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Today's hottest game video: Wii modchip
Today's most-watched YouTube game video just shows some guy inserting and mounting discs in a Spanish-language Wii. Boring? Yes. But the M. Night Shyamalan-worthy twist is that these aren't ordinary discs; they're homemade burns. And the Wii? It's been modded to play "backups" with the Wiinja chip. Are you freaked out yet? (Seriously, that idea is free, MNS.)While piracy is bad, mkay, we expect that the mod will let a Wii play games from any region, something that excites us alpha gamers.And yes, there could be a second Wii connected to the TV in the video. Why do you always have to be so cynical? (You know who you are.) Just enjoy the video after the break, and hope the chip makes it into the wild.
Wiinja modchip enables Wii / GameCube backups to function
We've seen plenty of Wii hacks since its November release, and we've even seen a completely uninspiring "hack" to run backup discs, but this time, we're thinking it's for real. The Wiinja modchip is on the loose, and apparently it requires soldering to the Wii innards in order to function, but it purportedly allows for Wii and GameCube backups to be played back on the console. Unfortunately, there's not a whole lot of information beyond that, and there's just a single photo to instruct forthcoming owners how to correctly attach it, but if there's one thing that helps its case, it's the video. So go on, click on through for the YouTube demonstration, and start saving up those €40 ($52) it'll run you when this hits "commercialization."[Via Engadget Spanish]
Convicted modder must pay or 'pay' (with jail time)
Convicted console modder Stephen Fitzgerald can avoid jail time if he forks over £5,210 (more than $10,000) owed in legal fees and fines. Fitzgerald made the ill-advised decision to offer a "while you wait" modding service in his booth at a computer fair back in April 2004. Needless to say, his brash criminal activity was not ignored by authorities. In addition to the fees and fines, Fitzgerald has been ordered to serve 120 hours of community service.Think they ever caught that Patrick Cai guy?
Mod chips soon in vogue Down Under
Expected to be passed this week, Australia's Copyright Amendment Bill 2006 will make it legal for consumers to use mod chips designed to bypass region coding. If these chips subsequently circumvent anti-piracy technology, then that's cool too. Despite pressure due to obligations established by its Free Trade Agreement with the US, the Australian government has opted not to amend wording that would outlaw code-busting chips.While likely too small of a market to force the alteration of current manufacturing processes, Australia could push game console makers to separate their region coding and copyright protection technologies in the future. "I think people are just going to have to sit down and think about manufacturing standards," recommended Carolyn Dalton of the international law firm Minter Ellison; that, or just cut the Aussies off. No PlayStation 3 for yous!
First-ever PSP modchip now comes with BIOS solution
About a week ago, the very first hardware PSP modchip came out, called Undiluted Platinum. However, it didn't feature a BIOS upgrade at the time. Now, the modding solution is totally complete. If you're willing to spend $200 on the modchip and use a microscope to do the installation, go ahead. Personally, I'd rather get the pricey, but more-likely-to-work $450 pre-installed PSP. The BIOS allows you to have all the functionality of the most current firmware, with the flexibility to run homebrew. It also has "ultra reliable" UMD emulation, which allows users to run games from Memory Stick, even games that need the newest firmware. Heck, you can even used compressed ISO files so that you can squeeze more burned games to your system. Best of all: if you ever brick your PSP, you can use the recovery menu of the Epsilon BIOS to get your baby back and running.One aspect about the Epsilon BIOS that is highly touted is the fact that its "bootloader" always runs before the real firmware. That way, every protection attempt by Sony in the future will be useless, theoretically, on a modded system. I guess that's the way it should be, considering how much money you've spent on it. Personally, I'd rather just buy some real games, and if I want to hassle with homebrew, I'll trust the software route instead. Spending so much money to avoid spending money on games seems a little silly, don't you think?[Via Maxconsole][Thanks, steve!]
