Randnet DD [Model NUD-DRDJ-JPN]

In April 1999, Nintendo ended their partnership with St.GIGA which had created the Super Famicom's proprietary Satellaview online service in Japan, broadcasting from April 23, 1995, to June 30, 2000. The company then partnered with Japanese media company Recruit to develop the 64DD's completely new proprietary online service called Randnet (from "Recruit and Nintendo network"). The resulting equity-owned joint Japanese corporation was announced on June 30, 1999, as RandnetDD Co., Ltd.

Active only ever in Japan, from December 1, 1999 to February 28, 2001, the subscription fee included the dialup Internet service, 64DD system hardware, and a delivery schedule of game disks by mail. Reportedly, Nintendo and several third party game developers had originally planned multiplayer online gaming as being more important than even a web browser.

Nintendo had originally promised the following, ultimately undelivered, features:
Battle Mode: Play against other gamers and swap scores.
Observation Mode: Watch other players' game sessions.
Beta Test: Play sample levels from upcoming games.
Music Distribution: Listen to music, some of which was yet to be released in stores.

Beginning on November 11, 1999, membership registration for Randnet opened to a maximum of 100,000 subscribers on a "first come, first served" basis. The Randnet service was accessible only via a Nintendo 64 and 64DD setup, and the 64DD hardware was only purchasable by mail order along with a Randnet subscription; the peripheral was not stocked in any retail stores. The Randnet subscription service came bundled with the 64DD hardware and several games. It was all purchased at one time by filling out a mail order request form at select retail stores in Japan, with the hardware delivered soon and the games delivered as monthly nationwide releases over the following year.

The plan was available in two tiers: a purchase plan for users who want to buy only the 64DD to add to their existing Nintendo 64 system, and a rent-to-own plan for those who want both the 64DD and a special edition translucent black Nintendo 64 console. Randnet was launched with monthly payment plans for the service and hardware bundle: ¥2,500 per month for the purchase plan and ¥3,300 per month for rent-to-own for the first year and ¥1,500 per month for Randnet service thereafter. The service later eliminated the monthly payment model in favor of an annual prepaid model, at ¥30,000 for one year for outright purchase and ¥39,600 for the first year of rent-to-own. The 64DD and some later games eventually became available for purchase directly at retail.

As part of the subscription, the game disks were delivered not in the initial package but by mail on a schedule:
December 1999 had Doshin the Giant and Mario Artist: Paint Studio;
February 2000 had Randnet Disk, SimCity 64, and Mario Artist: Talent Studio;
April 2000 had F-Zero X Expansion Kit and Mario Artist: Polygon Studio.
The final Starter Kit subscription title Polygon Studio was suddenly delayed and then released on August 29, 2000.

One of the most substantial series of games to include Randnet support is the Mario Artist series, which allowed online users to swap their artwork creations with others. Contests and other special events occurred periodically. Papercraft was implemented by way of modelling the characters in Mario Artist: Polygon Studio and utilizing Mario Artist: Communication Kit to upload the model data to Randnet's online printing service. The user can then cut, fold, and adhere the resulting colored paper into a full-bodied 3D papercraft figure.

Because the 64DD hardware package was primarily sold with a mandatory subscription to Randnet, the service was fairly popular among the limited 64DD user base. Overall, the service didn't garner enough subscribers to justify its continued existence, and in October 2000, the service's impending closure was announced. The 64 Dream magazine reported a Nintendo public relations statement, which said that there had been approximately 15,000 Randnet subscribers at the time of this announcement, indicating that there had been at least that many hardware units sold to customers.

Nintendo offered to buy back all the Randnet related consumer hardware and to give free service to all users from the announcement of closure, until the day it actually went offline.

The Randnet service closed on February 28, 2001 and Nintendo's equity partnership with RandnetDD Co., Ltd. was liquidated from June 30, 2001 to January 31, 2002.