Back in 1998 TIm Symons and Gerben Stevast started N64-Europe to celebrate their love for Nintendo's revolutionary console.  Over the years the site would change names, first to Cube-Europe and then briefly to Revo-Europe (remember when the Wii was going to be called that?) before settling on N-Europe.  Truthfully at the time we didn't really want to be called 'Wii-Europe', although the general aversion to that console name obviously faded, and someone suggested something much simpler: N-Europe.

Every year it is always weird to think about how long this site has actually been around.  It's actually a few months older than Google.  Google!  During that time we have seen some huge changes on the site, with its readers (we've gone from teens to mortgage-holders in what feels like the blink of an eye) and of course Nintendo.  The site has seen Nintendo through some rough times and some glory times and we are all excited about what lies ahead of us this year with the launch of the Switch.

Staff member Sam Gittins (S.C.G) has taken a trip down memory lane to recollect what he was playing when he was 19.  We'd love to hear from our readers what they were playing when they were 19 and we'd also love to hear from anyone that isn't even 19 yet (even if we'll end up feeling old)!

Before we move on to Sam's writing, I just wanted to say a huge thank you to all the staff that have worked on this site, past and present, and to all of you for your continued support.  We have a very loyal fanbase and it means a hell of a lot to us.  We hope to provide a hell of a lot more this year with the exciting launch of the Switch.  Be sure to stay tuned next week as we'll be going hands on with it!

So for now I'll pass it over to Sam and I'll see you guys next year for the 20th!

Ashley
Editor-in-Chief

Nineteen years is a significant amount of time, I hadn't even joined N-Europe - then Cube-Europe at the time - as a staff member until I turned twenty which was over eleven years ago as it is! It would seem that the year in which I went from being a teenager to... not anymore was something of an exceptional year for gaming. I played probably more titles than I can ever remember enjoying at any other time in my life. Mid 2004 to 2005 marked what was quite possibly the best year for the Nintendo GameCube in terms of significant releases which are still fondly remembered to this very day.

It would seem that N-Europe and Nintendo have come a long way since then but it still remains one of my favourite times in gaming history, so here's to being nineteen at such a time, this very site turning nineteen and hopefully to nineteen more years providing gaming as we know it is still very much alive in 2036... anyway enough from me and on with the games!

Midway through 2004 I was very much an active player of videogames, progressing from what was the standard of traditional 'offline' games to the world of online thanks to Phantasy Star Online on the Dreamcast prior to buying a GameCube, a game which carried over to Nintendo's console when it got released in its definitive form. I played this throughout the life of the GC and beyond, which is just as well seeing as it turned out to be almost the only online game available for the machine.

Those single-player games kept me coming back though, indeed I seem to remember owning Metroid Prime from its original release date but not actually finishing it until I was nineteen so that counts of course. I used to talk with a good friend of mine when on PSO in the evenings about finally finishing the game "soon" and he would actively encourage me to forge ahead as he'd already completed it, clearly wanting to tell me about the end boss but refusing to spoil it for me. When the time came for me to reach the end it was one of those moments where I wanted to share my experiences about this phenomenal final part to such a stunning title that we ended up talking about it until the small hours of the morning and from then on I would regularly play through the game on all of its difficulties with one particular 100% run only taking me half a day.

Naturally by the time the sequel - Metroid Prime 2: Echoes - came out I was right on it from the start, pushing through the Light & Dark world mechanic which seemingly divided opinion more than the game area itself at times, though for me it was a thoroughly ambitious follow-up which improved on some aspects of the Metroid universe while at the same time failing to match the brilliance of the original, but then what hope did it have really? It is still spectacular in my eyes for providing another adventure explored through the visor of Samus Aran; it could do no wrong. There was even multiplayer to partake in... not that it was a huge selling point, personally my brother and I only played it less than a handful of times but it didn't hurt the series overall; I always thought of it as something Retro Studios probably cobbled together in an afternoon just as an extra bonus for gamers to try out.

Having grown up playing consoles manufactured by either Nintendo or Sega, it's fair to say that I initially missed out on some of the big game franchises which defined the early PlayStation era, so when it was announced that Silicon Knights - creators of Eternal Darkness - were set to create Metal Gear Solid: The Twin Snakes (a remake of the original MGS) for Nintendo's current console at the time... I was understandably excited for it. Indeed, my brother and I took turns to play through it as we were both eager to experience the game based around the famous 'Tactical Espionage Action' and being that it was spread across two discs when one of us had advanced to the second disc then we could both be playing at the same time for a while, as we had two GameCube consoles in the house by that point owing to that fantastic Mario Kart Double Dash!! edition. It was truly incredible to be living inside this completely new world, even if it was ultimately more cutscenes than gameplay at times. Getting absorbed in the cinematic story more than made up for it and all of the extras additions, such as Psycho Mantis reading your mind (or memory card) - "I see you've been playing The Legend of Zelda!" - to our utter disbelief and delight, coupled with the gruff voice of David Hayter as Snake along with some genuinely intense moments making Metal Gear Solid one of the most memorable titles for both my BROTHERRRR! (ahem!) & myself.

