New Homebrew Content!!!

I've just written up a guide for making backups of your Wii games and also how to play them on your Wii... without a modchip! It is quite simple, just follow the steps and you should be kickin!

This is great for us collectors for preserving original titles! Please don't use this for piracy, I wrote the guide because the Wii's slot loading DVD drive is notorious for scratching discs. Only backup games you own, to preserve the originals, thankyou.

Now here is the link! Backing up Guide.

Atari Games!!

Picked up 6 Atari 2600 games from Cash Converters today! I asked how much they wanted for them and the guy said, "How much you gonna give me?"
"One dollar a piece", "You can have all six for five bucks"

Nice!



Also, in Wii homebrew news, BJ (bjblaster.com) and I have been experimenting with WiiGator's backup loader. Hopefully in the next few days, I will be able to put a decent guide up on the main site!(fusion.homedns.org)

Another Wii Update

Same goes again. Don't update yet. I don't know the full consequences of the update yet but as always, it will delete any homebrew channels or unauthorised save games.

New Toys!

Well they say money can't buy happiness. WRONG! We bought new toys on Thursday night.

Rock Band:

We saw rock band in the shops and decided to buy it. The price tag clearly said $199, so we grabbed it, happy to spend that much. But NO, a small, red sticker on one side of the box informed us that the pack with the drum kit, wireless guitar and microphone did NOT include the actual game software! A further $89! Parents watch out for Christmas!

So we thought we would just go all out and get the entire set of the drum kit, 2 wireless guitars and microphone! It's going to be a big hit at Christmas time with everybody playing it.

Now, I have always thought of Guitar Hero as “tetris with timing” and put the upcoming Rock Band into the same category. But I love this game! It is very challenging and involving. The harder the setting, the more fun the songs are! I will be sure to keep the blog updated as we play this more.

Now onto the other toys. First some minor ones (sort of). We bought a coffee maker and a new washing machine. And the news I'm most excited about is that I'm typing this on my new Eee PC. We decided on an Eee PC due to the low price. It was reduced down to $250 from $450. I'm very happy with the Eee PC and will keep the blog updated as I learn more about it!

I have uploaded this entire blog post from my EeePC. Cropped and resized the photos and typed and uploaded all without using my desktop!

Responses to article on Wii's life.

I started a thread on mywii.com.au to get responses to the article on the life-span of the Wii. The responses covered so far are exactly what I was looking to discuss so thanks again MyWii members! Here's the link to the thread, register at Mywii.com.au and join the discussion!

Homebrew Channel beta 9

The new version of the Wii Homebrew Channel has been released to be compatible with Nintendo's new firmware update. Although, it is still recommended that you don't update unless you really need to.

Here's what you get with the new HBC:
-Support for SDHC cards (over 2Gb)
-Reload Button (for SD card swapping)
-Quick return to Wii Menu

How to update:
Just start up the Homebrew channel from your Wii and when the network initializes, it will give you the option to update!

Please note that some Homebrew apps won't work anymore due to some problems with old versions of devkits so you might have to go searching for alternate apps to do your bidding. Maybe don't even update just yet, if you don't need to, i.e. if you are not doing the Nintendo update.

Good luck all.

Retro mod No. 2

I did this mod just today and had heaps of fun doing it. I found my the charger for my immitation dremel and put it to good use.

Hit this link to the main site to check out how it was done! Duck Hunt Clock


Also, I would love to see any gaming related retro mods that any of you have done! Comment with a link!

Retro mod No. 1

This is a segment where I retro fit items from gaming past. This first one I did months ago but since this is the first installment, I thought it would be fitting to start at the beginning.

NES Controller SD Card Reader! Link.

Garage Sale Bargains: Episode 4

Well, I must attract these things. Another SNES for a mere $5, bringing the total now to 6! There were 10 Garages on sale today and this is all we came away with. The only other things to be seen were a couple of Xbox's, one of them was labeled "New! Never Used $150" and the other had an $80 sticker slapped on it.
I'm still looking forward to when someone has an old Xbox and they just scribble "360" next to it, to see if they get a big sale.

Wii Fit and Glowing Wii's

Well, we have been putting it off ever since it came out. We finally bought WiiFit.
First impressions are GREAT! I am actually going to see if it can make me lose weight, just by coming casually to play it everyday (no strict routine).

