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Homebrew Community Blends Gamers and Hackers

Posted by Zonk on Sat Jul 08, 2006 06:23 PM
from the do-it-yourself dept.
Programming Entertainment Games IT Technology
MSNBC is running an article on the gaming homebrew community. They examine the 'do it yourself' attitude of the folks that make mods, knockoffs, and emulations possible. From the article: "So lively is the homebrew scene that some PSP fans -- it's impossible to say how many -- say they don't buy or play new games because they don't want to upgrade their gadgets and lose their homebrew software. There's even a circulating joke slogan: 'Friends don't let friends upgrade their PSPs.' Unable to break through recent versions of the Sony software, PSP homebrewers have moved on to another trick: downgrading their PSPs to earlier versions."
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story

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Homebrew Community Blends Gamers and Hackers 25 Comments More /

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  • Do they set the blender on puree?

  • Not just PSP (Score:4, Insightful)

    by Megane (129182) on Saturday July 08 2006, @06:31PM (#15684815)
    It should probably be pointed out that PSP is only one of the many systems that can be homebrewed for. There are many other [atariage.com] systems, such as the Atari 2600, Atari 5200, ColecoVision, with a pretty strong homebrew community, and within the next year or three, the NES and Sega Genesis will probably see a rise in homebrew programming.

  • Luminesweeper thread (Score:3, Interesting)

    by tepples (727027) <slash2006&pineight,com> on Saturday July 08 2006, @06:39PM (#15684843) Homepage Journal

    I am the author of the Luminesweeper [pineight.com] game that the article mentions. If you have any questions about that game, ask away :-)

  • Why screw around with the PSP? (Score:5, Informative)

    by Anonymous Coward on Saturday July 08 2006, @06:46PM (#15684866)
    I don't get PSP "hacking" - if you want to write code for a cool handheld, why not get a GP2X [gp2x.org], which is totally open, easy to develop for (using the standard GNU toolchain), runs Linux, and doesn't have a multi-national corporationa attempting to thwart you at every turn?

    Plus, a GP2X is $169 USD, instead of $199, and you'll save a fortune using SD cards over Sony's proprietary (and absurdly expensive) Memory Stick.

    For the record, I own a GP2X, a PSP, and a DS.
  • I'd love to have one unified, well-designed, attractive and ergonomic handheld game unit preloaded with a lightweight, unlocked, extendable OS and emulators for every system ever made.

    I'd pay a lot of money for that.

    But that won't happen in my lifetime, because of the approach the game companies take to copyright law and the razor-and-blades marketing approach.

    --
    (Waves Hand.) There is no sig here.

    • I'd love to have one unified, well-designed, attractive and ergonomic handheld game unit preloaded with a lightweight, unlocked, extendable OS and emulators for every system ever made. I'd pay a lot of money for that. But that won't happen in my lifetime, because of the approach the game companies take to copyright law and the razor-and-blades marketing approach.

      Oh yeah? How about a portable gaming system that runs Linux and is homebrew friendly (unlike PSP and GB)? Maybe you should give this littl [gp2x.co.uk]

    • Re:Ultimate Handheld Game Device (Score:4, Interesting)

      by vga_init (589198) on Saturday July 08 2006, @08:04PM (#15685088) Journal

      I'd love to have one unified, well-designed, attractive and ergonomic handheld game unit preloaded with a lightweight, unlocked, extendable OS and emulators for every system ever made. I'd pay a lot of money for that.

      You're kidding, right? I've had my GP2X [wikipedia.org] since December, and I love it to death. It doesn't have emualtors for EVERY system evermade (a bit of a hyperbole there), and they aren't preloaded, but there are lots and you can download them right onto an SD card, plug, and go.

      The device itself is lovely and capable--dual core ARM, 320x240 LCD, stereo sound, 64mb of RAM + 64MB of internal flash plus SD reader and external serial port. Also has a USB port, but no host controller, I believe. No wifi, but such nicities as onboard MPEG decoder and TV-out. If that's not enough to tickle your fancy, it runs embedded linux and comes (as of firmware 2.0) a handy file browser, ascii viewer, photo viewer, movie and music player (mplayer). Lots of downloadable utilities such as terminal emulator and pdf viewer.

