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MODCHIP & SCENE NEWS Coranto Archive
January 2005
MagicBox XFPS Released
Posted on Tuesday, January 25 2005
Divineo UK have posted news that they now have the latest Xbox Accessorie the MagicBox XFPS in stock, heres more details about the MagicBox XFPS:
- Connectivity of a standard PS/2 keyboard and mouse to the Xbox console - Primarily designed for first person shooter Xbox titles - Super quick response and fluidity - Complete support for all keys on a standard keyboard and mouse (even scroll-wheel) - Integrated memory card slot for compatible devices such as headsets - Diverse versatility - works with any game even those without native mouse and keyboard support. - Instant play configuration - pre-installed with user friendly configurations for most first person shooters! - Multi region compatibly with JAP, NTSC and PAL consoles. - Support for most standard PS/2 keyboard and mouse even optical and wireless! - USB mice supported via the use of a PS/2 to USB Converter (not included) - Inline quick release controller port installed preventing any potential console damage
Check it out Here
Halo 2 Sales Hit 6.4 Mln Units and Xbox-Live Reaches 1.4 Mln Users
Posted on Thursday, January 20 2005
Sales of Microsoft Corp.'s blockbuster action video game "Halo 2" have reached 6.4 million units worldwide, Microsoft said on Thursday.
In a few short months, "Halo 2" has surpassed 2001's "Halo," which had been the best-selling game ever for Microsoft's Xbox console.Together, the "Halo" franchise has sold 12.8 million units around the world.
"Halo 2" was the No. 2 game of 2004 in the United States, behind "Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas" from Take-Two Interactive Software Inc.
Microsoft also said it has reached 1.4 million users for its Xbox Live online gaming service.
Smashing previously established records, the Xbox Live community has logged a record-breaking 91 million hours playing "Halo 2" since the title's launch -- more than any other Xbox Live game in the two-year history of the service. In addition, the instantly immersive gameplay has resulted in close to 61 million logged sessions on the game, with an average session lasting nearly 92 minutes, approximately the length of a major motion picture.
Other highlights from NPD Funworld include these:
* Monthly share for Xbox has grown year-to-year every month for 14 consecutive months, climbing 11 share points to 37 percent in December.
* Xbox was the only platform to see year-to-year growth during the fourth quarter of 2004 and the full calendar year 2004, while Xbox competitors and the overall market declined year over year for both time periods.
* Xbox annual 2004 console unit market share increased an impressive 12 points compared with 2003 and ended the year with a 37 percent share.
* Xbox had three titles in the top 10 in December: No. 4, "Halo(R) 2" from Microsoft Games Studios (including sales of the Limited Edition); No. 6, "Need for Speed: Underground 2" from Electronic Arts Inc.; and No. 10, "Star Wars(info): Knights of the Old Republic 2" from LucasArts.
* Xbox software sales led the way in 2004 as unit sales increased 46 percent year-over-year, and increased 55 percent (annual 2004 vs. annual 2003).
* There are now more than 200 Xbox Live-enabled titles, making it the richest library of online console games available today.
MagicBOX XFPS in stock! & Spiderchip v1.1 fix.!
Posted on Thursday, January 20 2005
News from Divineo USA
The XFPS allows you to play first person shooters with the utmost in control as it gives your Xbox instant utilization of a keyboard and mouse!
Spiderchip team announced the final and working fix.
We tested it on more than 50 spiderchip, and all of them worked perfectly. Flawless!
We have few orders that were on hold. We will perform the fix on theses chips, and ship all pending orders.
quote from spiderchip.com:
One easy and efficient way to install the SpiderChip with perfect result is to remove the bottom of the GND pogo pin (please refer to the picture for more details).
Xbox Spiderchip 1.1 News !
Posted on Wednesday, January 12 2005
News from Divineo China
Xbox Spiderchip 1.1 in stock
The version of Spiderchip we are selling currently is 1.1 only (an improved version of the Spiderchip 1.0). Still solderless on Xbox V1.6/V1.6B
Buy yours from Divineo China
Smart XX LT (OPX) Now in Stock !
