64DD

The Template:Nihongo foot is a peripheral developed by Nintendo to expand the capabilities of the Nintendo 64 with rewritable magnetic disks and online connectivity. Announced in 1995 before the Nintendo 64's 1996 launch, it faced multiple delays before its release in Japan on December 11, 1999. The "64" references both the Nintendo 64 console and the 64 MB storage capacity of the disks,<ref>Template:Cite magazine</ref> while "DD" stands for "disk drive" or "dynamic drive".<ref name="Everything about 64DD at IGN" /> Despite its innovative features, it struggled to gain traction and was discontinued after a short-lived run in Japan.

Plugging into the extension port on the console's underside, the 64DD enabled expanded, rewritable data storage via proprietary 64 MB magnetic disks. It introduced a real-time clock for persistent game world elements and included a standardized font and audio library to optimize storage efficiency. Its games and hardware accessories allowed users to create movies, characters, and animations for use across various titles and shared online. The system could connect to the Internet via a dedicated online service, Randnet, which supported e-commerce,<ref name="64DD at NOM 3" /> online gaming, and media sharing.<ref name="64DD: Broken Promises" /> Described as "the first writable bulk data storage device for a modern video game console",<ref name="N64 Dev Conf 1997" /> Nintendo envisioned the 64DD as an enabling technology for pioneering new game genres and applications, though many of these remained in development for years and never saw full realization.<ref name="The 64Dream Dec 1997" />

By the time the 64DD was discontinued in February 2001, only ten software disks had been released, and Randnet had just 15,000 subscribers.<ref name="64Dream Feb 2001" /> A commercial failure, the peripheral was never released outside Japan.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> Many games originally planned for the 64DD were instead released as standard Nintendo 64 titles, ported to the more-powerful GameCube, or canceled altogether.

IGN lamented the device as "broken promises" and "vaporware", but described what was launched as "an appealing creativity package"<ref name="64DD: Broken Promises" /> for a niche audience,<ref name="Everything about 64DD at IGN" /> delivering both a "well-designed, user-driven experience" and a "limited online experiment." While the 64DD partially fulfilled Nintendo president Hiroshi Yamauchi's "longtime dream of a network that connects Nintendo consoles all across the nation",<ref name="Everything about 64DD at IGN" /> it ultimately remained an experimental footnote in gaming history.

History

Development

With the 1993 announcement of its new Project Reality console, Nintendo explored options for data storage. A Nintendo spokesperson said in 1993 that "it could be a cartridge system, a CD system, or both, or something not ever used before."<ref>Template:Cite magazine</ref> In 1994, Howard Lincoln, chairman of Nintendo of America said, "Right now, cartridges offer faster access time and more speed of movement and characters than CDs. So, we'll introduce our new hardware with cartridges. But eventually, these problems with CDs will be overcome. When that happens, you'll see Nintendo using CD as the software storage medium for our 64-bit system."<ref>Template:Cite magazine</ref>

In consideration of the 64DD's actual launch price equivalent of about Template:US$, Nintendo software engineering manager Jim Merrick warned, "We're very sensitive to the cost of the console. We could get an eight-speed CD-ROM mechanism in the unit, but in the under-$200 console market, it would be hard to pull that off."<ref>Template:Cite magazine</ref> Describing the final choice of proprietary floppy disks instead of CD-ROM, Nintendo game designer Shigesato Itoi explained, "CD holds a lot of data, DD holds a moderate amount of data and backs the data up, and [cartridge] ROMs hold the least data and process the fastest. By attaching a DD to the game console, we can drastically increase the number of possible genres."<ref name="The 64Dream Dec 1997" />

The company also explored the forging of an early online strategy with Netscape, whose founding management had recently come directly from SGI, the company which had designed the core Nintendo 64 hardware.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref><ref name="Nintendo's Internet Connection" /> Within its budding online strategy, Nintendo reportedly considered multiplayer online gaming to be of the highest priority, even above that of web browsing. Several third party game developers were developing prominent online gaming features based on 64DD, including Ocean's Mission: Impossible deathmatches<ref name="Nintendo's Internet Connection" /> and Seta's competitive four-player Ultimate War<ref name="64DD Goes to War" /><ref name="64DD Loses War" /><ref name="Ultimate War 64DD cancel" /> and online racing game.<ref name="Ultimate 64DD FAQ" /> Nintendo would ultimately retain the core impetus of these ideas, but would drastically alter both plans over the following years, in favor of a floppy-based storage technology and the Randnet online software and service partner—although with no online multiplayer gaming support whatsoever.

Announcement

Template:Quote box Nintendo President Hiroshi Yamauchi announced the dual-storage strategy of the "bulky drive" at Nintendo's Shoshinkai 1995 trade show. He intended the product to be revealed at Shoshinkai 1996 and launched sometime in 1997,<ref name="lost per" /><ref>Template:Cite magazine</ref> although giving virtually no technical specifications.<ref>Template:Cite magazine</ref> Computer and Video Games reported unconfirmed specifications, far above what would be actually launched: 4" disk caddy, 150 MB floppy disks, 2.44 Mbit/s speed, 13 ms access, 2-4 MB RAM upgrade, and costing about Template:JPY (US$200).<ref>Template:Cite magazine</ref>

