GameCube mod confirmed
Japanese / American intercompatibility is a couple of solder marks away...
Some resourceful GameCube fans on the IGN message boards have uncovered the secret to the GameCube multiregion switch. Goodness only knows how they found it, but the technique is now documented on the IGN boards and at Lik-Sang.com. As it happens, the mod is incredibly simple. You just need the official Gamebit tool to open up the console, then once you have uncovered the motherboard it's simply a bridge that has to be closed, rather like the L1 bridges on the top of an AMD Athlon. By soldering wires to both points and putting a switch in the middle, you can change the region of your GameCube at will, just like the development units seen at ECTS earlier this year. An open bridge means a Japanese unit, and a closed bridge means an American one. In American mode, the menus even appear in English! This mod does not offer PAL compatibility, and we doubt anybody will at this rate, but it's interesting to see just how flimsy Nintendo's region lockout actually was. Expect to see multi-region GameCubes available very shortly, and modders offering to 'fix' your GameCube too. Moreover, if the change is so simple, it should be very easy for Nintendo to balance stock between Japan and the US when the GameCube launches on November 18. Related Feature - Hip to be Cube!