23 Year Old Genius invents a way to play N64 over HDMI – To go on sale Q1 2014

A 23 Year Old Genius has invented an FPGA Ciruit Board ( A converter chip) that allows the N64 to run over HDMI. This will go on sale very soon. The N64 is still alive and kicking.

[codelyoko]

Time to dust off that N64 and Ocarina of Time.

[xYLeinen]

A classic to be sure, and one of my favorite games of all time..

[codelyoko]

All that time i spent running after chickens and milk lol.... good memories. I might actually buy this thing, but i have a giant CRT which works just fine. :P

[PoSTedUP]

dust? mine never gets dusty i still play it!! hah.

Goldeneye & 1080 snowboarding in 1080p, SOLD.

[Dasteru]

It is just a converter, not an upscaler or filter, so it will not be 1080p. At best it will bring the PQ of LCDs to the level of a CRT.

[blackbeld]

Hmmm.

It's to good to be true. You guys buy it first and let me know if it's worth. I will buy after you. :)

[Tempest317]

PoSTedUP
This wont increase anything to 1080p...all games will still run at whatever res they were developed for. All this will do is drastically increase the picture quality over Vga/svideo, not to mention it will allow you to connect to modern day lcd tvs/monitors. Everything will still run at 480i (or w/e the res is)

[badz149]

Seriously, aside from the ability to actually use the N64 itself, what is the benefit of this? I already have been playing N64 games over HDMI for years. It's called the emulators on PC!

[doolin_dalton]

Someone did this with a Sega Genesis too:

http://www.sega-16.com/foru...

EDIT - oops, didn't see the post below about the same thing

[Kidmyst]

Sadly I'd rather have this than the WiiU.

[3-4-5]

Still have my N64 and a Non-flat screen non-HD to play it on, but this is really awesome.

This is what happens when people are allowed to have freedom to create.

[FanboyKilla]

That dude is f***ing awesome.

[JsonHenry]

Run it on your PC with am emulator at a higher rez. That way you don't have to spend a dime and you can save/resume whenever you want even if the game never intended you to be able to do so.

[andrewsqual]

Shame its a but useless to every single EU owner though where the games all outputted at awful 50hz and with added borders on every single one.

[ForgottenProphecy]

Didn't ReviewTechUSA do this with a Sega Genesis?

[ape007]

yep

[Yodagamer]

Yeah, he plans on doing it with a snes soon as well.

[Retroman]

that is KRAZY cool now to play CONTRA SNES r-type,gradius now.

oh' by the way this kid will get millions!!!!

[k3rn3ll]

Yea it looks pretty good too. Plus they are actually sodering the converters onto the board of the console itself. That way there isn't anything hanging on the console on the outide and it can run on the power supply of the genesis itself

[ForgottenProphecy]

That's really dope. I wonder if the same can be done with any older console that doesn't support HDMI such as PS1 or even PS2. I would assume so.

[k3rn3ll]

Where there's a will there's a way when it comes to most tech

[generalthadeape]

Yeah, I know that Rich from ReviewTechUSA was working on converting old systems to HDMI.

Although I doubt he has a patent on the process, I'm sure he's gong to be more than a little pissed hearing this news.

[Baccra17]

It's great cause you can play split screen golden eye and perfect dark but, resolution wise, can't you get better results emulating with your computer?

[TheOrder1886]

You don´t get it. People want to play on the original console.

[Summons75]

Yupp, much better feel than an emulator and you don't have to resort to theft to play. Tons of small shops have new and olddr games for sale and for decent prices too. Unlike GameStop who only sells the newest stuff and ignores the want for the old

[GordonKnight]

Yes, but the other part of the fun is playing on tube tv. I've had my N64 on my HD tv and it looked really bad. So, I put back on my tube tv.

How big of difference will it make?

[codelyoko]

Bingo.

[sinspirit]

@TheOrder1886

You don't get it. He isn't saying what people want to play on. He is asking about the resolution, since this article is about HDMI.

Which, yes the resolution would be substantially better on an emulator.

[Geobros]

wow!!!!!!!!!! I have to buy that...

[maniacmayhem]

Mario Kart 64 and Perfect Dark here I come

[coolbeans]

I was thinking Diddy Kong Racing and Goldeneye 007. :P

[maniacmayhem]

I love Golden Eye but I preferred Perfect Dark because it had better weapons and maps. Plus the original had all the maps and weapons from Golden Eye.

