Bloody Hell, Forsaken 64 is Back! Nintendo's 'Mature Corner' Gets a Dose of Retro Chaos
AI Gaming News Author · Eurogamer ·
Nintendo's adding *Forsaken 64*, a gritty 1998 N64 zero-G shooter, to its Switch Online 'Mature Corner' tomorrow, joining classics like *Turok* and *Perfect Dark*.
Right, so Nintendo's been rummaging around in the digital attic again, and fair dinkum, they've pulled out another absolute belter from the N64 era. You know that feeling when you're convinced you've seen everything, then a relic from a bygone age suddenly materialises, shimmering with forgotten energy? That's pretty much what happened when word dropped that *Forsaken 64*, that gritty, zero-G shooter from 1998, is landing on Nintendo Switch Online tomorrow.
Now, if you're like me, your brain probably did a quick scan for 'what the blazes is *Forsaken 64*?' and then a delightful little spark of memory ignited. This isn't your grandma's *Mario Kart*, mate. Nintendo's been quietly curating a rather interesting little subsection of its N64 library – what I like to call the 'Mature Corner' – and *Forsaken 64* is sidling right in, ready to join the likes of *Turok: Dinosaur Hunter* and *Perfect Dark* for those of us aged 17 and up. Clearly, Ninty reckons we're grown-ups enough for some proper vintage mayhem.
Let's talk about the game itself, eh? The official blurb sounds like it was ripped straight from the cover of a VHS sci-fi flick from the late 90s, and honestly, I'm here for it: "You are a ruthless mercenary, sent to the condemned remains of Earth as part of a covert operation codenamed Forsaken. Your mission is to infiltrate and destroy the last bastions of the mechanised terror that wiped out all life on the planet. Earth is a death trap riddled with merciless mechanoid adversaries and gangs of rival bounty hunters, and you'll have to brave them all astride your anti-grav pioncycle to make your fortune...or meet your doom." Sounds absolutely *peachy*, doesn't it?
For the uninitiated, *Forsaken 64* was a fairly unique beast on the N64. While the console was largely known for its vibrant, cartoony masterpieces, *Forsaken* plunged players into dark, claustrophobic corridors, battling mechanoids and rival mercs in full 3D, six-degrees-of-freedom combat. Think *Descent*, but on a Nintendo console, with that distinct N64 flavour. You pilot an anti-grav 'pioncycle' – basically a hovering death-bike – through these desolate, industrial environments, blasting everything that moves. It had a genuine sense of urgency and danger, with limited visibility and enemies coming from all angles. It certainly wasn't a mega-seller, but it carved out a dedicated niche, earning its 'cult classic' stripes for its unique gameplay loop and atmospheric (if gloomy) world-building.
What's genuinely intriguing here isn't just the return of an old game, but what it signals about Nintendo's ongoing commitment to the Switch Online Expansion Pack. They're not just throwing any old dross at us; there's a clear, albeit gradual, expansion of a specific type of N64 experience. First, *Turok*, a groundbreaking FPS. Then *Perfect Dark*, a bona fide espionage classic. And now, *Forsaken 64*, a lesser-known but equally intense shooter. It feels like they're building a mini-museum of N64's edgier side, which, I reckon, is a bloody good thing.
From a player's perspective, this means a few things. If you're a nostalgia fiend, prepare for a trip back to a time when polygons were chunky, textures were blurry, and 'mature' meant 'definitely not for kids under 12, probably.' But if you're a newer gamer, curious about the history of the medium, this is a fantastic opportunity to dive into a piece of gaming lore that might have otherwise been lost to time. It's an exploration of a different kind of shooter, one where the environment itself is often as much an enemy as the mechanical terrors lurking within. Will the controls feel a bit… *N64*? Absolutely. Will the graphics be breathtaking by today's standards? Only if your breath is taken by pixel art in its rawest, most glorious form. But that's part of the charm, isn't it?
Nintendo also mentions the single and multiplayer modes, and the different bikes with 'different attributes' and 'different attitudes.' That's vintage 90s character flavour text, right there! It speaks to a time when game developers packed in as much personality as the hardware would allow, often through charmingly brief descriptions. Plus, the dynamic availability of weapons and power-ups per level suggests a decent amount of replayability, which is always a bonus for these retro re-releases.
Honestly, I'm cautiously optimistic about this one. While it's easy to be a bit skeptical about corporate strategies for filling out subscription libraries (are they just ticking boxes, or genuinely celebrating these titles?), giving *Forsaken 64* another moment in the sun feels like a genuine win for game preservation and for curious gamers. It's a chance to experience a game that dared to be different on a console often associated with more family-friendly fare. So, if you're up for strapping into an anti-grav pioncycle and exploring the condemned remains of Earth – and you're old enough, obviously – then keep an eye out tomorrow. It might just be the chaotic retro adventure you never knew you needed. Let's hope the emulation holds up, eh? Because diving headfirst into a mechanised death trap sounds like my kind of Tuesday afternoon fun.
*Original reporting by Victoria Phillips Kennedy for Eurogamer, published September 3, 2025.*
Tags: Nintendo Switch Online, N64, Retro Gaming, FPS, Cult Classic
Original article: Eurogamer