Something went wrong. Try again later
    Follow

    Homebrew

    Concept »

    Homebrew software is a slang term for unofficial software and games for consoles and handhelds which don't generally support it, such as the Wii or Nintendo DS.

    Short summary describing this concept.

    No recent wiki edits to this page.

    Overview

    Homebrew is a particular type of unofficial software available for consoles and handhelds that has recieved a fair amount of attention from the media in countries like Japan. This attention is because to run Homebrew on some devices, you need to crack your console or buy a flashcart for a handheld. These two things are often linked with piracy as both allow you to play downloaded games. Homebrew has also recieved a small amount of positive media attention, being praised for turning consoles and handhelds into mutlimedia devices rather than just gaming tools. The most popular devices for Homebrew are: Nintendo DS, Nintendo Wii and the GameCube.

    Types of Homebrew

    Games

    Without a big publisher or help from Nintendo, making a Nintendo DS or Wii indie game was impossible as the copyright protection on the Wii would stop you from using burned discs. This limit has now been removed, and indie games are coming out for all consoles in the form of homebrew games. The games are often small in size and don't recieve much attention, but are often used in portfolios when applying for game development jobs.

    Applications

    The main type of Homebrew is applications, people download these to give their consoles and handhelds some of the functonality of desktop PC's. Media players and word processors are the main applications that are made, but there has also been a PDF Reader, Comic Book Reader, IRC clients, and a full port of Linux to DS.

    sizepositionchange
    sizepositionchange
    ×

    Edit Image Title

    ×

    Embed Image

    1. What size image should we insert? (This will not affect the original upload)

    2. How do you want the image positioned around text?

    ×

    Link to Giant Bomb Content

    You can search for any Giant Bomb content.

    ×

    Link to a page

    You can search for any Giant Bomb content.

    positionchange
    positionchange
    positionchange
    bordersheaderpositiontable
    ×

    Insert Table

    positionchange
    ×

    Embed tweet

    Enter the URL for the tweet you want to embed.

    ×

    Pick a List

    Close

    This edit will also create new pages on Giant Bomb for:

    Beware, you are proposing to add brand new pages to the wiki along with your edits. Make sure this is what you intended. This will likely increase the time it takes for your changes to go live.

    Comment and Save

    Until you earn 1000 points all your submissions need to be vetted by other Giant Bomb users. This process takes no more than a few hours and we'll send you an email once approved.

    ×

    Thanks, we're checking your submission.

    OK, RefreshHelp