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Dylan Loney isn't just a dude with an awesome name, he's also quite the Team Fortress 2 mod-tician ... which is a real word that we totally didn't make up. With a couple of custom maps under his belt, Loney decided to up the ante, so he rolled up his sleeves and turned Valve's class-based shooter into a speedy side-scroller.

The redesign was part of a contest for Interlopers back in December. Drawing inspiration from Canabalt, Loney created the complimentary mixture of TF2's characters and Canabalt's fast side-scrolling gameplay you see above. Actually, an image really doesn't sell it, so head past the break to check out some footage of it in action.

[Via Kotaku]

Our problem with Ghostbusters mainly revolves around the fact that we're not one of them. Our childhood-up-until-now dream has always been to slap on that jumpsuit and get knee-deep in Ectoplasmic residue with our comrades in arms, our shoulder patches glistening against the light of our never-crossing streams as we vanquish ancient evils. Well, it'll never happen -- mostly because Ghostbusters isn't real, despite our best attempts at willing it into existence.

But at least there's some consolation in a sweet Proton pack mod for the Wii. The glorious concoction of plastic and LEDs was created by Ghostbusters Fans forum member irrelevanttomfoolery and sets the benchmark for badass game controller mods. Seriously, that ridiculous Resident Evil 4 chainsaw is like child's play compared to how awesome this thing is, so click on the image above and go read up on it.

[Via Gizmodo]

Up until today, our biggest problem with Super Smash Bros. Brawl has been that it doesn't have enough introspective, spiky-haired RPG protagonists. That's all changed, thanks to a group of modders known as DasDonkey Team and Kitty Corp: Meow Mix. Final Fantasy VII protagonist Cloud Strife -- along with his trusty Buster sword -- has been faithfully recreated in surprising detail here in Nintendo's franchise fight-em-up with custom animations and attacks. We won't pretend to understand the motivation behind the implementation (with these mods, we so seldom do), but hey, we're not complaining. The more, the merrier!

Head past the break to check out some video of Cloud in action.

[Via GameVideos]

Here's a fun little piece of 16-bit history for you -- did you know that when Sega made its big announcement last week, a game called Sonic 4 had actually been floating around for 14 years? Sure, it's not an official Sonic game, mind you -- it was merely a modded version of the classic Sunsoft SNES platformer Speedy Gonzales: Los Gatos Bandidos. 1UP recently shared the game's illicit history -- a group of Peruvian hackers known as Twin Eagle Group got their hands on the game in 1996, removed all instances of the hasty Mexican mouse, and replaced them with Sega's spiny mascot.

Check out a gameplay clip of the unsanctioned Sonic 4 after the jump. Yeah, it doesn't look great -- but to be fair, Sonic doesn't whip out a gun at any point, nor does he engage in light bestiality, so we guess it has its charms.

[Via Kotaku]

It's likely your computer already hates you, what with all those Clay Aiken tracks and Joanie Loves Chachi episodes you store on the thing's hard drive. So why not allow the outside to properly convey the hatred it has for you on the inside? One individual has done just that -- while simultaneously paying homage to Sony's God of War franchise -- all with the Kratos case mod you see above. We'd comment further, but we think the mod is disturbingly close to being a sentient, living Kratos and would you want to piss him slash it off? Yeah, didn't think so.

Jump past the break for a brief video showing off the mod.

[Thanks, Regis]

Before you start wondering: No, we don't post about every single portable Nintendo 64 that slides across our tip box -- rather, we only spend our time writing about the ones that are so much cooler than their predecessors. We were pleased to find that one such project was recently highlighted by Engadget: The Kamikaze 64, which is demoed in a video after the jump.

The device, which was commissioned by an unnamed party for an unspecified amount of cash, isn't the smallest handheld N64 we've ever seen. However, with a crisp screen, support for a second controller, video output, a headphone jack and a Controller Pak slot, it might just be the most comprehensive stab anyone's ever taken at miniaturizing the console. We'll take four, thanks.

A dedicated team of homebrewers has done what Nintendo and Tecmo never did: translate Fatal Frame IV. A team at Fatal Frame fansite Beyond the Camera's Lens has released a patch that swaps out the Japanese text in the Tecmo/Nintendo/Grasshopper Manufacture-developed Fatal Frame IV: Mask of the Lunar Eclipse with its own translated English text and allows the Japanese disc to be loaded in other regions' Wiis. The best part? It runs from an SD card on any Wii -- no matter which region, and without the need for modding.

We suspect sites like Play-Asia and YesAsia are about to experience a significant increase in the number of orders for this 2008 survival horror game.

[Thanks, Antares Meketa!]

