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Maxconsole has posted a review of the latest version of the open source handheld, the GamePark GP2X-F100. The GP2X doesn’t really seek to compete with the Nintendo DS or the PSP; it is a handheld, but the entire product is geared towards homebrew and open source development. Even the firmware source has been released for the console, for home gaming tinkerers to play with. The GP2X is the hardware sequel to the GP32, GamePark’s original handheld. There aren’t a lot of available commercial games for these devices, instead, the focus of gaming is on homebrew, emulators, and media player functionality. The media playing functionality is decent in the handheld, supporting MP3/OGG audio playback, and a number of video formats, including DiVX and MPEG4. Emulators have gotten a great deal of support from the homebrew community, and there are number of options available, including SNES, Genesis, MAME, and Playstation emulation. The emulation on the handheld is clearly better for lower powered machines, but with an open source community, this can be expected to improve over time. The fit and polish of the GP2X is decent, but not really up to the standards of Sony’s PSP or the Nintendo DS. Maxconsole has more in depth interactions and video of the machine in action on their site.
Read More 
| Maxconsole.net
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PopCap’s Hammer Heads Now Available for Download
Posted by Michael Cardiff Categories: Action, Internet, PC, Portable/Mobile, Retro,
Hammer Heads, one of the first games ever shown on Microsoft’s UMPC spec (a.k.a. Origami) is now available for download over at PopCap Games. Based on the old carnival favorite, whack-a-mole, Hammer Heads has you breaking statues of garden gnomes that keep popping up on your lawn. The game could be great on a UMPC, as touch-screen controls could allow for much quicker gnome-bashing than a mouse. Still, it’s not necessarily a reason to go rushing out and buy that TabletKiosk just yet…with UMPC prices being what they are, you could probably just go out and buy an old carnival machine for the same price.
The game is available as a download only (no web version yet) for PC only. The free version of the game allows you to play through 7 levels before you’re asked to upgrade to “Deluxe” for $19.95.
Read More | Hammer Heads Product Page
Free Cell Phone Minutes for Watching Xbox 360 Ads
Posted by Michael Cardiff Categories: Corporate News, Portable/Mobile, Xbox 360,
In one of the stranger signs that the upcoming next-gen console war is already upon us, the Virgin Mobile cell phone carrier (through a service called “SugarMama”) will be offering free cell phone minutes to customers who elect to watch 30-second spots for, among other things, the Xbox 360. For those of you dreaming up ways to scam this system, it might be hard - in order to receive your minutes you have to answer questions about the ads and prove you were paying attention. Which brings up the real question: how many minutes of real-life time are worth a minute of cellphone time to you?
Note: The NY Times article linked below says that the service is currently available through the Virgin website, but as of now there appears to be no mention of SugarMama on either Virgin.com or VirginmobileUSA.com
Read More | NY Times
DS Lite Gets Smaller Rumble Pack
Posted by Christopher Sasaki Categories: Accessories, Hardware, Nintendo DS,
For those gamers concerned about ruining the sleek lines of the DS Lite, but still want to have rumble in Metroid Prime: Hunters, it looks like Nintendo will have a DS Lite version of the rumble pack available. A poster on the NeoGAF forums who found the item on Nintendo of Japan’s online store. The pricing looks to be the same as the larger version, and hopefully this will show up in the US online store and shops alongside the US DS Lite when it appears in two weeks.
Read More | Nintendo of Japan via NeoGAF Forums
There Are No Indie Video Games
Posted by Christopher Sasaki Categories: Culture, Editorial, Features, PC, PlayStation 2,
According to an editorial published by Slate Magazine, there are no “indie” video games, and this is to the detriment of the gaming industry. Certainly, if the thesis were true, this would be a bad thing for gamers; large game publishers are becoming less and less willing to take risks. Looking at the top selling games over the past month shows a number of game titles that are based around previously established intellectual property; it is becoming harder and harder to find a hit game title without a number behind its name. But to say that there are no indie games seems to dismiss the works of a number of independent publishers.
Full discussion after the jump.
