How do the 3DS and N64 Ocarina of Time releases compare in content?

Question

Does the 3DS version of Ocarina of Time have more or less content than the original Nintendo 64 version?

Asked by KatieK

Answer

Compared to the N64 original, a little over double. The reason for this being the inclusion of the Master Quest, which was not originally available on the N64 version. Although it was released later as part of a special promotion. The world is mirrored in the 3DS version of Master Quest, but everything else is the same as the previously released version.

The only content which is 100% new is the boss challenge mode.

Answered by Wipqozn

Check more discussion of this question.

What are the differences between Super Mario 64 (N64) and Super Mario 64 DS?

Question

What are the differences between Super Mario 64 for the Nintendo 64 and Super Mario 64 DS for the Nintendo DS? Are they just the same game or are there any significant differences?

Asked by alexanderpas

Answer

The DS version's main feature is a few extra playable characters with special abilities. The Wikipedia article covers most of the functional differences.

However, I would like to bring attention to the main difference in my head: the DS controls are horrible. Since the DS doesn't have an analog stick, you are forced to use either the DPad or the stylus. Both controls are clunkier and more annoying than their 64 counterparts.

I loved the 64 version and got every star in it, and really wanted to play it again with new characters. Unfortunately, the DS controls made me unable to stand playing the DS version for more than a few levels in. It would be nice if they would rereleased the rerelease on the Wii instead so I have some chance of ever completing it.

Answered by Mag Roader

Check more discussion of this question.

How do I get access to the cannon outside of the castle?

Question

There is a cannon just outside of the castle in Super Mario Word 64 but it's locked ! It is near the water, on the beach. Can I get access to it ? If so, how ?

Asked by Foxtrot

Answer

I believe you're talking about the cannon outside the castle in Super Mario 64 - this cannon will launch you up to a secret area, but only if you've got all 120 stars.

For getting all the stars and accessing this secret cannon:

Yoshi is up on top of the castle, and if you get up there, he'll hook you up with many extra lives :)

Answered by agent86

Check more discussion of this question.

Why did I get classified as 'Most honorable'?

Question

Yesterday, I was playing the wonderful Goldeneye, for the n64 with a few friends. We ended up playing a match, first to 10 kills.

I won the match by going 10 (kills) and 2 (deaths). At the end screen, it shows the watch with some stats about who killed who and two descriptive statements about how you played.

I ended up with 'Most Honorable' and 'Longest Innings'. Besides 'Longest innings', how are those descriptive statements determined? I thought I did pretty well...

Asked by Foxtrot

Answer

Honorable and Dishonorable are related to how often you shoot players in the back. They aren't a measure of how many kills or deaths you got.

Double Kill If you manage to kill two players at one time.

Triple Kill Self-explanatory--kill three at once.

Quadruple Kill Smooth move, you killed everybody.

AC-10 When you get all the body armor.

Most Deadly For the most kills, generally going to the best player.

Most Honorable Plays fair and doesn't shoot in the back much.

Most Professional No fooling around, mostly head shots, etc.

Marksmanship Award For being on the mark the best.

Longest Innings The one who stays alive the longest.

Most Cowardly When you run away and hide a lot.

Most Dishonorable Shooting people in the back.

Most Frantic Running all over the place in chaos.

Mostly Harmless Hardly kills anyone.

Where's The Armor? Didn't find any armor.

Where's The Ammo? Got hardly any ammo.

Shortest Innings The one who stays alive the shortest.

Lemming Award For the player with the most suicides.

source

Answered by Resorath

Check more discussion of this question.

Attaining 100% in SNES and N64 Mario Games

Question

In Mario games on the GameCube (eg Mario Sunshine or Paper Mario: The Thousand Year Door), it is possible to complete the game, beat the final boss, and attain 100% completion and save such that the load-game-screen shows 100% or 120 stars, etc. However for the same games on the SNES and N64 (ie, Super Mario World, Mario 64, and Paper Mario), I cannot figure out a way to attain 100% completion because after the final boss is beaten, the games hang on the final screen after the credits instead of returning to the title-screen/menu where the player can save post-final-boss.

Is this correct or is there a way to save a 100% game?

Asked by Synetech

Answer

Obtaining Completion Credit

For SMW and SM64, there is no way to save the game after beating the final boss, nor is it necessary. The game automatically credits the save file for the progress gained by beating the final boss.

I am unsure about Paper Mario, but I would imagine that it followed a similar mechanic of crediting you automatically.