We don't get why somebody would do such a thing, but this mod by Flotonic, which inserts the space bounty hunter from Metroid into The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time, is pretty nifty nonetheless. The only issue is that the brief video clip -- which you can watch past the break -- doesn't show Samus pulling off any of her classic moves in Ocarina of Time. She doesn't morph into a ball and she doesn't fire a single shot from her arm cannon, but oh boy does she look good in the game.

[Via GoNintendo]

It was only a matter of time before beta testers of ModNation Racers would start recreating classic gaming icons. However, this Mod-recreated version of Twisted Metal's Sweet Tooth seems simultaneously cute, murderous and appropriate for the weapons-based racer.

Series creator David Jaffe posted this (and a number of other Twisted Metal Mods) on his blog, proudly proclaiming that "Twisted Metal on PS3!" would be "a cool idea." We're inclined to agree.

It's not often that console gamers get to brag to their PC gaming counterparts that their version of any given release is graphically superior; however, 2007's Xbox 360 release of Valve's Orange Box compilation included updated releases of both Half-Life 2 and Half-Life 2: Episode One – rebuilt with Episode Two's fancy new Source engine tech – while the PC releases sputtered on, sans engine enhancements and sans Achievements.

Well, that didn't sit right in one Mr. Filip Victor's craw, who grabbed his handy coding toolbelt and started hammering away on the original 2004 game adding things like HDR High Dynamic Range lighting (see above screengrab from the comparison video, posted after the break), updated models and textures and, of course, 32 Steam Achievements (demo video here). While the legality of this project is certainly dubious, the requirement of both Half-Life 2 and Half-Life 2: Episode Two should assuage your piracy concerns. Now, whether or not that assuages Valve's possible concerns with this project remain to be seen.

If you're interested you'd better find a download link in this forum thread, sooner than later. And, if you're keeping score, the Xbox 360 version still comes out on top with an updated version of Episode One, though Victor is apparently "working on the EP1 part now." Until that day of parity comes, enjoy the moment console gamers.

[Via Rock, Paper, Shotgun]

What's the best way to improve upon a suit that basically imbues its wearer with super powers? Give him a giant, badass robot to pilot instead -- and that's exactly what the MechWarrior: Living Legends mod for Crysis does. This full conversion mod transforms the game into something almost unrecognizable, complete with a unique story, mixture of first-person and sim gameplay and, more importantly, so so many giant robots.

If you're looking for some more information on the ambitious mod, check out the official FAQ and clear some HDD space. The mod is in beta now so feel free to get in on the fun here.

[Via Fidgit]

If you're an extremely nomadic gamer with a couple of grands in the bank to spare, you might be interested to learn that Ben Heck's ultra slick PS3 Slim laptop is now up for grabs on eBay. As you might remember, the portable-ized device was originally purchased by gaming retailer The Score, then raffled off to one of the shop's customers. Now that customer is selling it on eBay. We certainly hope that, at some point, somebody will play the damn thing. Please, if you've got the extra $2,000, won't you give this poor creature a permanent, loving home?

[Via Engadget]

We were just about to label 2009 the "Worst Year Ever in the History of Time," but ... but then this happened. From the depths of Reddit come a quintet of images of an unnamed musical engineer's latest project: An electric guitar shaped like a Koopa Troopa. We're so glad these pictures exist, because we're not sure our mind's eye could imagine something as fantastical as "an electric guitar shaped like a Koopa Troopa" without some sort of visual aid.

Check out the Reddit entry to see the fruits of this unnamed magician's labor. Whoever you are, if you're reading this, please send a video of you playing this thing. Ideally to Iron Maiden's "The Trooper."

Though it's certainly not the sleekest handheld device we've ever seen -- in fact, it might be in the running for the unsleekest device ever created -- the latest project from a modder, nicknamed Techknott, boasts some pretty impressive capabilities. Basically, the handheld sends control signals to a PS3, which transmits video signals back to the device, allowing for nomadic sessions of Modern Warfare 2 (or any other PS3 game), as seen in the video after the jump.

According to the modder's post on BenHeck.com, the device will soon be available for purchase. It certainly looks neat, but we're not sure the clunky controls will help you set any Spec Ops world records. Seriously, this guy's time on The Pit is garbage.

Left 4 Dead 2 on PC has just received a massive update, with both authoring tools for custom campaigns and a support package for those who just want to play custom games coming down the internet's chimney. That second part might not be so exciting if it weren't for the glorious detail that it "allows running ANY map [their emphasis], including custom maps made for the original Left 4 Dead."

All your old favorites like the Mushroom Kingdom (with zombies) and Lego (with zombies) -- totally playable in Left 4 Dead 2. The only thing that the Left 4 Dead 2 Team asked for in return was "to get to play your custom maps" in their game, so let's all do them a favor and get right on that. We're personally hoping to see a Back to the Future 2 (with zombies) mod by the weekend.

[Thanks, Cj]