Making games with retro flare

This is the world record setting 64 Boy Micro, which is a creation of Millers

Nick Hughes

Opinions Editor 

The Nintendo 64 (N64), is an iconic console of the gaming industry and has withstood the test of time with the innovations that continue to this day.Millersville University senior Andrew Miller is one of these innovators, having broken the world record for building the smallest portable N64 console.

Miller grew up gaming, with a love for Nintendo based characters such as Mario and Kirby. His favorite game to this day is Super Mario 64. Miller says that his passion is creating new consoles from retro gaming tech. When conversing about various games, it was evident that there was a wave of nostalgia in the room. Miller had chills talking about all-time Nintendo greats like Link from The Legend of Zelda, Kirby from the self-titled series, Samus from Metroid, Fox McCloud from Star Fox, Captain Falcon from F-Zero, Ness from Earthbound and of course, Super Mario from the Super Mario franchise. He recalled preferring the N64 over any other console for games starring those characters.

At the age of 12, Miller began tinkering with consoles. At age 14, he got the process down to a science on how to make a portable N64. Currently, it takes Miller roughly ten hours to make one. To this day, Miller has made 29 portable consoles. These consoles include the following, the SP 64, the 64 Boy, Un@m3d 64, the 64 Boy Pocket, PS 64, the 64 Boy Micro, and 23 ProtoHype Portable 64s. The one that broke the world record for smallest N64 portable was the 64 Boy Micro. Miller has a YouTube channel where viewers can see the various consoles he has created.

Miller prefers to use cartridge-based consoles over disc-based ones, stating that disc-based consoles are trickier to work with. Including the N64, Miller has made portable versions of the following consoles: The Nintendo Entertainment System (NES), The Super Nintendo (SNES), the Nintendo GameCube (GC), the Sega Genesis, and a dual portable console. The dual portable console combined the NES and the SNES.

When creating N64s, Miller stated that he gets chills when he hears a familiar voice come from the speakers. Mario exclaiming, “It’s a me, Mario!” gives Miller the satisfaction to know his console is working. This is from the opening of Miller’s favorite games, Super Mario 64, and has become the game that Miller tests the consoles with.

This semester at Millersville, Miller has a project he has been working on that coincides with his passion. He dubbed it the Ultimate Portable Console. In an independent study, Miller is crafting an ambitious portable console. This console will be able to play games spanning from 1972 all the way to 2012. It will have features such as movie and tv streaming, internet connectivity, and the impressive library of around 100,000 different video games, all playable on the console. Miller hopes to have the project this May.

Besides building portable consoles, Miller has another passion that ultimately stems back to video games: chiptune music. He uses a program called LSDJ to remix various songs. Some notable songs done by Miller include remixes of the “Seinfeld” theme, “What’s New Scooby Doo?” “The Office” theme, and “Dragonforce’s” song, “Through the fire and Flames.”

Miller is a creative person, and many are excited to see the Ultimate portable console come out. Time can only tell what Miller will come up with next. The Snapper will keep an eye on this gentleman for years to come.