Thoughts On The Xbox One: Innovative Tech, Or a Privacy Breach?

Now- at the time I am writing this article I have been sick with a cold and severe congestion. Although my sore throat is mostly gone- it is still very difficult to speak. I wanted to record my thoughts on the new Xbox One- but the voice quality would not only be poor- it would be non-existent. 

A week or two ago, Microsoft had a reveal on one of their campuses regarding the new Xbox console. It has been titled the Xbox One. If you missed the live broadcast; you aren’t missing much of anything: the main highlights were “TV, TV, TV, TELEVISION, WATER COOLER, TV, TV, sports, sports, sports, EA sports, sports, sports, television, rocket science, not rocket science, Call of Duty, Call of Duty, Call of Duty, Call of Duty, a dog, real seal team dog, Call of Duty; “Xbox off””.

The reveal wasn’t anything spectacular. Words buzzed around the internet and even through the press. Many call the Xbox One just a big entertainment box; which may potentially alienate gamers who want a dedicated gaming console. With so much focus on dogs, Call of Duty, rocket science technicalities, TV, water coolers and SPORTS SPORTS, MADDEN SPORTS, Microsoft certainly has not impressed very many crowds. You can only put an Aussie sounding guy on stage for so long that it no longer remains cool.

There are many types of game players out there. Some like PC only; others like consoles and a mix of PC games. Some like tablet and phone stuff. But the expectations set forth by core gamers like myself, who have been at this now for 21 years; are the following:

The game must pack enough reasonable content for my bottom dollar. Look. The industry standard for a video game is $60 US for about 25 hours of content. When we do some math, we get a number: $2.40 per gameplay hour. I will admit that not every gamer is good with numbers or looks at the details as close as I am: but the central point is the same. When discussing games in the realm of, say for example: action RPG games, we can look at Skyrim v. Mass Effect 3, although I’ve already broken my own rule because 

Mass Effect 3 is a 3^rd person shooter with RPG elements. When we’re talking about a $60 game, you are getting about 50 hours maximum out of it. Not bad, not bad- so you’re paying about $1.20 per game hour. When we talk about Skyrim, a game so jam packed with content that the game turns platinum- you’re looking at about, so far, to my estimation, 300 hours of gameplay. For $60, that’s $0.20 per game hour. That is bloody excellent.

As a gamer I want value. I want content, no filler, and stuff to do. Achievements don’t cut it for me. I don’t care about them. More importantly, I like it when a brand new game console does not phase out the previous generation. I do not have a $100,000 a year salary to splurge on games and fun. While I will make enough money in the very near future, I am frugal by nature. I don’t like paying these “premium” prices for video games. So that means I like buying used games. After all, I’ve purchased two pre-owned, used vehicles, one from Ford and one from Pontiac (who is now Chevrolet), and after the initial purchase off of the dealer lot from the original owner, that vehicle was none of their business. They sold it, it’s mine, and they can fuck off.

It’s the same with used video games I’ve bought from people. When I buy something online through a site like EBay, and very, very rarely from GameStop- who I have an entire rant to go on- I am buying to play the game that I missed out on. I understand that intellectual property is a thing. I understand that businesses must make money to make a living. Of course I am against people ripping off another’s IP without permission.

However, when that game disc or game content is purchased, keep your fucking hands off of it. It’s mine, and when the cash is handed over, I don’t care what EULA you forced me to sign, it’s my property, it’s protected by first sale doctrine and I have the legal right to resell it and loan it without the initial company’s interference. What if Ford came to me wanting a royalty on the sale of that used car? I’d tell them to fuck off.

I want a fun game. I want a good time- and for some gamers that may mean online multiplayer. A CD key, if needed should stay with the disc or the data bits on the HDD. Someone already bought the rights to play online, and by selling their copy of the content, they sold that right to play that copy online. If game publishers want my money, they’d better provide bug fixes and free online servers for multiplayer. Better yet- allow users to make their own servers. Microsoft would call me an entitled little bitch. They would be correct- because it’s my bloody money.

