Tons of N64 questions

[theaveng]

(1) What is the bus interface under the controller for?

(2) What is the bus interface under the console for?

(3) What are the N64 memory cards for? I thought saves were stored on the cart?

(4) Someone suggested leaving the plastic guard off the RAM expansion or else it might overheat. Is that true?

(5) How do I remove the RAM expansion? I can't figure it out.

(6) My analog stick is "sticky" like someone poured molasses into it and returns to center very slowly. How do I fix that?

(7) Which games *require* RAM expansion to operate? Zelda: Masks of Majora is one. Any others?

Thanks!

[The Brown Eye]

1 - Rumble Pak or Controller Pak.
2 - 64dd, only sold in Japan.
3 - You can save extra games on them, more than on one cart.
4 - Don't worry about it. I've never heard of a problem with it.
5 - You need the tool that came with it to pop it out.
6 - Take a toothbrush (preferably someone else's), dip in warm water, scrub well, let dry for five mins.
7 - Perfect Dark, DK 64 require it. Rogue Squadron and some of the later Turoks use it too.

Hope this helps.

[wberdan]

5 - you dont need a special tool.. just a quarter, or a flathead screwdriver or something.. me and pog got that sucker outta there in like 2 seconds.

7- tony hawks pro skater 3 does not require it, but it does take advantage of it

[theaveng]

One more thing: How do I know the black plastic thing is actually RAM expansion? It doesn't have the Red Top pictured on Nintendo's website.

[asharru]

if it's a black plastic thing, it's probably not the expansion. that's what they put in there untill you replace it with the pack. both expansions I own have a red top on them.

[nesman85]

yea, its just the jumper pak

[Captain Wrong]

Not all games save on the cart. THPS 2 for instance, as well as the sports games (Madden, etc.)

[GENESISNES]

A lot of games dont use the RAM expansion, but take advantage of it so the games look a helluva lot better.
Resident Evil 2 for instance.

[theaveng]

What's a "jumper pak"?

[digitalpress]

The jumper pak is just that placeholder that's stuck in the slot where your expansion pak goes. It doesn't do anything but wait for you to replace it with the expansion pak which is in my opinion one of the cheapest tricks Nintendo ever pulled.

It's like me selling you a car and putting a plastic frame for a body in place of the real one. Sure, it runs fine, but it doesn't look as good as it's supposed to.

[YoshiM]

The jumper pack is what Nintendo shoved in there when the deck was shipped. I believe the N64 requires something to be plugged into that slot, if memory serves or the deck won't work.

[theaveng]

I wish cars were made out of plastic. Then they wouldn't rust.





7 - Perfect Dark, DK 64 require it.

Perfect doesn't actually require a RAM expansion, it just opens extra levels... but anyway, we have:

Perfect Dark
Donkey Kong 64
Zelda: Masks of Majora
That's it? Only 3 games require the RAM? The idea is starting to look like a rip-off. What happens when you try a game like Zelda without the extra RAM? Does it requrest a RAM installation?

[theaveng]

NEW TOPIC:

I'm going to give my N64 to my 3-year-old nephew. What are some good games for him to play?

[Kid Ice]

I don't think you can play the one-player mode of PD without the RAM expansion. I believe only 1 on 1 deathmatch will work without it. It's basically like having 1/10 of the game.

Two other good games that are greatly enhanced by the RAM are Turok 2 and Quake 2. Quake 2 is a game I'd recommend to anyone who hasn't tried it; once you configure the controls it's awesome.

3 year olds will play pretty much anything. You can put the controller in his hands during a demo screen.

I think someone is selling N64 games in B&S for a reasonable price.

the kid

[theaveng]

Paper Dark 64's graphics are really incredible. The 640x400xMillions of colors resolution rivals the PS2.

[Charlesaway]

Star Wars: Pod Racer also makes use of the Expansion Pak should it be present, for enhanced textures. (Prettier colors.)

[scooterb23]

The South Park game was one of the first (if not the first) to use the expansion pack, it looked wretched without it. It's too bad the game was so horrible.

[YoshiM]

Scooter, wasn't Star Wars: Rogue Squandron the first to use it?

[theaveng]

Key word: REQUIRE I already have a list of all the games which use the RAM Expansion (http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/tg/feature/-/45471/102-6501482-7871339),
but I was wondering which games REQUIRE the RAM to operate.

So far we have:
Perfect Dark
Donkey Kong 64
Zelda: Masks of Majora

Any others?

Troy

=====
PAPER MARIO SALE
http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=1769774893

[consoledatabase]

Games that require the Expansion Pak are marked with "Expansion Pak Required" on the box, so you'll know which games require the expansion pak when you buy those games.
Games that can use it but it is not required are marked with "Expansion Pak Enhanced".

As for the Nintendo 64 Controller Pak (RAM cart) -- it was often required in games in order to save them. The beauty of cartridges is that they can include battery back-up to save games. But sometimes, they just got greedy and expected you to buy a Controller Pak instead to save your game.

As for your 3-year-old nephew - I'd recommend some Mario games like Super Mario 64, Mario Kart 64, etc. Snowboard Kids is a good game too (it's the same idea Mario Kart 64, but you're on skis) and any Pokémon or Disney games would also appeal.