Devil in the details for 360 modchip
Devil360 may have generated enough hits to crash their site after bragging about a working 360 modchip (Supposedly unrelated to the known DVD firmware exploit), but they haven't generated much faith in the modder community. Most eager chipsters are taking a "show it or shut up" approach to the Devil's claims of hacking glory:The Devil360 will be a modchip for the Xbox 360 console, the 'small' security hole has been found! This device is in no way related to the DVD firmware exploits - it's a totally different approach. However we did not manage to get the product ready for today (6/6/6), because we are working hard on improving it to:* Try to protect it from any type of update* Make it programmable via PC* Boot unsigned code* Allow to swap HD with larger drive with a special interface between the 360 and the HD (all types IDE/SATA).After the ICE modchip fraud, nobody is going to believe this blather without concrete proof. The cutesy Devil-6/6/6 correlation doesn't help. Still, the prospect of unsigned code (Read XBMC360) is enough to make your inner geek self-delude for a moment, no matter how low your tolerance is for shady mod squads.
Devil360, has an Xbox 360 modchip been created?
We don't know a lot at this point, but a group referring to themselves as the Devil360 Team is claiming to have created an Xbox 360 modchip by way of a "small" security hole, one which doesn't have anything to do with the DVD hacks we saw before. Obviously they'd have liked to have launched yesterday (6/6/6, etc.), but apparently they're still working out the kinks in preventing updates from disabling it, allowing it to be programmed from a PC, boot unsigned code (read: homebrew and/or "unauthorized" games), and even utilize a larger hard drive than the somewhat pathetic 20GB part in the Premium edition. Honestly, we'll believe this one when we see it, but we'll be watching closely, whether it be true or some, erm, devilish tomfoolery.[Via Xbox-Scene]
A look-see at Undiluted Platinum, the PSP modchip
Not merely a modchip for your PSP, Undiluted Platinum, as we know, is supposed to be a complete flash / firmware replacement solution. But there were a lot of unanswered questions when we first found out about it a few days ago, but thanks to MaxConsole, we've got some answers. The 32MB flash storage area is booted to by default when installed in your PSP (shown above -- default PSP firmware can be accessed by holding L1 when booting), and can be written and modified freely with its own USB connector, which is routed through the battery compartment, making it completely enclosed, isolated, and independent. So much so, in fact, you can supposedly restore a bricked PSP with this thing. Expect a $90 US MSRP, and keep an eye out for more deets and pics as we get 'em.[Thanks, Brad]
Is this new "Undiluted Platinum" the first PSP modchip?
We sure wish we had more details on this thing, but MaxConsole is claiming the "Undiluted Platinum" to be the world's first PSP modchip. Supposedly the chip is a flash replacement to allow for older or custom firmware versions in new PSPs, giving homebrew enthusiasts the freedom to finally do what they want with PSP software, without fear of an "update" from Sony foiling their plans. MaxConsole doesn't mention exactly how you'll be installing this little number, or how you'll find room to fit this "entirely inside your PSP," but forum users are thinking it'll take some high-end soldering skills. If this all plays out we should be getting more info next week, but we're going to stick with 1.5 for now thankyouverymuch.
PSP mod chip aims to end firmware woes
Maxconsole.net reports that a new PSP mod, Undiluted Platinum (UP), is being readied for release. The chip has been designed to fit perfectly inside the standard PSP unit and acts as a flash replacement system.Theoretically, UP will run previous versions of PSP firmware and even custom flash builds, granting users access to both homebrew applications and the latest licensed games. Price and installation procedure have not yet be specified.
Original Xbox thoroughly hacked
Our friend Eliot, from hack a day, has tipped us off to the latest and greatest in the Xbox hacking scene. TheSpecialist, a hacker on the xboxhacker.net forums, has managed to play a backup DVD without using a modchip/softmod. Eliot explains, "He ripped the challenge response data block from RalliSport Challenge and then patched that chunk into the firmware of the drive. So now, no matter what disc is placed into the drive, when the Xbox checks authenticity, the DVD firmware spits out the RalliSport Challenge code instead of checking the disk." Clever!Unfortunately, The Specialist didn't want to release the hack to the public, explaining, "I understand that releasing this hack would have major impact. Althought I serioulsy [sic] doubt that releasing a firmware *patcher* is illegal, I don't want to take my chances on it :-) I think anybody who wants to do something like that should ask himself if it's worth all the trouble he might get into. I feel it's not. That's why I'm not releasing anything."How long before the hack is readily available for everyone to use?[Thanks, Eliot]
