Console Wars! - Gen 5, PS1 vs N64

Supsup! Welcome to the third installment of my console wars series of posts, this time it's the two juggernauts of the 5th generation.
I thought about doing all consoles of the fifth generation, but instead of that, I'll be doing this and whatever console loses will be paired up against the SEGA Saturn!

Maybe I might do one about the 3DO and Jaguar too, I have tons of ideas as to where to take this, but for now, let's focus on the task at hand.

Just to remind how things are going to be judged:
I'll be judging the systems in the following metrics: Hardware power, game library, input method/controller, features and long-term support.
Sales will have no bearing.

So, no more blabbering about, let's get into it.

• Hardware Power

The two games I find the prettiest in each system: Tekken 3 and Wave Race 64

The PS1 comes in hot in 1994 with its RISC based R3000 CPU clocked at 33.8MHz and a whopping 2MB RAM and 1MB VRAM.
This power was enough to keep the console going all the way into the 2000s, with even 2001 seeing a number of great looking releases, games like Tekken 3 and Gran Turismo 1 and 2 pushed this hardware as far as it could go.

But we'd be kidding ourselves if we said the PS1 was the most powerful this generation.
As we can see with games like Crash Bandicoot hacking around the limitations of the PS1 to be able to shove that many polygons, it's clear that the winner here is the N64 with its great looking geometry and the sheer amount of polygons it managed to push.

Already on the CPU front the N64 has the PS1 beat to a pulp with its NEC VR4300 at 93.75MHz and on the GPU front with its incredible Sillicon Graphics powered SGI RCP at 62.5MHz(!!!).

Sure, the PS1 could fit a whole lot more GAME into a disc, because CDs are enormous when paired against the 32 to 64mb cartridges you'd see on the N64.
Of course, some games like Resident Evil 2 managed to use those cartridges really well, but the PS1 beats the N64 in this criteria... but in this criteria alone.

All it takes to see the power difference is to look at the Press Start screen of Mario 64, the way Mario looks silky smooth and is so expressive is a clear contrast to the way the PS1 was doing faces.

So this is a win to the N64.

PS1 0x1 N64

• Game Library

Don't even get me started...
Ahahaha, it's even funny how big the difference is.
The PS1 was the most attractive console to developers on the 5th generation due to how easy it was to develop for, with even a custom PS1 called the Net Yaroze sold to indie developers who wanted to make games for the system, it was just that easy.

The N64 isn't completely defenseless here however, seeing as how it has an incredible library of Nintendo exclusives, but it just doesn't make up for the lack of games. Meaningful games, RPGs with long beautiful stories, more gimmicky games, more mature games, games that were really at the forefront of innovation.

The PS1 takes the win handily. Sorry N64, your games are incredible too, but the PS1 has Final Fantasy... and much more.

PS1 1x1 N64

• Input Method/Controller

Photo by Nintendo Blast

This part will be totally subjective;
for me, the PS1 takes the cake easily. It's way more ergonomic, the controller actually feels like an evolution of what came before (more specifically the SNES pad) and it makes sense.

3 prongs to hold the controller is just weird. I know what Nintendo's intention here was, 2D games you'd hold the dpad, 3D games you'd hold the analog stick... But that's just a waste of buttons. If they managed to make the dpad usable on 3D games, that'd be 4 more buttons you could press, like the Dreamcast controller does it. And that analog stick doesn't feel good at all, imo.

Then you need to remember that Sony didn't stop there, they later on released the Dualshock which shaped the way controllers are made to this day and evolves the concept which I talked about even further.

PS1 2x1 N64

• Features

(I'll be talking about first party accessories)

Controller Pak, Jumper Pak (useless), Expansion Pak, Rumble Pak.
Those are the main N64 accessories, and while the Expansion Pak and Rumble Pak are useful, with the Expansion Pak making some games run better or making some games even run at all, the Rumble Pak ends up being sort of a... novelty. A novelty which the PS1's controller integrates directly onto it.

Then what else? There's the WideBoy64 AGB! That can play GBA games... but it was never released to the public.
There's the Pak that lets you import your Pokémon into Pokémon Stadium or even play the Pokémon games on your TV, that's cool.

But I'd still rather have CD playback.
This is again, subjective, but the amount of times me and my dad used the PS1 as a CD player back in the early 00's is astounding. We had this little TV with great speakers that we could just prop anywhere, turn the PS1 on and listen to music during churrascos!

The N64 has interesting controller addons but they're ultimately not necessary, and if you're going to buy an N64 you might as well have the Expansion Pak too if you want to play the entire library.

And let's talk about the elephant in the room.

The complete and total failure of the 64DD.
Nintendo acknowledged its limited capacity problem and tried to remedy it by releasing a disk addon. This failed, spectularly.
Some good games came out for the 64DD, even some good expansions like the track maker for F-Zero X. But it's to this day remembered as a failure, almost as a joke even.

The PS1 also had some interesting addons, such as mouse (to be fair, the N64 also had one, but it was more utilized on the PS1), the PocketStation,

which was basically like the Dreamcast's VMU before the VMU. It's a really cool and cute peripheral.
And it also has my personal favourite: The LCD screen.

I've always wanted to own one of these.

Anyway, simply because the N64 had "more" accessories doesn't mean that it had better features or more usability. The Rumble Pak shouldn't even have been necessary if they'd just built in the rumble funcionality, so, for the sake of the cute ass PocketStation, the cool LCD screen and the great CD functionality (not to mention the memory cards, my cousin's copy of Mario 64 won't save anymore, but my PS1 memory card still works)... the win goes to the PS1.

PS1 3x1 N64

• Long-Term Support

To keep this brief, since I've already went way past 1000 words, let's just ask Google here real quick.

What about the N64, Mr. Google?

Mhmm, that's pretty good. Pro Skater 3 is a great game, 2002 is pretty good, I was 1 year old!

And what about the PS1, Mr. Google-san?

2006 for Japan with a re-release of a 1989 game (I wouldn't really say this counts too much), but 2004 for America and 2005 for Europe, now those count!

And there's a funny thing about this.

The PS1 got THPS4! And I remember playing the hell out of this game as a kid. It's so damn good, that intro song and video are permanently stuck on my mind.

4 PS1 4x1 N64

• Finale

I'm sorry N64, I gave you quite a beating here. I don't hate you at all, I love you in fact. My dream as a child was to own both of you, but unfortunately I could only ever own one... I blame Nintendo for not properly releasing the N64 here.
At least I still experienced your games through my friends, and later on through emulation.
You'll have your chances against the Saturn next!

Anyways, phew. That was quite the post right there. If you've read it all the way down here, congrats!

I'll go play some Crash Team Racing... Or maybe Mario Kart 64, whatever's good.