The 64DD was fully revealed at Nintendo's Shoshinkai 1996 show of November 22–24, 1996,<ref name="lost per" /> where IGN reported that it<ref name="Everything about 64DD at IGN" /><ref name="N64 Dev Conf 1997" /> was one of the biggest items of the show.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> There, Nintendo of America Chairman Howard Lincoln stated that the hardware specifications had been finalized and had its own show booth. Nintendo's Director of Corporate Communications, Perrin Kaplan, made the company's first official launch window announcement for the peripheral, scheduled for late 1997 in Japan.<ref name="Shoshinkai 96 at Nintendo.com" /><ref name="The 64DD: Nintendo's Disk Drive" /><ref name="64DD delay at GameSpot" /><ref>Archived at GhostarchiveTemplate:Cbignore and the Wayback MachineTemplate:Cbignore: Template:Cite AV mediaTemplate:Cbignore</ref> Core Magazine said, "Nintendo representatives insisted the system would be aggressively supported by third parties and Nintendo's internal development teams" with sequels for Super Mario 64 and Zelda 64, and 64DD originals Cabbage and Emperor of the Jungle. Nintendo's list of 64DD developers included Konami, Capcom, Enix, and Rare.<ref name="lost per" /> Rare officially discounted any rumors of the peripheral's impending pre-release cancellation.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>

Reportedly, several developers attended the show to learn 64DD development, some having traveled from the US for the 64DD presentation and some having received 64DD development kits.<ref name="Nintendo's Internet Connection" /> A 64DD prototype was in a glass case, not visibly operational, but with a makeshift demonstration of Zelda 64 which was said to be running from disk.<ref name="lost per" /> An improvised disk conversion of the familiar Super Mario 64 game demonstrated the drive's operation and performance, and a graphics application mapping the audience's photographical portraits onto live 3D animated avatars—a feature which was ultimately incorporated and released in 2000 as Mario Artist: Talent Studio and the Capture Cassette.<ref name="Shoshinkai 96 at Nintendo.com" /><ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>

The event featured Creator, a music and animation game by Software Creations,<ref name="Creator and Mario Artist" /> the same UK company that had made Sound Tool for the Nintendo Ultra 64 development kit. They touted the game's ability to be integrated into other games, allowing a player to replace any such game's textures and possibly create new levels and characters. There was no playable version of Creator available there, but the project was later absorbed into Mario Artist: Paint Studio.<ref name="Creator and Mario Artist" /><ref name="Mario Artist: Paint Studio (Import)" /> Nintendo announced 64DD would be bundled with a RAM expansion cartridge.<ref>Template:Cite magazine</ref>

Much of the gaming press said the 64DD reveal at Shoshinkai 1996 was not as significant as Nintendo had promised, leaving the public still unaware of the system's software lineup, practical capabilities, and release date.<ref>Template:Cite magazine</ref><ref>Template:Cite magazine</ref><ref>Template:Cite magazine</ref> Zelda 64 (eventually released as the cartridge game The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time) was seen as the 64DD's potential killer app in the months following the system's unveiling.<ref>Template:Cite magazine</ref>

On April 3–4, 1997, Nintendo of America hosted a Developer's Conference in Seattle, Washington, where a surprise overview was delivered by Nintendo Developer Support staff Mark DeLoura about the 64DD.<ref name="N64 Dev Conf 1997" />

Delays

The 64DD is notable in part for two years of many launch delays, which created an interdependent cascade of delays and complications of many other business processes and product launches for Nintendo and its partners,<ref name="Everything about 64DD at IGN" /><ref name="64DD: Broken Promises" /><ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref><ref name="DD Date?" /> and the cancellation of Space World 1998 due to lack of completed 64DD software. IGN reported in June 1999 that many called it "the most elusive piece of vaporware to date".<ref name="a reality" />

On May 30, 1997, Nintendo issued a press conference announcing the first 64DD launch delay, rescheduled to March 1998 with no comment on an American release schedule. This was reportedly attributed to the protracted development of both the disks and the drive technologies.<ref name="64DD delay at GameSpot" /><ref>Template:Cite magazine</ref> On June 9, 1997, Nintendo and Alps Electric announced their manufacturing partnership for the still tentatively titled<ref name="N64 Dev Conf 1997" /> 64DD.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>

Template:Quote box On June 18, 1997, at the E3 pre-show press conference, the company lacked even a prototype unit to display, while Howard Lincoln stated that the company wouldn't release the device until sufficient numbers of software releases support it. Reportedly featuring at least twenty games in development including Donkey Kong 64 and the sequel to Super Mario 64, the device retained its projected Japanese launch window of "at least" March 1998, and received its first American launch window of early 1998.<ref name="Donkey Kong 64 Jumps to DD" /> Also at the show, Nintendo confirmed that the 64DD would have Internet capability,<ref>Template:Cite magazine</ref> and Nintendo's main game designer, Shigeru Miyamoto, speculated that its launch games could be SimCity 64, Mario Artist, Pocket Monsters, and Mother 3.<ref>Template:Cite interview</ref><ref>Template:Cite magazine</ref>

