Nintendo 64 21849 225371091 2008-07-13T09:44:54Z 66.190.49.33 /* Market share */ {{Refimprove|date=March 2008}} {{Infobox CVG system |title=Nintendo 64 |logo=[[Image:Nintendo 64 Logo.svg|125px]] |image=[[Image:N64.jpg|280px]] |manufacturer=[[Nintendo]] |type=[[Video game console]] |generation=[[History of video game consoles (fifth generation)|Fifth generation]] (64-bit era) |lifespan={{vgrelease|JP=[[June 23]] [[1996]]<ref name="release dates" />}}{{vgrelease|NA=[[September 29]] [[1996]]<ref name="release dates" />}}{{vgrelease|PAL=[[March 1]] [[1997]]<ref name="release dates" />}} |CPU=93.75 [[MHz]] [[NEC Corporation|NEC]] VR4300 |GPU=SGI 62.5&nbsp;MHz 64-bit RCP |media=[[ROM cartridge]] |storage=Cartridge [[battery (electricity)|battery]], [[Controller Pak]] |onlineservice=[[Nintendo 64DD#RANDnet|RANDnetDD]] (Japan only) |unitssold=Worldwide: 32.9 million <small>(as of [[March 31]] [[2006]])</small><ref name="bweek">{{cite web |url=http://images.businessweek.com/ss/06/10/game_consoles/source/12.htm |title=A Brief History of Game Console Warfare: Nintendo 64 |accessdate=2008-03-28 |work=[[BusinessWeek]] |publisher=[[McGraw-Hill]]}}</ref><ref name="nintendoreport2006">{{cite web |url=http://www.nintendo.com/corp/report/06AnnualReport.pdf#page=14 |title=Annual Report 2006 |accessdate=2008-03-28 |format=[[PDF]] |publisher=Nintendo |pages=14}}</ref> |topgame=''[[Super Mario 64]]'', 11 million <small>(as of [[May 21]], [[2003]])</small><ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.ownt.com/qtakes/2003/gamestats/gamestats.shtm |title=All Time Top 20 Best Selling Games |accessdate=2008-03-27 |archiveurl=http://web.archive.org/web/20060221044930/http://www.ownt.com/qtakes/2003/gamestats/gamestats.shtm |archivedate=2006-02-21 |date=2003-05-21}}</ref> |predecessor=[[Super Nintendo Entertainment System]] |successor=[[Nintendo GameCube]] |controllers=Up to 4 Nintendo 64 [[controllers]] }} The {{nihongo|'''Nintendo 64'''|ニンテンドウ六四|Nintendō Rokuyon|NINTENDO64}}, often abbreviated as '''N64''', is [[Nintendo]]'s third home [[video game console]] for the international market. Named for its [[64-bit]] [[Central processing unit|processor]], it was released on [[June 23]] [[1996]] in [[Japan]], [[September 29]] [[1996]] in [[North America]], [[March 1]] [[1997]] in [[Europe]] and [[Australia]], [[September 1]] [[1997]] in [[France]] and [[December 10]] [[1997]] in [[Brazil]]. It is notable for being Nintendo's last home console to use cartridges to store games (with Nintendo switching to a proprietary optical format for the GameCube), and for being the first modern home console to come with a controller featuring an analog stick. The N64 was released with two [[launch title|launch games]], ''[[Super Mario 64]]'' and ''[[Pilotwings 64]]'', plus an extra one in [[Japan]], ''[[Saikyō Habu Shōgi]]''. The N64's [[suggested retail price]] was [[United States dollar|US$]]199 at its launch and it was later marketed with the [[slogan]]: "Get N, or get Out!" As of [[March 31]] [[2006]], the N64 has sold 32.9 million units worldwide.<ref name="bweek"/><ref name="nintendoreport2006"/> ==History== [[Image:ultra64.jpg|250px|thumb|left|The "Ultra 64" logo from ''[[Cruis'n USA]]''.]] The Nintendo 64 was the culmination of work by Nintendo, [[Silicon Graphics]] (SGI), and [[MIPS Technologies]]. The SGI-based system design that ended up in the Nintendo 64 was originally offered to [[Tom Kalinske]], then [[Chief executive officer|CEO]] of [[Sega]] of America by [[James H. Clark]], founder of Silicon Graphics. SGI had recently bought out MIPS Technologies and the two companies had worked together to create a low-cost CPU/3D GPU combo that they thought would be ideal for the console market. A hardware team from Sega of Japan was sent to evaluate the chip's capabilities and they found faults which MIPS subsequently solved. However, Sega of Japan ultimately decided against SGI's design.<ref>{{ cite web|url= http://www.sega-16.com/Interview-%20Tom%20Kalinske%202.php|archiveurl= http://web.archive.org/web/20070701002707/http://www.sega-16.com/Interview-+Tom+Kalinske+2.php|archivedate=2007-07-01|title=Tom Kalinske Interview|publisher=SEGA 16|accessdate=2006-12-28}}</ref> In the early stages of development, the Nintendo 64 was referred to by the code name "Project Reality".<ref>{{cite web|accessdate=2008-03-27|url=http://www.highbeam.com/doc/1G1-18750905.html|title=For developers, Nintendo 64 may be too costly. |publisher=HighBeam|date=1996-09-13|author=Greenstein, Jane }}</ref> This moniker came from the speculation within Nintendo that the console could produce [[Computer-generated imagery|CGI]] on par with then-current [[supercomputer]]s. In 1994, the console was given the name Nintendo Ultra 64 in the West. The console's design was shown for the first time in late Spring 1994. The first picture of the console ever shown featured the Nintendo Ultra 64 logo and showed a game [[Cartridge (electronics)|cartridge]], but no controller. The final console was identical to this, but with a different logo. When the system together with the controller was fully unveiled in a playable form to the public on [[November 24]], [[1995]], the console was introduced as the "Nintendo 64" in Japan, contrary to speculation of it being called "Ultra Famicom",<ref name="NintendoLandN64">{{cite web|accessdate=2008-03-27|url=http://www.nintendoland.com/home2.htm?n64/n64.htm|title=The N64's Long Way to completion |publisher=Nintendo Land|date=1998-01-01|author=Liedholm, Marcus }}</ref> at the 7th Annual Shoshinkai [[Computer software|Software]] [[Trade fair|Exhibition]] in [[Japan]]. Photos of the event were disseminated on the web by ''[[Game Zero magazine|Game Zero]]'' magazine two days later.