To recap, here is what I want as a gamer. Let’s recap with the obvious: I want to be able to take the game, install it and then play it. I want to be able to take a game disc, pop it in, possibly install it, then play it. The whole CD Key thing is a pain in the ass, but it’s ok- I power through it. I want value, content, things to do and an awesome experience- preferably where the user is not constrained or “guided” by an invisible hand. I want my right to first sale doctrine respected, and if the company fucked up with bugs I want the fixed, if at all possible. If you want my money, that’s what it’s going to take to get it.

Let’s backup to motion controls briefly. It’s a neat concept. Nintendo has shown that it can work- but more often than not the industry is too stubborn to learn new tricks- except where it protects their flanks on the business end of things. I thought the Kinect was cool as a casual gamer device. However, I am not interested in the Kinect, the features it includes or the games that run on it. I’ve tried it, it’s different, some people may not like it, but I am an old war horse here. Come on.

It is my opinion that the Xbox One failed to deliver at the latest reveal for core gamers. There will be people who enjoy Call of Duty and Madden games like a religion, and already they have come out in small droves gnashing their teeth in defense of Microsoft. Let’s start with my #1 beef with the new Xbox One; and that is the Kinect 2.0.

In order for the Xbox One to function, the Kinect 2.0 must always be connected. It scans the room and asks to identify who people are. Once it knows, it stores information on the console, and possibly to an external server. I’ve got huge privacy concerns over a device- connected to another device connected to the internet- that is watching me through a camera and listening to me with a microphone. I don’t care if Microsoft says “we are the pioneers of privacy”. Things go wrong; people get hacked, and I do not trust Microsoft to do the right thing. Especially with CISPA floating around, what is to stop Microsoft from collecting this information and sharing it with the government? It doesn’t matter- it is neither of their business! GET OUT of our private lives!

Why must the Kinect be mandatorily connected all the time? So that my “experience” can be enhanced? Bullshit. I don’t want it- and right off the bat Microsoft has alienated me as a potential consumer. I am literally sick and tired of the social media movement on the internet requiring everyone’s name and personally identifiable information. I am about to tell Google to fuck off about it because they want me to use my real name on YouTube. Fat chance.

When Diablo III came out, they made it a requirement that you must be connected to the internet in order to play single player or otherwise. Disturbingly they are setting a trend in the gaming industry. In order for your Xbox One not to become a brick, it must connect one every 24 hours, according to executives, in order to authenticate your account. That means check if you are hacking or violating their “property” that they just sold you. We might as well just call it an always online DRM scheme- but that’s not entirely accurate- and not entirely fair. The console must be hooked to the internet once every 24 hours, so call it an ‘always on’ system. I’ve got a major problem with that.

I said earlier that I just want the damn game installed so that I can dive right in. Not so with the Xbox One. In order to play the games, you MUST register them through the console onto the internet in order to install them. From that point on, the game key becomes tied to your account. It doesn’t help the fact that Microsoft has patented technology to count the number of people in the room in order to charge them per person. I am also deeply concerned that the Kinect 2.0 will not recognize “you” as someone else plays your game in your home, and that it will not let that authorized user play the game. Horse shit. Remember what I said about getting out of my private life? This is a huge intrusion into it. Once I give you the money, you have no fucking business monitoring me and what I choose to do with the product- except if I try to sell it as an IP for profit- then I am guilty of copyright violations.

Okay Microsoft okay… you’ve pounded and crushed the corpse into the ground enough now. Sadly I am not done. Microsoft wants a royalty fee for used games. So I cannot go to the second hand market to buy a game. They’ll let me, but in order to activate it I have to pay $52 US dollars in order to do it! Why not just buy the fucking game while I am at it! That is a major deal breaker for me; but everything wrong with this… device… has been a deal breaker for me.

