DexDrive is a discontinued line of

home video game console A home video game console is a video game console that is designed to be connected to a display device, such as a television, and an external power source as to play video games. While initial consoles were dedicated units with only a few game ...

memory card A memory card is an electronic data storage device used for storing digital information, typically using flash memory. These are commonly used in digital portable electronic devices, such as digital cameras as well as in many early games conso ...

readers released in 1998, allowing

saved game A saved game (also called a game save, savegame, savefile, save point, or simply save) is a piece of digitally stored information about the progress of a player in a video game. From the earliest games in the 1970s onward, game platform hardw ...

data transfer to a

personal computer A personal computer, commonly referred to as PC or computer, is a computer designed for individual use. It is typically used for tasks such as Word processor, word processing, web browser, internet browsing, email, multimedia playback, and PC ...

. It was made by now-defunct InterAct for use with

PlayStation is a video gaming brand owned and produced by Sony Interactive Entertainment (SIE), a division of Japanese conglomerate Sony. Its flagship products consists of a series of home video game consoles produced under the brand; it also consists ...

and

Nintendo 64 The (N64) is a home video game console developed and marketed by Nintendo. It was released in Japan on June 23, 1996, in North America on September 29, 1996, and in Europe and Australia on March 1, 1997. As the successor to the Super Nintendo E ...

memory cards. The company hosted a curated website to facilitate online sharing of saved game data.

Overview

The DexDrive is a personal computer peripheral to exchange

data from the memory cards of

video game console A video game console is an electronic device that Input/output, outputs a video signal or image to display a video game that can typically be played with a game controller. These may be home video game console, home consoles, which are generally ...

s. The two DexDrive models are for either PlayStation or Nintendo 64 memory cards, and each model retailed in 1998 for . That was about the cost of two memory cards, each with capacity far less than a

floppy disk A floppy disk or floppy diskette (casually referred to as a floppy, a diskette, or a disk) is a type of disk storage composed of a thin and flexible disk of a magnetic storage medium in a square or nearly square plastic enclosure lined with a ...

, so a PC's hard drive is much more cost effective for mass storage. As PC files, game data can be shared over the

Internet The Internet (or internet) is the Global network, global system of interconnected computer networks that uses the Internet protocol suite (TCP/IP) to communicate between networks and devices. It is a internetworking, network of networks ...

or be used with console emulators. The DexDrive connects to the PC via serial port and the DexPlorer driver application for

Windows Windows is a Product lining, product line of Proprietary software, proprietary graphical user interface, graphical operating systems developed and marketed by Microsoft. It is grouped into families and subfamilies that cater to particular sec ...

. Interact developed a way to use the

Game Shark GameShark is the brand name of a line of video game cheat cartridges and other products for a variety of console video game systems and Windows-based computers. Since January 23, 2003, the brand name has been owned by Mad Catz, which marketed Ga ...

to share save data for Nintendo 64 games that use cartridge-based storage instead of memory cards. A USB version was reportedly in development.

Reception

''Core Magazine'' said the serial port is slow but hardware and software installation is simple. DexChange.net was curated by Interact employees who supply files for games that users have not, and new games were covered quickly, yielding "more saves available that you could ever want". The magazine summarized: "All in all, the DexDrive is a splendid idea, and worth its $39.95 retail price (which is, as Interact points out, the cost of a typical multi-page memory card). The DexDrive may wind up being one of the most novel gaming peripherals since the Analog controller."

References

External links

Download user-created Dexter software

Download PSX Game Save Editor an all-in-one tool for Game Saves

Windows XP or lower {{PlayStation (console) Nintendo 64 accessories PlayStation (console) accessories Products introduced in 1997

Overview

Reception

See also

References

External links