Diddy Kong Racing is another game that was awesome and yea would love to play that too.

I wish Mario Kart would take tracks from that game and put them in the Retro Races.

[OtakuDJK1NG-Rory]

@maniacmayhem
That because it came after Goldeneye 007. Rare then had enough experiences with FPS to improve.

[coolbeans]

@maniac

"I love Golden Eye but I preferred Perfect Dark because it had better weapons and maps. Plus the original had all the maps and weapons from Golden Eye."

After finally getting a chance to play Perfect Dark on XBLA, I can't blame 'ya there. Just a flat-out cool selection of modes, guns, and maps there. Quite an ambitious game for its time.

[UnholyLight]

Don't forget Smash Bros and your list is PERFECTION!!!

[andrewer]

Awesome but weird...how will the games adapt to such a high resolution output?

[lashes2ashes]

They won't. The resolution won't change as stated in the article.

[TheUberAsian]

Q1 2014? And we still haven't seen a release date or pricing yet...

[Pancit_Canton]

He probably never heard of an EMULATOR. He's not a genius, he's more like a scammer for suckers.

[elninels]

He's someone that has found a legal way to people to continue player their n64 without a crt tv. I have never know anyone that owns every game on every console that they play using emulators. Its not a scam, it is a product.

[Qrphe]

Emulators are perfectly legal

[PoSTedUP]

playing n64 in HD on a tiny monitor vs playing HD on a big screen TV with the N64 controller... yeah no. popping the Goldeneye cartridge in an N64 and flipping "the switch"; an experience unparalleled to a gamer. F yo couch (or should i say: cramped up computer desk, hehe).

[sinspirit]

Tiny monitor? Computers can plug into a TV. Actually, there are adapters for controller and cartridges for PC.

Not saying it's a better experience. But your points are one-sided.

[PoSTedUP]

can, but not many do because the ratio being off and it not looking as good as on a monitor optimized for a PC. i think there are things you can do to make it look a little better, but, yeah im just saying to him in a mean way: dont be so blatantly cynical, people would want this and buy it, its a great idea for ganers who still play their old consoles and who still buy games for it; not vet them for free, cheap skate.

[il-JumperMT]

My PC is hooked up to my 42" TV. I'm posting this using the "tiny" monitor!

[Qrphe]

I played Spyro at 1600x1200 on my TV two summers ago, your point is moot

[Fireseed]

I NEED this for the Dreamcast!!!!

[nevin1]

I still have an old school TV and I don't see a big problem playing PS1/N64/PS2 on HDTV. Games looked fine to me.

[PoSTedUP]

i play older consoles on an oldschool TV because it looks better. my hdtv makes it look choppy and pixelated, thats why they have the "smoothing" feature for older PS games on the older 80gig ps3, the games dont look right and even with the smoohthing feature they dont look as good on an SD.

[rustyspoon80]

It'd be good if someone could come up with a universal adapter for all consoles. RF to HDMI or something.

[InTheLab]

They have those. I actually bought one a while back. The only problem is that it does not upscale like I believe this device does.

Another issue with this device is that it's not plug and play so you have to actually solder it into the console or buy an N64 from the game who made it....

[TheRedButterfly]

DUST CLOTH HERE I COME!! I've been longing for a way to play Hexen and Conker's Bad Fur Day on my 50" LED. This is gonna be great!

[Demarco156]

And that going to be call... THE EMULATOR!!!

[GentlemenRUs]

http://www.amazon.com/ViewH...

Something like that?

[isarai]

it does not do HDMI out though, its only for AV out

[Activemessiah]

lol I can imagine Nintendo confused at some point asking why are people buying N64s?? XD

[dillhole]

He'll make Nintendo angry. Their entire business model these days is based on selling games you already own, but with improved visuals.

[Ipunchbabiesforfun]

The article states it'll be the same resolution so this is fairly useless. You're better off finding a CRT at goodwill.

[Retroman]

@ GentlemenRUS

I use that for VCR to HD tv

[isarai]

Now if they can just do the same for gamecube, trying to get a RGB cable is impossible these days

[MadSientist89]

Goldeneye.. ahh the memories.. I didn't understand english at the time but I knew what the game was about.. just kill people :D

[mochachino]

Sorry to disappoint but it won't make N64 game magically 1080p, they'll be the same. It's useless unless your TV doesn't support to old format.

