Analogue 3D is a modern N64 remake that plays original carts in 4K

[Shawn Knight]

What just happened? Exactly one year ago to the day, Analogue teased a modern remake of the iconic Nintendo 64 home gaming system. Today, the classic console maker opened the flood gates, and there's a lot for retro gaming enthusiasts to be excited about.

The Analogue 3D is engineered entirely in FPGA, meaning there is no emulation. Instead, you get a faithful reproduction that is compatible with every N64 game ever made… and it can play most of them in glorious 4K resolution. Analogue said it spent four years developing the platform on a 220k LE Altera Cyclone 10GX, the most powerful FPGA they have ever used.

The svelte system, offered in black or white, features four original-style controller ports for true local multiplayer. It accepts original Nintendo 64 game cartridges, is region free, and fully compatible with original accessories including the Expansion Pak.

Analogue said it worked hard to meticulously reproduce the unmistakable essence of the CRT to capture the warmth, depth, and texture of every frame. Unfortunately, the company did not share any media showcasing this retro mode so we'll have to take them at word for now.

The hardware maker worked closely with the crew over at 8BitDo on a brand new controller for the system. The wireless pad features a Hall Effect joystick that uses the original-style N64 gate, and most of the action buttons retain their original size, sub-layouts, and feel. Personally, I would opt for a wired original but if you want wireless, this looks like a solid option at $39.99.

Related reading: Remembering the last great cartridge-based console

The Analogue 3D goes up for pre-order on October 21 at 8 pm Pacific, and will set you back $249.99. Consoles from the company usually go fast so if you want one, you'd better act quickly. I would recommend setting an alarm and getting your payment details ready to go in advance.

The first wave of units are expected to ship out in Q1 2025, we are told.

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Analogue 3D is a modern N64 remake that plays original carts in 4K

 

[GodisanAtheist]

This is really cool, but after breaking out my old dusty N64 and actually trying to play a lot of the games on it I realized that nostalgia was really doing a lot of heavy lifting for my desire to play those games.

 

[J spot]

This is really cool, but after breaking out my old dusty N64 and actually trying to play a lot of the games on it I realized that nostalgia was really doing a lot of heavy lifting for my desire to play those games.

Did you play it on a modern television or on a CRT?

 

[CrisisDog]

This is really cool, but after breaking out my old dusty N64 and actually trying to play a lot of the games on it I realized that nostalgia was really doing a lot of heavy lifting for my desire to play those games.

I agree with this statement, but may pick one up anyways. Me and the ex had fun with Diddy Kong Racing, and I’m a sucker for any Wipeout(64) release.

 

[GodisanAtheist]

Did you play it on a modern television or on a CRT?

- 32" CRT (someone was giving it away on the side of the road, brought it home specifically to plug in my old SNES and N64).

I mean that 1st gen 3D (not counting stuff like Star Fox) is a special kind of ugly, and frankly the art of making games has really come a LONG way, even just in terms of gameplay and QOL features.

 

[Antias]

Wizard of Wor with my kids was the default choice for us when they were 5 and 6

 

[Scshadow]

I know most people looking at tech news automatically read 4k in these situations as upscaled 4k, but it still annoys me. It's not native 4k, and it certainly isn't "glorious". It's just not as bad as it could be.

 

[ferrellsl]

I wonder if it supports the EverDrive64? If so, I'd be interested as most of my cartridges are in storage and having cartridges strewn all over my living room floor doesn't appeal to me.

 

[ZackL04]

I wonder if it supports the EverDrive64? If so, I'd be interested as most of my cartridges are in storage and having cartridges strewn all over my living room floor doesn't appeal to me.

It will certainly support the everdrive if it plays all carts

 

[Kotters]

I wonder if it supports the EverDrive64? If so, I'd be interested as most of my cartridges are in storage and having cartridges strewn all over my living room floor doesn't appeal to me.

Carts like this have been detected and blocked on similar systems in the past, though I cannot recall what Analogue's track record is on this.

 

[UsernameMAYNE]

4 years?? OK so 3 years of actually trying and than the last year, Nintendo GIGALEAK and magic, it's ready

 

[JohnRambo4]

How is there quote 'no emulation' though?

 

[lonetac]

Carts like this have been detected and blocked on similar systems in the past, though I cannot recall what Analogue's track record is on this.

I have every analogue system out there. Everdrive works on all of them.

 

[Kotters]

How is there quote 'no emulation' though?

Marketing. There's no traditional software emulation. The system is implemented in a hardware design language, which is compiled into a configuration that is flashed to the FPGA. The hardware in the FPGA then behaves as defined in the HDL, and so they've basically designed N64 hardware in software. It's kind of a weird middle ground, using software to define and configure actual physical hardware.

 

[Xelions]

Wizard of Wor with my kids was the default choice for us when they were 5 and 6

Bah.. Bah.. Bah... Bahhhhhhhh! Omfg memories

 

[ZedRM]

This is really cool, but after breaking out my old dusty N64 and actually trying to play a lot of the games on it I realized that nostalgia was really doing a lot of heavy lifting for my desire to play those games.

Sadly, this is a part of progressing through life...

 

[J spot]

- 32" CRT (someone was giving it away on the side of the road, brought it home specifically to plug in my old SNES and N64).

I mean that 1st gen 3D (not counting stuff like Star Fox) is a special kind of ugly, and frankly the art of making games has really come a LONG way, even just in terms of gameplay and QOL features.

I remember that anything above 20" looked kind of bad to me, when it came to CRTs. What kind of cable did you use? I've always used the Yellow, Red, White cables, and then one day, around 2006 I connected my Game Cube through S-Video, and I was blown away by how much better the image looked. I didn't know there was a better option. Too bad it was short lived, because I got an HDTV the next year, and done with CRTs.

 

[Xelions]

I still can't re-map my head to get used to the n64 controller again. I tried with the switch and goldeneye, it took some effort and time and I'm still nowhere near as good as I used to be smashing that game.