GameCube was the hardware Nintendo needed to make in 1996 ... they needed to compromise on the disc format for 3rd parties. They needed it to be easier to program for.
But the N64 had the games the GameCube needed. The GCN needed killer apps like Mario 64 and Zelda: OoT and GoldenEye 007 and Mario Kart 64 and it didn't have them or they came in a form that was too little, too late.
If the N64 had a optical disc format, it would have won that console cycle as 3rd parties would've had no choice but to support it in that case. It would have sold too many consoles on the back of Mario/Bond/Zelda alone and then Capcom would cave and bring all of RE1/2/3, Street Fighter Alpha 2/3, Dino Crisis, etc and then Konami would cave with MGS, Castlevania, etc. and then probably even eventually Squaresoft.
Last edited by Soundwave - on 22 September 2025
