# Snowboard Kids 2: an LLM-assisted N64 matching decompilation

> A public matching decompilation of the N64 game Snowboard Kids 2, begun in 2024 with community decompilation tools. The author’s dated posts document Claude, Codex and GLM workflows, including headless one-shot loops, similarity-based function scheduling and hook-guarded, hash-checked builds, through a reported complete function match.

- Type: Case study
- Targets: Game
- Category: Independent reconstruction cases
- Relationship: Independent reconstruction project
- Sources reviewed: 2026-10-17
- Added to the catalog: 2026-10-17
- Original resource: <https://github.com/cdlewis/snowboardkids2-decomp>
- Primary source: <https://github.com/cdlewis/snowboardkids2-decomp/blob/352a26fae08b3394e11f5e2b589e41a572d53288/README.md>
- Catalog page: <https://awesomerea.org/resources/snowboardkids2-decomp-case/>
- Record JSON: <https://awesomerea.org/resources/snowboardkids2-decomp-case/record.json>
- Chinese version: [简体中文](https://awesomerea.org/zh/resources/snowboardkids2-decomp-case/index.md)

## Requirements & limits

- **Prerequisites:** Building needs the user’s own big-endian Snowboard Kids 2 ROM, make, Python 3, MIPS binutils and the toolchain installed by make setup; the README reports testing only on x86 Debian/Ubuntu and macOS. It states the repository has no game assets or assembly, although the reviewed tree tracks menu-sprite PNG and palette files under assets/.
- **Testing evidence:** Progress figures are author-reported. The 2026-02-16 post describes matched code rising from about 25% to 58% with one-shot loops, then to about 75%, with 124 functions left; the 2026-05-17 post reports every function matched. The 2025-11-27 post’s 79% figure was a projection.
- **Limits:** Byte-matching C is not documented or idiomatic source. The 2026-05-17 post notes remaining __asm__ coercions, many generated names and structures still needing cleanup, and graphics/audio assets mostly handled as binary blobs; the 2026-02-16 post describes brittle agent matches.
- **Attribution:** Agent assistance is not quantified beyond the posts. The 2026-05-17 post dates the first commit to September 2024 and credits four named N64 decomp community members with significant contributions, especially across the final ten functions; the 2025-11-04 post describes a human-led loop. The work relies on community tools such as splat, m2c, decomp.me, asm-differ and decomp-permuter.
- **License:** No license file is present at the reviewed commit. The June 2026 Snowboard Kids 2: Recompiled release and the August 2026 decompilation of the original Snowboard Kids are separate projects.

## Primary sources

1. <https://github.com/cdlewis/snowboardkids2-decomp/blob/352a26fae08b3394e11f5e2b589e41a572d53288/README.md>
2. <https://blog.chrislewis.au/using-coding-agents-to-decompile-nintendo-64-games/>
3. <https://blog.chrislewis.au/the-unexpected-effectiveness-of-one-shot-decompilation-with-claude/>
4. <https://blog.chrislewis.au/the-long-tail-of-llm-assisted-decompilation/>
5. <https://blog.chrislewis.au/snowboard-kids-2-is-100-decompiled/>
6. <https://github.com/cdlewis/snowboardkids2-decomp/tree/352a26fae08b3394e11f5e2b589e41a572d53288/assets/sprite_sheets/menuUiSprites>

## More in Games

- [Snowboard Kids: an agent-assisted N64 matching decompilation](https://awesomerea.org/resources/snowboardkids-matching-decomp-case/index.md) · Case study
- [Sonic Advance 1 & 2: a matching GBA decompilation with widescreen ports](https://awesomerea.org/resources/sonic-advance-1-2-decomp-port-case/index.md) · Case study
- [Sonic Advance 3: an AI-assisted match of one enemy module](https://awesomerea.org/resources/sa3-marun-ai-decomp-case/index.md) · Case study
- [Star Fox 64: a complete matching Nintendo 64 decompilation](https://awesomerea.org/resources/sf64-matching-decomp-case/index.md) · Case study
- [Super Mario 64 DS: matching decompilation with relocation checks](https://awesomerea.org/resources/sm64ds-decomp-case/index.md) · Case study
- [Super Mario 64: ROM reconstruction with explicit comparison gates](https://awesomerea.org/resources/sm64-decomp-case/index.md) · Case study

## About this entry

The description was reviewed against primary sources.
Original editorial content: MIT. Linked projects, papers and assets retain their own rights and licenses.