General Gaming Article

General Gaming Article


Clever Modder Created a Functioning 128GB Floppy Disk

Posted: 29 Feb 2016 10:28 AM PST

Long live the floppy!

Floppy Disk

I still own several 3.5-inch floppies and even some 5.25-inch disks. They're mostly game installs for old school adventure titles, but in my basement they sit, these boxed up relics of a bygone era. After seeing what a modder did with this old floppy disks, I'm tempted to dig them out and convert them into 128GB disks.

A YouTube user who goes by the handle Dr. Moddnstine posted a pair of must-watch videos for anyone who remembers what computers were like in the 1990s. He took an old 1995 IBM Aptiva PC with a non-working 486 foundation (he surmised it was the motherboard) and rebuilt it into a Skylake machine while respecting the vintage looks of the system.

Along the way, he decided to salvage the 3.5-inch floppy drive, but in a unique way. Rather than have it continue to read 1.44MB floppy disks, he tore it apart and noticed that the notches on the edge connector of an old ribbon cable lined up neatly with an SD card. Armed with that knowledge, he cut the cable and modded it into a microSD card reader.

He then modded a few floppy disks to serve as caddies for 128GB microSD cards, which are easily removable when/if needed. When inserted into the floppy drive, the system recognizes the full capacity of his storage media—very clever!

You can check out a worklog of his mod on Imgur, plus be sure to check out his pair of YouTube videos below:

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Faster Raspberry Pi 3 Gains Wi-Fi and Bluetooth, Still Just $35

Posted: 29 Feb 2016 09:45 AM PST

Fresh out of the oven

Raspberry Pi 3

In celebration of its fourth birthday, The Raspberry Pi Foundation has cooked up a new version of its highly popular Raspberry Pi mini PC with a giant assist from fellow chef Broadcom. The newly released Raspberry Pi 3 is quite the treat—it's faster that previous models, more functional, and backwards compatible.

The Raspberry Pi 3 is powered by Broadcom's new BCM2837 SoC. Baked inside is a 1.2GHz 64-bit quad-core ARM Cortex-A53 CPU, a pretty sweet upgrade over the 900MHz 32-bit ARM Cortex-A7 found in the Raspberry 2. According to The Raspberry Pi Foundation, the 33 percent jump in clockspeed combined with architectural improvements makes the Raspberry Pi 3 50-60 percent faster than its predecessor in 32-bit mode, and about 10 times faster than the original Raspberry Pi. 

That speed doesn't come at the cost of compatibility. Though the SoC is new, it's the same basic architecture as the BCM2835 and BCM2856 SoCs found in previous models.

In addition to being faster, Raspberry Pi 3 sports a BCM43438 wireless combo chip that gives it Wi-Fi and Bluetooth support. One of Raspberry Pi's designers, James Adams, spent the second half of 2015 building prototypes with the wireless module and the end result is a form factor that's virtually unchanged from the Raspberry Pi 1 Model B+ and Raspberry Pi 2 Model B—all that changed is the location of the LEDs, which were relocated to the other side of the SD card socket to make room for the antenna.

"All of the connectors are in the same place and have the same functionality, and the board can still be run from a 5V micro-USB power adapter. This time round, we're recommending a 2.5A adapter if you want to connect power-hungry USB devices to the Raspberry Pi," Raspberry Pi Foundation said in a blog post.

Despite the upgrades, the price is the same—Raspberry Pi 3 is on sale now for $35.

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HTC Starts Taking Pre-Orders for Vive VR Headset, Ships in April

Posted: 29 Feb 2016 09:13 AM PST

Officially a two-horse race

HTC Vive Pre order

After all the hype and anticipation, you can finally place a pre-order for HTC's Vive headset today, just as the company promised last week. The cost, as stated previously, is $799, with the first batch of headsets slated to ship in April of this year.

There's also an estimated $30 shipping charge for orders placed in the U.S., which brings the total to $829. What that gets you is the Vive headset, a pair of wireless controllers, two base stations, a link box, earbuds, an updated head strap with integrated phone functionality, two games (Job Simulator and Fantastic Contraption), and Tilt Brush by Google.

What's not included in the cost is a PC. Like Rift, the Vive requires a fairly powerful system. To see if yours is already up to snuff, Valve released a StreamVR Performance Test that can determine if your hardware is able to run VR content at 90 frames per second. According to the hardware specifications of that test, Valve recommends:

  • CPU: Intel Core i5-4590 or better / AMD FX-8350 or better
  • RAM: 4GB or more
  • GPU: Nvidia GeForce GTX 970 or better / AMD Radeon R9 290 or better
  • OS: Windows 7 SP1, Windows 8.1, or Windows 10

It will be interesting to see how the Vive sells in pre-sale compared the Rift, which is $200 cheaper. Even though the Vive costs more, the inclusion of two wireless controllers and room sensors add to the value proposition. Having Valve in HTC's corner is also a major selling point.

If you're interested in pre-ordering a Vive, go here.

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Rig of the Month: Power Cell

Posted: 29 Feb 2016 12:00 AM PST

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MMORPG News

MMORPG News


WildStar: The Arcterra Assessment

Posted: 28 Feb 2016 03:19 PM PST

Destination: Arcterra hits WildStar's test realm, bringing a new zone, new story, and shiny new rewards. We tooled up columnist Gareth Harmer with a scarf and gloves, before sending him on a trip to this wintery wasteland.

Black Desert Online: Freshly Launched MMO has a Couple Issues. News at 11

Posted: 29 Feb 2016 05:19 AM PST

The Black Desert Online team has posted a short note regarding issues with one of the North American servers. A limited number of players on who had created characters on Serendia had been incorrectly placed in the wrong channels causing issues with claiming preorder items. As a result, players can either leave their character on Serendia or they can create a character on a new server. The team is working to ensure that the issue is cleared up and that all items can be claimed.