<ref>{{cite web|accessdate=2008-03-27|url=http://www.gamezero.com/team-0/articles/industry/shoshinkai_1995/nu64-1.html|title=Coverage of the Nintendo Ultra 64 Debut from Game Zero |publisher=Game Zero }}</ref> Official coverage by Nintendo followed later via the ''[[Nintendo Power]]'' website and print magazine. In February 1995 Nintendo of America announced a delay of Nintendo Ultra 64 until September 1996 in North America. Simultaneously it was announced that Nintendo had adopted a new global branding strategy, calling the console Nintendo 64 everywhere. Subsequently the PAL introduction was further delayed, finally being released in Europe on [[March 1]], [[1997]].<ref name="release dates">{{cite web|accessdate=2008-03-27|url=http://www.lycos.com/info/nintendo-64-roms--games.html|title=Nintendo 64 Roms: Games |publisher=[[Lycos]] }}</ref> During this stage of development two companies, [[Rare (company)|Rareware]] (UK) and [[Midway Games|Midway]] (USA), created the arcade games ''[[Killer Instinct]]'' and ''[[Cruis'n USA]]'' which claimed to use the Ultra 64 hardware. In fact, the hardware had very little in common with what was finally released; the arcade games used [[hard drive]]s and [[Texas Instruments|TMS]] processors, although they were based on the MIPS R4600 CPU.{{Fact|date=April 2008}} ''Killer Instinct'' was the most advanced game of its time graphically, featuring pre-rendered movie backgrounds that were streamed off the hard drive and animated as the characters moved horizontally. Nintendo dropped "Ultra" from the name on [[May 1]], [[1996]], just months before its Japanese debut, because the word "Ultra" was trademarked by another company, [[Konami]], for its [[Ultra Games]] division. The console was finally released on [[June 23]], [[1996]].<ref name="release dates" /> ===Market share=== The North American launch on [[September 29]], [[1996]] ended with 500,000 N64 units sold in the first four months.<ref>{{cite web|accessdate=2008-03-27|url=http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_m0WPB/is_1999_Oct_6/ai_56177488|title=Sega Dreamcast Sales Outstrip Expectations in N. America|publisher=Comline Computers|date=1999-10-06}}</ref> Benimaru Itoh, a developer for ''[[Mother 3#Development|EarthBound 64]]'' and friend of Shigeru Miyamoto, speculated in 1997 that the N64's lack of popularity in Japan was due to the lack of [[Console role-playing game|role-playing video game]]s.<ref name="npinterview">{{Cite book|year=1997 |author=Takao Imamura, Shigeru Miyamoto | title=Nintendo Power August, 1997 - Pak Watch E3 Report "The Game Masters" | pages=104-105| publisher=[[Nintendo]]}}</ref> As of [[March 31]] [[2005]], the N64 has sold 5.54 million units in [[Japan]], 20.63 million in the [[Americas]], and 6.75 million in other regions.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.nintendo.com/corp/report/NintendoAnnualReport2005.pdf#page=33 |title=05 Nintendo Annual Report - Nintendo Co., Ltd.|accessdate=2008-03-28 |format=PDF |publisher=Nintendo |pages=33–34}}</ref> Among [[History of video game consoles (fifth generation)|fifth generation]] [[video game console]]s, as of 2007, the [[PlayStation]] has shipped 102.49 million units worldwide, the most of its generation; production had continued until [[March 23]], [[2006]].<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.scei.co.jp/corporate/data/bizdataps_e.html |title=PlayStation Cumulative Production Shipments of Hardware |accessdate=2007-09-05 |publisher=[[Sony Computer Entertainment Inc.]]}}</ref><ref>{{cite web | title = Sony stops making original PS | publisher = News at GameSpot | last = Sinclair| first = Brendan| url = http://www.gamespot.com/pages/news/story.php?sid=6146549&page=7 | date = 2006-03-24 | accessdate = 2007-07-10 }}</ref> The N64 came in a distant second with 32.9 million units sold,<ref name="bweek"/><ref name="nintendoreport2006"/> and the [[Sega Saturn]] came in third with 17 million units sold.