Posted on Tuesday, January 11 2005
News from Divineo UK
The new budget Smart XX (OPX) arrives in stock, and is available on 24 hour shipping!
Xbox successor is "part of our vision of the digital lifestyle" - Gates !
Posted on Friday, January 7 2005
Microsoft chairman Bill Gates has spoken in an interview about the company's ambitions for Xbox 2, stating that the next-generation console's goals are to broaden the market and offer more multimedia functionality.
Speaking with US publication News.com at CES, Gates said that the plan is for Media Centre PC and Xbox to "become totally complementary", with the Xbox offering TV, photos and music as well as videogames.
"We didn't do Xbox just to do a video game; we did it to be part of our vision of the digital lifestyle, and with the next generation, we really get to go there," according to the Microsoft chairman. "In the first generation, we had one simple goal, which was to establish credibility as a great video game platform. We've done that."
He went on to discuss the new media and communications functionality which the system will offer, commenting that Xbox 2 will have "great videogaming but videogaming for a broader set of people, more communications, more media, more connectivity" and referring specifically to the ability to connect to home PCs and connect Xbox Live with MSN Messenger.
Gates made no mention of Xbox 2 in his pre-CES keynote address earlier this week, and he admitted to News.com that the firm is "being very coy" about the details and launch timetable for the system.
"I'd say our sophistication is much higher in this second generation," he said. "I'm certainly excited when it comes time to show at how much smarter we are getting to do it a second time with the team that's been built there."
Alternative Handheld Emulation Opens
Posted on Friday, January 7 2005
Today sees the launch of a major new site that covers emulation and homebrew on the Nokia N-Gage, Tapwave Zodiac, Gizmondo, Symbian 60 os Phones and also UIQ phones.
The new site has every emulator for each console and all the latest downloads too.
Check out Alternative Handheld Emulation
Despite Xbox Next no-show, CES builds buzz !
Posted on Thursday, January 6 2005
The Bill Gates keynote at the Consumer Electronics Show. It's a Las Vegas tradition that has, on occasion, yielded major news for gamers. In 2001, the Microsoft boss used the forum to show the world Microsoft's first game console, the Xbox. This year anticipation was running just as high, with widespread speculation that Gates would use the event to unveil the successor to the console, most commonly called the Xbox Next. Consumer Electronics Association President Gary Shapiro helped fuel the excitement last night as he introduced Gates, calling his keynote "the scene of Xbox's launch."
But, alas, there was no Xbox Next unveiling. Although he made mention of the next-generation console in a recent interview with News.com, Gates used the forum to again present the Microsoft corporate agenda to the reporters, analysts, and exhibitors who packed the plush Hilton Hotel Theater. There was plenty of news, but little of it revolved around gaming. Apart from announcing Halo 2 had sold 6.3 million units and a couple of Xbox-related throwaway lines such as "gaming is becoming more of a social thing," Gates spent less than ten minutes of his two-hour keynote with his game face on.
He called Xbox sales in 2004's final months significant," yet conceded Sony presented "very challenging competition." NPD hardware sales numbers (due next week, according to analysts) will likely show Gates' humility was unwarranted. One analyst, speaking off the record, said the Xbox tore out a large chunk of the PlayStation 2's market share over the 2004 holidays, thanks to the Halo 2 phenomenon and the shortage of the new, slimmed-down PS2s.
Gates said Microsoft would build out the capabilities of Xbox Live and would soon announce an application (or applications) to allow gamers to integrate their own photos and music clips into their games.
The only actual game on display was a brief (and technically flawed) Forza Motorsport demo which featured head-to-head competition between Gates and keynote host Conan O'Brien, who was the singular highlight of the evening.
But that didn't mean gaming didn't have a place at CES. In fact, the game industry showed up in numbers greater than in recent years, and with some interesting agendas of its own.
