6/27/05

Sorry about the lack of updates, folks.  My time has been evenly split between finding a new job and playing emulators on my PSP.  I just tried a NeoGeo CD emulator last week which blew me away... it doesn't run at full speed just yet, and there's no sound, but man, you would not believe just how good NeoGeo games look on the system.  They're bursting with the bright colors that have long been missing from today's video games, and the screen, while not wide enough to fill the PSP's spacious screen completely, covers more real estate than other emulators on the system, without the need for ugly stretching.

I plan to have the PSP's most notable emulators reviewed by the end of the week in a special Blitz-exclusive feature, but right now, I need to prepare for an interview.  I'll see you guys in a couple of days!

6/23/05

Fed up with the drought of new software on the PSP?  Are recent releases like Smart Bomb and Rengoku just not keeping you entertained?  Wondering why you spent all that money on an undersupported handheld game system with a few extraneous features?

Well, don't put that system on Ebay just yet, my friend.  The wait for killer apps like Burnout Legends and Pursuit Force may be almost unbearable, but there's one thing that will help you get through it, and make you feel confident about your purchase.  That thing, of course, is the recent system exploit offered by this site.

Emulators and hobbyist-designed games on the PSP have been around for months, but they were a luxury many of the system's owners simply could not afford... until now, that is.  The new exploit allows any PSP console with the 1.50 firmware revision to run unlicensed software directly from their systems, without the awkward memory card swapping made necessary by the previous system hack.

The software is a cinch to use.  Just download the exploit file, then whatever emulators and games you'd like to try (this site offers a good variety of both).  Unzip the PSP software into seperate folders, then install the program inside the exploit file.  After your computer has restarted, plug your PSP into an available USB port, set it into USB mode, and run the program "KXPloit Tool".  You'll see a screen like this one:

In the first text window, enter the name of the emulator or other software you wish to install on your system.  Then click the ellipse to find where the software you've chosen resides.  The file should be named EBOOT.PBP.  Double click it to move to the next step.  Now, you'll need to choose the letter assigned to your PSP.  For instance, if you have a hard drive and two CD-ROM drives, your PSP would probably be given the letter F:.  Click the arrow in the drop down box next to the words "PSP Unit", then select the appropriate letter.  Finally, press the "Generate files" button to transfer the data to your PSP.

Here comes the fun part.  Now take your PSP out of USB mode, and select the option "Memory Stick", then "Games".  The software you've installed on your PSP will appear.  You'll also see some corrupted files, but don't worry about those... they only exist to fool the PSP into playing the software you've installed.  Select the emulator or game of your choice, then press the X button and you're off to the races!

That should keep you occupied for a while... it sure kept me busy!  In the next update, I'll offer my opinion of a handful of different emulators for the system.  Which ones are worth the limited space on the system's included 32M memory card, and which ones are so good you'll think about buying a higher capacity card to replace it?  Stay tuned to find out!

6/20/05

The year 1996 brought with it the first homebrew video games for classic systems.  Pioneers like John Dondzila designed their own software for long dead consoles ranging from the once popular (the ColecoVision and Atari 2600) to the eternally obscure (the Vectrex and Odyssey2).  Little did they know that their brave experiments would start a trend that would remain en vogue nearly a decade later... now, veterans like Dondzila have been joined by equally talented programmers like Andrew Davies, Alex Herbert, and Eduardo Mello, all making some of the best games ever released for antique game systems.

There's only one thing missing from these new games... new ideas.  Almost invariably, hobbyist developers will fill the gaps in the ColecoVision, 2600, and Vectrex libraries by designing conversions of arcade titles that were not previously available for those systems.  It's a noble goal, but not a particularly original one.  It would be a refreshing change of pace if these programmers designed truly new games, with inventive play mechanics but the same addictive quality as the beloved arcade titles they mimic so often.

I'll help get them started with an idea I had this afternoon... it's Emminent Domination, the game where you're in control of the world's most frightening chain of retail stores.  The goal in each stage is to chain together a series of homes, ultimately connecting them to a dynamite plunger at the bottom of the screen.  