An unconfirmed source indicates that in order to stream Hulu and Netflix- you’ll have to pay Microsoft for the Xbox live service. I can hook up my PS3 and Wii, and probably the PS4- and definitely the Wii U- and they won’t charge me for multiplayer access or an internet connection. If you want more money from me as a consumer, you’d better offer more content- not charge me for something I already pay the internet company for!

Here’s another biggy- the One is not backwards compatible. Big mistake- because now you are alienating games to play with during launch, and as a matter of fact gamers actually do like backwards compatibility. This competitive advantage has been removed from the One. The PS4 offers it through emulation, and the WII U is one generation backwards compatible plus emulation back to NES including (I believe Turbografix 16 and Sega Genesis titles).

From the campus introduction, it seems that the One will connect to your cable set box in order to provide an overlay on the screen. I really don’t care and I don’t see the usefulness in this technology as a gamer. Blu-ray player sure, but this? Are you guys really out of ideas?

There are very few good things, if any to say about the One- but I thought I would throw them in here. The 8GB of GDDR3 is nice, but it highlights the fact that Xbox One is becoming a computer/entertainment device rather than a dedicated gaming console. I like Blu ray and I like storage on the console; but the One is attempting to cater to a larger market than gamers- and if folks with half a brain look at the Kinect 2.0 requirement they will think twice about using this for its ultimate, intended purpose: to be an entertainment center device. The PS4 in contrast will have 8GB GDDR5. That is dedicated graphical RAM.

While memory v. processing capabilities is a complimentary deal in my limited knowledge of electronics engineering, from what I have been told from friends, the processor speeds will be sub-par to what I currently own in my gaming PC. If they wanted to WOW me further they could increase the quality of the processor- but then why call it a gaming console? Why not call it a computer with a fancy controller? In five years the tech will be out of date, and those who wish not to jump to PC gaming will be stuck with the same hardware for about a console generation- which lasts on average about 6-7 years now.

There is a longer battery life in the controller and I can’t pin down the source of that information, but I did read it. That is a good thing when you can increase the battery power capabilities in a wireless controller- but it’s kind of a given. The quiet operation is nice, but it doesn’t earn the One many brownie points. One thing I do like about the console is Skype connectivity. That’s actually cool and potentially something useful. That’s really all I can say about the One.

I need to wrap up here as we should be around the 10 minute mark, but with the way the One has been portrayed with all its privacy invasions and DRM, I am going to take a major league pass on this “device”. I refuse to call it a console because it has strayed from its main purpose- and they have alienated me as a gamer from finding value in their games and for treating me like a potential pirate stealing their plunder. 

That type of behavior from any corporation is unacceptable- and I will not support the schemes that Microsoft is imploring. This means that I get to decide between a Wii U and a PS4- so the PS4 reveal at E3 will be interesting. Sony is lined up to take the gold here- and if they took any lessons from the One reveal, they will steal a lot of business from folks who not only are angry with these DRM and privacy violations, but from the core, rabid fanboys of games such as Call of Duty who “don’t want to bother with the DRM and paying for live, so I’ll just get a PS4”.

We'll see.

Desert Strike, Return to the Gulf: Part I

Desert Strike: Return to the Gulf (you can use this guide, but give The Guy With Not Enough Time On His Hands credit).

Introduction 
Desert Strike is a helicopter shoot em' up title that was released in the mid 90's for the Super Nintendo and Sega Genesis platforms. I have played both versions and they are nearly identical. However- and I say this after playing the SNES version for years; I prefer the Sega Genesis version. The sequel's sequel, Urban Strike, suffers from lag on the SNES because the hardware cannot process it as fast as the Genesis. In that respect (playing Urban Strike) the Genesis has more raw processing power. The game is about a madman during the events of Desert Storm, and came out a while after. The madman is out to cause mayhem in the Middle East by taking over a "small country" *COUGHkuwaitCOUGH, and you are being called to thwart his plans.

