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Sprked does for game modders what Valve couldn't
When Valve and Bethesda introduced paid Skyrim mods on Steam, there was a huge backlash from the community. Some players were unhappy with the profit-sharing model, which only gave 25 percent of each sale to modders, while others were concerned about mod plagiarism and remixing, where contributors build on the work of others. Valve eventually killed the feature, but it left an important question unanswered: was there a better way to repay modders for their hard work? Sprked is hoping to solve the problem with a Patreon-style crowdfunding model. On its site, modders explain their work and fans can put down their cash, paid either by month or by creation, to support them. The modder's work remains free for everyone, but there are certain perks that fans can unlock for supporting, such as concept art, thank you notes and behind the scenes videos. Sprked takes a 5 percent cut, followed by a further 5 percent for its payment processors Stripe and PayPal. The idea could easily be replicated on Patreon itself, but having a dedicated site could make it easier for modders and fans alike to find one another. The challenge for Sprked now is to attract high-quality modders to its burgeoning platform -- and also ensure the site isn't abused by scammers looking for a quick buck.
Valve removes option to sell paid 'Skyrim' mods
After a few days of hearing complaints on the internet, Valve is removing the payment feature from the Skyrim Workshop on Steam. The PC gaming juggernaut explains that it underestimated the differences between the communities built around its own games and those from other studios, and toeing the waters of an established modding scene like one surrounding The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim's "was probably not the right place to start" experimenting.
The Daily Grind: Are MMO mods and emulators on their way out?
We don't talk about emulators on Massively often because we're forbidden to encourage illegal activities or link or name specific emulators save those rare few publicly sanctioned by studios (so please don't). In fact, we've written before that emulators are a frustrating topic for many of our writers since gamers pour boatloads of creativity and technical skill into both legal and illegal emulators for games dead and alive, creativity that we can't write about even when we'd like to. I can't be the only one who's wondered whether legit modders and underworld emulator coders are abandoning their craft in favor of more legal ventures, however. There might be more sunsetted MMOs, moddable UIs, and calls for "classic" game versions than ever, but the rise of low-risk crowdfunding, easy Steam greenlighting, and modular multiplayer titles that encourage customization makes me suspect that people who once modded shady MMO emulators or built interfaces for the masses are being lured away to work on something more legitimate or profitable or resume-worthy. What do you think? Are emulators and modding going out of fashion? (Please don't link to anything illegal!) Every morning, the Massively bloggers probe the minds of their readers with deep, thought-provoking questions about that most serious of topics: massively online gaming. We crave your opinions, so grab your caffeinated beverage of choice and chime in on today's Daily Grind!
Total War: Rome 2 mod tools now in open beta testing
In lieu of offering yet another downloadable content pack for Total War: Rome 2, developer Creative Assembly has opted to let fans roll their own units, factions and conflicts with the release of the Rome 2 Assembly Kit. Though still in the beta stages, the Assembly Kit is a full-featured suite of tools useful in modding the historical strategy game. According to publisher Sega, the Kit includes everything necessary to modify the game's existing assets, as well as import/export tools for pulling artwork, audio and character models into the game from third-party programs. The Kit also includes a swath of "example data" which should be useful for nascent modders. The best news, however, is that the Assembly Kit is available free of charge to anyone with a copy of Total War: Rome 2 and an Internet connection. Full details on the Kit and information on how to download the tools can be found on the Total War Wiki.
Meet the Arduino Due, the 32-bit board that'll let your projects fly (really)
As much as we love the Arduino Uno, it's not the most powerful of hobbyist microcontrollers. Fortunately, the folks in Turin have just put the finishing touches on a 32-bit upgrade with buckets of potential. At the heart of the Arduino Due is an 84MHz Atmel CPU, based on ARM's Cortex M3 Architecture, which is capable of being the brains inside your own flying drone or homemade 3D printer. It should start trickling out onto shelves from today, setting you back $49, but hey, that's a small price to pay to automate your drinking adventures.
Modder builds $150 open-source thermal imaging camera to help insulate his house (video)
Modder Andy Rawson thinks he's found the secret to turning smartphones into super-cheap thermal imaging hardware. Inspired by his quest to find leaks in his old home and the high cost of professional gear, he set about building his own. A 64-zone temperature sensor connects to his iPhone via the dock, overlaying the data onto his camera display. He's planning to open-source the $150 hardware, and an Android variant of the hardware is currently in the works -- although details for both are currently thin on the ground, you can see his announcement video after the break.