At Space World from November 21–24, 1997, the 64DD was shown prominently but its delay was extended from March 1998 to June 1998,<ref name="Tough Talk" /> with no mention of an international launch. Next Generation magazine observed the attendees and the demonstrations, finding no appeal to the US market from any current 64DD software, which was mainly Mario Artist and Pocket Monsters. The magazine said "64DD's future does not look good. And whether or not it was ever a serious mainstream contender is now open for debate", and wondered if 64DD would become "just an interesting footnote to the Nintendo 64 story". The magazine, and Argonaut Software founder Jez San, found Nintendo's third-party relations, and the third-parties' products, to be poor with no sign of improving; San said "Rumors have been circulating for a while that recently within Nintendo the main priority has been [...] taking development staff off other games and projects [at the expense of Nintendo 64 and 64DD] to make sure that Pocket Monsters was done on time."<ref name="NG38" /> Nintendo's presentation focused mainly on first party Nintendo 64 cartridges and the top selling game of 1997, Pocket Monsters for Game Boy. Zelda 64 had always been a killer app for the 64DD, but was now announced as lost to cartridge (Nintendo's largest ever, at Template:Nowrap or Template:Nowrap) because Nintendo said the 64DD userbase probably couldn't support a blockbuster even if launched in June 1998<ref name="Tough Talk" /><ref name="NG38" /><ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref><ref>Template:Cite book</ref> and because 64DD floppy disk speed cannot continuously stream 500 motion-captured character animations throughout gameplay as only a cartridge can.<ref>Template:Cite interview</ref>

George Harrison, vice president of Nintendo of America, described the logistics of the 64DD launch delays:<ref name="Tough Talk" />

Certainly [64DD] hasn't been sidelined, it's still in the starting gate.<ref name="NG38" /> [Nintendo can't guarantee that the 64DD will launch in the US in 1998], but what we can say is that it will launch when it is ready and when we have a compelling piece of software for it. But it's an accessory and we all know the history of selling add-ons in this marketplace, and to be successful we'd have to get a 60%-to-80% penetration of this 64DD into the installed base of N64 to be considered a success. We can't just have 10% or 20% of people buy it, otherwise it wouldn't make any sense to continue software support for it.<ref name="Tough Talk" />{{#if:|{{#if:|}}

— {{#if:|, in }}Template:Comma separated entries

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In a December 1997 interview with Shigeru Miyamoto and Shigesato Itoi, Miyamoto confessed the difficulty of repeatedly attempting to describe and justify the long-promised potential of the mysterious peripheral to a curious public. He said that it "would have been easier to understand if the DD was already included when the N64 first came out. It's getting harder to explain after the fact. (laughs)" To illustrate the fundamental significance of the 64DD to all game development at Nintendo, Itoi said, "I came up with a lot of ideas because of the 64DD. All things start with the 64DD. There are so many ideas I wouldn't have been allowed to come up with if we didn't have the 64DD." Miyamoto concluded, "Almost every new project for the N64 is based on the 64DD. ... we'll make the game on a cartridge first, then add the technology we've cultivated to finish it up as a full-out 64DD game."<ref name="The 64Dream Dec 1997" /> By 1998, IGN optimistically expected all major Nintendo 64 cartridge games to have software support for an impending expansion disk. Known third-party 64DD developers included Konami, Culture Brain, Seta, Japan System Supply, Titus, Infogrames, Rare, Paradigm Entertainment, Ocean, and Factor 5.<ref name="Nintendo's Internet Connection" /><ref name="64DD: The Games" />

Template:Quote box More delays were subsequently announced. The American launch was delayed to late 1998.<ref name="The 64DD: Nintendo's Disk Drive" /> The Japanese launch was delayed to June 1998, later adjusted by the apologetic announcement on April 3, 1998, that it would launch "within the year".<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> The 64DD was conspicuously absent from E3 1998, having been briefly described the prior day as "definitely not" launching in 1998 and "questionable" in 1999, which Next Generation magazine interpreted as being "as close to 'dead' as we can imagine".<ref>Template:Cite magazine</ref> IGN pessimistically explained that the peripheral's launch delays were so significant, and Nintendo's software library was so dependent upon the 64DD, that this lack of launchable software also caused Nintendo to entirely cancel Space World for 1998.<ref name="DD Date?" />

On April 8, 1999, IGN announced Nintendo's latest delayed launch date of 64DD and the nearly complete Mario Artist, as June 1999.<ref name="DD Date?" /> Demonstrated at the May 1999 E3 as what IGN called an "almost forgotten visitor", there was no longer a plan for release outside Japan, and its launch in Japan was still withheld by the lack of completed launch games.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> In June 1999, IGN reported that month's completion of Randnet and the modem, as having "breathed new life into what many have called the most elusive piece of vaporware to date". IGN said Nintendo "is surprisingly confident about the 64DD and is predicting to sell the full initial shipment of 500,000 before year's end".<ref name="a reality" />

As of Space World 1999 in August, Nintendo had set Randnet's launch date at December 1, 1999, but reportedly had not yet set a launch date for the 64DD. The 64DD pre-order program had been recently announced for mid-September, and was now delayed to November or December.<ref name="Core99day1" /> Earthbound 64, which IGN cynically called "in development for nearly 1,000 years",<ref name="Mother 3 Pushed Back" /> had been heavily anticipated inside the company and globally as a crucial 64DD launch game, but the sudden announcement of its release being retargeted from disk to Template:Nowrap cartridge plus expansion disk was interpreted by IGN as unsurprising and as a sign of possible further delay or cancellation of the 64DD.<ref name="Earthbound 64 cancel" /><ref name="Mother 3 Pushed Back" /> Nintendo's 64DD booth demonstrated eight launch games, including DT Bloodmasters, which used the 64 GB Cable to connect a Game Boy Color to the 64DD.<ref name="Core99day1" /><ref name="What's DT, you ask?" /><ref name="64DD Lineup Exposed" /> Nintendo listed many more 64DD games in development.<ref name="64DD Lineup Exposed" /> Randnet had recently been announced and was being tested in Japan.<ref name="Core99day1" />

