How Do I Save N64 ROM Games?

When you're playing Nintendo 64 games emulated on your computer, you don't want to sit down for one mammoth session every time you play. With Nintendo 64, Nintendo introduced the universal presence of save files: areas within the game cartridge that saved players' progress. Nintendo 64 emulators support this concept but also allow you to save your game at any time via save slots, providing even more control over game-saving than the original Nintendo 64 games allowed.

Download and install an emulator on which to play your ROMs. If you don't already have a Nintendo 64 emulator, there are several good programs to choose from: this article will refer to the most popular Nintendo 64 emulator, Project 64, which is available for download in the Resources section.

Start a game on the working ROM of your choice. Play the game until you reach a point where you wish to save your game.

Open Project 64's System menu and select "Save as." The shortcut for this command is "Ctrl-S."

Type a name for your save state or use the existing default. Make sure not to delete or overwrite the ".SRAM" at the end of the file name: this suffix is how Project 64 (and other emulators) will know that the file is a save file that can be loaded. To accept your save file name, click "OK." Continue playing or close the emulator.

To load the game where you left off, open Project 64's "System" menu and choose "Load." You can also press "Ctrl-L" on your keyboard. Select the game file to be loaded and double-click it. Your game will restart exactly where you left it.