Nintendo · 1998 · Nintendo 64
A 4 MB memory module that doubled the Nintendo 64's RAM. A handful of late games could not run without it — Donkey Kong 64, Majora's Mask and most of Perfect Dark.
The Nintendo 64 shipped with 4 MB of RAM and a memory expansion port on top of the console, filled at the factory by a small blank cartridge called the Jumper Pak. In late 1998 Nintendo released the Expansion Pak, which replaced the Jumper Pak and added another 4 MB of the same Rambus DRAM, doubling the system's total memory to 8 MB. For most of its life the Expansion Pak was optional. Games used the extra memory for sharper graphics and larger worlds; Turok 2: Seeds of Evil, for example, added high-resolution and high-resolution letterbox display modes. But three major titles required it. Donkey Kong 64 would not run without it and was bundled with the Pak in 1999. The Legend of Zelda: Majora's Mask needed it, and Perfect Dark's story mode and most of its features were locked without it. All 64DD software in Japan also required the extra memory. IGN described its impact as immediate and noticeable and called it one of the most influential add-ons for the Nintendo 64. It is an early example of a console being upgraded partway through its life to keep pace with what developers wanted to build.