Launch

The 64DD was launched on December 13, 1999, exclusively in Japan,<ref name="64DD Kotaku" /> as a package called the Randnet Starter Kit including six games bimonthly through the mail, and one year of Internet service. Core Magazine and IGN reported Nintendo's stated initial retail shipment of 500,000 units.<ref name="a reality" />

Anticipating that its long-planned peripheral would become a commercial failure, Nintendo initially sold the Randnet Starter Kit via mail order.<ref name="64DD: Broken Promises" /> Later, very limited quantities of the individual 64DD and games were released to stores.

Discontinuation

On August 25, 2000, Space World was signified by the launches of the GameCube and Game Boy Advance, and by what IGN considered to be the unofficial discontinuation of the 64DD, jokingly calling it "DeaDD". According to IGN, "Nintendo did not speak about 64DD during its opening speech, nor did the hardware itself have any booth presence. In fact, the unofficial 'No 64DD!' policy seemed to be enforced by Nintendo so brutally that had we even muttered the name of the hardware, we would have probably been tossed out of the show."<ref name="DeaDD" />

In October 2000, Nintendo announced the impending discontinuation of the 64DD and Randnet, with 15,000 active subscribers.<ref name="64Dream Feb 2001" /> They were discontinued in February 2001. Only ten 64DD disks were ever released, including three third-party games and one Internet application suite. Most planned 64DD games were either released on increasingly larger Nintendo 64 Game Pak, ported to other consoles like the PlayStation or GameCube, or canceled entirely.<ref name="Everything about 64DD at IGN" />

Hardware

File:64DD-Bare.jpg

The 64DD, unattached

File:Nintendo-64DD-disk.jpg

64DD disk, top

File:Nintendo-64DD-Disc-Bottom.jpg

64DD disk, bottom

Nintendo designed the 64DD as an enabling technology to support the development of new game genres,<ref name="The 64Dream Dec 1997" /> achieved primarily through three features: a dual storage strategy using both cartridges and disks, an integrated real-time clock (RTC), and Internet connectivity via the Randnet service.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation

|CitationClass=web }}</ref>

The 64DD's dual storage approach complemented the Nintendo 64's fast but expensive cartridges with less-expensive rewritable magnetic disks that offered higher capacity and lower cost, though with slower performance. The proprietary 64DD disks, resembling durable Zip disk-style floppy disks, provide 64 MB of storage with a peak transfer rate of 1 MB/s and an average seek time of 75 ms.<ref name="Everything about 64DD at IGN" /><ref>Template:Cite book</ref> Unlike the CD media used by the competing PlayStation and Sega Saturn, the 64DD format was both writable and offered better protection against unauthorized copying. While CD-ROMs of the era could store over 650 MB they only had a 300 kB/s read speed and high latency, contributing to stuttering and to very long loading times.<ref name="N64 Dev Conf 1997" /><ref>Template:Cite book</ref><ref>Template:Cite interview</ref>

The 64DD was designed in part to expand the storage capabilities of the Nintendo 64. During its development, Nintendo planned for The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time to use the 64DD exclusively, but ultimately released it on cartridge to take advantage of faster performance while reserving optional expansions for the disk.<ref name="Iwata Asks OoT 3D" />

Similar in concept to the Famicom Disk System's relation to early Famicom cartridges,<ref name="Virtually Overlooked: Mario Artist" /> the 64DD was conceived at a time when 4 MB cartridges were standard. While cartridge sizes increased to 8 MB with Super Mario 64 and later to 32 MB and 64 MB, only three games were ever released on 64 MB cartridges. In contrast, the 64DD disks allowed up to 38 MB of writable space,<ref name="Everything about 64DD at IGN" /><ref>Template:Cite magazine</ref> enabling support for new game genres and features such as user-generated content and episodic expansions.<ref name="64DD at NWP" />

The 64DD's RTC enabled persistent world mechanics by keeping track of time even when the system was powered off. For example, Shigeru Miyamoto cited the RTC as a key reason for developing the cancelled pet simulation game Cabbage for the 64DD: "We're doing it on the 64DD because I wanted to make a clock function, such that even if the power is cut, [you] can still raise the creature."<ref name="64DD: The Games" /><ref name="Cabbage at IGN" /><ref>Template:Cite interview</ref>

The 64DD also had a built-in font and audio library, saving space on disks, and a 32-bit coprocessor dedicated to disk operations. This offloaded data handling from the Nintendo 64's main Reality Coprocessor and CPU. Like most disc-based consoles, the 64DD has a boot menu to operate without a cartridge.

Accessories

File:Nintendo-64-Memory-Expansion-Pak.jpg

The requisite 4 MB RAM Expansion Pak is bundled with the 64DD.

All versions of the 64DD system were bundled with the 4 MB Expansion Pak, which increased the Nintendo 64's RAM to 8 MB.

A Randnet Starter Kit was also offered, which included the 64DD drive, Expansion Pak, modem cartridge, Randnet Browser Disk, and a modular phone cable for connecting to the online Randnet service.