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.gamepro.com/gamepro/domestic/games/features/111822.shtml |title=The 10 Worst-Selling Consoles of All Time |accessdate=2008-03-28 |author=Blake Snow |publisher=[[GamePro]].com |date=2007-05-04}}</ref> The system was frequently marketed as the world's first 64-bit gaming system. A few years prior Atari claimed to have made the first 64-bit game console with their Jaguar, though the Jaguar's technical abilities were often debated based upon varying definitions of what constitutes a 64-bit system and its limitations with regard to generating 3D graphics when compared to competitors such as the Sony Playstation and the Nintendo 64. ==Hardware== The new controller included with Nintendo 64 consisted of 1 [[analog stick]], 2 shoulder buttons, 1 [[D-pad|digital cross pad]], 6 face buttons, a 'start' button, and one digital trigger (Z). It beat the [[Sega Saturn]]'s analog controller to market by approximately one month.<ref>{{cite web | title=The Sega Saturn 3D Control Pad | url=http://www.axess.com/twilight/console/detail/saturn_b.html | work=Axess.com | accessdate=2007-08-04}}</ref> The official prefix for the Nintendo 64's model numbering scheme is "NUS-", a reference to the system's original name, ''Nintendo Ultra Sixty-Four''. [[Image:N64chipset.jpg|thumb|left|Nintendo 64 chipset: CPU, RCP, and RDRAM.]] ===Central processing unit=== The Nintendo 64's [[central processing unit]] (CPU) is a [[MIPS architecture|MIPS]] R4300i-based [[NEC]] VR4300.<ref name="NECVR4300">{{ cite web | url = http://www.nec.co.jp/press/en/9711/1401-01.html | title = Main specifications of VR4300TM-series | publisher = NEC | accessdate = 2006-05-20 }}</ref> The CPU was clocked at 93.75&nbsp;MHz and connects to the rest of the system through a [[32-bit]] [[computer bus|data bus]]. VR43045 is a [[Reduced Instruction Set Computer|RISC]] 5-stage [[Scalar processor|scalar]] [[Out-of-order execution#In-order processors|in-order execution]] processor with an integrated [[floating point unit]]. It is a 64-bit processor, in that it has [[64-bit]] [[Processor register|registers]], a 64-bit [[instruction set]], and 64-bit internal data paths. However, the cost-reduced NEC VR4300 CPU utilized in the console only has 32-bit buses whereas more powerful MIPS CPUs are equipped with 64-bit buses.<ref name="NECVR4300" /> (In this respect, the N64 CPU is similar to the 32-bit [[Motorola 68000]] which is considered a 16-bit architecture, due to its bus limitation.) Many games took advantage of the chip's 32-bit processing mode as the greater [[precision (arithmetic)|data precision]] available with 64-bit data types is not typically required by 3D games. Also 64-bit data uses twice as much RAM, cache, and bandwidth, thereby reducing the overall system performance.<ref name="64 bit">{{ cite web | url = http://groups.google.com/group/rec.games.video.nintendo/msg/01765b0b98de9908 | title = N64, God of all systems | publisher = Google Groups | date =1997-07-26 | accessdate = 2006-05-20 }}</ref> This was later taken advantage of by [[emulator]]s such as the [[UltraHLE]] and [[Project64]] that had to run on 32-bit PC systems. These emulators performed most calculations at 32-bit precision, and [[trap (computing)|trapped]] the few OS subroutines that actually made use of 64-bit instructions.<ref name="64 bit" /> The CPU has an internal 32 [[Kibibyte|KiB]] [[CPU cache|L1 cache]] but no [[CPU cache|L2 cache]]. It was built by NEC on a 0.35 [[micrometre|µm]] [[semiconductor fabrication|process]] and consists of 4.6 million [[transistor]]s. The CPU is cooled passively by an [[aluminum]] heatspreader that makes contact with a [[steel]] [[heat sink]] above.<ref>{{cite web|accessdate=2008-03-27|url=http://n64.icequake.net/mirror/www.white-tower.demon.co.uk/n64/|title=Inside Nintendo |publisher=Inside Nintendo }}</ref> <!-- ===Reality Co-Processor=== Nintendo 64's graphics and audio duties are performed by the 64-bit SGI [[coprocessor|co-processor]], named the "Reality Co-Processor." The RCP is a 62.5&nbsp;MHz chip split internally into two major components, the "Reality Drawing Processor" (RDP) and the "Reality Signal Processor" (RSP). Each area communicates with the other by way of a 128-bit internal data bus that provides 1.0 GB/s bandwidth. The RSP is a MIPS R4000-based 8-bit [[integer]] [[vector processor]]. The RSP performs transform, clipping and lighting calculations, and triangle setup.{{Fact|date=March 2008}} The RSP was completely programmable through [[microcode]] (µcode). By altering the microcode run on the device, it could perform different operations, create new effects, and be better tuned for speed or quality. However, Nintendo was unwilling to share the microcode tools with developers until the end of the Nintendo 64's life-cycle. Programming RSP microcode was said to be quite difficult because the Nintendo 64 µcode tools were very basic, with no debugger and poor documentation. As a result, it was very easy to make mistakes that would be hard to track down; mistakes that could cause seemingly random bugs or glitches. Some developers noted that the default SGI microcode ("Fast3D") was actually quite poorly profiled for use in games (it was too accurate), and performance suffered as a result. Several companies were able to create custom microcode programs that ran their software far better than [[Silicon Graphics|SGI]]'s generic software (e.g., [[Factor 5]], [[Boss Game Studios]], and [[Rare (company)|Rare]]).