Analogue has released a new software update for the Analogue 3D, its N64 clone console, and the headline feature is save state support. The feature arrives under the familiar Memories name, matching the language Analogue already uses on the Analogue Pocket.
Memories are meant to work in a direct, old-school-friendly way. During play, you can use a button combination to make a save state, with support for up to twenty saves. Those saves can then be opened from a menu, or you can use another button combination to jump back into the most recent one.
One detail that will matter to a lot of retro players is flash cart behavior. Early reports say Memories can be created while playing games from a flash cart. Since there are many N64 flash cart makers and several hardware generations, it will take time before the community has a clear list of what works and what does not.
Analogue also flags an important save warning in its updated user guide. If you load a Memory and then use a game's own save function, that action can replace cartridge-based saves or Controller Pak files. Anyone with long-running or hard-to-replace saves should be careful before mixing save states with original in-game saving.
The update is 3DOS V1.3.0, and Memories are not the only change. Analogue says the release also includes bug fixes and other improvements, so the current changelog is the best place to check for the full set of changes before updating.
Z-retro's view: save states are a practical quality-of-life feature for modern retro play, especially on a console tied to long, sometimes unforgiving games. The added flexibility is welcome, as long as players treat existing cartridge and Controller Pak saves with care.
