Modders use reverse engineering to bring Mario Party 4 to PC, more GameCube games to follow

Why it matters: Efforts to reverse-engineer source code from retro console games to create native PC ports have intensified in recent years. Most completed projects have brought high resolutions, modding capabilities, and other enhancements to titles from the Nintendo 64 era and earlier. However, recent breakthroughs have begun to make more advanced platforms, like the GameCube and Xbox 360, increasingly accessible.

Mario Party 4 is set to become the first GameCube title to receive a full decompilation, paving the way for unofficial PC ports. Unlike emulation, reverse engineering retro games offers modders significantly more flexibility when making modifications or adapting classics to new platforms.

As MattKC Bytes explains in the video below, the decompilation of Mario Party 4 is over 99 percent complete, with only a few complex functions remaining.

While decompilation alone doesn’t produce a PC port, it is a critical first step – and a port of Mario Party 4 with online multiplayer is already in development.

Mario Party 4 might seem like an obscure choice for the first fully decompiled GameCube game, but it was easier to reverse engineer than others because developer Hudson Soft originally compiled it without optimizations.

Modders are also working on more popular GameCube titles, including Super Smash Bros. Melee, Metroid Prime, and The Legend of Zelda: Wind Waker. Meanwhile, an unofficial PC port of the Xbox 360 title Sonic Unleashed has recently been completed.

Although emulators like Dolphin have long allowed fans to play these classics on modern platforms, porting decompiled code enables much more extensive enhancements – akin to mods for open-source PC games like Doom and Quake.

In a recent video (below), YouTuber Nerrel explained how ongoing efforts allow games like the original Super Smash Bros. to run at 240 frames per second and open the door to major gameplay tweaks for The Legend of Zelda: Majora’s Mask.

Games such as Super Mario 64, Star Fox 64, and The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time have already received PC ports that enable high resolutions and framerates.

Additionally, a related project is attempting to revive Dinosaur Planet, which was never released. Modders are even experimenting with adding ray tracing to classic games, similar to NVIDIA’s RTX Remix.

A modding tool released about a year ago has helped streamline the recompilation process, though the community still faces numerous technical challenges. As a result, the timeline for future PC ports remains uncertain.

Importantly, Nintendo hasn’t struck down decompilation projects with lawsuits yet. Modders normally reverse engineer games using clean room tactics to avoid legal issues, and playing a PC port requires a copy of the original title.

Masthead credit: VGR Remix