The Nintendo 64 console is definitely one of the most loved gaming gadgets of all time. It may not offer the crispy-sharp graphics or white-hot performance, but it definitely delivered timeless memories of games that we always loved to play.

And now years after the withdrawal of the N64 consoles from the market, I am here reminiscing about (and playing!) my old Nintendo 64 games. Not through the gamepad and the console iteself, but through my PC and a wonderful emulator called Project64.

In case you haven’t read about it or used it before, Project64 is an open-source Nintendo 64 emulator for Windows that delivers the very same gaming experience you have had on the N64 console. Yup, the very same. You can load up an imaged version of  an N64 game and play it as much as your heart desires. You can save games just like you did on your N64, or use Project64’s built-in save state function to save your game just as it is while you were playing it (think of Windows’s hibernate function).

Since there is more than a hundred repositories of freely downloadable N64 games out there, you will surely enjoy playing your old games without any limitations. For starters, here’s what you should do:

1. Download Project64 from here: http://www.pj64-emu.com/download;
2. Download a game file, I recommend looking for N64 games at Romulation.net;
3. Configure your input settings (for details click here);
4. Configure your video and audio settings (manuals here);
5. Make sure you have configured the items above, then load up the game file you downloaded (On Project64 main window, Press Ctrl + O);
6. Enjoy!

Right now, I’m enjoying Mario Party 1, 2, and 3; Super Mario 64, Mario Kart 64, and the timeless classic Super Smash Bros. Screenshots? You got them: