Unrealized 64DD plans for Pokémon Stadium and Derby Stallion unearthed in decades-old presentation

For every software hit and successful piece of hardware, Nintendo also has some failures. While the Switch has been a juggernaut, titles like Everybody 1-2 Switch! failed to reach Nintendo-like profits. The same goes for the Wii U, which never found its footing with audiences around the world.

Long before the Wii U was the Nintendo 64DD, an add-on device for the Nintendo 64 that suffered numerous delays, and then only launched in Japan. This shift in launch plans, followed by an abandoning of the project altogether, forced Nintendo to pivot a number of ideas they were working on for the platform.

In a newly-unearthed interview with Nintendo’s former president Hiroshi Yamauchi, we get to hear a bit more about the original plans for Pokémon Stadium and Derby Stallion. Both games were supposed to take advantage of the 64DD in numerous ways, but those plans were called off after the 64DD failed to find a market.

It’s quite a shame, as it seems some rather unique mechanics and features had to be cut back or removed completely due to the 64DD not panning out. You can read all about those aspects in the comments from Mr. Yamauchi below, which came from a Spaceworld presentation.

“The initial proposal for Pokémon Stadium, which is planned for simultaneous release on the 64DD, was to transform a home console only game into a portable game with the Gameboy, so that you can play it anywhere you want. And then once you return home, you can connect it to the 64DD for another form of fun. And in fact, that kind of software is currently in development. Sonobe, the creator of the Derby Stallion series, is currently working to release a Derby Stallion game with Gameboy and 64DD connectivity. I think this is a great example of software that creates new contrivances for new forms of fun, like I previously called for.”