May 13th, 2002 (12:00am) - As of now, there are 3 Xbox mods in development, and nearing completion, made by different hardware hacking groups; the Enigmah, Xtender, and there is an unamed prototype mod that operates all on one chip. All three are said to perform about as well as the next.
The modifications are supposed to have many features, such as playing every Xbox game (including imports and "backups"), CD-R(W) and DVD-R(W) support, easy installation, and they "open the door for homebrew/amateur development".
Those who plan to get their Xboxes modded (which, by the way, may be illegal, I have little knowlage of the legality of console modding, so do so at your own risk) can expect flash upgrades, possible compatability for future Xbox consoles, and don’t have to worry about information being sent to MS during online gaming, because it doesn’t exist.
There are even groups (two that I have heard of, Riot and Syndicate, but most likely at least a few more are out there) that are already ripping and burning Xbox titles, and will, or already have, release them online.
The Enigmah and Xtender chips are expected to be released as soon as next week, so gamers can utilize them just that soon.
-So, what does all this mean for you?
If you are living in an area where game access is limited, and you have a broadband connection and can get your Xbox modded, this means great things; you could now play burned and import titles on your machine. Importers should enjoy this too.
Also, non-importers and people with easy access to retail games can possibly rip music from CD-Rs now, and also watch (S)VCDs.
For everyone else (cheapies), this means you can illegally download and burn Xbox games and screw MS out of money for absolutely no deferential reason (and if you are wondering, yes, you would, for lack of a better phrase, suck for it).
-What does this mean for MS?
If it is for a deferntial reason or not, people burning games will screw them over anyways. It won’t run MS into the ground, but if overall software sales loss is a major issue because of piracy, it may cause developers to jump ship.
So, I would suggest not even getting your Xbox modded, unless you are not very disatisfied with the Xbox support from retailers in your area, a heavy importer, or *only* want to rip/play CD-R music and watch (S)VCDs. *BUY* your games from a *RETAILER* if you can.
*Update (5/18/02)* There is an Xbox mod chip from Neo, the Neo-X, that is being developed for the sole purpose of letting people play import titles, and not "backups" and CD/DVD-R(W) media, so if you want to have a mod chip that lets you support importing, but not piracy, the Neo-X will be your best bet.Check out our interview with Paul Owen of Neo here for more info.