Completion Qualification

Super Mario World

The indicator that you have beaten every level (both in their normal ways and via finding their secret exits) is indicated on the load screen with a star beside the number of levels you have beaten. You receive this star upon finding 96 different level exits/bosses:

Super Mario 64

100% completion is denoted by collecting 120 stars. This is actually shown on the load screen when you complete the game:

Paper Mario

I've never played the game. I'm having issues finding a definitive source of what qualifies as 'completion'.

Answered by Shaun

Check more discussion of this question.

Can I save/resume game in Starfox 64?

Question

I didn’t have a console growing up, but eventually bought a Nintendo 64 to enhance my childhood retroactively.

I just got Starfox 64, and have to admit I’m puzzled. I have beaten the first few planets / asteroid belt, but every time I turn on the game, I have to start over from the beginning!

What the heck? Is there no way to save a game after beating e.g. the asteroid belt and then pick it up a day later?

Note: I have a memory card, but don’t have a clue how to use it.

Asked by Alan H.

Answer

Nope you can't. http://forums.megagames.com/threads/saving-on-starfox-64.2177/

The game isn't very long you can beat it in one sitting if you wish

Answered by Samjus

Check more discussion of this question.

How much content does the 3DS version of Orcarina of Time have compared to the original N64 version?

Question

Does the 3DS version of Orcarina of Time have more or less content than the original Nintendo 64 version?

Answer

Compared to the N64 original, a little over double. The reason for this being the inclusion of the Master Quest, which was not originally available on the N64 version. Although it was released later as part of a special promotion. The world is mirrored in the 3DS version of Master Quest, but everything else is the same as the previously released version.

The only content which is 100% new is the boss challenge mode.

Check more discussion of this question.

Old Nintendo 64 game where you could control different animate beings

Question

When I was young I would sometimes go over to a house and play on an old Nintendo 64 while my grandmother would help them with stuff. There was one game in particular that was odd and strange to play. This is what I can remember:

• You could go up to sheep (and other living things I think) and 'control' them.
• When you weren't controling something, you were what looked like a computer chip and would receive damage over time

I can't remember the objective of the game. I just remember playing on some early levels (I think) and there possibly being a dog house of some kind.

It my head, this is probably the most obscure thing I could ever think about but I know I played it as odd as it sounds.

Thanks for the help!

Answer

Is it Space Station: Silicon Valley?

Check more discussion of this question.

How do I do a Barrel Roll?

Question

Ok, so I'm playing Starfox 64, and this so-called "Peppy" hare keeps yelling at me:

Do a barrel roll!

What's his problem? And what is this barrel roll he's talking about?

Answer

If you look at the screen, you will notice it'll give you a hint on how to perform the barrel roll in the text blurb.

You can perform a barrel roll by pressing Z or R twice

Here is a video showing the blurb and a successful barrel roll.

Check more discussion of this question.

How do you get up the endless stairs on Super Mario 64 for Nintendo 64?

Question

Do you need a certain amount of Stars or is there another way?

Answer

Once you have 70 stars, the staircase is no longer endless and you reach the door at the top.

Or the long jump trick to reach the top of the staircase without 70 stars is:

Do a long jump away from the stairs, then tilt the control stick up. Mario should still be doing long jumps and facing you, but at the same time going up the stairs instead of down. Press the jump button as fast as you can, and Mario will eventually make it up the stairs.

P.S.-- in the DS version the only way to do it, if even possible is to use a mod like action replay to have all the stars {in which case you will already have 70} so there is absolutely no way to do it becasue DS makes it impossible

(source)

Check more discussion of this question.

How are the many signals of a N64 or Wii joystick sent to the console by only 2 wires?

Question

I am curious as to how only 2 wires (perhaps 3 or 4) inside a N64 or Wii gamepad are able to send the many signals of the different inputs at once.

It used to be that for just one ON/OFF input, we needed two wires. So why does it not take dozens of wires for the many inputs on a modern gamepad?

Answer

So the Wii Joystick uses a Blue Tooth interface which is a little different than the N64 controller. As a result this answer deals more with the latter than the former.

---

The N64 controller uses a single transmission wire on which it encodes bits to send signals back to the N64 console. To accomplish this bits are encoded on that wire as follows:

This encoding can then be used to multiplex the connection and allow 32 bit communication. In the case of the N64 controller these bits are encoded thus:

0   A
1   B
2   Z
3   Start
4   Directional Up
5   Directional Down
6   Directional Left
7   Directional Right
8   unknown (always 0)
9   unknown (always 0)
10  L
11  R
12  C Up
13  C Down
14  C Left
15  C Right

With the remaining 16 bits being used for the Analog Joystick (providing 8 degrees of control).

