Shiren the Wanderer 2: Shiren's Castle and the Oni Invasion

Will a Shiren 2 cartridge still save my game?

Shiren 2 saves to a small coin battery sealed inside the cartridge — the same CR2032 type used in many N64 games. These batteries were designed to last fifteen to twenty years; the game is now twenty-six years old. If a cartridge forgets your progress the moment the power goes off, the battery is likely exhausted. Replacing it clears any saved data on the cartridge, so back up first: Shiren 2 lets you copy up to three save files (called 'journals') to a Controller Pak. Copy your saves there, replace the battery, then copy them back. When buying a used cartridge, it's worth asking whether the save battery has already been replaced.

Was Shiren 2 ever released in English?

No. Shiren the Wanderer 2 was released exclusively in Japan and never received an official English localization. The entire game — menus, dialogue, item descriptions — is in Japanese. Playing it without Japanese fluency requires either a fan translation patch (if one exists) or external guides. The Nintendo 64 has no region lock on the hardware level, so a Japanese cartridge will run on any N64 console worldwide, but the language barrier remains.

My Shiren 2 cartridge won't start — what should I check?

The trouble is almost always dirty contacts, not a broken cartridge. Clean the gold pins on the bottom edge of the cartridge with a cotton swab dampened in 90%-or-higher isopropyl alcohol, wiping lengthwise along each pin. Let it dry completely before inserting it. Never blow into a cartridge — the moisture in your breath corrodes the contacts you're trying to clean. If cleaning doesn't help, the console's own cartridge slot may be oxidized; clean that separately with the same method.