One amusing difference is in the introduction: in the Genesis version a soldier is seen drowning someone with an apparatus. In the SNES version, he is just in a cage. I would suspect Nintendo had some kind of say in that. I digress. This game has four levels with each one getting incrementally harder. This game is played with three key points in mind: Survival, fuel management and flight planning. Differences between Strikes Here are the differences between SNES and Genesis. Genesis is more synthesized and has a lot more processing power while the SNES version is more mono/stereo than synthesized. Also, before the debriefing while it shows your score, on the Genesis it is a round port hole. On the SNES, it is a square port hole. On the Genesis version the terrorist is drowning a guy in a torture device. In the SNES version he is in a cage. Genesis also offers less lag than the SNES due to raw processing power. Other than that, and a cool missile on the menu screen of the Genesis, there isn't much of a difference. Also, the SNES version uses numbers in the password. The Genesis uses letters only, passwords between the platforms are NOT interchangeable.

The Three Key Aspects of the Strike Games 
Survival- This game is about survival. You survive by using two methods: managing your ammo consumption and dodging attacks. A common way to avoid enemy fire is to quickly back up, fly right past a target, or circle around it. Also- pick up friendlies when you can. Your apache is equipped with a winch which allows it to collect 1 ups, ammo, fuel, and personnel. The apache has a full load of 6 people (keep in mind, in real life this is not true). You want to land at a designated landing zone with people when you are low on armor- one person replenishes 100 armor, and you only have 600 in Desert Strike. Also remember that missions MUST be completed in order. If you don't, you will run into a "danger zone" with twice as powerful and twice as accurate enemies. Unless something is directly in your way, just ignore it. For objectives that are guarded, it may be wise to take out the defenses first to save heartache from happening later.

Fuel Management- That apache burns fuel like no tomorrow. If I recall correctly, you consume fuel at a rate of one point per second- so you will need to pick up gas roughly every 2 minutes. When your fuel gauge reads below 30, it is time to get fuel. If you don't, you will crash and waste a life.

Flight Planning- After level 1, flight planning is key. You want to leave certain ammo crates and fuel drums in place in the event you will need them later. Only take what you need when you need it. If you plan accordingly, you will save ammo, armor and especially fuel. Know where targets are beforehand, get in there, and get out. Don't dawdle around. This also includes knowing where secret items are located (usually hidden in structures). I'll do my best to point out where some of them are.

Level 1: 
Briefing: To begin, the defense forces on the coast need to be wiped out, along with their power, air fields and radar stations. You also need to rescue your mole, who has information regarding the madman's nuclear activities.

Radar Stations
On the way to your first radar station is a friendly being shot at. Help him out and pick him up. AAA reside right by the first dish. Fly around and fire two medium missiles into each of them. Bring out your small gun and blow up that radar dish. Fly northwest and repeat the process to knock out all radar stations.

Bonus F15 rescue 
Further to the northeast is a downed US air force pilot being shot at. Help him out, winch him into the copter, then blow up the F15. Power Station After rescuing the downed pilot, continue east. You will see a village under attack- rescue the woman and continue east. Then you will encounter an ambush where three army personnel are in trouble. Free them and wench them up.

Power Station
Look a little to your right and you will see power lines. Follow them southwest until you reach the power station. You will encounter two AAA and a rapier. Light up the AAA's with medium missiles and the Rapier with a hellfire. Try not to get hit by the rapier; it hurts. At this point you should be full on personnel- so you can't rescue the two by the power station. Light up the power plant to finish objective 2. When you blow up the station, a repair crate will spawn. Take it if you need it, but at this point I had 525/600 armor. Avoid the M3VDA on the way to the air field to the west.