The Digital Hollywood-produced Game Power Showcase and Forum, a one-day event that covered topics as diverse as The History of Games, and Casual and Downloadable Games, attracted a record crowd. In recent years, this pre-show event drew poorly, rarely filling the conference rooms in the North Hall to even 50 percent capacity. This year, almost all sessions drew large numbers, with some sessions packing standing-room only crowds into the two rooms that housed the two-track, two-session event.
Cody Alexander, an agent with William Morris Consulting (a division of the William Morris Agency), was a speaker on the program's Games and Hollywood session. Alexander has attended the past four CES events, but this was the first year he allocated time to speak on a Digital Hollywood session. "I was pleasantly surprised" at the turnout, Alexander told GameSpot.
While he views the average CES attendee as one who is "not as savvy or knowledgeable" about the game industry as a typical E3 attendee might be, his comments suggest a reason for the sudden interest in games. "People in the hardware and consumer electronics business see videogames as the next pipeline," he said. From Alexander's perspective, attending CES "is a good way to detect what's going on in the game industry."
Even some in the traditional game space are suddenly viewing CES with renewed interest. Los Angeles-based Square Enix USA brought 10 staffers to the show, an unprecedented number. In this instance, the decision relates to Square's forward-thinking philosophy of gaming and game platforms. "Traditionally, we have been focused on the game console," Square Enix USA president and COO Ichiro Otobe told GameSpot. "That has been our playing field. But now we are focused on networked and connected devices." Addressing the Square Enix view that consoles and handhelds are losing their position as the sole means by which games enter the consumer marketplace, Otobe said. "This show represents our next playing field."
He is not alone. An unusually high number of high-level industry players could be seen in both the audience and among the speaker's ranks in yesterday's conference. Executive producer Warren Wall of Electronic Arts, Ubisoft vice president of publishing Jay Cohen, Xfire founder Mike Cassidy, Firaxis founder Jeff Briggs, Xbox Live general manager Cam Ferroni, Nielsen executive Michael Dowling, general manager of Nokia's games business unit Nada Usina, and Jason Hall, senior vice president of Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment, were among those participating in the conference. And industry analysts were out in force as well: Michael Goodman of The Yankee Group, Schelley Olhava of IDC, American Technologies' PJ McNealy, and Colin Sebastian of investment banking firm Thomas Weisel Partners were all spotted in the busy conference crowd.
Of course, packed crowds at a one-day conference does not provide conclusive evidence that CES has greater traction with the game industry. One top executive shrugged off his company's presence, saying, "CES is just another stop on the map."--which gives the show about as much stature as a quickie mart on the New Jersey turnpike, stopped at to refuel the car and load up on carbs.
So while the jury may still be out on the show's significance, some have already made up their mind: CES matters. "We are looking at CES very seriously, but I don't think this [view] is shared by other game companies," Otobe said.
However, Otobe offered hope that one day, CES might offer even more compelling reasons to make the show a permanent, and serious, "stop on the map" for the game industry. Dropping a vague hint of what's to come, Otobe said, "This year we are attending just as observers. Next year, we hope to offer something more."
Bill Gates talks Xbox 2 !
Posted on Thursday, January 6 2005
Contrary to rumours that have been doing the rounds since last year, Bill Gates chose not to unveil Xbox 2 at his CES keynote speech last night (to find out what he did talk about, click here).
But it turns out the man who built Microsoft has been discussing his plans for the successor to the big green and black box. On Tuesday night Gates spoke to technology website CNET News and spilled the beans on his plans to make Xbox 2 a full, complete, one-stop entertainment centre.
"We didn't do Xbox just to do a video game; we did it to be part of our vision of the digital lifestyle," Gates told CNET News. "In the first generation, we had one simple goal, which was to establish credibility as a great video game platform. We've done that."
Gates went on to discuss how Xbox 2 would push multimedia functionality into gamers' homes, saying as well as great gaming he wants to provide "more communications, more media, more connectivity."
But gaming will benefit too. "At the same time," said Gates in the interview, "we move up to things like high-definition graphics and wireless that the chip breakthroughs allow us to get to."