More over, certain codes are transmitted for specialized function:

To Init: send 03 80 01 followed by 34 80's
To Start Rumble: 03 c0 1b followed by 32 01's
To Stop Rumble: 03 c0 1b followed by 32 00's

You can find more information in this vein here

Check more discussion of this question.

Why were the N64 analog sticks so inferior to those that came after?

Question

The Nintendo 64 controller's Control Stick seems to have paved the way for the analog sticks adopted by all major game consoles ever since. You can tell, too, because it really rather sucked compared to the others.

It wore out quickly, acquiring a large zone* where it could wiggle freely, usually within the stick's unresponsive dead zone, but occasionally exceeding it and causing undesired input. There was also that white residue that built up in the well it stuck out of, which I never could figure out whether was scrapings from the stick itself, or some kind of lubricant escaping to the surface of the mechanism.

It's obviously visibly different from most other analog sticks; the stick itself descended all the way down into the mechanism, while most others that came after had a small nub attached to a larger rotating sphere.

So if there's anyone out there familiar with controller design, tell me: What was it, mechanically speaking, that Nintendo didn't do quite right the first time? What all goes on down there inside analog sticks?

---

* EDIT: I originally conflated the dead zone, where the stick doesn't respond to movement, with the "wiggle zone", where the stick moved freely after wear and tear. I've now fixed it above.

Answer

The N64 analog stick is extremely unusual. It does not use potentiometers, as most other platforms (i.e. playstation controller), but instead used a geared-up digital incremental rotary encoders.

^{This is also why you have to have the control stick centered when the system turns on. Since the stick mechanism has no concept of "centered", the N64 assumes that whatever position the control stick is in when the system is turned on is "center".}

As the gearing wore down, the play of the controller progressively increased.

Wikipedia:

The N64 Analog stick does not use analog potentiometers. It uses light emitting diodes and photo detectors controlled by sensor wheels. The sensor wheels are plastic hubs which produce a shutter effect allowing for an accurate direct digital read. The sensor wheels give direct correlation to the stick position compared to potentiometers which can change resistance values over time. However gameplay function of the stick itself is not on or off digital, but analog in a sense, the more the stick is pushed the faster a game character would walk to run.

The analog stick was prone to some long-term reliability issues. If used excessively, the stick became "loose", which means it will not fully return to center position, which may render gameplay more difficult by giving unintended, non-user input to the system. This loosening can be caused by rotating it intensively - a common practice in games like Mario Party where it offers an advantage for some mini-games.

Check more discussion of this question.

What's wrong with the G-Diffuser?

Question

So I was playing Starfox 64 the other day, and I noticed something disturbing. No matter what course of action I take, if this blue bird guy gets shot too much in the first stage, he tells me that something has happened to his G-Diffuser, and he has to break off.

Hmmmmm...

---

What does this so-called G-Diffuser do? If it's such a critical component of the Arwing that even slight damage renders the vehicle inoperable, why wasn't I made aware of it before? Isn't that a liability that the commander of the team should probably know about? And why does this bird guy's break so often in this stage, and yet I've never had a problem with mine, and neither has anyone else in my team, even under heavy fire? And why can't that annoying little frog do anything about it? Is this so-called "G-Diffuser" merely a ruse created by the bird to get his own skin out of a fight?

This has been bothering me for a while now. There's something fishy going on, I think.

Answer

The Gravity Diffusion system, or G-Diffusion, is an experimental power system used in starfighters that reduces gravity forces on the pilot and provides a respectable power source for shields and propulsion.

The G-Diffuser system was created by John Tanaka, from the Galactic Federation and F-Zero game. However, due to the temperamental nature of the G-Diffuser, these systems need to be carefully checked and maintained; while easy to fix in flight, they can consume a pilots' full attention, something that kills pilots in a dogfight.

The G-Diffuser is primarily found on both the Star Fox Team's Arwings and the Star Wolf Team's Wolfen.

Source

If his G-Diffuser is broken, not only is he taking all those G's straight to the face, but he's running on low power. So obviously, he's smart to break off from the group.

Check more discussion of this question.

Who wrote this incredible theme-song?

Question

If anyone here remembers a game for the Nintendo 64 by the name of "Buck Bumble" you will remember how awesome the theme song that played at the main menu was. Can anybody tell me who wrote this song? I would really like to know.

If you haven't heard the Buck Bumble Theme yet, you should. Here is a link.

Answer

JUSTIN SCHARVONA

Check more discussion of this question.