Gaming The World of DS Homebrew

http://www.bit-tech.net/gaming/2007/09/15/the_world_of_ds_homebrew/1

Are you scared of trying out homebrew games and applications for your DS? Worried that you'll break it or get arrested for piracy? Fear no more - we explore the world of DS homebrew and look at some of the best games, apps and hardware to get the job done.

 

I think i'd rather find a way to get full use of the gfx of the PS3 from linux boot and then use that but hey this has touch screen.

 

What? Modifying something I bought and own could be illegal?
So if I undervolt a fan, desolder a USB header, or swap some LEDs in a keyboard I'm breaking the law?

 

Hardware of the console normally it means you're circumventing the BIOS and any copy protection.

 

I'm a big fan of the scummvm emulator, have it on my R4DS at the moment. Pocket monkey island!

This app can be quite handy too, WiFi AP scanner, handy for finding access points.

One thing i'm not sure the article writer realised though: the R4DS and the M3 DS Simply are the exact same hardware, the M3 is just a rebranded R4DS

 

No, because the license agreements are different. But if you read the EULA of the DS, PSP or any console for that matter you'll se clauses forbidding you to monify the hardware in any way.

Not to mention you'll void your warranty as soon as you open the case. Hard drive on PS3 is a notable exception, yo can bust open that end of the case and not void the warranty of the rest of the internals.

 

can you get doom on any of these applications?

how much would it cost to get the best one for running Quake on DS?

 

l3w1z that link is strange......

 

Back from holiday - time to answer these questions.

First - yep, the M3 and the R4 are very similar. They are even made in the same factory. There are differences though - one jumper different hardware wise and, software wise, the R4 has a few extras. It has moonshell, which IIRC the M3 doesn't have as standard. It also has a DLDI-auto patching software system and a skinnable OS, as well as a regularly updated in-built cheat system for games. The R4 also has a few trinkets in the package - a card holder, poorly translated manual and a wrist strap.

Second - yep, you can get Doom for it if you want. Any Doom game. You can also get Duke Nukem 3D (buggy though), Rise of the Triad, Shadow Warrior (buggy) and Wolfenstein 3D. In all cases you have to supply your own WAD or PAK though.

Thirdly - The R4 is my weapon of choice and I picked one up for forty quid on Amazon.co.uk, with a suitable SD card (mini or micro, I can never recall) and adapter. I then realised I got a bit ripped off. You can get the R4 itself for around 30 quid and the cards are really really cheap.

Fourthly - ScummVM owns, though the controls can take a bit of getting used too. I played Monkey Island and Indiana Jones and The Last Crusade both while I was away. Awesome games.

 

Maybe it would be a good idea to post some links to flashcart review sites. Don't panic, these sites have NO ROMs on them at ALL.
http://gbatemp.net
http://romnet.co.uk
http://dsdatabase.org
(Sorry if this is against the rules, but they helped me a lot)

 

So would you reccomend for me to get R4? does it require DS modification at all?
also whats a WAD or PAK?

 

I have an M3 and it came with Moonshell and the auto patcher, it also came with a dual cart holder and a microSD card reader (USB).

I paid £25 for it and then £13 for a 2GB microSD card with SD adaptor.

 

Doug, thanks for clearing up the lack of differences with the M3. The R4 also has the USB card reader and card holder etc. Looks like the only difference is the single jumper and the cheat tool of the R4.

As for you Ben, my personal suggestion would be an R4 (but I accept no responsibility, etc) because I've used one without any trouble. The manual is a bit rubbish, but it's not something you need and there's plenty of help on the net. It's very much plug and play.

A WAD or a PAK file is a collection of all the graphics and info used in the game. id released the Doom engine and Quake engine for free - as was the BUILD engine for Duke 3D. However, the games are not free and the content of the game (levels, cutscenes etc) are all held in a WAD or PAK file for these engines. The homebrew scene has ported the engine, so all you need to do is provide a copy of the game (legal, please) for it read from.

If you don't have a full copy of the game then you can use the shareware or demo versions for free.

Oh and I forgot to mention you can play Hexen and Heretic on the DS too. And Chex Quest. Who remembers Chex Quest, eh?

 

Moonshell is amazing - ive got loads of game trailers running on my DS, and a few episodes of Futurama from my DVD box set.

 

Good luck with that ;-) IIRC commercial games don't get made using the (YellowDog?) Linux disto. Its for educational + research purposes. I could be wrong though...

 

Doom 95 multiplayer using the wifi. that would a good argument for me to get a ds

 

hmmm, i do like how bit-tech has been doing some "alternative gaming" options lately, this is tempting too

 

Doom runs ridiculously well on the DS, absolutely love it. The only downside is the lack of the awesome music, which really sucks. But hey, the gameplay is all there. Still haven't tried Quake though.

 

Was playing some Quake DS last night actually - runs awesome, though I only have the shareware copy. The control system is flawless - screen to aim, trigger to fire, d-pad to move. Very comfy and intuitive.

Quake 2 DS is reportedly in the works, which will be impressive given that the DS only has about 4MB of RAM...