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Fan recreating Kojima's Snatcher in Crysis Wars

by David Hinkle { Jul 8th 2009 at 2:30PM }

One of Hideo Kojima's lesser-known works (to most English-speaking folk, anyway) is Snatcher, a game released to the West on the Sega-CD/Mega-CD way back in 1994. Featuring cyberpunk elements, this adventure game is fondly remembered by some, and the focal point for a new mod in Crysis Wars.

ModDB user ASH172 has been working on this project since February of last year, all by his lonesome. The mod, which looks to recreate the classic game in full, was started using Crytek's CryEngine2, SandBox2 and SDK tools, but now ASH172 is looking to transfer the project over to the Crysis Wars engine, SDK, and tools.

Snatcher enjoys quite the cult following, and in the right circles will net you a stabbing should you diss it. So, in the interest of internal organ preservation, we're totally down with this.

[Thanks, Buffel!]

Ben Heck molds Jasper Xbox 360 into new and improved laptop

by David Hinkle { Jul 6th 2009 at 11:45AM }

Ben Heck, the amazing modder who invented the Xbox 360 laptop, has done it again, this time fashioning a Jasper Xbox 360 (his second time fooling with a Jasper motherboard) into a new and improved slammer. Featuring a sleeker look and a flush CD drive, the new laptop also adds an IR port for use with the Xbox 360 media remote. Oh, and digital potentiometer volume control, because it's super cool.

Head past the break for a brief video showing off the new device.

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This is how you make a portable SNES

by David Hinkle { Jul 3rd 2009 at 1:15PM }

We often want to play SNES, but our busy up-and-go lifestyle of blogging for Joystiq doesn't allow it. Thankfully, a modder over at Retroactive.be came up with a solution: the portable SNES you see above. Sure, it's not our first time seeing such a mod, but it is definitely one of the most stylish. Why, we haven't been so blown away since we've seen this same mod made out of wood!

Head past the break for a video showing off the device, then hit up our gallery below for some other impressive retro mods.

[Via Pocket Gamer]

Gallery: Retro Mods

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USB SNES cartridge adapter will keep your PC clean

by Griffin McElroy { Jun 21st 2009 at 1:30PM }

We all know that emulation download sites are disease-riddled virtual cathouses, designed to inject your unassuming computer with any number of viruses, spywares and trojan horses -- that's why we can't help but be intrigued by this recently unveiled USB adapter for SNES game cartridges, which was lovingly crafted by modder matthias_h.

The adapter looks incredibly easy to use -- plug in a game cart, then boot or copy the SMC file found therein. Just like that, you're playing your favorite SNES titles -- and without contracting incurable cases of e-syphilis from "russian porn sites." Check out the video demo after the jump!

[Via Engadget]

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Mulleted mystery man invents PC VR Game Gun

by Griffin McElroy { Jun 21st 2009 at 11:30AM }

It's an indisputable fact that magical things can come in mullet-clad packages. The collected works of Billy Ray Cyrus, the 1994 hit Beastie Boys track "Mullet Head" -- and now, from yet another unlikely, mulleted source: The PC VR Game Gun. If you'd like to cast off the veil of time and peer into the unthinkable future of video gaming, the YouTube video posted after the break should serve as an adequate portal into the world of things yet to come.

By merging a toy gun, a PC gamepad, a LCD screen and a Gyration Air Mouse, the nameless modder created a pretty clever (and relatively inexpensive) head tracking system that's just perfect for first-person shooters -- especially F.E.A.R. on the highest difficulty setting. Sorry -- you can't play it on easy. The gun runs on extreme high octane action.

[Via Engadget]

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PC version of Left 4 Dead getting custom level support next week

by Griffin McElroy { Jun 20th 2009 at 1:30PM }

We've heard about the impressive capabilities of the in-beta Left 4 Dead Authoring Tools -- and recently, we've seen the SDK's fantastic handiwork -- but we haven't had a chance to get our hands on it yet. Luckily, Valve is dropping an update for the zombocalypse sim on Steam next week; one that will give everyone access to the authoring tools, and allow everyone to play the community's homegrown campaigns.

The level hunting process sounds simple enough -- amateur level designers bundle all their maps, posters, models, and textures into a single .VPK file, which players must download and drop into the game's "addons" folder. Voila! Now you have access to even more ~~Witch/car alarm shooting ranges~~ err ... survival zones.

Update: It's here.

[Via Evil Avatar]

Valve releases Team Fortress 2 master maps for modding

by Griffin McElroy { Jun 16th 2009 at 7:40PM }

Whether you're a multitalented master of map modification or an acutely amateurish architect, perk up your ears -- Valve just uploaded 10 original Team Fortress 2 maps into the Source developer kit for your modding pleasure. Said maps include Lumberyard, Ravine, Badlands, Dustbowl, Granary, Gravelpit, 2Fort, Badwater, Goldrush, and Hydro.

If your modding experience is limited, you can use these pre-made maps as a canvas for subtle weapon placement and blockade changes, easing you into the finer points of environmental creation. For more advanced world-shapers, you can study the intricate design of these levels to learn how the mapmaking professionals at Valve do they business.

The Beancat: Nunchuk brings mobility to a bean bag chair

by David Hinkle { Jun 9th 2009 at 2:00AM }

If there is one fault we'd have to say most chairs possess nowadays, it's that they're just too darn stationary. Well, they used to be, anyway, as some ingenious gentlemen have come up with a cool chair mod in what they have affectionately dubbed The Beancat, a labor of love that incorporates the Wii's Nunchuk controller into a device that not only controls Mario on-screen, but also keeps you from having to get up when you want to grab a drink from the fridge.