Mario Artist: Paint Studio was bundled with a mouse, while Mario Artist: Talent Studio included an audio-video capture cartridge with composite RCA inputs and a 3.5 mm jack, used in conjunction with an included microphone.

Randnet

In April 1999, Nintendo ended its partnership with St.GIGA, which had provided the Satellaview online service for the Super Famicom in Japan from 1995 to 2000. Nintendo then partnered with the Japanese media company Recruit to develop a new proprietary online platform for the 64DD called Randnet, a portmanteau of "Recruit and Nintendo network." The two companies established a joint venture named RandnetDD Co., Ltd., announced on June 30, 1999.<ref name="Randnet announcement by Recruit" /><ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>

Randnet operated exclusively in Japan from December 13, 1999, until February 28, 2001.<ref name="64DD: Broken Promises" /><ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> It provided Internet access through a members-only portal and allowed users to share content such as artwork. The subscription included a dial-up Internet account, 64DD hardware, and a schedule of game disk deliveries by mail. Multiplayer online gaming was initially considered more important than web browsing functionality.<ref name="Ultimate 64DD FAQ" /><ref name="Nintendo's Internet Connection" /><ref name="64DD Loses War" />

The system connected via a CPU-powered Template:Nowrap software modem, developed with Nexus Telocation Systems, Ltd. and Surf Communications.<ref>Template:Cite press release</ref><ref name="a reality" /> Housed in a cartridge with a modular cable port, this modem was the only officially licensed Internet connectivity product for the Nintendo 64.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref><ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> Although there had been discussions to integrate a modem directly into the console, this did not come to fruition.

The Randnet Starter Kit included the 64DD drive, the Nintendo 64 modem, and the Randnet Browser Disk. The browser provided access to a members-only page and several online features: an editing tool for creating custom avatars, message boards and email, communication with game developers, Internet browsing optimized for TVs, and limited postcard creation through Mario Artist. Randnet also included e-commerce through GET Mall, which sold CDs, books, and 64DD software, as well as a digital magazine service, although only horse racing results were ultimately implemented.<ref name="64DD at NOM 1" /><ref name="64DD at NOM 3" /><ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>

Nintendo originally promoted several features that were later canceled. These included downloadable NES games via an emulator,<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> online battle modes for titles such as Mah-jongg, DT Bloodmasters, Ultimate War, and Wall Street,<ref name="64DD at NOM 3" /><ref name="Nintendo's Internet Connection" /><ref name="64DD Lineup Exposed" /><ref name="64DD Goes to War" /> ghost data observation, beta test downloads, and music distribution.<ref name="Ultimate 64DD FAQ" />

Initial registration for Randnet was open from November 11, 1999, to January 11, 2000, limited to 100,000 users. The service could only be accessed with both a Nintendo 64 and 64DD system, and the hardware was not sold at retail but made available by mail order through participating convenience stores and game retailers. Game disks were delivered monthly after the hardware was shipped.<ref name="Randnet 64DD GS" /><ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>

Two plans were offered: one for users who already owned a Nintendo 64 and another lease-to-own option that included a translucent black console. Monthly payment plans were priced at Template:Yen (approximately Template:US$) for the base plan and Template:Yen (Template:US$) for the lease-to-own option, with Randnet service costing Template:Yen (Template:US$) per month afterward. Users also paid dial-up access fees of up to Template:Yen per minute.<ref name="Randnet 64DD GS" /><ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> Initially available only in Tokyo, the subscription model was eventually replaced with annual prepaid plans costing Template:Yen (Template:USD) for purchase and Template:Yen (Template:USD) for lease-to-own. The 64DD and later software titles eventually became available for direct retail purchase.<ref name="Ultimate 64DD FAQ" />

As part of the subscription, games were delivered in stages: Doshin the Giant and Mario Artist: Paint Studio in December 1999, followed by Randnet Disk, SimCity 64, and Mario Artist: Talent Studio in February 2000, and F-Zero X Expansion Kit and Mario Artist: Polygon Studio in April 2000.<ref name="Ultimate 64DD FAQ" />

Games

Released

A total of ten disks were released for 64DD, which comprise nine games and one dialup utility disk.

Title	Release date
Template:Nihongo	December 13, 1999
Template:Nihongo
Template:Nihongo	February 23, 2000
Template:Nihongo
Template:Nihongo
Template:Nihongo	April 21, 2000
Template:Nihongo	May 2, 2000
Template:Nihongo	May 17, 2000
Template:Nihongo	June 29, 2000
Template:Nihongo	August 29, 2000

Proposed

More than 60 games were announced for the 64DD that ended up being released on Nintendo 64 cartridge format only, being totally canceled due to the system's delays or commercial failure, or being ported to another console such as Nintendo GameCube, Sony PlayStation, Sega Dreamcast, Sony PlayStation 2, or Microsoft Xbox.