{{Fact|date=March 2008}} '''Two of the SGI microcodes''' *''Fast3D'' microcode: < ~100,000 polygons per second *''Turbo3D'' microcode: 500,000–600,000 polygons per second with lower quality. Nintendo never allowed this code to be used in shipping games. The RSP also frequently performs audio functions (although the CPU can be tasked with this as well). It can play back virtually any type of audio (dependent on software [[codec]]s) including uncompressed [[Pulse-code modulation|PCM]], [[MP3]], [[Musical Instrument Digital Interface|MIDI]], and [[tracker]] music. The RSP is capable of a maximum of 100 channels of PCM at a time, but this is with 100% system utilization for audio. It has a maximum [[sampling rate]] of 48&nbsp;kHz with 16-bit audio. However, storage limitations caused by the [[Cartridge (electronics)|cartridge]] format limited audio size (and thus quality).{{Fact|date=March 2008}} The RDP is the machine's rasterizer and performs the bulk of actual image creation before output to the display. Nintendo 64 has a maximum [[color depth]] of [[Truecolor|16.8 million colors]] ([[Highcolor|32,768 on-screen]]) and can display resolutions of 256 × 224, 320 × 240, and 640 × 480 pixels. The RCP also provides the CPU's access to main system memory via a 250&nbsp;MB/s bus. Unfortunately, this link does not allow [[direct memory access]] for the CPU. The RCP, like the CPU, is passively cooled by an aluminum heatspreader that makes contact with a steel heat sink above.{{Fact|date=March 2008}} --> ===Memory=== The final major component in the system is the memory, also known as [[random access memory|RAM]]. The Nintendo 64 was the first console to implement a unified memory subsystem, instead of having separate banks of memory for CPU, audio, and video, for example. The memory itself consists of 4 [[Mebibyte|MiB]] of RAMBUS [[RDRAM]] (expandable to 8 MiB with the [[Expansion Pak]]) with a 9-bit data bus at 500&nbsp;MHz providing the system with 562.5 MB/s peak bandwidth. RAMBUS was quite new at the time and offered Nintendo a way to provide a large amount of bandwidth for a relatively low cost. The narrow bus makes board design easier and cheaper than the higher width data buses required for high bandwidth out of slower-clocked RAM types (such as [[Dynamic random access memory|VRAM]] or [[Dynamic random access memory|EDO DRAM]]). However RDRAM, at the time, came with a very high access latency, and this caused grief for the game developers because of limited hardware performance.{{Fact|date=March 2008}} ===Video=== The system provides both [[composite video]] and [[s-video]] through the [[MultiAV|MULTI-OUT]] connection on the back. The MULTI-OUT connector was also used on the earlier [[SNES]] and later [[Nintendo GameCube|GameCube]] systems, however the Nintendo 64 removed certain pin connections for providing [[RGB]] video, despite having the capability built-in. ===Hardware color variations=== {{Unreferencedsection|date=July 2008}} [[Image:Atomic Orange N64.jpg|thumb|right|250px|A Nintendo 64 console and controller in Fire Orange color.]] The standard Nintendo 64 is black, and the controller is light grey. A Jungle Green color was first available with the ''[[Donkey Kong 64]]'' bundle. The Funtastic Series used brightly-colored, translucent plastic with six colors: Fire Orange, Grape Purple, Ice Blue, Jungle Green, Smoke Black, and Watermelon Red. Nintendo released a banana-like Nintendo 64 controller for the debut of ''Donkey Kong 64'' in the United States. The Millennium 2000 controller, available exclusively as part of a Nintendo Power promotional contest in the United States, was a silver controller with black buttons. A gold controller was released in a contest by ''Nintendo Power'' magazine as part of a drawing<!-- meaning? -->. In late 1997 through 1998, a few gold Nintendo 64 controller packages were released worldwide; in the United Kingdom there was a limited edition ''[[GoldenEye 007]]'' console pack which came with a standard grey console and a copy of ''GoldenEye''. Also, a limited edition gold controller with a standard grey console were released in Australia and New Zealand in early 1998, endorsed by an advertising campaign which featured footage of N64 games including ''[[Top Gear Rally]]'' and ended with Australian swimmer [[Ian Thorpe]] wearing the gold controller as a medal around his neck. Nintendo released a gold controller for the debut of ''[[The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time]]'' in Japan. Soon after, bundle packs of the game, controller and gold Nintendo 64 were released for the US and PAL markets. The ''[[Pokémon]]'' Edition Nintendo 64, with a ''Pokémon'' sticker on the left side, included the "''Pokémon: I Choose You''" video. The ''Pokémon'' Pikachu Nintendo 64 had a large, yellow [[Pikachu]] model on a blue Nintendo 64. It has a different footprint than the standard Nintendo 64 console, and the Expansion Pak port is covered. It also shipped with a blue ''Pokémon'' controller; orange in Japan. A Limited Edition ''Star Wars'' bundle, available during the time of the release of the film ''[[Star Wars Episode I: The