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Best Nintendo 64 games of 1998

The 9 best Nintendo 64 games released in 1998, ranked from 3,217 critic and player ratings.

The best Nintendo 64 game of 1998 is The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time, with a critic score of 99/100 — updated November 2026.

How this ranking is built
  • Games are ranked on the aggregated critic score out of 100 imported from IGDB and Metacritic, never on Tier's own grades.
  • A game only enters the ranking with at least 30 external ratings, so a single enthusiastic review never outranks a proven classic.
  • Community grades from F to S are shown next to every game, and only stated as a fact above 5 Tier ratings.
  • Release window covered: 1998.
  • 9 games are listed on this page, carrying 3,217 ratings between them.
  • Rankings are recomputed hourly; this one was last rebuilt on 13 November 2026.

Top 9

Played them? Give your tier with the + next to each game. No account needed to try — create one to keep your tiers.

01 The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time S The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time 1998 · 2,188 ratings · 3 Tier votes · finished by 62% The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time is the fifth main installment of The Legend of Zelda series and the first to be released for the Nintendo 64. It was one of the most highly anticipated games of its age, and is listed among the greatest video games ever created by numerous websites and magazines. The gameplay of Ocarina of Time was revolutionary for its time, it has arguably made more of an impact on later games in the series than any of its predecessors even though they had the same cores of exploration, dungeons, puzzles and item usage. Among the gameplay mechanics, one of the most noteworthy is the time-traveling system. The game begins with the player controlling the child Link, but later on an adult Link becomes a playable character as well and each of them has certain unique abilities. Ocarina of Time also introduces the use of music to solve puzzles: as new songs are learned, they can be used to solve puzzles, gain access to new areas and warp to different locations. Dungeon exploration is somewhat more puzzle-oriented than in earlier games but they are not too complex. 99 /100
02 F-Zero X F-Zero X 1998 · 117 ratings It's you against 29 other machines competing for the title of F-Zero X Champion. You're racing at speeds of over 1,000 km/h high above the atmosphere. Your competition comes from every corner of the galaxy and won't shed a tear at the thought of smashing you off the track. With four-player simultaneous gameplay and the Rumble Pak accessory, you have the fastest racing game on the N64 system! 85 /100
03 Tom Clancy's Rainbow Six Tom Clancy's Rainbow Six 1998 · 80 ratings A combination of explosive action and real-life strategy! The most revolutionary action/strategy game of its kind. Nothing comes closer to offering an exciting combination of strategy, team-building, realistic three-dimensional graphics and true-to-life special forces action. The ultimate goal is to save yourself and the world from deadly terrorists. You must successfully complete 17 unique missions. If you die, the game isn't over. The World is. 85 /100
04 Mario Party Mario Party 1998 · 186 ratings Every game in the main series has a standard Party Mode in which up to four players play through a board, trying to collect as many stars as possible. In every turn, each player rolls a die and progresses on the board, which usually has branching paths. Coins are primarily earned by performing well in a minigame played at the end of each turn. On most boards, players earn stars by reaching a star space and purchasing a star for a certain amount of coins. The star space appears randomly on one of several pre-determined locations and moves every time a star is purchased, usually occupying a blue space. Every Mario Party contains at least 50 to almost 110 minigames with a few different types. Four-player games are a free-for-all in which players compete individually. In 2-on-2 and 1-on-3 minigames, players compete as two groups, cooperating to win, even though they are still competing individually in the main game. Some minigames in Mario Party are 4-player co-op, even though it doesn't say it. In most situations, winners earn ten coins each. 79 /100
05 Banjo-Kazooie Banjo-Kazooie 1998 · 373 ratings Trouble brews when Gruntilda the witch captures the unbearably beautiful cub, Tooty. But before the grisly hag can steal the bear's good looks, big brother Banjo and his fine-feathered friend, Kazooie, join forces to stop her. Combining their 24 moves and special powers, Banjo and Kazooie will fend off armies of beasts. Bear and bird must hunt down the 100 puzzle pieces and 900 musical notes that will ultimately lead them to Gruntilda. However. miles of swamp, desert, and snow and one bear of an adventure stand in their way. 78 /100
06 1080° Snowboarding 1080° Snowboarding 1998 · 79 ratings 1080° Snowboarding is an intense snowboarding game in which the player gets to choose between many different boards, tricks, courses and much more. 70 /100
07 Turok 2: Seeds of Evil Turok 2: Seeds of Evil 1998 · 77 ratings Having defeated the Campaigner, Turok throws the Chronocepter into a waiting volcano to destroy it. Unfortunately the blast awakens an even deadlier force - The Primagen. Once again a Turok is tasked with restoring peace to the land and stopping the Primagen from merging Earth with the nether world. 64 /100
08 South Park (1998) South Park (1998) 1998 · 48 ratings Single player takes the form of a "Story" mode divided into five episodes and fifteen linear levels. The player will face weak minions (which change based on the episode), plus occasional sub-bosses which will try to escape into town. The final level is devoted to a unique boss fight. Players use quirky weapons ranging from infinite yellow snowballs to cow launchers and toxic Terrance and Phillip dolls. Every weapon has a secondary fire, and players switch between the four main characters when they switch weapons - each of the four kids shares a single life bar because of this. The kids will comment on game actions as they occur, with heavier profanity censored with bleeps. The kids will get angrier (and fouler) as their health depletes, until they finally give up on saving the town and go home. 41 /100
09 Vigilante 8 Vigilante 8 1998 · 69 ratings Vigilante 8 is a vehicular-combat game set in an alternate 1975. Australian terrorist Sid Burn is hired by OMAR to dispose of all competing oil companies in the U.S. so that OMAR can establish an oil monopoly in the country. After hearing reports of destruction by Sid Burn's gang, the Coyotes, a man named Convoy, a kind-hearted trucker, forms a group of his own, the Vigilantes, to combat the Coyotes and stop the tyranny of OMAR. 40 /100
Browse all the best Nintendo 64 games

Other years

Best Nintendo 64 games of 2000Best Nintendo 64 games of 1999

Same year, other platforms

Best PC games of 1998Best PlayStation 1 games of 1998

Nearby rankings

Best Nintendo 64 games of 1999

Catalog statistics

Most abandoned gamesMost completed games

Frequently asked questions

What is the best Nintendo 64 game of 1998?

The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time currently tops the ranking with a score of 99/100 across 2,188 ratings. Ranking updated November 2026.

How is this ranking built?

Games are ranked on their aggregated critic score out of 100, with a minimum vote threshold so a single glowing review never outranks a proven classic; the Tier community's own F-to-S grades are shown alongside each game.