Digispark, Arduino's unofficial kid brother, takes Kickstarter by storm (video)
Hobbyist Erik Kettenburg was concerned that the size and cost of Arduino stifled his ability to craft, so he set about developing Digispark. It's an Arduino-compatible board, the size of a quarter, that offers a few pins at around a third of the cost of an Uno -- so you don't have to worry about taking projects apart when you're done. Designed to be fully compatible with the Italian standard, it's packing six I/O pins, 8k memory and a full USB connection amongst other things. The aim is to retail the gear for $12 a piece, and has been so popular that it's made nearly $100,000 in Kickstarter pledges, smashing its original goal of $5,000. We've got video for you below, and you can still throw some cash Mr. Kettenburg's way if you fancy getting your hands on one quickly.
Visualized: Arduino gets super-sized ahead of Maker Faire
This is Make's John Edgar Park, manfully clutching his Arduino Grande. The oversized device isn't just for show though, it's a fully working unit for those projects where a standard sized PCB just won't do. He'll be taking excited modders though the process of building it at Maker Faire on Saturday, just head over to the demo stage at 5:30pm with your pre-written Super Size Me jokes close to hand.
Star Wars Arcade gets fan-made mini-me, weeps tears of joy (video)
Arcade fan (and genius) Le Chuck got up one morning and thought "Why not build a perfect replica of Atari's Star Wars Arcade, at 1:6 scale?" The result is this amazing 12-inch cabinet with a fully working Atari-yoke, handmade from aluminum and a pair of potentiometers. Tucked inside the box is a modded Caanoo running MAME4all, which has been tweaked to boot straight into the game when activated. The whole project took him over 80 hours to put together, but we think it was time very well spent. If you want to see the thing in action (and sing along to the 8-bit version of the theme) then head on past the break.
Wooden Sega Saturn laptop sits nicely on your antique dresser
If there's one thing better than a new Ben Heck mod, it's seeing something his army of apprentices has cooked up. This time, Turkish modder c_mon has produced a striking wooden Sega Saturn laptop. It's got a 5-inch LCD screen pulled from a Sony PSOne in the lid, built-in speakers and a fan to keep things cool in the enclosure. The case copies the mould lines from the original Saturn, with the natty addition of an electroluminescent wire that puts us in mind of Tron when the device is running. Keen-eyed visitors to our gallery below will notice that the laptop's lid actually bears the logo of Saturn automobiles -- it's deliberate as the modder couldn't get his CNC (Computer Numerical Control) cutter to play nicely with Sega's curved logo. Incorrect marque or not, we can all agree it's much more handsome than previous efforts. %Gallery-133881%
You'll never geth how this Mass Effect action figure was made
Go on, take a guess at the starting point for this custom made figure. If we tell you that the link came from Halo.Bungie.Org, does that help? If you guessed a Covenant Elite, you're right! The core body of this Mass Effect inspired geth consists of two different Convenant Elite figures from McFarlane's Halo line. If you then went on to guess that the modder also used shot gun parts from a Gears of War accessory, that the pulse rifle was made from spare Halo parts, and that the hoses on his back came from a Mr. Freeze action figure, well then we'd say you know a little too much about your various action figures there, Kreskin.
Skype 2 video chat unofficially enabled on the Galaxy S II, Sensation, and others
The latest Skype update for Android is available to everyone, but it only enables video chat on four specific handsets. Fortunately, impatient modders have gone some way to correcting this profound injustice, by creating APKs that activate video calling on other handsets too. So far we've heard of successful ports on the Samsung Galaxy S II and the HTC Sensation, Thunderbolt and EVO 4G. If you've got some other handset with Android 2.3, a little experimentation with the APK might also be worth your while. However, we just tried it on an Xperia Arc and didn't get very far: the app ran, but efforts to communicate with an Xperia Neo resulted in one-way video, a locked landscape mode and plenty of awkwardness. Let us know if you fare better -- you'll find a Thunderbolt-specific download at the DroidLife source link, and a more general APK at TechPetals. [Thanks, Rashid and JT]
The Acorn A7000+ portable mod is what your MacBook looks like in an alternate universe
Aside from its attempted rebirth as a laptop manufacturer back in 2006, we haven't heard all that much from Acorn Computers in the past, oh, two decades or so. And if you're not a UK native, there's a pretty good chance that you didn't hear all that much about the "British Apple" before then either. But while the company's more official attempt to go portable was nothing to write home about, its late-period A7000+ desktop has now seen a successful second life at the hands of a British modder as the A7KP. The Acorn's innards have been stuffed into a five pound (relatively) portable setup, featuring a 10.4-inch LCD, 4GB of flash memory, and a battery that offers up three hours of RISC OS-based fun. It's enough to make you wonder how you ever played Lemmings on anything else.
