For the uninitiated, the GP2X is a line of handheld, personal entertainment players manufactured by a South Korean company called GamePark Holdings. We're reviewing the latest version, the GP2X F-200, which was released worldwide this past November. The GP2X F-200 offers several upgrades from its predecessor (the GP2X F-100) such as a touch screen, an improved controller and an enhanced GUI design. Most importantly, right out of the chute, the GP2X F-200 offers an open source, multifunctional, alternative to the proprietary handheld systems currently offered at retail in North America.

At the end of the day
A long-time gaming buddy of mine hipped me to this system a few months back, and I have to admit I was skeptical at first because he is prone to a bit of hyperbole when it comes to things he owns and I don't. But, after spending some quality, hands-on time with the GP2X F-200, I have to say that my friend's assessment was spot on: this is a quality handheld and well worth the $170 price tag for the emulation capabilities alone. In my mind, the multimedia functionality offered on the GP2X is just icing on the electronic cake.

One big question that does surround the GP2X F-200 is the legality of some of its applications. Emulators themselves are not illegal, but the ROM images are, unless you own the actual game already. Also, there is some question as to whether the video codecs (MPEG4, DIVX and XVID) are officially licensed, but they are listed rather plainly on the system's spec sheet and instructions.

I know that IP enforcement is often lax in some parts of Asia (where this GP2X is manufactured), so keep that in mind before taking the plunge on this system. Ultimately, it all comes down to what you are personally comfortable with—there won't be many legitimate games to play on the system.

I can only speculate as to why GamePark Holdings hasn't officially brought its cool, little handheld to these shores. My guess is that the company doesn't feel confident enough to challenge the entrenched positions of Nintendo and Sony. This handheld opens up a whole new market though: the gamer who wants more flexibility out of his or her system without having to crack open or hack Sony and Nintendo's products. It's open source, so you're invited to play with it, the emulation capabilities give you thousands of titles from day one, and it's an able, if unspectacular media player.

The good
Emulator Heaven, baby!
Great versatility on the go.
Nice, bright screen that rivals the PSP's.
Cool stylus.
Open Source…'nuff said.

The bad
Low battery life (3-4 hours tops)
The D-Buttons are mushy... not terrible, but could stand to be improved.
Too few commercial games developed specifically for the system.
The built-in speakers sound lame—get a good pair of headphones or ear buds.

The ugly
The GP2X F-200 can be hard to find here in the US, as import shops seem to sell out rather quickly. Don't get fleeced on Ebay!

Full review --> http://arstechnica.com/reviews/hardware/gp2x-review.ars ...

via MCV


The site, which promises to give GTA IV gamers a chance to compare game statistics whether they play on Xbox 360 or PlayStation 3, invites gamers to ‘pre-register’ from tomorrow. The Social Club is open to anyone with an Xbox Gamertag or a PlayStation Network ID and offers gamers the chance to win awards.

Features of the social site include the LCPD Police Blotter, a virtual map that tracks the most dangerous areas of Liberty City, and the Story Gang – a single player leaderboard.

Other features comprise the 100 per cent club, where the first to complete 100 per cent of the game are recognised, and the Liberty City Marathon, a ranking of milestones achieved in the game.

Rockstar has revealed the Social Club will be available for all of their future titles, and is believed to be the first time cross platform gamers have been able to compare statistics. ...

Okay, so maybe millions of Wii-costumed individuals running around wouldn't be ideal, but the idea at least sparks up a modicum of hilariousness, yeah? The person you see above, dear readers, is WiiMan Superhero. Fully equipped and ever-ready to address any Wii-related issues and / or injuries that you may be enduring. Best of all, this suit (a GarageGeeks project) does way more than make a boy a man -- it acts as a fully functional Wiimote, complete with built-in Bluetooth, accelerometers, and an IR cam.

http://www.engadget.com/2008/04/16/w...-aspire-to-be/ ...

via xbox-scene.com

New experimental patches have been released on free60.org for one of the latest linux kernel (2.6.24.3). This will allow the people running Linux on their Xbox 360 to upgrade to a newer kernel:

Get the source for the Linux 2.6.24.3 Kernel from kernel.org (http://www.kernel.org/) and unpack it somewhere in your home directory.
cd
wget http://www.kernel.org/pub/linux/kern...6.24.3.tar.bz2
tar -xvjf linux-2.6.24.3.tar.bz2

2. Download and apply the experimental Xenon patchset.
cd linux-2.6.24.3/
wget http://home.comcast.net/~ssmurf/linu...4.3-xenon.diff
patch -p1 < linux-2.6.24.3-xenon.diff
done

3. Configure the Kernel.
make ARCH=powerpc CROSS_COMPILE=powerpc64-unknown-linux-gnu- menuconfig

4. Build the Kernel by typing:
make ARCH=powerpc CROSS_COMPILE=powerpc64-unknown-linux-gnu- all

Or if you have ppu-gcc properly set-up: CROSS_COMPILE=ppu-

If everything goes well, you will end up with a file arch/powerpc/boot/zImage.xenon containing the kernel which can be loaded by the XeLL.

Remember, these patches are Experimental!

http://www.free60.org/wiki/Linux_Ker...mental_patches ...

via Computer and Video Games


Clearly not remembering that microphone-based blowing games on the DS went out the window with Feel the Magic, Red Octane has shown off new screens for Guitar Hero: On Tour, which demonstrates the blowing game mechanic.

The game looks good, except for the dodgy looking text that we imagine is only using a placeholder font or comes off better when animated.

However, we really can't imagine that the few remaining souls who would have strapped the peripheral to their DS during their daily commute are now going to bother if they have to spit all over their screen in front of their travelling peers.

There's a lot of debate in the office about where people most play their DS though (current thoughts are mainly at home), so it shouldn't affect the sales. Too much.


Screenshots ...

News/release from andyauff


Download and Give Feedback Via Comments ...

News/release from Kratosjohn


Download and Give Feedback Via Comments
via kratosjohn ...

via Eurogamer


Master Chief has popped the Legendary Map Pack for Halo 3 on Xbox Live.

For 800 Points (GBP 6.80 / EUR 9.60) you get new Forge options and three painstakingly created multiplayer maps: Avalanche, Blackout and Ghost Town. Not one not two but three things in it.

Avalanche is a snow-coated affair inspired by the Sidewinder level from Halo: Combat Evolved; Blackout is a re-visualised version of Lockout from Halo 2; and Ghost Town is a completely fresh experience in a Jungle dominated by a building with enough nooks and crannies to be described as a giant block of Swiss cheese.

On top of this, Master Chief is offering early purchasers a free four-month subscription to the Bungie PRO file storage system. This expands your space to 250 MB so you can share all of your screenshots, videos and game types with your friends.

Matchmaking playlists should be updated to include the fresh maps, so you can get plenty of practice in before the Legendary Weekend that runs from 25th to 27th April. ...

via Computer and Video Games


A demo of Free Radical's PS3 shooter Haze is hitting PSN in early May.

It'll include support for four-player drop-in/out co-op play on top of vanilla single-player. We've uploaded a screenshot from the demo for you.

Haze has been given numerous release dates but earlier in the month Ubisoft finally nailed it down for May 23.

In April Free Radical confirmed with CVG that Haze was only being developed for PS3, burying speculation on PC and Xbox 360 versions.

One screenshot ...