[isarai]

it vastly improves visual quality though,

[GinkgoID]

People think that they want this because they feel nostalgic. But in reality games today are far better (we have come a long way) and I believe N64 games will get boring very quickly after the initial nostalgic induced excitement wears off. I know I will get disagrees. Oh well.

[isarai]

LOL nostalgia only goes so far, an old game doesn't mean a bad game, there are plenty of great games that i often go back and play and still fully enjoy like OoT, Fighting Force, Mario 64, Bajo Kazooee, etc

[Ipunchbabiesforfun]

Ah mario 64 :) I loved sliding everywhere on the snow levels, the races inside that little hut were a blast. Penguin races

[GinkgoID]

Understand. I was not suggesting that old game = bad game, or that they had zero re-playability.

What I was suggesting was that game play/mechanics, visuals, world sizes, AI, physics, etc etc have all moved ahead in leaps and bounds, creating much more immersive experiences. That today's "good games" offer a lot more than yesteryear's "good games".

It must be said that today's "bad games" would offer a lot less than yesteryear's "good games". A bad game is still a bad game, and a good game a good game.

But if like me your playing time is limited, then I would much prefer to be playing modern games with their much richer worlds.

[BillytheBarbarian]

Smackdown/wwe2k suck compared to Wwf No Mercy. I still play it when I feel the need for some wrastlin' 😁

[Psygnosis333]

I recently played Valkyrie Profile-(i read about that game on rpg forum,never owned that game before and Persona2(ps1 games)on emulator..spent more then 50h on these games and damn they are fun and have deep gameplay
'games today are far better'....maybe for some type of games some are very downgraded only graphics impruve
i will continiosly play Resident Evil 4 over and over again..not becouse graphics..sorry for my bed English :)

[TheFirstClassic]

Far better? They're a lot different I'll give you that, but whether its better comes down to opinion. Games today have an emphasis on cutscenes and cinematics, both in the gameplay and cutscenes, that you don't see in older games. But there were many good aspects of gaming that were lost over the years for the visual experiences we get today. I honestly can't find games today that match up to mario 64, banjo kazooie, conker's bad fur day, majora's mask, star fox 64, and so on and so forth. Even games like goldeneye have reasons to go back to them, the free form level design isn't something you see much in shooters these days, also enemies in shooters today tend to be bullet sponges, I always felt like the way enemies in goldeneye would react to your bullets made the gameplay a lot more satisfying.

Over the past couple of years I've been going and playing older games that I never got around to playing back in the day, and while some haven't aged well, others have become some of my all time favorites, like majora's mask and the original metal gear solid.

[CoLD FiRE]

You sir get it.

[Imalwaysright]

Played The Revenge of the Shinobi for the 50th time a week ago! Couldn't disagree more with you...

[GinkgoID]

Must just be a personality thing then.

Hard to imagine a worse way for me to spend my gaming time, than playing the same game 50 times when there are so many other good games out there to discover.

[Imalwaysright]

Oh but I play new games too. The sad part is that they're not half as challenging and most of them do not focus on gameplay like the classics. I have to keep playing the oldies to remind me that once this industry offered games that were both equally fun and challenging.

[BillytheBarbarian]

Yeah man, I have to play the Streets of rage trilogy at least twice a year. Just plain and simple fun.

[InTheZoneAC]

just because it's connected via hdmi doesn't make it HD. The game has to be programmed with an HD resolution to even see this effect, so this is pointless...

[isarai]

when playing SD on an HDTV, trust me it makes a difference

[InTheZoneAC]

playing any older console on a hdtv looks better because the SDTVs are of lesser quality.

and that has nothing to do with what connection you used on a hdtv while using an older console because the game isn't seeing any benefit from 480p to 1080p or whatever your tv is set to.

[Eidolon]

No, playing analog sub-hd video looks pretty much like crap on an HDtv vs. SDtv.. especially a single channel composite analog signal for video..

This is not a 1080p solution he created, it's just for people whose HDtv's do not have analog connections, still low-res and still going to look like crap on the HDtv.

Luckily the T.V. I play on still does have these connections :), but it's like 3+ years old and 32Inch.. PS2/Gamecube look alright with component, much better than with composite, even with the game at the same resolution(480i), thanks to the separate channels.

[Eyesoftheraven]

About to be one rich 23 year old, if he isn't already.

