MacDork :)

Snes9x is a Super Nintendo (SNES) emulator that lets you play Super NES games on your computer (Mac & PC). The emulator itself is legal, and if you own an original cartridge of the SNES game, then it’s apparently ok to have a copy of the program in a file on your computer, known as a ROM.

Snes9X has been around for ages, & I’ve toyed around w/ it for a grand total of about 15 minutes in the past. As entertaining as it was, there were always newer/different games to be had. My recent aquisition of the Macbook Mini (mbm) led me to reconsider Snes9X since the netbook isn’t powerful enough to play any modern games.

The first thing I realized was that the 10″ screen on netbooks is pretty well suited to playing 16bit SNES games. When I last tried SNES games on my other monitors, today’s monstrous resolutions make the blocky graphics start to look really ridiculous. They’re still as charming and innocent as you remember them, but it’s just not fair. After I smiled and laughed and tried out a few titles (Yoshi’s Island!), I immediately settled back into some Chrono Trigger. I’ve finished probably 30 hours of it on the DS, but my DS is currently on loan performing Animal Crossing duty for my woman, so I decided to start fresh.

After playing about an hour or so of Chrono Trigger, I realized I was hooked. The experience of playing SNES on the mbm is really satisfying! It’s a little tough playing twitch-based games on a qwerty keyboard, but the graphics, sound and emulation are perfect. Next up… a controller.

Sega Dreamcast

Today marks the 10th anniversary of the US launch of Sega’s Dreamcast. Bitmob’s commemorating the anniversary w/ some nice coverage of the console with some great content.

If you’ve never heard of Bitmob, that’s because it’s Dan “Shoe” Hsu’s new project after having left EGM. Give him a shot — he’s a great writer.

Harmony PS3 Adapter next to an iPhone (Photo source: Engadget)

I just read on Engadget HD that Logitech’s finally releasing their official PS3/Harmony adapter!

Pretty much every device I care about in my house is controlled through my Harmony 890:  360, TVs, stereos, lights, my bedroom fan… with one exception.  The PS3’s Bluetooth remote was the stumbling block; the 890 speaks infrared and radio frequency, but not Bluetooth.

Once I get this thing ($60, available this month!), the PS3 will feel less like a gimmick/toy.  I suppose it’s a little unfair, since the 360 already controls fine w/ the Harmony, but watching HD-DVDs on that thing (w/ the optional drive that you had to buy seperately) always feels juvenile because of the 360’s intentionally youthful UI.  The PS3’s Cross Media Bar (XMB) shows a lot more restraint, maturity and elegance.  Even the startup routines and sounds on the PS3 are more refined, avoiding the 360’s playful and cliche’ “I’M EXTREME!” attitude.  Wrap it up with a sleek, jet black piano finish (don’t forget the quiet fans!) and you’ve got one secksie beast!

Let’s face it:  Bluray is still so new to most people that it’s a treat for me to share the new tech w/ them.  Showing off your man den is a long standing tradition.  Today, tech is a huge part of the man den.  When you have a universal remote that bends all of your commands into one button press, deftly turning on all of your different devices, dimming your lights to just the right level and switching everything into GO! mode… you look like a tool when you have to pick up a Dual Shock to press play.

I just got myself a droooooobo :D

Pownce : Note From kevin:
Spoke w/the CEO of Drobo – talked him into $100 off the new 2nd generation drobo (firewire/usb) for my friends. First 100 people to use code: “krose” get ‘em. Enjoy.
www.drobo.com/Where_to_Buy/Index…. (425 views)

Microsoft Fail « FAIL Blog: Pictures and Videos of Owned, Pwnd and Fail Moments:

Technorati Tags: apple, fail, microsoft, funny

Trophies are a go — in-game messaging?  Go.

The only regrets I have are that

1. I’m not home to get it downloaded (at Sony’s ridiculously slow pace)
2. I just got my 100th headshot award in Uncharted last night.

