As time marches on, a surprisingly large number of older games continue to be lost to the annals of history. Thankfully, today is an incredibly happy day for fans of Nintendo’s 64-bit console. In a new video on the YouTube channel Hard4Games, we finally have confirmation that the lost N64 title RIQA has had a ROM leaked online for everyone to enjoy.
While RIQA was teased many years ago before getting unceremoniously canceled, this is the first time players will have the chance to try out the game. Developed by Bit Studios, RIQA had made the rounds at various outlets and was even dubbed “Tomb Raider for the N64” due to one of its playable characters being a woman. In actuality, the game has a trio of playable characters and is more akin to Jet Force Gemini.
Roughly 16 years ago, Unseen64 posted about RIQA that included various screenshots and some extra information. It was presented during E3 1999 and was being touted as the next killer app for the N64. At the time, RIQA had never seen the light of day beyond that conference and many believed the general concept was folded into the game Rogue Ops from 2003. We probably won’t ever get confirmation of that, but it’s still fun to think about.
Enemy model found in Riqa
If you’d like to try RIQA, Twitter user Yakumono (aka LuigiBlood) has released a patched version of the ROM that should work on modern emulators. It should also work on a flashcart if you want an even more authentic experience.
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Written by Peter Glagowski
Peter has been a freelance gaming and film critic for over seven years. His passion for Nintendo is only matched by the size of his collection.
