Cleanest way to install and play the Star Fox 64 PC port “Starship” on Windows, or Linux

Here’s the quickest, cleanest way to install and play the Star Fox 64 PC port “Starship” on Windows, macOS, or Linux—plus a few pro tips so it looks and runs great on modern PCs.

0) What you need: Official Game ROM (Video Game File)

Star Fox 64 USA V1 Game ROM Link

• A supported dump of your own game. Starship includes no copyrighted assets; you must provide a US v1.0 or US v1.1 (Rev A) ROM. The project explicitly requires those versions and does not condone piracy. (GitHub)

• Verify your ROM hash: (you can skip this)

  • US 1.0 SHA‑1: D8B1088520F7C5F81433292A9258C1184AFA1457

  • US 1.1 (Rev A) SHA‑1: 09F0D105F476B00EFA5303A3EBC42E60A7753B7A
    You can check at the checksum page linked in the README. If your file is .n64, convert it to .z64 using the tool referenced there. (GitHub)

---

1) Download Starship (Software to run Game on your PC)

Grab the latest release build (“Barnard Alfa” as of May 25, 2025) from the repo’s Releases page.

---

2) First‑run setup (assets auto‑generate now)

“Barnard Alfa” added built‑in O2R asset generation, so you no longer have to run a separate extractor. On first launch you’ll be prompted to select your (verified) ROM; Starship will generate the required asset file and boot the game. (GitHub)

Platform-specific steps:

• Windows

  1. Extract the ZIP to a folder (e.g., C:\Games\Starship).

  2. Run starship.exe and pick your US 1.0 or 1.1 .z64 ROM when prompted. (GitHub)

• Linux

  1. Extract the ZIP.

  2. Make the AppImage executable (chmod +x starship.appimage) and run it; select your ROM. (GitHub)

• macOS (as of September 13, 2025 still not available)

  1. Extract the ZIP.

  2. Run starship, then select your ROM. (On first run, you may need to OK Gatekeeper prompts.) (GitHub)

Nintendo Switch (homebrew): run a PC release once to generate sf64.o2r, then copy that to your SD card for the Switch build. (GitHub)

---

3) Recommended settings (smooth visuals on modern GPUs) (extras)

• Graphics backend:

  • Windows: DirectX 11 is the default and generally fastest.

  • macOS: Metal is the default.

  • Any platform: OpenGL is available if you hit a driver-specific crash. Switch backends in Settings → Graphics; or edit starship.cfg.json and set "Backend" id to 3 with name "OpenGL" (DX11 is id: 2, Metal is id: 4). Restart after changing. (GitHub)

• Widescreen/HUD: Starship supports widescreen and even HUD aspect ratio customization (so the HUD doesn’t stretch). Find it in the settings; it’s listed among Barnard Alfa features. (GitHub)

• Audio: 5.1 surround output is supported in Barnard Alfa. Pick your preferred output device in OS audio settings and in-game. (GitHub)

• Quality-of-life: You’ll also find options like inverting analog Y, skip ending after seen once, accessibility to disable boss screen flashes, and more—added in Barnard Alfa. (GitHub)

---

4) Controls & hotkeys

• Default keyboard mapping (quick reference):

  • N64 A/B/Z/Start → X/C/Z/Space

  • Analog stick → WASD

  • C‑Buttons → TFGH

  • D‑Pad → Arrow keys

  • Useful shortcuts: F1 (toggle menubar), F4 (reset), F11 (fullscreen), Tab (toggle alternate assets). (GitHub)

• Controllers are supported and mappings improved in the latest release. You can remap in the in‑game menu. (GitHub)

5) Mods, HD assets, and custom packs

Starship loads .o2r / .otr packs from the mods folder. Drop your packs there and enable them in‑game. The README also references tools for creating your own asset packs. (GitHub)

6) Troubleshooting quick fixes

• “Unsupported ROM” / game won’t generate assets → Re‑verify your SHA‑1 matches US 1.0 or 1.1 and that your ROM is .z64 (use the converter referenced in the README if needed). (GitHub)

• Crash on startup / black screen → Switch backend to OpenGL in starship.cfg.json (id: 3) or via the menu, then restart. (GitHub)

• Audio crackle (Mac/Linux) → Fixed in Barnard Alfa; make sure you’re on that release (v2.0.0). (GitHub)

• General bugs → Check or file an issue on the GitHub tracker from the Releases page notes. (GitHub)

• Community help → Ask in the official Discord (Starship Support channels). (GitHub)

7) Building from source (optional)

If you prefer compiling yourself, the repo includes BUILDING docs. Follow those for platform‑specific prerequisites and CMake steps; or use the nightly CI builds for playtesting only (they may be buggy). (GitHub)

---

TL;DR for a Windows 3080 rig

1. Download Starship v2.0.0 Barnard Alfa from Releases and extract. (GitHub)

2. Verify your US 1.0 or 1.1 .z64 ROM’s SHA‑1 matches the README values. (GitHub)

3. Launch starship.exe → select ROM → assets auto‑generate → play. (GitHub)

4. If anything’s glitchy, switch Backend to OpenGL (menu or starship.cfg.json). (GitHub)