A Primer on Gaming Console Modifications
February 27th, 2010All through the history of computer/video games, people have loved to tweak both hardware and software for pleasure and profit. Right from the game hacks on the ZX Spectrum handing you invincibility on Manic Miner back in the 80s, to Nintendo Wii Modchips enabling you to play a broader range of apps on their Nintendo.
Games developers and console manufacturers have had an on/off relationship in regards to the soldering and hacking crowd. In one way, modders add value to the systems and games – for instance modchips make it handy for games players who can download non-sanctioned games from the internet. Similarly, software hacks breathe new life into “uncompletable” games, and in the modern gaming era it’s normal for software producers to actually embed “easter egg” cheats for gamers to find.
On the other hand, games producers opine that this kind of modding damages their profits, as chip modifications can also be applied to bypass piracy measures, and short-circuiting firmware that limits discs to play just in certain locations. These are persuasive grounds for console and games producers to forever develop progressive measures to make modding all that more dificult.
But whatever the arguments against chip modification, chip modification is a burgeoning market that isn’t going to disappear anytime soon.
