Article: The cartridge gamecube: Inside the NPDP gamecube.

Nice pics!

 

I spent quite a lot of time reversing the firmware for the cartridges (as it already has been said: the clever part is in the cartridge, the console itself is a straight DVD-Interface brought to the special connector).

Basically they use a SH-3 CPU plus an FPGA (and some smaller stuff) to interface the DI ("disk (or dvd) interface") to the IDE hdd.

There's hardcoded support for 4 disc images, which are at different offsets. The data itself is crypted with a stupid algorithm (stupid because it's XOR with a 32bit fixed key, and there is a lot of zero in the first sector of every gamecube game...), which depends on the so-called "NPDP-ID". Oh, and the special constant 0xdeadbeef plays into this calculation as well for example, my XOR mask was d8 ae ca ad (now, nintendo, go and derive where i got my cartridge from!

The harddiscs are locked with a key depending on the NPDP-ID as well, so you can't just swap the drives from two different cartridges. However, the security level is set to "high" (vs. "highest"), and the master-password is "N-PDP Master Passwd", maybe byteswapped (depends on your view).

So it's easily possible to unlock the drives, and read/write the contents.

The disc itself reports with some bits set in the first 32bits of the "IDENTIFY"-response (whereas DVD-drives have 00 there..), and to access the data you first have to issue an "NPDP-ID"-command (yes, ascii , which will give you the string displayed when you switch on an npdp-console.

By the way, NPDP-Consoles have a special IPL (if anybody has a rip of the PAL one, i would be glad to get it , basically just to display the "this NPDP belong to..." in the beginning.

Then there are special commands (F0..F6) to do direct reads (reading absolute sectors), flashing the firmware, writing to it (these "NPDP Gang Writers" seem to use that interface - i have never seen them, though.).

I never managed to use these commands, as they seem to require some setup.

You can exchange the harddrive, but be careful, the Cartridge will lock them, so have an unlocking application ready. (please don't ask me for it as i wrote a special application for some embedded device having an IDE bus, as i didn't managed to do that with an USB-housing and i didn't wanted to have to reboot all the time

You can use a smaller harddrive (and thus using less than the 4 images) or a bigger one, but you can't use more than the 4. I looked at any way overriding this offset, but didn't suceed.


(don't worry, i of course swapped some bits in the key

 

That is very interesting mate. Thanks for sharing. And what was Nintendo thinking with using XOR encryption, jeez

 

For that semi-transparent layer:

Make a new layer. Paste your water mark. Go to the layer options (in the layers pallette on the right-hand side most likely. If it's not visible, do Window->Layers. The opacity should be easy. Set to 50 or 60%. Viola.

 

Maybe I didn't understand what you were saying, but the green GameCubes have not replaced these red ones, at least not at Nintendo. I tested at Nintendo for a while. They mainly use the red GameCubes for a majority of the testing cycle. Burning discs everyday just isn't practical. They use the green GameCubes nearing the final phase of testing, and then they sometimes, but not alwasy I think, use regular, retail version GameCubes for the final day of testing.

 

ooo tinY!

 

GCM File to NPDP Cartridge? Fully Playable?

Anyone on this website ever try playing a GCM File as Resident Evil 4 or any other GameCube title inside the NPDP - Console? Those's cart's can hold up to 4 GCM files. Normal GameCube games can be turned into the GCM Files on your computer with the correct (HARDWARE + SOFTWARE). Not gong to say what is needed. If anybody has any info please post thanks.

 

Im suprised nintendo never though of this idea for the gamecube. Lets face it using hard drives inside carts would have been a great idea firstly it would have been cheaper as you would be using hard drives of low capacity only 2-4 gigabytes for most games and these could be made for practically nothing now and secondly loading times would be much faster. Also you avoid the problems that appeared with nintendo 64 where capacity of the cartridges was a real issue.

 

well.. one problem with that would be that you can damage your game by just dropping it to the floor.. something both cartridges and discs can handle

 

Well the iPod hard drives can take quite a fall and still work, as long as they are padded or have like cushinging around the drive it would be ok. There are always ways to protect it from dropping.

Its a shame the N64 never reached its full potential if it had, had more storage space back in the days im sure it could have produced some cracking games, instead of blocky looky ones. I bet today with the cheapness of flash memory nintendo could get cartridges hitting 1 gigabyte or more. They could even put a SD or MMC card interface inside the cartridge as these cards are already hitting 1 gig + mark. And they are drop.

 

The main problem is that hard disks dont become cheaper because the mechanism isalways a fixed cost. You will never get a hard disk less than about $40, simply because it needs the expensive mechanism. Thats why I can't walk into PC world and buy a 2gb HD for £5, but i can buy a 80GB for £50.

 

THey could have adapted a SD card reader or a MMC card reader for cartridges on the Gamecube as they are alreaedy hitting 1 and 2 gigabyte marks.

 

Well again the problem is cost. 1gb of flash is at least £20. A GC disc is what, 5p?

Perhaps as a supplementary form of distribution (e.g. mini games from kiosks) but not for full blown games.

One possibility though could be this: You go to a game shop, download to your MMC card, then install game to internal hard disk, wipe MMC, repeat. but then what would the advantage of using MMC over discs, as since I said, a GC disc costs so little to produce..

 

Well MMC's would have been cheaper if they had decided to use cartridges again, shame MMC's and SD's hadnt been such a mature technology during the N64 days as they would have been cheaper and hold more data than a N64 cartridge.

 

Copying NPDP Cartridges???

So what your saying is that you can copy the cartridges if you take them out of the unit and then break the password or something? Please get back to me on this. I don't plan on swapping cart from cart just Bare Hard Drive same model and replace the one already in the cartridge.