Another two-disc game which we also played nearly simultaneously was Resident Evil 4 only this time I believe my brother was the one who started playing it then I started my file when he was out of the house & vice-versa when I had to leave for work as this wasn't a game either of us were prepared for the other to get to the second disc! Not after the months of waiting for the game to come out, least of all for my brother who had played all of the other games before it whereas I had only dabbled in REmake and Resi 0, but amusingly when it did come to the final part of the game it almost become a race between us to make it to the end first. Regardless of how that turned out, the entire adventure was an exciting shift for the Survivial Horror genre, even for the series at the time as it had some genuinely chilling setpieces. The setting alone, in a remote Eastern-European location where you were set-upon by residents of the village known as "Ganados", was unsettling enough when you realise they aren't as they seem, but how it all progresses from there to locations including Castles, a Swamp, Catacombs, Research Facilities and much more besides along with all of the horrific enemies you come across along the way - it has to be played to fully appreciate it.

These days you can opt to play Resident Evil 4 on any format you wish, it even got a re-release on the Wii with improved pointer controls. I've even just purchased it again myself recently as it got a physical release on the PS4 and I'll freely admit that if it were to come to the Switch in any form then I'd invest for a sixth time; (Ah! I'll buy it at a high price!) but there's something to be said for being there from the start when it was initially a GameCube exclusive, experiencing one of the greatest games of its generation many times over and then devoting countless hours to the Mercenaries mode which to this day I still can't beat my brothers high score on!

Given my limited experience in the RPG genre up until this point there were two main examples released toward the end of 2004 which would not only stick with me forever but also expand the very definition of what I could expect from such games. When Paper Mario: The Thousand Year Door arrived I was ecstatic because it was my first foray into the world of Paper Mario owing to the N64 original always being expensive at its time of release, but now that I actually had some disposable income I didn't hesitate in purchasing as it truly did offer a rich, vibrant world like no other with an unmatched level of well-scripted and enjoyable dialogue the likes of which I'd never seen before. Couple this with the unique battle system that relied upon your precise pressing of the buttons to time attacks with aplomb, rather than selecting an option then looking on passively, and it was plain to see why the title would go on to be such a hit, not to mention the diverse offering of party members plus NPC's which a crowd of coloured Toad's could only dream of. Pirates, Wrestling, Yoshi! This one had it all.

On the third party side of things there were a few RPGs as well, but my remaining example, the one which really cemented my love for Namco - before they merged with Bandai - is of course the sensational Tales of Symphonia. This was my first ever title in the Tales of series, which today has become prolific yet never really stacked up to this two-disc epic which had a time-worn story of revenge, triumphing over oppression and a very questionable religion, which in turn blossoms into something even more spectacular the further you get into the game. An expansive overworld, hundreds of different monsters to do battle with, the battle system itself with its real-time core mixed with cool-downs, character-switching and much more besides were the real highlights. The cast of characters you'd meet during your travels were wonderfully diverse as well, even when you thought you had finished the 80+ hour game there were still secrets to be found, references galore plus so much more all wrapped up in a glorious art style with some skillfully crafted music which really got you absorbed in the magical world around you. No other Tales of title has really matched it in the same way for me.

Already so many games played in my nineteenth year it seems, these were only for one format as well! It's sobering to think that I had that much time to devote to so many titles yet now I seem to write more than I play at times, not that I mind for it's good to reflect on so many classics. Here I am typing this in the second-half of my thirty-first year as a gamer and in my eleventh year writing for N-Europe which is still a privilege. Here's hoping that 2017 will be a great year for the site, our readers and of course Nintendo with the impending release of the Switch. It will be interesting to see how we might look back on the console in another six or eleven years perhaps. But for now it's back to writing news, reviews and bringing you fabulous features like the one you're hopefully still reading now... Game On!

Games played during my nineteenth year:

GameCube

Phantasy Star Online Episode I & II (March 7, 2003)
Metroid Prime (March 21, 2003)
Sonic Heroes (February 6, 2004)
Puyo Pop Fever (February 27, 2004)
Beyond Good & Evil (February 27, 2004)
Metal Gear Solid: The Twin Snakes (March 26, 2004)
Pikmin 2 (October 8, 2004)
Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year Door (November 12, 2004)
Tales of Symphonia (November 19, 2004)
Metroid Prime 2: Echoes (November 26, 2004)
The Legend of Zelda: Four Swords Adventures (January 7, 2005)
Donkey Kong Jungle Beat (February 4, 2005)
Resident Evil 4 (March 18, 2005)
Timesplitters: Future Perfect (24 March 2005)
Viewtiful Joe 2 (1 April 2005)
Star Fox: Assault (April 29, 2005)

GameBoy Advance

Metroid Zero Mission (April 8, 2004)
Sonic Advance 3 (June 15, 2004)
Pokémon Leaf Green Version (October 1, 2004)
The Legend of Zelda: The Minish Cap (November 12, 2004)

Nintendo DS

Feel the Magic: XY/XX (November 16, 2004)
Super Mario 64 DS (November 21, 2004)
Metroid Prime Hunters: First Hunt (November 21, 2004)
WarioWare: Touched! (March 11, 2005)
Polarium (March 11, 2005)
Yoshi Touch & Go (May 6, 2005)

Xbox

Panzer Dragoon Orta (April 21, 2003)
Headhunter Redemption (October 31, 2003)
Outrun 2 (October 1, 2004)
Oddworld: Stranger's Wrath (March 3, 2005)