After the amazing NES and SNES, people expected the N64 to run away with the industry and put Sony and Sega in the shade. It didn't happen. Nintendo decided to stick with carts while its rivals picked cheaper discs, and this not only put customers off but also made software houses think twice about supporting the system. Losing former ally Squaresoft was possibly the biggest blow to Nintendo's pride, and the company went on to produce the best selling Final Fantasy VII on the Playstation.

Having said all that, the N64 was home to gaming experiences that simply were not possible on rival machines. Games like Goldeneye, Zelda, Starfox 64 and of course Mario 64 were (and still are) solid-gold classics. With Virtual Console support, now is probably a good time to reassess this often misunderstood console.

Read our Nintendo 64 hardware focus