Also, you may have all noticed that your Wii's are glowing and you may have even read the message about the new firmware update. The message will not go into detail but basically the unauthorised files are your Twilight Hack files.

I've read that when you update, you can no longer install the Homebrew Channel or any .wad files.

So here is what you do:
If you have the Homebrew channel and want to keep it, ignore this update for a while.
If you want to update your Wii firmware, delete the Homebrew Channel, Twilight Hack save file and any Channels that are not legitimate i.e. installed via .wad.

I'm sure it won't be long until somebody works out how to install the HBC on a Wii with the new firmware. When that happens we can all update and reinstall.

Public Announcement

Because I'm an open-source enthusiast, please feel free to use any pictures, files, guides and/or information from the main site: FUSIONhb or the blog.
Use what ever you want, copy, paste, link, whatever but please give credit where credit is due!

Garage Sale Bargains: Episode 3

Grabbed another bargain just one day later, a PSX for $5. Nice. It also came with a wireless controller setup, which was good because I've had a wireless controller of the same brand kicking around for ages with no main unit. So now I have the main unit and 2 wireless controllers. The wireless setup doesn't work with the PSone due to the rounded front. But if someone (me) wanted to make an in-car Playstation with wireless controllers, a dremel tool might do the trick!

Garage sale bargains: Episode 2

Hey everyone welcome to the second episode of Garage Sale Bargains! Bargains! Bargains!...

Today we will see a brilliant offer of "5 bucks for the lot?", refused and haggled all the way back up to $10!

The items on the table were a bright green, Nintendo Gameboy Colour, 5 games and a PSone.
We see Big Al approach and look around the veranda. Looking around... looking... Yes, he's spotted gaming stuff. Swooping in and Oh my God! He's bumped an old lady to the side! She wasn't even looking at the same things as him. Gathering the items into his arms and promptly making his way to the guy in the corner who looks like he might be in charge. "How much much for this stuff?",
"You tell me". "5 Bucks for the lot?", "I'll take $10 for the lot".

WOW. Another exciting episode of Garage Sale Bargains! Bargains! Bargains!
And whats more, the Gameboy had batteries in it and the PSone had Gran Turismo 2 inside!

Collected =
Gameboy Colour with Pokemon Yellow, Pokemon Blue, Wario Land, Blades Of Steel and World Championship Racing.
PSone with Gran Turismo 2.


Also picked up later was a small analogue clock, which is going to be used in an awesome retro fitting project, coming soon!

Dreamcast still not fixed, complete tear-down

I really hoped that in this post, I would be telling you that I have fixed my Dreamcast. Nope.
I did a complete tear down of the main components and could not find any medical reason for the symptoms presented. It was like exploratory surgery. I will get a new AV lead from Ebay as a final try, but if that doesn't work then this Dreamcast shall become officially decommissioned and retired to a display cabinet.

G-one Video Games

G-one Video Games has done a short blog article about the video game collectors on the MyMedia sites and has included some of my collection pics. You can see the article here, and here are the pictures, dubbed Doles284's towers of power.

I'm hoping to take better ones in the next few days, most likely Saturday as I will be home during the day. The way things are at the moment, I leave when it is dark and get home when it is dark... Better pictures coming soon!

Thanks Guyver!

MyMedia is a great collection of Aussie sites, mainly gaming, but other stuff too...MyMedia
Guyver's Blog: G-one VideoGames
MyMedia sites I am on MyDS and MyWii
MyDS retro collectors thread here.

Second attempt at fixing Dreamcast

Ok, the next thing to try was re-seating the power supply. This involves removing the PSU board, cleaning it and putting it back.

It was in pretty good condition in there, so that wasn't the problem. This repair is used for Dreamcasts that reset themselves, which is not the problem for me, so I was doubtful this would fix it.
Next thing to try is stripping the whole thing down and making sure there are no dry solder joints around the video out area. I hope there are, because that would mean the problem was there the whole time!

As soon as I can fix this thing, or at least exhaust all my ideas, I will start working on repairing N64 control sticks.

Garage sale bargains

Got a bargain at a garage sale today. A SNES with 2 controllers and a game (Super Mario All-Stars) in OK condition but very grubby for $2. Sweet.