It won't be easy to demolish these properties and build your one-stop shopping center, however... some homes are protected by rotating resistance barriers, while mobs of furious residents (represented as shimmering, multi-pointed stars) bounce around the screen, hoping to catch you as you move from one territory to the next.  Each acquired house acts as a temporary safe haven for your arrow, but eventually, you'll be forced to fire it at another property, risking life and limb in the hopes of establishing a retail store monopoly.

That's just one of a handful of ideas I've had for a video game that's unique, yet simple enough to be translated to a game console from the early 1980's.  If you like it, feel free to use it (as long as you credit me for my contribution, of course!).  If you think you can do better, by all means give it a shot!  Whatever you decide, please, PLEASE make your next project something other than a Space Invaders or Tetris clone.  Personally, I've had enough Tetris to last me four lifetimes.

6/17/05

There are two new reviews for your reading pleasure.  The first is by a new contributor to the Blitz, Shawn Struck.  He's offered his opinion of Toon Disney's latest animated series, Jake Long: American Dragon.  His review is more optimistic than mine would have been, but what the heck... it never hurts to have a fresh point of view.

The second review is of the recently released Kirby Canvas Curse.  I have a bad habit of waiting a long time to review the games I've purchased, but I wasn't going to let this one go stale on me, no sir!  You can read more about the game here, but suffice it to say that it deserves most of the praise that's been lavished upon it by the professional gaming sites.

Now, I'd like to take a break from games and talk about the peripherals used to interact with them.  I just received this dandy little number from the fine folks at NCS...

It's a replica of the Sega Saturn controller, designed for the Playstation 2 and colored purple to commemorate the release of the latest Darkstalkers game.  I can't think of a single product better tailored to my personal tastes... it's like Sega and Capcom made it just for me!

When I received the controller, I quickly tore open the box, put away the deck of collectable cards (nice touch!), and plugged the pad into my system to test it out.  After spending some quality time with The King of Fighters 2003, and some, uh, substandard quality time with Street Fighter EX 3, I've got to say that it feels as much like a real Saturn controller as it looks, and as you can tell from the picture, it looks pretty damned close.  I've been hasty about recommending controllers in the past, so I'll take another week to break in this joypad before I pass judgment on it.  However, I'm confident that I'll be using it a lot more than the Pelican Real Arcade Stick I bought last Christmas.  You remember the Real Arcade Stick, don't you?  Oh, how I wish I could forget...

Here's the other item I purchased.  No, I haven't grown fifty feet tall... that's actually an XBox controller converter.  I purchased this along with the aforementioned Saturn joypad in the hope of getting the most possible enjoyment out of both my Playstation 2 and XBox fighting games.  Things didn't work out quite as well as I'd hoped, however.  While the convertor and the controller work fine when used seperately, they're not two great tastes that taste great together.  I actually tried the Saturn pad with my XBox first, using the converter as a conduit.  The combination crippled Dan in Capcom vs. SNK 2, making it impossible for him to throw fireballs.  Granted, that was never his greatest strength, but I might want to use this skill if I ever decided to play as one of the OTHER characters.  

This left me worried that the controller was faulty or just poorly made, but a little experimentation revealed that it works fine, at least in its natural habitat.  It's downright uncooperative on my other two systems, although to be fair, my GameCube controller converter was never much good for anything anyway.

So the bottom line is this... I'm really happy with the replica Saturn pad so far, but the converter? Well, that leaves something to be desired.  Looks like I'll be shopping for yet another one in the near future...

6/13/05

We've got more cartoon reviews, courtesy of contributor John Roche.  I'm expecting even more from a new writer later this week, so stay tuned!

Well, you don't have to sit at the computer for the entire week.  You can take a break to go to the bathroom, or even better, pick up the new Kirby game for the Nintendo DS.  Word on the street is that Canvas Curse is like Yoshi's Touch and Go, squared.  I loved that game, so I can only imagine how great Canvas Curse must be!

6/7/05

The folks at Charter finally came through for me, so I'm back online again.  To celebrate, here's a new batch of cartoon reviews!

Now if you don't mind, I think I'll step out, grab myself a bite to eat, then resume work on the NES book.  So many pages, so little time!

6/1/05