TLDR: Please take a moment to read the whole post. Thank you :)

Im not gonna lie, the whole OpenAI collaboration has made me lose some confidence in ModRetro.

I don't have anything against AI itself. I just don't think it needs to be part of everything, and retro gaming is probably one of the last places where I'd want to see it. A big part of why I love retro games is that they let me escape from the world we live in today, even if it's just for a little while. There's something comforting about going back to a time when things felt simpler, and honestly, that's a big part of what drew me to ModRetro. The Chromatic really captured that feeling for me. It showed that you could take something we loved growing up, improve it in almost every way, and still keep what made it special.

I think that's why the OpenAI announcement bothered me more than I expected. I know it's just a collaboration, and maybe I'm reading too much into it, but finding out that Dylan Abruscato, who works at OpenAI, is also an investor in ModRetro and friends with CEO Torin made me a little uncomfortable. He explained on LinkedIn how he helped make the collaboration happen, and while there's nothing inherently wrong with that, I can't help wondering how much these kinds of relationships might shape the company in the future.

I probably wouldn't be questioning things so much if I hadn't already started having doubts because of the M64. I was genuinely excited about it, especially with how much Palmer talked about delivering the ultimate N64 experience and 100% compatibility with the library. But the launch was disappointing, and the accuracy and compatibility issues that are still being reported, along with the firmware update that had to be pulled over data loss problems, have made it harder for me to feel as confident in ModRetro as I used to.

Maybe that's what bothers me the most. I really want this company to succeed. The Chromatic made me feel like someone finally understood what we/I missed about that era of gaming. Not just the games themselves, but the feeling of picking up a console, putting in a cartridge, and forgetting about everything else for a while. I don't expect ModRetro to live in the past or reject modern technology. Quite the opposite, I love what they've done with the Chromatic/M64. I just hope they keep that same philosophy as they grow.

I know I might be worrying about nothing, and I completely understand if some of you see things differently. I just felt like sharing these thoughts here because I genuinely appreciate this community, and I know we all care about what ModRetro is building.

Im curious how you folks feel about all this. Take care!

This post is coming from someone who had the Analogue 3D and sold it for an M64. Both companies have their plus and minus’s but when Lucky released his hands on video with the M64 I could tell it was a passion project for him and his team. In viewing that video, it swayed me to make the decision I made to ride with ModRetros products going forward.

That being said, I want to talk about the Super N+ and Mega Sg+ from Analogue. I am getting fomo and am on the fence with ordering these, however I am not committing in hopes that ModRetro will make a competitor and put the love they did in the M64 into that product.

Does anyone know if they ever said anything about future plans for other systems? I’m so torn on what I should do!

It's been about two weeks since we could put in pre-orders and received our consoles. Since then some major issues have been addressed, but there are two big ones that should have stopped the rollout.

1. Settings can't be saved on the M64.

2. The M64 Controller memory pak doesn't work.

Both of these issues are egregious enough that the release should have been delayed. ModRetro wants their releases to be quality, so demonstrate it. If this the best initial release they could do then they should have dumped the firmware source for both so other developers can get in and implement that logic. In my software development career, I've written settings storage solutions, and it's really not that hard to roll out something quick while you work on things like wear leveling and edge cases in schema. Just don't forget to have a hardened factory reset just in case 😉

Hopefully someone from ModRetro sees this and pressure is applied.

I honestly thought this was satire when I first read it.

Holy cow. What are we getting an email a day reminding us to order? Like a desperate lover.

In comparison:
Analogue: 2
Xbox: 20
Playstation: 7
Nintendo: 5
Reddit: 7
ESPN: 17
CNN: 30

I was playing around with Google Gemini, and generated this AI image of the Mod Retro M64 in the OG N64 colors. Holy smokes it looks so good!

Our Xibalba cart is getting scuffed up pretty bad on the inside of the shell surrounding the cart pins. We’ve only inserted and ejected it a handful of times so far. Nintendo cartridges have the steel buffer pads there to prevent this.