Click to continue reading There Are No Indie Video Games
In a move that basically defines “rearranging the deck chairs on the Titanic,” Infinium Labs announced that they are changing their name to Phantom Entertainment, Inc, according to a report from Gamasutra. In various SEC filings from the company, it appears that troubles are still mounting for the beleaguered would-be console manufacturer. Things must be bad for the company, to switch their name to one that basically defines a vaporware product. Even since scaling back operations to just produce the Phantom lapboard, their high profile CEO, Kevin Bacchus quit the company and is now suing for back wages. In addition, SEC filings also indicate that operations for the upcoming 12 month period are at risk, and without a substantial increase in funding, the company faces folding operations. Tied to this announcement, the company would like to increase its available public shares, further driving down the stock valuation. Suddenly, the current CEO’s motivations to allegedly attempt to shore up the stock value become more clear.
Read More | Gamasutra
Bill Gates Dismisses Wii Controller
Posted by Christopher Sasaki Categories: Corporate News, Culture, E3, Wii, Xbox 360,
Bill Gates, speaking recently to MTV.com, was fairly dismissive of the motion-control technology that Nintendo and Sony are introducing in the next generation of consoles. Gates said, “There’s room for innovation here, but moving that controller around — it’s… not mainstream for most games… It’s tough because sometimes you move the controller, and you don’t [mean] to fly into the ground. You just want to put the controller down.” Of course, it is easy to see why this could be confusing to Gates, after all, with all the coverage given to the Wii during E3, there really wasn’t any mention of a “pause” feature. The ability to pause a game has only been included in almost every game to hit the shelves since Microsoft’s original Sidewinder Freestyle controller shipped. Gates would continue, “People aren’t that good at totally standing still.” While it is understandable that Gates might not have seen any of the actual Wii trailers on the Internet, he certainly must have passed by the Nintendo booth; the only people that might have been standing perfectly still would have been those waiting in the multiple-hour line to get a look at what Nintendo has accomplished. Gates mentioned that he leaves the details of running the games division to others, which is a good thing, considering that while he implied that Microsoft had no plans in the near future for a handheld gaming device, he is still stumping for some kind of unwieldy convergence device, “will you carry… a media device and a phone and a gaming device and, say, a tablet device for reading…” So gamers may be waiting for a while for their ideal portable gaming device from Microsoft.
Read More | MTV.com
PSP Undiluted Platinum Firmware Solution Announced
Posted by Christopher Sasaki Categories: Mods/Hacks, PSP, Rumors,
Looks like a PSP mod solution has been announced, and should be shipping soon. This would not be a simple plug-and-play hack, but will instead be more of a firmware management system. This would allow PSP users to run various firmware revisions on their system, facilitating homebrew applications while maintaining the ability to run the latest firmware to support retail games. More information on availability and installation should come in the next few weeks.
Read More | Maxconsole.net
Wii Interest Grows in Japan
Posted by Christopher Sasaki Categories: E3, PlayStation 3, Wii, Xbox 360,
Japanese gamers’ interest in Nintendo’s Wii appears to be accelerating, according to the latest poll published in Weekly Famitsu. When asked which console gamers were most interested in at E3, Wii lead the pack with 68.8% of respondents. The PS3 followed with 21% of the vote, and the Xbox 360 trailed at 7.2%. In addition, the top ten E3 games were polled, and The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess and Final Fantasy XIII lead the list. Nintendo titles filled out the majority of the slots, with five Wii titles and one DS title. The PS3 managed three titles on the list, and somewhat surprisingly, the Xbox 360 made a showing with Halo 3 at spot number ten. Playstation 3 pricing was also a concern: 88% felt that the price was too high. It will be interesting to see if Nintendo can build on this interest, and how Sony will respond to the Japanese gamers’ concerns. Suddenly, the market that one would have thought Sony would have locked up, isn’t looking to be such a sure thing.
Read More | The Magic Box
Visit the Animal Crossing Museum
Posted by Christopher Sasaki Categories: Culture, Nintendo DS,
It’s no secret that the Animal Crossing series has been a huge success in Japan, but apparently it has also spawned a museum exhibit. Game Watch apparently made a visit to the museum, and Edge Online has a few translated details. The same company hosting the Animal Crossing exhibit also hosted the show for Electroplankton’s launch, and Game Watch has a bunch of photos from the new exhibit. The show includes materials from the game, but also artist’s interpretations of the Animal Crossing world, and a ton of the ubiquitous Japanese capsule toys. Nintendo also has a download station available, where owners of the DS game can download a gift for their town.
Read More | Edge Online
Read More | Game Watch Japan
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