General: Slashy Souls: Dark Souls Inspired Mobile Spin-Off

Posted: 28 Feb 2016 02:23 AM PST

Bandai Namco in partnership with Gamestop is releasing a new mobile RPG called Slashy Souls that is based on Dark Souls series.

ASTA: The War of Tears and Winds: Latin American Version To Begin OBT On March 8

Posted: 28 Feb 2016 02:12 AM PST

Axeso5 has sent word that the open beta test for the Latin American and Brazil version of ASTA will kick off on March 8th. This version of the game will be localized in both Spanish and Portuguese.

MMOGaming News

MMOGaming News


Final Fantasy XI Curtains Close, Was the Show Stolen?

Posted:

Final Fantasy XI Curtains Close, Was the Show Stolen?


Sad news has surfaced regarding the console version of the Final Fantasy XI MMORPG

Warhammer 40,000: Deathwatch: Tyranid Invasion Review

Posted:

Warhammer 40,000: Deathwatch: Tyranid Invasion Review


I made no impression on turn-based mobile game at first, but it's now become one of my favorite genres for Warhammer 40,000: Deathwatch: Tyranid Invasion. Deathwatch is outstanding and maintains free-to-play with terrific graphics, inventive gameplay, interesting storyline and fascinating weapon system. As the first mobile game that built by Unreal Engine 4, it surprises me with the better graphics than others.

Gunslinger Stratos 3 Teased by Square Enix

Posted:

Gunslinger Stratos 3 Teased by Square Enix


Gunslinger Stratos is a third-person shooter that was announced by Square Enix in early 2015.

Have Another Round: Drunken Fist Overview

Posted:

Have Another Round: Drunken Fist Overview


Age of Wushu Dynasty brings this Drunken Fist alive, a truely famous and skillful martial art.

Power and Fury: Rage Skill Overview

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Power and Fury: Rage Skill Overview


You can regard rage skill as the explosion of rage and masters are skillful in controlling rage for greater damage. So look out when you have irritated them in Age of Wushu Dynasty, they are accumulating the rage and waiting for the right time to cast.

Unleash the Dragon: Martial Skill Overview

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Unleash the Dragon: Martial Skill Overview


Dragon is regarded as the most noble and powerful creature in ancient China and even the royal family ruled that only they can use anything related to dragon. Dragon is famous for controlling weather and strong body. Besides its tail, the most powerful part is its claw. That is what the Dragon Claw in Age of Wushu Dynasty means to be--powerful.

Ultimate Emptyhand: Taichi Fists Overview

Posted:

Ultimate Emptyhand: Taichi Fists Overview


Check the mysterious Taichi Fist in Age of Wushu Dynasty.

Blade & Soul Mobile OBT: 10th Mar 2016

Posted:

Blade & Soul Mobile OBT: 10th Mar 2016


Blade & Soul Mobile OBT will start on 10th Mar 2016 for Android and iOS. The mobile game is developed by NCsoft and distributed by Tencent

Monster Hunter Online Update Brings New Boss Dragon and Weapon

Posted:

Monster Hunter Online Update Brings New Boss Dragon and Weapon


Monster Hunter Online, the hot Chinese MMORPG based on Capcom's Monster Hunter series, is going to release a major update on March 1st. In this update, players will see a series of new contents including a new weapon, new bosses, new sky battle and new achievements

Stealin Coming to Mobile on March 5th

Posted:

Stealin Coming to Mobile on March 5th


Stealin, a fast paced strategy game about conquering new territories from Binary Banana studio, will be available for Android and iOS on March 5th.

Black Desert Reduces Prices for Costumes and Opens New Servers Before HeadStart

Posted:

Black Desert Reduces Prices for Costumes and Opens New Servers Before HeadStart


The good news came from Daum that one new server has been added for Europe and North America respectively, Croxus (EU) and Uno (NA). Moreover, Daum has planned items sale in cash shop, costumes in the cash shop have been split into two batches to separate functional kit from vanity outfits, and the price for pet have been reduced.

WoW: Paragon Disbands!

Posted:

WoW: Paragon Disbands!


The World of Warcraft guild Paragon has disbanded. They announced it on their official website, claiming they won't be partaking in Legion's race for world first kills. It comes as a surprise as the guild has been raiding since forever!

Continue reading WoW: Paragon Disbands!.

HotS: Map Timers [Guide]

Posted:

HotS: Map Timers [Guide]


Here is a useful guide of timing on a specific map in Heroes of the Storm.

Continue reading HotS: Map Timers [Guide].

New Statue System Comes to Tree of Savior Korean Version

Posted:

New Statue System Comes to Tree of Savior Korean Version


While the international version of Tree of Savior is now preparing for the launch of Open Beta, the Korean version of the game is also busy recently. A few interesting features have just been updated into the game, including new guild raid events, new emotions and a brand-new statue system

Final Fantasy XIV: Struggles With Cheaters

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Final Fantasy XIV: Struggles With Cheaters


Final Fantasy XIV is one of those MMORPGs that are getting ruined by bots and cheaters.Sadly, there are plenty possibilities for botters and cheaters in Final Fantasy XIV, who are commonly appearing in various segments of the game. This is, of course, not a new thing and plenty of other MMORPGs are suffering from the same issue, but certain features of third-party cheating programs for FFXIV seem to be giving hilarious advantages to players.

Graphics Should Not Matter This Much in MMORPGs

Posted:

Graphics Should Not Matter This Much in MMORPGs


The next-gen MMORPGs are all about high-end, photorealistic graphics that match offline gaming standards. But should we judge an MMORPG by its visuals?

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