Gates then talked about how important it is for Xbox 2 to bring together all your entertainment in one place: "For the games alone you'd say wow, but the concept of bringing in your music, your media, connecting to the PC, connecting Xbox Live to Messenger makes it a very big deal."
The comments echo earlier suggestions from Microsoft that the Xbox 2 will act as a media centre for your music, movies, videos and photos and be able to share information with your home PC. It's another strong indication that games consoles are set to become far more multifunctional as the next generation dawns.
So it seems that Microsoft does indeed want to rule your entire entertainment world but, at the moment at least, it's not interested in ruling the handheld world. Discussing the possibility of a handheld Xbox to rival Nintendo's DS and Sony's PSP, Gates said: "We are not in the handheld space. We watch the intense competition of Sony, Nintendo, Nokia - whoever comes along with interest."
In fact, Bill Gates sees an advantage for Xbox in the bitter battle being fought between Nintendo and Sony. "The fact that Sony's a little distracted with PSP may let us do all the better in the next generation," he said.
All quiet on the Xbox 2 front at CES !
Posted on Thursday, January 6 2005
Microsoft chairman Bill Gates delivered his keynote speech at the Consumer Electronics Show 2005 event yesterday, and despite the run-up to his talk being paved with rumour and hype about an unveiling of Xbox 2, as we confirmed yesterday there wasn't so much as a droplet of chat about Xbox's successor.
Xbox 2 information may have been in absence, but amidst a number of announcements from Gates on Microsoft 'digital experience' initiatives in the areas of television, music and video, photos and communications, he did touch on the current status of Xbox, highlight sales performance of Halo 2 and Fable and take upcoming racing title Forza Motorsport for a spin.
Microsoft's chairman announced industry-leading sales for Xbox in the US in the 2004 holiday season, revealing that the console secured a 40-percent market share during November and December of last year. Xbox Live experienced highest level of usage ever over the same period, 1 million-plus gamers entering into online bouts and racking, up to date, a staggering 69 million hours of play on Halo 2.
Gates also spoke of Halo 2's impressive sales, which have now hit 6.3 million units since its November 9 2004 launch, and reminded us of the game's launch-day revenue of $125 million in the United States and Canada. Lionhead/Big Blue Box RPG Fable received a special mention as well, the title breaking the 1 million sales barrier in two months.
But perhaps the zenith of Bill Gates' keynote speech was the demonstration of Xbox's would-be Gran Turismo beater Forza Motorsport, which Gates played with talk-show personality Conan O'Brien as part of his discussion of major trends driving gaming today (HDTV, ubiquitous broadband and wireless connectivity, and rich personalisation).
Gates and O'Brien raced through Manhattan in customised cars, according to reports complete with a system crash and shoddy framerate on Conan's console. Snigger.
Spider Chip *NEW Version* V1.1 !
Posted on Wednesday, January 5 2005
Divineo UK have posted this news:
Finally after a couple of weeks delay, we have the new V1.1 Spider Chip in stock!
XBOX 2 DEFINITELY NOT AT CES !
Posted on Wednesday, January 5 2005
The Consumer Electronics Show kicks off today in Las Vegas, but Bill Gates will definitely not use his opening speech to whip out Xbox 2 for the first time.
"There are still rumours that we will be unveiling our next generation console at CES and this is not true," we were told by a spokesperson for Microsoft today.
Reports have suggested that rather than revealing Xbox 2 Gates will instead concentrate on discussing Microsoft's other products including PCs, media players and application software.
Speculation has been rampant for almost six months that Gates would use his keynote speech to unveil the new console, just as he did with the original Xbox in 2001. Then last month we revealed that the Games Developers Conference (GDC) taking place in San Francisco in March was a more likely venue for the console's debut, since Microsoft used it to unveil their XNA development tools there last year.
With this confirmation from Microsoft that Xbox 2 will not show up at CES, it may be that March will be the time to finally get a look at the machine - or possibly even May's E3 in Los Angeles. Microsoft has declined to comment on what event is more likely, so we'll have to waity and see.
