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Fully playable Cave Story PSP demo released
That was ... fast! Just a few weeks ago homebrew demos were released of Cave Story ports for both the DS and PSP. Looks like ufo_z is nearly finished with the PSP version and has unleashed release candidate one, playable from beginning to end with a few minor bugs due to the stretched screen size. It's not the final version, and at the speed things are going it might be a good idea to wait a few days for the bugs to be squashed. But it's free, the game's creator has given it a thumbs up, and if you have PSP capable of playing homebrew games, the thought of a portable Cave Story will probably make you too giddy to wait.
Cave Story demo released for PSP, DS
Two homebrew programmers have just released demos for DS and PSP versions of the freeware PC game Cave Story. A previous attempt by Variant Interactive to publish the game commercially has apparently fallen through, though the company has not officially confirmed this. Fortunately for us, dedicated homebrew programmers aren't content to let the masterpiece remain computer-bound.Ufo_z, working on the PSP incarnation, has received approval from Pixel and has finished coding up through the first boss encounter. Working on the DS game is ravenworks who has taken a slightly different approach and is re-writing the game to fit the DS system's hardware. Both attempts show a lot of promise and run well on the actual systems or an emulator. Download the DS demo and PSP demo.
New Cave Story: DS demo released, pants soiled
With the approval and source code of Cave Story's father, Pixel, homebrew developer RavenWorks has spent the past year porting the indie classic to the DS. We've called the PC title to your attention before, praising it as one the most charming and polished titles we've ever had the pleasure of playing. The project was originally bound for the GBA, but RavenWorks eventually migrated his code and rewrote the graphics engine to take advantage of Nintendo's new hardware. Current plans for the touchscreen include a map display and a "tap-to-switch-weapons interface" (accompanying L/R weapon switching).Cave Story: DS's newest demo allows you to explore the game's levels and mess with NPCs, its memorable soundtrack playing all the while. Though scripting, weapons, and many other features haven't been included yet, we're just happy to see that progress is still being made on the port. Make sure to download the demo and let RavenWorks know that his efforts are appreciated!If you don't have the homebrew tools necessary to test this early build, we have a few screenshots for you to preview in our gallery. You can also disguise yourself with a Mimiga mask and sneak past the post break for some shakycam video we dug up.%Gallery-4284%
Cave Story patch allows you to switch main characters
A new patch by Efraim Siounis for the freeware platform adventure Cave Story lets you play as one of nine different characters from the game. Simply grab the pbm file from Efraim's site, rename it to "MyChar.pbm", and drop it in the /data directory under the Cave Story folder. When you start the game all main character sprites will be magically switched. Currently you can play as Curly, Toroko, Jenka, Sue, King, Crown, Booster, or a dog. It doesn't change the game much, but you'll have something new to stare at as you discover another excuse to play through the game ... again.
DIY pixel art T-shirts
Here's a cute art project for a lazy afternoon: Do-it-yourself pixel art shirts. HackerZen has all the instructions on how to make your own pixel art clothing for those of us without silkscreen contraptions. The project does seem a little bit involved, but if you've got a kid to keep occupied for a full afternoon, here's a good option. We're keen on the Mario shirt, but anything 8-bit is easily possible.It's amazing what you can find in a modern crafts store. There must be an iron-on thing where you can fill in what you want and do the same thing ... although, acrylic paint definitely has better staying power than an iron-on. If this art project seems a little bit too involved, might we suggest the simpler and less artistically taxing game clocks.[Via DSFanboy]
Front Design's Changing Cupboard displays pixelated art
While we've seen hordes of clever marketing gimmicks in the past, a few involving those flipping signs that rotate through various spots, Front Design is taking the billboard approach to a cupboard in an attempt to showcase a new form of art. The aptly-dubbed Changing Cupboard rocks a bevy of turnable panels on an everyday piece of furniture, but due to special effects that aren't entirely disclosed, it can flip squares over to constantly evolve into a new piece of design. Of course, the pixel morphing unit makes a whole lot more sense when you see it motion, so go on, click through for a peek of your own.[Via CubeMe]
Cave Story music inspired by ... polka?