Notch reveals plan for Minecraft mods
The blocky world of Minecraft already seems custom-crafted for modders, but creator Notch recently revealed plans to make the game even more tinker-friendly. Here's the skinny: Mod teams will be able to get a free license and access to the game's source code. They can't sell their mods, but they might have the option to license them (for a fee) to Notch & Co. if they're especially solid. Such mods will be accessible to anyone who has purchased the game. Though we're still waiting on details that explain precisely how mods will be implemented, it seems safe to say our M.C. Kids total conversion is horrifyingly close to fruition. [Thanks, Stephen]
Reports: Banned Xbox 360s briefly allowed back on Xbox Live, promptly banned again
Reports began swirling Tuesday evening that Xbox Live users with banned Xbox 360 consoles were able to reconnect to Microsoft's online service. Forum users across Xbox.com, Xbox-Scene and NeoGAF claimed to have reconnected banned consoles, though said consoles were unable to download content from Xbox Live, including Marketplace purchases and game updates. As of early this morning, however, Xbox-Scene users are reporting that previously banned consoles have been totally barred from Xbox Live once again. It's unclear just what happened, though Xbox-Scene user DUBiSM noticed Tuesday afternoon that the Xbox Live status page (image above) noted that users could experience problems "creating new Xbox Live accounts, managing those accounts, or recovering an account on a different console." The message has since been changed to warn of Modern Warfare 2 phishing scams. On Twitter, Xbox Live director of policy and enforcement Stephen Toulouse said that all banned consoles are still banned, adding, "you can't trust message boards." For the moment, it would appear that the alleged reconnections were a fluke, though still a fluke that deserves attention given the ongoing drama surrounding the recent attack on Sony's PlayStation Network. We've contacted Microsoft for further comment.
15 Minutes of Fame: Anthropologist Bonnie Nardi on WoW culture and art
From Hollywood celebrities to the guy next door, millions of people have made World of Warcraft a part of their lives. How do you play WoW? We're giving each approach its own 15 Minutes of Fame. We've written before at WoW.com and even here in 15 Minutes of Fame about attempts to study World of Warcraft culture from a sociological, psychological or anthropological point of view. In all of these cases, the researchers in question have logged time playing WoW as part of their research, albeit some with greater degrees of immersive success than others. So I was very pleasantly surprised to learn that Bonnie Nardi, a University of California-Irvine expert in the social implications of digital technologies and author of the rather blithely titled My Life as a Night Elf Priest, not only rolled the token raiding character in order to observe the curious behavior of the raiding animal -- she actually enjoys WoW in its own right. Rather than cautiously sniffing WoW culture only to generate another wide-eyed, ZOMG-look-at-this-funny-lingo report from the digital field, Nardi dove deep enough to play in four different guilds: a casual raiding guild; a raiding guild composed of fellow academics; a small, casual guild; and her own friends-and-family guild. Our two-part interview with Nardi, packed with opinion and cultural analysis, reveals a witty approach to WoW culture that successfully combines academic insight with the familiarity of a seasoned player.
Dell Adamo gets jammed inside another Dell laptop: yes, it's that thin!
Check this one out -- if there was any doubt as to the thinness of the Adamo, just for fun, some young modder removed the innards of a chunky Dell laptop and threw a Dell Adamo inside of it. Pretty thrilling stuff as you can imagine -- hit up the source link for the video.
The Wii finally gets DVD playback -- no thanks to Nintendo
Carrying on the rich hacker tradition of picking up the slack for companies that are unwilling or unable to provide the functionality users need, a team of Wii coders have given the console what Nintendo could not: DVD playback. By installing a small, hidden channel on a system, this package blesses the console with a libdi file (DVD access library), and allows you to watch your favorite videos with the MPlayer application, an open source media player. The install file will run on modded and unmodded systems, and the software is also capable of playing media from SD cards (though it's experimental right now). Finally Wii owners can join the ranks of, well... pretty much everyone else.[Via TehSkeen; Thanks, brakken]
Nanoscope, the DIY ipod nano fatty A/V dock
You've got to hand it to modder Mark Irwin, who did his fellow tinkerers proud by assembling a bunch of found objects into a very handy audio / video dock for the squat new iPod nano. The project is brilliant in its simplicity: Irwin just carved a nano-sized slot in an old slide magnifier, embedded some discarded speakers, and ended up with a super-handy viewing station on the cheap. Check out the video after the break for inspiration on how you, too, can help put an end to this national Made for iPod nightmare perpetrated by Griffin, Belkin, Monster, and their evil cohorts.
Guitar Hero III modder plays it with drums
We're actually kind of perplexed by this video of a Guitar Hero fan who created a set-up to play the game with a MIDI drum kit. It's not because we don't know if it's impressive or not (it is). It's also not because we don't know how he's doing it (we do). What we can't figure out is this: Is Guitar Hero actually more awesome if you play it with drums? We've watched tons of Egyokeo's videos and we still just ... don't ... know.Think about it: Rock Band has guitar and drums, right? But this guy's version of GH III has drums that are a guitar. It's two rock 'n' roll features rolled up in one. Which has us thinking: By that criteria, is Peter Frampton secretly the best video game ever?[Thanks, elle]