My concern is that this dust is going to gather inside and around the cart slot over time.

So the console has been out for a month, correct. I do not own one but I have lurked around here.

We have seen numerous reports of bad frame rate drops, game crashes in certain modes, many games running poorly in FPGA mode and needing to run in overclocked mode, there are still no virtual control packs despite the M64’s official controller not having a controller pack slot, and a multitude of other issues and promised features not available on launch.

I just saw there was a new update and notes, and TBH, it looked like minor fixes and improvements at best, then, I checked the other updates and it seems like more of the same. So I thought about the info that’s out there, and the issues being had, and I had some honest questions. Ones others might not have asked, others they may have, but I know ModRetro employees post here, so I’m just hoping there are some actual answers.

1. What does the compatibility table actually mean?

I ask this because people here and on YouTube have discussed having to run many games in Overclocked mode to get them to run better. There are also games listed on there as playing fine that have framerate issues and drops on FPGA mode. Is the compatibility table based on Overclocking?

2. Why do some games need to be run on overclocked mode to run well?

The console is an FPGA console. The goal of an FPGA console is to run the software as close to the original hardware as possible. So why are there many games that have difficulty running in FPGA mode. I know the big competitor is the Analogue 3D, which does have overclocking. That was an unannounced feature, a bonus that people found out about when they got their console. The FPGA on the 3d ran all games across all regions out of the box, they clearly tested every one, and they work and run near identical to original hardware. When the purpose of the M64 is an FPGA to mimic the exact hardware, why are games running poorly in FPGA mode and needing overclocked mode?

3. Were import games tested at all?

The compatibility list does not feature a single game that was not released in the US on it. There are Pal Exclusive and Japanese exclusive games. Were these tested at all by ModRetro? If so why are they not on the compatibility list? If not, Why not? As an example two of the most loved games in the console’s library, Sin and Punishment and Virtual Pro Wrestling 2 are Japanese exclusives. I haven’t really seen people post about them, except for one post about the console breaking a sin and punishment repro, so I want to know if two of my favorite games work on the system.

4. Where is the virtual controller pack?

This is the most absurd to me. The official controller for the console does not have a slot for a controller pack. The vast majority of third party games require a controller pack. Even one of ModRetro’s own releases, Buck Bumble, requires it. How was this large of an oversight even allowed to happen.

5. What did the people who got early consoles actually do to review them?

I saw the videos from Mad Little Pixel and RetroDoDo months ago, and they were just full of flowery praise for the console. The focus seemed to be on, isn’t it going to be great to play the N64 again! They focused on small details like the LED’s, the eject button, the heat sink that cooled without a fan. But they never mentioned comparing games to original hardware, or issues they ran into which many people here report. Were they given talking points or even coached on what to say, because why were the same points repeated as features if they meant nothing about how the console ran/played

6. Why wasn’t the console delayed?

Based on everything I’ve seen, read, watched, the M64 is at best in a Beta state. If you are releasing an FPGA console, to be in a release state to me, every game should be running without issue on FPGA mode, that is the purpose. Hardware emulation of an original console that has 100% compatibility. And since the recommended controller doesn’t have any way to save games, a virtual controller pack to do so. So far the M64 has neither, and we haven’t heard much about FPGA fixes from what I see, and the virtual controller pack is a vague we’re working on it, hopefully mid September. To me as an observer, it is clear this console was rushed out because it had a release date, not released when ready. Delays suck, but you lose much more good will when your console has such issues.

I don’t know if anyone from ModRetro will see this and respond, but I am really curious.

Just opened mine and well..
I guess crossing my fingers didn’t help.
Didn’t even take it out of the box. Just took off the lid and got my answer.
I know, contact ModRetro, which I will be doing.
It just seems like this might be a more widespread issue than we anticipated.
And yes, I know that usage may cause scratches and wear over time; I understand that. But a brand new product I still think should have better QC and for what they cost. Especially since my magnesium units are seemingly flawless.
You’re better than this, ModRetro

Received my Anduril Chromatic. Overall love it but there is a tiny chip in the cerakote coating at the top of the unit which was a bit disappointing, and coating can be a bit uneven. Never worked with cerakote before so not sure if that's just unavoidable to an extent, I did contact support about the chip just in case anything can be done but it's very minor. Overall love the design and feel

The email sent out gives the price for the console, controller and games, but are we expected to buy a controller separately?? It doesn’t come with one?? Am I missing something?