      The device runs for about $180. You can get one from gp32z.com (official US distributor--where I purchased mine) or google around for it. In my opinion, it's kind of cheap for what it is. You'll get better hardware for your buck if you get a PSP or even a DS, but you can't beat the programmability.

      • How does the terminal emulator work if the GP2X doesn't have a touch surface on which to press keys? And making the Nintendo DS programmable costs about 70 USD nowadays (MAX Media Launcher + GBA Movie Player + CF card).

        • The terminal, called "sterm" uses a funny imput method where you select the characters individually using the joystick. This sounds really horrible, but combine this with such features as autocompletion, command history, and the fact that most unix commands are very short and abreviated, it's not as bad as you might be thinking. Also, you can buy a serial connector so you can manipulate the system with a remote serial console.

  • Where...? (Score:3, Funny)

    by creimer (824291) on Saturday July 08 2006, @06:58PM (#15684899) Homepage
    Homebrew Community Blends Gamers and Hackers

    The newest coffee for all you caffeine junkies is now available at nearby Starbuck, Peet or Trader Joe.
  • Since I'm sure making homebrew games is against the PSP eula, does this mean that Sony can revoke the license and force people to return their PSPs? After all, they don't actually own the unit, just have permission to use it, right?

    • Wrong (Score:5, Interesting)

      by maynard (3337) <j.maynard.gelinas@nospAM.gmail.com> on Saturday July 08 2006, @07:26PM (#15684974) Homepage Journal
      If you purchased a PSP, you own it. You did not purchase a license to use, or a license to rent, or a license which limits certain uses of the device. You own it and can do whatever you wish, including throwing it out a window or bricking it with bad homebrew software.

      A EULA may be attached to copyrighted software and functions as a contractual agreement between the author and the user. This agreement may set terms for duplication of the software, limit certain uses of the software, and as well as set different pricing for various categories of users or regular per-use payments. The EULA is thus expressly bound to copyright and contract law, and lives between the boundaries of the two.

      The PSP is not copyrighted (though firmware within it might be). Thus, it should be legal to use or abuse your PSP however you see fit. However, downgrading firmware might constitute a EULA violation since it constitutes duplication and installation of software - which, depending on the contract terms, could be deemed breach of contract and a copyright violation. But installing emacs, cross compiling the source and installing doom/quake/whatever, or even shoving that PSP up one's ass and mailing it back to Sony for service -- all that should be perfectly legal.

      Please note: IANAL, but I do own a PSP - bought at launch. Given Sony's obnoxious and rude behavior to the homebrew scene though, I regret that purchase. It has not lived up to my expectations, both as a gaming machine (the games mostly suck) and as a homebrew platform. I think I would have been much happier with a DS.

      Oh well, Sony seems intent on economic suicide. Good riddance.

       
      • I was just being facetious, and completely agree with you :)

      • Re:Wrong (Score:5, Informative)

        by nacturation (646836) <nacturation.gmail@com> on Sunday July 09 2006, @01:28AM (#15685915) Journal
        ... or even shoving that PSP up one's ass and mailing it back to Sony for service -- all that should be perfectly legal.

        Actually, it's illegal to send humans through the mail.
         
        • Either you are a troll or an idiot. One or the other.

          I never bought a PassMe, and never used one, although I did get one for free with the M3 Adapter that I bought my GF for Christmas last year. It remains unused. I am a homebrew developer, and I lack money, so the only tools I have for myself are my GBA Flash Cart and my PC. My PC is equipped with a RT2500 card.

          Both mine and my GF's DSs are version 2s, that were bought at launch. They can be spoofed into loading DS code from the GBA slot by sending a

  • Sony take note! (Score:3, Interesting)

    by QuantumFTL (197300) * <justin...wick@@@gmail...com> on Sunday July 09 2006, @12:57AM (#15685852) Homepage
    I hope Sony notices the significant demand for the missing functionality provided by these homebrew systems. Some people are willing to go through extraordinary lengths to get these additional features - likely many would pay for them if they were offered as a supported add-on that could increase Sony's revenue stream, and start to dust off their so very recently tarnished name.

    Of course Sony doesn't seem to be reasoning rationally as of late, but one can dream...

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