N64 Games Make Their Way To Bitcoin!

By Vince • February 21, 2024 11:53 pm • Comments

Thanks to a new Bitcoin ordinal inscription, members of the crypto community can now play their favorite N64 games on the Bitcoin network.

The team at Ninjalerts has successfully created a Nintendo 64 emulator that runs on the Bitcoin network and can be accessed from any web browser, as long as users have the needed files.

Spokespeople for the project have even said that they have big plans to usher in 4-player compatibility on Bitcoin. Start-up investor and Ninjalerts team member Trevor explained:

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“I’m happy to share that Pizza Ninjas just inscribed a Nintendo 64 emulator on Bitcoin! We didn’t think this would be practical initially, but thanks to the new Brotli Compression on Ordinals. Inscribing a larger system like N64 and its games is more realistically feasible than before.

Brotli Compression allows for file size reductions around 80%. Take, for example, the iconic Goldeneye 64. It’s 12.4 MB uncompressed, but with Brotli we can get it down to 3.15 MB! This is enough to fit it inside 1 Bitcoin block (4 MB) or split across 8 transactions under 400 kb

And with network fees now the lowest we’ve seen since the start of Ordinals. Inscribing this at the current 15 sats/vbyte would only cost $6,000. Totally reasonable for a community of gamers with a vested interest in seeing these classic games preserved forever.

With the mempool at 100 sats/vbyte, the cost only goes up to $40,000. While much more expensive as network fees go up, Brotli still makes it somewhat in range of being feasible if there’s enough demand.

(Please note we did not inscribe Goldeneye 64 or any games that are currently under copyright. Please see the “Not Legal Advice” section of our gitbook for a more detailed explanation of the legalities around ROMs and gaming emulators.)

We also inscribed N64 because it’s the only early non-DRM console with 4-player multiplayer! This means we can build a way to use WebRTC to allow four people on the same Wifi network to play multiplayer online together in a way that will work forever.

Just imagine the fun at upcoming Bitcoin conferences. Now, it will take us some time to make the UI and have this playable within the Pizza Ninja PFPs, as well as have the multiplayer functionality we just mentioned

We wanted to take the opportunity while the mempool fees were low to get the biggest chunk of the files inscribed as we expect fees to go crazy after the halving.”

Decrypt had more on the story:

Digital Rights Management (DRM) refers to technology that controls access to digital content, preventing unauthorized copying and distribution.

After news of the SNES project came out, Owens said, he was approached by individuals who referenced the Dolphin Emulator that was removed from Steam over legal concerns.

Hells Messenger had more information: “This project, inscribed on Ordinal Inscription 61,648,429, allows users with compatible game files to play N64 games in their browsers.

Thanks to the integration of the Brotli compression algorithm, file sizes are reduced by approximately 80%, making it feasible to inscribe N64 games on the blockchain.

This latest project cost Pizza Ninjas $25,000 and showcases the potential of preserving classic games on the Bitcoin network. However, the focus is unlikely to shift to newer consoles like PlayStation 1 due to legal concerns surrounding DRM.”

Crypto Slate featured this article on a previous emulator project from the same team:

Bitcoin developers at Ninjalerts have successfully inscribed the Super Nintendo Entertainment System (SNES) emulator on a Bitcoin satoshi, marking a significant advancement in the capabilities of Bitcoin Ordinals.

The project was spearheaded by the team at Ninjalerts and aims to redefine the intersection of art, gaming, and blockchain technology in the form of NFTs — essentially pushing the boundary beyond static images to something more intractable.

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