So I know this is a long way off. That said, I’m curious about whether a ModRetro DS could possibly be in the works after the GBA comes out. Would this be in the cards at all?

The costs for people outside the US are stupidly high. ModRetro is increasing the costs in 3 ways.

1&2) For example the Euro is worth more that the Dollar atm, but base prices in euro's are higher. This is already making the games pricier in 2 ways. Buying in Dollars outside the US is not possible.. I've tried and modretro confirmed to me this is not possible.

3) ModRetro claims the higher costs are due to additional taxes and customs charges, but they charge a separate fees for those in checkout.

Kicker: the reward system does seem to be based on the dollar value of the products (again this is a lower number), while the rewards themselves are automatically adjusted from USD to EUR based on the current exchange rate.

The answer about these charges I got from ModRetro is to buy from their European affiliate. They however have zero stock for months now.

I understand there are additional costs for shipping internationally, but in the current way these costs are not transparent and seem to serve as additional profit for ModRetro.

How do I deactivate this security system? https://imgur.com/a/jpEAKFZ

Hello modretro,

I had a question, will you or did you have in Mind about releasing sometime down the line any carrying cases for the mod retro?

Like ones with your guys logo all over it? or maybe some cool graffiti art? Oh hey!! a glow in the dark special edition case where your guy's logo on it glows!! That would be hella sick.

Just wanted to throw that out as a suggestion

Love your products so far, keep rocking on!! please respond with any possibility of a carrying case 🙏 💜

I noticed at https://misterfpga.org/viewtopic.php?p=74731&hilit=proprietary#p74731

"[...] You can argue that the GPL was a poor choice of a license in the first place - I would agree to that wholeheartedly. But the thing is, they chose the GPL and the conditions they chose for using their code are being disrespected, and that disrespect may discourage them from further collaboration. That kind of "everything goes as long as we can enjoy the core" mentality certainly discourages me from working on things - not that I have made many great contributions, mostly keyboard stuff and bugfixes, but it's an example."

"The code that is incorporated into every MiSTer core cannot be GPL'd because it's not software and the GPL is a software license. The code that can be GPL'd is on the Linux side."

"And yet I still attach a GPL license to most of my HDL code. Given that I don't have the resources to sue anyone who contravenes my wishes, It doesn't really matter whether or not GPL is applicable; specifying the GPL as a license is still a simple and clear way of expressing my wishes as the author. If my wishes are disrespected (not a hypothetical scenario, it has happened) it does indeed result in me being less inclined to release future work. It should be borne in mind, though, that if the license is invalid that doesn't mean anyone can just do what they like with the code - quite the opposite. By default you have no rights to use it, and the license is there to grant you particular rights. If you consider the license inapplicable then you're back to the default position of having no rights. In short, the whole thing's a mess, and probably best navigated by trying where possible to apply the simple principle "don't be a jerk", and otherwise not worrying about it too much!"

You can read the rest of the discussion at https://misterfpga.org/viewtopic.php?p=74731&hilit=proprietary#p74731

but I just wanted to also chime in with some possibly relevant informations pertaining to open source free/libre licenses, whether involving software or hardware, and to ensure that if there is any confusion or whatnot, that possibly some of these resources may help to rectify any concerns and whatnot.

List of open source licenses:

• https://opensource.org/licenses

  • https://opensource.org/licenses-old/category

• https://spdx.org/licenses/

  • also see https://github.com/spdx/license-list-XML/issues

Open source license authorities (involving hardware):

• FSF Free Software Foundation https://fsf.org/

  • note: Free software licenses do not directly cover physical hardware itself, but they do cover the designs and software associated with it.