It's a bit of a disappointment, but don't worry. Here's something that's bound to perk up your Xbox 2 pecker. Microsoft has had a patent approved by the US Patent and Trademark Office that offers some interesting insights into how Xbox 2 might perform.
The patent is for a "System and method for parallel execution of data generation tasks". Essentially, that means spreading out the processing burden across multiple chips. While this in itself is nothing new in computing, Microsoft's plans for parallel processing are extremely exciting.
In an exclusive interview with us last year Xbox head honcho J Allard discussed something he called "procedural synthesis" - letting the processing power of a console deal with creating realistic and varied repeated textures and shapes rather than forcing game developers to create them individually, and choking up processing bandwidth in the process.
The new Microsoft patent mentions this technique specifically, offering the example of a leaf and stating that all developers would need to do is specify its location and any factors affecting it, like wind. Procedural Synthesis would take care of the rest, endlessly creating as many leaves (or bricks, or tarnished metal walls and so on) as required.
On the surface it's not hugely exciting, but look a little deeper. What this all means is that Xbox 2 and future PC games will offer infinitely more realistic and varied game worlds while freeing up valuable processing power that developers can use to create bigger, better, more satisfying games. Now that's exciting.
More news further Xbox 2 developments as they happen.
Xbox 2 announcement looks unlikely as CES looms !
Posted on Tuesday, January 4 2005
Microsoft chairman Bill Gates' preconference keynote address is set to open the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas tomorrow, but it now looks highly unlikely that the expected Xbox 2 announcement will be made in his speech.
Comments from senior industry figures last autumn raised hopes that the new console, codenamed Xenon among development partners, would be shown off during Gates' CES keynote - just as the original Xbox was in 2001.
However, Microsoft has never commented on the possibility that Xbox 2 will appear at the show, and insiders at the company have told GamesIndustry.biz that anyone expecting to see Xbox 2 in Las Vegas this week would be making "a wasted trip".
Although it's likely that Gates will at least mention Xbox 2 - due for launch before the end of 2005 - during the speech, it's not expected that he'll confirm any unrevealed details about the system or show off any hardware.
Instead, his keynote is likely to focus on other Microsoft products which will be showcased at CES, including technologies for media centres and entertainment-focused PCs, portable video players, digital rights management (DRM) software and "smart watches".
The likely venue for more information about Xbox 2 to be announced now looks like being the Game Developers Conference - which we mention with a sense of deja vu, since an announcement Xbox 2 was expected there last year as well, but ultimately turned out to be the launch of the XNA development platform instead.
Flash-based HD for Xbox 2, according to Albrecht !
Posted on Tuesday, January 4 2005
Alex Abrecht, fry cook of all things Xbox 2 rumor, claims he spoke to a Microsoft employee over the weekend who confirmed that the Xbox 2 will sport a flash-based hard drive. While this could be cool and all, and allow for some fast level-loading, we’ll take this rumor with a big grain of salt. And some ketchup. The ex-TechTV guy may talk to people, but saying you talked to a Microsoft employee could mean the dude was a coder for a division on the other side of MS campus responsible for Windows widgets. Albrecht also claims the guy told him the Xbox 2 will play DVDs out of the box and will be seen this week at CES. Yay DVDs. We’ll be there and report back for ya.
X Light & MagicBOX XFPS
Posted on Tuesday, January 4 2005
Divineo China have posted news of 2 new Xbox Products that have been released, heres news on both:
X-light: now in Yellow and Red
The popular Xlight, for Xbox & PS2, is now available in Yellow and Red colors. The Blue and Green are still available.
MagicBOX XFPS: Connect keyboard & mice to your Xbox
We are now taking preorder for the magicbox XFPS, a product that will for sure increase your gaming pleasure and a must have for all FPS addicts!
More information at Divineo China
Xbox Doom 3 News
Posted on Tuesday, January 4 2005
While we were shining our flashlights around the interweb earlier (we weren't holding our gun at the same time - that would be stupid, obviously) we illuminated something hellishly exciting: a Collector's Edition of the Xbox version of Doom 3.