Phantom Menace]]'' came bundled with ''[[Star Wars: Episode I Racer]]'' and a standard grey console. Cartridges were usually gray in color, but sometimes occasionally in different colors as well. ''[[Tony Hawk's Pro Skater 3]]'', ''[[Rally Challenge 2000]]'', ''[[WWF No Mercy]]'', ''[[WWF WrestleMania 2000]]'', ''[[Rugrats in Paris: The Movie (video game)|Rugrats in Paris]]'', ''[[Tom Clancy's Rainbow Six]]'', ''[[Madden NFL 2002]]'', ''[[Road Rash 64]]'', ''[[Armorines: Project S.W.A.R.M.]]'' and ''[[Turok 2: Seeds of Evil]]'' had black cartridges; ''[[Rayman 2]]'', ''[[Turok 2]]'', ''[[Battletanx: Global Assault]]'', and ''[[Army Men: Sarge's Heroes 2]]'' had green ones (in North America only); ''[[Donkey Kong 64]]'', ''[[Earthworm Jim 3D]]'', and ''[[Tony Hawk's Pro Skater 2]]'' had yellow ones; ''[[Rocket: Robot on Wheels]]'', [[Spider-Man (2000 video game)]], ''All Star Baseball 2001'', and ''[[NFL Quarterback Club 2001]]'' had red cartridges; ''[[Pokémon Stadium 2]]'' had a gold-and-silver cartridge; ''[[The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time]]'' (Collector's Edition) and ''[[The Legend of Zelda: Majora's Mask]]'' had gold ones; and ''[[Tony Hawk's Pro Skater]]'', ''[[Hydro Thunder]]'', ''Bassmasters 2000'', ''[[The World Is Not Enough (video game)|The World Is Not Enough]]'', ''[[WCW Backstage Assault]]'', and ''[[Madden NFL 2001]]'' had blue ones. ===Accessories=== {{main|Nintendo 64 accessories}} ===Programming difficulties=== The Nintendo 64 had weaknesses that were caused by a combination of oversight on the part of the hardware designers, limitations on 3D technology of the time, and manufacturing capabilities. One major flaw was the limited texture [[cache]] of 4&nbsp;[[kilobyte|KB]]. This made it extremely difficult to load anything but small textures into the rendering engine, especially textures with high [[color depth]], and was the primary cause of blurry graphics. The small texture limitation caused blurring because developers would stretch these small textures to cover a surface and then the console's [[bilinear filtering]] would blur them even more. To make matters worse, because of how the renderer was designed, if [[mipmap]]ping was used, the texture cache was effectively halved to 2&nbsp;KB. To put this in perspective, this cache could be quickly filled with even small textures (a 64×64 16-color texture is 2&nbsp;KB and a 128×64 4 bpp texture is 4&nbsp;KB). Modern video cards and consoles (2006) frequently deal with 1024 x 1024 8 bpp and larger textures, and have a more flexible texture cache (not always larger). Towards the end of Nintendo 64's lifetime, creative developers managed to use tricks, such as multi-layered texturing and heavily-clamped small texture pieces, to simulate larger textures. ''[[Conker's Bad Fur Day]]'' is possibly the best example of this ingenuity. Games would often also use plain colored [[Gouraud shading]] instead of texturing on certain surfaces, especially in games with themes not targeting realism (e.g., ''[[Super Mario 64]]'').{{Fact|date=March 2008}} There were other challenges for developers to work around. [[Z-buffer]]ing significantly crippled the RDP's fillrate. Thus, for maximum performance, managing the z-depth of objects, so objects would appear in the right order and not on top of each other, was put on the programmer instead of the hardware. Most Nintendo 64 games were actually fill-rate limited, not geometry limited, which is ironic considering the great concern for Nintendo 64's low ~100,000 polygon per second rating during its time. In fact, ''[[World Driver Championship]]'' was one of the most polygon-intense Nintendo 64 games and frequently would push past Sony PlayStation's typical in-game polygon counts. This game also used custom microcode to improve the RSP's capabilities.{{Fact|date=March 2008}} The unified memory subsystem of Nintendo 64 was another critical weakness for the machine. The [[RDRAM]] had very high access latency and this mostly canceled out its high bandwidth advantage. A high latency memory subsystem creates delays in how fast the processors can get the data they need, and how fast they can alter this data. Game developers also said that the Nintendo 64's memory controller setup was fairly poor, and this magnified the situation somewhat. The R4300 CPU was the worst off component because it had to go through the RCP to access main memory, and could not use [[Direct memory access|DMA]] (the RCP could) to do so, so its RAM access performance was quite poor. There was no memory [[Instruction prefetch|prefetch]] or read under write functionality either.