ModRetro have been teasing us with the general shape and style of the M64 for a little while now, from an outline drawing to images of the shell itself in their latest video. Now, the M64 has been revealed to the world in full for the very first time, a modern take on the M64 that makes me feel like a kid at Christmas.
You know how powerful I find nostalgia - it's one of the reasons I love my job, and the fact that I get to reminisce about what life was like when I was a kid all the time is fantastic. I know for a fact that Palmer Luckey feels the same way about the N64 as I do as he mentioned it when he joined us on the Retro Dodo Podcast to talk about the Chromatic. For him and the ModRetro team, they want all of their devices to evoke that feeling of Christmas day when they were kids, of opening up exciting presents that captured the essence of the 90s.
When I look at the M64, I'm instantly taken back to the era of 'the toy', walking past my local Post Office and staring in at the colourful plastic boomboxes and clamshell toy sets. It takes me back to the colourful translucent shell variants of the N64, and of other gear at the time like the iMacs and the Game Boy Colours that all boasted colourful crystal casings.
The M64 Console
The M64 comes in three colourways - White, Purple, and Green. The basic shape of the console is very similar to the N64 itself, with the four controller ports on the front for wired controllers if you want to plug your original controllers into the console.
I love the fact that the casing is a mixture of opaque and transparent plastic. Looking down on the console gives you a great view of all of the internals that make the M64 run, including the AMD Artix 7 FPGA that makes all of the magic happen.
The most noticeable difference in the design is the inclusion of a chunky power button and a dial on the top of the console in the place where the Power switch and reset button would have been on the original. Don't forget that ModRetro aren't trying to replicate the N64; they're putting their own spin on it. Each console has a button and a dial, each in a different colour. On the Purple and the Green M64, the colour shift is more subtle (pink to purple, green to yellow), but on the White, it's a full colour white and red combo, which I think is my favourite.
The Power button does what it says on the tin. It's a chunky button that you can push down with all of the excitement that you used to feel when you pulled back the wrapping paper on a brand-new N64 game. I like the push-button nature of this as opposed to the slider, and it separates the M64 nicely from Analogue's offering.
On the opposite side is where you'll find the Menu dial with its notched top. I wouldn't be surprised if this had a little click to it when it's turned, giving it a tactile feeling and a sound like a kaleidoscope twisting when it moves. Maybe I'm just getting a little too nostalgic now, but then again, I reckon this is exactly the same thought process that the ModRetro team had when designing this thing.
The dial has 'Menu' above it, so this is going to be used to move through the FPGA settings on the device and for accessing ROM files uploaded via MicroSD card.
Keeping on cartridges for the minute, however, there's a new system for ejecting your cartridges on the M64 in the same vein as the SNES. Instead of pulling out your cartridges like on the original console, there's a ModRetro-branded eject button on the back of the console behind where the cartridge sits.
I like the fact that it's hidden at the back of the console, and it looks like it will be satisfying to push. Knowing Palmer, he will have made sure that this mechanism has a SNES-like 'thunk' sound to it.
The back of the console is where you'll find a small, streamlined panel for all of your cables to plug in. Power comes in the form of a USB-C cable, along with two other USB-C cables for charging. There's an HDMI cable for hooking up to your existing TV, and an SD Card Slot for any ROM files you might want to upload. This means I should be able to play ROM hacks like The Legend of Banjo-Kazooie: Jiggies of Time on my TV!
The M64 Controller
And now, onto the controller. Where Analogue have gone modern, ModRetro have stayed true to the original design and feel of the N64 remote. Honestly, I wouldn't have expected anything else as Palmer wants us to feel that same feeling when we open up the M64 as we did when we opened up the original console all those years ago.
Knowing ModRetro, I would imagine that this controller will have a Hall-effect Joystick and enhanced rumble features as standard. It's also wireless, meaning I can kick back on the sofa and play games with my feet up, something I could never do back in the day.
Again, there's something about opaque plastic controllers that takes me straight back to the late '90s/early '00s. It's always made me feel like a mad scientist tech wizard - somehow seeing the internals of a controller made me think I could play better.
The buttons are all the same colours as the original N64 remote, and I love seeing the yellow C-buttons in the spotlight once more. The D-Pad has a nice depression around it, giving your thumb enough room to get some nice purchase, and while I can't see much of the Z button, it looks like it could be more of a rectangle than the original button, which would be easier to press with your trigger finger. I'm looking forward to getting this in my hands and testing it out!
Credit: ModRetro
So there you have it! What do you think to the look of the M64? Are you enjoying its toy-like charm as much as I am, or is it a little too 'childlike'? Let us know in the comments below.
Don't forget that the M64 will cost $199.99, and more information can be found on the ModRetro website!
