Games - Homebrew

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	Games - Homebrew

Homebrew video games are video games written by hobby programmers.

The term is frequently applied only on video games that are produced on proprietary game platforms - in other words, game platforms that are not typically user-programmable, or use proprietary hardware for storage. Sometimes games developed on official development kits, such as Net Yaroze or PS2 Linux are included in the definition. Some, however, also refer all non-commercial, "home-developed" games for open architectures as homebrew games, though these typically go under more frequently used labels, such as freeware. The term doesn't, however, include commercially sold games that are developed without console manufacturer's license.

A popular type of homebrewed games is fangames. In Japan, these games are usually called Dojin soft.

The homebrew games are typically developed to be used with emulators. There have been efforts to use actual console hardware; Atari 2600 homebrew developers can use various methods (such as audio transfer via SuperCharger module) and Game Boy Advance has several ways to use flash memory cartridges (see Game Boy Advance flash cartridges).

Older generations

Today, along with Sega Dreamcast, the most frequently used platforms for homebrew development represent a good part of the older generations of the consoles - the Atari 2600, Nintendo Entertainment System, and Game Boy Advance, latter of which has capabilies comparable and in some cases far exceeding those of the standalone consoles of that era.

The Atari 2600 and NES are interesting because they both use 6502 instruction set which is likely to be familiar to people who have programmed 8-bit computers, such as Commodore 64.

A big factor is that the platforms (and portable platforms in general) are simple enough that a very small team, or a lone programmer, can make a decent enough game for them, therefore favoring homebrew projects which are usually undertaken by small teams or individuals.

Game Boy Advance

The popularity of homebrew development for the Game Boy Advance system in 2001 through 2006 is due to the availability of C compilers and ready-made, high-quality code libraries, and the direct gdb debugger integration for VisualBoyAdvance (the most popular GBA emulator). Also contributing to the success is both the popularity of the system in general, and the wide availability of Flash ROM cartridges and cartridge writers in online shops.

Sixth-generation consoles

All of the major sixth generation ("128-bit") consoles also enjoy some popularity with the modders, but less so than earlier generations. Mostly this is due to the fact that producing software for powerful platforms needs more resources, there arent' very good emulators for these platforms yet, and the consoles themselves often employ rather complex systems to prevent unauthorized code. Homebrew developers often have to use "loopholes" to get their software to run.

Sega Dreamcast

Sega Dreamcast was a console that, while shadowed by its later competitors, is particularly lauded for its homebrew development capabilities. Today, many versions of Linux and BSD can be used on Dreamcast.

Playstation 2

Early versions of the PlayStation 2 have a buffer overflow bug in the part of the BIOS that handles PS1 game compatibility; hackers figured out how to turn this into a loophole called PS2 Independence Exploit.

Sony also released an official homebrew-development kit that allows Playstation 2 to run Linux.

Nintendo GameCube

The GameCube, when it comes to homebrew, has not enjoyed much success due to the fact that it uses quite obscure hardware. Popular rumor stated that the GameCube used non-standard dvd-media that was incompatable with consumer dvd burners. Among other things, the rumors stated that GameCube discs spun backwards, and that they were written from the outside in. In fact, the only barriar to burning GameCube discs with a consumer dvd burner is a "barcode" in the innermost ring of the disc, in an area inaccessable to most burners. The console itself uses very low-profile lockout; for a long time the only way to run homebrew software on GameCube was through a patching-system exploit of Phantasy Star Online. ]

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