List of different resolutions for n64 games?

[eSPy]

hey all. I know that the n64 was a bit weird in that different games used various resolutions, and then some games had higher resolution with the expansion pak. has there ever been a solid list put together with all the games and their possible resolution?

[Mod_Man_Extreme]

There are only two resolutions possible on the N64.

240p or 480i.

240p is only properly viewable on SDTV CRT's. As it's name implies it's a progressively interlaced Standard Definition signal where the viewable lines are drawn much more quickly and sharply at the expense of resolution. In this mode every other row of pixels is switched off and you can actually see the individual rows in the picture. Thanks to how the phosphors of CRT's work you actually get a little purposeful bleed-in on the rows which are shut off that rounds ultra sharp edges for a natural looking picture.

Benefits of this resolution are more perceivable colors on screen with lower quality signals and connections such as RF and Composite, much faster refresh rates and smoother images on screen, smoothing and blending of pixels to naturally anti-alias the image and none of the weird interlace issues that are so common with modern 480i connections regardless of the hookup used.

480i is a full resolution SDTV signal and is properly viewable on any SDTV or HDTV appearing just like it would on a normal SDTV; barring the natural smoothing that would be caused by phosphors in the CRT's screen of course. Benefits of this resolution include that more colors are visible in the signal regardless of connection method, and because there is a higher total resolution you get a much clearer image.

The downside is any moving object has interlace lines similar to a 240p signal on the edges along with major dot crawl resulting in a trade off. In other words better picture, but not as smooth or fast on the refresh end of things unless it's post processed or handled with a higher quality connection than RF or Composite.

Basically:

240p: Sharp, seems more colorful than it actually is, faster on the refresh rate and smoother on the edges with less artifacting. Downside is lower resolution and a lack of clarity in stills or distance shots.

480i: Higher resolution, more colors by default, still shots look more impressive than 240p and longer draw distances can be taken advantage of more readily. Downside is that a poorly mastered source or bad signal makes any defects much more visible than they normally would.

[Hateshinai]

The N64 has 2 resolutions/picture qualities: crap, and slightly less crap. Sad but true.

[CRTGAMER]

hey all. I know that the n64 was a bit weird in that different games used various resolutions, and then some games had higher resolution with the expansion pak. has there ever been a solid list put together with all the games and their possible resolution?

Definitely get the RAM expansion pack for your N64 console. Games such as Star Wars Rogue Squadron kick up the resolution with the extra memory.

Three resolution modes in the N64.
256 × 224, 320 × 240 and 640 × 480 pixels.

Wiki RAM Expansion Game List

The N64 has 2 resolutions/picture qualities: crap, and slightly less crap. Sad but true.

Actually on a CRT using SVideo the N64 looks pretty good. Not a HD resolution gaming machine, but still some unique great games to be played! There is also the dedicated SNES-N64-GC SVideo to VGA adaptor that Noise recommended to me a while back. Not 480p from the Gamecube but with a CRT computer monitor looks pretty decent! Play the drunken Conker squirrel between postings!

Reviewed at my CRT vs LCD signature link.

[eSPy]

great information everyone! had no idea there was an option for VGA with the n64.

[Mod_Man_Extreme]

Unfortunately there isn't a VGA mode for the N64.

Basically when he said 640x480 that meant the VDP (Video display processor, more commonly known as graphics processor/graphics card) in the N64 is processing the image at 640x480. The final output of the signal will always be at either 240p or 480i because those are the only possible output resolutions for the N64's video encoder. Video encoders take the raw digital output of the VDP and turn it into an analog signal which we can see resulting in the final image we view and the quality of said image.

[Jrecee]

I think the crappiness of the N64's look is the fault of the tiny texture cache that resulted in stretched out blurry textures as opposed to the actual resolution. The playstation used about the same resolution.