Air fields 
After the power plant you should be running low on gas. Take the drum at the station and move west. You will encounter two rapiers and three AAAs at the airfield. Dispatch them, and kill the pilots running for the MIGs. Be careful blowing up the control tower: a guy with a SAM is inside. As you blow up the hangars, an M3VDA will join the party. Launch a hellfire into it and continue your work. The far right hangar has fuel in it- and a guy with a SAM. Take the fuel crate, blow up the MIGs, and move southeast. There is an ammo crate down here- I found that I was low on ammo. You will see a set of small mini-warehouses. The ammo crate is in the upper right most one. Grab it and move southwest. Light up this airfield to complete objective 3. Again, watch out for hidden SAM guys.

Command Center 
At this point I am sitting at 20/600 armor. Head directly west and follow the coastline up to the landing zone where a small barge is waiting to take the folks you rescued. This will replenish your armor; 100 per person. Let 'em out then pick up the fuel and the ammo crate nearby. Your next objective is a command center in the upper right corner of the map. There are two of them: you need to take out only one and get the commander. At this point you had to unload anyways- because if you tried to pick up the commander with a full load; the copilot will yell that you are full. You can't just chuck someone out the chopper to make room.

Target the watch tower to the far left of the compound and pick up the armor kit if you need it. Take out the rapier and two AAA's, along with any watch towers in the way and nab your commander.

Secret Agent 
Then fly to the green dot on your map. Pump some lead into that AAA and grab the fuel tank. The building you want to blow up is on the far left side. Watch the little cinematic and prepare for four M3VDA's to pounce on you. Avoid their fire and blow 'em up with a hellfire each. Get the agent and your copilot and return to base for a mission complete.
PASSWORD TO LEVEL 2: OQAHRAY (Genesis)

Debriefing: The madman is not happy with his generals. In retaliation, the madman prepars his scuds for an attack on the populace. The agent we rescued told us of the location of generals who know where the SCUDs are, and the location of several prisons where political prisoners are being held.  

Enemy Guide

AAA (threat out of 5: *)

MVDVA (threat: * *)

Rapier (threat: * * *)

Level 2:
Briefing: The madman has retaliated for your efforts in level 1 by preparing the SCUDs for immediate launch, missiles that are powerful enough to cause major damage to the populace. Your job will be to destroy the majority of these SCUDs as well as knock out the power station, radar sites that will track incoming aircraft, and a chemical weapons facility. Also, the agent told us of a POW camp location. We need to get our men out of there.

Radar Sites 
These sites are a lot like the previous level: pump lead into the AAAs and then destroy the dishes. Start at the highest station near the top of the map and work your way down. After this mission is complete, we will work our way back up, rescuing the political prisoners. Watch out at the center radar dish- it has a AAA and a rapier guarding it. Blow it up to reveal an ammo crate. Leave it there for later. The final dish will have two rapiers guarding it. Blow them up and begin work on the prisons.

Political Prisoners 
Be very careful loading up the prisoners: a ZSU is going to waltz in on your parade and begin firing. These guys HURT, avoid them at all costs. It will take two hellfires to take one out. Fly northeast to the landing zone at the M2 Bradley IFV and unload your cargo, giving you more armor. If you need the fuel, take the drum here. When you are working on the center prison, a building to the left holds a fuel drum and to the northwest an ammo crate. Grab them if you need them. When you finish the objective, you should have four or five prisoners. You will need to unload them to make room for the SCUD commanders. Fly back and drop them off at the Bradley for some armor.

Power Station 
Next we want to knock out the power station. Fly northwest of the Bradley to reach the station. It will be guarded by two gunmen and three SAM guys. Take out two of the SAM guys on the ground and the gunmen, and avoid the fire of the one on top of the plant. Pump lead into it to complete the objective. Leave the fuel drum here.

Chemical Weapons 
Next we need to knock out the plant and the storage domes. Fly to the southeast corner of the map. If you are low on gas, fly down to the coast and pick up that fuel drum. Prepare for another M3VDA party and watch out for the three AAA guns. Some medium rockets should dispatch them. Quickly blow everything up, including the domes and the plant itself. If you need ammo, there is a crate to the north.