• 7th Legion<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation

|CitationClass=web }}</ref>

• Asylum<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation

|CitationClass=web }}</ref>

• Automobili Lamborghini Add-On<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation

|CitationClass=web }}</ref>

• Cabbage<ref name="64DD: The Games" /><ref name="Cabbage at IGN" /><ref name="Miyamoto Opens Vault" /><ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation

|CitationClass=web }}</ref> (unreleased, influencing Nintendogs and others)

• Communication Game (online game by the development team of PostPet, a famous Japanese email application)
• Creator (later integrated into the Mario Artist series)<ref name="Creator and Mario Artist" /><ref name="Mario Artist: Paint Studio (Import)" />
• DD Sequencer<ref name="Ultimate 64DD FAQ" />
• Derby Stallion 64<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation

|CitationClass=web }}</ref><ref name="64DD: The Games" /><ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> (released on cartridge)<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref><ref name="Connecting to the Cube" />

• Desert Island: No Man's Island<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation

|CitationClass=web }}</ref><ref name="RPGs! Imagineer's" />

• Dezaemon 3D Expansion Kit<ref name="Ultimate 64DD FAQ" /><ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation

|CitationClass=web }}</ref><ref name="64DD's Lineup" /><ref name="64DD at NOM 1" />

• Diablo<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation

|CitationClass=web }}</ref>

• Digital Horse Racing Newspaper<ref name="64DD Lineup Exposed" />
• Digital Sports Newspaper<ref name="Ultimate 64DD FAQ" /> (canceled)
• Doubutsu Banchou<ref name="64DD: The Games" /> (Animal Leader, previewed on Game Pak<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation

|CitationClass=web }}</ref><ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref><ref name="DeaDD" /> and released on GameCube as Cubivore: Survival of the Fittest)<ref name="Gone to GameCube" />

• Dōbutsu no Mori (Animal Forest, released as a cartridge with an embedded RTC in Japan, and later as Animal Crossing on GameCube)<ref name="Gone to GameCube" />
• Dragon Warrior VII<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation

|CitationClass=web }}</ref> (ported and released on the Sony PlayStation instead)

• DT Bloodmasters<ref name="Core99day1" /><ref name="64DD: The Games" /><ref name="64DD Lineup Exposed" /><ref name="What's DT, you ask?" /><ref name="64DD's Lineup" /><ref name="Connecting to the Cube" /><ref name="64DD at NOM 1" />
• Emperor of the Jungle<ref name="lost per" /> (canceled)
• Far East of Eden: Oriental Blue<ref>Nintendo Magazine (France) January 2004, Oriental Blue GBA preview</ref> (canceled, becoming a GBA game of the same name)
• Fire Emblem 64<ref name="Miyamoto Reveals Secrets" /><ref name="64DD: The Games" /> (canceled, with plot elements later used on Fire Emblem: Fūin no Tsurugi for GBA)
• Fushigi no Dungeon: Fūrai no Shiren 2<ref name="64DD: The Games" /><ref name="Mysterious SW2000" /> (released on cartridge)<ref name="Mysterious SW2000" />
• Game Maker<ref name="64DD Lineup Exposed" /><ref name="Get Creative" /> (canceled)
• Gendai Dai-Senryaku: Ultimate War<ref name="64DD Goes to War" /><ref name="Ultimate 64DD FAQ" /><ref name="64DD Lineup Exposed" /><ref name="64DD's Lineup" /><ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation

|CitationClass=web }}</ref><ref name="Ultimate War 64DD cancel" /><ref name="64DD Loses War" /><ref name="64DD at NOM 1" /> (converted to cartridge in 2000<ref name="DeaDD" /><ref name="64DD Loses War" /> and canceled)

• Graphical Message Maker<ref name="64DD Lineup Exposed" /><ref name="Get Creative" /> (canceled)
• Ide Yosuke no Mahjong Juku<ref name="Ultimate 64DD FAQ" /><ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation

|CitationClass=web }}</ref><ref name="64DD at NOM 1" /><ref name="64DD's Lineup" /> (released on cartridge)

• Mario Artist: Sound Maker<ref name="64DD: The Games" /><ref name="Get Creative" /><ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation

|CitationClass=web }}</ref><ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref><ref name="Leaves CD Systems" /><ref>Template:Cite interview</ref><ref name="64DD at NOM 1" /> (split out from Paint Studio<ref name="64DD's Lineup" /> and then canceled)

• Mario Party 2<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation

|CitationClass=web }}</ref> (released on cartridge)

• Mario no Photopi (cartridge released without 64DD storage option)<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation

|CitationClass=web }}</ref>

• Mission: Impossible (released on cartridge)<ref name="Nintendo's Internet Connection" /><ref>Template:Cite magazine</ref>
• Morita Shogi 64<ref name="Ultimate 64DD FAQ" /><ref name="64DD Lineup Exposed" /><ref name="64DD at NOM 1" /> (released on cartridge)
• Mother 3 (EarthBound 64)<ref name="64DD: The Games" /><ref name="Nintendo Sequel Rumblings" /> (converted to cartridge with expansion disk in 1999, canceled in 2000,<ref name="Earthbound 64 cancel" /><ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation

|CitationClass=web }}</ref> then redeveloped and released as Mother 3 for GBA in Japan)