The chair itself moves a lot faster than we would have imagined, and looks like it isn't the toughest thing in the world to build, though you should know it isn't the cheapest mod in the world should you be on the lookout for some bean bag-infused thrills of your own. Head past the break to check out some video of it in action, and be sure to hit the source link below if you've got the courage to build one of your own.

[Via Engadget]

Gallery: 5 Great Wiimote Mods

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A portable NES with 76 games? You shouldn't have!

by Justin McElroy { May 29th 2009 at 5:05PM }

Oh dear reader, this gift of yours was completely unnecessarily, but appreciated all the same! How did you know that we wanted a Nintendo-on-a-chip handheld with 76 games built around a Super Joy III KIRF TV game with a 2.5-inch display?

And how did you ever get the dude who made it (Ben Heck forum member Brian Hender) to part with it? No, you're right, it's rude of us to ask. We're just happy you did it.

[Via Engadget]

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Rock Band guitar mod turns on the magic of invisible light

by JC Fletcher { May 15th 2009 at 3:00AM }

Is the Rock Band strum bar too ... tangible for you? YouTube user adderd019 swapped out all that tiresome plastic in his Rock Band guitar for a beam of infrared light, turning it into an optical theremin of sorts.

The way he explains it, it sounds simple -- merely add an LED emitter and a receiver to the space where the strum bar usually goes, and then wire the controller up so that it registers a strum whenever the light beam is broken. Anyone can do that, right? The result is a guitar that strums when you wave your hand through the strum bar area. See the video after the break and marvel at the less-clicky, vaguely magical guitar!

[Thanks, Comet!]

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PSP mod integrates mouse support

by David Hinkle { May 5th 2009 at 3:00PM }

What's the PSP missing? No, not a second analog nub (or hardware refresh), it's missing a mouse!

PSP hacker TokyoDrift found a way to map the handheld's buttons to a mouse, using nothing more than a PS2 mouse, an ATMEL ATmega8 chip-sporting breadboard, and a massive brain. PSP users looking to do this themselves can find all of the steps at the pspfreak.de forums. Of course, it goes without saying that you should probably be somewhat comfortable with homebrew before trying this.

If you want to see it in action before attempting it, or you would like to know why someone would do this, check out some video past the break.

[Via Engadget]

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GreenWorld mod spruces up Fallout 3's wasteland

by Griffin McElroy { Apr 12th 2009 at 8:00PM }

There are many accolades one can lay upon Bethesda's post-apocalyptic RPG Fallout 3, but it's impossible to commend the game for its lush, rich environments. Pools of standing, radioactive water? Yuck. Shelled-out buildings inhabited by sallow-skinned mutants? No thanks. Go ahead and say it was intentionally designed that way to create an unsettling, hopeless atmosphere -- we know a sorry excuse when we hear one.

Thankfully, a modder by the name of Khyrin recently released "GreenWorld," a Fallout 3 patch that brings some much needed arboreal splendor to Washington D.C.'s unsightly landscape. You can download the mod here, then watch as Fallout 3's grotesque, sepia toned pallette is exchanged for something a little more viridian.

[Via Ripten]

Where Ben Heck's C64 laptop is going, it doesn't need roads

by David Hinkle { Apr 6th 2009 at 6:30PM }

Ben Heck is taking a trip back in time with his latest mod, back to a time when DeLoreans were in production and Teddy Kaczynski was still buying sunglasses and hoodies by the truckload. It was 1982 when the C64 emerged, and Ben Heck's latest laptop mod recaptures the magic of that time's bulky electronics in a new bulky electronics device. Check out some video of this bad boy in action past the break.

Gallery: Retro Mods

[Via Engadget]

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Modder crafts working Pip-Boy 3000 using iPod Touch

by Griffin McElroy { Apr 6th 2009 at 6:00PM }

Many gamers were underwhelmed by the replica Pip-Boy 3000 digital clock that was included in the Amazon-exclusive Fallout 3 Survival Edition. Fortunately, a clever modder by the name of Otaku Joe had the presence of mind to rip out the gadget's chronometric guts and replace them with an iPod Touch, bringing us one step closer to a fully realized wrist-mounted health tracker, inventory manager, quest chronicler and, of course, old-timey radio. You can check it out in a hilariously awkward video preview after the break.

[Via Kotaku]

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Killing Floor mod gets standalone Steam release

by Xav de Matos { Mar 22nd 2009 at 6:15PM }

The popular UT 2004 mod, Killing Floor will get an upgraded, standalone release on Steam, courtesy of Tripwire Interactive. According to Voodoo Extreme, Tripwire was approached by the mod's original designer to create a port of the survival-horror shooter that would run on Red Orchestra. Tripwire decided Killing Floor could do better and offered to purchase the rights to the game and help the original team bring an upgraded version to Steam in standalone form.

Like Left 4 Dead, Killing Floor -- which originally released in 2005 -- features enemy hordes making violent rushes to halt player advancement. The game will feature six-player co-op play, nine different monster types (varying from physical predators to weapon wielding foes) and a stockpile of different weapons for players to use. Killing Floor also includes a persistent perk system allowing players to set themselves apart from other survivors with skill and ability upgrades -- something we think L4D's Louis would have loved to have, to help fight off his most traumatic attack. No release date has been announced.

[Via BigDownload]