There is a lot more potential in SNES than you might think.
The super NEC Classic is a lovely piece of nostalgia for a very good price. At just $80 for 20 classic Nintendo games and two tremendously well-constructed controllers, the Super NES Classic is worth having even if it could not be pawned. Fortunately, for us, it can be pawned to enable not just more Super Nintendo games to be set up, but also to enable different emulators for us to play just about any game on it.
This article explains the simple procedure of unlocking your console and getting it ready to go. The first step is having your SNES Classic as well as its USB cable beside your PC ready to go and installing the Hakchi2 Software from ClusterM. Other people prefer using the .ZIP file however we will use the .EXE version for this article. Sadly, there is no Mac version for this hence you will be required to get a Windows PC to do it or you can similarly use Bootcamp, Wineskin or a virtual PC emulation software such as VirtualBox could ideally work however I have not tested them. Also you can visit snes roms to download some of the game titles.
Step by Step
- Go to GitHub, install and open Hakchi2
- Plug in your SNES Classic through the USB on your PC
- Choose Kernal and choose Flash Custom Kernel (see steps below)
- Follow the instructions on the screen and ensure that your kernel is saved to the cloud!
- Create a folder on your PC and name it ROMs
- Use your ROMs in .zip file format
- Get a cover art on Google or your chosen search engine.
- Click on the Synchronize Selected Games button.
How to Flash the Kernel
This is probably the subtlest part of the process and could potentially destroy the device. We are not responsible if your device gets ruined along the way however, if you strictly follow the guidelines you should be fine.
Ensure your SNES Classic is plugged into the USB on your PC and the power is on. Next in the Hakchi window, select “Kernel” then “Flash Custom Kernel” from the drop-down.
Then you will see a pop-up explaining everything that you need to do. Follow it to the latter and you will be fine. If you are a first timer, you will see a command prompt screen display to automatically load the drivers if they have not installed already. A good rule of thumb I discovered is that when the pop-up disappears it is a good instant to release the rest key. That will enable the program to carry out its job.
That is all! Your Super NES Classic is now ready to accept custom extra ROMs. The internal storage of SNES Classic currently is just 200 mb and even though that looks very small, the average game ROM is just 15 mb hence there is enough space. Note that Nintendo Software is copyrighted and you can only place ROMs on it that you already have. Visit Google to know how to go about it.
Installing Games
After getting the required ROMs, it is so easy to install them. Through the Hakchi2 interface, choose the “Add More Games” key and navigate to your ROMs folder. I advise creating a different folder to prevent them from getting lost in the downloads. Next, select the .ZIP file you want to use. Note that the SNES Classic is built on the NTSC platform not PAL so ensure your ROMs are NTSC or USA only.
After electing the ROM, there are options on the right-hand side. They normally automatically populate from the information on the ROM, hence you do not have to change them however, you can add your cover art. Ensure you use small versions of the cover art because the more room you use on pictures, the less room you will have for games.
Ensure your Super NES Classic is still connected and turned on, press the “Synchronize Selected Games” key and see it installed on your SNES. Turn off your SNES after your games have installed, disconnect it from your PC and set it all back up on your TV. Congratulations! You are good to go.
To get new games, navigate to the end of the line of original games and click on the folder there. You will see all the cover art you used there and you can choose the games to play. Enjoy playing!
It is as simple as that. A fairly simple technique to exploit the Super NES Classics potential and allow you to play the incredible retro games we all know and love.
