Hack a day has posted up a simple rapid-fire mod for xbox360:
Back in May we mentioned AcidMods' spitfire mod that enabled rapid fire (amongst other things) and was undetectable by Xbox Live. The parts list was quite low, needing just a PIC16F84A and a few other components, which led to third parties selling controller mod kits on eBay. The AcidMods team has figured out a new way to enable rapid fire using just a momentary switch and the necessary wire to hook it up. All you need to do is wire in the switch between the ground on the controller LED and the middle pin on the trigger. The only caveat is that because it's hardwired to the LED, you can only use the mod on the particular port you're using the controller on.
The reason it's so simple is because the Xbox 360 controller uses pulse width modulation to "dim" the LED on the controller, creating a rapid high/low signal. When the momentary button is depressed, it routes this rapid high/low signal to the trigger input on the controller, which is then input to the Xbox 360. Hit the read link for a couple more videos explaining this hack.
While this modification is undetectable by Xbox Live, it does create an unfair advantage in multiplayer gaming and could result in your account being banned.
source http://www.hackaday.com/2008/07/28/simple-xbox-360-rapid-fire-mod/
Thursday, July 31, 2008
Wii Warm Up: MotionPlus or minus?
nintendowii fanboy posted this up on motion plus:
We've already discussed MotionPlus a bit, but now it's time to talk logistics. While we think MotionPlus will add a lot of depth to many games (even something as simple as Sword Play), we're not sure if third parties incorporating it into their games is a good thing. Will people still be able to play MotionPlus games without actually owning the peripheral, or must there be multiple control schemes? And, how should reviewers base their reviews of games, since it's likely that many people will be left MotionPlus-less?
At any rate, do you think third parties and Wii owners are ready for these games to take advantage of the add-on?
source http://www.nintendowiifanboy.com/2008/07/31/wii-warm-up-motionplus-or-minus/
We've already discussed MotionPlus a bit, but now it's time to talk logistics. While we think MotionPlus will add a lot of depth to many games (even something as simple as Sword Play), we're not sure if third parties incorporating it into their games is a good thing. Will people still be able to play MotionPlus games without actually owning the peripheral, or must there be multiple control schemes? And, how should reviewers base their reviews of games, since it's likely that many people will be left MotionPlus-less?
At any rate, do you think third parties and Wii owners are ready for these games to take advantage of the add-on?
source http://www.nintendowiifanboy.com/2008/07/31/wii-warm-up-motionplus-or-minus/
Sunday, July 27, 2008
Mad catz to produce rayman raving rabbids accessories
Mad Catz has secured a licence from ubisoft to produce Raymam Raving Rabbids for xbox360, wii and other systems.
"Rayman is one of the videogame worlds most iconic heroes, and we look forward to bringing the mischivious fun of the new game series to a new line of branded videogame accessories." Said Darren richardson, president and chief executive a mad catz.
Source Mad catz
"Rayman is one of the videogame worlds most iconic heroes, and we look forward to bringing the mischivious fun of the new game series to a new line of branded videogame accessories." Said Darren richardson, president and chief executive a mad catz.
Source Mad catz
Saturday, July 26, 2008
GamesX update
The Joypad hacking site GamesX has updated after nearly a year:
I've added the X68000 duel D-pad controller shematic to the wiki.
This unique pad uses a 74157 chip to provide two d-pads for Crazy Climber and Libble Rabble.
I've also put together an xbox 360 pad mod so I could use my old Atari joysticks to play Pac Man championship edition. It works perectly and makes a lot of 360 2D games WAY more fun. (Hey Microsoft, your D-pad sucks!)
Also updated or added the following:
PC Engine controller Schermatic
Megadrive/Genesis 3 button schermatic
sourceGamesX
I've added the X68000 duel D-pad controller shematic to the wiki.
This unique pad uses a 74157 chip to provide two d-pads for Crazy Climber and Libble Rabble.
I've also put together an xbox 360 pad mod so I could use my old Atari joysticks to play Pac Man championship edition. It works perectly and makes a lot of 360 2D games WAY more fun. (Hey Microsoft, your D-pad sucks!)
Also updated or added the following:
PC Engine controller Schermatic
Megadrive/Genesis 3 button schermatic
sourceGamesX
Wednesday, July 23, 2008
British Army Picks 360 Over PS3
As you can see from their recruitment video, the UK Army is using the Xbox360 controller to fly their robot assassin planes. Do want!
In ten years, there will be no reason to have a pilot in a combat plane at all, and not only are we witnessing the beginning of that shift, gaming is a driving force behind it.It makes perfect sense, after all. Game controllers have been evolving for over 20 years, becoming more ergonomic and sophisticated every generation. The 360 controller is also USB-based and has both Windows and Linux drivers. Plug and play, baby. Now who out there knows how i can get my hands on one of those UAV's? And no, not by joining the Army. I prefer virtual bullets and plentiful health packs, thankyouverymuch.
EA suffered with "imprecise" Wii controls
EA boss man John Riccitiello has admitted that EA has "suffered from ... imprecise control on Wii," but looks forward to the improvements made by Nintendo's new Wii MotionPlus peripheral."The Wii MotionPlus is going to be good," said Riccitiello, adding: "If I had to pick one thing we suffered from, it was imprecise control on the Wii."That meant certain genres were never going to perform as well on the Wii. There are a couple of franchises in our booth. Go look at Dead Space and imagine playing that game with a wand and a Nunchuk," he told Venture Beat.
Actually, we can't see why that wouldn't work just fine. Resident Evil 4 worked well, if not better
Actually, we can't see why that wouldn't work just fine. Resident Evil 4 worked well, if not better
than on the standard controller of the GameCube original. So did Zelda.But Riccitiello says: "If they improve the precision, then you could have a good experience."Wii MotionPlus is a small peripheral that clips onto the bottom of the Remote adding what Nintendo says is "true 1:1 response". It'll be bundled with Wii Sports Resort out next year.