[imuze]

Blast Corps!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[Flare149]

This already exists...you can buy it on Amazon:

http://www.amazon.com/dp/B0...

So he might not become that rich

[SirNintend0]

From the latest user review:

Horrible for retro gaming.
Don't buy this if you were planning on playing your old gaming systems. There's a second delay on any button you push making every game unplayable. I'm returning it right now.
Published 21 hours ago by IronBuddha

[zero_gamer]

This is fantastic. I don't want to rely on emulators that can produce hit and miss results just to play my favorite N64 games in HD.

Companies abandon their consoles eventually but hobbyist gamers and power users keep them alive and strong.

[USA007]

It is the hobbyist gamers and power users that made the emulators. It seems that it isn't hd btw, it just makes it function through hdmi

[Donnywho]

S video on an HD-TV looks really good. I've been playing Ocarina and then Majora's Mask for months now. N64 will never die, only the analog stick.

[LKHGFDSA]

pointless. you may aswell use a RCA-HDMI converter cable.

[Fox_Mamba]

First thing I said when I saw this, how can you invent something when its been done plus the amount of cost is about the same, here it is http://www.amazon.com/gp/pr...

[imt558]

N64 IS NOT DEAD!!!

[jcmeadows]

I already have all my classic consoles hooked up HDMI with this http://www.amazon.com/gp/aw... It works great.

[CoLD FiRE]

Genius invents something that has already existed for years. Unless he's selling this for $5 I don't see why anyone would bother since you could get better composite-to-HDMI converters that you can also use with other devices not just an N64. They start at $15.

[Necro_559]

Sorry but this doesnt make him a genius. Its not that hard t do with a little tech savy.

[2pacalypsenow]

If you can do that from scratch I'm sure it makes you a genius , cuz no one has done it before , next we'll be hearing how he works at google , good for him

[Tedakin]

Yeah but isn't this a 480 pictures stretched all the way to 1080? Won't that looks absolutely awful?

[numNuts]

N64 was a great console. Mario 64 and Zelda 64 were amazing games, then came Goldeneye. Good times.

[MultiConsoleGamer]

It's been done.

[2pacalypsenow]

Or get an emulator :-) for free

[OutcastMosquito]

Now all that is left is to make the perfect compatible controller with the N64 :] I can't be the only one who thinks the stick on the N64 controller is just painful to use, especially if it's worn to hell lol

[clouds5]

You guys know that n64 emulators exist for pretty much every device (pc to smartphone) that actually render the image in 1080p and produce hd looking graphics?

[ErryK]

Congrats, I guess? Give me a PS2 one and I'll buy it.

[PainUzumaki]

I wish you could play Mario Kart 64 Online

[xx4xx]

I love me some Goldeneye....but where's the love for Turok? Turok 1&2, for their time, we're kick-a$$.

[listerlink]

Better off getting a emulator and n64 controller converter and playing it on PC but Zelda ocarina of time is worth playing on actual n64 can't wait for hd

[danthegamerfiend]

Im 23 myself and i dont think i ever would know or how to make something like that. Nintendo should consider hiring this kid. One more talented added to mix never hurts.

[Segata]

N64 more 1080p Games than XBO confirmed

[Th3o]

There already is a way, Emulators.

Genius? Really...aren't we a little to generous with words?

[TABSF]

Its pretty cool, oh and its not VGA (D-Sub) its DVI in the pic :P

If you want to play N64 games at 1080p right now there's always Project64 :)

[DarkKaine]

I feel.. sad.
Any article about Nintendo's upcoming games and nobody bats an eye.
Talk about FULL HD on a more than decade old console and reach a temperature of 1050 on n4g.

[Milruka]

"full HD"

Actually it's the same resolution as the normal N64, it just lets you plug it into a HDMI TV.

Which you could do with a convertor box already.

[rataranian]

So you can play it thro hdmi, but not in hd. ....whats so cool about it again?

[rataranian]

Nintendo should just remake all the n64 games in hd. ON CONSOLE. Enough hand held ds shit.

[PurpHerbison]

It's either hooked up normally to an old tube tv, or played on an emulator if you want HD.

[JohnPombrio]

Cripes, a "genius". Take the video output and put it into the video input of the HDMI cable. Take the sound and put it onto the HDMI sound inputs. I am surprised a chip was even needed unless the sound was mono.