While the SNES Classic is one hard retro console to get, those who have it might be wondering if there’s a way to add more games to the console other than what Nintendo included. Popular choices like Chrono Trigger, NBA Jam, and more are sure to be missed by old-school fans, but fret not! There is a way!
Thanks to to NeoGAF user Robin64, the SNES Classic hack tutorial is made a wee bit easier. Note that MP1st does not endorse the console, and it can brick your unit if you did something wrong. For those who want to risk it, read on, since from what people have said, it’s not that hard at all. We’ve also added a video above from YouTuber ADH Gaming so it’s easier to follow.
Here’s the SNES Classic hack tutorial from NeoGAF and Reddit.
Reddit:
How do I mod my SNES Classic?
There’s a few videos out there, but here’s one to start you off.
Can I mod non American versions of the SNES Classic (Australian, European, Japanese et cetera)?
Yes.
Will I lose my save states or progress in my games?
Most likely not, just keep in mind things happen and you might be the 1 in the 1/1000000 chance that something happens.
Is there a possibility doing this will brick my unit?
See above.
Will all my SNES ROMs work?
Cluster M says the inbuilt emulator has support for about 75% of games. The games that aren’t supported will need RetroArch.
What kind of ROMs do I need to use?
U.S. ones as the European ones are in a PAL format (note: Japanese are also in NTSC) and seem to be a bit of a hit and miss in terms of functionality (more miss than hit). All SNES Classics use the NTSC format no matter whether they’re sold in the U.S. or abroad.
Can I load PAL games onto the SNES Classic?
See above.
How many games can I fit on my SNES Classic?
Short answer is “it depends”. Games come in different sizes and you have around 260MB to work with. A ballpark figure would be around 100 or so.
Can I play NES, or other console ROMs?
Yes, check out RetroArch with a tutorial here.
I’m getting a C8 error after I’ve loaded up the ROMs!
You’ve most likely got too many games on one screen, try keeping it under 40 or so.
I’m getting a C7 error when trying to load a game!
It’s probably incompatible, check to see if you’re using a U.S. version, and if you are you’ll probably need to run it using RetroArch.
How big is the box art?
The big box art is 228×160 pixels, while the small is 40×28.
My return to menu key combination isn’t working!
The emulator processes the key combination first so depending on the combination, the emulator will process the keys in game before the Operating System can pick it up and take you to the main menu. To get around this you will either need to change the key combination, pause the game or do it on your second controller (all depending on whether the game will process keys in those states).
How do I add custom backgrounds?
Rather than repeating it here, check out this thread.
I really want to load [some program] onto my SNES Classic. Is there a way to do it?
Maybe. Search here on the subreddit to see if others have done it, try google as well. If nothing comes up, ask about it and maybe someone will know how.
How do I back up my original kernel, and where is it stored?
Kernel -> Dump Kernel
After that, you will find it under the following folder (assuming you’re using the web installer on Windows 10): Documents/hakchi2/dump
How do I revert my SNES Classic back to its original state?
Load the original kernel dump back onto the console: Kernel -> Flash Original Kernel
NeoGAF:
So what are the basics?
https://github.com/ClusterM/hakchi2/releases will always be the link to get the latest release. Right now we are on version 2.21b (internal version 2.0.21.32). Download the .zip file, unzip to a folder, and then follow these instructions to get adding your own games.
Despite what that page says, please do not use the web installer.
1) With the SNES Mini attached to your PC via USB, hold reset, turn the Mini on, wait a few seconds, then release reset. The light will not be on.
2) Go to Kernel, Dump Kernel. Install the driver if prompted. DO NOT lose this file, ever.
3) Go to Kernel, Flash Custom Kernel. Your SNES Mini is now haxed.
3a) Optional, but recommended if you aren’t doing too many games. Go to Settings, Pages/Folders Structure and pick Disable. (“Too many games” means 63 or more. SNES Mini crashes if you have that many)
4) From now on, simply use the Add Games button, pick your SNES ROM, fill out the details, assign some box art..
5) And when you’re done, hit the Sync button bottom right.
6) Now turn the SNES off, wait a moment, then turn it back on without holding reset. The light will come on, your new games will appear.
Note that in future you do not need to hold reset. Simply have the SNES Mini attached to your PC and turned on, you will be able to sync new games while it is in that state.
Why did the SNES Mini USB driver not install?
Some people have been having problems with Windows and its Driver Signature Enforcement feature. It’s suggested that you turn this off by following this guide and then try again,
What doesn’t work right now?
There is now a shared community spreadsheet here with info.
If I do this will I lose all my original saves and save states?
No
How can I alter art and stuff for the original 21 games?
You need to FTP into the machine and browse to /usr/share/games/. There you will find the preinstalled CLV-P-xxxxx games. Download those to your PC. (Make sure to set your FTP client to transfer only 1 file at a time, the SNES Mini really hates more than that)
Now copy those folders to hackchi’s /snes_games/ folders where your custom games are.
Now restart hakchi and you will see they appear as custom games too alongside previous ones you added, so you will want to deselect the original 21. Now you have copies that you can work with, such as changing their box art and thumbnails.
How do I FTP in to the machine?
With the SNES connected to your PC and turned on, open hakchi and make sure that “FTP servers” is ticked in the tools menu. If it is, just open your favourite FTP client and connect to 127.0.0.1 on port 1021 with the username root and the password clover.\
Note that for ROMS, you can find it on the internet, but that’s a bit of a grey area that we don’t want to link out to or endorse any site.
If you managed to mod your SNES Classic, let us know how easy (or hard) it is in the comments.