Star Fox 64 for Sega Dreamcast (updated 2026/08/23)

Now with hardware-mixed audio, raw PowerVR Fast 3D backend with significant N64-accuracy enhancements and all around improved performance.

You can upload a ROM and download a CDI.

Find more details here: https://colab.research.google.com/drive/1Suq7tQBAULNhyqxRV6TTFjnrDPYgndGm

To build with docker, see Docker.md

This is a Star Fox 64 port for the Sega Dreamcast, based on sonicdcer's excellent Star Fox 64 decompilation (that also powers Starship).

Check out footage of the Dreamcast version running on real hardware.

A direct CDI download of Star Fox 64 for Dreamcast is not provided, nor will it be provided.

You must build it yourself from your own N64 ROM. There is no exception to this. Do not ask.

Running Star Fox 64 for Dreamcast on a Dreamcast emulator is not supported. It may or may not work correctly. This port is intended to be used only on real hardware. Just emulate an N64 and move on if that's your plan.

Rumble: Force-feedback is supported and tested with the following devices:

• Sega Jump / Puru Pack
• Performance TremorPak
• Nyko DC Hyper Pak
• Retro Fighters Striker DC Wireless built-in

Saving: If a VMU is present, the cartridge EEPROM data will be saved. 3 blocks are required.

Dreamcast controls:

• A: Fire laser
• X: Fire bomb
• Y: Boost
• B: Brake
• Down + Y: Somersault
• Down + B: U-Turn
• L Trigger: Tilt left 90 degrees
• R Trigger: Tilt right 90 degrees
• D-Pad Up: Change camera
• D-Pad Right: Answer ROB call

The training mode and in-game messages have been updated with the new button mappings.

Building

1. Use Colab (see above)
2. Use Docker (see above)
3. Build manually (see below)

1. Setup Dreamcast tooling

Set up a KallistiOS environment using KallistiOS v2.2.1 with a GCC 14.x toolchain. If you don't know how to do this, check the Getting Started with Dreamcast Development guide.

1. At the Configuring the dc-chain script step, make sure you use the 14.3.0 toolchain profile, not the default stable toolchain.
2. At the Setting up the environment settings step, copy the provided environ.sh from the sf64-dc repo to /opt/toolchains/dc/kos/environ.sh to ensure you build KOS, GLdc and Star Fox 64 with the correct, matching build flags. Run source /opt/toolchains/dc/kos/environ.sh to apply the new settings to your environment and compile KallistiOS and the libGL KOS port as usual via the instructions.

Using any other version of KallistiOS or the toolchain is unsupported and may not work.

2. Clone and enter the repository

git clone https://github.com/jnmartin84/sf64-dc.git
cd sf64-dc

3. Install python dependencies

The build process has a few python packages required that are located in /tools/requirements-python.txt.

To install them simply run in a terminal:

python3 -m pip install -r ./tools/requirements-python.txt

If you get an error about an externally managed environment, you can create a local virtual environment for this project:

python3 -m venv .
. ./bin/activate
python3 -m pip install -r ./tools/requirements-python.txt

4. Update submodules & build N64 tools

git submodule update --init --recursive
cd tools
make
cd ..

If you are on macOS, you should use gmake instead of make for this step. You may need to install gmake with brew.

If you are on a system with a newer CMake and get this error:

Compatibility with CMake < 3.5 has been removed from CMake.

You may need to change the make command above to the following:

CMAKE_POLICY_VERSION_MINIMUM=3.5 make

5. Prepare the Star Fox 64 ROM file

You need the US version, revision 1.1 (REV A) ROM file for Star Fox 64. The correct sha1sum is 09f0d105f476b00efa5303a3ebc42e60a7753b7a

Copy your ROM to the root of this project directory, and rename the file to baserom.us.rev1.z64.

6. Process the ROM and build assets

Process the ROM file by running the following command:

make init

7. Build the Dreamcast version

When the above command completes, you can generate the type of file for Dreamcast you desire:

CDI files

Creating CDI files requires mkdcdisc to be installed and in your PATH (it's recommended to place mkdcdisc in /opt/toolchains/dc/bin to accomplish this).

CDI file for burning to CD-R (padded for performance)

make cdi-cdr

For ODE (GDEMU, MODE, USB-GDROM, etc.)

make cdi-ode

DSISO for DreamShell ISO Loader

While a target for creating a DreamShell ISO is provided, please note that you may experience crashes that are not present when running from CD-R, ODE or dcload-ip/dcload-serial.

Also note that running a DreamShell ISO from an SD card with a DC SD adapter will provide a miserable gameplay experience full of stuttering audio. The mixer requires real-time processing guarantees that can't be met with the excessive CPU usage caused by polling the serial port. If you file an issue for this, it will be deleted and you will be ignored.

Creating DreamShell ISO files requires mkisofs to be installed. This is usually provided by the cdrtools or cdrkit package provided by your operating system's package manager.

make dsiso

Plain files for dcload-serial/dcload-ip or for direct loading from IDE/SD

make files-zip

All of the above

If you want to go wild and build all of the above types, you can do the following:

make all

Good luck.

Acknowledgments

• sonicdreamcaster
• darc
• gyrovorbis
• stiffpeaks
• mittens
• pcercuei
• bbhoodsta
• gpftroy
• quzar
• mrneo240
• the list goes on