Amusement Vision released GX into the world, but it's cool that you like it so much. Like I wrote though, I don't view 5th gen racers as worth playing today, let alone mentioning any of them as the best of what these old consoles have to offer.

GX is also great, just not as twitch. Such an interesting development too with sega, nintendo, and Namco to an extent. Shame we don't see more of that. Regardless, two of the best racers out there. Nowadays there's just slow as molasses sim stuff. Miss the days of challenging eye bleed games.

They're too hard and don't sell. A new F-Zero is my most wanted Nintendo game after Metroid, but it's going to be a no show for the second straight gen. I'd take another sprite based one like Maximum Velocity too.

@Renegade_Fury:

I'm thinking one has been in development and has now been pushed to nx. They're not too hard--simply require a lot of focus. I'm addicted to X at the moment. For awhile I thought gp legend and GX were the best but there's something more pure about X vs GX. X feels more like the sprite ones.

@Renegade_Fury@Heirren

I think you both are really over exaggerating a bit. :P
Unless you're really genre specific (like if one is a huge RPG fan and doesn't play much else, obviously N64 wouldn't be their favorite) in what you like I can't see liking one system so much better than any of the others.

I didn't even know anyone who had a Saturn when I was a kid. It was PS1 and/or N64 in the 5th gen. Hell, I didn't even know it existed until a little over a decade ago. It's a shame cause it definitely had potential.

I had the most fun with the n64. In our neighborhood, one guy had the ps1 while another had n64. Mario Kart 4 player balloon battle is still the most fun I have had in a local multiplayer game to this day. Looking back now, I can see that the single player games on the ps1 were miles better but back then, in terms of multiplayer, the n64 was supreme.

My favorite is the N64. I didn't have many PS1 games unfortunately and no one I knew had a saturn. It was basically PS1 for final fantasy and the N64 for everything else, I think the 4 player games helped.

@Renegade_Fury:

@Heirren:

In terms of racing games, it depends on the sub-genres:

• Arcade racing - SAT > PS1 > N64
• Bike racing - SAT > PS1 = N64
• Dirt racing - SAT > PS1 > N64
• Futuristic racing - SAT = PS1 = N64
• Kart racing - N64 > PS1 > SAT
• Sim racing - PS1 > SAT > N64
• Water racing - N64 > PS1 = SAT

Racing games overall - SAT > PS1 > N64

@Jag85:

Yeah, no chance. N64 easily takes all but sim, if one were to break it down like that. Mario Kart could fit as arcade, any ways.

With that said

-Mario Kart

-Diddy Kong Racing

-Wave Race

-Excitebike

-Cruisin USA

-Cruisin World

-San Francisco Rush

-Fzero X

-Hydro Thunder

-Mickeys Speedway

-Star Wars Racer

-Road Rash 64 (one of the most underrated games that gen)

...those are tops. There's that decent sim style game I forget the name of...but it doesn't measure up to GT.

...could have glossed a few.

@Heirren:

Arcade racers and kart racers are two different sub-genres.

Anyway, I'll elaborate on half of my previous list, for the disputed sub-genres:

Arcade racing - SAT > PS1 > N64

1. SAT: Daytona USA & CCE, Virtua Racing, Destruction Derby, Need For Speed
2. PS1: Ridge Racer 1-4, Driver, Destruction Derby, Need For Speed
3. N64: Cruisin USA & World, San Francisco Rush

Bike racing - SAT > PS1 = N64

• 1. SAT: Manx TT Superbike, Delisoba Deluxe, Road Rash
• 2. PS1: Moto Racer, Road Rash
• 2. N64: Excitebike

Dirt racing - SAT > PS1 > N64

1. SAT: Sega Rally
2. PS1: Colin McRae Rally
3. N64: Top Gear Rally

Futuristic racing - SAT = PS1 = N64

• SAT: Wipeout 2097
• PS1: Wipeout 2097
• N64: F-Zero X

@Jag85:

That's a lousy break down of genre. For example; Road Rash 64 is more of an arcade racer. Ill post in a bit

.....

@Heirren:

I accidentally left out Road Rash 64 and Hydro Thunder from my list above... But can't edit the list anymore, because of GameSpot's buggy 5-minute editing time limit.

I owned all 3, I would probably put psone as my favorite but saturn was a very close 2nd. I was a big 2d fighting fan and the importing japanese fighters was the way to go that gen. The saturn is also home to dragon force which is probably my favorite game of that gen.

N64 was a very distant 3rd. IMO n64 is one of the worst (mainstream) systems of all time. I loved mario 64, but as a whole I think the n64 library is small, overrated and has aged terribly. There is a niche market for it, but I was not part of it, I was too busy playing classics like tekken 3 and sf alpha to want to waste my time on garbage like goldeneye.

N64 was my choice when I was a kid. Taught me how to play 3D games and what kind of awesome music games could have. But all this can be said for the PS1

In terms of gameplay, N64 games would have aged better if not for the lousy framerate, which isn't considering multiplayer modes. The Dreamcast was a better N64, in my opinion, except for a few genres where the N64 excelled at, namely action/adventure with the likes of Zelda.

The Playstation was all around the best console, but its games have aged worse than Saturn's, or at least the most popular ones. Tank controls went out of fashion very quickly, the graphics were not up to the task of converying a 3D world, resulting in a blocky experience overall. I guess the Saturn is a winner for me, with:

- Nights into Dreams
- Panzer Dragoon Zwei
- Fighters Megamix
- Guardian Heroes
- Radiant Silvergun
- Silhouette Mirage
- Shining the Holy Ark
- Dragon Force
- Shining Force III

Bullsh*t.

PS1 owns saturn and N64 in games and sales. It's not even a contest.

And to everyone, get over it. PS1 won that gen with ease.

The N64 is what I grew up with, so it's my personal favorite. However, the PS1 probably had the best library of the three.

@Suppaman100:

N64 has the best games and Saturn has better games in every genre(except twisted metal) vs playstation.

Lol fck NO. Keep telling yourself that though, you probably didn't have a playstation back then and are butthurt you missed out on the best of that gen.

And Playstation DESTROYED N64 and KILLED Saturn and Sega that gen. You're probably still butthurt about that fact too.

It was the Saturn that I did not own. It wasn't until more recently that I discovered how great the library is/was. It is a fact that the psx was the most popular that gen--it sold the most by far. However, as far as games go? N64 and Saturn had the best. Saturn was EASILY the best console for fighters, shooters, and sidescrollers. There's more depth to the library, as well. If you look into it you'll discover that the psx was not really better at much. Maybe sim style racing?

@Suppaman100: Don't bother, you're wasting your time.

I hate to do a list war but you're really asking for it. And I'm not saying Saturn or N64 had a bad library, just not on the same level as PSX.

And hey even with ALL those great games on Saturn and N64, they still sold like sh*t. Looks like gamers back then couldn't see or give a fck about those games.