SCUDs 
Bring up your map and look for the Scud commanders. This is where flight planning is going to come in handy- fly in the right order to save some fuel. Head for the closest commander in your vicinity. They are all in double hutted barracks. Blow it up carefully and capture your man in red. Watch out for surprise SAM guys. When you capture a commander, he will tell you where a SCUD is on your map: it is a solid red dot. Some players choose to pick up all of the commanders first, then attack the SCUDs. You can certainly do this to save time and fuel, but I foolishly found my guy then blew up the SCUD, rinse and repeat. Watch out for AAA near the SCUD and send 3 hellfires into it, or whatever you have left. Some are allowed to get away- but if too many do, you fail the mission. To follow the most efficient strategy, continually head to your closest target and move upwards, then to the nearest SCUD and go downwards. do NOT get too close or they will fire off their weapons! Only engage them when ready.

POW Camp
By now fuel is getting scarce. I engaged the POW camp from the south and hit the first watch tower. Blow all the other ones up and send some lead into the cabins. Make sure you are clear to pick these guys up, or else you will be fired on collecting them. Carry your cargo to the Bradley and repeat the process. Watch out for ZSU that want to rain on the parade. The second you complete the objective, head straight for the frigate, unless you can make it to a fuel drum, then to the frigate. Good job!

New Enemy Guide: ZSU (threat: 3.5/5)

Quick Sega Genesis Tips; Cleaning Games and Removing the Dust Cover

Cleaning a Sega Genesis Controller and Deck

Restoring a Sega Genesis *coughcleaningonecough* can be a very easy process that won't take you more than 20 minutes maximum. My Genesis was purchased a while back, and I never got around to restoring it. It needed very little: a stuck C button on the pad, a cleaning, and a cord replacement. I will walk you through opening both of them (the pad and the console)

The innards of a Sega Genesis. For safety purposes, make sure to ground yourself before touching the PCB (printed circuit board). You can see the cartridge output, the power output, and the AV output. To get here, you will need to remove the top half of the console. Unscrew four screws in the bottom of the console, remove them, and gently lift up. Next, remove the 6+ screws holding down the RF shield. This piece of sheet metal was designed to not let radio frequencies go in or out around the circuitry, to make it FCC compliant. Be careful, edges can be sharp. Remove that, and you will end up where the photo is. From here, clean out any dust that got inside. I use an old toothbrush and a paintbrush that was never used for painting (a $1.00 one from Home Depot would suffice). Circuitry does not like dust! If a Genesis has never been opened in 15+ years, you should expect some dust.

Here are the halves to a Sega Genesis controller. The PCB has been removed and stored in a safe place, and cannot be washed with any type of liquid. You will see my shaver guide, which you should ignore, a camera tripod, which you should ignore, the top half of the controller, the bottom half, buttons A,B,C, the start button, and the directional piece.

I immediately suspect that someone was either very careful with their system, or packed it away for years. The quality of this controller face is still excellent, with minor wear.

Going into this, I knew the C button was sticking. This is likely because someone spilt a liquid near the button, and that liquid had a residue that remained. This residue is likely soda- when it dries it will stick to any surfaces it contacts, making the button very hard to press. In this photo, you can see the remains of a 10+ year old soda stain.

I use an old toothbrush that is no longer used for brushing teeth. It is gentle, yet abrasive enough to get at anything that needs to be cleaned. Put a little of your favorite soap onto the head and begin scrubbing. I scrubbed the entire ensemble a few pictures above, making sure to get into the crevices of the two controller halves. Historically, this is where all of the dead skin cells accumulate, and they can remain there, crusted, for a decade. I found some, and promptly cleaned it. Soap and water removed the offending residue. If it is really bad, you will need a) ventilation and b) a product called "Goo Gone". If GG doesn't work, it is GG for you, and you will be crap out of luck. I have never had a residue that fully resisted GG. Clean with soap and water, scrubbing into every surface that you can. Douse the plastic parts in water, and hand dry them. To get any remaining pools of liquid, I let the parts dry overnight, though it shouldn't take that long.

