GoldenEye 007 Nintendo 64 Community, GoldenEye X, Nintendo 64 Games Discussion

[loofadawg]

Looks to be somewhat fun.

https://www.gamingalexandria.com/wp/2020/03/28/viewpoint-2064-n64-unreleased/ unreleased prototype.

[MRKane]

I'm thrilled to see this finally released! It's one of the last few known unreleased games for the N64 and it's fantastic that it's now available! I wonder how long it'll be before someone repairs it to work on the likes of an everdrive?
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No Mr. Bond, I expect you to be re-coded!

[Kerr Avon]

MRKane wrote:

I'm thrilled to see this finally released! It's one of the last few known unreleased games for the N64 and it's fantastic that it's now available! I wonder how long it'll be before someone repairs it to work on the likes of an everdrive?

It already works with the Everdrive 64, you just have to make sure that the Everdrive 64 knows what save-game type the game uses, otherwise not only will Viewpoint 2064 not be able to save, it will also crash on boot up (presumably because when the game boots it checks for game saves, and gets confused when it 'sees' the wrong save-game hardware).

When you use the Everdrive 64, the games (or roms, as they are also known) that should save their game-save data to their cartridge instead save to the SD card inside the Everdrive 64 , of course. The problem is, there are several game-save type chips in use in the various game cartridges, and the Everdrive 64 needs to know which game expects which type, or the game can't save properly.

From version 2 of the Everdrive 64 onwards, the Everdrive contains a database that tells it what save type to use with each game, but of course this only works for games that are known at the time of the database's creation, so any games released later, such as hacked games (where a game's code is altered to add new levels or whatever), unreleased games that finally emerge, prototypes of games, etc, won't be recognised, and the Everdrive won't know which save type to use for that game.

To counter this, Krikzz [the bloke who designs and builds the Everdrives] added a feature whereby the user could add a save type setting for any new games that emerged. You add the settings by editing the text file 'save_db.txt' that is in the ED64 folder, and adding in the setting for the particular game.


So to get the game running on an Everdrive 64 that is version 2 or later, go to:

https://krikzz.com/forum/index.php?topic=6126

and follow the instructions in the first post. That post contains all known save-game settings for games and hacks that aren't already in the Everdrive 64's built in database.

For the first version of the Everdrive 64, I think you must set the save-game type via the Everdrive's built in menu, and perhaps set it every time you play the game, since it doesn't allow you to set the game-save types via a built in text file.


N.B. Most N64 software does run on an Everdrive 64, it's mainly fan-made hacks/mods for Super Mario 64, and the two Legend of Zelda games that don't work, and in those cases it's because the hacks/mods don't work on a real N64 (due to the mods/hacks not being tested on a real N64 when they were being made, instead they were only tested on pretty inexact emulators), not because of the Everdrive.

A real pity, as some Super Mario 64 hacks in particular are fantastic. Some do work on a real N64 and Everdrive, but not many.

BTW, MRKane, what other presumed finished but unreleased games are there on the N64? I've never really looked into that side of the N64, but it would be interesting to do so.

[MRKane]

Thanks for the information! I'll have to follow it up!

As for N64 games that never got finished, and never got a later release on another console, I think we're about out actually. There's a good possibility that all other "unseen" games on the console simply didn't make it past minimum viable product and thus aren't all that much to look at.

A few worth noting would be:
-Dragon Sword, which is slated for further development as of 2019
-Metroid 64, but I think that probably never got developed
-Freak Boy, now there is a playable prototype out there I think, but it's just a MVP


Still - it's a monumental moment for the community all up!
_________________
No Mr. Bond, I expect you to be re-coded!