Benheck.com Podcast Episode 68

January 29th, 2010

Visit Hack N Mod for more hacking coolness!

We’re back! In this thrilling episode we discuss:

1) The 3D movie tax. Now that every movie is going 3D, every movie ticket automatically becomes $2.50 more expensive. Lame!

2) The Apple iPad. What and who is this for?

3) Actors who haven’t lived up to their potential AKA Come on Dwayne Johnson, pick up a machine gun already!

Listen to Benheck.com Podcast Episode 68

www.benheckpodcast.com

"With the seventh generation video game consoles the gaming has gone online. These days playing online poker and console gaming has one thing in common; players across the globe are competing against each other from their own homes. The biggest difference is that people usually don't go broke playing console games"

Longhorn Engineer’s Custom Atari 2600 motherboard

January 26th, 2010

Parker Dillman - the “Longhorn Engineer” and a member of my forums, has gotten a custom “remanufacture” of an Atari 2600 working! Way to go!

You can visit his site here - hopefully he’ll have this for sale soon! He also has a very nice Atari 2600 composite video mod you should check out.

Don’t forget the Midwest Gaming Classic in Milwaukee

January 20th, 2010

Hello internet, Ben here with another plug for the Midwest Gaming Classic. (MGC)

If you like videogames, and you live even remotely close to Milwaukee, WI (home of all the best beers) you owe it to yourself to visit the 2010 Midwest Gaming Classic! It’s become quite a large event, rivaling the size of game conventions you’d find elsewhere (well, maybe not Dragon*Con).

Best of all, at least in the context of this website, you can visit the Benheck.com Experience room of MGC to meet me, podcast co-host Jason “Jones” Jones, and many of our forum members. Highlights include:

  • On-spot mods and repairs of whatever you bring in.
  • 3D printing demonstration, thanks to Chris Kraft.
  • Separate panel by myself discussing pinball and probably lots of off-topic BS.
  • Hands-on demonstrations of forum member’s projects
  • BILL PAXTON PINBALL. Free to play, with high-score save and 4 player competition mode!

So if you haven’t already, check out their site here! We’ll see you there!

Pinball Wars!

January 1st, 2010

As many of you know I have been working on a Bill Paxton themed pinball machine for several years, and have made a lot of progress since last summer. A few months ago I was on the “Fat Man and Circuit Girl” show and suggested to Jeri Ellsworth that she attempt a machine of her own, since she loves pinball so much and could obviously handle it.

Cut to a few months later and not only is she working on one but making amazing progress as well! The theme is “As Seen on TV”, so I’m hoping when the ball drains it says “I’ve fallen and I can’t get up!”

Some of her friends have started their own innovative pins as well. A bit of trash talk later and now it’s a race to see who can finish their machine first and “out toy” each other!

If you’d like to keep tabs on this epic battle and egg us both on, see below:

Benheck.com YouTube channel
Benheck Twitter Feed

Jeri’s YouTube Channel
Jeri’s Twitter Feed

Well met!

Benheck.com Podcast Episode 67

December 23rd, 2009

Click photo for wallpaper-sized textless version.

It’s that time of the year again! In this Christmas special podcast we have our long-gesturing “Mel Gibson’s Nativity Story” intro (not for the easily offended), followed by each of our picks for:

  • Game of the Year
  • Game of the Decade
  • Movies of the Decade.

Finally we spend a far amount of time discussing the most revolutionary, woodenly acted, game-changing, generically plotted, astounding movie of all time AVATAR! Enjoy…

Listen to Benheck.com Podcast Episode 67

www.benheckpodcast.com

For additional fun, here’s a link to Jones’ review of “Avatar” on his website.

The Future of Videogames Part 5, 2009 Edition

December 15th, 2009

It’s that time of year again! Time to listen to me ramble on about what I think will happen in the gaming industry. For this installment I mostly concentrate on new consoles since I feel this generation is already getting old, well the 360 and Wii at least. Other topics covered are the death of music games without a country savior, 3D games and the Microsoft Natal.

Here it is, enjoy!

Hold Flipper for Status Update 3

December 10th, 2009

The finest in American engineering and pinball amusements.

Been kind of slow lately (could the recession be catching up to me?) so I’ve made a lot of progress on Bill Paxton Pinball. Features now include:

  • Up to 4 players per game - Modes are shared between players so it’s a race to see who can activate the big point bonus first.
  • High score save - Saved in the unused top half of EEPROM so it’s there forever, unless specifically wiped or of course beaten.
  • Animation - Using a separate program from the main kernel, Windows bitmaps are pre-loaded off SD onto the EEPROM for faster access during play.
  • Non-buggy sound playback - Sounds can interrupt each other without chance of lockup, thanks to a system of flags that properly closes any playing file before opening a new one.

In some sad news, there will come a point where updates on BPP come to a stop as the unit nears completion and I’ll want to keep its final look a secret until the reveal. This will probably happen when I put the main artwork on the playfield. However the goal still is to have this done in time for the Midwest Gaming Classic 2010 in Milwaukee Wisconsin, so it’s playable at our booth.

Again, this is being done as a personal “fun” project and is not for resale, however if you’d like your own custom pinball made I would be willing to discuss ideas. I may create a “kit” of the circuitry when it’s all said and done.

More info and video after the break!

Read the rest of this entry »

Benheck Podcast Episode 66

December 5th, 2009

In this podcast we discuss game ratings and the double standards that exist between that and movies, morality in games and how the advanced storytelling can affect the way we feel, and finally we go on for quite a while about how the government / nation should get back into the space race.

Listen to Benheck.com Podcast Episode 66

www.benheckpodcast.com

Benheck.com Experience at Midwest Gaming Classic 2010

November 20th, 2009

From the press release:

For 2010, Ben Heckendorn and his forums members return to make the benheck.com experience even better than 2009! Project reveals and discussion, real time modding and even the ability for show-goers to bring their own consoles to be modded by benheck.com regulars will be available as the benheck.com Experience moves into it’s own room and they throw out all of the rules about how your console or controller needs to look.

Check out the official site!

Benheck.com Podcast Episode 65

November 13th, 2009

We’re back again! In the last podcast we forgot to talk about the Xbox Dashboard update beta that Jones is participating in. Thus, we cranked out this new podcast quickly so we could discuss these changes before the update goes live.

We also - once again - discuss how Robert Zemekis needs to ditch the motion capture and make real movies again, other things we’re tired of in movies, and of course Modern Warfare 2.

Listen to Benheck.com Podcast Episode 65

www.benheckpodcast.com