{{Fact|date=March 2008}} [[Image:Naboo1.jpg|right|thumb|''[[Star Wars: Battle for Naboo]]''{{'}}s draw distance.]] One of the best examples of the benefits of custom microcode on the Nintendo 64 was Factor 5's N64 port of the ''[[Indiana Jones and the Infernal Machine]]'' PC game. The Factor 5 team wanted the game to run in high resolution mode (640×480) because of the crispness it added to the visuals. The machine was taxed to the limit running at 640×480 so they absolutely needed the best hardware performance possible. Firstly, the Z-buffer could not be used because it alone consumed a huge amount of the console's texture fillrate. To work around the 4&nbsp;KB texture cache the programmers came up with custom texture formats and tools to help the artists make the best possible textures. The tool would analyze each texture and try to choose the best texture format to work with the machine and look as good as possible. They took advantage of the cartridge as a texture [[streaming]] source to squeeze as much detail as possible into each environment, and work around RAM limitations. They wrote microcode for real-time lighting, because the SGI code was poor for this task, and they wanted to have even more lighting than the PC version had used. Factor 5's microcode allowed almost unlimited real-time lighting, and significantly boosted the polygon count. In the end, the game was more feature-filled than the PC version, and unsurprisingly, was one of the most advanced games for Nintendo 64.<ref name=IndyN64IGN /> Factor 5 also showed ingenuity with their ''[[Star Wars]]'' games such as ''[[Star Wars: Rogue Squadron]]'' and ''[[Star Wars: Battle for Naboo]]'', where their team again used custom microcode. In ''Star Wars: Rogue Squadron'' the team tweaked the microcode for a landscape engine to create the alien worlds. For ''Star Wars: Battle for Naboo'' they took what they learned from ''Rogue Squadron'' and pushed the machine even farther to make the game run at 640×480, also implementing enhancements for both particles and the landscape engine. ''Battle for Naboo'' enjoyed an impressive draw distance and large amounts of snow and rain, even with the high resolution.<ref>{{cite web|accessdate=2008-03-27|url=http://ign64.ign.com/articles/087/087646p1.html|title=Interview: Battling the N64 (Naboo) |publisher=IGN64|date=2000-11-10 }}</ref> ==Cartridges== Nintendo 64 games were [[ROM cartridge]] based. Cartridge size varied from 4 MiB (32 [[megabit|Mbit]]) (i.e., ''[[Automobili Lamborghini]]'' and ''[[Dr. Mario 64]]'') to 64 MiB (512 Mbit) for ''[[Resident Evil 2]]'' and ''[[Conker's Bad Fur Day]]''. Some of the cartridges included internal [[EEPROM]] or battery-backed-up RAM for saved game storage. Otherwise game saves were put onto a separate memory card, marketed by Nintendo as a [[Controller Pak]]. The selection of the cartridge for the Nintendo 64 was a key factor in Nintendo's being unable to retain its dominant position in the gaming market. Most of the cartridge's advantages did not manifest themselves prominently and they were ending up nullified by the cartridge's shortcomings, which turned off customers and developers alike. Especially for the latter, it was costly and difficult to develop for ROM cartridges, as their limited storage capacity constrained the game's content.{{Fact|date=March 2008}} Most third-party developers switched to the PlayStation (such as [[Square Co.|Square]] and [[Enix]], whose ''[[Final Fantasy VII]]'' and ''[[Dragon Quest VII]]'' were initially ''pre''-planned for the N64){{Fact|date=July 2008}}, while some who remained released fewer games to the Nintendo 64 ([[Capcom]], with only 3 games; [[Konami]], with 13 N64 games and over 50 to the PlayStation), and new game releases were few and far between while new games were coming out rapidly for the PlayStation. Most of the N64's biggest successes were developed by Nintendo itself or by second-parties of Nintendo, such as Rareware.{{Fact|date=March 2008}} Despite the controversies, the N64 still managed to support popular games such as ''[[GoldenEye 007]]'' and ''[[The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time]]'', giving it a long life run. Much of this success was credited to Nintendo's strong first-party [[video game franchise|franchises]], such as ''[[Mario]]'' and ''[[The Legend of Zelda series|Zelda]]'', which had strong name brand appeal yet appeared exclusively on Nintendo platforms. The N64 also secured its share of the mature audience thanks to ''[[GoldenEye 007]]'', ''[[Nightmare Creatures]]'', ''[[Perfect Dark]]'', ''[[Doom 64]]'', ''[[Resident Evil 2]]'', ''[[Shadow Man (video game)|Shadow Man]]'', ''[[Conker's Bad Fur Day]]'', ''[[Duke Nukem 64]]'', ''[[Duke Nukem: Zero Hour]]'', ''[[Mortal Kombat 4]]'', and ''[[Quake II]]''.{{Fact|date=March 2008}} In 2001, the Nintendo 64 was replaced by the disc-based [[Nintendo GameCube]]. [[Nintendo]] cited several advantages for making the N64 cartridge-based.<ref name="advantages">{{Cite book | year=1994 | title=Nintendo Power August, 1994 - Pak Watch | page=108 | language=English | publisher=Nintendo}}</ref> For example, [[ROM cartridge]]s have very fast load times in comparison to [[compact disc|disc]]-based games, as contemporary [[CD-ROM#CD-ROM drives|CD-ROM]] drives rarely had speeds above 4x. This can be observed from the loading screens that appear in many [[Sony]] [[PlayStation]] games but are typically non-existent in N64 versions. ROM carts were so much faster than the 2x CD-ROM drives in other consoles that developers could stream data in real-time off them. This was done in ''[[Indiana Jones and the Infernal Machine]]'', for example, to make the most of the limited [[RAM]] in the N64.