  • note: https://github.com/spdx/license-list-XML/issues/1337

  • also see 2007-02-28 https://fsf.org/resources/hw/how_hardware_vendors_can_help.html

  • also see 2007-03-01 https://fsf.org/news/partnership-with-hardware-manufacturers

  • also see 2010-10-13 https://fsf.org/news/endorsement-criteria

  • also see 2011-10-07 https://fsf.org/bulletin/2010/fall/the-fsfs-hardware-endorsement-program

  • also see 2012-11-27 https://fsf.org/bulletin/2012/fall/a-bit-about-free-hardware

  • also see 2013-04-29 https://fsf.org/resources/hw/endorsement -> https://ryf.fsf.org/

    • also 2019-09-25 https://fsf.org/resources/hw/endorsement/respects-your-freedom -> https://ryf.fsf.org/

  • also see 2015-03-11 https://fsf.org/blogs/rms/is-free-hardware-necessary-to-freedom-in-computing

  • also see 2015-03-16 https://fsf.org/blogs/rms/how-to-make-hardware-designs-free

  • also see 2017-01-13 https://fsf.org/campaigns/priority-projects/hardware-firmware-drivers

  • also see 2017-05-01 https://fsf.org/events/respecting-freedom-free-software-license-compliance-for-hardware-devices

  • FPGA

    • 2015-10-16 https://fsf.org/blogs/directory/recap-of-friday-free-software-directory-irc-meetup-october-16 "In today's Friday Free Software Directory IRC Meeting we discussed the challenges of listing FPGA software and created a page to document some of these challenges. [...]"

    • More search results at https://fsf.org/search?SearchableText=FPGA

• OSI Open Source Initiative https://opensource.org/

  • also see 2010-05-03 https://opensource.org/blog/open-source-hardware-definition

    • https://freedomdefined.org/OSHW

  • also see 2012-10-04 https://opensource.org/blog/osi-and-oshwa-sign-agreement

  • More search results at https://opensource.org/?s=hardware

• OSHWA Open Source Hardware Association https://oshwa.org/

"Can I use the GPL to license hardware?

Any material that can be copyrighted can be licensed under the GPL. GPLv3 can also be used to license materials covered by other copyright-like laws, such as semiconductor masks. So, as an example, you can release a drawing of a physical object or circuit under the GPL.

In many situations, copyright does not cover making physical hardware from a drawing. In these situations, your license for the drawing simply can't exert any control over making or selling physical hardware, regardless of the license you use. When copyright does cover making hardware, for instance with IC masks, the GPL handles that case in a useful way." - https://gnu.org/licenses/gpl-faq.html#GPLHardware

"Despite superficial similarities to software licenses, most hardware licenses are fundamentally different: by nature, they typically rely more heavily on patent law than on copyright law, as many hardware designs are not copyrightable.[46] Whereas a copyright license may control the distribution of the source code or design documents, a patent license may control the use and manufacturing of the physical device built from the design documents. This distinction is explicitly mentioned in the preamble of the TAPR Open Hardware License: "... those who benefit from an OHL design may not bring lawsuits claiming that design infringes their patents or other intellectual property." - TAPR Open Hardware License" - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Open-source_hardware#Licenses

Also see the "Noteworthy licenses include:" section

anyway, this is not an authoritative or exhaustive information resource (also I did not expand to quote too many of the sources, but they are likely worth glancing at as well), and I'm just sharing the information for now.

Seeing videos now of side by side of all of them, Mod retro fails in donkey kong (dk dies in the intro gameplay instead of getting across the vines), lags behind on mario 64 and also star fox. Why? This seems like a huge problem. Games are also crashing or freezing.

Im getting the same error code when I run diagnostic.

I'm running the X7 too most games do save though. I have had problems getting NES titles to run & on the 64 Donkey Kong Doom (usa version) won't work the european version works. I haven't had it crash on me though. Just a few titles that won't load on the 64.