Getting Started
This page contains all the details you need to know to get started with playing Dinosaur Planet, including where to find the ROM, how to play on an emulator, and how to play on a real Nintendo 64 console with a flash cart.
- Downloading the ROM
- Updating the ROM
- Running the game in an emulator
- Running the game on real hardware using a flashcart
- In-game options
- Setting up the game for widescreen
Downloading the ROM
The ROM for Dinosaur Planet can be found on the Internet Archive. Download the zip file on the right side listed under Download Options and extract it. Inside, you will find several files:
- rom
- rom_crack.z64
- normpnt.rom
- normslp.rom
- readme.txt
Check out readme.txt for more information on these files and the origin of the ROM. In short, the rom file is the unmodified dump, but contains numerous security protections that make it unplayable. The rom_crack.z64 file is a modified version of the ROM that allows it to work on emulators as well as flash carts on a real Nintendo 64.
Updating the ROM
Even with cheats, the game on its own is nigh unplayable. Fortunately, the community has been working together to bring performance and stability patches to the game, as well as restoring content that was in the game but unable to be accessed by normal means. You can find the latest xdelta patches in the #patches-and-fixes channel at the Dinosaur Planet Community Discord. There are a few methods of updating your game found below, sorted by ease of use.
Choose one of the 3 methods below:
DinoLauncher
If you like things to be easy...
- DinoLauncher was created by the community specifically for the purpose of keeping your local copy of Dinosaur Planet updated.
- Download DinoLauncher from the releases page on GitHub and place it in a safe location
- Open DinoLauncher.exe
- Select your update branch based on your preferences
- Nightly gets updates on the regular, while Stable isn't updated as regularly but should have less issues all around.
- Click "Browse..." to look for your "rom_crack.z64" file
- Click Check for Updates to check for the latest patch
- You can also enable HQ player models at the cost of performance
- Once the patch is complete, the folder with the patched game will open and the launcher will give you the option to launch the game with your system's default application for handling Z64 files
xdelta web interface
If you like things easy but prefer doing things your own way...
- Open Rom Patcher JS in a web browser
- Make sure you have the "Apply Patch" tab selected
- Click "Browse..." next to ROM file and browse for your "rom_crack.z64"
- Click "Browse..." next to Patch file and browse for your xdelta patch file
- Click Apply patch and move the downloaded file to the desired location
- Run it in your favorite N64 emulator and enjoy!
xdelta3
If you prefer doing things your own way...
- Download xdelta3.exe either from one of the many mirrors online, or build it yourself from its GitHub page.
- Place the xdelta executable and the rom_crack.z64 in the same directory
- Open a command prompt window in this location and run the following command
- xdelta3 -d fs rom_crack.z64 name-of-dinoplanet-patch.xdelta dinosaurplanet.z64
- Keep in mind, you may need to change the name of "xdelta3.exe" in the command to match your own copy
- A new file should appear in the directory that says "dinosaurplanet.z64"
- Run it in your favorite N64 emulator and enjoy!
Running the game in an emulator
Dinosaur Planet can be run using most modern N64 emulators including:
- RMG – if you don't know what emulator to choose, this is a good starting point
- The Mupen64Plus core within RetroArch
- Simple64
- Project64
- ares
On Android, M64Plus FZ can be used. Dinosaur Planet is a demanding title by N64 standards, so you will need a relatively fast Android device to run the game smoothly – especially if aiming for 60 FPS. On Android, consider using the Medium GPU accuracy preset as opposed to Accurate or Very Accurate, as it performs much better, especially at higher resolution scales.
Running the game on real hardware using a flashcart
In order for a patched Dinosaur Planet ROM to work on an N64 with an Everdrive 64, you'll need to copy and paste "DP=5" into save_db.txt under ID detection. save_db.txt is located inside the ED64 folder on your microSD card.
In-game options
When you start the game, you'll be greeted by intro screens and then a main menu with a Start menu, an Options menu and a language selection slider.
The following settings are unimplemented and have no effect when modified:
- Control > Z Button (always acts as Combo – tap the Z button to toggle targeting, or hold Z for more than ~0.2 seconds to stop targeting when the button is released)
- Video > Screen Size
- Audio > Setup
- Cheats
- Cinema
Setting up the game for widescreen
The game has native support for 16:9 on both real hardware and emulators. When you launch the game, you are greeted with splash screens then a title screen. In the title screen, go to Options then Video, then set Ratio to 16:9 instead of the default Normal. Do not change the Screen Size setting as that setting has no effect.
After changing this setting, configure your emulator's video options to use a 16:9 aspect ratio then restart the game. Note that even with the game's native widescreen mode engaged, the title screen's cutscene will appear stretched, but gameplay and other cutscenes will use the correct aspect ratio. Aiming with the staff will also display the crosshair at an incorrect position when aiming towards the left or right, so make sure to compensate for that too.
On real hardware, it's recommended to stick to 4:3 to avoid degrading performance, as the game already runs quite slowly in 4:3.