I finally bought a DualShock 3 last week, and it’s amazing what a difference it makes.  The controller finally feels like it’s the proper weight, and the feedback is exactly what I’ve been missing.

Technorati Tags: controller, gaming, PS3, console, uncharted

Now THIS is the way to do a sequel!!!!

THANK YOU, Harmonix!

Check this out: 

• Rock Band 1 DLC is compatible.  This means that the 50 songs I’ve bought are going to work.  Makes sense, right?  I’m looking at you, Guitar Hero.  Individual game discs for say, the 80’s or Aerosmith suck ass.
• Rock Band 1 instruments are compatible.  Awesome!  Not as big a deal as the DLC, but this means my investment in the original instruments isn’t going to waste, either.

You guys win:  I’ll surely buy RB2.

Surprise! Rock Band 2 announced – Joystiq:
by Ross Miller Jun 30th 2008 3:33AM

One of gaming’s worst-kept secrets is now official: Rock Band 2 is coming. IGN has the scoop and an interview with lead designer Dan Teasdale, who reveals that all the current and future DLC will be compatible with both versions of Rock Band, as well as the same instrument controllers.

While details were scarce, Teasdale said to expect improvements for band and character customization as well as the navigation system and Band World Tour. Citing the current issues with random set lists, Teasdale said, “Nobody wants to play Green Grass and High Tides in their first random set list.” Visually, the few images seen show the game has changed very little from its predecessor (and yes, it turns out the box art from a leaked survey was accurate).

As for what songs to expect, Teasdale said, “we’ve also secured what I can easily say is the best set list I’ve ever seen in a music game.” He provided no examples, although we wonder if The Beatles fall onto that list. Rock Band 2 is set to debut at E3 next month.

mio knight rider gps from knight rider online on Vimeo.

$3.3 BILLION lost so far.  Wow.

PlayStation 3’s cost to Sony so far: $3.32 billion – Joystiq:
by Ludwig Kietzmann Jun 24th 2008 9:40AM

Having sold the system at price lower than the manufacturing cost, the PlayStation 3 was a $2.16 billion endeavor in 2007, with another $1.16 billion being lost in 2008.

The $3.32 billion investment, which includes the monolithic system’s complete development and introduction, “may not be fully recovered,” according to Sony. The manufacturer warned that should the PlayStation 3 fail to reach “favorable market penetration”, it would have a “significant negative impact” on the company’s profitability.

It’s pretty common in the console industry to sell the hardware at a loss (I believe Nintendo’s the exception), hoping to recoup your costs through software licensing fees and first party game sales.  $3.3 billion is a LOT of ground to make up, and Sony… you need to get your shit together, because there just aren’t enough PS3 exclusives to convince people to buy your system.

Check out my collection (not quite done documenting everything, yet):

Xbox 360:  28 games
PS3:  6 games
Wii:  7 games

My numbers are probably typical, but the fact that Nintendo makes money on their still-impossibly-hard-to-find-console makes all the difference.

I just can’t get excited about my PS3; even MGS4 doesn’t get me hyped.  I’m waiting for Little Big Planet, but that’s about it.  BluRay?  Oh yeah:  I got an AppleTV and spend most of my time watching the content in my iTunes library, instead of BluRay movies.

=/

Wow.  Interesting, frank and open comments about just how close the PS3 was to failing, by Sony’s CEO, Howard Stringer.

Stringer: PS3 Was On “Life Support” : Next Generation:
By Kris Graft

“Two years ago PlayStation was on life support,” Stringer said during The Wall Street Journal’s D: All Things Digital Conference on Wednesday.

Lofty development costs for the console were nearly “catostrophic” for his company, he said.

Stringer said as early as January this year that PS3 was “out of the woods” after a rough launch, hindered by a high retail price tag, stiff competition from Xbox 360, and a slim games lineup.

As for the movie format war, Stringer said that if HD-DVD would’ve won, a reference to “Betamax 2” would’ve been engraved on his tombstone.

I love how honest he is about the fact that PS3 was in horrible shape, and just how dire the situation was.