The 20 hardest games for the Nintendo 64

We don’t usually start with a “Hard because of how bad the game was” offering, but this is an iconically-bad Nintendo 64 game, plus it has some name recognition. “Superman 64” gave you a chance to play as the Man of Steel, flying around and being a superhero! It’s a mess of a game, though, filled with glitches and with difficult controls. Many people gave up pretty much right away, unable to maneuver the game into something workable even at the first objective.

We go from maybe the worst game on the N64 console to maybe the best. “Perfect Dark” took a lot of what people liked about “Goldeneye” and gave it a glow up. Part of that was making the game more difficult, but “Perfect Dark” was so enjoyable people didn’t mind. Bonus points go to this game for the “Perfect Agent” level of difficulty, which is effectively impossible.

‘Donkey Kong” games are low-key some of the toughest games out there. They are just so generally fun and enjoyable fans don’t mind. “Donkey Kong 64” is a bit of a step down from “Donkey Kong Country,” though still a good game. It’s just tough because it is built on item collecting, and if you miss something, you may have to backtrack to pick it up. That is time consuming, and can get frustrating.

What a weird curio. Conker the squirrel debuted in “Diddy Kong Racing,” and then got a Game Boy Color game. While making Conker’s first game of substance notable is that they decided to make it a profane game with a mature rating during production. “Conker’s Bad Fur Day” is, frankly, a misfire in that sense, but the weird story of the game makes it easy to overlook the fact it’s also quite difficult.

“Turok: Dinosaur Hunter” was a fun foray for the N64 as one of the first original games on the console. The sequel took things to the next level in many ways. It’s more of a horror game, and its boss fights are notoriously hard. Plus, “Seeds of Evil” pushed the limits of what the Nintendo 64 was capable of by offering up massive levels that you could easily get lost in.

This puzzle-based game is considered one of the best the Nintendo 64 ever put out, though the lack of IP involved has maybe left it under the radar to modern audiences. Each puzzle is harder than the next, which is notable given that there are 57 levels to the game. On top of that, there are some medal challenges late in “Blast Corps” that even the QA team has said are only “technically possible” to beat.

There are a lot of people who play racing games for fun, not with the intent to beat them, so sometimes they aren’t thought of in discussions of the toughest games. “F-Zero X” has almost universally earned that reputation though. The sequel to Super Nintendo’s “F-Zero,” the game is known for speed of play, in terms of pace of levels. However, it also arguably asked too much of the player, as even slight errors in timing and control can lead to you careening off the course.

“Body Harvest” was delayed in its release because Nintendo was worried it was too violent. Eventually it came out, and the relative level of violence for a Nintendo console got a lot of the attention. It also happens to be quite difficult. The game doesn’t have many save points, and also drew criticism for gameplay that is not intuitive and a learning curve that is awfully steep.

Personally, we feel like “Doom” is to be played on a computer, not a console, but that has never stopped “Doom” from being shipped out to other platforms. For some reason, “Doom 64” has enemies that are harder than in any other version of the game, which makes it stand out in terms of difficulty.

A puzzle-based 2D side scroller, unusual for the Nintendo 64, “Mischief Makers” is more of a cult classic. It is noted for fast play and a steep learning curve. When you combine those two things, it creates the sensation of being thrown into the deep end, and that’s not exactly easy.

There always seems to be one tough “Star Wars” game on every Nintendo platform. For the 64, that is “Shadows of the Empire.” It proved to be popular, and given that the Battle of Hoth is effectively recreated certainly helped on that front, but it is also known for being difficult. While there are varying levels of difficulty, none of them are a breeze, and the hard level is immensely difficult.

Much like “Doom,” “StarCraft” got a Nintendo 64 variation as well. Also like “Doom 64,” “StarCraft 64” proved to be tough, even for fans of the series. However, while the “Doom” adaptation was generally liked, it’s easy to turn a first-person shooter into a console game. “StarCraft” was a trickier adaptation, and it largely didn’t work.

An original Indiana Jones adventure in a video game? At a time when it seemed like there may never be another film in the series? There was novelty to that. On the other hand, “Infernal Machine” also proved tough, with confusing levels and super tricky late-game baddies. Hey, still beats “Dial of Destiny.”

Wanting its own version of “Mario Kart,” Rare gave us “Diddy Kong Racing.” Considering that the titular character is Donkey Kong’s nephew, you’d think it might be easy. It was hugely popular — people love cartoon-y racing games — but these kinds of games are often played for fun in groups. The single-player game, though, was noted for its challenging gameplay even back then, and it’s packed with objectives you have to handle.

In “Glover” you, well, play as a glove. Your job is to move a ball from the beginning of the level to the end. That’s where the game runs into trouble. The controls are so tricky when it comes to maneuvering the ball, especially when you aren’t playing on easy mode, that it becomes polarizing. Some like the challenge, while others consider “Glover” a frustrating slog.

“Buck Bumble” is a sci-fi game that takes place in the distant future of… 2010. The game was a little lacking in the graphics, and also the gameplay. It’s the kind of game where people finish it and still feel like they haven’t figured out how to play it properly. Throw in the clunky graphics and heaving “game fog,” and “Buck Bumble” frustrated people in more ways than one.

The “Rayman” series is known for its difficulty, and when a series debuted in 3D, that chance often leads to unintended challenges that make a game tougher. Indeed, that is the case with “The Great Escape,” the second “Rayman” game. Now, people really enjoyed “Rayman 2,” but even if you like the game, if I mention having to ride on a rocket, well, you are probably feeling flashes of frustration.

“Person of Lordly Caliber” is a true-blue RPG, a rarity, perhaps even a unique entity, on the Nintendo 64. Like many RPGs, it involves a lot of grinding. Hours upon hours of grinding. Tens of hours of grinding. To some, that means difficulty. Now, “Person of Lordly Caliber” has fans, some of them who will get all RPG purist on you and say, “The problem is you just want to jump around as Mario, not play a real RPG.” Hey, you can enjoy a difficult game and all the grinding. That doesn’t mean it isn’t hard, and sometimes a slog.

Generally speaking, there are two games that are consistently mentioned at or near the top of the list of hardest games for the Nintendo 64. The first of those two games is “Jet Force Gemini.” Be prepared to have to backtrack. Like, a ton. You will find out that you are missing something, and have to go back to look for it, and it might be incredibly well hidden and keep you searching and searching. Then, you have to save every “Tribal” and keep them all alive just to face the final boss, who isn’t exactly easy either.

If “Jet Force Gemini” isn’t the toughest game on the N64, it’s this entry from the beloved “Zelda” series. “Ocarina of Time” was a huge hit, but “Majora’s Mask” was a bit more divisive. It’s much harder, but for a reason many find frustrating. Namely, the time loop conceit of “Majora’s Mask” means you are on a time limit in beating the game, which means you are racing against the clock to complete a lot of puzzles and to get through a lot of objectives. This is not the norm for Link, and thus “Majora’s Mask” has its fans, its detractors, and those who consider it the hardest game for the Nintendo 64.