Hacking still sounds cool. Edgy. Dangerous. Illegal. Bar some poorly misplaced '90's movies, hacking is still something that those involved with computers have probably seen as something 'cool' at some point in their electronic lives.

It's certainly something which intrigues me. I've wanted to write an article on the area of hacking (or soft modding) for some time, but let's face it; you have to be damn careful as to what you can talk about. With such a vast portal of information out there this article isn't about pointing you in the right direction or educating you on the pro's and con's of hacking or modding. It's more of an insight as to why hacking and modding takes place with a little Nintendo-flavoured sprinkling on top.

I'll start with a broad stroke (as to the finer details which will follow). I believe that people the world over like to 'tinker'. See that shelf that's wonky? Dad thought he could improve it. See that decal laden across her school-run car? She thought that would make the car look better. See that freshly bought external HDD? You get the idea.

Stop reading. Look around. The practicalities of 'modding' something and to a greater extent hacking existing products are evident for all to see. You could argue that's how evolution occurs (Rare evolved by reverse-engineering a NES). Throw in some words from Miyamoto himself "Imitation is the sincerest form of flattery" and you'll find that people just love to tinker.

Perhaps it's the inner child in all of us coming out to play? Curious, unaware of the boundaries when a feverous, practical temperament takes over. Or perhaps it's the human condition: Never truly satisfied. If, on a basic level, imitation actually creates comfort (*points at trends*) does manipulation of an existing format then create comfort and reward on a whole other level?

Now I've given enough pretext to chew on, take a second to look at yourself and establish if you've ever become curious since finding out other curious George's have monkeyed around with their consoles. Did you give in to the electrical thrill? Did you wipe your brow as you installed something from a PC or welded a chip to a circuit board? If so, are you a criminal or as you bought the system, is it your right to tinker? As I said earlier, is it that human need to tinker with the things we have? Ever catch yourself 'fine-tuning' your TV's settings?

If you ask the companies who create consoles (amongst other items) you just aren't meant to tinker. You see, they 'own' that silicon - but by that measure have you only loaned your console with your hard earned cash? It's a crazy suggestion as by that measure we would own nothing, nothing but what we originally create.

Now the finer Nintendo related details. Since 2006, you could argue that Nintendo knew the Wii was susceptible to hacking. Afterall, we all knew the Wii was running on the already-hacked GameCube architecture. Compare that with Sony's learnt lessons from the PS1/2 and the self-fortified PS3 (which has only recently been hacked) and you have to raise an eyebrow (or two.)

Now, I don't profess to know much about the inner-workings of the Wii. I don't profess to understand all of the many increments hackers have made to the innards of the Wii that have gone on to affect a certain amount of gamers. And I certainly don't profess that I know as much as little Timmy who hacks/mods consoles as a weekend hobby. However, what I do know is that Nintendo were very na�ve to re-use an already-hacked architecture. OK, argue that Nintendo have gone on to release firmware updates, but when you're fighting hardware and custom software updates from all areas you're winning a battle but losing the war.

Sadly it's the consumer that is ultimately affected. An irony all things considered. What I will state clearly is what we all know. Piracy is wrong. Aware of the House of the Dead: Overkill debacle? Sure, gamers cried out that they didn't want another on-rails shooter but the title was downloaded over 1 million times. In terms of missed revenue and perhaps future SEGA support you have to say that, whichever way you look at it, that's a huge chunk of free zombie blasting and missed revenue for SEGA. If the Wii is to be a viable hub for development then piracy is something which must be culled.

At least the less aware aren't conscious of the issues Nintendo face. I enjoy a new firmware release these days, purely to see how the 'scene' develops. But one thing is for certain: I know that those minds with their tinkering hands will engage Nintendo's security boffins all over again.

And of further note... I've always been intrigued by the thought of conspiracy. And I've always found it somewhat ironic that a large slice of the biggest selling consoles were 'easily' hackable (read: PC/PS1/PS2/360/Wii/DS). Can you correlate sales to 'free' software? Furthermore, since the mainstream arrival of a global network of information (the internet, folks), nothing will ever be a secret anymore. Whenever a new console is revealed, note how pictures are taken of the innards of the system. I imagine the hackers delight as they peer over their monitors mapping out (Zelda DS style) where their next challenge awaits.

What's your stance on hacking/modding and piracy? Leave your comments below.

Mark Lee
- N-Europe Staff Writer