Some new/old stuff that was in the mail this week:
SEGA Rally Online Arcade and the Microsoft Wireless Speed Wheel. For some unknown reason this game is not available for download at my Xbox Marketplace. It’s included as pack-in with the Wireless Speed Wheel only. Because the outer box was missing it was a real bargain buy – both items are brand new. The Speed Wheel can be seen as a cross-breed between the excellent Wireless Racing Wheel and a regular game pad. Most game think it’s just a game pad and behave accordingly – controlling the cars is almost impossible (e.g. Forza Horizon). But games that were designed to use either wheel play surprisingly well (e.g. Forza 4).
The first one is a small piece of plastic, known as AGB-016 or 6PIN Protection Cover.It is still being sold in the Nintendo Online ShopUpdate: It was sold in the Nintendo Online Shop until 2014. The page can still be accessed with the WayBack Machine. It protects the Game Boy Advance SP screen when an e-Reader+ or an e-Reader with a link cable port is plugged in. Actually, it is a very useful little accessory with the only drawback that it has to be fixed permanently on the e-Reader. The e-Reader then won’t fit anymore in the original Game Boy Advance.
A second-hand Neo Geo X Gold Limited Edition was in the mail this weekend. The best thing about it (besides it being cheap) is there are no signs of use, just some minor damage on the packing materials and some fingerprints on the glossy screen.
Look what came in the mail today: The collector’s edition of Deus Ex: Human Revolution.
Basically it’s just the augmented/limited edition plus a very fragile toy with exchangeable hands and arms in a cardboard box. This will keep me busy for some time (the game, not the puppet).
If you drop an Xbox 360 controller, don’t let it land on its bumper buttons. The micro-switches break easily on the inside. They might still work, but need more pressure to be triggered. This problem plagues old Sega Saturn gamepads too.
To open Xbox 360 controllers, you need a special Torx security screwdriver with a hole in the tip, size T8H. If you don’t have this rather unusual screwdriver, you can break the tiny pins in the screws and unscrew them with a regular T8 or T9 Torx screwdriver. Seven screws need to be removed (yellow circles). One of them is hidden behind the white sticker with the barcode and not behind the black sticker where I looked for it first (red circle).
The Bandai Datach Joint ROM System is an add-on for the Nintendo Famicom. It plugs right into the cartridge slot and comes with its own small cartridges. The games are enhanced with barcode cards, similar to the Mattel HyperScan.
The retail package with one included game, Dragon Ball Z: Gekitō Tenkaichi Budokai, is rather easy and cheap to obtain.
Additional games are very rare and even rarer and pricier when the corresponding barcode cards are included. I’ve seen some bootlegs of those games on regular Famicom carts but never tried them so far.Update:Pirate Dragon Ball Z Famicom Cartridge.
Have you ever wondered how to play (and win!) one of those numerous Mahjong games that exist on almost every game console? I’m not talking about the in the West well-known matching game but about the real Chinese or Japanese Mahjong, usually played by four players. If you are not familiar with the Japanese language or characters, winning is almost impossible because not many translated games exist. I’ve found two games so far that taught me how to play (and win) in a couple of weeks:
SEGA Rally Online Arcade and the Microsoft Wireless Speed Wheel. For some unknown reason this game is not available for download at my Xbox Marketplace. It’s included as pack-in with the Wireless Speed Wheel only. Because the outer box was missing it was a real bargain buy – both items are brand new.