Nyko Frontman Compatability Chart
During E3 we spoke with third-party peripheral manufacturer Nyko about its line of FrontMan guitars and which games the different versions were compatible with. We did a quick and dirty post on what we were told during the E3 madness, but Nyko just sent over the chart above, which, admittedly, is much easier to understand.For first-party guitar compatibility, check out our Guitar Hero / Rock Band guitar compatibility matrix v2. We're sure to have v3 available as soon as we confirm Rock Band 2, Guitar Hero: World Tour and Rock Revolution guitar compatibility.Source http://www.joystiq.com/2008/07/22/nyko-frontman-guitar-compatibility-chart/
Soul Calibur IV Sticks
Hori have their Soul Calibur IV stick coming out this month on the 29th July for Xbox360, and Playstation 3. The Xbox 360 version includes an expansion port so you can add your headset.
With the PS3 version including the PS button.
NES crammed into a light gun
[GonzoMPM-1] Has gutted an NES knock off called Super Joy III and crammed it inside of a light gun. Inspired by a daughter that loves duck hunt, he wanted to consolidate the package and make it more portable. He's managed to pull off some nice finish, it look almost professional in the picture above. The unit is powered by 3 AAA batteries in the handle. The game system works just fine, and he claims that the controls are actually more responsive now. The light gun works as well if you have a CRT television around. You many notice that there is no cartridge slot. There really isn't a need for one in this mod. The Super Joy III comes equipped with 76 games on the board. He notes that he can make an external cart at some point, but may leave it off in favor of the compact design.While he acknowledges that this is not a completely self contained gaming device, we feel it earns honorable mention for being cool.Nintendo Facing Ban on Some Wii, GameCube Controllers
If you haven't yet gotten around to buying a Wii Classic Controller or old GameCube pad (for Virtual Console use, Smash Bros, what have you), then you might want to do so quickly. Bloomberg reports that Nintendo may be forced to stop selling the controllers as a result of losing a bid to overturn a $21 million patent-infringement court ruling.
The lawsuit concerns the analog sticks in the Classic Controller and GameCube controllers, which Texas-based Anascape Ltd. claims to hold a patent on that Nintendo violated. The court has ruled in favor of Anascape, and U.S. District Judge Ron Clark has rejected Nintendo's request for a new trial. As a result, Clark said he will put a ban on the sale of the controllers (which includes sales of GameCube systems) starting tomorrow, July 23, unless Nintendo posts a bond or puts royalties into an escrow account.
Nintendo, however, is already planning on appealing the decision in a U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit, which would put the ban on hold while the case is being heard. "Nintendo was already planning to appeal this case to the Federal Circuit court," said Nintendo spokesman Charlie Scibetta. "The recent ruling by the trial court does not impact that decision."
While the ruling concerns the analog sticks on the controllers, it doesn't include sales of the Nunchuck attachment for the Wii remote, which was deemed not to violate Anascape's patent. According to Doug Cawley, Anascape's lawyer, his client argued for the ban because Anascape wants to enter the market itself, and they claim that Nintendo has "clogged the channel."
Nintendo isn't the only platform holder that's tangled with Anascape, though -- Sony licensed their patent in 2004, and Microsoft settled a looming lawsuit with them out of court on May 1 before the trial began.
The lawsuit concerns the analog sticks in the Classic Controller and GameCube controllers, which Texas-based Anascape Ltd. claims to hold a patent on that Nintendo violated. The court has ruled in favor of Anascape, and U.S. District Judge Ron Clark has rejected Nintendo's request for a new trial. As a result, Clark said he will put a ban on the sale of the controllers (which includes sales of GameCube systems) starting tomorrow, July 23, unless Nintendo posts a bond or puts royalties into an escrow account.
Nintendo, however, is already planning on appealing the decision in a U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit, which would put the ban on hold while the case is being heard. "Nintendo was already planning to appeal this case to the Federal Circuit court," said Nintendo spokesman Charlie Scibetta. "The recent ruling by the trial court does not impact that decision."
While the ruling concerns the analog sticks on the controllers, it doesn't include sales of the Nunchuck attachment for the Wii remote, which was deemed not to violate Anascape's patent. According to Doug Cawley, Anascape's lawyer, his client argued for the ban because Anascape wants to enter the market itself, and they claim that Nintendo has "clogged the channel."
Nintendo isn't the only platform holder that's tangled with Anascape, though -- Sony licensed their patent in 2004, and Microsoft settled a looming lawsuit with them out of court on May 1 before the trial began.
The future of Wii Fit
The US patent and trademark office has revealed a file by Nintendo for a controller that senses vital signs, including blood pressure.The filing'summarises' what the device can do in a lengthy sentence. Here it is:"A wireless controller for a video game console is disclosed and includes a
main body including a measurement unit including a control circuit including a first amplification circuit, a control IC, a second amplification circuit, an ADC, a display circuit, and pins for setting, a top recess, a display, two first measurement devices adapted to contact the fingers as the hand holding the main body for measuring pulse and body temperature of a user playing a video game on the video game console, and a rotation counter for counting the number of rotations of the main body; a control unit mounted in the recess; a band including two second measurement devices for measuring blood pressure and pulse respectively by wrapping the band around the wrist; and a cable interconnecting the main body and the band."
Blood pressure, pulse and body temperature values will also be
shown on the
display whilst the 'game' is played.It sounds a lot like a complete
medical check-up kit for Wii. Our natural assumption is that this is the patent
for whatever peripheral is to be bundled with the inevitable Wii Fitter.
Source http://www.computerandvideogames.com/article.php?id=193794
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