I haven't updated the collection totals on the FUSIONretro site yet but here is a quick run-down of consoles I now have. (working or not and not including peripherals)

Atari 2600 Jr -- 5 games
NES x 2 -- 15 games
SNES x 5 -- 19 games
N64 x 3 -- 17 games
NGC x 2 -- 22 games
Sega Mega Drive I
Sega Mega Drive II x 4 -- 41 games
Sega Game Gear -- 2 games +32 Mastersystem games
Sega Dreamcast
PSX x 2
PSOne

First attempt at fixing the Dreamcast

A fail. That's a good way to put it. I thought that the RF adapter may be the faulty component, so I soldered some AV leads onto the RF out inside the little tuner box.
This didn't work.


Well, at least I have eliminated the cables being the problem. I will probably get some new ones soon, just to be sure, but the next thing to do is check out the power supply contacts and give them a clean. I've read that the PSU board can cause various problems.

As soon as I fix this bad boy, you better believe that the solution will be up on the main site in a how-to form. I'm so keen to get this beast working...

(nearly) Halfway through the life of the Wii?

Nintendo's previous console chronology:

NES: 1985 - 1992 (7 years)

SNES: 1992 - 1996 (4 years)

N64: 1996 - 2001 (5 years)

Gamecube: 2001 - 2006 (5 years)

Wii: 2006 - 2011? (5 years?)

Based on Nintendo's previous console lifetime, as you can see above, could we be seeing a new console in a mere 3 years? I for one think so...

A Truly Update Able Console
Now, given that the Wii is Nintendo's first update able console, of course this expands it's lifetime dramatically. The control interface of the Wii is like no other, peripherals such as the Wii Balance Board and soon to come Motion Plus and Wii Speak also push the life of the Wii forward.

The Human Factor
The Wii appears to be more than just another console, the current and seventh generation of gaming has brought us into the game. The Wii's Mii characters have brought a feeling of self into gaming, putting the baseball bat, tennis racquet, and the like in our very own virtual hands. Playing online with friends has never been easier, bringing that multiplayer factor into the room, yet not in the same room.

Menus, Operating Systems, Wifi
Console Design has changed over the years, when consoles started out it went like this:
8-bit
16-bit
32-bit
64-bit

Now, we see consoles with entire operating systems and large amounts of processing and graphics cards, system menus and DVD's.

The "Casual" Gamer
Nintendo has targeted everybody with the Wii, many Wii owners have never played video games before. There is an undeniable force that draws non-gamers to this console for many reasons. People seem to "just want it" then as more people get it, more want it because others have it. A vicious money making cycle, so why would Nintendo want to stop this any time soon?

Piracy
Can piracy kill a console? Yes, in extreme cases it can. Reports show that the rate of sales for the Sony PSP to PSP games is 0.7. That's 0.7 of a game being sold to every 1 PSP. What's the bet that the PSP won't be on sale for much longer?
Of course with the Wii having a large casual gamer fan-base, most people are oblivious to piracy, let alone how to do it, and most of those that are aware, won't go to the trouble. I'm estimating that a max of 2% of Wii owners endorse piracy.
To avoid piracy, don't go with a common media like DVD's. If Nintendo brings out a new console, it would be in their best interest to go with something like HD-DVD, a dead media, killed by blu-ray, or something completely new.

Summing Up... Tell Me What You Think
I think Nintendo could be thinking about releasing another console in 2011 or 2012.
Where can they go from here?
Should they just keep updating the Wii?
How do you build on motion control?
What will be the target audience?
Do they move away from common media or just go with Blu-ray?

I have a Dream...

I finally have the Dreamcast. We picked it up from the city on Friday night because we were going anyway. Yes, it doesn't work but hopefully I can work out a way to fix it...
It seems to flick the picture on and off so I think video out is the problem. Might be as simple as a dry solder joint. Further investigation follows...

Tiny Sega product causes much "coochie-cooing"

Look how small it is! My partner found this for me on EBay! A miniature Mega Drive preloaded with Street Fighter 2 and Ghouls and Ghosts! Obviously it is not an official SEGA product but it is very cute! We had a bash the other night and it runs great! It's battery powered by 4 AA's with the option for a 6v input, so in the future I can see this being modded into something portable. Maybe hard-wired into the car?

FUSIONhb news officially moved to...here. Quick Reviews coming soon.

Ok I've done it to see how it goes for a while if it's too hard I'll change it back to how it was.