<ref name="IndyN64IGN">{{cite web|accessdate=2008-03-27|url=http://ign64.ign.com/articles/087/087602p1.html|title=Bringing Indy to N64 (Infernal Machine)|publisher=[[IGN]]|date=2000-11-09}}</ref> Also, ROM cartridges are difficult and expensive to duplicate, thus resisting [[copyright infringement of software|piracy]], albeit at the expense of lowered [[profit margin]] for Nintendo. While unauthorized interface devices for the PC were later developed, these devices are rare when compared to a regular CD drive and popular [[mod chip]]s as used on the PlayStation. Compared to the N64, piracy was rampant on the PlayStation. The cartridges are also far more durable than compact discs, the latter which must be carefully used and stored in protective cases. This makes the cartridges better suited for young children who do not know how to take care of CD-ROMs. It also prevents accidental scratches and subsequent read errors.<ref name="advantages" /> It is possible to add specialized I/O hardware and support chips (such as co-processors) to ROM cartridges, as was done on some [[Super Nintendo Entertainment System|SNES]] games (notably ''[[Star Fox (video game)|Star Fox]]'', using the [[Super FX]] chip).<ref name="advantages" /> ROM cartridges also have disadvantages associated with them. While game cartridges are more resistant than CDs to physical damage, they are sometimes less resistant to long-term environmental damage, particularly oxidation or wear of their electrical contacts causing a blank or frozen screen, or static electricity. Console cartridges are usually larger and heavier than optical discs and hence take up more room to store. They also have a more complex manufacturing processes, which meant that games were usually more expensive than their optical counterparts. The cartridges held a maximum of 64 MB of data, whereas CDs held over 650 MB. As [[History of video game consoles (fifth generation)|fifth generation]] games became more complex in content, sound, and graphics, it pushed cartridges to the limits of their storage capacity. Games ported from other media had to use data compression or reduced content in order to be released on the N64. Extremely large games could be made to span across multiple discs on CD-based systems, while cartridge games had to be contained within one unit since using an additional cartridge was prohibitively expensive (and was never tried). Because of a cartridge's space limitations, [[full motion video]] was not usually feasible for use in cut-scenes. The cut-scenes of some other games used graphics generated by the CPU in real-time.<ref>[http://www.gamersgraveyard.com/repository/snes/history/snescdrom.html The Snes Cd-Rom<!-- Bot generated title -->]</ref> ===Graphics=== [[Image:N64 Super Mario 64 start.jpg|thumb|right|230px|Screenshot of ''[[Super Mario 64]]'', showing limited [[texture mapping|texture]] detail and [[Gouraud shading]] (Mario himself). The trees are two dimensional and always facing the camera (known as a [[Billboard (disambiguation)|billboard]]).]] Graphically, results of the Nintendo cartridge system were mixed. The N64's graphics chip was capable of [[trilinear filtering]], which allowed textures to look very smooth compared to the [[Sega Saturn]] and the [[PlayStation]]; neither could provide better than [[nearest neighbor interpolation]], resulting in textures that were highly [[pixelation|pixelated]] compared to the N64.{{Fact|date=March 2008}} However, the smaller storage size of ROM cartridges limited the number of available textures, resulting in games which had blurry graphics because of the liberal use of stretched, low-resolution textures, which was compounded by the N64's 4096-byte limit on a single texture. Some games, such as ''Super Mario 64'', use a large amount of [[Gouraud shading]] or very simple textures to produce a cartoon-like look. This fit the themes of many games, and allowed this style of imagery a sharp look. Cartridges for some later games, such as ''[[Resident Evil 2]]'', featured more ROM space, allowing for more detailed graphics.{{Fact|date=March 2008}} ===Production=== This era's competing systems from [[Sony Computer Entertainment|Sony]] and [[Sega]] (the PlayStation and Saturn, respectively) used CD-ROM discs to store their games. These discs are much cheaper to manufacture and distribute, resulting in lower costs to third party game publishers. As a result, game developers who had traditionally supported Nintendo game consoles were now developing games for the competition because of the higher profit margins found on CD based platforms.{{Fact|date=March 2008}} Cartridges took much longer to manufacture than CDs, with each production run (from order to delivery) taking 2 to 3 weeks (or more).