• Mother 3.5 (Mother 3 expansion)<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation

|CitationClass=web }}</ref>

• Namco RPG<ref name="64DD: The Games" />
• Ogre Battle Saga (released on cartridge)<ref name="64DD: The Games" />
• Oriental Blue: Ao no Tengai (canceled and released on GBA in 2003)<ref>Template:Cite magazine</ref>
• Pokémon Snap (released on cartridge)<ref name="64DD: The Games" />
• Pocket Monsters Stadium (released on cartridge)
• Pokémon Stadium (released on cartridge)
• Pokémon Stadium 2 (released on cartridge)<ref name="64DD at NOM 1" />
• Project Cairo<ref name="64DD: The Games" /><ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation

|CitationClass=web }}</ref>

• Resident Evil Zero (released on GameCube)<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation

|CitationClass=web }}</ref>

• Rev Limit<ref name="Ultimate 64DD FAQ" /><ref name="64DD's Lineup" /> (canceled)
• Seaman (released on Dreamcast)<ref>Template:Cite interview</ref>
• SimCopter 64<ref name="64DD: The Games" /> (canceled)
• SnowSpeeder (released on cartridge)<ref name="RPGs! Imagineer's" />
• Street Fighter III<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation

|CitationClass=web }}</ref>

• Super Mario 64 2<ref name="The 64Dream Dec 1997" /><ref name="Donkey Kong 64 Jumps to DD" /><ref name="64DD: The Games" /><ref name="Nintendo Sequel Rumblings" />
• Super Mario RPG 2<ref name="Miyamoto Reveals Secrets" /><ref name="64DD: The Games" /><ref name="Nintendo Sequel Rumblings" /> or Super Mario Adventure<ref name="Ultimate 64DD FAQ" /> (released on cartridge as Mario Story in Japan and Paper Mario in the rest of the world)
• Suul<ref name="RPGs! Imagineer's" />
• Teo<ref name="64DD: The Games" />
• Tonic Trouble expansion (canceled)<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation

|CitationClass=web }}</ref><ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>

• Toukon Road: Brave Spirits Add-On
• Unreal<ref name="Ultimate 64DD FAQ" /><ref>Template:Cite magazine</ref> (canceled)
• Wall Street<ref name="Ultimate 64DD FAQ" /><ref name="64DD Lineup Exposed" /><ref name="64DD's Lineup" /><ref name="64DD at NOM 1" />
• Ultra Donkey Kong (released on cartridge as Donkey Kong 64)<ref name="Donkey Kong 64 Jumps to DD" /><ref name="64DD: The Games" /><ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation

|CitationClass=web }}</ref><ref>Template:Cite magazine</ref>

• Ura Zelda<ref name="64DD Lineup Exposed" /><ref name="Nintendo Sequel Rumblings" /><ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation

|CitationClass=web }}</ref> (canceled<ref name="IGN: Miyamoto and Aonuma on Zelda" /><ref>Template:Cite interview</ref> but then released for GameCube as Master Quest)<ref name="IGN: Miyamoto and Aonuma on Zelda" /><ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>

• Video Jockey Maker<ref name="64DD Lineup Exposed" /><ref name="Get Creative" /><ref name="Ultimate 64DD FAQ" /> (canceled)
• Zelda 64<ref name="Iwata Asks OoT 3D" /> (released on cartridge as The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time)
• Zelda Gaiden (released on cartridge as The Legend of Zelda: Majora's Mask)<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation

|CitationClass=web }}</ref>

Reception

Rating the overall system at 6.0 out of 10.0, IGN's Peer Schneider finds the industrial design language of the 64DD and its accessories to perfectly match and integrate with that of the Nintendo 64, with no user-accessible moving parts, a single mechanical eject button, sharing the N64's power button, and child-friendly usability. Installation is said to be "quick and painless", operation is "even simpler", and the whole system "couldn't be easier to use". Software load times are described as "minimal", where the most complex possible point of the system's library reaches about five seconds. The site says that the 64DD popularity was inherently limited, due in part to its limited release in Japan, a country which had a limited adoption of the Nintendo 64 and of dialup Internet connectivity.<ref name="Everything about 64DD at IGN" />

Schneider found the combination of the Randnet's web browser and the mouse to provide a "passable surfing experience". He described the portal's private content as "much too limited", where "[a]nyone who has used the Internet would snicker at the lack of up-to-date contents or tools offered on Randnet". He was disappointed in the companies' failure to have ever delivered certain promised online features, such as game beta testing and music distribution.<ref name="64DD: Broken Promises" /> But it provides new users with a "simple network [which] functions as first baby steps into the vast world of the Internet".<ref name="Mario Artist: Paint Studio (Import)" />

Schneider liked the overall product value provided by the Randnet Starter Kit, including hardware, games, accessories, and Internet subscription. However, the platform's abrupt discontinuation proved to limit the appeal to a per item basis rather than as a whole. Because these items were sold only as a soon-discontinued bundle, all with such ultimately limited application, he found the disks' cheaper prices to be aggregated back up to the level of cartridges.<ref name="64DD: Broken Promises" />

He found the Mario Artist series (especially the 64DD's "killer app", Talent Studio) to be uniquely compelling in creative ways that "couldn't be done on any other gaming console on the market", utilizing the disks' writability and "[leaving] CD systems behind".<ref name="Leaves CD Systems" /> As a flagship 64DD game, IGN found Paint StudioTemplate:'s well-made art creation functionality to be both a low-cost paint program, and edutainment akin to an Adobe Photoshop for kids.<ref name="Mario Artist: Paint Studio (Import)" /><ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> Knowing Nintendo's stated plans, he supposed that if the platform hadn't been abruptly canceled, Nintendo would have utilized Paint Studio as a source of user-generated art content for a substantial library of customizable games.<ref name="Mario Artist: Paint Studio (Import)" /> IGN also called Wall Street a 64DD killer app, though canceled.<ref name="64DD's Lineup" />

