If you’ve ever played games through an emulator on your smartphone, then you know exactly how annoying it can be to play certain games using on-screen controls. In particular, I’m referring to games that require the use of diagonal directions. Classic games don’t usually have support for a virtual analog stick, so it leaves the player often struggling to move. Devices with hardware keyboards fair better with emulators, but there are just too many keys packed into a small area. The phrase “too close for comfort” comes to mind.
That’s why we have to tip our hats off to a gentleman by the name of Phawx. He actually modded the keyboard on his Samsung Epic 4G to work as a gamepad and to accomplish that, he destroyed its default functions. Now that’s hardcore gaming dedication. As you can see by the picture above and video below, only a few keys are left for use with emulators. It seems to work pretty well in performing fireballs and dragon punches in Street Fighter 2, moves that are extremely difficult to pull off consistently using a stock keyboard layout. He claims he only uses Swype, which is an innovative swipe to type input method, so he didn’t have any other use for the hardware keyboard.
Read more about Phawx’s adventures at BrainLazy. Would you ever do this to your beautiful Epic 4G, all in the name of better gaming controls? We’re pretty sure you wouldn’t, but it’s still cool to see someone else do it.
(source: BrainLazy via Engadget)