<ref name="asiaweek-marketshare">{{cite web |author=Bacani, Cesar and Mutsuko, Murakami |archiveurl=http://web.archive.org/web/20051226163418/http://www.asiaweek.com/asiaweek/97/0418/cs1.html |url=http://www.asiaweek.com/asiaweek/97/0418/cs1.html |archivedate=2005-12-26|title=Nintendo's new 64-bit platform sets off a scramble for market share|publisher=[[Asiaweek]]|date=1997-04-18|accessdate=2007-02-09 }}</ref> By contrast, extra copies of a CD based game could be ordered with a lead time of a few days. This meant that publishers of N64 titles had to attempt to predict demand for a game ahead of its release. They risked being left with a surplus of expensive cartridges for a failed game or a weeks-long shortage of product if they underestimated a game's popularity.<ref name="asiaweek-marketshare"/> The cost of producing an N64 cartridge was far higher than producing a CD: one gaming magazine at the time cited average costs of twenty-five dollars per cartridge, versus 10 cents per CD. Publishers had to pass these higher expenses to the consumer and as a result, N64 games tended to sell for higher prices than PlayStation games did. While most PlayStation games rarely exceeded $50, N64 titles could reach $79.99.<ref>{{cite journal | title=Biggest Blunders | journal=[[GamePro]] | year=2005 | month=May | pages=45 }}</ref> Sony's line of PlayStation Greatest Hits retailed for $19.99 each, while Nintendo's Player's Choice value line had an MSRP of $39.99. In the United Kingdom, prices around the time of introduction for N64 cartridges were £54.99, and PlayStation games at £44.99 for new titles.{{Fact|date=March 2008}} ===Cartridge-copy counter-measures=== Each Nintendo 64 cartridge contains a so-called lockout chip (similar in spirit to the [[10NES]]) to prevent manufacturers from creating unauthorized copies of games, and to discourage production of unlicensed games. Unlike previous versions, the N64 lockout chip contains a seed value which is used to calculate a [[checksum]] of the game's boot code. To discourage playing of copied games by piggybacking a real cartridge, Nintendo produced five different versions of the chip. During the [[booting|boot process]] the N64 would compute the checksum of the boot code and verify it with the lockout chip in the game cartridge, failing to boot if the check failed. Some games, such as [[Banjo Tooie]], perform additional checks while running.{{Fact|date=March 2008}} ===Games=== {{seealso|List of Nintendo 64 games|Player's Choice}} The Nintendo 64 game library included a number of critically acclaimed and widely sold games.<ref>{{cite web|accessdate=2008-03-27|url=http://ign64.ign.com/index/choice.html|title=IGN N64: Editors' Choice Games|publisher=[[IGN]]}}</ref> ''[[The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time]]'' was critically acclaimed on release and has come top of many polls for best game ever. ''[[Super Mario 64]]'' was the system's best selling title (selling over eleven million copies) and also received praise from critics. 1997's ''[[GoldenEye 007]]'', was nominated by Marc Russo as one of the greatest games of all time, and, in his words, remains "to this day . . . the finest game I've ever played across any platform or genre."<ref name="greatest games">{{cite web| url=http://www.gamespot.com/gamespot/features/all/greatestgames/p-4.html|title=The Greatest Games of All Time - The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time|publisher=[[GameSpot]]|date=[[2003-06-20]]|accessdate=2008-03-27}}</ref> Its release was exclusive to the Nintendo 64 system. ==References== {{reflist|2}} ==External links== {{Commons|Nintendo 64}} {{portal|Nintendo}} *[http://register.nintendo.com/systemsclassic?type=n64 Nintendo 64] at Nintendo.com ([http://web.archive.org/web/*/http://www.nintendo.com/systemsclassic?type=n64 archived versions] at the [[Internet Archive#Wayback Machine|Internet Archive Wayback Machine]]) *[http://www.gamezero.com/team-0/articles/industry/shoshinkai_1995/nu64-1.html Coverage of the official unveiling of the Nintendo Ultra 64 at the 7th Annual Shoshinkai Software Exhibition, in Japan] *[http://www.wikiknowledge.net/wiki/index.php?title=Nintendo_64 Nintendo 64 at WikiKnowledge] *[http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=-1704744068299423347&pr=goog-sl Nintendo 64 Promotion Video from 1997] * {{dmoz|Games/Video_Games/Console_Platforms/Nintendo/Nintendo_64/}} {{Nintendo hardware|N64}} {{dedicated video game consoles}} [[Category:Nintendo 64]] [[Category:Nintendo hardware]] [[Category:Fifth-generation video game consoles]] [[Category:1996 introductions]] [[Category:Joint ventures]] [[ar:نينتندو 64]] [[bs:Nintendo 64]] [[ca:Nintendo 64]] [[cs:Nintendo 64]] [[da:Nintendo 64]] [[de:Nintendo 64]] [[es:Nintendo 64]] [[eo:Nintendo 64]] [[eu:Nintendo 64]] [[fr:Nintendo 64]] [[gl:Nintendo 64]] [[ko:닌텐도 64]] [[hr:Nintendo 64]] [[id:Nintendo 64]] [[is:Nintendo 64]] [[it:Nintendo 64]] [[nl:Nintendo 64]] [[ja:NINTENDO64]] [[no:Nintendo 64]] [[pl:Nintendo 64]] [[pt:Nintendo 64]] [[ro:Nintendo 64]] [[ru:Nintendo 64]] [[simple:Nintendo 64]] [[sk:Nintendo 64]] [[sh:Nintendo 64]] [[fi:Nintendo 64]] [[sv:Nintendo 64]] [[th:นินเทนโด 64]] [[tr:Nintendo 64]] [[zh:任天堂64]]