Schneider acknowledges Nintendo's vision, attributing the system's downfall generally upon the drastically changing marketplace during the several years of delays. He summarized the 64DD as "an appealing creativity package"<ref name="64DD: Broken Promises" /> "targeted at a certain type of user"<ref name="Everything about 64DD at IGN" /> "that delivered a well-designed user-driven experience"—and a "limited online experiment at the same time", which partially fulfilled Nintendo president Hiroshi Yamauchi's "longtime dream of a network that connects Nintendo consoles all across the nation".<ref name="Everything about 64DD at IGN" />

Core Magazine honored the 64DD: "In Japanese culture, there is a concept known as mono no aware. While this term completely defies English translation, one of its connotations is that there is nobility in things that soon perish."<ref name="lost per" />

Nintendo reported 15,000 active Randnet subscribers as of the October 2000 announcement of the service's impending closure, implying the sale of at least as many requisite 64DD units.<ref name="64Dream Feb 2001" />

Legacy

Template:Quote box Template:Quote box New genres of games were developed due to the advent of 64DD's rewritable mass storage, real-time clock (RTC), and Internet appliance functionality.<ref name="The 64Dream Dec 1997" /> However, the system's commercial failure required many 64DD games to be released on traditional Nintendo 64 cartridges alone, ported to other consoles, or canceled.<ref name="Everything about 64DD at IGN" />

Some of these standalone Nintendo 64 cartridge releases include the equivalent of the 64DD's RTC chip directly on board the cartridge, as with Japan's Animal Forest. The Template:Nowrap RAM Expansion Pak became a sometimes mandatory staple of Nintendo 64 game development, being packaged along with a few cartridge games. All subsequent Nintendo consoles would directly include RTC functionality.

The concept of the popular multiplatform Animal Crossing series originated with the 64DD's rewritable storage and RTC. The eventual initial release of the series was adapted to utilize only the Nintendo 64 cartridge format with an embedded RTC, in the form of Japan's Animal Forest. That game was cosmetically adapted for GameCube (with the console's built-in RTC and its removable and rewritable memory cards) with the new name of Animal Crossing. All games in the series are played in real time persistent game world, with the passage of time being recorded on writable media. The realtime effect reflects real seasons, real holidays, virtual plant growth, development of virtual relationships, and other events. Interactivity between real human players on different subsequent console generations has been enabled through the swapping of various Nintendo consoles' writable mass storage cards or through online communications.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>

The legacy of what is now the Nintendogs series originated because of 64DD, in the form of a pet creature breeding prototype called Cabbage. Never released, it had been codeveloped by Shigesato Itoi (designer of EarthBound), Tsunekazu Ishihara (designer of Pokémon), and Shigeru Miyamoto.<ref name="The 64Dream Dec 1997" /> Its publicized four-year development was fundamentally enabled by the real-time clock and mass writability, where Miyamoto explained, "We're doing it on the 64DD because I wanted to make a clock function, such that even if the power is cut, [the game] can still raise the creature"<ref name="Cabbage at IGN" /> and with optionally purchasable enhancement data.<ref name="64DD: The Games" /> A subset of creature maintenance functionality is made portable on the Game Boy via the Transfer Pak, to be synchronized back to the 64DD disk.<ref name="64DD: The Games" /><ref name="Cabbage at IGN" /> In 2006, Miyamoto concluded that "the conversations and design techniques that popped up when we were making Cabbage are, of course, connected to Nintendogs and other things that we're doing now."<ref name="Miyamoto Opens Vault" />

The concept of a personal avatar creator app which had begun with prototypes for the Famicom was solidified in Mario Artist: Talent Studio and then has been seen on all subsequent Nintendo consoles. Those Talent Studio avatars can be imported into select 64DD games including the SimCity 64 game. Nintendo designer Yamashita Takayuki credits his work on Talent Studio as having been foundational to his conception and development of the entire Mii component of the Wii platform a decade later.<ref name="Virtually Overlooked: Mario Artist" /><ref name="64DD at NWP" /><ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref><ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref><ref>Template:YouTube</ref> The game's concepts were reportedly specifically foundational to the characters in Wii Tennis.<ref name="Miyamoto Opens Vault" />

The concept of graphical stamps that are seen in various Miiverse-supported games is found in Mario Artist: Paint Studio<ref name="Mario Artist: Paint Studio (Import)" /> and Mario Paint.

The user-creation of graphics, animations, levels, and minigames which are in the Mario Artist series and F-Zero X Expansion Kit are revisited in later console generations. The idea of minigames was popularized generally during the Nintendo 64's fifth generation of video game consoles. Some early minigames can actually be created in Mario Artist: Polygon Studio in the style that would later be used in the WarioWare series of games.<ref name="64DD at NWP" /> Certain minigames directly originated there, as explained by Goro Abe of Nintendo R&D1's so-called Wario Ware All-Star Team: "In Polygon Studio you could create 3D models and animate them in the game, but there was also a side game included inside. In this game, you would have to play short games that came one after another. This is where the idea for Wario Ware came from."<ref>Template:Cite interview</ref>

In 2018, historian Chris Kohler said that as one of Nintendo's "oddest" products, the 64DD is "now a sought-after collectible and a unique piece of the company's long, long history of bold experimentation".<ref name="64DD Kotaku" />

See also

• Famicom Modem
• Famicom Disk System
• Sega CD – a similar peripheral for the Sega Genesis
• Satellaview

External links

• Template:Webarchive
• Template:Webarchive