Listed alongside the standard version of the game by US e-tailers and clocking in at an extra $10, the Collector's Edition comes stacked with enough extras to get Satan himself hot under the collar.
You'll get the long-awaited port of the PC FPS fully souped-up with online multiplayer and Xbox-exclusive online co-op play, and you'll also be able to sample the old school delights of the original Doom and Doom II. Getting to play these legendary FPSs on your Xbox is already cool, but developer id has also added online Deathmatch and 2-4 player coop modes to these games too.
As well as those chewy morsels the Collector's Edition will also come stuffed with video interviews with Doom 3's dev team, a feature taken from US gaming channel Video Game TV, and a stack of storyboards, sketches and other concept art.
Hopefully the whole package will be wrapped up in a nifty collector's tin like the Halo 2 Special Edition. We've included a packshot for you to check out. No official word from Activision on whether we'll be able to buy it in the UK, but we reckon it's a safe bet.
So that's all very nice, but there's one other interesting nugget of information listed by US retailers: a March 1 US release date for both the standard and Collector's Edition, which happily coincides with the release date for the PC expansion pack Resurrection of Evil.
Best not to get too excited, though - different sites are listing different release dates (we've also seen March 15) and when we contacted Activision a spokesperson told us that these dates were no more than "rumour and speculation".
Still, with the long-awaited port of the PC game already overdue, and the probability of a simultaneous US and European release looking likely, it's encouraging to see a March date being mooted by retailers.
FBAxxx 02/01/05 Release
Posted on Sunday, January 2 2005
A new version of FBAxxx which is an emulator for MC68000/Z80 based arcade machines for the Xbox has been been released.
Heres whats new:
* Neogeo bug fixed ;).
* Added mappable coin and start button
* Added autofire option
* Update of pnyaad driver
A side note: the cps1 crash bug is not yet corrected, I didn't found the exact problem, sorry.
More info about FBAxxx Here
Surreal64xxx 02/01/2005 !
Posted on Sunday, January 2 2005
The FBAxxx Team have released a new version of Surreal64, a Nintendo64 emulator for Xbox.
Heres whats new:
"Based on FreakDave V3 version, I had a hard time to make you some config load/save and submenus, but it is done, you can now edit:
* flicker filter
* vertex processing
* soften filter
* texture filter
via the ingame videomenu :)
Note: as I probably won't have much time for now, I hope this will launch the project again and I'm counting on some other ppl to try to add/fix some things on this."
More info about Surreal Here
SmartXX Lite Hits The Stores
Posted on Sunday, January 2 2005
The SmartXX Lite hits the stores.
The new SmartXX LT OPX "Light One Point X" is the so called "the small sister" of SmartXX v2 (Pro) chip. It has a 1MB flash, is based on a highspeed SysCon, and offers the modernst Logic chip technology avaliable on the market with the amazing power of the SmartXX LT OPX OS ;)
RDX rls 1
Posted on Saturday, January 1 2005
rdx (at this point at least) is a collection of new (but comparitivly) basic emulator ports along with very basic dashboard like functionallity.
The primary aim of releasing this is to try and stimulate the xbox homebrew dev community a little as things seem to be quieting down a bit lately. :)
You are encouraged to make as many changes to the code as you want and submit them back to us for inclusion in a future version.
There are a few, hopefully non-restrictive, licencing type rules at the top of dash.cpp about what you can and can't do with the source to team xos developed code. They are not there to limit what you can do with the code but more to ensure that you release the modified source to any released binaries to help the development community. Certain parts of the code written outside of Team XOS have slightly more restrictive licences but please always follow the licence the original developers have assigned to there code.
Everything is more than basic in this current version but features are:
* Emulates Snes, Nes, sms, megadrive
* Configurable rom, application and game paths via XML config file
* Dashboard style app launching
* The skelton code for some other features
http://www.xboxopensource.com/
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