By now we've all played, re-played, and generally gushed over Pixel's freeware platformer Cave Story. The game is so good, we've even fallen in love with the soundtrack. But did you know one of those tunes is a remixed polka song? Yes, polka. And we're not talking Weird Al-style Polkamon, either.The music that accompanies the Finnish dance Letkajenkka (often referred to as Jenkka) bears a striking resemblance to Jenka's theme (track number 16) from Cave Story. And by "striking resemblance" we mean it's the exact same song morphed into a chiptune-style piece. Kinda makes us wonder if, deep down, some twisted part of our being actually enjoys polka.[Via Independent Gaming]
Plasma backers want to change the way we measure HDTV resolution
How do you measure an HDTV? Apparently just counting the 2 million+ pixels in a 1080p set isn't good enough for some people, since the Advanced Plasma Development Center has announced its system measuring only the actual moving picture resolution. In what the center describes as a method that is very close to the way the human eye works, it uses a camera, signal generator, PC and image data processing software to reconstruct the image reflected on the retina. The companies backing this test believe that since -- most of us -- watch moving pictures instead of television images, this test is necessary to show people what to expect from their TV. We're going to go out on a limb and predict that plasmas generally outrank LCDs on this test, considering the source, but especially with new 120Hz technology it appears LCD manufacturers may be more eager than ever to take a shot at a moving target.
Secret "Simple Start" Wi-Fi connection? [Update 1]
File this one under "What the hell?" Some astute gamer has discovered a hidden feature inside the Nintendo Wi-Fi Connection setup menu, and one that certainly leans itself toward DS-to-Wii connection theory. The video gives an extremely detailed explanation, so check it out....now. Go ahead.Done? All right. The system asks for the player to press a "Simple Start Wi-Fi Button", something that clearly doesn't exist on any existing Nintendo hardware. So, is this how the Wii and the DS will sync up? Before you run off wildly screaming the news throughout your house, we offer these two bits of counter-evidence. First, regading the Wii, we've seen essentially every button and switch on the damn thing, even inside the "mysterious" front flap; no "Simple Start" or even remotely related button has been seen or reported. Second, accessing this mode by hitting the absolute upper-left pixel on the touch screen is ridiculous; in certain cases the stylus can't even reach the pixel, and a toothpick or other thin, prodding device must be used.We've seen no reason why "DS Download Play" would fail to properly pick up and sync with a Nintendo Wii console, so we'll chalk this up as a feature that will fade, like the legendary city of Atlantis, into one of the unexplained mysteries of the past.[Update 1: The internet, it seems, will brook no mysteries. Save Atlantis. Click here for an extremely detailed explanation of this feature, and as speculated, it has nothing to do with Wii connectivity.][Thanks, Super-Jesse-Mario!]
How was the National Championship game broadcast?
We know how the game went, with Florida in control almost the entire time and winning the NCAA title easily, 73-57, but how did it look? I had some of the same issues noted in this thread at AVSForums, the picture was great for most of the game, but whenever they went to the floor cameras or behind the backboard shots, blurriness and pixelization were in full effect. Here is a link to a press release by the company, Vyvx, that provided the transmission for both the broadcast and the advertisements that aired during. The first high definiton broadcast I ever saw was the first time Final Four was shown in HD, and it had the same issues with blurriness and pixels. At the time, it convinced me HDTVs weren't worth the money. Last nights broadcast was better, but still not up to the quality we often see now in NBA and NFL productions. Who is to blame and what can be done to make the games even better to watch?
Apple Patent for Mixed Camera/Pixel Display
Sometimes I really hope Apple comes out with some of the things they file at the US Patent Office. One such example is this crazy cool "integrated sensing display" with mixed pixels and miniature cameras. [warning: patent images best viewed with Safari]In the patent filing itself, Apple denotes various ways imaging sensors could be embedded into a display, including the example I chose described as follows:"Integrating image capture devices into the displays can be done with varying degrees of intrusiveness, depending upon the type of display. FIG. 3A depicts an exemplary "track" housing scheme of integrating image elements 305 into a deep encased cell structure display 300 according to one embodiment of the invention. Each image element 305 is integrated into black strips 310, so that the spaces in-between each color cell 315 and 320 are used for both contrast enhancement and image capture."This display looks as though its final function would be similar to a sort of scanner or large CMOS or CCD, as well as be able to display images. Imagine being able to stick the display of your PDA on a surface and have the image of said surface (which then would be flipped from the mirror effect) displayed right on your screen. Why would this be more interesting than just having a webcam integrated into a laptop? Well for one, you would have a larger sensing field. Secondly a webcam is usually at the top of your screen, making it semi-annoying to carry on a video conversation with someone on the screen. Some other applications of arrays of cameras include after-the-fact virtual camera motion and time dilation (think Wachowski brothers and technologies invented for the Matrix). I'm not sure this Apple patent will be of a high enough resolution for these applications, but perhaps some inkling of virtual camera ability from the array will be integrated.I don't know if Apple will ever use this patented technology, but I sure hope they do. Feel free to participate in rumor mongering in the comments.[via the Mac Observer] [camera array from Stanford via Hack-A-Day Siggraph coverage]