Once everything is dry, you can begin reassembling the controller. Make sure that the rubber pads are in good shape (they are essential) and clean, and then align them into the front half with the buttons. Reinstall the PCB, keeping in mind that the wire has to go in so far. Make sure the screw holes line up, place the back on top, and re-screw everything back together. Enjoy your gaming session!

Opening Sega Genesis Cartridges

As a retro gamer, it is important to me to clean and maintain my aging collection of cartridge based games. Here I will outline what you need to do in order to clean and open your Sega Genesis games. As a legal warning: you cannot sue me for the information contained in this article or website. I am not responsible if you melt your soldering iron into your arm. With that out of the way...

Regular Sega Genesis Cartridges
Regular cartridges, and carts in general accumulate a lot of dust when they are moved around and played with. The technology of the day included golden tabs (pins) that made contact with the connector inside the console. If one pin was dirty or broken, a distortion would appear on the screen, or the game would not work at all. Genesis games and NES games are notorious for this.

You will need 1x 4.5mm security bit to open most Genesis carts. There are some carts with different screws, but we will get to them.To begin, lay the cartridge down on a flat surface. Locate the two screws on the back and verify they are security bits (a inverted hexagon shape). Simply remove the screws (if they are rusted or tight, apply a low amount of torque "twist" to get them moving) to gain access to the inside of the cart.

Remove the backing and you will have access to the PCB (printed circuit board). NES PCB's are roughly this size too- they needed to design the cart to fit the cart loader. Weird design, but let's get back to the Genesis. At this point, ground yourself to avoid any static transfer. I touch my computer case, which is in contact with materials that are in contact with the ground. The PCB includes IC chips (integrated circuit), which may or may not be of the CMOS variety. Still, ground yourself to be safe than sorry.

Lift the PCB and flip it over. This is the true game. You will see the gold pins on the PCB, and if you are intuitive, you may see that the PCB does not use all of the pins. This is OK. I highly suggest not touching the IC chip unless you have the experience of working with them. You may also see a capacitor on the inside. On my Ecco the Dolphin cartridge, I see two. Some carts, which games contain save files will contain a watch battery of some sort. Record the type and buy a new one roughly every 5-7 years.

You can use two cleaning agents for the job: Windex or Isopropyl Alcohol. I have both, but like to use the alcohol for cleaning contacts. Take a q-tip and moderately scrub the dirt off of the contacts, on both sides. Throw away your Q-tip and let the contacts air dry for a little bit. Do not overdouse the Q-tip.

When complete, close her up and have a good time playing! Remember to flip around the PCB so that the IC chip faces the FRONT of the cart. You don't need to clean the PCB board itself because the cartridge plastic protects it, but not the contacts. Do not over-tighten your screws.

Miscellaneous Carts
Misc carts are cartridges that appear like normal carts, but have different screw heads. If you have a driver set, you should be able to find your corresponding bit. So far, the companies that use non-security bits include Majesco/Konami/Microprose.

Electronic Arts Carts
EA used to be pretty cool back in the day- they had ok games. Today... I can't stand them. With their policies towards customers and their push to censor the internet... they bring my piss to a boil. So do these carts!

EA carts have yellow tabs on their left side. They were designed this way because Sega did not have time to give EA the design plans for a Genesis cart, so they reverse engineered their own. They are ass. Fortunately, I have not ran into one yet that does not use security bits. You can open them like normal, but not fully. Either break the clip or don't. I choose not to, and repositioning the PCB is a pain in the ass, and it is time consuming. Go old school and leave these things shut if you can.



Next time, we'll look at the gut of a Sega Genesis...