PS1 Research

PlayStation research

Unless stated otherwise, PS1 results are static-confirmed, not runtime-confirmed. Target executable: SLUS_004.76.

For the standing phase order, experiments, and exit gates for a future full port after N64 1.0 is complete, see N64 -> PS1 port planning and strategy. This page remains the owner of PS1 technical findings.

Executable and memory layout

Property	Value
Payload load	0x80010000
Entry point	0x80090E70
Declared payload end	0x800D8000
Initial stack	0x801FFFF0
Startup clear end / supported overlay base	0x80130FF8

The large apparent interval below the stack is not certified free memory. A PS1 port needs runtime allocation/overlay validation before reserving anything.

Resource directory

The executable has a 207-entry directory: location table 0x80012F28, size table 0x80013264. IDs 0x00..0x1B are 28 movie references with size zero in this directory; IDs 0x1C..0xCE are 179 files whose declared sizes match the extracted resources.

ID	File	Size
0x20	FAST.BIN	135,508
0x28	HULK.BIN	180,748
0x90	MKSZ.BIN	235,144
0x92	MONK2.BIN	142,308
0x9C	QUANCHI.BIN	323,092
0x9E	SCORPION.BIN	260,872
0x9F	SHINNOK.BIN	190,192
0xA1	WATERGOD.BIN	221,112
0xA2	WINDGOD.BIN	218,756

Stage selector

Component	Address
Selector	0x8002A688
SELECT LEVEL string	0x800136F4
11 label pointers	0x800AC40C
Selected index	0x800D8150
Confirm handler	0x80031E98
Normal title START call	0x8002A9E0

The label order matches N64. Activation and a safe eight-stage mapping remain runtime-untested.

Pickups and inventory

PS1 pickup manager 0x8005499C uses the same 0x30-byte record architecture and the same 84 ordinary-location boundary. The stage-local resource-table root is 0x800D82F4.

Callback	Meaning
0x800547CC	Potion
0x800547FC	Shield
0x8005482C	Eye
0x8005485C	Formula
0x8005488C	Herbs
0x800548BC	Health urn
0x800548EC	Extra-life family
0x80054960	Strength urn
around 0x800545A4/0x80054654	Generic key/special paths

The ten-word inventory is at 0x800ACE28; insertion is 0x8004C0B0. IDs 0x00..0x24 correspond closely to N64; 0x25 Power Upgrade is not a stock item.

Enemy streams and resources

PS1 flow is 0x8003955C -> 0x80039A3C -> 0x80039B50 -> 0x80041BF0; current stream pointer 0x800D7E80; opcode table 0x80013940.

Stage/branch	Stream
Temple	0x80010000
Earth	0x80010178
Water	0x8001025C
Wind	0x800103A4
Fortress ordinary	0x80010684
Prison	0x800108F8
Fire ordinary	0x80010B6C
Fire special	0x80010D30
Bridge	0x80010D58
Fortress special	0x80010F64

The key fighter descriptor offsets match N64: type 1 0x22AD8, type 9 0x2C084, type A 0x20FC8. PS1 slots/files are type 1 slot 0x800D7F98 -> file 0x92 MONK2; type 9 slot 0x800D8200 -> 0x28 HULK; type A slot 0x800D81EC -> 0x20 FAST.

A smallest future proof would change the first normal-Fire type at VA 0x80010B84 / extracted-file offset 0x1384 from 0A00 to 0900, with a clean guarded build and runtime test.

Test Scorpion, Undead Scorpion, and shared AI/control data

The PS1 Test Characters table is at 0x800AC43C, with 25 records of 0x1C bytes and names beginning at 0x800AC6F8.

Two entries that must remain distinct:

Entry	Fighter type	Resource identity	Current interpretation
SCORPION test entry	0x12	MKSZ.BIN alternate palette	Sub-Zero-family test/AI actor, not a dormant playable Scorpion
UNDEAD SCORP	0x11	genuine SCORPION.BIN	stronger candidate for real Scorpion-specific enemy actions

The generic fighter resource/palette table at 0x8009034C resolves type 0x04 and type 0x12 into adjacent palette records inside MKSZ.BIN, while type 0x11 points into SCORPION.BIN. This is why the visible yellow Test Scorpion should not be conflated with the dedicated Undead Scorpion resource.

Type-specific synthetic AI/control data also has a strong N64 counterpart:

Concept	PS1	N64 counterpart	Evidence
per-type AI/control table	0x80010FC8	0x800AF340	endian-equivalent data
type-0x12 list	0x800114E8	0x800AF860	confirmed data match
first type-0x12 condition record	0x80011554	0x800AF8CC	unique matching bytes
common descriptor sentinel	0x80012B08	0x800B0E80	confirmed

The PS1 evaluator path includes 0x80075B84 -> 0x80075C6C -> 0x8003D6BC -> 0x8003D7AC. The records are spatial/condition-oriented AI descriptors, not player command strings such as directional special-move inputs.

Normal Sub-Zero's executable contains player-facing move/help strings for specials such as Ice Blast, Ice Clone, Super Slide, Air Ice Blast, and Polar Blast, but those strings are UI data rather than the runtime command matcher.

No player-reachable spear/teleport command path is confirmed for type 0x12. The dedicated type-0x11 Undead Scorpion remains the correct target for future Scorpion-specific attack tracing.

Save format

Memory-card file: BASLUS-00476SUBZERO, image size 0x900. Checksum routine 0x80090B94 zeros the checksum field, adds 0x258, then XORs 0x240 words; initialization is 0x80090BCC.

Each save record is 0x78 bytes:

Offset	Meaning
+0x04	Stage (0x800D76A8)
+0x08	Starting lives
+0x0C	XP (0x800D7DC4)
+0x10..+0x37	Ten inventory words
+0x38..+0x57	Eight progression values
+0x70	Lives (0x800D7D48)
+0x74	Continues (0x800E8184)

Current HP is in the player structure at +0x354, not in the stable global save fields.

UI and test-character findings

Text renderer 0x8004ACD4, glyph renderer 0x8004A920, width 0x8004AEEC. Candidate UI function 0x80049530 is only partially mapped and is not certified as an always-on HUD hook.

The Test Characters table is 0x800AC43C, 25 records of 0x1C; names start 0x800AC6F8; selection is 0x800D7E48. Index 13 SCORPION is type 0x12 and uses MKSZ.BIN, indicating an AI/test system rather than a live player. Index 14 UNDEAD SCORP is type 0x11 and uses genuine SCORPION.BIN, making it the stronger resource candidate. Fields +0x14/+0x18 are audio setup, not move-command pointers. No player-reachable spear or teleport has been confirmed.

See N64–PS1 comparison for safe transfer rules.