page_title: 64DD
section_title: Randnet
hierarchical_section_title: 64DD / Randnet
caption_attribution_description: The top and bottom of the official mouse for the Nintendo 64 video game console. Only sold in Japan and bundled with the 64DD game Mario Artist: Paint Studio, this rare peripheral is a just a standard ball-type mouse.
context_page_description: The 64DD is a magnetic disk drive peripheral for the Nintendo 64 game console developed by Nintendo. It was announced in 1995, prior to the Nintendo 64's 1996 launch, and after numerous delays was released only in Japan on December 1, 1999. The "64" references both the Nintendo 64 console and the 64 MB storage capacity of the disks, and "DD" is short for "disk drive" or "dynamic drive".
  Plugging into the extension port on the underside of the console, the 64DD allows the Nintendo 64 to use proprietary 64 MB magnetic disks for expanded and rewritable data storage, a real-time clock for persistent game world design, and a standard font and audio library for further storage efficiency. Its games and hardware accessories let the user create movies, characters, and animations to use within various other games and shared online. The system could connect to the Internet through a dedicated online service, Randnet, for e-commerce, online gaming, and media sharing.
context_section_description: In April 1999, Nintendo ended their partnership with St.GIGA which had created the Super Famicom's proprietary Satellaview online service in Japan, broadcasting from April 23, 1995, to June 30, 2000.  The company then partnered with Japanese media company Recruit to develop the 64DD's completely new proprietary online service called Randnet (from "Recruit and Nintendo network"). The resulting equity-owned joint Japanese corporation was announced on June 30, 1999, as RandnetDD Co., Ltd. Active only ever in Japan, from December 1, 1999 to February 28, 2001, the Randnet service allowed gamers to surf the Internet including a members-only portal, and to share user-generated game data. The subscription fee included the dialup Internet account, 64DD system hardware, and a delivery schedule of game disks by mail. Reportedly, Nintendo and several third party game developers had originally planned multiplayer online gaming as being more important than even a web browser.
  The Randnet Starter Kit comes packaged with the 64DD peripheral and everything needed to have accessed the service.
  64DD: The writable 64 MB disk drive system.
  Nintendo 64 Modem
  Expansion Pak: This 4 MB RAM expansion upgrades the Nintendo 64's system RAM to a total of 8 MB.
  Randnet Browser Disk: This let users of the former online service access the "members only" information exchange page as well as the Internet. Once logged on to the service, players could choose from the following options:
  Editing Tool: Create custom avatars to interact with other users.
  Information Exchange: Use online message boards and share email with other users.
  Community: Swap messages with the game programmers and producers.
  Internet Surfing: Surf the Internet with the custom web browser, formatted for viewing on a television set.
  Postcards: Mario Artist was intended to allow the design and printing of postcards to be sent via postal mail.
  E-commerce: The GET Mall service sold CDs, books, 64DD games, and peripherals.
  Digital Magazine: The ability to check online sports scores, weather, and news was planned, but only features related to horse racing were released.
  Nintendo had originally promised the following, ultimately undelivered, features:
  Battle Mode: Play against other gamers and swap scores.
  Observation Mode: Watch other players' game sessions.
  Beta Test: Play sample levels from upcoming games.
  Music Distribution: Listen to music, some of which was yet to be released in stores.
  Beginning on November 11, 1999, membership registration for Randnet's Internet service opened to a maximum of 100,000 subscribers on a "first come, first served" basis. The Randnet service was accessible only via a Nintendo 64 and 64DD setup, and the 64DD hardware and games were only purchasable by mail order along with a Randnet subscription; the peripheral was not stocked in any retail stores. It was all purchased at one time by filling out a mail order request form at select retail stores in Japan, with the hardware delivered soon and the games delivered as monthly nationwide releases over the following year.
  The plan was available in two tiers: a purchase plan for users who want to buy only the 64DD to add to their existing Nintendo 64 system, or a lease-to-own plan for those who want both the 64DD and a special edition translucent black Nintendo 64 console. Randnet was launched with monthly payment plans for the service and hardware bundle: ¥2,500 (approximately US$23.50) per month for the purchase plan and ¥3,300 (US$31) per month for rent-to-own for the first year and ¥1,500 per month for Randnet service thereafter. The service was accessed at an additional dialup fee of up to ¥20 per minute. The service later eliminated the monthly payment model in favor of an annual prepaid model, at ¥30,000 (US$290) for one year for outright purchase and ¥39,600 (US$380) for the first year of lease-to-own. The 64DD and some later games eventually became available for purchase directly at retail.
  As part of the subscription, the game disks were delivered not in the initial package but by mail on a schedule: Decem
caption: The Nintendo 64 mouse is bundled only with the Mario Artist: Paint Studio game for 64DD.
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