First thing I need to do is slap all of the currently old news here in this post:

Old News

NEWS 14/9/08. Wii Homebrew is a little bit quiet at the moment, at least as far as I am concerned, being a modchip user. Wiidev has DVD's playing on unmodded Wii's bringing us a step closer to soft-mods, so I will be all-over that when it happens. But for now I have put up a guide on how to restore your NES (the first one). It's in the retro mini-site, restoring consoles section, or here is a quick link.

NEWS 31/8/08. Got some serious bargains this weekend! A whole bunch of old stuff from the paper that included, but not limited to: A Commodore 64, an ATARI 2600, 1x SEGA megadrive I, 2x SEGA megadrive II's, a SEGA 32x, a Sony PSX and over 60 games for Sega Mastersystem and Megadrive, a handful of atari games and of course, countless Commodore floppies. Then, Saturday morning, the garage sales paid off for the first time in ages and I scored a SNES with about 6 games. The collection page hasn't been updated but you can see some photos here. I will update the collection page as I clean the consoles and put them on the shelf.

NEWS 15/8/08. I have successfully dumped Super Smash Bros. Brawl! Using the cIOS249 and homebrew channel, was able to dump the 8.5Gb of DL DVD over wifi. Burned and tested- works like the original! I will be dumping all of my games this way from now on. Check out the guide down below in the Wii Section!
Also, in [retro] news, a guide to restoring your old consoles is up!

NEWS 29-7-08. Hey, welcome to Fusion homebrew! Have a look around and learn a bit about the homebrew scene! At the moment, I only have Nintendo stuff up but hopefully in the near future I will get hold of things like an Xbox and a Dreamcast, to start getting some more categories up here. Here's the latest in my Wii homebrew discoveries: Hacked Firmware. If you are Aussie and want to get into the DS homebrew scene, or just play pirated games from an SD card (don't forget to buy games from time to time too) on your DS, read the DS section link down below and then have a look at this.
Scroll down and check out the retro section and look for the mods down the bottom, I have just done my first retro mod and am very proud of myself.

Ok now that is done, keep watching this spot for FUSION homebrew and retro news!

I'm thinking of adding a "quick reviews for Wii and DS" section to the site where you can get a quick idea of what a game is like without having to read a long-winded review. Something like this format.

• 1 Star = Don't waste a DVD/Megabytes on this game.
• 2 Stars = This game is worth stealing.
• 3 Stars = This game is worth buying.

Maybe I will decide to go with 5 stars to give more range, I'll keep thinking about it.

SEGA Dreamcast: YAY! Aww... fail

About 3 nights ago, my partner found on Ebay, a Hello Kitty Japanese SEGA Dreamcast limited edition for $100 or something. Noticing that the seller was in a city near us, my partner asked him if he had any other Dreamcast products for sale. She knows what consoles I need for my collection. He said he had a broken (but possibly fixable) dreamcast for $15 and a 3rd party controller for $5. We took him up on the offer.

So after tee-ing up with him to meet at his place of work on Saturday to exchange the cash and the console. He emailed us this morning saying that he was off work sick and had arranged with another staff member to make the exchange.

So, off we went, 50km to the city and went straight to this workplace only to be informed that the stand-in had gone home sick aswell! Bummer! We were going to find an internet cafe to contact the guy again but just came home instead. But before we did, we stopped in at Cash Converters and I was pleased to find a Dreamcast controller, a couple of GameGear games, a N64 rumble pack and Gameboy adaptor. So it wasn't a total failure...

So, when we got back we emailed him again and advised him to perhaps post the items as we were pissed off that we drove up there for nothing.

First post and introduction

Just putting down the first post. I have been thinking about getting a blog going for some time now, due to the fact that uploading to a server every time I have a new thought can become tedious.
So the plan for this blog is to put my thoughts and ideas down for me to look at and to see what other people think.
I am a video game enthusiast, so naturally alot of my thoughts will come to that but some other topics I hope to be covering are:

Linux, mainly ubuntu and possibly mythTV in the future.
Technology.

My main website that is full of how to's regarding Wii and DS homebrew and also has my retro video game collection is at fusion.homedns.org. So think of this as the complimentary blog. I am thinking of stopping the news section that is on the front page and pointing it to this blog but I don't want my readers (not a huge group) to be checking two different sites, waiting for the latest. Perhaps some sort of mailing list?

Anyway I think that is it for the intro. Bye!