The N64 had the best quality to games ratio of any console. This coming from a Saturn nut. But it could have been better had they the guts to put more memory into the console at launch (not forgetting to put a third party pleasing CDROM drive). Even Myamato complained that the N64 was under powered for Mario 64 and he had to make compromises to the game as a result. So I really don't think Nintendo management have changed that much. The marketing to families and mothers is due to the Wii interface alone, nothing else.

Gods on the Amiga. Tight controls and great level design and real secrets that keep you coming back for years.

If you like old school RTS games then Starcraft II is you best bet, design wise it is very 1990's - but updated with modern graphics (I assume that is why you requested 2008 - 2012?). The games tend to last between 10 minutes (if you're crap) to 40+ minutes.

Supreme Commander 1 and 2 bring the genre up-to-date. Both games have their sets of fans, I prefer SupCom 2 v2.5 over the first, but massive battle fields offer a lot of scope for new tactics. The games last a lot longer too - 3-4 hours on a map if everyone knows what they are doing.

If you don't mind older games (2004), then Rise of Nations is a must. Old school style, resource gathering, it mixes Age of Empires with Civilisation perfecty. Having your enemy suffer attrition while in your territory adds a new dynamic to the strategies that I have yet to see in any other RTS.

I came here to post Sega Saturn, because of the great memories, but the very first post beat me to it! Awesome! Sega Saturn, Pal and NTSC had great openings. Best console ever, such a shame it was never competiive... sob.

Dragonforce for the Sega Saturn. An brilliant little jrpg that just not get old.